- Area ruled by the Mongols from 1504-1739
Area Ruled
The Moguls originated from the the mountainous region just north of the Indus River valley, their founder Babur being a descendant of Timur Lenk on his fathers side, and on his mothers side, a descendant of Genghis Khan. He had inherited part of Timur Lenk's empire in an upland river valley of Syr Dar' ya, and in his youth, led a group of warriors to seize Kabul in 1504,and thirteen years later, his forces clrossedkhyber Pass into India. Though his forces were smaller than those of his enemies, they had advanced weapons such as heavy artillery, using them to great effect, capturing Delhi, and establishing his power in the plains of North India, and continued his conquests until he died in 1530 at the age of 47. During the reign of Shāh Jahān, boundaries of the empire were expanded through successful campaigns in the Deccan Plateau and against the city of Samarqand which was north of Hindu Kush. But, domestic problems were growing. Jahān had inherited a nearly empty treasury, which caused military campaigns and expensive building projects to put a heavy strain on imperial finances, compelling him to raise taxes, which deprived peasants of their needs. When Jahān's son, Aurangzeb, took the throne, the empire started to go downhill. Aurangzeb was said to be one of the most controversial rulers in India, and though the empire reached it's greatest physical size during his rule,constant warfare along with religious intolerance made his subjects resentful, and much of the work Akbar had put into the empire was destroyed thanks to him. After his death in 1707, India had many short lived rulers, making the empire increasingly divided and vulnerable to attack. By 1739, Delhi had been sacked by the Persians, who had left the once glorious city in ashes.
Fall of the Dynasty
The arrival of the British had hastened the fall of the Mongul empire, and eventually led to it's final demise. Later, in 1757, Robert Clive led a British force of about three thousand soldiers to a victory over a Mongul-led army that was ten times its size and as a result, the already failing Mongul court gave the East India company the power to collect taxes from the lands surrounding Calcutta.
- Persians destroying and taking over Delhi in 1739