History English

the establishment and spread of Buddhism in as a memorial to his queen. These temples
Sri Lanka. are the most ancient Hindu temples in Sri
Lanka.
Important stupas at Anuradhpur-
Mihinthale : ‘Kantakchetiya’ is one of the The supremacy of the Cholas in Sri
earliest stupas at Mihinthale. An inscription Lanka was ended by Vijayabahu.
near the stupa mentions that the revenue Parakramabahu, a descendant of Vijayabahu,
collected from a nearby tank and the who ruled in 12th century C.E. is supposed
surrounding land was reserved as a gift for to be historically an important king. The
the maintainance of this stupa. Buddhist sanghas in Sri Lanka had become
disrupted by the time of Parakramabahu. He,
The stupa erected on the remains under the guidance of Mahathera Kassap,
(Shareerik Dhatu/asthi) of Thera Mahinda at focused on reorganising them.
Mihinthale, is known as ‘Ambasthal Thupa’.
Parakramabahu had routed the
Thuparama kingdom of Ruhuna in Sri Lanka. This
kingdom had a tooth of Gautam
King Devanampiya Tissa erected a stupa Buddha (dantdhatu) in their custody. It
on the relics of Gautama Buddha in was reclaimed by King Nissanka
Anuradhpur. It is known as ‘Thuparama’. Malla. He built a temple on it in
Thuparama is the earilest stupa among those Polannaruwa.
that are extant in Sri Lanka.
There is a stupa at the centre of the
Buddhaghosha was an Indian philosopher. temple. At the foot of the stupa is a
He stayed ‘Mahavihara’ in Anuradhpur. semicircular step, which is characteristic
‘Vishuddhimagga’ a text written by him is of the stupa architecture of Sri Lanka. It
well-known. ‘Vishuddhimagga’ is the text, is called, ‘Moonstone’ (Chandrashila). It
which is honoured as an equivalent of is carved with the figures of swans,
Tipitaka texts. elephants, horses and creepers.

Pulatthinagar (Polannaruwa) : The city ‘Moonstone’ (Chandrashila)
of Polannaruwa is mentioned in Chullvamasa
by the name, ‘Pulatthinagar’. In the 10th Galapotha (Book in stone) is a unique
century C.E. the Chola emperor Rajraja I inscription recording the reign and
attacked Sri Lanka and razed Anuradhpur achievements of Nissanka Malla. It is
completely. Then he established his capital inscribed on a stone slab that is 8.17 metre
at Polannaruwa. He renamed Polannaruwa as long and 1.39 metre wide. On one side of
‘Jananathmangalam’ and built a Shiva temple the galapotha an image of Gajalakshmi is
there. Later he built one more Shiva temple carved between two borders of a row of
swans.

The temple of dantdhatu at present is in

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the city of ‘Kandy’. It is known as ‘Sri
Dalad Maligava’. This temple is enlisted as
the World Cultural Heritage.

Galapotha Mural of Sigiriya

By the way : The relics of (corporeal By the way : The inscriptions
remains) Gautama Buddha were handed found in Sri Lanka, dated to the 3rd
over to various sanghas in India and century B.C.E. to the 1st century C.E.
other counries after his mahaparinibbana. are inscribed in the Ashokan Brahmi
These relics are known as ‘dhatu’. script. Researchers opine that the modern
According to ‘Deegha Nikaya’ a Sinhala script gradually developed from
‘dantdhatu’ was given in the custody of the Ashokan Brahmi.
the king of Kalinga. Later this dantdhatu
reached Sri Lanka. ‘Lalitvistar’, the Buddhist text
enlists 64 Indian scripts. The Brahmi
A deep belief was rooted in Sri script is one of it. The scripts used in
Lanka that a royal house holding the Sri Lanka and many other countries in
custody of the dantdhatu had the divine Southeast Asia were developed from it.
right to rule. As a result the ruling kings
of Sri Lanka strived to see that it 13.2 India and Southeast Asia
remains in the precincts of their palace.
Consequently the seat of the dantdhatu There are very few references in the
kept changing from time to time. Indian literature to the Indian settlements and
kingdoms in Southeast Asia. However, the
Dambulla and Sigiriya : The caves at court records of Chinese emperors provide
Dambulla in Sri Lanka are declared as considerable information in this regard. The
World Cultural Heritage. There are images ancient Indian literature refers to the land of
of Gautama Buddha and the Bodhisattvas Southeast Asia as ‘Suvarabhumi’ (the Land
inside the caves. The roofs of five caves at of Gold).
Dambulla are decorated with paintings.
The trading relations between India and
There is an enormous rock in the Southeast Asia began in the 1st century
mountains near the city of Dambulla. A fort B.C.E. and continued through the 1st century
and a palace was built on this rock. At its C.E. The strait of Malacca was convenient
entrance a huge image of a lion was carved for the Indian merchants to enter the South
in the rock. The place was named ‘Sigiriya’ China Sea. They unloaded their merchandise
after this lion. Sigiriya murals are compared on the western coast of Malya Peninsula,
with the murals at Ajanta.

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from there transported it to the east coast by new lands they visited. Traces of Indian
land route and again loaded it on the boats. culture can be seen there even today.
This was easier than proceeding along the
coast all the way. This trade by the sea and Myanmar : ‘Myanmar’ is a neighbouring
land route grew to a great extent under the country of India, adjacent to its northeast
rule of Chola kings at the end of the 10th border. It was earlier known as ‘Brahmdesh’.
century C.E. In the 2nd century B.C.E. there were city
states known as ‘Pyu’ in the north and
The term ‘Southeast Asia’ was coined in central regions of Myanmar. Some new Pyu
the times of the second world war. The cities came into existence at a later period.
Buddhist texts mention a ‘Suvarnabhumi’. Among them the cities of ‘Halin’ and
The scholars divide Southeast Asia into two ‘Shrikshetra’ were important.
parts based on its geographic features :
Shrikshetra (near the city which was
1. The Mainland - This region is also known as ‘Prome’ during the British period
known as Indo-China. It comprises the and presently known as ‘Pyay’) was the
countries of Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, largest among the ‘Pyu’ cities. According to
Laos, Vietnam and also the western region the prevailing tradition the two brothers, who
of Malaysia. 2. The Maritime region - It were the founders of Shrikshetra hailed from
comprises the Malaya peninsula, the eastern the Shakya clan of Gautam Buddha. The
region of Malaysia as well as Indonesia. kingdom of Pagan (Bagan) arose in Myanmar
Although all these regions are included under in the 1st century C.E. and by the 11th century
a single umbrella name as Southeast Asia, it it grew into a great empire. All the Pyu city
is necessary to keep in mind the local states including Shrikshetra were merged into
diversity of cultural and historical constitution the empire of Pagan.
of each region.
King Anawrahta the founder of ‘Pagan
Southeast Asia – for additional information empire’ is known as the greatest ruler in the
visit the following web sites : history of Myanmar. He is credited with the
(1) http://www.world-maps.co.uk/continent-map- unification of the north and the south
ofsouth-east-asia.htm Myanmar. This unification is supposed to
have given Myanmar its national identity.
(2) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khmer_Empire# Anawrahta put a check to the increasing
/media/File:Map-ofSoutheast-asia_900_CE.png) power of the Khmer empire of Cambodia.
During his reign the ‘Thervada Buddhism’,
The contact of Indians with various which had grown weaker, was revived.
regions in Southeast Asia was on the increase
because of trade during the 2nd century B.C.E. The remains of the fortifications and
to 2nd century C.E. The merchants who had moats around the three Pyu cities of Halin,
to travel for months together were naturally Beikthano and Shrikshetra can be seen even
accompanied by a large retinue of priests, today. The archaeological excavations at the
monks, also travellers who were out to test sites of these cities have brought into light
their luck, ambitious members of royal many remains of buildings of those days,
families etc. These were the people who stupas, cemeteries and the structures built for
proved instrumental in the spread of Indian water management. The three sites have been
culture in Southeast Asia. Some of them declared as the World Cultural Heritage.
even established independent kingdoms in the
The ‘Shwedagon’ pagoda built between
6th - 10th century C.E. at Yongan (Rangoon)

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is looked at as the finest example of the Thailand : The ancient Thai people
stupa architecture in Myanmar. It is said that referred to their country as ‘Mueng Thai’.
two merchant brothers had visited India and However, it was known in the world as
they had the fortune of meeting Gautama ‘Siam’. In the 20th century its name was
Buddha in person. At that time they had changed to ‘Thailand’. Thailand was ruled
received 8 hair of the Buddha from himself. from the 6th to the 11th century by ‘Mon’
After returning to their motherland they people. At that time it was known as
handed over the hair to the king. The king ‘Dvaravati’. Indian culture was introduced
erected a stupa on the hair and it came to and spread in Thailand in the ‘Dvaravati’
be known as ‘Shwedagon’ pagoda. This period. The Indian traditions of sculpture,
pagoda is covered with sheets of gold. literature, ethics, judicial science, etc. had a
great role in shaping up the Mon culture.
Compared to other kingdoms in Southeast
Asia the kingdom of Dvaravati was smaller
and weaker. However, it contributed greatly
to the development of writing, arts,
administration, religion and science, etc. in
the other kingdoms. The remains of sculptures
and architecture of the Dvaravati period have
been found in the vicinity of the cities like
Lop Buri (Lao Puri) and Ayuttha (Ayodhya).

Shwedagon Pagoda

The ‘Anand Temple’ is another important
monument built during the reign of Kyanzittha,
the emperor of Pagan in the 11th century C.E.
It is the finest example of the combined
architectural style of India and Pagan.

Anand mandir Dvaravati style of temple architecture

The Dvaravati Sculptures show a great
influence of Indian sculptural style. Primarily
it includes Buddha images, but a few
Shivalingas and images of Vishnu are also
found. The sculptural art of Cambodia is
supposed to have originated from the
Dvaravati art style.

