18th Century Political Formations

Eighteenth-Century Political Formations

• The first half of the 18th century saw significant changes in the Indian subcontinent
• The Mughal Empire's boundaries were reshaped as independent kingdoms emerged
• By 1765, the British had seized significant territory in eastern India
• Political conditions in 18th-century India changed dramatically
• Chapter covers the emergence of new political groups from 1707 (Aurangzeb's death) to 1761 (Third Battle of Panipat)

Crisis of the Empire and the Later Mughals

• The Mughal Empire faced crises in the late 17th century due to various factors
• Emperor Aurangzeb depleted military and financial resources in a long war in the Deccan
• Successors saw a breakdown in imperial administration
• Later Mughal emperors struggled to control powerful mansabdars
• Nobles, appointed as governors (subadars), controlled offices of revenue and military

Diwani and Faujdari

• Subadars had extraordinary political, economic, and military powers
• As governors gained control, revenue remission to the capital declined
• Peasant and zamindari rebellions in northern and western India added to the problems
• Revolts were caused by mounting taxes or attempts by chieftains to consolidate positions
• Rebellious groups were able to seize economic resources
• Mughal emperors after Aurangzeb couldn't stop the shift of authority to provincial governors

Rich harvests and empty coffers

• The great lords are helpless and impoverished
• Peasants raise two crops a year, but their lords see nothing of either
• Their agents on the spot are virtual prisoners in the peasants’ hands
• There is a collapse of all order and administration

Nadir Shah Attacks Delhi

• Nadir Shah, the ruler of Iran, sacked and plundered Delhi in 1739
• Nadir Shah took away immense amounts of wealth
• This invasion was followed by plundering raids by Ahmad Shah Abdali between 1748 and 1761

Loot

• The Mughals treasury lost sixty lakhs of rupees
• The Mughals treasury lost some thousand gold coins
• The Mughals treasury lost nearly one crore worth of gold-ware
• The Mughals treasury lost nearly fifty crores worth of jewels

Weakening of the Empire

• Competition amongst nobles further weakened the empire
• Nobles were divided into two factions: Iranis and Turanis (Turkish descent)
• Mughal emperors became puppets in the hands of these powerful groups
• Two Mughal emperors, Farrukh Siyar (1713–1719) and Alamgir II (1754–1759), were assassinated
• Ahmad Shah (1748–1754) and Shah Alam II (1759–1816) blinded by their nobles

Governors

• With declining Mughal authority, governors (subadars) and zamindars consolidated power
• This occurred in regions like Awadh, Bengal, and Hyderabad

The Rajputs

• Many Rajput kings, especially those from Amber and Jodhpur, served under the Mughals
• They were allowed autonomy in their watan jagirs
• In the 18th century, rulers tried to control adjacent regions
• Ajit Singh, ruler of Jodhpur, was involved in Mughal court politics
• Rajput families claimed the subadari of Gujarat and Malwa
• Raja Ajit Singh of Jodhpur governed Gujarat
• Sawai Raja Jai Singh of Amber governed Malwa
• Emperor Jahandar Shah renewed these offices in 1713
• They seized imperial territories near their watans
• Nagaur was conquered by Jodhpur
• Amber seized portions of Bundi
• Sawai Raja Jai Singh founded Jaipur and was given the subadari of Agra in 1722
• Maratha campaigns from the 1740s put pressure on these principalities

Chittorgarh Fort

• Rajput chieftains built forts on hilltops as power centers
• Forts contained urban centers, palaces, temples, trading centers, water harvesting structures

Raja Jai Singh Description

• Raja Jai Singh was at the height of his power
• Raja Jai Singh was the governor of Agra for 12 years and Malwa for 5/6 years
• Raja Jai Singh possessed a large army, artillery, and great wealth

Sawai Jai Singh

• Sawai Jai Singh constructed five astronomical observatories
• Observatories were built in Delhi, Jaipur, Ujjain, Mathura, and Varanasi
• These observatories, known as Jantar Mantar, had instruments for studying heavenly bodies

Seizing Independence: The Sikhs

• The Sikhs became a political community in the 17th century
• The Sikhs helped in regional state-building in the Punjab
• Guru Gobind Singh fought several battles against Rajput and Mughal rulers
• After Guru Gobind Singh's death in 1708, the Khalsa revolted under Banda Bahadur
• The Khalsa declared sovereign rule, striking coins in the name of Guru Nanak and Guru Gobind Singh
• The Khalsa established administration between the Sutlej and Jamuna
• Banda Bahadur was captured in 1715 and executed in 1716

Sikh Organization

• The Sikhs organized into bands called jathas, and later misls
• Their combined forces were known as the grand army (dal khalsa)
• The body met at Amritsar during Baisakhi and Diwali to take collective decisions (gurmatas)
• A system called rakhi was introduced, offering protection to cultivators for a 20% tax on produce
• Guru Gobind Singh inspired the Khalsa with the belief to rule (raj karega khalsa)
• Their well-knit organization successfully resisted Mughal governors and Ahmad Shah Abdali
• The Khalsa seized the rich province of Punjab and the Sarkar of Sirhind from the Mughals
• They declared sovereign rule in 1765, striking their own coin

Sikh Territories

• Sikh territories extended from the Indus to the Jamuna
• Sikh territories were divided under different rulers
• Maharaja Ranjit Singh reunited these groups and established his capital at Lahore in 1799

The Start of The Marathas

• The Maratha kingdom was established by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj (1630)
• The Maratha kingdom was a regional kingdom against Mughal rule
• Shivaji (1630–1680) created a stable kingdom with warrior families (deshmukhs)
• Peasant-pastoralists (kunbis) formed the backbone of the Maratha army
• Shivaji used these forces to challenge the Mughals in the peninsula
• After Shivaji's death, power was wielded by Chitpavan Brahmanas as Peshwa (principal minister)
• Poona became the capital of the Maratha kingdom

Maratha Military Organization

• Under the Peshwas, the Marathas developed a military organization
• Their success lay in bypassing fortified Mughal areas
• The Marathas raided cities and engaged Mughal armies
• From 1720 to 1761, the Maratha empire expanded
• The Marathas chipped away at the Mughal Empire
• Malwa and Gujarat were seized from the Mughals by the 1720s
• By the 1730s, the Maratha king was recognized as the overlord of the Deccan peninsula
• The Maratha king had the right to levy chauth and sardeshmukhi in the entire region

Maratha Expansion

• After raiding Delhi in 1737, the Maratha domination rapidly expanded
• The Marathas expanded into Rajasthan and the Punjab in the north
• The Marathas expanded into Bengal and Orissa in the east
• The Marathas expanded into Karnataka and the Tamil and Telugu countries in the South
• These areas were not formally included, but paid tribute and accepted Maratha sovereignty
• Expansion brought resources but made other rulers hostile
• Other rulers were not inclined to support the Marathas during the Third Battle of Panipat in 1761

Maratha Administration

• Alongside military campaigns, the Marathas developed an administrative system
• Once conquest was completed and Maratha rule was secure, revenue demands were gradually introduced
• Agriculture was encouraged and trade revived
• Maratha chiefs (sardars) like Sindhia of Gwalior, Gaekwad of Baroda and Bhonsle of Nagpur raised powerful armies
• Maratha campaigns into Malwa in the 1720s did not challenge the growth and prosperity of the cities
• New trade routes emerged within the areas controlled by the Marathas

The Jats

• The Jats consolidated their power in the late 17th-18th centuries
• Under Churaman, they controlled territories west of Delhi
• By the 1680s, the Jats dominated the region between Delhi and Agra
• For a while, the Jats became the virtual custodians of the city of Agra
• The Jats were prosperous agriculturists
• Towns like Panipat and Ballabhgarh became important trading centers
• Under Suraj Mal, the kingdom of Bharatpur emerged as a strong state
• When Nadir Shah sacked Delhi in 1739, many took refuge there
• Jawahir Shah had 30,000 troops and hired 20,000 Maratha and 15,000 Sikh troops to fight the Mughals