The Crisis of Empire in Mughal North India

In the backdrop of the decline of the Mughal empire, this book studies two contrasting regions in north India-Awadh and Punjab. It offers a bold new interpretation of the period by focussing on the agrarian uprisings, the jagirdari system, and the emergence of a new regionally-based political order. This edition includes a new introduction.

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The period following the death of Aurangzeb has been viewed as the beginning of the decline and decay of the Mughal empire. Examining two contrasting regions of north India-Awadh and Punjab-this pioneering work shows how the period 1707-48 saw the emergence of a new order with local and regional idioms. Muzaffar Alam focuses on the interplay of imperial collapse with regional restructuring. He contends that even as the empire declined, there emerged a new, regionally-based political order, maintained and controlled by former Mughal rulers. From agrarian uprisings to the jagirdari system, the Sikhs to the Zamindars, this book presents a bold new interpretation of an important transition in this period. This edition comes with a new introduction.

This book is an important reading for students, scholars, and teachers of Mughal history and early modern India.