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In the 14th century C.E. a new kingdom skilled artisans. Arieal photography has
of Ayuttha was established in Thailand. In confirmed this description. The excavations
the 18th century it was completly razed by conducted by the French archaeologist Louis
the rulers of Myanmar. It was burnt by the Malleret have brought to light remains of
conquerors. All of its sculptures, libraries, temples built in brick masonry, workshops of
temples were completely burnt. making jewellery, residential houses, etc.
Roman coins of 2nd century C.E. were also
The kings of Ayuttha bore names with found.
the prefix ‘Ram’. The popularity of Ramayana
may be the reason behind it. Thai Ramayana * Mekong river originates on the plateau of Tibet
has been developed into an independent and flows through the Yunnan province of China,
tradition. It is known as ‘Ramakien’ (Ram Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and in the
Akhyana). The stories of Ramakien have end Vietnam, where it merges into South China Sea.
been preserved in all Thai art traditions
including sculpture, folk music, dance and 2. Champa : ‘Champa’ was an ancient
theatre. kingdom in the coastal region of Vietnam.
Several Sanskrit inscriptions in Brahmi script
Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia : In the have been found there. Champa was named
colonial period Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, after the ‘Cham’ tribe. The names of the
these three countries together were known as cities in Champa* were ‘Indrapur’,
‘Indo-China’. ‘Amaravati’, ‘Vijay’, ‘Kauthara’ and
‘Panduranga’. The city of Vijay was the
During the 8th - 12th century C.E. the capital of Champa kingdom. The inscriptions
Mon and Khmer people ruled over Cambodia. of Champa mention the names of it kings
Khmer empire originated in Cambodia. and queens and the temples of Hindu deities
built by them, especially Shiva temples.
For the reference of map visit the following Wooden images of Gautama Buddha have
web site: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/ also been found. This evidence indicates the
existence of more city states like Funan in
File:Bandovietnam-final-fill-scale.svg Vietnam, which were trade centres from
where various types of merchandise were
1. ‘Funan’ : This was a kingdom in imported and exported.
Vietnam which existed in the Delta region of
the river Mekong*. Funan is known mainly To see the names and the map of Champa visit the
through the Chinese records. The ‘Han’ following web site: https://upload.wikimedia.org/
dynasty ruled in China in the 3rd century C.E. wikipedia/commons/4/45/VietnamChampa1.gif
When the rule of Han dynasty was ended,
China disintegrated into three parts. Because During the span of 4th - 14th century C.E.
of it the southern kingodom of China was Shaiva temples were built in the kingdom of
not left with any alternative path to reach Champa. These temples are built in a valley
the silk route. Hence, the king of the southern known as ‘My Son Valley’. The temple of
kingdom sent some people to explore the sea ‘Bhadreshvara’ is supposed to be important
route. They found a kingdom in the delta in this group. Once there were more than 70
region of the Mekong. They named it ‘Funan’. temples at My Son. In the walled courtyards
According to their description, Funan was a of these temples many stone tablets with
city with fortification, a place, well-established inscriptions are erected. These inscriptions
revenue system, laws, system of record
keeping in written form, and a class of

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are in Sanskrit and Cham languages. In the Buddhism is the main religion in Laos. The
same precincts are found burials of the cultural and literary expressions of people are
members of the royal families. It seems that influenced by the stories of Gautama Buddha’s
My son was the ceremonial complex, reserved life and Ramayana. Especially, this influence
for the royal families. The site of My Son is conspicuous in the sculptural and
is declared as the World Cultural Heritage. presentations of performing arts, which are
frequently based on the themes from these
The characteristic aspect of the sources. ‘San Sinxay’ is an epic composed
architectural style of My Son temples is that in the 16th century in Laos. It is popular, not
it is imagined in the form of ‘Meru Parvata’. only in Laos but also in Thailand. Its main
plot is quite akin to the story of Ramayana.
Sculptural model of My Son Temple
4. Cambodia : Cambodia was known
The war that was continued for 20 years as ‘Kambujadesha’ in ancient times. Its
in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia is known history is known from the inscriptions
as ‘Vietnam War’. The vicinity of My Son installed in the precincts of its temples. These
temples got damaged to a great extent inscriptions are in Sanskrit and Khmer
because of this war. languages. The first kingdom, established in
Cambodia was known by the name of
3. Laos : Loas is a landlocked country. ‘Chenla’. The people who established Chenla,
The population of Laos is mainly composed were known as ‘Khmer’. The influence of
of the ‘Lao’ people who came to Laos from Indian culture in Cambodia dates back to the
southern China. The name of the kingdom of Chenla period. The kingdom of Chenla was
Laos was ‘Lao Sang’. This kingdom was in established by Jayavarman II. He was
existence during 14th-18th century. Lao Sang coronated in 802 C.E. His capital’s name
was attacked by Thailand in the 19th century. was ‘Hariharalaya’.
Lao Sang could not survive the attack. In
the latter half of the 19th century the French In the span of next 500 years the kings
established their administrative centre in of Chenla expanded their empire from
Vientiane, the capital of Laos. Vietnam to Myanmar and to China in the
north. It came to be known as the Khmer
Like other countries in Southeast Asia, empire. After King ‘Jayavarman VII’ the
Khmer empire began to decline. In the 15th
century C.E. the Khmer empire was ultimately
rooted out completely.

The reign of Suryavarman II in the 11th
century and that of Jayavarman VII was
proved beneficial for temple architecture.
The world famous temple of ‘Angkorwat’
was built in Yashodharpura, the capital city
built by Suryavarman II. The temple area is
about 500 acres, that is about 2 Sq.Kilometers.
The main entrance is at the west and the
temple is surrounded by a moat, which is
200 metres in depth. Among the sculptural
panels on the southeast walls of the temple
the panel of ‘Samudramanthan’ is notable.

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Angkorwat Temple

After the death of Suryavarman II, Heritage by UNESCO.
Angkorwat was attacked by the king of
Champa. He caused considerable damage to Malaysia and Indonesia : Before the
the temple. Later, it was turned into a arrival of the Europeans, there have been
Buddhist temple. three kingdoms in Malaysia. The ‘Vayu
Purana’ mentions Malay peninsula as
Jayavarman VII built a new capital, ‘Malaydvipa’. The Chinese Bhikkhu I-Tsing/
‘Angkorthom’ near Yashodharpura, the first Yi-Jing (7th century C.E.) had visited the
capital of the Khmer empire. He was a ‘Malayu’ kingdom. Ptolemy has mentioned
Budhhist. The planning of Angkorthom city, Malayu as ‘Maleu Kolon’ and ‘Golden
its water management and architecture are Chersonese’ (golden peninsula). An inscription
the indicators of the advanced Khmer style. in the Brihadishvara temple in Tanjore
The temple of ‘Bayon’ was built at the centre mentions it as ‘Malaiyur’. Malayu was one
of Angakorthom. Bayon temple represented of the kingdoms conquered by the Chola king
‘Mount Meru’. The planning of the temple Rajendra. The Chinese court records also
and the city represents the mythological story mention ‘Malayu’.
‘Samudramanthana’. The temple at the centre
is supposed to be the churner. There are 1. Srivijaya : This kingdom proved to
statues of gods and daityas, the rivals of be more powerful among all kingdoms who
gods, standing at both sides of the southern competed with each other. This kingdom
gate, churning the ocean with Mount Meru originated in Sumatra. Malayu and other
as the churner. The moats around the city neighbouring kingdoms who were weaker
are linked to two lakes called ‘East Barray’ than Srivijaya were gradually merged into it.
and ‘West Barray ’. These two lakes are the In the 11th century C.E. Srivijya became
source of water for the moats, and also for weaker while facing the Chola invasion. In
Angkorthom as well as for Angkorwat and the 14th century C.E. ‘Parameswaran’ alias
other temples in the vicinity. City gates of ‘Eskandar Shah’, the last king of Malayu
Angkorthom are known for their Shikharas, established the first sultanate of Malaya.
which are in the form of a smiling human
face of enormous size. The faces are built 2. Majapahita : In the 13th century C.E.,
by assembling stones that are cut as different in Eastern Java, arose a kingdom known as
parts of the face. ‘Majapahita’. This was the last kingdom,
with Indian cultural traits. The name of the
Angkorwat, Angkorthom and its vicinity founder king of Majapahita was, ‘Vijaya’.
have been declared as the World Cultural King Vijaya was successful in sacking Kublai
Khan from Java. He established his

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For additional information : A group of Hindu temples on the Dieng
I-Tsing/Yi-Jing had stayed in Sumatra plateau in Central Java was built in the
before coming to India and also on his Shailendra period.
return journey to China. He studied
Sanskrit grammer during his stay in 4. Matram : There was a kingdom
Sumatra. He has mentioned the called Mataram contemporary to Shailendra.
kingdom of Sumatra by the name of Its founder king’s name was Sanjaya. During
‘Shili Foshi’ (Srivijaya). The king of the period of Matram kingdom, ‘Mahabharata’
Srivijaya had sent him to Malayu. He and ‘Harivamsha’ were translated in Javanese
stayed in Malayu for two months. language. Poems in ancient Javanese language
Before returning to China, he again are composed in Sanskrit metres like
stayed in Malayu for two months. He ‘Shardulvikridita’. Poems composed in metres
mentions that in the intervening period are known as ‘Kakvin’.
of twenty years between his first
arrival and return journey the name of The shadow puppetry show known as
Malayu had changed to Srivijaya. ‘Wayang’ is a famous performing art of
According to his description there were Indonesia. This show is presented by using
more than a thousand Buddhist cut-outs from leather or wood. Stories of
Bhikkhus in Srivijaya studying Sanskrit. Mahabharata and Ramayana are presented
on the stage by the artists in this show.
For additional information : A There are also some forms of ‘Wayang’
number of inscriptions have been played by human characters.
discovered in Sumatra. They are written
in the ancient Malayu language and the
script used for it is Pallava Brahmi (a
form of Tamil Brahmi script).

supremacy in some of the islands like Java, Wayang Puppets
Bali and also some other islands and extended
the kingdom of Java into an empire. Its The Shaivaite temples, and Jaina temples
existence came to an end with the rise of were akso built in Indonesia. The group of
Islamic states in the 15th and 16th centuries. temples in Prambanan is important. This
group has been accorded the status of World
3. Shailendra : According to some Cultural Heritage. The main temple in this
Indian historians the Shailendra kings hailed group is known as ‘Candi* Prambanan’ or
from India. However, this opinion is not ‘Candi Lara/Rara Jonggrang’. It was built by
accepted by all historians. The Shailendras King Daksha. This is a temple dedicated to
reached the peak of their political power in Siva and it has a beautiful image of Goddess
the 8th - 9th centuries. The shailendra kings Durga in it. Local people call her Lara/Rara
were followers of Buddhism. They built many Jonggrang.
Buddhist temples and stupas. Among them
the stupa of ‘Borobudur’ is unique for its * Candi means temple.
architecture, sculptural art and its expression
of Buddhist philosophy. It has been enlisted
as World Cultural Heritage.

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Thus, so far, we have studied the history The history from the beginning of the
of cultural impact of India in several other Christian era in the ancient period to the
countries. Spread of Buddhism and Indian medieval age is the history of cultural
trade facilitated the spread of Indian culture. exchange between India and other countries.

For additional information : The base of every platform is decorated
According to Buddhist philosophy the with sculptures all around. There are
universe exists at three planes : (1) niches with images of Gauthama Buddha
Kamdhatu ( Bondage in the form of in it. On the third plane, there are three
desire) (2) Roopdhatu (Bondage in the circular platforms, which have stupas
form of physical appearance and with latticed structure along the edges of
appelations) (3) Aroopdhatu (State of the platforms. There are images of
being beyond any bondage). The Gautama Buddha inside the latticed
architectural design of Borobudur Stupa stupas. The last platform has a stupa in
is based on the concept of these three its centre. This stupa is built in solid
planes. The first two planes have masonry. The grand stupa of Borobudur
platforms that successively reduce in size. was built around 800 C.E.

Borobudur Stupa

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Exercise

Q.1 (A) Choose the correct alternative and (C) Write the names.
(1) Son of Emperor Ashoka -
complete the sentence. (2) Ancient kingdom in Laos -
(3) Kingdom of ‘Cham’ people -
(1) Buddhaghosh was an Indian (4) Last king of Malayu -

in Sri Lanka. Q.2 Write short notes on -
(1) Chenla kingdom
(a) Thinker (b) Philosopher (2) Visnhu temple at Angkorwat
(3) Majapahit kingdom
(c) King (d) Priest (4) Champa kingdom

(2) The founder of Pagan empire was Q.3 Answer the following questions in detail.
(1) Explain the spread of Indian culture
. in Thailand.
(2) Write about the cultural
(a) Kyanzittha (b) Anwrahta interrelationship between India and
Myanmar.
(c) Ayuttha (d) Jayavarman
Activity
(3) The ancient name of Cambodia was
Find out the names of World Cultural
. Heritage in this lesson. Collect their
pictures with the help of internet. Prepare
(a) Kambuja Desh (b) Laos a chart by using the following points :
Name of the heritage, place and country.
(c) Angkorwat (d) Sumatra

(B) Find the incorrect pair and write
the correct ones.

