History · Medieval History
The first half of the 17th century under Jahangir (1605–27) and Shah Jahan (1628–58) saw Mughal consolidation, complex court politics including the rise of Nur Jahan, major foreign policy challenges over Qandhar, Uzbek relations, and significant evolution of the mansabdari system and Mughal army.
The first half of the seventeenth century was broadly an era of progress and growth for the Mughal Empire. Two capable rulers — Jahangir (1605–1627) and Shah Jahan (1628–1658) — consolidated the administrative system inherited from Akbar. The Mughals maintained their alliance with the Rajputs and sought to broaden their political base by incorporating Afghans and Marathas. However, beneath the surface stability lay structural tensions: prosperity did not percolate down to peasants and workers, and the question of succession repeatedly threatened political stability.
In southern India, Bijapur and Golconda maintained internal peace and cultural growth. The Mughals also actively managed relations with neighbouring Asian powers — Iran (Safavids), the Uzbeks, and the Ottoman Turks — both for strategic security and trade expansion.
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1605 | Jahangir ascends the throne; Khusrau's rebellion breaks out |
| 1608 | Islam Khan posted to Bengal; subdues Afghan rebellion |
| 1611 | Jahangir marries Nur Jahan |
| 1620 | Shah Abbas of Iran sends polite request for Qandhar |
| 1621 | Shah Jahan kills Khusrau |
| 1622 | Shah Jahan's rebellion; Persians seize Qandhar |
| 1626 | Mahabat Khan seizes Jahangir near River Jhelum |
| 1627 | Jahangir dies near Lahore; Shah Jahan ascends |
| 1628–1658 | Shah Jahan's reign |
| 1638 | Ali Mardan Khan (Persian governor of Qandhar) defects to Mughals |
| 1646 | Shah Jahan launches Balkh campaign under Prince Murad |
| 1647 | Mughals rout Uzbeks outside Balkh; but retreat in October |
| 1649 | Persians reconquer Qandhar |
| 1652–1653 | Three failed Mughal attempts to retake Qandhar (Aurangzeb, Dara) |
Jahangir's eldest son Khusrau rebelled shortly after his accession. Jahangir decisively defeated him near Lahore and imprisoned him. The rebellion reflected the recurring Mughal problem of sons challenging fathers — a pattern begun by Jahangir himself.
Akbar had broken Afghan power in the east, but Afghan chiefs in Bengal retained strength with support from local Hindu rajas. Jahangir sent Islam Khan (grandson of Shaikh Salim Chishti) to Bengal in 1608. Islam Khan won over zamindars, shifted the provincial capital from Rajmahal to Dacca, and conquered Sonargaon and the Barah Bhuiyan. After Usman Khan's defeat, Afghan resistance collapsed and Mughal power was firmly established in east Bengal.
Malik Ambar of Ahmadnagar refused to accept Akbar's settlement and continued to resist. By 1622, Jahangir brought him to heel. However, the Persian conquest of Qandhar in 1622 and Jahangir's deteriorating health complicated matters.
Nur Jahan (born Mehr-un-Nissa) had an Iranian origin. Her first husband Sher Afghan died in a clash with the Mughal governor of Bengal. She came to Agra, and in 1611 married Jahangir. Her family rose rapidly:
Modern historians debate her actual political power. Some argue that she, along with her father and brother in alliance with Khurram, formed a "junta" that effectively managed Jahangir, allowing no one to advance without their backing. This caused a factional division of the court. Others point out that till 1622, Jahangir himself took all major political decisions, as confirmed by his autobiography. What is not in dispute is that she dominated the royal household, shaped Persian cultural fashions at court, and was Jahangir's constant companion — a skilled rider and sure shot.
Nur Jahan's political ambitions eventually led to a breach with Shah Jahan. He rebelled in 1622, believing Jahangir was completely under her influence and fearing intrigues during his absence on campaign. The immediate trigger was his refusal to go to Qandhar. He put forward impossible demands — full command of the Deccan army, sway over Punjab, control of important forts. After years of conflict, Shah Jahan submitted in 1626; his sons Dara and Aurangzeb were sent to court as hostages.
Mahabat Khan, feeling marginalised despite his role in suppressing Shah Jahan's rebellion, was summoned to court. When the royal camp was crossing the Jhelum, he seized Jahangir with a trusted body of Rajputs. Nur Jahan, who had escaped, tried unsuccessfully to free the emperor. She then surrendered herself to be close to Jahangir, outmanoeuvring Mahabat Khan diplomatically within six months. He abandoned Jahangir and eventually joined Shah Jahan. Nur Jahan's victory over Mahabat Khan showcased her cool courage and political acumen.
Jahangir died in 1627. Asaf Khan placed a puppet on the throne and recalled Shah Jahan. After Shah Jahan's accession, all rivals including Shahriyar were eliminated. Nur Jahan lived in retirement till her death 18 years later.
After the collapse of the Timurid empire in the late 15th century, three powers dominated West and Central Asia:
The Mughals refused to join any tripartite alliance against Iran as it would upset the Asian balance of power. Their alliance with Shia Iran annoyed Uzbeks, who occasionally stirred up Sunni fanaticism along the NW frontier between Peshawar and Kabul.
