Textbook Solutions: New Political Formations in the 18th Century CE | Window on the Word Class 7: Solutions, Notes & Worksheets PDF Download

A. Choose the correct answer.

1.
Ans: (b)
Saadat Khan was succeeded by Safdar Jung

2.
Ans: (a)
Tipu Sultan died in 1799 c e while defending the fort of Seringapatam

3.
Ans: (a)
The Sikhs were united as a single state by Maharaja Ranjit Singh

4.
Ans: (a)
The first peshwa to rule over the Maratha kingdom was Balaji Vishwanath

B. Fill in the blanks

1.
Ans: The Mughal Empire began declining rapidly after the death of Aurangzeb in the year 1707 CE.

2.
Ans: The Mughal dynasty officially came to an end when Bahadur Shah II, the last Mughal emperor, got exiled to Rangoon (Yangon) in Myanmar.

3.
Ans: Saadat Khan laid the foundations for his capital at Faizabad.

4 .
Ans: Sawai Jai Singh built astronomical observatories called Jantar Mantars in Delhi, Jaipur, Benares, Ujjain and Mathura.

5.
Ans: The army of the Sikhs comprised of well-trained units or bands called misls.

6.
Ans: Shivaji assumed the title Chhatrapati in 1674 CE.

C. Define the following.

1.
Ans: Watan - Watan refers to the ancestral lands of the Rajput rulers in India. It served as a confirmation of their claim over their ancestral land.

2.
Ans: Peshwa - Peshwa was the title given to the prime minister of the Maratha Empire in India. The Peshwas were the de facto leaders of the Maratha Empire and played a significant role in its expansion.

3.
Ans: Chauth - Chauth was a form of tax that was collected by the Marathas from the territories that were under the control of the Mughals or other rulers. It was equal to one-fourth of the land's produce.

4.
Ans: Sardeshmukhl - Sardeshmukhl was another form of tax that was collected by the Marathas. It was equal to one-tenth of the land's produce.

D. Answer In one or two sentences

1.
Ans: Nadir Shah attacked Delhi in 1739 CE. After him, the Afghan ruler Ahmad Shah Abdali attacked India in 1748 CE.

2.
Ans: An example of Awadh exercising its independence was when Saadat Khan Burhan-ul-Mulk, appointed as the governor of Awadh, made the post of the nawab hereditary and was practically independent from the Mughals.

3.
Ans: The founder of the Asaf Jahi Dynasty was Qamaruddin Chin Qilich Khan.

4.
Ans: The capital of Bengal before Murshid Quli Khan shifted it to Murshidabad was Dhaka.

5.
Ans: The Khalsa is a disciplined community started by Guru Gobind Singh that combines the Sikhs' spiritual goals with political and military duties.

6.
Ans: Shivaji was a skilled warrior and the founder of the Maratha kingdom. He attacked the kingdoms of the Deccan and the Mughal Empire to free his land from the Mughals, whom he considered outsiders.

E. Answer in a paragraph

1.
Ans: The Mughal Empire started declining rapidly after Aurangzeb's death in 1707 CE. The key reasons behind the downfall were the vastness of the empire which was too large to be efficiently governed by a central authority, unskilled Mughal emperors who were out of touch with reality, internal conflicts due to lack of a definite law of succession, and the frequent wars waged by Aurangzeb which drained the treasury. Furthermore, the army was unhappy and lacked the resources to deal with foreign threats or to subdue the new provinces claiming independence. The empire was further hurt by defeats at the hands of the British and Persian and Afghan rulers.

2.
Ans: Hyder Ali was a military commander in the army of Mysore who overthrew the ruler of Mysore and established an independent kingdom in 1761 CE. His son, Tipu Sultan, also known as the ‘Tiger of Mysore', succeeded him and was a constant threat to the British. Both Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan had excellent administrative and military skills which helped in the growth of the kingdom of Mysore. However, after the death of Tipu Sultan, the British took indirect control of Mysore.

3.
Ans: The Jats were a community of agriculturalists who lived around Delhi, Agra and Mathura. They emerged as a political power in the 17th century and managed to occupy territories located to the west of Delhi. Under the leadership of Suraj Mal, the Jat kingdom reached its zenith, capturing quite a few territories in north India, including the city of Agra. However, Suraj Mal's death marked the beginning of the Jat state's decline and its eventual takeover by the British.

4.
Ans: The Maratha administrative system was set up by Shivaji, who ruled his kingdom with the help of a council of eight ministers (ashtapradhans). The most valued ministerial ranks were those held by the peshwa (the prime minister) and the senapati (the chief commander of the army). Land revenue was the main source of income for the Maratha government, and they had a sound taxation system, charging two-fifths of the land's produce as tax.

5.
Ans: The rise of Maratha power under the Peshwas can be attributed to their able administrative skills which contributed significantly towards the expansion of the Maratha kingdom. They captured Malwa, Gujarat and Bundelkhand and even defeated the Nizam of Hyderabad. However, the key reasons for the downfall of the Marathas were their crushing defeat in the Third Battle of Panipat against Afghan ruler Ahmad Shah Abdali and the lack of support from the Sikhs and the Rajputs. Also, their heavy taxation system was a burden on the farmers.