(1) Finest example of stupa architecture
in Myanmar - Shwedagon pagoda

(2) Saivaite temples in Champa kingdom
- My Son

(3) The world famous temple in
Cambodia - Angkorwat

(4) The centre of Angkorthom - Dieng
Temples

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14. Delhi Sultanate, Vijayanagar and Bahamani Kingdom

14.1 Political conditions in India Pallavas etc.; thus Chola empire expanded its
14.2 Arab and Turkish invasions boundaries. After the decline of
14.3 Alauddin Khalji and Yadavas of Harshavardhan’s empire many big and small
kingdoms came into being in North India.
Devgiri There was constant struggle for power among
14.4 Trade and Commerce these kingdoms. There was no power, who
14.5 Urbanisation could have control over the rulers of these
14.6 Art, architecture, literature, social kingdoms. The Turkish invaders took
advantage of this political instability of India
life in 13th century. During this period many petty
14.7 Vijaynagar Empire rulers existed such as Chauhans of Rajasthan,
14.8 Bahamani kingdom Pratiharas and Gadhwals (Rathod) of Kanauj,
Chandellas of Bundelkhand, Parmars of
The transition of ancient period to Malwa, Kalachuris of Gorakhpur, Kalachuris
mediaeval period is reflected in various of Tripuri (Madhya Pradesh), Chalukyas
sectors. This transition took place in all fields (Solanki) of Gujarat, Palas of Bengal etc.
including political, social, economic, religious They did resist the invasions of the Turks
and cultural. individually but they did not unite for it.

Do you Know? 14.2 Arab and Turkish invasions
An era ending at a particular date
and the era beginning from the next is Muhammad bin Qasim of Ummayad
not what happens in reality. Some dynasty attacked Sindh in the year 712 C.E.
traditions of the earlier era continue to He conquered the entire region from Sindh
exist while new traditions are being to Multan. After Muhammad bin Qasim, the
formed. Accordingly the historic period Arabs rule in India grew instable.
was roughly divided into various periods,
such as : Early, Mediaeval and Modern. In India, the Islamic rule was established
It is difficult to draw a line between by the Turks. They attacked India several
two eras as the contexts of the beginning times. None of the rulers in India could
and the end of two eras may differ successfully resist them. The Turks looted
from place to place and time to time. enormous wealth from India. Many kingdoms
were destroyed and Islamic rule was
14.1 Political conditions in India established.
Some of the royal dynasties of ancient
period continued to rule during the mediaeval In the 11th century, Sultan Sabuktigin of
period while new dynasties arose. The Chola Ghazni in Afghanistan attacked King Jaipal
kingdom in South India had expanded into of Punjab. His kingdom was spread from
an empire during the mediaeval period. King Hindukush mountains to the river Chenab.
Vijayalaya defeated the rulers like Pandyas, After the death of Sabuktgin, his son Mahmud
became the Sultan of Ghazni. He invaded
India for seventeen times (1001 to 1018 CE)
with the aim of looting and spreading Islam.

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Khyber Pass

For Additional Information : One period Mahmud Ghazni, Babur, Nadir
needs to cross Hindukush to enter Shah, and Ahmed Shah Abdali also came
Pakistan from Afghanistan. This route to India via this pass. In the 20th century
goes across Khyber Pass. This pass has the British built a railway line with its
proved to be very important in Indian last destination at a place called ‘Jamrud’
history. During ancient period, the trade near Peshawar in Pakistan. Jamrud is the
between India and Central Asia was doorway of Khyber pass. This railway
carried via this pass. After the Persian track runs about 52 kilometers. There
Emperor Darius, Alexander came, to are 34 tunnels and 92 small and big
India, via this pass. During mediaeval bridges on it.

After Mahmud of Ghazni, the series of Sindh to Bengal. The Indian rulers could be
invasions of Muhammad Ghuri on India defeated easily by the Turkish invaders
began. He was very ambitious. Along with because of internal dissent, lack of centralised
looting India, his main intention was to power, lack of unity, lack of a standing army
establish his rule in India. The Rajput king in addition to the cruel and aggressive war
Prithviraj Chauhan opposed him. Two wars strategies of the invaders.
were fought between the two rulers. They are
known as ‘Battles of Tarain’. Prithviraj Muhammed Ghuri appointed one of his
Chauhan was defeated in the Second battle slaves, Qutubuddin Aibak to administer the
of Tarain. After this defeat there was no province of Delhi and surrounding regions.
such powerful king who could hold the After the death of Muhammad Ghuri,
Rajputs together. Muhammad Ghuri succeeded Qutubuddin Aibak became the first Sultan of
in establishing the Turkish Empire from Delhi. He is the founder of the ‘Slave
Dynasty’.

103

14.3 Alauddin Khalji and Yadavas of necessary to keep the newly increased army
Devgiri and its officers busy by planning new
campaigns. All these factors were responsible
After Qutubuddin Aibak, Iltutmish came for his campaign in the South.
on the throne of Delhi. After his death, his
daughter Razia became the Sultan of Delhi. After the Khalji dynasty, the Tughluq
Since childhood Razia was trained in state dynasty ruled Delhi. In this dynasty, the
affairs by Iltutmish. She was a capable ruler reign of Muhammad-bin-Tughluq proved to
and concerned with the welfare of her people. be important. The shifting of the capital to
She also lead some military campaigns. She Devgiri and changes in the coinage system
was the first and the only woman to ascend proved to be the major reasons for his failure.
the throne of Delhi. After Razia, Balban was He was the first Sultan to issue copper coins.
an important Sultan who ruled Delhi. As a policy matter, perhaps Muhmmad-bin-
Tughluq was right in his decisions. However,
After the end of the slave dynasty, the when it came to the implementation of those
Khalji dynasty came to power. Alauddin policies he overlooked the ground realities
Khalji attacked Yadavas of Devgiri and such as transport and communication, adverse
collected enormous wealth. effect on the trade and resultant unrest among
the subjects, this decision became unsuccessful
Devgiri was a prosperous city in the and he again shifted the capital back to
South. King Ramadevarai Yadava was ruling Delhi. The prestige of the Sultan and the
over Devgiri. Alauddin attacked Devgiri in kingdom declined due to his erroneous
1296 C.E. In face of the sudden attack decision.
Ramadevarai took shelter in the fort of
Devgiri (Daulatabad). Alauddin seized the Taimur was the Mongol* ruler in Central
fort. He plundered the city. There was an Asia. He invaded India during the period of
acute shortage of food in the fort. Finally Naseeruddin Mahmood and brought an end
Ramadevarai had to sign a treaty with him. to the Tughluq dynasty. During Muhmmad-
Alauddin conquered nearby provinces of bin-Tughluq’s absence in Delhi, the Mughals
Devgiri as well, and collected a large booty captured Punjab and they reached up to
as part of the treaty. Delhi.

During 1312 C.E., Alauddin once again During this period an important incidence
turned his attention towards south as
Ramdevrai, the ruler of Devgiri had stopped * The Mughal rulers in India claimed to be the
paying the tribute to Alauddin for some time. descendants of the Mongols in Central Asia.
Alauddin sent his Commander, Malik Kafur,
to South. There were political and economic took place in the South. Muhammad Tughluq
reasons behind this campaign. The most did succeed in building his Empire in South.
important reason was to subdue the Yadavas But during the same period, two other
and to collect tribute from them. Alauddin kingdoms arose in the south, the Vijaynagar
had increased his army in size. He was the and the Bahamani kingdom. The establishment
first Sultan to set up a permanent standing of Vijaynagar posed a strong challenge to the
army on a large scale. He devised some new Sultanate.
economic reforms for controlling the market
prices. These new measures created a heavy After the Tughluques, the Sayyed dynasty
strain over the state treasury. It was also ruled over Delhi. After Sayyed, the Lodi
dynasty was established. Ibrahim Lodi proved

104

to be the last Sultan. He had earned many The goods were further transported to
enemies because of his nature. His Afghan various ports via land or river ways. From
Sardars also went against him. Daulat Khan, there it was sent by sea route to countries
the Subhedar of Punjab, approached Babur, the like Iran, Arabia, China etc. The goods
ruler of Kandahar and Kabul, for help against mainly included cotton cloth, muslin, dyed
Ibrahim Lodi. In 1526 C.E., Babur defeated cloth, scented oils, indigo, sugar, cotton, dry
Ibrahim Lodi in the first battle of Panipat and ginger etc. Horses were imported to India
the Sultanate period came to an end. It was from Iraq, Turkey and Iran. Semi precious
the beginning of the Mughal period. stones, mercury, lead, alum, saffron, metals
like gold and silver were imported from
14.4 Trade and Commerce
You would like to know : Amir
Agriculture was the main occupation of Khusrow was a well-known poet and
majority of people during the Sultanate scholar who composed poetry in the
period. Agricultural production and its revenue Persian language. He spent his life in
were the main sources of revenue. Along the court of Sultan Balban in Delhi.
with it, textile industry also flourished on While describing the muslin of Dhaka,
large scale. Delhi, Agra, Lahore, Multan, he says, “the Muslin is so fine that
Banaras, Patna, Khambayat, Burhanpur, even if hundred yards are tied around
Devgiri were the main centres of textile the head, one could still see the hair.”
industry during this period. The cotton cloth He says further, “Hundred yards of
was exported on a large scale from Bengal muslin can pass through the hole of a
to Gujarat. The textile exports included needle, but the same needle cannot
muslin, linen cloth, satin and jari cloth. make a hole in the cloth.” This shows
the fines of craftsmanship of those days.
During this period, the textile dyeing
industry gained importance. Golconda, Mecca and Aden.
Ahmedabad, Dhaka, etc. were the centres of During the Sultanate period there were
this industry. During this period various
other industries also flourished such as metal major changes in coinage system. Instead of
industry, sugar industry, leather works etc. images of deities on the coins, the names of
The manufacturing of paper began during the Khalifa and the Sultan were inscribed on
this period. Paper was made out of rags and the coins. Details regarding the year of issue,
tree barks. Paper manufacturing was carried place of minting etc. were inscribed on it in
out in the regions of Kashmir, Siyalkot, the Arabic script. ‘Tola’ came to be considered
Delhi, Gaya, Bihar, Bengal and Gujarat.
Coins of Muhmmad-bin-Tughluq
During the Sultanate rule, there was an
increase in the internal trade of India. The
local markets operated through weekly
markets (Bazaar) and market places (Mandi /
Mandai). There was rise of new trade centres
(Peth) due to continuously expanding
transactions of trading. The Indian as well
as foreign traders picked up their goods from
the trading centres at Delhi, Multan, Jaunpur,
Banaras, Agra, Patna etc.