In 1572–73, Abdullah Khan Uzbek seized Balkh and Badakhshan — a buffer between Mughals and Uzbeks. He proposed partitioning Iran with Akbar after Shah Tahmasp's death (1576), urging Akbar to jointly free Iraq, Khorasan, and Fars from the Shias. Akbar rejected sectarian appeals. His actual goal: a defensible scientific frontier based on the Hindukush.
Akbar's 1595 conquest of Qandhar, combined with Kabul (annexed 1585), completed this frontier: the Kabul-Ghazni-Qandhar line. Hindukush was defined as the boundary between Mughals and Uzbeks in an informal agreement. After Abdullah Khan Uzbek's death in 1598, the Uzbeks broke into warring principalities and ceased to be a major threat for decades.
Qandhar was the most contested issue in Mughal-Persian relations.
Strategic importance for Mughals:
Contested history:
Jahangir's period: Shah Abbas I (1588–1629) maintained good relations with Jahangir despite the dispute. In 1620, Shah Abbas sent a polite request for Qandhar. Jahangir was taken by surprise. Hasty preparations were made but Qandhar fell to Persia in 1622 — the same year as Shah Jahan's rebellion, which distracted the empire.
Shah Jahan's attempts: Shah Jahan made three attempts to retake Qandhar after Persia reconquered it in 1649:
The failure reflected the strength of the fort under a determined defender, not just Mughal weakness.
Shah Jahan accepted an appeal from Nazr Muhammad, the Uzbek ruler of Balkh and Badakhshan, against his son Abdul Aziz. An army of 50,000 horse and 10,000 foot under Prince Murad left Kabul in mid-1646. Murad's impetuosity disrupted diplomatic plans. The Mughals were forced to hold Balkh against a hostile population and Uzbek tribes that Abdul Aziz had rallied (120,000 men across the Oxus). Despite routing Uzbeks outside Balkh in 1647, the Mughals retreated in October 1647 — winter was approaching and supplies had run out. The retreat nearly became a rout; Aurangzeb's firmness saved the army.
Assessment: The campaign was a military success but a political failure. Balkh was strategically and politically impossible to hold. Shah Jahan's real objective was a friendly buffer ruler in Balkh-Badakhshan. Nazr Muhammad, who had taken refuge in Persia, remained friendly to the Mughals till his death.
The mansabdari system, initiated by Akbar around the 19th year of his reign (1577), was a unique system with no exact parallel outside India. Its origins can be traced to Changez Khan's decimal army organisation (toman = 10,000). The Delhi Sultanate had sadis and hazaras (commanders of 100 and 1000).
The system had two ranks:
There were 66 grades of mansabs from 10 to 10,000. Ranks above 5,000 were reserved for princes.
Salaries were stated in rupees but paid by assignment of jagirs (revenue-yielding territories). Actual cash payment was rare. The revenue register (jama-dami) assessed income in dams (40 dams = 1 rupee). The mansabdari system was thus linked to the jagirdari system.
A mansabdar of 5,000 zat received ~Rs. 30,000/month; one of 3,000 ~Rs. 17,000/month; one of 1,000 ~Rs. 8,200/month. About a quarter of salaries went to the transport corps.
Du-aspah sih-aspah system (introduced by Jahangir): Selected nobles could maintain larger troop quotas without a raise in zat rank. A mansabdar with du-aspah sih-aspah (literally: 2 or 3 horses) had to maintain and was paid for double the troopers indicated by his sawar rank.
Month-scale (masahra): Since the number of mansabdars kept growing and salaries could not be cut drastically, salaries were put on a month-scale — 10 months, 8 months, 6 months or less — with contingent obligations reduced accordingly.
Reduction in sawar obligations (Shah Jahan's period): Nobles were required to maintain only 1/3 to 1/5 of their sawar rank in actual troopers. This drastically reduced the effective cavalry force and adversely affected Mughal military efficiency.
Mixed contingents: The Mughals favoured contingents with fixed proportions of Irani and Turani Mughals, Indian Muslims, Afghans, and Rajputs to prevent tribal/ethnic exclusiveness.
Strength: About 200,000 cavalry under Shah Jahan (excluding district forces), rising to 240,000 under Aurangzeb. Infantry (excluding non-fighters) ~40,000.
Major weakness: The Mughal army's major weakness was in naval power and sea-warfare. It was not inferior to Central Asian and Persian armies in open combat but could not match European sea-going powers.
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This chapter covers Background and Context, Chronology / Timeline, Political Developments under Jahangir, Nur Jahan and Court Politics, Foreign Policy of the Mughals. It is organized as revision-ready notes followed by a linked practice quiz.
For The Twilight Before the Storm: Mughal India Under Jahangir and Early Shah Jahan, focus on definitions, dates, places, institutions, distinguishing features, and factual comparisons in the chapter. Then use the quiz to check recall and identify gaps.
Use the The Twilight Before the Storm: Mughal India Under Jahangir and Early Shah Jahan chapter headings to organize an answer framework. Connect causes, consequences, comparisons, examples, and evidence wherever the notes provide them instead of memorizing isolated facts.