The Reasons Behind the Decline of the Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire was the first large empire in India since the Gupta Empire (nearly a millennium years of difference); it was made up of many ethnicities, a variety of geographic localities, and hundreds of nobles and their principalities. At its largest extent, this empire contained over 140 million inhabitants, as well as encompassing 3.5 million square kilometers. However, as all empires do, the Mughal Empire faced many difficulties, and by the turn of the 19th century, had weakened significantly. The first leader of the Mughal Empire in India was Babur, who reigned from 1527-1530. His original territory was in Afghanistan, but had aspirations to move into the weakened Indian subcontinent. The clincher for this move was when a noble of northern India asked him to invade, and promised support. While at first he suffered a few hardships, he eventually swept across northern India, finally defeating the Sultan of Delhi's larger force outside the city. After his death, a steady stream of successful emperors took over, expanding the empire's territory in all directions. However, with Aurangzeb Alamgir the last of the “great moguls” (although he arguably sowed the seeds for the empire's eventual decline) in 1707, the Mughal Empire suffered poor leadership throughout the rest of its history. However, even if it wasn't for poor leadership, the empire would've fallen, according to Paul Kennedy. The historian argues that empires must eventually face the problem of “imperial overstretch.” By imperial overstretch, Kennedy means that an empire will continue to expand until it reaches the point that the economic, demographic, and military costs of maintaining the empire become overwhelming. Consequently, the first administrative problem confronting the Mughals was a direct result of their empire’s scale, and given the geographic expanse of the Mughal realm, it is not hard to believe that it eventually reached the point of overstretch.The costs of maintaining such an
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