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Class 12 History – Chapter 9 👑 Kings and Chronicles (Mughal Court) | NCERT Notes for CBSE Exams

 

📘 Class 12 History – Chapter 9

👑 Kings and Chronicles (Mughal Court) – NCERT / CBSE Notes

❇️ Who were the Mughals?

🔹 Two great lineages –

  • Mother’s side → Descendant of Genghis Khan (Mongol ruler of China & Central Asia, died 1227 AD).

  • Father’s side → Descendant of Timur (ruler of Iran & Turkey, died 1404 AD).

🔹 Mughals avoided title “Mongol” ❌ –

  • Because “Mongol” reminded of Uzbegs (rivals of Mughals).

  • Preferred to call themselves Timurid (descendants of Timur who invaded Delhi in 1398 AD).

🔹 Genealogy (वंशावली) –

  • Portraits showed Mughal rulers with Timur.

  • Babur → maternal link with Genghis Khan, spoke Turkish, mocked Mongols as “barbaric gangs”.

🔹 Term ‘Mughal’ in Europe –

  • 16th century Europeans used the word Mughal for Indian rulers.

  • Even Mowgli (from Jungle Book) derived from “Mughal”.

🔹 Founders of the empire –

  • Babur driven out by Uzbegs from Fergana.

  • Humayun defeated by Sher Shah Sur, took refuge in Safavid court (Iran).

  • Chagatai Turks considered themselves descendants of eldest son of Genghis Khan.

❇️ Babur (1526 – 1530 AD)

🔹 Inherited Fergana (1494 AD) at age 12, lost throne due to Uzbeg invasion.
🔹 Captured Kabul (1504 AD).
🔹 1st Battle of Panipat (1526 AD) – defeated Ibrahim Lodi, captured Delhi & Agra.
🔹 Battle of Khanua (1527 AD) – defeated Rana Sanga & Rajput allies.
🔹 Battle of Chanderi (1528 AD) – defeated Rajputs.
🔹 First use of cannons & firepower in Indian battles.

❇️ Humayun (1530 – 1540 AD, restored 1555 – 1556 AD)

🔹 Divided empire among brothers (Mirza Kamran, etc.) → led to weakness.
🔹 Defeated by Sher Shah →

  • Battle of Chausa (1539 AD)

  • Battle of Kannauj (1540 AD) → forced into exile.
    🔹 With Safavid help, recaptured Delhi (1555 AD).
    🔹 Died next year (1556 AD) due to accident (fall from staircase).

❇️ Akbar (1556 – 1605 AD)

🔹 Became emperor at 13 years.
🔹 Conquests –

  • Chittor (1568 AD), Ranthambore (1569 AD).

  • Captured Kandahar from Safavids.

  • Annexed Kashmir & Kabul.

  • Began Deccan campaigns.
    🔹 Revolts → Support to Mirza Hakim (1579–1580 AD).

❇️ Jahangir (1605 – 1627 AD)

🔹 Sisodia ruler of Mewar (Amar Singh) accepted Mughal service.
🔹 Launched campaigns against Sikhs, Ahoms, Ahmednagar (not fully successful).
🔹 Last years → Prince Khurram (Shah Jahan) revolted.

❇️ Shah Jahan (1628 – 1658 AD)

🔹 Khan Jahan Lodi revolted → defeated.
🔹 Campaigns against Ahmednagar & Bundelas (captured Orchha).
🔹 Failed campaign in Balkh (NW frontier) → lost Kandahar to Safavids.
🔹 Ahmednagar annexed (1632 AD), Bijapur sought reconciliation.
🔹 War of succession (1657–58 AD) → Aurangzeb defeated Dara Shukoh & brothers.
🔹 Shah Jahan imprisoned in Agra Fort for life.

❇️ Aurangzeb (1658 – 1707 AD)

🔹 Ahoms (Assam) defeated in 1663, revolted again in 1690.
🔹 Sikhs & Yousafzai tribes revolted due to Mughal interference.
🔹 Conflict with Shivaji –

  • Captured, insulted at Agra → escaped Mughal prison.
    🔹 Prince Akbar (Aurangzeb’s son) rebelled with Marathas & fled to Iran.
    🔹 Deccan campaigns –

  • Annexed Bijapur (1685 AD) & Golconda (1687 AD).

  • Struggled with Maratha guerrilla warfare.

🏰 Mughal Empire: Capitals, Chronicles & Culture

❇️ Mughal Capitals 🏙️

  • 📍 In the 16th–17th centuries, Mughal capitals shifted rapidly.

  • 🏰 Babur occupied Agra (Lodi capital) but his courts were held at different places.

  • 🧱 Akbar (1560s) built Agra Fort with red sandstone.

