Fall of Mughal Empire

Don’t miss: UPSC Prelims Paper Analysis 2024

Check here: UPSC Final Result 2023

The fall of the Mughal empire began in 1707 CE, after Aurangzeb’s death. Even though Mughal rulers were still in power, they didn’t hold the same powers as the previous ones. They were known as the ‘Later Mughals.’ In other words, the later Mughals weren’t as effective and contributed to the inevitable demise of the Mughal dynasty. This article focuses on the numerous reasons for the fall of the Mughal Empire, such as the growing powers of provinces, the rising influence of the nobility, and so on.

Reasons for the decline of the Mughal empire

Weak successors

The foremost reason for the fall of the Mughals was the inefficiency of the later rulers. For instance, when Bahadur Shah came to power, he was 63 years old, which already made him a less than ideal choice. He didn’t have the vigour or the zeal to control an empire or even expand it. There were other rulers after him that followed the same path, like Jahandar Shah, Muhammad Shah, etc. For these successors, luxury and wealth were the only priority, and they revelled in it. They were incapable of suppressing revolts or mutinies, and were involved in conspiracies and power play. 

Influence of the nobles

Under the Mughal rule, there were four divisions of the nobility: 

• Turanis
• Iranis
• Afghans
• Indigenous Muslims  

Once these nobles understood that their loyalty meant nothing, and they weren’t immune      to degradation, they started fighting to occupy more jagirs and high offices. The growing influence of the nobles was evident as they formed alliances with zamindars, regional governors and chieftains. They collected all the income of the jagirs and limited the number of troops in the army; thus, weakening the military. 

Incompetence of the Mughal army

Another reason behind the fall of the Mughals was the unproductive military force. Due to the relaxation of the rulers, the mansabdars began to possess wealth for themselves instead of using it for the maintenance and improvement of the army. Moreover, there was no direct contact between the emperor and the troops, which led to a lack of discipline in them. They weren’t punished for their crimes, and no action was taken for overlooking their duties. The army that once contributed to consolidating territories had become a mob by now. 

Economic decline

The long wars and other luxurious expenses had a toll on the kingdom’s treasury. Shah Jahan’s ambitious idea of building the Taj Mahal had depleted the resources, and Aurangzeb’s war in the south didn’t help matters. The production of crops fell as the revenue demand rose. Battles were fought to choose the successors as well. All these incidents led to the Mughal empire becoming bankrupt. The economic collapse was more evident during the rule of Alamgir II. Their bankruptcy went on for 50 years. 

Foreign invasions 

As the fall of the Mughals became apparent, others didn’t lose the opportunity to invade the Mughal empire. Nadir Shah’s invasion in 1739 was one of the biggest blows to the empire because his troops outnumbered Muhammad Shah’s troops. As mentioned earlier, the military of the Mughals was also affected by the empire’s downfall; therefore, they lost the battle against Nadir Shah, the king of Persia, as Muhammad Shah surrendered. The invasion of Ahmad Shah Abdali also impacted the empire’s resources. 

Growth of regional powers and decentralization

The entire Mughal empire was effectively controlled from Delhi by the great Mughal emperors; however, it was difficult for the later Mughals to do the same. Their administration over such a vast territory was ineffective. Subsequently, the faraway provinces started becoming independent; thus, the growing power of the provinces eventually led to the fall of the Mughals and the disintegration of their empire.

Conclusion

The fall of the Mughals was a result of numerous events that took place during an extended period of time and the wrong decisions of the emperors. However, the major issues that were especially responsible for this fall were the wrong choice of successors, in-fighting among nobles, deterioration of the army, economic decline, attempts to seize the empire through foreign invasion, and the lack of administrative skills that resulted in the rise of independent provinces. If you focus closely on these issues, the fall of the Mughals could be understood.