105

By the Way : Some of the Sultans communication increased considerably. The
carried out some experiments in the cities developed because of it.
economic sector. Alauddin Khalji
attempted to bring the markets under 14.6 Art, architecture, literature, social
royal control. The prices of grains, life
vegetables, fruits, day to day
commodities as well as slaves, horses The Sultanate period left its impact on
were standardised by the central the religious and cultural life as well as it
administration. The traders were obliged did in the political life. Some new facets
to sell their goods at a standard price. were added to the field of Indian art. For
During famines the government provided example, Razia Sultan encouraged the
essential commodities at regulated musicians and singers by honouring them
prices in the market. The farmers and with awards. Balban himself was a musician.
traders were asked to set aside the He created new Ragas by continuing the
grains for house consumption and to Iranian music with Indian music. Amir
sell the rest to the government at a low Khusrow, Amir Khas and many other poets
price. In this process, the farmers were and musicians were honoured members of the
the ones who suffered the most. royal court of Balban.

as a standard unit for the weight of the coin. The Sufi saints have greatly contributed
to the development of Indian music. The
14.5 Urbanisation followers of Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti used
to present ‘Qawwali’ every evening in the
The rise and fall of the cities depend on court of Delhi. It became a popular form
its political and cultural graph of events. The of vocal music. Hussain Shah Sharukhi
process of urbanisation is associated mainly developed the Khayal style of vocal music.
with political and economic development.
The rulers play an important role in the The Islamic rulers built huge mosques,
settling and development of a city. According dargahs, and tombs. It presents a beautiful
to the Arab historian, Ibn Khaldun, trade blend of Iranian and Indian architecture.
gains momentum as a result of conducive Qutubuddin Aibak was the first ruler to have
policies of the ruler. Some cities gain started building monuments in this style,
importance as administrative centres while which is known as Indo-Islamic architecture.
others gain importance as industrial centres. He built ‘Quwwat-i-Islam’ mosque at Delhi.
Qutub Minar at Mehrauli is a well-known
During the Sultanate period, the process example of Islamic architecture. The
of urbanisation received momentum. At the construction of Qutub Minar bagan during
end of the 13th century Delhi developed as the reign of Qutubuddin Aibak and completed
the capital of the Sultans. Alauddin Khalji during the period of Iltutmish. Later, many
of the Khalji dynasty built the city of ‘Siri’. buildings were built in the precincts of Kutub
The Sultan of Tughluq dynasty set up three Minar. Among them are the ‘Alai Darwaza’
cities namely, Tughluqabad, Jahanpanha, and and Jamalkhan mosque built by Alauddin
Firozabad. The Sultans of Sayyed and Lodi Khalji. Firoz Shah Tughlaq built Fatehabad
dynasty made the city of Agra as their and Hisaf-i-Firuz. He built many forts,
capital. During this period many small and bridges, dharamshalas and canals. The
big kingdoms existed and the nature of their buildings built by the Sultans of Tughlaq
capitals was similar to small and big cities. dynasty were huge but simple.
Trade and sources of transport and
The Sultans of Delhi encouraged literary
activities as well. During the Arab period
and the reign of Sultans, many important

106

(primary school) and Madarasas were
established.

14.7
Vijaynagar Empire

At the end of

13th century,

Alauddin Khalji’s

invasions, the

coffers of local

rulers in South

India were emptied

to a great extent.

This was the time Krishnadevaraya

when Harihara and

Bukka established new kingdom of

‘Vijaynagar’ in 1336 C.E. During the rule of

king Krishnadevaraya the kingdom expanded

into an empire spreading from South Konkan

in the west to Vishakhapatnam in the East

Qutub Minar and Krishna river in the north to Kanyakumari

Sanskrit texts were translated in Persian in the south. Krishnadevaraya wrote a text
language. Al-Beruni, who came to India
during the period of Mahmud Ghazni, studied entitled, ‘Amuktamalyada’ which is about the
Sanskrit language and translated many
sanskrit texts in Arabic language. Many State and Policy.
writers and poets found patronage in the
court of the Sultans. Many scholars from The Italian traveller Nicolo Conti and
countries like Syria, Arabia, Iran, etc. used Persian traveller Abdul Razzaq had visited
to travel to India during this period. Tuli Vijayanagar. Their travel reports give fair
translated the text of ‘Koshashastra’. During account of the history of Vijayanagar.
the Sultanate period many historians rose to
fame. Among them some names were Hasan 14.8 Bahamani kingdom
Nizami, Ziauddin Barani, Afif Yahya etc.
During this period the Persian, Arabic and In 1347 C.E. some of the Sardars in
Turkish language gave rise to a new language south revolted against Sultan Muhammad
called Urdu in South India. Tughluq under the leadership of Hasan
Gangu. They captured the fort of Daulatabad.
During the Sultanate period, the Muslim Hasan Gangu took up the title, ‘Alauddin
society in India comprised people of various Bahamatshah’ and established the Bahamani
origin like Turks, Ulemas, Mughals, Arabs, kingdom.
and the Indian Muslims. Most of the Sultans
were Turks or Pathans. An independent class Hasan Gangu established his capital at
of Amirs and Umravs (nobility) came into Gulbarga in Karnataka. He focused on the
existence. During this period, many Maktabas expansion of his kingdom. During the period
of Bahamani rule, the Prime Minister (Vazir)
Mahmud Gawan strengthened the kingdom.
He paid the soldiers with fixed salary instead
of Jahagirs (land grants). The land revenue
was fixed based on land measurement.

107

Gawan was interested in mathematics Bijapur, Nizamshahi of Ahmednagar and
and medicine. He had a large personal Qutubshahi of Golconda.
collection of books, and established Madarasa
at Bidar, because of which he stands apart In 1565 C.E., in the battle of Talikota,
from his contempories. these five ruling houses came together under
the Bahamani leadership and defeated the
After the death of Mahmud Gawan, the emperor of Vijayanagar and the Vijayanagar
Bahamani court was divided into different Empire came to an end.
factions. The conflict among them affected
the kingdom adversly. The conflict with the The Sultanate period had far reaching
Vijaynagar kingdom had also taken a toll on effects on political and social life of India.
the political strength of the Bahamani A new culture developed as the effect of
kingdom. The provincial Governors began to synthesis between Islamic and local Indian
operate more independently. This led to the traditions. After the end of the Sultanates, the
disintegration of the Bahamani kingdom into Mughal Empire was established in the north.
five small ruling houses - Imadshahi of We are going to study about it in the next
Varhad, Baridshahi of Bidar, Adilshahi of lesson.

Exercise

Q.1 (A) Choose the correct alternative and (c) Amir Khusrow

complete the sentence. (d) Husen Shah Sharukhi

(1) The royal poet in the court of (2) The first ruler who built the buildings
in Indo-Islamic style of architecture
Balban was . was .

(a) Al-Beruni (b) Tuli

108

(a) Ferozshah Tughluq Q.4 Explain the statements with reasons.
(b) Qutubuddin Aibak (1) The Arab rule did not expand in
(c) Alauddin Khalji India
(d) Akbar (2) The Rajput rulers had to accept
defeat in front of the Turkish
(B) Find the incorrect pair and write invaders.
the correct ones.
Q.5 State your opinion.
(1) Rajasthan – Chauhans The textile industry flourished during the
(2) Kanauj – Patiharas Sultanate rule.
(3) Bundelkhand – Chandelas
(4) Tripuri – Paramars Q.6 Write short notes -
(1) Khyber Pass
Q.2 Write in correct chronological order (2) Coins during Sultanate period
(1) Prithviraj Chauhan was defeated in
the second battle of Terain. Q.7 Anwer the following question with the
(2) Muhammad Tughluq shifted the help of given points.
capital from Delhi to Devgiri.
(3) Sabuktigin, the Sultan of Ghajni, Write down the information about the
attacked king Jaipal of Punjab. invasion of Alauddin Khalji on Yadavas
(4) Qutubuddin Aibak became the first of Devgiri with the help of points given
Sultan of Delhi. below.
(a) Reasons of invasion
Q.3 Complete the following concept map. (b) Invasion and events
(c) Effects of invasion
Buildings in Islamic
style during the Activity
Sultante period
Collect information about the Hindi
movie Razia Sultan and critically
evaluate it from Historical point of view.



109

15. India during Mughal period

15.1 Mughal rule in India capable of facing the onslaught of new
challenges. The Indians were not familiar
15.2 Reforms in revenue system with modern weaponry. Taking advantage of
all this, the Mughals established their rule in
15.3 Art, architecture, literature India.

15.4 Trade, industries, social life For Additional Information:
‘Mughal’ or ‘Mogal’ are the corrupted
15.5 Mughal Empire and Deccan forms of the Persian word ‘Mongol’. The
Mughals had come from Central Asia.
The period of Delhi Sultanate was the They were the descendants of Mongol
first phase of Islamic rule in India. We have ruler Genghis Khan and Turkish ruler
studied this phase in lesson 14. Ibrahim Lodi Taimurlang. The Mughals held great
was the last Sultan of Delhi. He died while pride in their ancestry. The stories of
fighting with Babur. After that the Delhi Taimur’s attack on India inspired Babur
Sultanate came to an end and the Mughal to carry out expedition in India. Babur
rule was established. After the decline of the was born in Uzbekistan. He was the king
Sultanate, the Mughal rule dominated the of Farghana province in Central Asia.
political scene during 1526 C.E. to 1707 C.E. He defeated the Lodi Afghans of North
During this period most of north and central India and established the Mughal rule in
India and some parts of the Deccan were India. The Mughals ruled over India for
under their control. The Mughal period was more than three centuries.
prosperous as far as the development in the
fields of art and literature, administrative The grand army of Ibrahim Lodi could
system, foreign relations, trade etc. are not survive in front of Babur in the battle of
concerned. Panipat. Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi on the
strength of configuration skills, strong
15.1 Mughal rule in India artillery, system of secret intelligence and
strong leadership. Babur established his rule
In the beginning of the 16th century, the in Delhi. The Rajput kings came together
political condition in India was somewhat under the leadership of Mewar King Rana
disturbed. The Sultanate rule had begun to Sangha to counter him. Babur defeated the
decline after Muhammad Tughluq. The Delhi Rajputs in the Battle of Khanwa. After
Sultanate broke down completely and many Babur, his elder son Humayun ascended the
new independent kingdoms emerged in the throne. But Humayun was deprived from the
North, Central and South India. The Bahamani kingdom due to the defeat at the hands of
kingdom got divided into five branches. The Shershah Sur of Bihar.
prosperous Vijaynagar empire was destroyed
by the five Islamic ruling houses in the Shershah Sur made some reforms in the
South. During the same period Portuguese
began to settle on the western coast of India.
The traditional military system of the Indian
rulers in the mediaeval period was not

