Muhi al-Din Muhammad, commonly known as Aurangzeb, was the sixth Mughal emperor, reigning from 1658 until his death in 1707. His regnal name is Alamgir I, which derived from his title, Abu al-Muzaffar Muhi-ad-Din Muhammad Bahadur Alamgir Aurangzeb Badshah al-Ghazi. Under his emperorship, the Mughal Empire reached its greatest extent with territory spanning nearly the entirety of the Indian subcontinent.
Sambhaji, also known as Shambhuraje was the second Chhatrapati of the Maratha Empire, ruling from 1681 to 1689. He was the eldest son of Shivaji, the founder of the Maratha Empire. Sambhaji's rule was largely shaped by the ongoing wars between the Maratha Empire and the Mughal Empire, as well as other neighbouring powers such as the Abyssinians of Janjira, Wadiyars of Mysore and the Portuguese Empire in Goa. After Sambhaji's execution by Aurangzeb, his brother Rajaram I succeeded him as the next Chhatrapati and continued the Mughal–Maratha Wars.
Mir Qamar-ud-din Khan Siddiqi also known as Chin Qilich Qamaruddin Khan, Nizam-ul-Mulk, Asaf Jah and Nizam I, was the first Nizam of Hyderabad. He was married to the daughter of a Syed nobleman of Gulbarga. He began his career as a favourite of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, who made him a general. Following the death of Aurangzeb in 1707, Asaf Jah refused to favour any one of Aurangzeb's warring sons and as such remained neutral. When Aurangzeb's third son Bahadur Shah ultimately emerged victorious, Asaf Jah was rotated as governor of multiple Mughal provinces until 1714, when he was created Viceroy of the Deccan with authority over six Mughal provinces in southern India from 1714 to 1719. From 1719 onwards he was involved in combating the intrigues of the Sayyid Brothers. From 1720 to 1722 he helped the new Mughal emperor Muhammad Shah eliminate the Sayyed brothers and was rewarded by being elevated to the grand viziership from 1722 to 1724.
Mirza Muhammad Mu'azzam, commonly known as Bahadur Shah I and Shah Alam I, was the eighth Mughal Emperor from 1707 to 1712. He was the second son of the sixth Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, who he conspired to overthrow in his youth. He was also governor of the imperial provinces of Agra, Kabul and Lahore and had to face revolts of Rajputs and Sikhs.
Mirza Abu'l Fayaz Qutb-ud-Din Mohammad Azam, commonly known as Azam Shah, was briefly the seventh Mughal emperor from 14 March to 20 June 1707. He was the third son of the sixth Mughal emperor Aurangzeb and his chief consort Dilras Banu Begum.
Hambirrao Mohite also known as Hansaji, was a prominent Maratha general who held the esteemed position of the 5th Senapati of the Maratha Army during the reign of Chhatrapati Shivaji. He was recognized for his exceptional military prowess and successfully led various campaigns on behalf of Shivaji, subsequently continuing his service under Chhatrapati Sambhaji.
The Deccan wars were a series of military conflicts between the Mughal Empire and the descendants of the Maratha ruler Shivaji from the time of Shivaji's death in 1680 until the death of Emperor Aurangzeb in 1707. Shivaji was a central figure in what has been called "the Maratha insurgency" against the Mughal state. Both he and his son, Sambhaji, or Shambuji, typically, alternated between rebellion against the Mughal state and service to the Mughal sovereign in an official capacity. It was common practice in late 17th-century India for members of a ruling family of a small principality to both collaborate with the Mughals and rebel.
Mirza Abu Talib, better known as Shaista Khan, was a Moghul General and the Subahdar of Mughal Bengal, he was maternal uncle to the Moghul Emperor Aurangzeb, he acted as a key figure during his reign, Shaista Khan initially governed the Deccan, where he clashed with the Maratha ruler Shivaji, However, he was most notable for his tenure as the governor of Bengal from 1664 to 1688, Under Shaista Khan's authority, the city of Dhaka and Mughal power in the province attained its greatest heights. His achievements include constructions of notable mosques such as the Sat Gambuj Mosque and masterminding the conquest of Chittagong. Shaista Khan was also responsible for sparking the outbreak of the Anglo-Mughal War with the English East India Company.
Mirza Raja Jai Singh I was the senior most general and a high ranking mansabdar at the imperial court of Mughal Empire as well as the Kachwaha ruler of the Kingdom of Amber. His predecessor was his grand uncle, Mirza Raja Bhau Singh, the younger son of Mirza Raja Man Singh I.
The siege of Bijapur began in March 1685 and ended in September 1686 with a Mughal victory. The siege began when Aurangzeb dispatched his son, Muhammad Azam Shah, with a force of nearly 50,000 men to capture Bijapur Fort and defeat Sikandar Adil Shah, the then ruler of Bijapur, who refused to be a vassal of the Mughal Empire. The siege of Bijapur was among the longest military engagements of the Mughals, lasting more than 15 months until Aurangzeb personally arrived to organize a victory.