  • 🌆 Fatehpur Sikri (1570s) became capital → close to Ajmer (Shrine of Khwaja Muinuddin Chishti ✨).

  • 🕌 Akbar built a marble mausoleum for Sheikh Salim Chishti near Jama Masjid, Sikri.

  • 🚪 Buland Darwaza (huge arched gateway) built to commemorate Gujarat victory.

  • 🛡️ 1585 – Capital shifted to Lahore to control North-West borders (Akbar stayed 13 yrs).

  • 🏙️ 1648 AD – Capital moved to Shahjahanabad by Shah Jahan.

❇️ Chronicles (इतिहास की गाथाएँ) 📜

  • ✍️ Historical writings describing a region are called Itivartas (इतिवृत).

  • 📖 Mughal chronicles mostly survive in manuscript form.

❇️ Manuscripts (हस्तलिखित ग्रंथ) 🖋️

  • 📜 Handwritten articles = manuscripts.

  • 👑 Mughals prepared many chronicles to inform future generations about their rule.

  • 🏰 These works are an important source of Mughal history.

❇️ Composition of the Chronicle 🏛️

  • 📚 Mughal chronicles are key sources for empire & court history.

  • 🌟 Purpose → To show vision of an enlightened state (प्रबुद्ध राज्य).

  • ⏳ Ensure future generations had records of rulers.

  • 👨‍🎓 Authors were mostly courtiers → focused on rulers, royal family, court, aristocracy, wars, administration.

  • 🏰 For writers → History of Empire = History of Emperor.

  • 📖 All works were manuscripts → main hub was Royal Kitabkhana (पुस्तकालय).

❇️ Language of the Mughals 🗣️

  • 📜 Court Histories → Written in Persian.

  • 🏔️ Mughals were of Chagatai origin → Turkish was their mother tongue.

  • 🖊️ Babur wrote poetry & memoirs in Turkish.

  • 👑 Akbar made Persian the main court language.

  • 🏛️ Persian became the language of administration, clerks & officers learnt it.

  • 🌐 Interaction of Persian + Hindavi → Urdu language emerged.

  • 📖 Works like Akbarnama written in Persian.

  • 📚 Baburnama → translated from Turkish to Persian.

  • 📕 Akbar ordered Sanskrit texts (Mahabharata, Ramayana) translated into Persian.

  • ⚔️ Mahabharata → translated as Razmanama (Book of Wars).

❇️ Mughal Painting 🎨

  • ✍️ Abul Fazl → called painting a magical art (जादुई कला), respected it greatly.

  • 🌟 17th century – Mughal emperors shown with halo (divine aura) → inspired from European Christian art.

  • 👕 Akbar often painted in white robes → symbol of Sufi purity.

  • ⚖️ Conflict between rulers & Ulama (Muslim orthodox) → Ulama opposed human forms citing Qur’an & Hadith.

  • 🇮🇷 Safavid kings of Iran supported talented painters like Bihzad.

  • 👑 Humayun brought Iranian painters Mir Syed Ali & Abdul Samad to Delhi.

📌 Special Note:

  • 🧵 Payag (Shah Jahan’s time) → Carpet Painter.

  • 🎨 Abdul Hasan (Jahangir’s time) → Carpet Painter.

📚 Akbarnama, Ain-e-Akbari & Mughal Court Life

❇️ Akbarnama & Ain-e-Akbari 📖

  • ✍️ Most famous Mughal histories = Akbarnama & Badshahnama.

  • 🎨 Each manuscript has ~150 illustrated pages → battle ⚔️, siege 🏰, hunting 🏹, court scenes 👑, constructions 🏗️.

  • 🏙️ Abul Fazl (Akbar’s close friend & courtier) wrote Akbarnama → raised in Agra.

  • 📚 Written in 3 volumes:
    1️⃣ Volume I → History of Akbar’s ancestors.
    2️⃣ Volume II → Events of Akbar’s reign.
    3️⃣ Volume III (Ain-e-Akbari) → Detailed description of:

    • Geography 🌍

    • Administration 🏛️

    • Household 🏠

    • Army 🛡️

    • Revenue 💰

    • Traditions & Culture of India 🎭

  • 📊 Ain-e-Akbari’s best feature → Statistical records of crops 🌾, prices 💵, wages 👷, revenues 📑.

💍 Mehrunissa (married Jahangir in 1611) → Became Nur Jahan (Light of the World).

  • Always loyal to Jahangir ❤️.

  • Jahangir issued silver coins in her honor.

❇️ Badshahnama 🏰

  • 🏛️ Official history of Shah Jahan.

  • 📕 Written in 3 volumes (daftars) → each covered lunar years.

  • ✍️ Abdul Hamid Lahori wrote first 2 daftars (1627–1647).

