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Circumstances leading to its establishment Krishna Devaraya, during his reign (15091529), developed the Nayankara system. Accordingly, the Tamil country was divided into three large Nayankaras: Senji, Thanjavur and Madurai. Under the new system the subordinate chieftains were designated as Palayakkarars and their fiefdom as Palayams. T hanjavur which remained as a part of the Chola […]
Ponniyin Selvan Chapter 3 – Vinnagara Temple Sometimes trivial incidents lead to events of great significance. O ne such incident now occurred to Vallavarayan Vandiya Devan. Remember, he was standing by the roadside to watch the procession of the Pazluvoor Lord and his entourage? His horse stood a little away form him. Some of the […]
(a) The First Anglo Maratha War (1775-1782) Madhav Rao Narayan was an infant Peshwa under the regency of Nana Fadnavis. The usurping of power by Ragunath Rao, uncle of the former Peshwa Madhava Rao I, provided the scope for the Company administration to fish in the troubled waters. The Company administration in Bombay supported Ragunath […]
Rule of the Peshwas (1713-1818) The Peshwa or the prime minister was the foremost minister in the Ashta Pradhan,the council of ministers of Shivaji. The Peshwas gained more powers and became dominant in the eighteenth Century. Balaji Viswanath was the first powerful Peshwa. Peshwa is a Persian word which means “Foremost” or the “First Minister”. […]
Central Government Shivaji was a not only a great warrior but a good administrator too. He had an advisory council to assist him in his day-to-day administration. This council of eight ministers was known as Ashta Pradhan. Its functions were advisory. The eight ministers were: 1) The Mukhya Pradhan or Peshwa or prime minister whose […]
Marathas after Shivaji A year after the death of Shivaji, his eldest son and successor Sambhaji led a Maratha army into Mughal territory, captured Bahadurpur in Berar, and plundered its wealth. Provoked by this humiliation, Aurangzeb struck a compromise with the Mewar Rajputs and led an army into the Deccan. Bijapur and Golkonda were annexed […]
Shivaji was born in Shivner near Junnar. He was the son of Shahji Bhonsle by his first wife Jijabai. Shahji was a descendant of the Yadava rulers of Devagiri from his mother’s side and the Sisodias of Mewar on his father’s side. Shahji Bhonsle served under Malik Ambar (1548–1626), former slave, and the Abyssinian minister […]
Introduction The Marathas played a major role in the decline of Mughal power. Under the dynamic leadership of Shivaji, they posed a strong challenge to Mughal power during the 1670s. By the middle of the 18th century, they had succeeded in displacing Mughal power in central India. Nayak rule ended in 1674 in Thanjavur, when […]
The Madrasas continued to be concerned principally with Muslim theology and its vast literature. In great learning centres like Varanasi, astrology was taught and there was no institution in India, as noted by the French traveller Bernier, to the standards of colleges and universities in Europe. This made the imparting of scientific subjects almost impossible. […]
T he Mughal period witnessed a continuing assertion of all the basic elements in puranic traditions. Though it was difficult to speak of Hinduism as a single body of doctrine, in view of the countless faiths and innumerable customs and practices, having developed in mutual interaction and expressed in a large part in the same […]
Economy The Mughal economy was a forest-based agricultural economy. The forests provided the raw materials for the craftsmen. Timber went to carpenters, wood carvers and shipwrights, lacquerware makers; wild silk to reelers and weavers; charcoal to iron miners and metal smiths. Hence the relationship between manufacturing and the forest was very close. Different classes of […]
Mughal Society The population of India is estimated to have been around 15 crores in the 16th century and 20 crores in the 18th century. Large areas of land were under forest cover and the area under cultivation would have been much less. As agriculture was the prime occupation of the society the village community […]
Aurangzeb (1658–1707) Aurangzeb Alamgir (“World Conqueror”) ascended the throne in 1658 after getting rid of all the competitors for the throne, Dara Shukoh, Shuja and Murad, in a war of succession. His reign of fifty years falls into two equal parts. During the first twenty-five years he resided in the north, chiefly at Delhi, and […]
Shah Jahan (1627-1658) When Shah Jahan ascended the throne in Agra his position was secure and unchallenged. Yet the affairs of the empire needed attention. The Afghan Pir Lodi, with the title Khanjahan, who had been governor of the southern provinces of the empire was hostile. Despite Shah Jahan’s order transferring him from the government […]
Jahangir (1605–1627) Akbar was succeeded by his son Salim with the title Nur-ud-din Jahangir. He was Akbar’s son by a Rajput wife. His ascension was challenged by his eldest son Prince Khusrau who staged a revolt with the blessings of Sikh Guru Arjun Dev. Prince Khusrau was defeated, captured and blinded, while Guru Arjun Dev […]
Emperor Akbar (1556–1605) During Humayun’s wanderings in the Rajputana desert, his wife gave birth to a son, Jalaluddin, known as Akbar, in 1542. Akbar was crowned at the age of fourteen. At the time of Akbar’s ascension, the Afghans and Rajputs were still powerful and posed a great challenge. Yet he had a guardian and […]
Ponniyin Selvan Chapter 2 — Azlvar-adiyan NambiVallavarayan Vandiya Devan rode down the embankment and turned his horse towards the southern path; his heart danced with joy: like those sailboats skipping across the waves. The excitement buried deep in his heart seemed to erupt outward. His intuition said that he was going to meet adventures experienced […]
Humayun’s Return from Exile After Sher Shah’s death in 1545 his weak successors ruled for ten years. Humayun,who had fled after his defeat at Kanauj, had taken asylum in Persia. Humayun then went to Afghanistan with Persian troops. He succeeded in capturing Kandahar and Kabul. But his brother Kamran did not allow him to hold […]
Sher Shah and Sur Dynasty From the time Humayun abandoned the throne in the Battle of Kanauj to his regaining of power in 1555 Delhi was ruled by Sher Shah of the Sur Dynasty. Born in the family of a Jagirdar and named as Farid, he received the title of Sher Khan after killing a […]
Humayun, a cultured and learned person, was not a soldier like his father. He was faced with the problems of a weak financial system and the predatory Afghans. Bahadur Shah, the ruler of Gujarat, also posed a great threat. Humayun’s brother Kamran who was in-charge of Kabul and Kandahar extended his authority up to Punjab. […]