Page 91 - SST Class 07

etc. He took interest in books, especially history
Muhammad Shah. The last Mughal ruler was
Bahadur Shah Zafar, when the Mughal rule was and science. He took keen interest in new ideas.
formally ended in 1857. He took steps to improve the economic condition
of his subjects. He introduced western technology
The Mughal rulers after Aurangzeb are called
to improve many trades. His innovations in
‘later Mughals’. The Mughal empire shrunk during weapons were quite amazing for his enemies. He
their rule as they were incapable. They paid little had to fight continuously with the English. Finally,
attention to the welfare of the people,
he died in the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War at
development of trade and agriculture or Seringapatnam in 1799.
maintenance of the army. The nobles who served
them were selfish and worked more for harming
Info Bits
the empire than to do any good to it. Info Bits

Just Think! Tipu Sultan was famous for his bravery. He was
known as the Tiger of Mysore.

Who was the last Mughal emperor? Bengal
The nawabs of Bengal were efficient rulers. They
NEW POLITICAL FORMATIONS rose to eminence when the Mughal empire
declined. At the death of Aurangzeb, the governor
The period from the beginning of the eighteenth
century saw the rise of several regional powers, of Bengal, Murshid Quli Khan made Bengal
independent. He administered well and solved
such as Sikhs, Rajputs, Marathas, Nizam of Avadh
and Bengal, Nizam of Hyderabad, Jats and many problems inflicting his state.
Satnamis. These political formations harassed the His successors included Shuja-ud-din , Alivardi
Mughal rule considerably and tried to expand Khan and Siraj-ud-daula . All these rulers were
their area of influence. efficient and took measures for the welfare of the
people. Trade flourished under them. They
Mysore
brought more areas under cultivation by clearing
Mysore was a powerful state. It rose to forests.
prominence with Hyder Ali who started his life as
an ordinary soldier. He was energetic, intelligent However, the nawabs did not realise the
importance of a strong army. They did not build
and determined. He knew that the western
military training was better, so he modernised his forts and strengthen the army. Due to this, they
army with the help of the could not suppress the influence of the English,
and were defeated by the English in the battle of
French. He fought many battles
with the Maratha Sardars, Plassey in 1756-57. This laid the foundation of the
Nizams and the English. He English rule in India. We shall study this in detail
in the next class.
even defeated the English in the
First Anglo-Mysore War in Avadh
1769. He died in the Second Hyder Ali The zamindars took advantage of the weakening
Anglo-Mysore War in 1782.
strength of the Mughals in Avadh, so Saadat Khan
Hyder Ali was succeeded by Tipu Sultan , his son. was appointed as the governor of Avadh in 1722.
Tipu Sultan was a clever ruler. He entered into a fresh revenue settlement with
He introduced many reforms to them in 1723. This improved the condition of the
the administration, such as peasants from the oppression of the zamindars.
introduction of a new calendar, Gradually, he acted independently of the
new system of coinage, new Mughals. He worked for the welfare of the people.
system of weights and measures His successor was Safdar Jung , his nephew. He
Tipu Sultan
Independent States in Eighteenth Century
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