110

administrative set up. He brought together the the Mughal rule has to be strengthened in
Afghan sardars scattered in North India and India then he had to adopt non-offensive
established the Afghan rule. The descendants policies, which would be popular.
of Shershah were not efficient. Hence after
the death of Shershah, Humayun regained his After Akbar, Jahangir, Shahjahan and
lost kingdom. Aurangzeb ruled efficiently. Aurangzeb
attempted to expand his empire in the Deccan
After Humayun, his son Akbar ascended with prolonged campaigns. Aurangzeb reign
the throne. He proved to be the greatest is notable for his wars in frontier provinces,
Mughal Emperor because of his qualities his political policies in North and south India,
such as high intelligence, tolerance, firmness staunch religious policies, and the Mughal-
and courage. The kingdom established by Maratha conflict. This period is marked by
Babur was transformed into a great empire the expansion of Maratha kingdom,
by Akbar. He established his rule from Kabul interference by the Europeans in the political
to Bengal and Kashmir to Varhad-Khandesh. affairs of India and the decline of Mughal
During this period, Rana Pratap, the ruler of power. Finally, the aftermath of the struggle
Mewar, put up a strong resistance against of Independence in 1857 C.E., saw the end
Akbar. Akbar could never win a war with of the Mughal rule under Bahadur Shah.
Rana Pratap. Hence for the expansion of the
empire, he adopted the strategy of persuasion 15.2 Reforms in revenue system
with the Rajputs. Akbar had realized that if
Akbar made further reforms in the
revenue system implemented by Shershah

111

Sur. This bought a certain discipline in the Buland Darwaza, Fatehpur Sikri
Mughal revenue system. He graded the
cultivable land based on systematic land of ‘Baburnama’. The art of painting received
survey. The land was classified into four encouragement during the period of Akbar.
types on the basis of annual yield, i.e. fertile He appointed skilled painters in his court.
(supik), infertile (napik), irrigated (bagayat) During the period of Jahangir, paintings were
and dry crop (jirayat) land. Individual land done based on the court and hunting scenes.
holdings of farmers were registered. An The paintings of this period were done in a
average of the annual yield in the last ten more realistic style, which is vibrant and
years was calculated and one third of this attractive. These paintings, portray birds and
average yield was fixed as the base for the animals, cloud formations, human figures,
tax to be paid. The tax, thus fixed, was and natural scenery.
applicable for the span of ten years. This
offered considerable respite to farmers for a Mughal Painting
span of ten years. Documents known as
‘Kabulayat’ and ‘Patta’ were prepared from
the farmers after the fixing of the tax rate.
The tax was collected in cash or in kind.
The farmers were sanctioned loans for tilling
the land, which could be repaid in installments.
Concessions were also granted to the farmers
during times of calamities like famine, floods,
and epidemics. These were the Welfare
policies of Emperor Akbar. Todarmal in
emperor Akbar’s court is known for his
insights regarding the welfare of common
people. His insights were instrumental for
Akbar’s land reforms.

15.3 Art, architecture, literature

The reign of the three emperors, Akbar,
Jahangir and Shahjahan was a period of
peace, order and prosperity. A new era began
in the field of art and architecture. The
etched designs on the marble walls of
Mosques, tombs and palaces are an evidence
of the highly advanced styles of art and
architecture. The carved designs on the tombs
of Salim Chisti at Fatehpur Sikri and Taj
Mahal are its paramount examples. During
the period of Akbar and Jahangir the art of
ivory carving received royal patronage. The
Mughal paintings originated from the Persian
styles of painting. There are miniature
paintings of Persian style in the manuscript

112

For Additional information : In here and arranged huge festival of lights
1758, the army of Afghan King in his honour, for which one lac rupees
Ahmadshah Abdali, was pushed back were spent. This occasion was arranged
beyond the boundaries of Attock by on the onset of the year known as
Maratha army. After driving away Abdali, ‘Bahudhanyasamvatsar’. This opened
the Marathas camped at Shalimar garden great future for Raghunath Rao.’’
in Lahore. Riyasatakar G.S.Sardesai in
Marathi Riyasat Vol.4 states that, On 21 April 1758, the Maratha
“Dadasaheb (Raghunathrao Peshwa) has Sardar Hari Raghunath Bhide wrote a
captured Lahore. The old palace of the letter to the Peshwa in Pune regarding the
Emperor is located outside the city in Punjab campaign. He states, “the army
Shalimar garden. Adina Beg made of the Deccan had previously not marched
arrangements for the stay of Dadasaheb up to Delhi, but now it has marched up
to Chenab.”

During the Mughal period, the art of The influence of Persian style of
music seem to have received royal patronage. architecture was more prominent till Akbar’s
During the period of Akbar, the Persian, period. In the later period it evolved by
Kashmiri, Turkish musicians were given royal absorbing Indian elements, which came to be
patronage. Tansen was a great singer in the known as ‘Indo-Islamic’ style of architecture.
court of Akbar. During this period the The architectural style during Sultanate period
Hindustani music prospered. During the had great implements on strength and
period of Jahangir and Shahajahan, music simplicity. But during the Mughal period, the
was encouraged as well. However under focus shifted to aesthetics. During the period
Aurangzeb’s rule art declined, since he had of Babur the Kabulbag mosque at Panipat
banned all art forms. and Jama Masjid at Sambhal in Uttar
Pradesh were built in Persian style. The
By the way : During the period of memorial built during the period of Shershah
Aurangzeb, the royal patronage to the Sur at Sahastram (Bihar) is an excellent
art of painting was withdrawn. The example of Indo-Islamic style of architecture.
artists were forced to seek patronage The Purana Qila was built by Shershah at
elsewhere under various rulers in Delhi. The city of Fatehpur Sikri was set up
Rajasthan, Bundelkhand, Gujarat and during Akbar’s period. Later the buildings
the provinces of Himalayan ranges. New like Jama Masjid, Buland Darwaza were
local styles of paintings emerged there, built in Fatehpur-Sikri. Akbar built the
which are known as ‘Rajasthani’ and important forts like Agra fort, Lahore fort,
‘Pahari’ paintings. The ‘Ragamala’, Allahabad fort, and Attock fort. The use of
‘Baramas’ paintings depict the different Red stone and marble, huge domes, arches
seasons in nature. The painters of Pahari were the salient features of the architecture
style depicted various themes apart from of this period.
daily life, such as religious, historic etc.
Later, various styles such as ‘Basauli’, The Mughal Emperors were nature
‘Gadhwali’, and ‘Kangra’ emerged out lovers. They created huge gardens. Among
of the Pahari style of painting. them the Shalimar garden at Lahore, Shalimar
garden and Nishat garden in Kashmir are
popular even today.

113

Shalimar Baug, Lahore Persian which include ‘Rajatarangini’,
‘Lilavati’, ‘Ramayana’, ‘Mahabharata’,
The period of Shahajahan was the most ‘Harivamsh’ and ‘Panchatantra’. Abul Fazal
glorious period of Mughal architecture. wrote the famous ‘Akbarnama’ and ‘Ain-i-
‘Diwan-i-Aam’ and ‘Diwan-i-Khaas’ in Red Akbari’. Dara Shukoh, the son of Shahjahan,
fort, ‘Jama masjid’, ‘Moti Masjid’, were built was a sanskrit scholar. He translated text of
during his period. The ‘Taj Mahal’ of Agra several Upanishada texts in Persian language
built by him is incomparable and immortal. from Sanskrit. During the Mughal period,
Later, the Mughal architecture began to number of biographical, historical texts were
decline. written. Among them Khafi Khan’s ‘Tarikh-
i-Khafikhan’ is well-known.
Taj Mahal
During the Mughal period, a number of
During the Mughal period excellent literary works of high quality were created
literature was created in Persian language. in local north Indian dialects. To mention a
Babur himself knew Persian and Turkish few, ‘Ramacharitamanas’ written by Goswami
languages. His autobiography known as Tulsidas, the compositions of Surdas and
‘Baburnama’ is well-known. Another Meerabai, Padmavat composed by Malik
important text is ‘Tarikh-i-Rashidi’ by Mirza Muhammad Jaysi, dohas of Saint Kabir.
Hyder written during the period of Humayun.
Akbar got many Sanskrit texts translated in 15.4 Trade, industries, social life

During the Mughal period, the
transportation of goods within the empire had
become speedy. New highways were built for
internal trade. Highways were built from
Agra to Kabul, Kandahar, Khambayat,
Burhanpur and Bengal. The foreign trade via
sea route was mainly carried out from the
ports on western coast such as Khambayat,
Bharuch, Surat, Dabhol and Calicut.

The Indian merchants traded with
merchants from Arabia, Iran, China, Armenia
and some countries of European continent.
Silk, carpets, indigo, leather items, sugar,
ginger, asafoetida, precious stones and many
such items were exported to foreign countries
from India. The goods imported to India
included gold, silver, horses, China silk etc.

During the Mughal period, the Indian
textile industry flourished. Indian cotton cloth
had great demand in the regions of Arabia,
East coast of Africa, Egypt, Myanmar,
Malacca etc. The dyes for textiles were made
at Agra. Colours were mainly prepared from
indigo, turmeric, lac, Kusumba (dried flowers
of safflower) etc. Weapons and farming

114

For Additional information : philosophy, agriculture, politics, and
The foreign trade flourished to a great astronomy. During the Mughal period, a
extent during the Mughal period. number of Madarasas were established at
Exports from India were larger than Sambhal (Uttar Pradesh), Ahmedabad
the imports. Many commodities (Gujarat) etc. In South India cities like
including silk cloth, precious stones, Ahmednagar, Gulbarga, Burhanpur, Bijapur,
spices etc. were exported from India Golconda, and Hyderabad had also become
while the imported goods mainly famous as learning centres. There was a
included luxury items. The foreign Madarasa established at Ahmednagar by
traders had to pay for the Indian Saint Tahir. The libraries in Madarasas use
goods in the form of silver. Hence to have a special staff appointed for its
India received silver every year in maintenance.
large quantities. Edward Terry, an
European states, “Just as rivers meet 15.5 Mughal Empire and Deccan
the sea and stay there similarly the
tide of silver from all over the world During the rule of Babur and Humayun
comes to India and does not return.” boundaries of the Mughal empire had no
extended beyond North India. The main
equipments were the main products of casting ruling powers to the South of river Narmada
industry. The copper and brass vessels were were Sultan of Khandesh, Nizamshahi of
in demand on large scale. The province of Ahmednagar, Adilshahi of Bijapur and
Bihar was famous for paper production. Qutubshahi of Golconda. Akbar led a
Paper was produced from silk. Siyalkot was campaign against Nizamshahi.
famous for white paper. Salt and sugar
production were important industries of this In 1595 C.E. Akbar seized the fort of
period. Ahmednagar. During that time, Chand Sultana
(Chandbibi), the daughter of Nizamshah,
During the Mughal period, most of the successfully resisted the attack with courage
population stayed in villages. Every village and intelligent strategies. After her death the
was self-sufficient. The law and order was Mughals conquered Ahmednagar, the capital
managed and the daily needs were met at of Nizamshahi. Akbar personally came down
the village level. During this period, there to South and divided the conquered province
were no major changes in the social into three Subhas namely- Ahmednagar,
organisation which was based on caste Varhad and Khandesh. While Akbar was
system. engaged in the southern campaign, Prince
Salim rebelled against him and Akbar had
During the Mughal period, the purdah to wind up his campaign hastily. During the
system was rooted in the elite class of both period of Shahjahan, the Nizamshahi kingdom
Muslim and Hindu community. The education declined. However, the Adilshahi and
system of Sultanate period had continued till Qutubshahi kingdoms manage to survive.
the rule of Akbar. However Akbar made
important reforms in this system. Along with Later, Aurangzeb was successful in
education of Islamic religion, he also included uprooting them completely. The Maratha
new subjects in the syllabi such as Indian power in the Deccan put up a strong
resistance to Aurangzeb’s advent. We will
study the history of this part in the next
lesson.

