The%20Deccan%20in%20the%20last%20days%20of%20Mughal%20rule - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

About This Presentation
Title:

The%20Deccan%20in%20the%20last%20days%20of%20Mughal%20rule

Description:

The Deccan in the last days of Mughal rule – PowerPoint PPT presentation

Number of Views:175
Avg rating:3.0/5.0
Slides: 20
Provided by: Purn50
Category:

less

Transcript and Presenter's Notes

Title: The%20Deccan%20in%20the%20last%20days%20of%20Mughal%20rule


1
The Deccan in the last days of Mughal rule
2
The Deccan Under Aurangzeb
  • Aurganzebs protracted war had already alienated
    many local groups
  • Mughal nobles were developing local connections,
    but not necessarily for the Empire
  • Fort commanders on reduced Jagirs preferred not
    to send out men to combat Maratha raids
  • Marathas move easily through countryside
    demanding Chauth or a quarter of Mughal revenue.

3
New Maratha Kingship
  • Network of support from maratha deshmukhs
    (revenue collectors/lineage heads)
  • Administrative links through Brahmins in Deccan
    courts
  • Temporary alliances with Bijapur and Golconda,
    against Mughals

4
Use of religious ideology
  • Re-invention of Bhonsle family as high-caste with
    help of Brahmin from Benaras
  • Political goals reformulated within the rubric of
    Hindu Kingship
  • Public patronage of Hindu temples, particularly
    Bhavani, the fierce war goddess and Shiva
  • Note this occurred along with alliances with the
    Decanni sultanates and muslim groups

5
Internal Tensions among Marathas
  • Shivajis eldest son Shambhaji not universally
    popular
  • Several Maratha chiefs are indedependent
    operators, not fully incorporated into Bhonsle
    kingdom
  • Shivaji dies in 1680, succession struggle prompts
    Aurangzeb to move south.

6
The Bhonsle Marathas
7
Evaluating Deccan Policy
  • A paradoxpossible to win every battle, but still
    loose the war. Why?
  • Aurangzeb had to fight multiple chiefs after
    Shivajis death, not just one
  • Shambhajis death did not stop raids
  • Shahuji (the captive son) treated with suspicion
  • Rejected Tarabais offer and made a formidable
    foe
  • Parallel system of revenu allowed both Mughals
    and Marathas to suvive, but not thrive. Had a
    bad impact on local agrarian economy
  • Marathas simply had to dig in and survive until
    Aurangzebs death (1707).

8
End of Mughal Rule in Deccan
  • When Aurangzeb dies in Deccan his sons are in
    their 60s
  • Muazzam, most likely to succeed is near Kabul,
    but his son is governor of Bengal and ready to
    help
  • Azam Shah and Kam Baksh are in the Deccan but
    have little real experience
  • By June Muzzam defeats his brothers and becomes
    the next Emperor as Bahadur Shah

9
Aurangzebs Successors
10
Bahadur Shah
  • Brief reign due to old age, but vigorous attempt
    to retain empire
  • Successful containment of Rajput rebellion and
    attempt at reconciliation
  • Active campaign against Bandas rebellion in
    Punjab
  • Zulfikar Khan appointed Mir Bakshi, but also
    Viceroy of the Deccan

11
Bahadur Shahs Deccan Policy
  • Zulfikar Khan already had contacts in Deccan and
    appointed the Afghan Daud Khan Panni as deputy
  • Marathas are caught in the rivalry between
    Shahuji and Tarabai, both seek contracts of
    Sardeshmukhi (10) and Chauth (25)
  • Bahadur Shah grants equal rights to each hoping
    they would limit each others power
  • His own attention fully occupied by events in
    north until his death of natural causes in 1712

12
Nature of Maratha Power
  • Very de-centralized with a number of chiefs who
    had been under the service of the Bijapur sultans
  • Even after the 1660s when Shivajis Bhonsle
    lineage becomes pre-eminent, the Maratha chiefs
    continue as independent confederates
  • This pattern of leadership would last until their
    defeat in the Third Maratha War in the 19th
    century to the British East India company

13
Advantages to Marathas
  • Decentralized power lessens need for massive
    investment
  • Raids and piracy supplement income
  • Favors guerilla tactics with fast cavalry units
    rather than organized battles
  • Territories include massive forts in hills and on
    coast as safe-havens, but disposable
  • A mixture of sympathy and coercion ensure local
    support

14
Golconda and Jinji Forts
15
The evolution of the Peshwas
  • By the early 18th century the Chitpavan Brahmin
    ministers of the Bhonsles began to be the real
    power behind the Marathas
  • Under these ministers (Peshwas) the marathas
    became a confederacy under different
    chiefsHolkar, Bhonsle, Gaekawad, Sindhia
  • After Aurangzebs death in 1707 the Maraths began
    raiding larger areas

16
Original Maratha territories
Martha raids into Golconda, Southern Peninsula Fo
rts set up on Eastern edge Such as Jinji
17
Why did Marathas Succeed?
  • A policy based on mobile units and individual
    commanders making decisions at the local level
  • Favored slow conquest with a pattern changing
    from raid to conquest (see Gordon reading for
    next class)
  • Individual rivalries between Maratha chiefs
    sorted out by Peshwas, however, this did limit
    the possibility of united campaigns

18
(No Transcript)
19
Maratha Expansion by 1750s
Write a Comment
User Comments (0)
About PowerShow.com