1. Great Mughal Empire

2. Muslim Invaders
India was always a target for invasion because of its resources and wealth.
Tamerlane invaded in 1398 and destroyed many cities, killed most of the people and took the rest as slaves.

3. Gupta Dynasty
320 – 540 a.d.
Wealth came from trading jewels and spices
Believed in Hinduism
Believed in many gods that were all a part of 1 Supreme Being.
Hindu’s believed in social classes

4. Caste System
Strict system of social classes that controlled all aspects of society and determined peoples jobs.
There were four classes created
Brought stability to India (like the feudal system in Japan)

5. First Class (at top)
Priests
Teachers
Judges
Government officials

6. Second Class
Warrior class
Military

7. Third Class
Farmers and Merchants
Small land owners and traders

8. Fourth Class Craftworkers and laborers
Skilled workers and people that lived in the bigger cities

9. Fifth Class Poor and powerless people Known as the “Untouchables”
Caste System was very hard on the lower classes
Most of the work and taxes were completed and paid by them

10. Gupta Decline
Empire ended when different groups began attacking the empire
Muslim invaders began pouring into the empire as it weakened
From 1206 – 1526 Muslim’s controlled India
A Sultan or Muslim King ruled the empire

11. Religious Differences
Muslims did not become part of Hindu society
Beliefs were very different between the Muslims and Hindus.
Differences caused violent conflicts between Muslims and Hindus
Conflict still continues today (Mumbai attack)

12. Mughal Empire
In 1526, Babur – a descendant of Tamerlane – attacked the Sultan’s army and won
He founded the Mughal Empire which ruled into the 1700’s.
Babur continued to keep the Muslims and Hindus apart

13. Akbar – The Greatest Ruler
Like previous empires, there is always one ruler that stands out.
Only 13 when he came to power
Greatly expanded the empire by force
Like Justinian, he believed that if he was fair the empire would succeed
He allowed Hindus to freely practice their religion

14. Akbar
Divided the empire into provinces (states) and gave government jobs to qualified people (merit system)
Hindus were allowed to participate in the government and military
Encouraged discussions by leaders of the different religions
Listened to everyone’s viewpoint (Justinian)

15. Akbar Was a great patron of the arts (supporter)
He built studios for painters to work and paid poets and writers
He was illiterate
He ruled for 49 years and his style of leading became the accepted way in India
Because of Akbar the empire continued to expand for 100 years after his death

16. Mughal Decline
About 100 years after Akbar’s death the empire began to fall apart
Leaders began to spend too much money on buildings and wars and society began to fall apart

17. Shah Jahan Akbar’s grandson – 1628
Spent an incredible amount of money on extravagant buildings
Taj Mahal – tomb for his wife Mamtaz
Took 20,000 workers 22 years to complete the building
Shah Jahan spent all the empires money on buildings and wars

18. Aurangzeb Shah Jahan’s son
Continued to spend a tremendous amount of money on wasrs and buildings
Reversed Akbar’s policies of tolerance towards the Hindu’s and started taxing them very heavily
Tried to force them to convert to Islam

19. Hindu’s Revolt Many Hindu’s began to revolt against the changes
The fighting broke up the empire and caused the empire to split up into many small kingdoms