The Decline of the Mughal Empire was a period in Indian History roughly between the early 18th century and mid 19th Century where the Mughal Empire, which once dominated the subcontinent, experienced a large scale decline. There are various factors responsible for this decline such as internal conflicts, Maratha, Afghan and Persian Invasions and British colonialism.
The Battle of Salher was fought between the Marathas and the Mughal Empire in February 1672 CE. The battle was fought near the fort of Salher in modern day Nashik district. The result was a decisive victory for the Marathas. This battle is considered particularly significant as it is the first pitched battle where the Mughal Empire lost to the Marathas.
The Maratha Navy was the naval wing of the armed forces of the Maratha Empire, which existed from around the mid-17th century to the mid-18th century in the Indian subcontinent.
Tomb of Khan-e-Jahan Bahadur Kokaltash is a 17th-century tomb of a Mughal governor that is located in Mohalla Ganj, in the Pakistani city of Lahore.
Fidai Khan Koka, Governor of Awadh, Lahore and master of ordnance and foster brother to the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, Aurangzeb had two foster-brothers, Fidai one of them and Bahadur Khan was one of favourite to the Aurangzeb, while they three didn’t blood-related but fosterage to eachothers, Fidai Khan was credited with leading construction on the Persian Gardens known as Pinjore Gardens near Chandigarh – the post-partition capital of Punjab – as well as building Teele Wali Masjid (1658–1660) of Lucknow, India and Badshahi Mosque (1671–1673) of Lahore.
The Gujarat Subah was a province (subah) of the Mughal Empire, encompassing the Gujarat region. The region first fell under Mughal control in 1573, when the Mughal emperor Akbar defeated the Gujarat Sultanate under Muzaffar Shah III. Muzaffar tried to regain the Sultanate in 1584 but failed. Gujarat remained the Mughal province governed by the viceroys and officers appointed by the Mughal emperors from Delhi. Akbar's foster brother Mirza Aziz Kokaltash was appointed as the subahdar (viceroy) who strengthened Mughal hold over the region. The nobles of former Sultanate continued to resist and rebel during the reign of the next emperor Jahangir (1605–1627) but Kokaltash and his successor subahdars subdued them. Jehangir also permitted the British East India Company to establish factories in Surat and elsewhere in Gujarat. The next emperor Shah Jahan (1627–1658) expanded his territories in south and his subahdars made hold over Kathiawar peninsula including Nawanagar. Shah Jahan had also appointed his prince Aurangzeb, who was involved in religious disputes, prince Dara Shikoh and later prince Murad Bakhsh as subahdars. Following battle of succession, Aurangzeb (1658–1707) came to the Mughal throne and his policies resulted in revolts and discontent. During his reign, the Marathas under Shivaji raided Surat (1666) and their incursions in Gujarat started. Till then Gujarat prospered due to political stability, peace and growing international trade.
Siege of Ramsej was a series of military confrontations between the Maratha Empire headed by Sambhaji and the Mughal Empire led by Aurangzeb regarding the control of Ramsej Fort in the Nashik region. Aurangzeb arrived in the Deccan in late 1681 with a strong army to destroy the Maratha Empire and the Deccan Sultanates of Adilshahi and Qutubshahi. He wanted to capture the forts held by the Marathas in the Nashik and Baglana regions. Hence he decided to begin his Deccan campaign with an attack on Ramsej Fort which is near Nashik. The Mughal forces under Kasim Khan Kirmani captured Ramsej from the Marathas. The defending Maratha forces evacuated the fort.
Shams ul-Umara, Shams ul-Mulk, Shams ud-Daula, Nawab Muhammad' Abu’l Fath Khan Bahadur, Taigh Jang Bahadur ['Abu’l Khair Khan II] [Imam JungIII] was an Indian nobleman and founder of the House of Paigah.
The Execution of Sambhaji was a significant event in 17th-century Deccan India, where the second Maratha King was put to death by order of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. The conflicts between the Mughals and the Deccan Sultanates, which resulted in the downfall of the Sultanates, paved the way for tensions between the Marathas and the Mughals. Following the death of Shivaji, his son Sambhaji ascended to the throne and conducted several campaigns against the Mughals. Unlike his father, Sambhaji tolerated instances of rape and murder committed by his army during these conflicts. This led Aurangzeb to launch a campaign against the Marathas, resulting in the capture of the Maratha King by the Mughal general Muqarrab Khan. Sambhaji and his minister Kavi Kalash were then taken to Tulapur, where they were tortured to death.
Khwaja Kamal, commonly known as Iwaz Khan, was a Turani Mughal leader who served as the last Subahdar of the Berar Subah under the Mughal empire. He also held the distinction of being the first Dewan of the Nizam of Hyderabad.
