Reasons for the Decline of the Mughal Empire

There are many reasons why the Mughal Empire declined. The decline was gradual and, although some historians blame Aurangzeb for sowing the seed of decline, the Empire continued for another 150 years after his death. Perhaps, the real answer to the question is that a number of factors combined to bring about the fall of one of Asia’s most famous dynasties.

Impact of Aurangzeb’s Policies on the Stability of the Mughal Empire

After defeating the Imperial Army, Aurangzeb took steps to establish himself as Emperor. Although Shah Jehan had left the Empire larger and more peaceful than at any other time in its history, this did not last. Aurangzeb was soon finding that much of his time and money was spent fighting.

• There was a war against the Rajputs from 1679-1681 and rebellions by the Sikhs, the Satnamis in Mewar, and the Jats in Gokal.
• Since Aurangzeb was keen to extend his Empire northwards, he also had to fight a tough campaign against Pathan tribes in the North West Frontier.
• Perhaps, most costly for Aurangzeb was the campaign fought against the Maratha tribe in the Deccan. Shivaji, the Maratha leader, was originally defeated in 1665 and brought as a prisoner to Agra. However, he escaped and was, soon, back in the Deccan, leading the fight against Aurangzeb. Even after 25 years of fighting, Aurangzeb had not subdued the Marathas. However, he had almost emptied the Mughal treasury. Although Aurangzeb did face many problems in extending the Empire by the time of his death in 1707, it was larger than it had ever been, stretching from Kashmir to the Karnataka and Ghazni to Chittagong.

Effectiveness of Aurangzeb’s Successors as Rulers

Aurangzeb had become Emperor by defeating his rivals in battle. He was determined to avoid such a war after his death, so he divided the Empire between his three sons. However, he did not succeed. Fighting broke out between them, and eventually Prince Muazzam established himself as Emperor. He survived only a few years and then his four sons fought over the throne, but the victor, Jahandar Shah, was murdered within a year. In the ten years after Aurangzeb’s death, twelve different people claimed to be Emperor at one time! The stable Mughal Empire had become weak and divided. Muhammad Shah became Emperor in 1719 and ruled for almost thirty years; but he faced so much opposition, that he was really the last Mughal leader who could claim to be the Emperor.

Aurangzeb’s successors were unworthy of ruling the Empire and were incompetent. Their character had deteriorated over a period of time. They were weak and lacked the character, motivation and commitment to rule the Empire strongly, and had become ease loving and cowardly. They totally disregarded their state duties and were unable to detain the declining Empire from its fall. These later Mughal rulers were absolutely incompetent and weak. They were proven neither good generals nor good statesmen who could control or administer the large Empire which covered nearly the whole of the subcontinent during Aurangzeb’s rule.

The later Emperors were also pleasure loving and were renowned for living an extravagant lifestyle with little thought to the effect it had on the economy of the Empire. They also lacked courage, determination and training. Money was spent lavishly on fine buildings, jewelry, fine clothes and food. No infrastructure was created for the improvement of administration, industry or agriculture.

Problems of Controlling the Empire

Administration:

The huge Empire was very difficult to administer. Decisions often had to be relayed over thousands of miles. Obviously, Emperors could not know exactly what was happening in every part of the Empire. This was one reason why Aurangzeb encouraged the use of mansabdars, but many problems remained. When rebellions broke out, it was often many months before the Emperors could take decisive action to end them.

Military Costs:

The Mughal Empire was huge and, within the Empire, there was an array of different people and different religions. As the Emperors were continually fighting rebellions, there was always a pressure on the Empire from separatist elements. The cost of putting down rebellions and fighting wars against invaders, such as Nadir Shah from Persia, was enormous.

Succession:

The Mughals did not follow any law of succession. After the death of every Emperor, they resulted in a bloody war of succession amongst his sons. Only Akbar came to the throne without fighting. The war of successions not only led to bitterness, bloodshed, and loss of money and prestige of the Empire over a period of time, but to its eventual fall. Each one used nobles and members of the noble family to get the throne, thereby dividing the nobles who fought for their self-interest only that created chaos. Nobles resorted to conspiracies and made the Mughal power weak and vulnerable.

It should also not be forgotten that it was often true that huge sums were wasted when Emperors died and there was a succession dispute. When Shah Jehan fell sick in 1657, all of his four sons ended up fighting to succeed him, even though he had not yet died. It was to avoid costly wars that Aurangzeb decided to divide the Empire between his three sons, but this was not successful and succession disputes continued to erode the Empire.

