In the previous post, we looked at how the personalities, interests and events during the reign of early Mughal emperors were reflected in the coins they issued. This blog looks at the changing fortunes of the Mughal Empire, focussing on the political instability and the successor states that emerged over the long eighteenth century and how this was manifested in the coins of the period.

Aurungzaib’s fifty-year reign came to an end in 1707. Although Mughal rule continued over a large part of the Indian subcontinent for another 150 years, the nature of power and authority was transformed. The Mughals remained influential both economically and culturally, but their grasp over territories weakened over the eighteenth century as regional successor states emerged.

Upon the death of Aurungzaib, his eldest son, Muḥammad ʿAẓam Shāh (r.1707), declared himself successor and shortly after began to strike coins in his own name. His rule, however, was to be short-lived and he was never coronated as emperor. Less than three months later, he was defeated by his brother Bahadur Shāh I (r.1707-12) at the Battle of Jajau. Bahadur Shāh ascended to the throne at the age of 63 years; his five-year reign was a period of political intrigue, power struggles and several rebellions.

Issuing coins in order to legitimate one’s reign became quite the trend in the eighteenth century. It was one of the first acts of a ruler upon accession to the throne. Unsurprisingly, it was also the first act of the various claimants and pretenders to the throne who otherwise had little bearing on the annals of history. Between the death of Aurungzaib and the end of the century, nine emperors were coronated but there were in fact sixteen claimants to the throne, each of whom issued coins in their name in an attempt to legitimate their rule. For many of them, their coins are the only real evidence of their claim.

Rupee from the first year of reign of the 7^th Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shāh. Unlike the coins of other Mughal emperors, coins minted during his reign do not use his name in a couplet.

The seven years following the death of Bahadur Shāh witnessed four emperors and a further three claims to the throne. Apart from two emperors (both of whom ruled for only three months and died from tuberculosis), each of them were defeated, deposed and/or imprisoned before being killed. The reign of Jahandar Shāh (r.1712-13) lasted a mere eleven months, during which he shocked the court with his drinking and constant company of dancing girls and entertainers. He left power in the hands of his Grand Vizier and aroused the contempt of his subjects through his lifestyle. Jahandar Shāh was challenged and defeated by his nephew, Farrukhsiyar (r.1713-19), who later had him strangled. The political instability of this period saw the rise of the Sayyid Barha brothers (Abdallah Khan and Husayn Ali), who became the ‘kingmakers’ and effective power at court.

Rupee minted in 1712 during the short and frivolous reign of the 8^th Mughal emperor, Jahandar Shāh. He reintroduced the use of couplets on coins.

Rupee from the final year of the reign of Farrukhsiyar. Soon after this coin was minted, the Sayyid brothers deposed and imprisoned him, starving and later blinding him before he was strangled to death.

The twelfth Mughal emperor, Muḥammad Shāh (r.1719-48), ascended to the throne at the age of 17 years and offered some much-needed stability. He took back control from the Sayyid Barha brothers with the aid of Āsaf Jāh, who was appointed the Nizām (governor) of Hyderabad. He was, however, also involved in long wars with surrounding armies, lost Mughal territories, and his regional governors became more powerful forming successor states that would become independent in everything but name. The greatest blow to Muḥammad Shāh’s rule, however, came in 1739 with the shocking invasion and sacking of the capital Delhi by the Persian ruler, Nadir Shāh. Thousands of residents were slaughtered and Nadir Shāh returned to Iran with the emperor’s famous Peacock Throne, the Koh-i-Noor diamond (the largest diamond in the world) as well as caravans of treasure.

Rupee of Muḥammad Shāh. Although he offered some stability in leadership, Nadir Shāh’s invasion of Delhi exposed weaknesses in Mughal rule and accelerated the empire’s decline.

Rupee issued in the name Aḥmad Shāh (r.1748-54) in the year of his accession to the throne. When he came to power as the 13^th Mughal emperor, the empire was already collapsing. He was emperor for just six years before he was deposed, after which he spent the next twenty years imprisoned.

Regional Powers and the Rise of the East India Company

As Mughal rule crumbled, successor states formed independent dynasties in Awadh (Oudh), Bengal and Hyderabad. Whilst the provincial rulers still claimed to be subjects of the Mughals, they had effectively formed independent dynasties. Rival groups from the surrounding Maratha Confederacy also became more powerful, eventually controlling the Mughal emperor. Around the the same time, French and British forces were fighting for control of southern India. The successor states initially issued coins in the name of the Mughal emperor but soon went on to issue independent coins.

Rupee of Āsaf Jāh III, Hyderabad State, issued in 1806-7. The first Nizām of Hyderabad, Āsaf Jāh, had played a vital role securing the reign of Muḥammad Shāh. His family continued to shape Mughal fate: Āsaf Jāh’s grandson went on to depose (and blind) Muḥammad Shāh’s son and successor, Aḥmad Shāh; Āsaf Jāh II entered into an alliance with the British East India Company (EIC) to help defeat Tipū Sultan in return for becoming a princely state.

Another emerging force was the British East India Company (EIC). Although it had been established since the beginning of the seventeenth century, it was during the eighteenth century that it rose to become a force to be reckoned with. In 1717, Farrukhsiyar had granted a much-coveted firman to the EIC, granting them duty-free trading rights in Bengal, which not only meant they could trade without customs duty to the government but also had the effect of strengthening them on the east coast. In the second half of the eighteenth century, the EIC were also preparing their armed forces to seize greater control of the subcontinent, waging wars with the Nawab of Bengal, three wars against the Marathas and four against the kingdom of Mysore. After the Battle of Plassey in 1757, Sirāj al-Dawlah (r.1756-57) surrendered to the EIC and they were granted huge concessions, the right to collect taxes and to administer the region. The revenue collected by the British was used to increase their military might.

The EIC finally managed to fulfil its ambition of taking control of the Mughal emperor and his capital in 1803 when they defeated the Marathas during the Battle of Delhi and brought Shāh ʿĀlam II (r.1760-1806) under British protection.

Silver rupee minted in the name of Shāh ʿĀlam II by the EIC shortly after the British gained administrative rights over Bengal, the richest province of the subcontinent.

Copper ‘elephant’ paisa of Tipū Sultan (r.1782-1799). Tipū Sultan (the ‘Tiger of Mysore’) was the ruler of a prosperous kingdom in southern India. He remained an impenetrable enemy of the EIC until 1799 when he was killed during the fourth Anglo-Mysore War. After this victory, the EIC had taken control of much of India.

In the next post, we will focus on the coinage of the British East India Company and the British Raj, noting the changes it underwent until the independence of India and Pakistan.

Title Image: a portrait of Muḥammad ʿAẓam Shāh, the eldest son of Aurungzaib.

The paintings, coins and images used here belong to the Hussain-Islimi Collection: www.islimiarts.com