Aurangzeb

Abu Muzaffar Muhiuddin Muhammad Aurangzeb Alamgir (November 3, 1618 – March 3, 1707), usually known as Aurangzeb, but also sometimes as Alamgir I, was the ruler of the Mughal Empire from 1658 until 1707. He was and is a very controversial figure in Indian history.

Impact of Aurangzeb's reign

As a reaction to Aurangzeb's political and religious expansionist policies, and to his discriminatory laws, a momentous change occurred in India. India's politics had been previously based on tribal and geographic boundaries, but now peoples began to identify and align according to their religions. This development would inform all subsequent Indian history.

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Hindu rebellion

Many Hindu subjects rebelled against Aurangzeb's policies.

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From the beginning of his reign, Aurangzeb permitted and encouraged the defacement and destruction of Hindu temples. Other edicts added to the impact. In 1665 he forbade Hindus to display illuminations at Diwali festivals. Hindu religious fairs were outlawed in 1668. The following year he prohibited construction of Hindu temples as well as the repair of old ones. In 1671 Aurangzeb issued an order that only Muslims could be landlords of crown lands. He called upon provincial Viceroys to dismiss all Hindu clerks. In 1674 certain lands held by Hindus in Gujarat were confiscated. The customs duties levied on merchants was doubled for non-Muslims. In 1679, contrary to the advice of many of his court nobles and theologians, Aurangzeb reimposed the Jizyah or graduated property tax on non-Muslims.

Related Topics:
1665 - 1668 - 1671 - 1674 - 1679 - Jizyah

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In 1668 the Hindu Jats in the Agra district revolted. Though they suffered horrendous loss of life, the revolt continued for years. In 1681, the Jats attacked and desecrated Akbar's tomb in Sikandra.

Related Topics:
1668 - Jat - 1681 - Akbar - Sikandra

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In 1672 the Satnamis, a Hindu sect concentrated in an area near Delhi, staged an armed rebellion, plundering villages and defeating Mughal forces in a press toward Delhi. Aurangzeb sent an army of ten thousand, including his Imperial Guard, and put the rebellion down at great cost of life.

Related Topics:
1672 - Satnami

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Hindu Rajputana, which had been a loyal Mughal vassal state, grew restive. The Jaipur Rajputs led by Jai Singh continued loyal, but other Rajput kingdoms didn't. With its Maharaja Jaswant Singh died in 1679, Aurangzeb seized control of Jodhpur, destroying many temples. He also moved on Udaipur. There was never a clear resolution to this war.

Related Topics:
Rajputana - Jaswant Singh - 1679 - Jodhpur

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Hindu military leaders and their troops banded together in various alliances throughout Aurangzeb's reign, initiating nearly constant battles and bloodshed. Among the most notable alliances was the Maratha Confederacy. At the same time Sikhs were forming the militant Khalsa.

Related Topics:
Maratha Confederacy - Sikh - Khalsa

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The Deccan wars and the rise of the Marathas

In the time of Shah Jahan, the Deccan had been controlled by three Muslim kingdoms: Ahmednagar, Bijapur and Golconda. Following a series of battles, Ahmendnagar was effectively divided, with large portions of the kingdom ceded to the Mughals and the balance to Bijapur. One of Ahmednagar's generals, a Hindu Maratha named Shahji, retreated to Bijapur. Shahji left in behind in Pune his wife and young son Shivaji.

Related Topics:
Maratha - Shahji - Pune - Shivaji

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In 1657, while Aurangzeb attacked Golconda and Bijapur, Shivaji, using trickery, subterfuge and guerrilla tactics, took control of three Bijapuri forts formerly controlled by his father. With these victories, Shivaji assumed defacto leadership of many independent Maratha tribes. The Marathas harried the flanks of the warring Bijapuris and Mughals, gaining weapons, forts, and territories. During the war of succession, Shivaji's small and ill-equipped army survived an all out Bijapuri attack, and Shivaji personally killed the attacking general, Afzul Khan. With this event, the Marathas transformed into a powerful military force, capturing more and more Bijapuri and Mughal territory.

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Following his coronation in 1659, Aurangzeb sent his trusted general and maternal uncle Shaista Khan to the Deccan to recover his lost forts. Shaista Khan drove into Marathi territory, and took up residence in Pune. In a daring raid, Shivaji retook Pune, even cutting off Shaista Khan's thumb as he fled. Once more the Marathis rallied to his leadership, taking back the territory.

Related Topics:
1659 - Shaista Khan - Pune

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Aurangzeb for the next few years ignored the rise of the Marathas. Shivaji led by inspiration, not by any official authority, and the Marathas continued to capture forts belonging to both Mughals and Bijapur. At last Aurangzeb sent his Jaipuri general Jai Singh, a Hindu, to attack the Marathas.

