Why did the Mughal Empire collapse?
Reason Behind the Collapse of the Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire declined during the first half of the 18th century. The rulers lost their power, and the empire was left to only a few square miles around the capital of Delhi. Delhi was also later captured by the British, and the Mughal emperor was made the pensioner of the foreign power. The stability of the Empire had been lost after the strong reign of Aurangzeb, yet it continued to prevail because of its policies. The main reason for the decline of the Mughal rule is their internal fights.
The close relatives and Sons of the ruler fought among themselves for power and money. Often the ruler was imprisoned and tortured by his sons. Also, due to this in-house fight, outsiders tried to take advantage. They tried to seize power from the Mughal princes and administer the Empire freely. Also, the Mughal policies with their contemporary Hindu rulers were not very tolerable. This led to a large number of wars between them, and therefore, the Mughal Empire succumbed due to a lack of funds, and also, recruiting a strong army and paying salaries was getting difficult for the Mughal rulers.
The last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar, was declared the leader of the 1857 revolt, but his lack of leadership skills and also the lack of a well-trained army and weapons made him lose control of Delhi. And with this blow Mughal Empire officially came to an end.
– Written By Soniya Sanyal
