Answer:
THE APPROACH
INTRODUCTION: Write a few lines about the political fragmentation of mid-18th century India and lack of centralised authority.
BODY: Discuss the factors responsible for the rise of fragmented polity in mid-18th century and its impact on the political landscape of India.
CONCLUSION: Summarize the range of factors that led to the fragmented polity in the India of mid- 18th century.
INTRODUCTION:
The mid-18th century India witnessed significant political fragmentation and instability due to decline of the Mughal Empire and rise of virtually independent regional powers. The lack of strong centralised authority weakened the political structure and anarchy, and chaos became prominent. It eventually led to the rise of the English East India Company as a colonial power.
BODY:
The Indian subcontinent drifted towards political fragmentation due to a combination of numerous factors as discussed below. These factors also underline the weakening of central authority and rising ambition of various regional and foreign elements.
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- Aurangzeb’s orthodox policies and the rise of Sikhs and Marathas accentuated religious tensions. The increasing friction further destabilized the political scenario as the Marathas conquered territories in the Deccan and North India straining the Mughal resources.
- Decline of Mughal empire: The Mughal court witnessed weak successors and internal power struggles which ultimately led to a steady erosion of the empire’s Weak situation of law and order and lack of governance created a power vacuum in various regions.
- Rise of regional powers was a natural development towards filling the power vacuum created by the disintegration of Mughal empire. These powers included the Marathas, Sikhs, Rajputs, Nawabs of Awadh & Bengal, and the Nizam of Hyderabad. The political landscape of India was further fragmented by the frequent competition between these regional entities for control over resources and territory.
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- Due to lack of internal strength, the Mughals failed to fight effectively against external challenges that came in the form of several invasions from the north-west, that of Nadir Shah (1739) and Ahmad Shah Abdali (1748-67), crushed the Mughals to an extent that they were no longer the dominant power in the country.
- Internal Challenges presented themselves in the form of the rising insurgents and rebels such as the Marathas, Sikhs, Jats, Rajputs and Afghans. There was a continuous struggle among the Mughals, Marathas and Afghans which eventually led to the third battle of Panipat and further fragmentation.
- The country fell into anarchy and chaos with frequent peasant uprisings, wars of succession and invasions of foreign and neighbouring rulers. It resulted into large scale death and loss of property and poverty due to high taxes, inflation, trade restrictions, mass rapes and murders by the invading forces.
- The mid-18th century also witnessed the rise of European powers especially the British East India Company. This also led to ineffective alliances formed by regional powers and European companies which were often short-lived. The fluidity in the political landscape further increased the fragmentation and instability of the Indian subcontinent.
CONCLUSION:
The above sequence of historical events and developments clearly indicate that Indian subcontinent in the middle of the eighteenth century was marked by political fragmentation and regional instability. This not only encouraged political instability but also paved the way for external forces to exploit the situation to their advantage. It tore apart the fabric of the Mughal Empire.
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