Chapter-10 Eighteenth-Century Political Formations

Explanation:

To reduce Mughal control in the provinces, the Nawabs of Awadh and Bengal sought to eliminate the jagirdari system by reducing the number of officeholders (jagirdars) appointed by the Mughals. Also, they reduced the number of jagirs and filled vacant positions with their own loyal workers. To prevent fraud, officials selected by the Nawab's court examined the income of each district and carefully examined the jagirdars' records. In an effort to reduce Mughal influence in Bengal, Murshid Quli Khan mandated a full reevaluation of Bengal's income. Also, he moved every Mughal jagirdar to Orissa. The zamindars were strictly obligated to pay all revenue in cash. As a result, some zamindars were compelled to take out loans from banks and moneylenders.

Explanation:

The organisation of the Sikhs as a political party during the seventeenth century helped Punjab evolve into a regional state. Both before and after the Khalsa was founded in 1699, Guru Gobind Singh fought with the Rajput and Mughal monarchs on a number of occasions. In the eighteenth century, the Sikhs organised themselves under the leadership of numerous strong commanders into several bands called as jathas and later, mislsThey referred to themselves as the vast army as a whole (dal khalsa). They were motivated by Guru Gobind Singh's conviction that the Khalsa will one day rule (raj karega khalsa). They were able to effectively challenge the Mughal emperors at first and Ahmad Shah Abdali later when he had acquired control of Sirhind and the Punjab, two prosperous Mughal provinces. This was due to their close-knit organisation. The Sikh kingdoms in the late eighteenth century spanned from the Indus to the Jamuna, although they were divided among several kings. These clans were united by one of them, Maharaja Ranjit Singh, who established Lahore as his capital in 1799.

Explanation:

To lessen the Mughal dominance, the Marathas sought to spread outside of the Deccan. Throughout the period from 1720 to 1761, the Maratha Empire grew. They took Malwa and Gujarat from the Mughals by the 1720s, and by the 1730s, the Maratha King had established himself as the supreme ruler of the whole Deccan peninsula.

Explanation: Nizam-ul-Mulk One of the most influential officials in the court of the Mughal Emperor Farrukh Siyar was Asaf Jah, the founder of the state of Hyderabad (1724–1748). He then amassed strength and assumed control of that region by taking advantage of the unrest in the Deccan and the rivalry among the royal nobility. Asaf Jah brought from northern India competent troops and administrators who appreciated the new chances in the south. He awarded jagirs and appointed mansabdars. Even though he was still the Mughal Emperor's servant, he used his authority without any interference or need for guidance from Delhi.

Explanation:

a) False

In 1739, Nadir Shah attacked and pillaged Delhi, stealing vast sums of money in the process. At the Battle of Karnal, his troops had little trouble defeating the Mughals.

b) False

Hindu Rajput Sawai Raja Jai Singh ruled the Amber kingdom. He obtained a significant sum of money from the Mughal courts. Malhar Rao Holkar was an Indian Maratha of Dhangar descent.

c) True

Gobind Rai was Guru Gobind Singh's birth name. He succeeded his father Guru Tegh Bahadur ji as the tenth and final Sikh Guru. He was well known for founding the Khalsa, the Sikhs' military fraternity.

d) False

After Shivaji's demise, a dynasty of Chitpavan Brahmanas who served Shivaji's successors as Peshwa held actual authority in the Maratha empire (or principal minister). Poona eventually became the Maratha kingdom's capital. The Marathas established a very effective military structure when ruled by the Peshwas.

Explanation:

(a) Aurangzeb fought a protracted war in the Deccan.

The Decan kingdom was destroyed by Aurangzeb as a result of his disastrous Deccan strategy. The Mughals' political miscalculation served as a barrier between the Marathas and the Mughals. In this direct conflict with the worn-out Mughal treasury, Aurangzeb and Shivaji continued to engage in combat with one another to regain their positions.

(b) Umara and jagirdars constituted powerful sections of the Mughal administration.

The Umara and Jagirdars were not a significant part of the Sikh government. Thus, this is the wrong choice. Option D: A significant portion of the Mughal government was made up of Umara and Jagirdars. "A high noble" was the meaning of Umara, and "the one holding a jagir" was the meaning of Jagirdar.

(c) Asaf Jah founded the Hyderabad state in 1724.

The Hyderabad state was established in 1724 by Nizam-ul-Mulk Asaf Jah, who governed it until 1748. He was one of the Mughal emperor Farrukh Siyar's most influential courtiers.

(d) The founder of the Awadh state was Burhan-ul-mulk-Sa’adat Khan.

Full response: The northern Indian region of Awadh, which is now part of the state of Uttar Pradesh, had a crucial historical role. In the sixteenth century, it was included into the Mughal Empire. Awadh was established as a sovereign kingdom by Saadat Khan Burhan-ul-Mulk (AD1722-1739).

• Under the Mughal Empire, a province (State) was known as a subah. The term is a combination of Persian and Arabic. A subahdar was the name for the governor or ruler of a Subah; it was then changed to subedar to refer to an officer in the Indian Army.

• Hyder Ali was claimed to be making money from pillaging during wars by 1755, when he was in charge of 1,500 cavalry and 3,000 foot soldiers. He was also appointed Dindigul's Faujdar (military commander) in that year. In this capacity, he first used French specialists to organise and train his artillery companies.

• A mutaahhid was thereafter considered as a government employee, while an ijaradar served as a mediator for collecting land income. Ijara agreements included the obligation to pay a defined sum to the Jagirdar or the government official in accordance with the terms of the agreement after collecting land revenue on their behalf for a predetermined amount of time.

• Misi is a phrase that first used in the history of the Sikhs in the eighteenth century to represent a unit or brigade of Sikh soldiers and the region that it conquered during its campaign of conquest after the Mughal power in the nation began to wane.

• In order to stop Maratha attacks, the Marathas received Chauth, which made up one-fourth of their land revenue. Sardeshmukhi was an extra 10% fee placed on the estates over which the Marathas asserted inherited ownership. Shivaji employed the sardeshmukhi and the chauth to pry open the opposing nation's treasure chests.

• Shivaji gained the assistance of strong warrior families known as the "Deshmukhs," who helped him establish a solid empire. He assembled a powerful army made up of the Kunbis, a type of rural pastoralists or cattle herders. The Maratha army's core was made up of kunbis, which were confederations of extremely mobile peasants.

• In the 18th century, the terms Jagirdar and Umara both denote powerful nobles. India's Jagir is a mediaeval land gift.