115

Exercise

Q.1 (A) Choose the correct alternative and Q.2 Explain the statements with reasons.
complete the sentence. (1) The Rajput rulers united against
Babur.
(1) Mughal Emperor Babur was born at (2) Shershah Sur was well-known for
in . his ideal administration.
(a) Baluchistan (b) Kazakhstan (3) Emperor Akbar strengthened the
(c) Uzbekistan (d) Afghanistan foundation of his rule in India.
(4) Mughal art declined during the
(2) Mughal Emperor Humayun was period of Aurangzeb.
defeated by .
(a) Ibrahim Lodi Q.3 Write short notes
(b) Shershah Sur (c) Babur (1) Mughal Art
(d) Akbar (2) Mughal literature

(3) Akbarnama was written by . Q.4 Answer the following questions in
(a) Mohammad Qasim detail.
(b) Abul Fazl (c) Mirza Hyder (1) During the Mughal period what were
(d) Badauni the changes made in the revenue
system?
(B) Find the incorrect pair and write (2) Elaborate the features of Mughal
the correct ones. architecture.

(1) Khafi Khan - Akbarnama Activity
(2) Malik Muhammad Jayasi -
Collect information about the expansion
Padmavat of Mughal rule by Emperor Akbar and
(3) Sant Kabir - Doha the contemporary cities.
(4) Mirza Hyder - Tarikh-i-Rashidi

(C) Write the names.
(1) He defeated Ibrahim Lodi
(2) She successfully resisted the attack

of Akbar and saved the Nizamshahi
kingdom

116

16. Swarajya to Empire (Maratha period)

16.1 Contribution of Sants as Sant Nirmalaba (निर्मळाबाई), Sant Muktabai,
Sant Janabai, Sant Kanhopatra and Sant
16.2 Foundation and Expansion of Bahinabai Siurkar also belong to this period.
Swarajya
The sants, created a sense of belonging
16.3 Maratha war of independence among people toward their native region,
language, literature, and culture. They gave
16.4 Administrative system established message of equality to people. Their teachings
by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj were based on the principles of humanity.
They preached harmonious community life,
16.5 Release of Shahu Maharaj unity and love. Their efforts created social
awakening. Their teaching helped people to
16.6 Peshwa period survive situations like foreign invasions,
draughts or other natural calamities. Their
16.7 Art, architecture, literature devotional songs became a source of a great
moral support for people. Their work created
16.8 Trade, industries and social life a sense of self-esteem among the people of
Maharashtra.
Alauddin Khalji defeated the Yadavas of
Devgiri and the rule of Delhi Sultans began 16.2 Foundation and Expansion of
in south India. After Khalji, the Tughluq and Swarajya
Bahamani kingdoms ruled over Maharashtra.
Later Bahamani kingdom was disintegrated In the first half of the 17th century,
into five parts. Among them, Nizamshahi and
Adilshahi ruled parts of Maharashtra. The Nizamshahi and Adilshahi had established
Mughals turn their attention to south India.
As a result, Nizamshahi came to an end. their rule in Maharashtra. Many eminent
This was the general political scenario during
17th century, when Chhatrapati Shivaji Maratha sardars flourished under their rule.
Maharaj established Swarajya marking the
rise of Maratha power. They held Jahagirs in the remote regions of

16.1 Contribution of Sants the Sahyadris. The difficult terrain of Sahyadri

Superstition and rituals ruled at large in allowed them to operate independently.
the medieval Indian society. People had
become fatalistic and inert. They had become Shahajiraje Bhosale was a prominent sardar
inert. The condition of the common people
was miserable. These were the times when in the Nizamshahi kingdom. After the end of
the sants in Maharashtra made efforts to
bring the masses back to life. Nizamshahi rule,

In Maharashtra, the tradition of sants, he accepted the
which began with Chakradhar Swami, Sant
Namdev, Sant Dnyaneshwar, Sant Eknath, rank of a
Sant Tukaram and Samarth Ramdas. It was
continued by sants coming from various Mansabdar* in
strata of the society. For example Sant
Chokhamela, Sant Goroba, Sant Sawata, the Adilshahi
Sant Narhari, Sant Sena, Sant Shaikh
Muhammad etc. Similarly women sants such court. Shahajiraje

was valiant,

courageous, wise

and well-versed

in the science of

statehood. He

had successfully

handled many Shahajiraje

Adilshahi

expeditions in Maharashtra, Karnataka and

117

Tamil Nadu. The provinces of Pune, Supe,
Shirwal, Indapur and Chakan were given to
Shahajiraje as Jahagir. He personally aspired
to establish Swarajya. He is regarded as the
visionary of Swarajya.

*A military officer who maintains his own division
of soldiers.

He sent his son Shivajiraje and his wife,

Veermata Jijabai from

Bengaluru to Pune

along with his loyal

and capable

associates. Veermata

Jijabai encouraged

Shivaji Maharaj to

fulfil the dream of

Shahajiraje of

establishing Swarajya. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj

She was a visionary Maharashtra, valour of the local Mawalas,
the administrative and military experience
and an efficient Veermata Jijabai gained by the Maratha sardars while working
administrator. She with Nizamshahi and Adilshahi and above
all these the able leadership of Shivaji
constantly guided her son in the mission of Maharaj could make it possible.

establishing Swarajya and provided him with After joining the Adilshahi court, Shahaji
Maharaj entrusted the administration of his
excellent education necessary for the king of Jahagirs at Pune, Shirwal and Supe region
(pargana) to Shivaji Maharaj. Yet the forts
Swarajya. located in those Jahagirs and nearby areas
were in the custody of Adilshahi court. The
The concept of Swarajya was visualised one ‘who owns the forts owns the land’ was
by Shahajiraje and it was turned into reality the ruling of the day. Hence Shivaji Maharaj
by Shivaji Maharaj. Shivaji Maharaj laid the began with capturing the forts in the vicinity
foundation of Swarajya from the Mawal of his jahagirs. He took over the fort of
region. Several factors like topography of Torana and laid the foundation of Swarajya.
Shivaji Maharaj established the first capital
For Additional Information : The of Swarajya at the fort of Rajgad. Chandrarao
Mawal region is a mountaineous terrain and More proved to be a hindrance in Shivaji
is not easily accessible. The vallyes at the Maharaj’s efforts to create Swarajya. Shivaji
foot of Sahyadri ranges in Maharashtra are Maharaj successfully took over Javali. After
known as ‘Mawal’ and the local people of this victory the activities of Shivaji Maharaj
Mawal are known as ‘Mawalas’. The in Konkan were escalated. Realising the
Mawalas in the army of Shivajiraje played a danger of the increasing activities of Shivaji
great role in establishing Swarajya. Shivaji Maharaj, the Bijapur court sent their powerful
Maharaj had created a feeling of trust and General Afzalkhan to curb the increasing
affection in their minds. Shivaji Maharaj set power of Shivaji Maharaj.
himself on the task of establishing Swarajya
with the support of these Mawalas. Many of Shivaji Maharaj had anticipated the
his close associates like Kanhoji Jedhe,
Tanaji Malusare, Netoji Palkar, Baji
Pasalkar, Baji Prabhu Deshpande, Murarbaji
Deshpande etc. were from the Mawal region.

118

For Additional Information : In the year could later build war ships on their own. Till
1657 C.E., after conquering Kalyan and 1675 C.E., Shivaji Maharaj had four hundred
Bhiwandi, the boundaries of Swarajya extended small and big ships in his fleet. During the
upto the coastline. The British and the French second sack of Surat, Shivaji Maharaj brought
were involved in Salt trade. Shivaji Maharaj those ships to the coast of Surat and loaded
wanted to establish control over the sea waters. the huge booty on them acquired from Surat.
However, he did not have any knowhow of It is apparent that Shivaji Maharaj wanted to
building war ships. The Portuguese were afraid establish complete control over the land as
of the Siddis. Shivaji Maharaj assured the well as on the sea. Shivaji Maharaj was the
Portuguese to fight the Siddis. In turn, Shivaji first to have the foresight to create his own
Maharaj sent some selected fishermen with the navy. Hence, he is known as the ‘Father of
Portuguese ship builders named Rui Leitao the Indian Navy’ Maynak Bhandari,
Viegas and his son Fernao Viegas and got Daulatkhan, Kanhoji Angre were experts of
twenty war ships built with their help. These Marine war strategies.
fishermen were the people, who once trained,
Shaistakhan had no alternative but to hastily
intentions of Afzalkhan, who had taken up the leave Lal Mahal. Shivaji Maharaj gained
challenge of killing Shivaji Maharaj. He met more confidence and he attacked Surat, the
Afzalkhan at Pratapgad. As expected prosperous economic capital of Aurangzeb
Afzalkhan attempted treachery but Shivaji and collected a large booty. Enraged by this,
Maharaj was well prepared and killed Aurangzeb sent his powerful sardars Mirza
Afzalkhan in self defence. Afzalkhan’s huge Raje Jaising and Diler Khan to attack
army was set on the run and huge booty and Swarajya. They captured many forts in the
weapons were collected left behind by them. Swarajya. Shivaji Maharaj had the wisdom
This made Swarajya’s treasury richer. to comprehend the situation and decided to
retreat tactically by signing the ‘Treaty of
After Afzalkhan’s defeat, the Bijapur Purandar’. According to the treaty, Shivaji
court sent Siddi Jauhar to attack Swarajya. Maharaj had to present himself before
He seized the fort of Panhala and closed all Aurangzeb at Agra, along with his son
posibilities of escape for Shivaji Maharaj. In Sambhaji Maharaj. Aurangzeb acted
this difficult situation Shiva Kashid, a loyal treacherously and put Shivaji under house
servant of Swarajya, disguised himself as arrest. Shivaji Maharaj very cleverly misled
Shivaji Maharaj and made it easy for Shivaji the guards and escaped from Agra.
Maharaj to escape. When Siddi came to
know the truth he killed Shiva Kashid. Thus Soon after returning to Swarajya Shivaji
Shiva Kashid sacrificed his life for the cause Maharaj conqured the forts which were held
of Swarajya. Bajiprabhu took up the task of by Aurangzeb.
blocking Siddhi Masud’s path in Ghodkhind
and stop him in his chase of Shivaji Maharaj. To announce the sovereign and
Bajiprabhu was succussful in doing this. He independent status of Swarajya it was
fell dead only after receiving the news of necessary to make it official. Realising this
Shivaji Maharaj reaching Vishalgad safely. Shivaji Maharaj decided to get himself
coronated. With his coronation as a sovereign
At the time of ascending the throne, king the provinces under his rule assumed the
Aurangzeb was aware of the ambitious plans status of an independent kingdom. After
of Shivaji Maharaj. He sent his maternal coronation he began the Karnataka expedition.
uncle Shaistakhan on an expedition against However, he did not live long after the
Shivaji Maharaj. Shaistakhan camped in Lal victory in the south. He passed away on 3rd
Mahal in Pune. Shivaji Maharaj who knew April 1680. His untimely death caused an
Shaistakhan’s intentions manage to enter the irreparable loss to Swarajya.
Lal Mahal and cut off Shaistakhan’s fingers.