Declining Military Expertise:

When dynasties are in power for long periods, it is easy to become complacent and to imagine that success will continue forever. This happened with the Mughals, who let their army’s expertise decline until it was no longer an effective fighting force. When it became obvious that Mughal strength was declining, discontented groups within the Empire were quick to act. Consider how Aurangzeb was unable to deal with Shivaji’s rebellion in the Deccan.

Pleasure Seeking:

The wealth created by the Mughals also encouraged the nobility to become pleasure loving and degenerate. They betrayed the principles of Islam and, instead, enjoyed the pleasures brought about by wealth. Nobles often had the finest clothes, jewelry and food. One friend of Akbar is said to have ordered at least 1000 courses at each meal. The Emperors also set a poor example. Fine buildings were a symbol of power and culture, but they were also sometimes so expensive that they were a symbol of extravagance.

Weak Control:

As the wealth and influence of the nobility grew, the Mughals became highly powerful at court and some of the Emperors found it very difficult to control them. With weak control from the centre, the Mansabdari system was not sufficiently supervised and administrative efficiency declined. Discontent grew and revenue from tax collection declined.

The soldiers and the generals became pleasure loving and easy going. Often they proved to be disloyal. Sometimes they fought for money and easily succumbed to bribes.

Rise of the Maratha Empire

Marathas formed a Hindu Empire in Southern India and were a constant source of difficulty for the Mughals. Aurangzeb spent over 25 years trying to defeat the Maratha forces and, after his death, they continued to take land from the Mughals. In 1737, they defeated the Mughal Army and plundered Delhi. By the middle of the eighteenth century, the Marathas had replaced the Mughals as the most powerful force in India.

Foreign Invasions

Persia:

In 1738, Nadir Shah, the Persian leader, invaded the Mughal Empire. He defeated Muhammad Shah’s forces at Karnal in 1739. After that, he captured and sacked Delhi, taking over territories west of the Indus. He did not intend to make himself Emperor, but only to win as much booty as possible. When he left after two months, he took huge amounts of gold and jewels. He also took the prestige of the Mughals. Now people saw how weak the Empire had become. He also took the “Kohinoor Diamond” and the Royal “Peacock Throne” along.

Afghanistan:

In 1747, Ahmad Shah Durrani/Abdali, an Afghan general, attacked Kabul, Peshawar and Lahore. By 1749, he had gained control of the Punjab and, by 1756, added Kashmir and Multan to his possessions. The weakness of the Mughal Empire can be seen by the fact that the Mughals were unable to stop Maratha or Afghan expansion and it was actually Ahmad Shah Durrani who defeated the Marathas expansion in 1761 at the Battle of Panipat. He helped place Ahmad Shah, Muhammad Shah’s son, on the Mughal throne.

East India Company

The Mughal Empire was in decline by the end of the eighteenth century. What eventually pushed it into final decline was the ambition of the British. Since the time of Jehangir, the English East India Company (EIC) tried to take advantage of the wealth to be gained by trade with India. The EIC was a private trading company, but behind it was the government of what was possibly the most powerful country in the world. England had been the first country to experience the Industrial Revolution. Its industries were producing cheap manufactured goods which were sold around the world. With the wealth this created, the British could afford a military strength which the Mughals could not match. The weaknesses of the Mughal Empire, together with the strength of the British, meant that the fall of one of the mightiest dynasties in history was almost inevitable.

End of the Mughal Empire

Ahmad Shah Durrani helped place Muhammad Shah’s son, Ahmad Shah, on the Mughal throne. However, the Empire he ruled was shrinking rapidly, as unrest in the Empire continued to increase. Indeed, Ahmad Shah was imprisoned by his own court and died in captivity. His successor, Alamgir II, was assassinated on the orders of his chief minister. The next Emperor, Shah Alam II, remained in Bihar and chose not to return to Delhi for another twelve years. In 1764, he suffered defeat at the hands of the British at the Battle of Buxar.

Shah Alam’s defeat led to the British taking control of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. In 1803, they also occupied Delhi and placed the Emperor under ‘British Protection’. The British were now winning a stranglehold on India and the final two Emperors ruled in name only. His son, Bahadur Shah II, was expelled for his part in the 1857 War of Independence or Indian Rebellion and died in exile in Rangoon. The once-mighty Mughal Empire was over.