Author: Zeenut Ziad
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 9780195794441
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 317
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Book Description
This fully illustrated anthology is an authoritative and variegated work on Mughal history. The contributors, highly eminent in their respective fields, provide an informative account of the religious, cultural, economic, political and military aspects of the Mughal Empire.
Author: Debasish Das
Publisher: BecomeShakespeare.com
ISBN: 8194394171
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 361
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Book Description
Today, we associate the Red Fort with the view of the Prime Minister proudly unfurling the national flag every year on 15 August on the massive red wall curtain. To children and even most of us, the Red Fort is only this view that is broadcast on television. It is the ubiquitous image often used in marketing as well. Many of us haven’t even bothered to go inside the Fort, and many, including me, satisfied ourselves with our photos taken in front of this wall. This actually is a later addition erected by Shah Jahan’s son Aurangzeb. The Red Fort is much more than this red wall and the platform where the prime minister delivers his speech. In the book, the author attempts to swipe aside the wall and take a deep dive inside the Fort – not just the physical structures but how exactly the planning was done to create a truly complex and artistic palace fortress, to explore the Mughal way of life with their festivals, ceremonies, food and clothing amongst other themes. The beauty of the fort can only be understood and best appreciated from the string of apartments that once lined the river Yamuna on its opposite side. It must have been beautiful indeed to glide down the Yamuna on a boat and appreciate all the buildings that housed the emperor’s private quarters. Now the river has receded afar, but in olden times the various private apartments such as the Rang mahal, Khwabgah (‘abode of dreams’) or the emperor’s bed-chamber as well as the famous Diwan-e-Khas where the Mughal Emperor sat on the Peacock Throne were lined along the river front. There is a reason why the pioneering British historian-explorer James Fergusson termed the Red Fort ‘the most magnificent palace in the East.’ It was a creative venture well integrated to a new city and was truly unrivalled with respect to its design as well as functioning. The book also highlights that, though separated in time by more than three centuries from today, we can still visualize how the unsure footsteps which Babur took in Hindustan took shape in the reign of Shah Jahan, a connoisseur of art and culture. Descending on one side from Genghis Khan and the brutal Tamerlane on the other, Babur gained an irreversible entry to India in the plains of Panipat almost unexpectedly, by defeating a mammoth army of Ibrahim Lodi in 1526. The Mughals, which was the Persian word for ‘Mongols’, set up an incredible empire in Agra and Delhi, to which were born great emperors like Akbar and Shah Jahan. Apart from magnificent monuments they also built a truly syncretic culture of shared values, encouraged free exchange of knowledge and established rituals, customs and festivals that assimilated age-old traditions from east and west. Even the Taj Mahal, described by Rabindranath Tagore as a ‘teardrop on the face of Time’, was built as a symbol of love of a king to his departed queen, like an re-incarnation of Majnun for his Laila, so different from the obvious imagery that a barbaric king may evoke in one’s mind. Similarly, the Red Fort of Delhi was the culmination of Mughal soft power. With profusely laid flower and fruit-bearing char-bagh gardens criss-crossed with streams of water canals, it was layered in symbolism that art historians find interesting even after many centuries to discuss elements that give it a sense of freshness even with the mere empty shell of buildings left behind after 1857. As the author says, “Delhi however lived up to its reputation of slipping through the very fingers of those who attempted to raise a new city here: starting with Prithvi Raj Chauhan’s Lal Kot; Allauddin Khilji’s Siri; the Tughluq trio’s troika of Tughluqabad, Jahanpanah & Kotla Firuz Shah; Humayun’s Dinpanah and later Lutyen’s Delhi of the British; Shah Jahan’s majestic offering to the city of his choice was soon to be destroyed by fate.” The narrative follows the incidents of 1857 till the British Durbars and highlights that the Fort was not the home of the Mughals only in their prime, but also in their decline and till their very extinction. The book seeks to present the lived culture of Mughals in all its multiple facets. The book is divided in four parts. In Part 1 the focus is on the Imperial court and the court etiquette, cultivation of Persian and its enrichment with translations from Sanskrit, patronage of Hindu and Jain scholars. Part 2 contains detailed accounts of the Red Fort and the symbolism of its architecture, the philosophy of jharokha darshan, ceremonies, games and pastimes, the material culture of costumes and jewellery, food, drink and perfumery. The remaining two parts deal with the decline and fall of the Mughal rule and the British Colonial Durbars at the Red Fort. The broadly historical narrative is enlivened by various anecdotes.
Author: Dirk Collier
Publisher: Hay House, Inc
ISBN: 9384544981
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 517
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Book Description
A definitive, comprehensive and engrossing chronicle of one of the greatest dynasties of the world – the Mughal – from its founder Babur to Bahadur Shah Zafar, the last of the clan. The magnificent Mughal legacy – the world-famous Taj Mahal being the most prominent among countless other examples – is an inexhaustible source of inspiration to historians, writers, moviemakers, artists and ordinary mortals alike. Mughal history abounds with all the ingredients of classical drama: ambition and frustration, hope and despair, grandeur and decline, love and hate, and loyalty and betrayal. In other words: it is great to read and offers ample food for thought on the human condition. Much more importantly, Mughal history deserves to be widely read and reflected upon, because of its lasting cultural and socio-political relevance to today’s world in general and the Indian subcontinent in particular. The Mughals have left us with a legacy that cannot be erased. With regard to the eventful reigns of Babur, Humayun, Akbar, Jahangir, Shah Jahan, Aurangzeb and their successors, crucial questions arise: Where did they succeed? Where did they fail? And more importantly, what should we learn from their triumphs and failures? The author believes that history books should be accurate, informative and entertaining. In The Great Mughals and Their India, he has kept these objectives in mind in an attempt to narrate Mughal history from their perspective. At the same time, he does not shy away from dealing with controversial issues. Here is a fascinating and riveting saga that brings alive a spectacular bygone era – authentically and convincingly.
