State and Locality in Mughal India

State and Locality in Mughal India PDF Author: Farhat Hasan
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521841191
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 168

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Book Description
This book presents an exploratory study of the Mughal state and its negotiation with local power relations. By studying the state from the perspective of the localities and not from that of the Mughal Court, it shifts the focus from the imperial grid to the local arenas, and more significantly, from 'form' to 'process'. As a result, the book offers a new interpretation of the system of rule based on an appreciation of the local experience of imperial sovereignty, and the inter-connections between the state and the local power relations. The book knits together the systems- and action-theoretic approaches to power, and presents the Mughal state as a dynamic structure in constant change and conflict. The study, based on hitherto unexamined local evidence, highlights the extent to which the interactions between state and society helped to shape the rule structure, the normative system and 'the moral economy of the state'.

State and Locality in Mughal India

State and Locality in Mughal India PDF Author: Farhat Hasan
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521841191
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 168

Get Book Here

Book Description
This book presents an exploratory study of the Mughal state and its negotiation with local power relations. By studying the state from the perspective of the localities and not from that of the Mughal Court, it shifts the focus from the imperial grid to the local arenas, and more significantly, from 'form' to 'process'. As a result, the book offers a new interpretation of the system of rule based on an appreciation of the local experience of imperial sovereignty, and the inter-connections between the state and the local power relations. The book knits together the systems- and action-theoretic approaches to power, and presents the Mughal state as a dynamic structure in constant change and conflict. The study, based on hitherto unexamined local evidence, highlights the extent to which the interactions between state and society helped to shape the rule structure, the normative system and 'the moral economy of the state'.

Paper, Performance, and the State

Paper, Performance, and the State PDF Author: Farhat Hasan
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1009032445
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
This book explores the changing socio–cultural world in early modern South Asia, and locates the agency of the Mughal state therein. The development of literacy and new forms of engagement between literacy and performance prompted the opening up of new spaces of social communication, and led to the development of a performative (and somatic) public sphere in South Asia. The work highlights the significance of legal spaces, along with the markets and coffeehouses, in shaping the emergent public sphere. While defending the case for legal pluralism, it argues that the Mughal state endured and enhanced the diversity in the legal order. Focusing on the socially embedded attributes of the state, it looks at how the state's relations with the local powers impinged on, and reproduced community identities, identity conflicts, legal pluralism, property relations, and different forms of social communication.

The Princes of the Mughal Empire, 1504–1719

The Princes of the Mughal Empire, 1504–1719 PDF Author: Munis D. Faruqui
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1139536753
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 367

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Book Description
For more than 200 years, the Mughal emperors ruled supreme in northern India. How was it possible that a Muslim, ethnically Turkish, Persian-speaking dynasty established itself in the Indian subcontinent to become one of the largest and most dynamic empires on earth? In this rigorous new interpretation of the period, Munis D. Faruqui explores Mughal state formation through the pivotal role of the Mughal princes. In a challenge to previous scholarship, the book suggests that far from undermining the foundations of empire, the court intrigues and political backbiting that were features of Mughal political life - and that frequently resulted in rebellions and wars of succession - actually helped spread, deepen and mobilise Mughal power through an empire-wide network of friends and allies. This engaging book, which uses a vast archive of European and Persian sources, takes the reader from the founding of the empire under Babur to its decline in the 1700s.

A History of the New India

A History of the New India PDF Author: Eugene F. Irschick
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317436172
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 211

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Book Description
Providing a different approach to the history of India than previously advocated, this textbook argues that there was constant interaction between peoples and cultures. This interactive, dialogic approach provides a clear understanding of how power and social relations operated in South Asia. Covering the history of India from Mughal times to the first years of Independence, the book consists of chapters divided roughly between political and thematic questions. Topics discussed include: Mughal warfare and military developments The construction of Indian culture Indian, regional and local political articulation India’s Independence and the end of British Rule Women and governmentality The rise of the Dalit movement As well as a detailed timeline that provides a useful overview of key events in the history of India, a set of background reading is included after each chapter for readers who wish to go beyond the remit of this text. Written in an accessible, narrative style, the textbook will be suitable in courses on Indian and South Asian history, as well as courses on world history and South Asian studies.

Writing the Mughal World

Writing the Mughal World PDF Author: Muzaffar Alam
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 0231158114
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 538

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Book Description
Between the mid-sixteenth and early nineteenth century, the Mughal Empire was an Indo-Islamic dynasty that ruled as far as Bengal in the east and Kabul in the west, as high as Kashmir in the north and the Kaveri basin in the south. The Mughals constructed a sophisticated, complex system of government that facilitated an era of profound artistic and architectural achievement. They promoted the place of Persian culture in Indian society and set the groundwork for South Asia's future development. In this volume, two leading historians of early modern South Asia present nine major joint essays on the Mughal Empire, framed by an essential introductory reflection. Making creative use of materials written in Persian, Indian vernacular languages, and a variety of European languages, their chapters accomplish the most significant innovations in Mughal historiography in decades, intertwining political, cultural, and commercial themes while exploring diplomacy, state-formation, history-writing, religious debate, and political thought. Muzaffar Alam and Sanjay Subrahmanyam center on confrontations between different source materials that they then reconcile, enabling readers to participate in both the debate and resolution of competing claims. Their introduction discusses the comparative and historiographical approach of their work and its place within the literature on Mughal rule. Interdisciplinary and cutting-edge, this volume richly expands research on the Mughal state, early modern South Asia, and the comparative history of the Mughal, Ottoman, Safavid, and other early modern empires.

