"It is clear that Mukhia's exposition of the Mughal Empire is on a plane totally different from any other made so far. It is indisputably innovative in its design.... It is an exciting exploration that he has undertaken." Professor Irfan Habib, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, India
"A rare blend of deep and convincing research with elegant literary style ... a useful and pleasant reading for both the scholars and general public." Vostok
"This book offers an entertaining, readable, and concise conceptual analysis of courtly life in the Mughal era. Even experts on Mughal India will learn from Mukia's penetrating insights and find a great deal to interest them in his lively descriptions of court life." South Asia News
Book Description
THE Mughals of India explores the grandest and longest lasting empire in Indian history. This innovative book examines the Mughal presence in India from 1526 to the mid-eighteenth century through four new entry points: the sources of the Mughal state's legitimacy; the evolution and meaning of court etiquette; the world of the imperial Mughal family; and the interaction between folklore and court culture. Based upon a wide range of sources - court chronicles, official documents, poetry, paintings, travellers' accounts, bazaar gossip and folktales - the book takes account of both the tensions and harmonies within the court and the durability of the empire's structures, together with the transient moments of the Mughal's world and its lasting legacy in today's India.
Harbans Mukhia, 71, formerly Professor of Medieval History and Rector, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. In early years, his interest focused on medieval Indian historiography, leading to Doctoral thesis, later published, Historians and Historiography during the Reign of Akbar, Vikas, New Delhi, 1976. Teaching a course on Feudalism at JNU in the 70s and 80s led to research on its theoretical and empirical premises in a comparative perspective. 'Was there Feudalism in Indian History?' published in The Journal of Peasant Studies, 1981, became the centre of an international debate from 1985 to 93, published as the journal's special issue and then as a book, Feudalism and Non-European Societies, Frank Cass, London, 1985 (co-edited with T J Byres). It was once again revised, edited by him and published as The Feudalism Debate, Manohar, New Delhi, in 2000. A strongly assertive Marxist historian until about the mid-80s, moved towards a nuanced vision. In 1988-90, co-edited with Maurice Aymard translations of some 35 articles of the best French historians and published in India in two volumes: French Studies in History, Orient Longman, New Delhi. In 1993, a collection of essays, Perspectives on Medieval History was published by Vikas, New Delhi. In 1996 Religion, Religiosity and Communalism, co-edited with Praful Bidwai and Achin Vanaik appeared from Manohar, New Delhi. His The Mughals of India, was published by Blackwell Publishers, Oxford, in 2004. A volume, History of Technology in Medieval India edited by him is in press to be published by the Indian National Science Academy, New Delhi. A select collection of his newspaper articles and some book reviews has appeared in a volume: Issues in Indian History, Politics and Society, Aakar Books, New Delhi, 2009. His latest publication is Exploring India's Medieval Centuries: Essays in History, Society, Culture and Technology, Aakar Books, New Delhi, 2010. He is the founder-editor, The Medieval History Journal, published by SAGE from New Delhi, London, Los Angeles, Washington DC, and Singapore.
This review is from: The Mughals of India (Peoples of Asia) (Hardcover)
This book deals with life during the Mughal empire in India. It is not a history of the Mughals and their rule, but focuses more on court culture, etiquette and rituals. The book has four chapters. The first chapter discusses how the Mughals legitimized their rule, their attitudes on religion and politics. I found this chapter written in a very meandering sort of fashion. The second chapter deals with court etiquette. The third chapter discusses the family life of the Mughals. This is the most interesting part of the book. This book is not a chronological history, but many incidents are narrated at the appropriate time to highlight the behavior of the Mughals and their family members, etc. It is meant for those who would like a deeper understanding of the life of the Mughal rulers. This book would have been much more complete if it dealt with the life of the ordinary people as well.
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