Spectrum Test: India On The Eve Of British Conquest

• Bahadur Shah II (1837-1857) - Bahadur Shah II or Bahadur Shah Zafar (Zafar being his surname) was the last Mughal emperor. 

• The Revolt of 1857 had made a futile attempt to declare him the Emperor of India. He was captured by the English and sent to Rangoon where he died in 1862. 

• In legal terms, the Mughal Empire came to an end on November 1, 1858, with the declaration of Queen Victoria.

Why the Mughal Empire declined

1. Weak Successors 

2. Absence of Definite law of succession 

3. Aurangzeb's religious and Deccan policies 

4. Degeneration of rulers and nobles 

5. Deterioration of Army 

6. External invasions 

7. Too vast an Empire 

8. Economic decline 

9. Advent of Europeans 

10. Shifting allegiance of Zamindars 

11. Jagirdari crisis 

12. Rise of regional aspirations

• The society of 18th century India was characterized by a traditional outlook and stagnation. Though there existed a certain degree of broad cultural unity, people were divided by caste, religion, region, tribe, and language. 

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  The family system was primarily patriarchal and caste was the central feature of the social life of the Hindus. 

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  Religious considerations not only kept the Sunni and Shia nobles apart but also the Irani, Afghan, Turani, and Hindustani Muslim nobles and officials apart from one another. 

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  The sharif Muslims consisting of nobles, scholars, priests, and army affairs often looked down upon the ajlaf Muslims or the lower class Muslims like the way the 

Items of Import: From the Persian Gulf Region- pearls, raw silk, wool, dates, dried fruits, and rose water.

• Maharashtra, the Andhra region, and Bengal were the leaders in shipbuilding. Indian shipping also flourished on the Kerala coast at Calicut and Quilon. 

• The Zamorin of Calicut used the Muslim Kunjali Maraikkars (who were well known for their seafaring ability) for his navy. Shivaji Bhonsle's navy put up a good defense on the west coast against the Portuguese.

• Kasi (Varanasi), Nadia, and Utkala were famous for Sanskrit education. 

• The education imparted in 18th-century India was still traditional which could not match with the rapid developments in the West. 

• The knowledge was confined to literature, law, religion, philosophy, and logic and excluded the study of physical and natural sciences, technology, and geography. 

• In fact, due to over-reliance placed on ancient learning, any original thought got discouraged. Elementary education among the Hindus and the Muslims was quite widespread. 

• The Hindu and Muslim elementary schools were called pathshalas and maktabs respectively. The education was confined to reading, writing, and arithmetic. 

• Children from the lower caste sometimes attended the schools, but the female presence was rare. Chatuspathis or Tols, as they were called in Bihar and Bengal, were the centers of higher education.

• Some of the famous centers for Sanskrit education were Kasi (Varanasi), Tirhut (Mithila), Nadia, and Utkala.

India was one of the main centers of world trade and industry. Peter the Great of Russia was led to exclaim: “Bear in mind that the commerce of India is the commerce of the world and … he who can exclusively command it is the dictator of Europe.”

They were institutes of Higher Learning among Hindus. Madrasahs among Muslims institutes of Higher Learning. There was the absence of the study of Science and Technology.

• Saadat Khan was also known as Burhan ul Mulk. He founded the independent principality of Awadh. 

• He had joined in a conspiracy against the Sayyid brothers, which resulted in his being given an increased Mansab. Later, driven out of the court, he was prompted to found a new independent state. 

• He committed suicide due to the pressure from Nadir Shah who was demanding a huge booty from him. He was succeeded by Safdar Jung as the Nawab of Awadh.