Hindustan Zindabad

A History of Hindustan by Abdullah Khan, Foreign Languages Library, Delhi, Capital State, Hindustan

The death of Prince Aurangzeb is shrouded in mystery. According to legend, an enraged war elephant intruded the Red Fort. Approaching Aurangzeb, who was studying the Quran, it attacked Aurangzeb. However, Aurangzeb stabbed the elephant's head. Aurangzeb found its thick skull impossible to get through and the elephant had enough time to slam Aurangzeb, instantaneously killing him. In my opinion, this legend has been romanticized, but most people studying the legend believe that at least part of it was truthful, that Aurangzeb was killed by an intruding war elephant.

As a result of his son's death, Emperor Shah Jahan fell to a depression. He suspended any new architectural projects during his reign. When he died in 1655, although the treasury was full of rupees, the empire was decaying away. With the ascension of Dara Shikoh, having been given the imperial title of Muhammed Shah, many actually were happy and hoped the new emperor would be a good one. However, it would prove otherwise.

In the first days of his reign, he began the construction of the Jahan Maqbara, a beautiful tomb for Shah Jahan. Built on the foundation of a planned tomb for Shah Jahan's favourite wife Mumtaz Mahal which was eventually suspended due to Aurangzeb's death, the mausoleum is identical to the plan for this tomb*. Today, the beauty of the Jahan Maqbara amazes millions of tourists worldwide.

Muhammed Shah was a horrible military commander. The only times he ever commanded any army was for failed campaigns against the Safavids. However, he was so ineffective that, when attempting to attack a Deccan sultanate, the Berar Sultanate, he lost and was forced to retreat. It was a shock to the empire that he lost to a minor sultanate. For the remainder of his reign, wars were not fought because he knew he would lose. This would pave the path for Firang** invasions of South Asia. It is because of Muhammed Shah's horrible commanding that the Firangs** were introduced to the region. Muhammed Shah is arguably the worst emperor in Hindustani*** history because of this.

*Taj Mahal

**European

***What the Mughal Empire is known as in TTL
 
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Interesting, but I've got a couple of quibbles-

Why don't Shah Shuja or Murad Baksh challenge for the throne? Historically Murad Baksh was the first to challenge for it after Shah Jahan's death. Secondly, why is he so horrible. It is interesting to see a TL that has Dara Shikoh's rule being horrible, but IIRC, he was an able military commander and was co-ruler of the Empire before his father's death. His only fault was that he wasn't as clever as Aurangzeb- who was a true battle commander.

If his rule is so bad, then why don't the higher Amirs and zamindars coalesce around an alternative candidate for the throne? Did Dara Shikoh kill off all of his nephews as well as presumably his brothers?
 
As a result of his son's death, Emperor Shah Jahan fell to a depression. He suspended any new architectural projects during his reign. When he died in 1655, although the treasury was full of rupees, the empire was decaying away.
Wasn't this also a lot of economic thinking from Europe in the middle ages?

That a national economy is not viewed as a dynamic process of producing goods and services, rather it's thought of in very passive and static terms of money sitting in a treasury.
 
Good point

Interesting, but I've got a couple of quibbles-

Why don't Shah Shuja or Murad Baksh challenge for the throne? Historically Murad Baksh was the first to challenge for it after Shah Jahan's death. Secondly, why is he so horrible. It is interesting to see a TL that has Dara Shikoh's rule being horrible, but IIRC, he was an able military commander and was co-ruler of the Empire before his father's death. His only fault was that he wasn't as clever as Aurangzeb- who was a true battle commander.

If his rule is so bad, then why don't the higher Amirs and zamindars coalesce around an alternative candidate for the throne? Did Dara Shikoh kill off all of his nephews as well as presumably his brothers?
First of all, Dara Shikoh was not an able military commander. He was horrible as one and the only way for him to gain the throne would be with the death of Aurangzeb. His only experience of military campaigns was a failed campaign against the Safavids to retake Kandahar. Second, I meant for the chapter to be biased as I meant "Abdullah Khan" to be a kind of right-wing conservative. He exaggerated how bad his rule was to make the liberal monarch Dara Shikoh seem bad. The next chapter will be "written" by a liberal who will have an entirely different spin on Dara Shikoh's rule.
 
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