Chapter Mock Test
Total Marks:40
Duration:45 min
Total Questions:20
Difficulty:Mixed
Test Structure
- —Section A: 10 MCQs (1 mark each)
- —Section B: 6 Short Answer (3 marks each)
- —Section C: 2 Long Answer (5 marks each)
Before taking the test
- —Know the Mughal ancestry: Genghis Khan (maternal, Mongol) and Timur (paternal, Timurid); they preferred Timurid identity
- —Key dates: Babur seized Kabul (1504), Battle of Panipat (1526), Aurangzeb's death (1707)
- —Understand coparcenary (estate divided among all sons) vs primogeniture (eldest inherits) - Mughals followed coparcenary
- —Marriage alliances: Jahangir's mother (Kachhwaha, Amber), Shah Jahan's mother (Rathor, Marwar)
- —Mansabdari system: zat = personal status/salary, sawar = horsemen; 29 mansabdars at 5000 zat under Akbar, 79 under Aurangzeb
- —Jagirdars received land revenue (jagirs) instead of cash salary; did NOT own the land; jagirs were transferable
- —Zabt system by Todar Mal: land measured, surveyed, taxed based on crop yield; zamindars were intermediaries
- —Akbar Nama by Abul Fazl (3 volumes); Ain-i Akbari is Volume 3 covering administration and statistics
- —Sulh-i Kul (Universal Peace) by Akbar: all religions coexist; continued by Jahangir
- —Decline: jagir revenue shortfall, corruption, peasant revolts, regional governors (Awadh, Hyderabad) becoming independent in the 18th century
Key Concepts to Remember
Mughal Ancestry
Genghis Khan (maternal, Mongol) + Timur (paternal, Timurid) = Mughal dynasty; preferred Timurid identity
Mansabdari System
Zat (status/salary) + Sawar (cavalry) = Rank system; Jagirdars got land revenue, not cash
Revenue System
Zabt by Todar Mal: measure land + survey crops + tax by yield; Zamindars = intermediaries
Decline Pattern
Jagir shortfall + corruption + peasant revolts + regional governors = Empire fragmentation by 18th century