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Jai Singh's blistering attacks were so successful that he was able to persuade Shivaji to agree to peace by becoming a Mughal vassal. But when Shivaji and his son accompanied Jai Singh to Agra to meet Aurangzeb, confusion occurred, ending in an altercation at he fealty ceremony. As a result, Shivaji and his son Sambhaji were placed under house arrest in Agra, from which they managed to escape.

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Shivaji returned to the Deccan, successfully drove out the Mughal armies, and was crowned Chhatrapati or king of the Maratha confederacy in 1674. While Aurangzeb continued to send troops against him, Shivaji expanded Maratha control throughout the Deccan until his death in 1680.

Related Topics:
Chhatrapati - 1674 - 1680

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Sambhaji succeeded in 1681. Though he was less effective militarily and politically, Mughal efforts to control the Deccan continued to fail.

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Aurangzeb's son Akbar left the Mughal court and joined with Sambhaji, inspiring some Mughal forces to join the Marathas. Aurangzeb in response moved his court to Aurangabad and took over command of the Deccan campaign. More battles ensued, and Akbar fled to Persia.

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Aurangzeb captured Sambhaji and publicly tortured and killed him in 1688. His brother Rajaram succeeded, but the confederacy fell into disarray. Surprisingly, however, this collapse provided the Marathas with great military advantage. Maratha Sardars(commanders) raised individual battles against the Mughals, and territory changed hands again and again during years of endless warfare. Since there was no central authority in control, Aurangzeb was forced to contest every inch of territory, at great cost in lives and treasure. Even as Aurangzeb drove west, deep into Maratha territory(notably conquering Satara), the Marathas expanded attacks eastward into Mughal lands, including Mughal-held Malwa and Hyderabad.

Related Topics:
Sambhaji - 1688 - Rajaram - Satara - Malwa - Hyderabad

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Aurangzeb waged continual war for more than two decades with no resolution. After Aurangzeb's death, new leadership arose among the Marathas, who soon became unified under the rule of the Peshwas.

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Defiance of the Sikhs and the rise of the Khalsa

Since its founding by Guru Nanak in the 1500s, Sikhism grew in popularity throughout India, particularly in the Punjab. In the years following the persecution and death of the fifth Guru Arjan Dev by Aurangzeb's grandfather Jahangir, the Sikhs had become increasingly militant and defiant.

Related Topics:
Guru Nanak - Sikh - Guru Arjan Dev - Jahangir

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Early in Aurangzeb's reign, various insurgent groups of Sikhs engaged Mughal troops in increasingly bloody battles. In 1670, the ninth Sikh Guru, Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji encamped in Delhi, receiving large numbers of followers. Aurangzeb regarded this popularity as a potential threat, and determined to subdue it. But Mughal skirmishes with the increasingly militant Sikhs continued.

Related Topics:
Sikh - Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji

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Sikhs recount that in 1675 a group of Kashmiri brahmins, who were of the Hindu faith, were being pressured by Muslim authorities to convert to Islam and approached Guru Tegh Bahadur with their dilemma. To demonstrate a spirit of unity and tolerance, the Guru agreed to help the brahmins: He told them to inform Aurangzeb that the brahmins would convert only if Guru Tegh Bahadur himself was converted.

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His response led to his death. At length Guru Tegh Bahadur was arrested and beheaded, giving his life to protect the brahmins. His execution infuriated the Sikhs. In response, his son and successor, Guru Gobind Singh further militarized his followers. Sikhs engaged in numerous battles against the Mughals, and though often outnumbered, succeeded in gaining more and more territory.

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Aurangzeb installed his son Bahadur Shah as governor of the northwest territories, including Sikh-controlled parts of Punjab. The new governor relaxed enforcement of Aurangzeb's edicts, and an uneasy peace ensued.But Gobind Singh had determined that the Sikhs should actively prepare to defend their territories and their faith. In 1699 he established the Khalsa a Sikh order of "saint-soldiers", ready to die for their cause.

Related Topics:
Bahadur Shah - Khalsa

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This development alarmed not only the Mughals, but the nearby Rajputs. In a temporary alliance, both groups attacked Gobind Singh and his followers. Facing defeat, Gobind Singh asked Aurangzeb for safe passage from their fort in Andrapuhr. Aurangzeb agreed, but as the Sikhs fled, the Mughals attacked in betrayal of the agreement.

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Aurangzeb killed all four of Gobind Singh's sons and decimated much of the Sikh army. Only Gobind Singh escaped. Gobind Singh sent Aurangzeb an eloquent yet defiant letter entitled the Zafarnama (Notification of Victory), accusing the emperor of treachery, and claiming a moral victory.

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On receipt of this letter, Aurangzeb invited Gobind Singh to meet in Ahmednagar, but Aurangzeb died before Gobind Singh arrived.

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