•
Mughal Empire
• Invasion of India• India had been
through a time of turmoil
• Hindus and Muslims fighting over territory
• Turkish invaders: Hindus treated like conquered peoples
Leadership
• Babur: 11 year old• Tiny kingdom• Effective military
leadership • Poet, artist• Incompetent son takes
over: lost most of the territory gained
Golden Age
• Akbar (1556-1605)• Muslim leader• Defended religious
tolerance• Fair taxation• Importance of cultural
blending
Military
• Military power root of success
• Heavy artillery• Potential enemies as
military leaders• United over 100
million people
Social Reform
• Akbar pushed for social changes, going beyond mere public works projects.
• Improved calendar, built living quarters for large population of beggars and vagabounds.
• Regulated the consumption of alcohol.
Gender Reform
• Ahead of his time involving thoughts about position of women.
• Encouraged widow remarriage.
• Discouraged child marriages.
• Relief for women trapped in purdah (seclusion)- market days for women only.
Culture• Many cultures welcomed• Persian language• Common person spoke
Hindi• Arts flourished• Drew from western
influence • Literature• Libraries• Architecture: Akbar period
Decline
• Ended in a patchwork of independent states
• Trade with Europeans: India’s next conquerors
• Rajputs rebel!• Outbreak of wars with
Sikhs and Rajputs• War takes money =
taxes• No loyalty to leader• Weakened central state,
power of local lords grew
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