He Mughal empire was formed by a descendant of Genghis Khan, Babur, crowned in the early 16th century from 1526 to1530. Babur was an ambitious conqueror who sought control of Punjab, which was named based on its proximity to all five rivers (the Beas, Chenab, Jhelum, Ravi, and Sutlej). He aimed to use Punjab as a base and prepare to attack. Babur played a significant role in the First Battle of Panipat and led the Mughal empire towards victory. Let us now study various leaders of the Mughal empire, which led to its success as well as a downfall.

Mughal kingdom under Humayun 

Humayun was the son of Babur. He played a crucial role in maintaining the structure of the Mughal province after the fall of Babur. Humayun was as ambitious as his father and waged a constant war against Rajputs for their province. He also fought against Bahadur Shah of Gujarat but could take Gujarat under his control only when Bahadur Shah passed away. 

Humayun contributed greatly to the victories of Mughal province and helped win the Battle of Panipat in 1526. He was born in Kabul but spent most of his life in India. The Afghans and Rajputs were always at the Mughal province’s throat, and hence, Humayun never quite really enjoyed the peace of the Mughal throne. Finally, Humayun was defeated by Sher Shah Suri in the battle of Kannauj. 

The fall of the Mughal province

After Humayun was exiled from India, the Mughal Province began to crumble on its own. 

• Mughals had different policies and did not follow any line of succession. With the end of each ruler’s tenure, a decision had to be made. The successors often had to wage wars against their own brothers to prove that they were capable of the throne. This stopped working for the Mughals after the fall of Aurangzeb.
• Another reason for the fall of the Mughal province was the way Aurangzeb ruled—he discriminated against people of religions different from his own.
• They lost the support of the Rajputs and waged wars against leaders of the Maratha Empire. These wars depleted their treasury and resources. 
• The Mughal Empire had also been expanded beyond control, making it difficult to rule all the territories from one centre.
• Wars against Nadir Shah and Ahmad Shah Abdali finally broke the dynasty of the Mughal empire.

Historians have proposed various explanations for the Mughal Empire’s rapid demise. Emperors lost authority and control as the empire’s widely dispersed imperial officers lost faith in the central authorities and struck their own deals with local men of influence. The successors were inept and inexperienced. Another reason is the numerous wars that were fought in rapid succession. As a result, the Marathas and other regional powers began to grow, making it difficult for the Mughals to maintain control of their empire. The decline of the Mughal Empire resulted in a decrease in agricultural productivity, which increased food prices.

The emergence of new States 

As the Mughal Province crumbled, the old Mughal states started to get replaced by majorly three types of independent new states. 

• First were the states which already were independent but had to maintain formal ties with the Mughal province. These were states such as Awadh, Bengal and Hyderabad. Burhan-ul-Mulk Sa’adat Khan led to the formation of independent Awadh and hence was called the subedar of Awadh. Murshid Quli Khan took charge of Bengal as an independent state and was termed the naib of Bengal, and Nizam-ul-Mulk Asaf Jah gained the independence of Hyderabad from the Mughal dynasty.

• The second type of emergence we witnessed was from the Watan Jagirs of Rajputs. Rajput kings had sworn their allegiance to the Mughal kingdom and were declared Vatandars. These kings belonged to the Amber and Jodhpur region, which tried to expand after gaining independence.

• The third category of emerging new states was the communities that seized their independence from Mughal province. They majorly consisted of The Sikhs, The Jatts and The Marathas. Guru Gobind Singh fought wars with Mughals and Rajputs for freedom of the Punjab province, Churaman led the Jatts to acquire the area around Delhi, and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj led the formation of the Maratha dynasty. 

Conclusion

The Mughal Empire declined due to social, economic, political, and institutional factors. By 1813, the British government removed the powers that had allowed the East India Company to maintain its monopoly, and the Company later worked on behalf of the government. The Indian Rebellion took place in 1857, prompting the British colonial office to exile the last emperor, Bahadur Shah II, and seize complete control of the Indian subcontinent.