Author: Abraham Eraly
Publisher: Penguin Books India
ISBN: 9780143102625
Category : Mogul Empire
Languages : en
Pages : 440
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Book Description
It Is Hard To Imagine Anyone Succeeding More Gracefully In Producing A Balanced Overview Than Abraham Eraly William Dalrymple, Sunday Times, London In The Mughal World Abraham Eraly Continues His Fascinating Chronicle Of The Grand Saga Of The Mughal Empire. In Emperors Of The Peacock Throne He Gave Us The Story Of The Lives And Achievements Of The Great Mughal Emperors; In This Book, He Looks Beyond The Momentous Historical Events To Portray, In Precise And Vivid Detail, The Agony And Ecstasy Of Life In Mughal India. Combining Scholarly Objectivity With Artful Storytelling The Author Presents A Lively Panorama Of The Mughal World Emperors And Nobles At Work And Play; Harem Life; The Profligacy And Extravagance Of The Ruling Class Juxtaposed With The Stark Wretchedness Of The Common People. Meticulously Researched And Lucidly Narrated The Mughal World Offers Rare Insights Into The State Of The Empire S Economy, Religious Policies, The Mughal Army And Its Tactics, And The Glories Of Mughal Art, Architecture, Literature And Music.
Author: Bamber Gascoigne
Publisher: Constable Limited
ISBN: 9780094787506
Category : India
Languages : en
Pages : 264
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Book Description
This book will appeal to the increasing numb er of people travelling to India each year, detailing perhap s the most interesting period of Indian history, the time of the Great Moghuls. '
Author: Akul Diddi
Publisher: Notion Press
ISBN: 164324258X
Category : Young Adult Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 269
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Book Description
DEFINITIVE, ENGROSSING AND COMPREHENSIVE CHRONICLE ON THE WORLDS GREATEST DYNASTIES TO HAVE EVER RULED HINDUSTAN. THE BOOK HIGHLIGHTS THE SEQUENCE OF EVENTS THAT ULTIMATELY LEAD TO THE RISE OF THE TIMURIDS FROM BEING RULERS OF FERGHNA TO THE EMPERORS OF HINDUSTAN. THE STUDY LOOKS AT THE FACTORS THAT MADE THEM SUCCESSFUL AND BRINGS TO LIGHT THE PRECISE REASONS OF THEIR FALL FROM ZENITH.
Author: Constance Mary Villiers-Stuart
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Gardens
Languages : en
Pages : 402
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Book Description
Author: Annemarie Schimmel
Publisher: Reaktion Books
ISBN: 9781861891853
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 368
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Book Description
Annemarie Schimmel has written extensively on India, Islam and poetry. In this comprehensive study she presents an overview of the cultural, economic, militaristic and artistic attributes of the great Mughal Empire from 1526 to 1857.
Author: Abraham Eraly
Publisher: Penguin Books India
ISBN: 9780141001432
Category : India
Languages : en
Pages : 580
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Book Description
A Stirring Account Of One Of The World S Greatest Empires In December 1525, Zahir-Ud-Din Babur, Descended From Chengiz Khan And Timur Lenk, Crossed The Indus River Into The Punjab With A Modest Army And Some Cannon. At Panipat, Five Months Later, He Fought The Most Important Battle Of His Life And Routed The Mammoth Army Of Sultan Ibrahim Lodi, The Afghan Ruler Of Hindustan. Mughal Rule In India Had Begun. It Was To Continue For Over Three Centuries, Shaping India For All Time. In This Definitive Biography Of The Great Mughals, Abraham Eraly Reclaims The Right To Set Down History As A Chronicle Of Flesh-And-Blood People. Bringing To His Task The Objectivity Of A Scholar And The High Imagination Of A Master Storyteller, He Recreates The Lives Of Babur, The Intrepid Pioneer; The Dreamer Humayun; Akbar, The Greatest And Most Enigmatic Of The Mughals; The Aesthetes Jehangir And Shah Jahan; And The Dour And Determined Aurangzeb.
Author: William Dalrymple
Publisher: A&C Black
ISBN: 1408806886
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 819
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Book Description
WINNER OF THE DUFF COOPER MEMORIAL PRIZE | LONGLISTED FOR THE SAMUEL JOHNSON PRIZE 'Indispensable reading on both India and the Empire' Daily Telegraph 'Brims with life, colour and complexity . . . outstanding' Evening Standard 'A compulsively readable masterpiece' Brian Urquhart, The New York Review of Books A stunning and bloody history of nineteenth-century India and the reign of the Last Mughal. In May 1857 India's flourishing capital became the centre of the bloodiest rebellion the British Empire had ever faced. Once a city of cultural brilliance and learning, Delhi was reduced to a battered, empty ruin, and its ruler – Bahadur Shah Zafar II, the last of the Great Mughals – was thrown into exile. The Siege of Delhi was the Raj's Stalingrad: a fight to the death between two powers, neither of whom could retreat. The Last Mughal tells the story of the doomed Mughal capital, its tragic destruction, and the individuals caught up in one of the most terrible upheavals in history, as an army mutiny was transformed into the largest anti-colonial uprising to take place anywhere in the world in the entire course of the nineteenth century.
