Exercises Questions with Answers

Evaluation

I. Choose the correct answer

1. Who introduced the Persian style of architecture in India?

a) Humayun

b)  Babur

c) Jahangir

d) Akbar

Answer: b)  Babur

2. In which battle did Akbar defeat Rana Pratap?

a) Panipat

b) Chausa

c) Haldighati

d) Kanauj

Answer: c) Haldighati

3. Whose palace in Delhi was destroyed by Sher Shah?

a) Babur

b) Humayun

c) Ibrahim Lodi

d) Alam Khan

Answer: b) Humayun

4. Who introduced Mansabdari system?

a) Sher Sha

b) Akbar

c) Jahangir

d) Shah Jahan

Answer: b) Akbar

5. