Very Short Answer Type Question
1. What was the effect of Aurangzeb’s long war in the Deccan? [V. Imp.]
Answer: The military and financial resources of his empire got depleted,
2. Which parts of India were associated with peasant and zamindari rebellions?
Answer: Northern and western parts of India.
3. Name the three states that were carved out of the old Mughal provinces in the 18th century. [Imp.]
Answer: Awadh, Bengal and Hyderabad.
4. What was the ambition of the Nizam-ul-Mulk Asaf Jah?
Answer: He wished to control the rich textile producing areas of the Coromandal coast in the east.
5. Why was his ambition not fulfilled?
Answer: Because the British began to gain power in his region.
6. What was the geographical and economic importance of Awadh? [V. Imp.]
Answer: Awadh was a prosperous region, controlling the rich alluvial Ganga plain and the main trade route between north India and Bengal.
7. Name the new social groups that developed in Awadh to influence the management of the state’s revenue system ?
Answer: Moneylenders and bankers.
8. Why did zamindars of Bengal borrow money from bankers and moneylenders?
Answer: They borrowed money to pay the revenue in cash.
9. Where did Sawai Raja Jai Singh found his new capital?
Answer: He founded his new capital at Jaipur
10. Why was a system called rakhi introduced?
Answer: This system was introduced to give protection to cultivators on the payment of a tax of 20% of the produce.
11. Who was Shivaji?
Answer: Shivaji was the founder of the Maratha Kingdom
12. How were peasant-pastoralists important for Shivaji? [V- Imp.]
Answer: Peasant-pastoralists provided the backbone of the Maratha army. Shivaji used these forces to challenge the Mughals in the peninsula.
13. What was chauth? [V. Imp.]
Answer: 25% of the land revenue claimed by zamindars was known as chauth.
14. What was sardeshmukhi? [V. Imp.]
Answer: 9-10% of the land revenue paid to the head revenue collector in the Deccan was known as sardeshmukhi.
15. Under whose leadership the Jats became powerful?
Answer: The Jats became powerful under the leadership of churaman.
16: Who were the backbone of the Maratha army?
Answer: Kunbis were groups of highly mobile, peasant pastoralists. They were the backbone of the Maratha army.
17: How did Guru Gobind Singh inspire the Khalsa?
Answer: Guru Gobind Singh had inspired the Khalsa with the faith that their destiny was to rule (raj karega khalsa).
Short Answer Type Questions
1: Who was Maharaja Ranjit Singh?
Answer: Maharaja Ranjit Singh was the first Maharaja of the Sikh Empire and was also known as Sher-e-Punjab. In the late eighteenth century, the Sikh territories were extended from the Indus to the Jamuna but they were divided under different rulers. Maharaja Ranjit Singh reunited all groups and established his capital at Lahore in 1799.
2: Name the three prominent states that emerged after the decline of the Mughal empire.
Answer: The three prominent states were Awadh, Bengal and Hyderabad. All these states were founded by members of the high Mughal nobility who were governors in the Mughal empire – Sa’adat Khan (Awadh), Murshid Quli Khan (Bengal) and Asaf Jah (Hyderabad).
3: Name the states with which the state of Hyderabad was in struggle?
Answer: The state of Hyderabad was constantly in struggle against the Marathas in the west and with independent Telugu warrior chief known as Nayakas of the Deccan plateau.
4: State few common features of the states in the eighteenth century.
Answer: Though many of the larger states were established by erstwhile Mughal nobles, they were highly suspicious of some of the administrative systems that they had inherited, in particular the jagirdari system. Secondly, they reduced the number of jagirdars appointed by the Mughals. Rather than relying upon them, all the states contracted with revenue-farmers for the collection of revenue. The third common feature in all these regional states was their emerging relationship with rich bankers and merchants.
5: When did Khalsa declare its sovereign rule and mint its own coin?
Answer: Khalsa declared its sovereign rule and minted its own coin in 1765. The legend on the obverse bore the same inscription ‘Deg o Tegh o Fateh’ issued by Banda Bahadur on his coins.
6: Who ruled the Maratha kingdom after the death of Shivaji?
Answer: After the death of Shivaji, the Maratha kingdom was ruled by a family of Chitpavan Brahmanas. They served Shivaji’s successors as Peshwa or principle minister and later became the hereditary rulers of the Maratha Empire of central India from 1749 to 1818. During their rein, the Maratha Empire reached its zenith ruling most of the Indian Subcontinent.
7: What were jathas?
Answer: Jatha in the Sikh tradition signifies a group of volunteers coming forth to carry out a specific task, be it an armed combat or a peaceful agitation. After the capture and execution of Banda Singh Bahadur, the Sikhs organised themselves into a number of bands called jathas, to fight against the oppressors. Each jatha was grouped around a jathedar or a leader. These jathas were finally reorganized on the Baisakhi of 1748 into 11 misls. The entire fighting force of the Sikhs was named Dal Khalsa.
8: What was the gurmatas?
Answer: It is the counsel or resolution adopted by the combined forces of the Sikhs known as dal Khalsa, at an assembly at Amritsar to take collective decisions known as “resolutions of the Guru” in the presence of Guru Granth Sahib. A gurmata may only be passed on a subject that affects the fundamental principles of Sikh religion and is binding upon all Sikhs.
9: What was the rakhi system?
Answer: The word rakhi literally means ‘protection’. In practice, it was a tribute received by the combined forces of the Sikhs dal Khalsa for the protection provided or guaranteed by them against external aggression to the cultivators paying it. The cultivators had to pay a tax of 20 percent of the produce to the Sikhs of dal Khalsa for their protection.
10: Who supported Marathas to face the Mughals?
Answer: The Maratha kingdom was another powerful regional kingdom to arise out of a sustained opposition to Mughal rule. They faced the threat of the Mughals. To overcome them, they took the help of powerful warrior families known as deshmukhs. The Kunbis or peasant pastoralists rallied round Shivaji in large number to raise their status in social hierarchy and formed the backbone of the Maratha army. Shivaji used this army to challenge the Mughals in the peninsula.
11: List the developments of Maratha kingdom under the Peshwa?
Answer: Under the Peshwas, the Maratha kingdom developed as a very successful military organisation. They built strong forts to face the Mughals. Between 1720 and 1761, the Maratha Empire expanded. It gradually occupied the parts of the Mughal Empire. Malwa and Gujarat were seized from the Mughals by 1720s. By the 1730s, the Maratha kingdom was enjoying complete domination in the entire Deccan.
12: What were the steps taken by Murshid Quli Khan take to reduce Mughal influence in Bengal?
Answer: The steps taken by Murshid Quli Khan to reduce the Mughal influence in Bengal were as follows –
- Transferred all Mughal jagirdars to Orissa
- Ordered a major reassessment of the revenues of Bengal
13: What was the impact of Nadir Shah’s invasion on Delhi?
Answer: Nadir shah’s invasion had a deep impact on Delhi
- Nadir Shah took away immense amount of wealth. The city of Delhi was ruined.
- Those who had been the masters were now in terrible condition.
- The invasion by Nadir Shah had demonstrated how weak the Mughal government was.
- This invasion was followed by a series of plundering raids by the Afghan ruler Ahmad Shah Abdali.
14: Why did the peasants and zamindars revolted in many parts of northern and western India?]
Answer: Because of following reason:
- Pressures of mounting taxes.
- Attempts by powerful chieftains to consolidate their own positions.
15: List one factor that led to crisis in the Mughal Empire in the closing years of seventeenth century.
Answer: Emperor Aurangzeb had depleted the military and financial resources of his empire by fighting a long war in the Deccan. It led to crisis in the Mughal Empire in the closing years of 17th century.
16: When did Sikhs emerge as a stronger community?
Answer: Sikhs became political community during seventeenth century. The Khalsa sought to defend the Sikh community from oppression by Mughal rulers. Sikh fought with Mughal officials. Under Guru Govind Singh, they fought several battles against Mughal rulers. After the death of Guru Govind Singh, Banda Bahadur established the Sikh rule and administration over territory between Sutlej & Jamuna.
Long Answer Type Questions
1: What were the different overlapping group of states that emerged in the 18th Century after the decline of the Mughal Empire?
Answer: Through the eighteenth century, the Mughal Empire gradually fragmented into a number of independent, regional states. Broadly speaking the states of the eighteenth century can be divided into three overlapping groups:
- States that were old Mughal provinces like Awadh, Bengal and Hyderabad. Although extremely powerful and quite independent, the rulers of these states did not break their formal ties with the Mughal emperor.
- States that had enjoyed considerable independence under the Mughals as watan jagirs. These included several Rajput principalities.
- The last group included states under the control of Marathas, Sikhs and others like the Jats. These were of differing sizes and had seized their independence from the Mughals after a long-drawn armed struggle.
2. How did the later Mughal emperors lose their control over their nobles? [V. Imp.]
Answer: The efficiency of the imperial administration broke down under the later Mughal emperors. It became increasingly difficult for them to keep a check on their powerful Nobles appointed as governors often controlled the offices of revenue and military administration as well. This gave them extraordinary political, economic and military powers over vast regions of the Mughal empire. As the governors consolidated their control over the provinces, the periodic remission of revenue to the capital declined.
3. Describe the impact of Nadir Shah’s invasion upon Delhi. [V. Imp.]
Answer: Nadir Shah, the ruler of Iran, sacked and plundered the city of Delhi in 1739 and took away immense amounts of wealth. As a result, the Mughal treasury became vacant. Delhi turned into a deserted place. The wealthy now became beggars. There spread chaos everywhere. Those who once set the style in clothes now went naked and those owned property were now homeless. The New City, Le. Shahjahanabad turned into rubble. Delhi, once so rich, became poor after Nadir Shah looted it.
5. How did Burhan-ul-Mulk reduce Mughal influence in the Awadh region? [V. Imp.]
Answer: Burhan-ul-Mulk tried to reduce Mughal influence in the Awadh region by taking following steps:
- He first of all reduced the number of office holders [jagirdars) appointed by the Mughals.
- He also reduced the size of jagirs, and appointed his own loyal servants to vacant positions.
- The accounts of jagirdarswere checked to prevent cheating and the revenues of all districts were re-assessed by officials appointed by the Nawab’s court.
6. How did moneylenders and bakers achieve influential position in the state of Awadh?
Or
Describe the close connection between the state of Awadh and bankers.
Answer: The state of Awadh depended on local bankers and mahcyans for loans. It sold the right to collect tax to the highest bidders. These revenue farmers known as jaradars agreed to pay the state a fixed sum of money. Local bankers guaranteed the payment of this contracted amount to the state. In turn the revenue farmers were given considerable freedom in the assessment and collection of taxes. These developments made the positions of moneylenders and bankers influential. They began to influence the management of the state’s revenue system.
7. How did Murshid Quli Khan become powerful in Bengal?
Answer: Under Murshid Quli Khan, Bengal gradually broke away from Mughal control. He was appointed as the naib, deputy to the governor of the province. Although never a formal subadar, Murshid Quli Khan very quickly seized all the power that went with that office. Soon, he began to command the revenue administration of the state. In order to reduce Mughal influence in Bengal he transferred all Mughal jagirdars to Orissa and ordered a major re-assessment of the revenues of Bengal. Revenue was collected in cash with great strictness from all zamindars.
8. Who were the Jats? How did they consolidate their power during the late 17th and 18th centuries?
Answer: The Jats were prosperous agriculturists. Like other states they also consolidated their power during the late 17th and 18th centuries. Under the leadership of Churaman they acquired control over territories situated to the west of the city of Delhi. By the 1680s they had begun dominating the region between the two imperial cities of Delhi and Agra. Towns like Panipat and Ballabhgarh became major trading centres in the areas dominated by them. Under Suraj Mai the kingdom of Bharatpur emerged as a strong state.
9: Explain the reasons for the decline of Mughal Empire?
Answer: The Mughal Empire owes its decline and ultimate downfall to combination of factors:
- The successive rulers after Aurangzeb were weak, unworthy and lacked the character, motivation and commitment to rule the empire strongly.
- Absence of a definite law of succession was another important factor.
- Deterioration and demoralization of the army was one of the potent reason.
- The financial position of the Mughals had become deplorable.
- The raids by Nadir Shah, and repeated invasions of Ahmad Shah Abdali, resulted in further weakening of the empire.
- The already weakened empire faced further encroachment by the British and the French. The British and French, who had initially come as traders, took full advantage of the weakening empire and soon became masters of the whole of India.
10: Write short notes on the three groups in the states of eighteenth century?
Answer: The states of the eighteenth century can be divided into three overlapping groups:
- States that were old Mughal provinces like Awadh, Bengal and Hyderabad. Although extremely powerful and quite independent, the rulers of these states did not break their formal ties with the Mughal emperor
- States that had enjoyed considerable independence under the Mughals as watan jagirs. These included several Rajput principalities
- The last group included states under the control of Marathas, Sikhs and others like the Jats
11: Who was Burhan-ul-Mulk Sa’adat Khan? How did he try to decrease the Mughal influence in the Awadh region?
Answer: Burhan-ul-Mulk Sa’adat Khan was appointed as the subadar of Awadh in 1722. Later on he carved out an independent state of Awadh from the Mughal empire. Burhan-ul-Mulk tried to decrease Mughal influence in the Awadh region by:
- Reducing the number of jagirdars appointed by the Mughals.
- Reducing the size of jagirs and appointed his own loyal servants to vacant positions.
- Preventing cheating the accounts of jagirdars were checked.
- Special officers were appointed by the Nawab to reassess the revenues of all the districts.
13: Write a short note on administration of Marathas.
Answer: Marathas developed an effective administration system, which they had inherited from Shivaji.Maratha chiefs were known as Sardars. The land revenue was main source of income. Land revenue though was fixed on survey and assessment but it was feudal in nature. Territories were divided on the basis of revenue. Territories not under their direct control paid Chauth (1/4 revenue). In return they got the protection from attacks by Marathas. The territories who paid Sardeshmukhi (1/10 of land revenue) got protection by other forces.
14. The Mughal Empire had to face a variety of crises towards the closing years of the 17th century. What were the causes behind it?
Or
What were the causes of the fad of the Mughal Empire? [V. Imp.]
Answer: There were a number of factors that led to the decline of the Mughal Empire.
- Emperor Aurangzeb fought a long war in the Deccan. As a result, the military and financial resources of his empire got depleted.
- The successors of Aurangzeb were not at all efficient. The efficiency of the imperial administration broke down. It became increasingly difficult for later Mughal emperors to keep a check on their powerful Nobles appointed as governors often controlled the offices of revenue and military administration as well. This gave them extraordinary political, economic and military powers over vast regions of the Mughal Empire.
- Under the later Mughals, peasant and zamindar rebellions increased in many parts of northern and western India. These revolts were sometimes caused by the pressures of mounting taxes. The local chieftains were also becoming powerful by seizing the economic resources of the region.
- In the midst of economic and political crisis, the ruler of Iran, Nadir Shah, sacked and plundered the city of Delhi in 1739 and took away immense amounts of wealth. Again, Ahmad Shah Abdali invaded north India five times between 1748 and 1761. These invasions further weakened the Mughal Empire.
- The competitions amongst different groups of nobles also proved unfortunate for the Mughal Empire. The later Mughals were puppets in the hands of either Iranis or Turanis, the two major groups of nobles.
15. Describe the three common features of the states like Awadh, Bengal and Hyderabad.
Or
What common features were shared by these three states—Awadh, Bengal and Hyderabad? [V. Imp.]
Answer: The common features shared by these states were:
- Though many of the larger states were established by erestwhile Mughal nobles they were highly suspicious of some of the administrative systems that they had inherited, in particular, the jagirdari system.
- Rather than relying upon the officers of the state, all the three regimes contracted with revenue-farmers for the collection of revenue.
- The third common feature in these three states was their emerging relationship with rich bankers and merchants. These people lent money to revenue farmers, received land as security and collected taxes from these lands through their own agents.
16. Give an account of the Maratha expansion occurred between 1720 and 1761.
Answer: The Maratha empire expanded between 1720 and 1761. It gradually chipped away at the authority of the Mughal Empire. Malwa and Gujarat were seized from the Mughals by the 1720s. By the 1730s, the Maratha king was recognised as the overlord of the entire Deccan peninsula.
After raiding Delhi in 1737 the frontiers of Maratha domination expanded rapidly into Rajasthan and the Punjab in the north, into Bengal and Orissa in the east, and into Karnataka and the Tamil and Telugu countries in the south. These were not formally included in the Maratha empire, but were made to pay tribute as a way of accepting Maratha sovereignty.