  • 🔧 Later revised by Wazir Sadullah Khan.

  • 🌞 Philosophy → Suharwardi (inspired by Plato’s Republic), where God = Sun ☀️.

  • 📚 Widely read in Islamic world, also studied by Sheikh Mubarak.

❇️ Religious Status of Mughals 🕌

  • 🛕 1563 → Akbar ended pilgrimage tax (यात्रा कर).

  • 💰 1564 → Abolished Jizya (जज़िया).

  • ⛪ All emperors gave grants for temples, mosques, churches, gurudwaras.

  • 🏗️ Even destroyed temples (during wars) were later repaired with grants → seen in Shah Jahan & Aurangzeb’s reign.

❇️ Mughal Court 👑

  • 🏛️ Court status = proximity to emperor.

  • 🙇 Formal greeting = Cornish (कोर्निश).

  • 🙏 Greeting posture showed rank.

  • Shah Jahan replaced with → Taslim (hand on chest) & Jami-bos (kiss on ground).

❇️ Emperor’s Day 🌅

  • 🌞 Emperor’s day began with religious rituals.

  • 👀 Then → Jharokha Darshan (public appearance from balcony).

  • Purpose = Acceptance of royal power as public trust (जन विश्वास).

❇️ Takht-e-Taus (Peacock Throne) 🦚💎

  • 👑 Shah Jahan’s jewel-studded throne → took 7 years to complete.

  • 💎 Decorated with rubies, diamonds & gems.

  • Gift ruby from Shah Abbas (Safavid ruler).

  • Names inscribed: Timur, Ulugh Beg, Shah Abbas, Akbar, Jahangir, Shah Jahan.

❇️ Diwan-e-Aam vs. Diwan-e-Khas ⚖️

  • 🏛️ Diwan-e-Aam (Public Hall) → Emperor handled govt functions, officials submitted reports.

  • 🏰 Diwan-e-Khas (Private Hall) → Confidential discussions, petitions, revenue details, ministers’ advice.

❇️ Titles, Gifts & Honors 🎁

  • 🎖️ Titles = recognition of merit (उपाधि).

  • 🏅 Major titles → Asaf Khan, Mirza Raja.

  • 🏹 Aurangzeb gave Mirza Raja to Jai Singh & Jaswant Singh.

  • 💰 Titles could be earned or purchased (e.g., Mir Khan paid 1 lakh).

  • 👕 Khillat (robe of honor) → previously worn by emperor = blessing symbol.

  • 💎 Special gift = Padm Murassa (gem-studded ornaments with lotus rings).

  • 🎁 Courtiers always carried gifts → symbol of loyalty.

  • 🤝 In diplomacy, gifts = respect. Example: Thomas Roe’s ring (worth ₹400) insulted & returned.

❇️ Royal Family (Harem) 👑👩

  • 🏠 Haram (हरम) = Persian word → “Sacred place (पवित्र स्थान)”.

  • Included: Wives, concubines, relatives, attendants, slaves.

  • 👑 Polygamy common in Rajputs & Mughals → marriages used for political alliances.

  • 🌹 Begum (बेगम) = royal-born Mughal women.

  • 🌸 Agha women = non-royal aristocratic wives.

  • 💰 Mehr (dowry) higher in royal marriages → Begums > Aghas in status.

  • 👸 After Nur Jahan, Mughal queens controlled finances.

  • 💎 Shah Jahan’s daughters Jahanara & Roshanara → had incomes = top mansabdars.

  • 📦 Jahanara earned huge revenue from Surat trade.

❇️ Mughal Aristocracy 🌟

  • 👥 Nobility = multi-ethnic, multi-religious (Turani, Irani, Rajput, Hindustani).

  • 🌹 Ensured no single group dominated power.

  • 🏹 First Rajput chief → Raja of Amber (Kachhwaha) → gave daughter to Akbar.

  • 🇮🇷 Under Jahangir → Iranians gained high posts (Nur Jahan herself was Iranian).

  • ⚔️ Aurangzeb → appointed Rajputs, but Marathas rose among non-Muslims.

  • 📖 Chandrabhan Brahman’s book Char Chaman → describes aristocracy.

  • 🙏 Akbar treated some nobles as Murids (disciples) → spiritual bond.

❇️ Jesuit Priests in Mughal Court ⛪

  • ✝️ Akbar curious about Christianity → invited Jesuit priests.

  • 🛕 1580 → First Jesuit mission arrived at Fatehpur Sikri, stayed 2 years.

  • ✝️ Later missions came to Lahore (1591 & 1595).

  • 👑 Given close seats near Akbar’s throne.

  • 🛡️ Joined expeditions, educated princes, accompanied emperor in leisure.




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