119

16.3 Maratha war of independence thirty years.

After the death of Chhatrapati Shivaji While leaving for Jinji, Rajaram Maharaj

Maharaj, Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj was entrusted Ramchandrapant Amatya,

coronated as the king of Swarajya. During Shankaraji Narayan Sachiv, Santaji Ghorpade

his reign, a constant conflict continued with and Dhanaji

the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. Aurangzeb’s Jadhav with the

rebellious son Akbar had established friendly responsibility of

relations with Sambhaji Maharaj. Enraged by defending Raigad.

this Aurangzeb The guerrilla

came down to tactics of Santaji

Deccan along and Dhanaji

with a huge proved the large

army and able scale artillery and

sardars, who huge cannons of

were veterans of the Mughals to be

warfare. For the of little use. Chhatrapati Rajaram

next 25 years he Despite of holding Maharaj

camped in very few assets

Maharashtra and the Marathas continued to create havoc for

fought against the Mughals. Rajaram Maharaj safeguarded

Chhatrapati Sambhaji the Marathas. Swarajya in these trying times. This was a

Maharaj But he could not great task in itself and a great success of

succeed in destroying the Swarajya. Aurangzeb Rajaram Maharaj.

killed Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj in a After the death of Rajaram Maharaj

very cruel manner (11th March 1689). (March, 1700 C.E.), his wife Maharani

Aurangzeb hoped that the Maratha power Tarabai continued to fight against Aurangzeb.

will be weakened with Sambhaji Maharaj’s Maharani Tarabai led the Swarajya movement

death but it did not happen. Instead the under extremely unfavourable conditions. She

Marathas unitedly fought against the Mughals single-handedly took charge of the

and expanded their rule. administration and

After Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, fought for Swarajya
Chhatrapati Rajaram Maharaj took over the
reins at Raigad. Aurangzeb sent Zulfikar for twenty five years
Khan to seize the fort of Raigad. Chhatrapati
Rajaram Maharaj, Maharani Tarabai, with the help of her
Maharani Yesubai (Queen of Chhatrapati
Sambhaji Maharaj) and her son Prince Shahu sardars. At times,
were staying on Rajgad. All the Maratha
royalties, thus staying at one place was the Marathas had to
dangerous. It would have been strategic to
fight the Mughals from two places at a time. fight the Mughals on
Hence, Maharani Yesubai asked Chhatrapati
Rajaram Maharaj to leave for Jinji. Maharani lands beyond the
Yesubai herself stayed back at Raigad and
continue to fight. In 1689 C.E., the Mughals boundaries of
succeeded in taking charge of Raigad.
Maharani Yesubai and Prince Shahu were Swarajya, but she
arrested and sent to Delhi. Maharani Yesubai
remained in captivity of the Mughals for next did not stop them.

This was an Maharani Tarabai
indication that the

scenario of the war was changing. The

Maratha War of Independence was a tussle

between the Mughal ambition of expanding

their Empire and the desire of independence

cherished by the Marathas. Finally the death

of Aurangzeb put an end to this fighting. In

the beginning, the Mughal rulers adopted an

120

aggresive policy while the Maratha the administration. There was a special
policy remained that of defence. But by the officer called ‘Darakdar’ appointed to look
second half of the 18th century, this condition after every department of the ministry. Other
changed. With the weakening of Mughal officers were ‘Diwan’ (secretary), ‘Majumdar’
power, the Marathas could extend their rule (auditor and accountant), ‘Phadnis’ (Deputy
almost all over India. Auditor), ‘Sabnis’ (office in-charge),
‘Karkhanis’ (Commissary), ‘Chitnis’
16.4 Administrative system established (Correspondence clerk), ‘Jamdar’ (Treasurer),
by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj ‘Potdar’ (assay master) etc.

The regions in Maharashtra including The Kingdom was divided into two parts
Nashik, Pune, Satara, Sangli, Kolhapur, for the sake of administration. One of it was
Sindhudurga, Ratnagiri, Raigad; Belgaum, the province which was geographically bound
Karwar, Dharwad in Karnataka; some regions together and the other comprised scattered
of Andhra, Jinji and Vellore in Tamil Nadu regions in the south. The first province was
comprised Swarajya. Shivaji Maharaj set up divided into three sections. The northern
an ideal administrative system for the smooth section was assigned to the Peshwa which
running of Swarajya’s affairs. included the regions from Salher to Pune and
North Konkan. The central part consisted of
The formation of the Ashtapradhan south Konkan, Sawantwadi and Karwar. This
Mandal (council of eight ministers) and its was assigned to the Sachiv. In the third part
growth took place alongwith the expansion the regions of high plateau i.e. Satara-Wai to
of the kingdom. After coronation, Chhatrapati Belgaum and Koppal was assigned to the
Shivaji Maharaj created special posts of ‘Mantri’. A separate ‘Subha’ of Karnataka
Ashtapradhans. It included ‘Peshwa’, was created and Hambirrao Mohite and
‘Amatya’, ‘Sachiv’, ‘Mantri’, ‘Senapati, Raghunath Narayan Amatya were appointed
‘Sumant’, ‘Nyayadhish’ and ‘Panditrao’. on it. ‘Sarsubhedars’ were appointed on all
these regions in association with the ‘Pradhans’
Shivaji Maharaj had a strong intelligence (Ministers). This was known as ‘Rajmandal’.
network of his own. Bahirji Naik was the The appointment of ‘Killedar’ (keeper of the
Chief of this network. Before starting on any fort) and ‘Karkun’ (clerks) was made by the
expedition, Shivaji Maharaj obtained detailed King himself. The Pradhans had to submit
information from his spies and then planned annual accounts to Shivaji Maharaj.
his expedition.
Sarsubhedars taking care of provincial
When the ministers went on expedition, administration were known as ‘Deshadhikari’.
their representatives (Mutalik) looked after
village and determined various criteria of
For additional information : calculating revenue such as ‘Dhara’,
Determining the grade (prat) of the land ‘Chavarana’, ‘Pratbandi’ etc., based on the
formed the basics of the Revenue System. annual yield. Chavarana means deciding the
The land revenue system introduced by boundaries of land by measurng it.
Malik Amber of Nizamshahi was in practice. Assessment of land in the hilly regions was
But Shivaji Maharaj introduced a new not done areawise but yieldwise. While
system. He fixed the measuring unit of collecting the revenue, the quality of the
‘Kathi’ (measuring stick) for the measurement yield was also taken into consideration
of the land. The length of this kathi was 5 along with the grade of the land. Revenue
cubits (length of a forearm) and 5 closed was fixed only after the calculation of the
fists. Based on this following units were average yield of previous 3 years. Land
decided: the area of 20 kathis was 1 ‘Bigha’ such as Barren land, jungle, grazing land
and 120 Bighas made one ‘Chavar’. Annaji etc. were not counted for land revenue.
Datto (Sachiv) travelled from village to

121

There was a difference between the Nanasaheb was
administration under the Islamic rulers and
the administrative system set by Chhatrapati appointed as the
Shivaji Maharaj. Sarsubhas in the Swarajya
were meant to be the zonal divisions for Peshwa. Meanwhile,
overall administration, while under Islamic
rulers a division merely served the purpose the Marathas were
of revenue collection.
defeated in the third

battle of Panipat.

The Maratha rule

became weak.

The Subhedars were assisted by Madhavrao Peshwa
‘Deshmukhs’ and ‘Deshpandes’. The main
task of a Deshmukh was to collect the land tried to re-establish
revenue, to develop waste land into cultivable
land and settle new villages. All government the Maratha power.
officials received salary in the form of cash
instead of land grant (watan). The defeat in

Bajirao Peshwa I Panipat was not
just a political

defeat but it also lowered the morale of the

‘Village’ was the basic unit of the Marathas greatly.
administrative system. New villages were
settled. The people were provided with cattle, Madhavrao Peshwa tried to elevate the
seed money, money for daily utilities. The
farmer was given a period of two years, to spirits of Marathas as well as re-establish the
repay the advance after a good harvest. This
system was known as ‘Batai system’. Maratha power in

the north. The

Marathas were

successful in

16.5 Release of Shahu Maharaj overcoming the

The Mughals continued their efforts to great defeat at

defeat the Marathas, even after the death of Panipat and create

Aurangzeb. For a politically strong

that purpose they position for

adopted the themselves in the

strategy of dividing politics of the Madhavrao Peshwa
north. This factor
the Marathas.
was very important. Malharrao Holkar,
They released
Ahilyabai Holkar, Raghuji Bhosale, Mahadji
Shahu Maharaj
Shinde, Nana Phadanvis played a great role
from captivity in
in the re-establishment of Maratha influence.
1707 C.E. After
Malharrao was
his release there
the founder of the
was a conflict Chhatrapati Shahu
between Maharani Maharaj Holkar State at
Tarabai and Shahu
Indore. He served

Maharaj. Shahu Maharaj won the ensuing the Maratha power

battle. Balaji Vishwanath played an important for a long time. He

role on behalf of Shahu Maharaj and later had a great share in

he was appointed as Peshwa. establishing the

16.6 Peshwa period Maratha prestige in

After Balaji Vishwanath, his son, Bajirao the north. After the
I was appointed as the Peshwa. He expanded
the Maratha empire upto Malwa, Rajasthan death of Khanderao,
and Bundelkhand. He defeated the Nizam.
Malharrao Holkar son of Malharrao.
Ahilyabai Holkar

assumed the reins of Indore administration.

After Bajirao I, Balaji Bajirao alias Maheshwar was the seat of administration

122

For additional information : The India. He invited Ahmedshah Abdali, the
Pathans from Afghanistan had settled at the ruler of Afghanistan, to India. At the behest
foothills of the Himalayas near Ayodhya of Najib Khan, Abdali invaded India. He
province. These Pathans were known as returned to Afghanistan with a huge booty.
‘Rohillas’. This province later came to be However, the Marathas pursued Abdali’s
known as ‘Rohilkhand’. Najib Khan was the soldiers upto Attock and raised there the
leader of the Rohillas. He was not happy Maratha standard successfully. Attock is
with the supremacy of the Marathas in North presently in Pakistan.

under her. She built the regions in Eastern India upto Bengal

temples, ghats, under the Maratha dominance. After the

dharamshalas, and miserable defeat of

drinking water facilities the Marathas at

at various pilgrim Panipat, Mahadji

centres. She was a Shinde was

capable, astute, and instrumental in re-

excellent administrator. establishing the

Raghuji Bhosale Maratha supremacy
was the most capable
ruler among the Bhosales and prestige in North
of Nagpur. He brought
India. He trained his

Ahilyabai Holkar Raghuji Bhosale

123

Army and Peshwa, Pilaji Jadhavrao are available.
Murals are found on the facade of the
modernised his Wadas, as well as on the walls of reception
areas (Diwankhana) and bedrooms. In the
artillery under the temples, the mandapa wall, owri (varanda),
shikhara, gabhara (sanctum sanctorum) and
guidance of French chhat (ceiling) were also decorated with
paintings. The 18th century murals have
military expert, survived till today at places like the Naik-
Nimbalkar wada at Vathar, Nana Phadanavis
Benoit de Boigne. wada at Menavali, Rangamahal at Chandwad,
Mayureshwar mandir at Morgaon, Shiva
Mahadji managed temple of Pandeshwar, and Matha at
Benawadi. Mythological stories form the
the difficult affairs main theme of these murals. They include
scenes from Ramayana and Mahabharata
with strong and Puranas. The paintings of Dashavatara
and Krishnaleela are found almost everywhere.
determination and The subjects of contemporary social life were
also popular in the paintings. Royal court,
remained incharge royal meetings, processions were also included
in them.
Mahadji Shinde of Delhi affairs
during 1771 C.E. During the Maratha period, keertan and

to 1794 C.E. Nana Phadanvis and Mahadji Miniature painting - Maratha period

Shinde set the affairs of the state right after singing of Bhajans were popular. Powadas
(Ballads) were composed during this period
the death of Peshwa Madhavrao. to encourage the spirit of heroism among the
people. The ballads known as ‘powadas’ and
The two Peshwas who succeeded Peshwa ‘katavas’, composed by the Shahirs were the
Madhavrao, namely Narayanrao and Sawai types of historical poetry. The powadas
Madhavrao, did not live long. Their untimely
death set the decline of Maratha power. At
this time, the Mughal power had also become
weak. Taking advantage of this situation, the
British started interfering in the internal strife
among the Maratha sardars. Peshwa Bajirao
II was defeated by the British and the British
established their supremacy over India. The
British brought entire India under their
dominance.

