The Mughal empire and Akbar

Jalaluddin Muhammad Akbar (1556-1605) was the greatest of the Mughal emperors. He is considered as the architect of the Mughal empire in India and it was during his reign that the Mughal empire covered almost the whole of India from Afghanistan in the north to the river Godavari in the south. Born on 15^th October 1542 in Sindh and who became the king at the age of 14 before assuming imperial power Akbar is known in history for his religious tolerance and as a patron of the arts, architecture and for his introduction of the Mansabdari system of administration in the Mughal empire.

The Mughal empire had been established by Akbar’s grandfather Babur by defeating the last sultan of the Delhi Sultanate Ibrahim Lodi at the First Battle of Panipat in 1526.After Babur’s death in 1530 his son Humayun became the next Mughal emperor. But he failed to maintain the conquests of his father and was driven in to exile by Sher Shah Suri of the Sur dynasty. After the death of Sher Shah Suri in 1545 Humayun took advantage of the weakness of the Sur empire and managed to regain power in 1555 but ruled only for a few months before he died in 1556.Humayun’s confidant Bairam Khan helped Akbar to gain the throne at the age of 14 and acted as his regent. But the kingdom which Akbar inherited from his father Humayun was only confined to Punjab and the Afghans were still challenging the Mughals in north India.

The Afghan general Hemu had captured Gwalior and Agra and had defeated Akbar’s forces in the Battle of Delhi in October 1556.However at the Second Battle of Panipat fought on 5^th November 1556 the Mughal forces led by Bairam Khan and Akbar defeated Hemu which eventually paved the way for the reestablishment of Mughal rule in India. After the Second Battle of Panipat Akbar occupied Delhi, Agra and Gwalior. Akbar furthered his conquests to include Kabul, Kashmir, Sindh, Baluchistan and Kandahar in northern India. Gujarat, Bengal and Orissa were also annexed to the Mughal empire. Akbar turned his attention towards the south and conquered Khandesh, Ahmednagar, Bijapur and Golconda. However, it was the kingdom of Mewar which resisted against the Mughals. The Battle of Haldighati fought in 1576 between Maharana Pratap of Mewar and the Mughals finally led to the annexation of Mewar by Akbar.

Akbar’s success in maintaining his empire is attributed to his tolerant religious policies and his appointment of Rajputs in his administration. Through diplomacy and matrimonial alliances Akbar had won the confidence of the Rajputs and this was visible in his appointment of Rajputs to top administrative posts. He did not force Islam on the majority Hindu population of India, and he was the first Muslim ruler to have abolished jazia (poll tax on non-Muslims) in the year 1579.

In religion Akbar was liberal and he participated in the festivals of other faiths and in 1575 in Fatehpur Sikri he built a temple(Ibadat Khana) where he held frequent discussions with people of other faiths including Hindus,Zoroastrians,Christians,yogis and other sects.He also allowed the Jesuits to build a church at Agra and banned the slaughter of cattle due to his respect for Hindu customs.

Akbar also started the Sulh-i-Kul which in Arabic means peace with all. The Din-i-Ilahi founded by Akbar in 1582 had its origin in the Sulh-i-kul and it combined and promoted interfaith dialogue and equal treatment for all regardless of religious beliefs. The Din-i-Ilahi combined mysticism, philosophy and nature worship. Its ideas were an amalgamation of different religious beliefs.

The Infallibility Decree issued by Akbar in 1579 weakened the power of the Ulemas and the Mullahs. According to this decree Akbar became the supreme arbiter in religious and civil affairs. Akbar himself started the practice of reading Khutba from the Fatehpuri mosque in Agra.

In administration the Mansabdari system was introduced by Akbar. The term mansab stands for position, status or rank and it was the hierarchy of mansabdars which constituted an important part in the Mughal administration. The mansabdars belonged to the nobility and under this system the mansabdars or nobles were granted the rights to hold a jagir which means revenue assignments for their services rendered and these nobles were in the direct control of the king. Mansabdars were either paid in cash(naqad) or in the form of assignments of land(jagir)out of which they had the right for the collection of land revenue and other taxes through an authority appointed by the emperor.

Thus the Mansabdari system and the jagirdari system became an integral part of the Mughal dministration.The mansab or rank was designated by dual representation one by personal rank(zat) and the other by cavalry rank(sawar).The mansabdars  were given both ranks of zat and sawar and the emperor was the sole authority that decreased, resumed and conferred the mansab.

In arts Akbar had navratnas or Nine gems in his court which were Tansen, Birbal, Abul Fazal, Raja Todarmal, Shaikh Faizi, Mulla Do Piyaza, Abdul Rahim Khan-i-Khana, Raja Man Singh and Fakir Azao Din. Akbar also ordered the translation of Hindu scriptures into Persian. Sanskrit, Hindi and Persian received royal patronage during the reign of Akbar.In architecture Akbar built the Agra fort and the Buland Darwaza at Fatehpur Sikri. The tomb of Humayun is another architectural masterpiece built during the reign of Akbar. The Agra fort served as the residence of the Mughal emperors till 1638 when the capital of the Mughals was shifted from Agra to Delhi by Shah Jahan.