Land and Law in Mughal India

Land and Law in Mughal India PDF Author: Nandini Chatterjee
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108486037
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 311

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Book Description
In this innovative, micro-historical approach to law, empire and society in India from the Mughal to the colonial period, Nandini Chatterjee explores the dramatic, multi-generational story of a family of Indian landlords negotiating the laws of three empires: Mughal, Maratha and British. This title is also available as Open Access.

Socio-Cultural Life of Merchants in Mughal Gujarat

Socio-Cultural Life of Merchants in Mughal Gujarat PDF Author: Monika Sharma
Publisher: Partridge Publishing
ISBN: 1482840367
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 215

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Book Description
Socio - Cultural Life of Merchants in Mughal Gujarat by Monika Sharma focuses on the identification of the varied communities involved in commercial activities and maritime trade - Banias, Bohras. Parsis, Khojas, Memons, Ghanchis, Chalebis, Armenians and European during 16th-17th centuries. The project embraces life-style, traditions, festivals, institutions and the professional aspects of merchants life. The study explores the region of Gujarat its geographical layout, urban set-up, trade centres, cities, manufacturing centres, ports and trade routes. The living standards, viz. housing, system of education, entertainment, the status women, food habits, dresses, ornaments and other aspects of their daily life etc. are investigated in order to make a comparative study of the different cultures. The study intends to know about the religion, social activities, festivals, rituals, marriages, customs and mores followed. The present work entails the investigation of custom, rituals and mores related to society and religion of the various merchant communities. One can also discern the existing social evils like sati, polygamy and enforced widowhood. The focal point of the study is merchants-Mughal nexus too, which is vital to understand the benefits accrued by the merchant communities. In what manner the proximity with imperial court benefitted them and resulted in their social elevation. One of the objectives of this study would be contextualize the idea of money for different merchants, which is discussed in chapter six. How the various communities invested their money to acquire political and social advantages. The stable system of brokers, sarraf and sahukars, mahajan, and nagarsheth which sustained the community are also focussed.

Local States in an Imperial World

Local States in an Imperial World PDF Author: Roy S. Fischel
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
ISBN: 1474436099
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 312

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Book Description
Focusing on the Deccan Sultanates of 16th- and 17th-century central India, Local States in an Imperial World promotes the idea that some polities of the time were not aspiring to be empires. Instead of the universalist and hierarchical vision typical of the language of empire, the sultanates presented another brand of state - one that prefers negotiation, flexibility and plurality of languages, religions and cultures. Building on theories of early modernity, empire, cosmopolitanism and vernaculars, Roy Fischel considers the components that shaped state and society: people, identities and idioms. He presents a frame for understanding the Deccan Sultanates as a rare case of the early modern non-imperial state, shedding light both on the region and on the imperial world surrounding it.

State Formations

State Formations PDF Author: John L. Brooke
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108265596
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 409

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Book Description
Featuring a sweeping array of essays from scholars of state formation and development, this book presents an overview of approaches to studying the history of the state. Focusing on the question of state formation, this volume takes a particular look at the beginnings, structures, and constant reforming of state power. Not only do the contributors draw upon both modernist and postmodernist theoretical perspectives, they also address the topic from a global standpoint, examining states from all areas of the world. In their diverse and thorough exploration of state building, the authors cross the theoretical, geographic, and chronological boundaries that traditionally shape this field in order to rethink the customary macro and micro approaches to the study of state building and make the case for global histories of both pre-modern and modern state formations.

Urban Histories of Rajasthan

Urban Histories of Rajasthan PDF Author: Elizabeth M. Thelen
Publisher: Gingko Library
ISBN: 1909942677
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 242

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Book Description
An exploration of religious conflicts in premodern urban India. Diverse peoples intermingled in the streets and markets of premodern Indian cities. This book considers how these diverse residents lived together and negotiated their differences. Which differences mattered, when and to whom? How did state actions and policies affect urban society and the lives of various communities? How and why did conflict occur in urban spaces? Through these questions, this book explores the histories of urban communities in the three cities of Ajmer, Nagaur, and Pushkar in Rajasthan, between the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries. The focus of this study is on everyday life, contextualizing religious practices and conflicts by considering patterns of patronage and broader conflict patterns within society. The book examines various archival documents, from family and institutional records to state registers, and uses these documents to demonstrate the complex and sometimes contradictory ways religion intersected with politics, economics, and society. The author shows how many patronage patterns and processes persisted in altered forms, and how the robustness of these structures contributed to the resilience of urban spaces and society in precolonial Rajasthan.