16.7 Art, architecture, literature

Art : The development of Maratha

miniature Paintings is seen through illustrations

on the manuscripts such as pothis, pattachitra

and patrikas. The same style is maintained

in the glass paintings as well. Illustrated

manuscripts of Sanskrit texts such as ‘Bhagvat

Gita’, ‘Devi Saptashati’, ‘Bhagvat Purana’ as

well as Marathi texts such as ‘Dnyaneshwari’

(Bhavarthadipika), ‘Shivaleelamrut’,

‘Pandavapratap’ etc. are available. The

paintings of Dashavatara are included in

them. The wooden stands of the pothis have

paintings of various deities such as Ganapati,

Riddhi-siddhi, Ramapanchayatana,

Gopalkrishna, Vishnulakshmi in dark red,

green and yellow colours. The miniature

paintings, include human portraits and themes

like ragamalas, talamala, processions etc.

Remarkable portraits of Bajirao I, Nanasaheb

124

composed by Adnyandas on the slaying For additional information :
of Afzalkhan and Tulsidas on the battle of Dressed stones, raw and baked bricks
Sinhagad are well-known. were used in the construction of wadas.
The ground floor walls of the wada were
The literary tradition of ‘Lavani’ built in stone while the upper storeys
developed in the later Peshwa period. Shahirs were of bricks. There were generally
like Anantafandi, Prabhakar, Ramjoshi, three to five storeys supported on wooden
Saganbhau and Honaji Bala are known for pillars and beams. The rooms were built
their beautiful compositions. around the rectangular courtyard (chowk).
Usually there use to be two courtyards
Various dance forms from the Maratha in the wada. However, sometimes there
period have existed till today such as could be three to seven courtyards as
including lavani, koli dance, Gaja Nrutya well. Wadas such as Vishrambaug wada
etc. The tradition of vocal music also received in Pune and Nana Phadanavis wada in
patronage in Maratha States. Menavali and Raghobadada’s wada are
among the fine examples of wada
Architecture : Shivaji Maharaj gave architecture. The wooden pillars and
priority to build forts. The tradition of beams in the wada were square in shape.
building forts was prevalent in the Deccan Motifs such as parrot, peacock, and
since three centuries. This tradition proved to monkeys were popular.
be of advantage to Shivaji Maharaj. The
required expertise of maintaining forts was Jejuri etc. These are huge in size. The plan
easily available to him. The Kasaba temple of these temples is in star shaped design, the
in Pune and Vitthal temple in Vitthalwadi foundation of the temple was multi layered,
were reconstructed by Veermata Jijabai. and were named accordingly. The construction
During the Peshwa period, the Maratha of shikhara is made in bricks and stucco
kingdom regained its prosperity and all forms method. The ‘Kalaram’, ‘Goraram’ and
of art and architecture once again received ‘Sundarnarayan’ temples at Nashik and
patronage. Pune, Satara and Nashik developed ‘Mahadev’ temple at Trimbakeshwar,
into big cities. These cities had well paved ‘Mohiniraj’ temple at Nevasa were similar to
roads, wadas on both sides of the road and the temples in Malwa and Rajasthan. The
arched gates at intervals. temples were constructed in stone. These
temples were embellished extensively with
The construction of temples began on a sculptures as compared to other contemporary
large scale during the later Peshwa period. temples. In the third type of temples, the
These temples were of three types. Examples
of the temple architecture of this period are
found at Saswad (‘Vateshwar’,
‘Sangameshwar’), Mahuli (‘Vishweshwar’),

Sindhudurga

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wrote the history of India in 12 volumes
named ‘Gulshane-i-Ibrahimi’.

In the 18th century well-known literary

works were composed such as,

‘Yatharthdeepika’ by Vaman Pandit,

‘Naladamayanti Swayamvara’ by Raghunath

Pandit, Pandavapratapa, Harivijay,

Ramavijay by Shridhar Pandit and the

translation of Mahabharata by Moropant.

Bakhar literature is important among the

historical literature in Marathi. It contains

eulogies of the heroes and stories of historic

events, battles, lives of great men. Sabhasad

Jejuri Bakhar, Bhausahebanchi Bakhar, Panipatchi

temples at Pune, Satara, Wai, etc. were built Bakhar are some of its exmaples. Krushna
in independent style. It included arches,
wooden hall (sabhamandapa) and sanctum Dayarnav and Shridhar were the main poets
sanctorum (gabhara). The Shikhara slopes
inwards at the top. In the small niches of during the Peshwa period. Poet Mahipati
the Shikhara, beautiful sculptures are made
of stucco. It includes images of dashavataras composed ‘Bhaktivijay’ in this period.
and other deities as well as male and female
figures. The stone deepmala is a remarkable 16.7 Trade, industries and social life
feature of these temples. The stone deepmalas
at Jejuri were built by Shahajiraje. Since Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was aware
most of the villages and temples were located of the importance of a flourishing trade for
on river banks, stone steps (ghats) were also the economic well being of the state. He
built on the river. Such extensive ghats are encouraged the traders and merchants by
seen at Nashik, Puntambe, Wai, Menavali, creating Peths (market places). ‘Shete’ and
Mahuli etc. The Chhatris (Samadhis) built at ‘Mahajan’ were the officers who supervised
various places are noteworthy. the transaction of these Peths. Chaul, Rajapur,
Dabhol, Kelshi, Ratnagiri were some of the
Literature : Marathi literature developed important ports and trade centres of this
greatly during this period. Sant Tukaram of period. Commodities like black pepper and
this period was a poet of the warkari sect. lac* etc. were exported from Dabhol. Silk,
Samarth Ramdas wrote ‘Dasbodh’ and
‘Manache Shlok’ in Marathi. Chhatrapati For additional information :
Shivaji Maharaj got the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was keen
‘Rajyavyavaharakosha’ prepared which was on protecting the local industries. Here
a compilation of Sanskrit lexicon for Persian we can cite the example of salt industry.
terms. Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj was a He protected the salt industry in Konkan.
great writer and Sanskrit scholar. The Sanskrit At that time, traders imported salt from
text ‘Budhabhushan’ was written by him. the Portuguese territory and sold in
This text is an overview of ancient texts on Swarajya. That affected the local trade
polity. Apart from Sanskrit, he also knew in Konkan areas. So Maharaj charged
many other languages. He wrote texts in Brij heavy duty on the salt imported into
language namely ‘Nayikabhed’, ‘Nakhshikh’ Swarajya from the Portuguese territory.
and ‘Satasattak’. Muhammad Qasim Ferishta The intention was that the salt imported
from the Portuguese territory would then
cost more and as a result its import
would be discouraged and the sale of the
local salt would increase.

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opium, and indigo were exported from Nashik, Paithan, etc. Traditional festivals
Chaul. Black pepper, cardamom, cotton cloth (utsavas), pious observances (Vrata vaikalye)
were the items of trade in Rajapur. Foreign were celebrated with great enthusiasm in the
traders procured required goods from Rajapur society. Celebrating the festivals was
and transported them on ships to the Red Sea encouraged by the State, as such celebrations
and Iran. help to create joyous and hormonius society.

A self-sufficient village was the basic For Additional Information :
unit of the Swarajya. The economic system Urbanisation during Maratha period -
of the village was never affected greatly by Many market cities of the Maratha
external political changes. Every village had period emerged because of political
12 ‘balutedars’ (service providers in the expansion and development of various
village). Their occupations were hereditary in industries, trade, professions etc. The
nature. Every occupation in this system had process of urbanisation gained
a specific status in the social hierarchy. The momentum during the Peshwa period.
balutedars, for example goldsmiths (sonar), There was extensive development of
blacksmiths (lohar), braziers (tambat) etc. Pune, the capital of Peshwas. There
practiced their hereditary occupations. Weekly was increase in the number of market
markets were set up in big villages. Such cities (Bazar peths). Pune, Indapur,
villages were known as ‘Kasba’. People Saswad, Junnar, Kalyan, Bhiwandi,
visited weekly markets to buy daily provisions Vengurla, Paithan, Kolhapur, Satara,
and other goods. Some industries of this Ahmednagar, and small and big ports
period include textile industry, metallurgy, on the Konkan coast flourished with
sugar industry etc. the development of trade and industries.

*Lac is a resinous substance used for sealing, The journey from the founding of
varnish, making ornaments, etc. Swarajya to the expansion of the Maratha
empire, is an important part of Indian history
The rural Maharashtra of Maratha period of mediaeval times. The Maratha power
was organised into different social classes came to an end and the British brought most
such as nobility (sardars), landlords of India under their dominance. The transition
(watandars), Balutedars and Ryot (rest of the took place in various sectors. It marks the
subjects). onset of modern era.

There were traditional schools
(pathshalas) established in cities like Wai,

Exercise

Q.1 (A) Choose the correct alternative and (2) The Pathans from Afghanistan had
complete the sentence.
settled in , the province at
(1) is known as the Father of
Indian Navy. the foothills of the Himalayas.
(a) Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
(b) Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj (a) Varanasi (b) Mathura
(c) Chhatrapati Rajaram Maharaj
(d) Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj (c) Ayodhya (d) Delhi

(3) Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj wrote

the Sanskrit text .

(a) Nayikabhed (b) Budhabhushan

(c) Nakhshikh (d) Satasattka

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(B) Find the incorrect pair and write Q.3 Explain the statement with reasons.
the correct ones. (1) Shahajiraje is known as the visionary
of Swarajya.
(1) Naik-Nimbalkar wada – Vathar (2) Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj built
(2) Nana Phadanvis wada – Menavali the naval force.
(3) Kalaram temple – Jejuri (3) Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj charged
(4) Mohiniraj temple – Nevase heavy duty on the salt imported
from the Portuguese territory.
(C) Write the name.
(1) He was the Chief of the intelligence Q.4 Write short notes.
(1) Maratha Art
network of Shivaji Maharaj - (2) Maratha Architecture
(2) He assisted in the provincial affairs -
(3) Leader of the Rohillas - 

Q.2 Complete the following concept map.

Characteristic
architecture

Sculpture Characteristic Places
of Maratha

Temples

Building
material

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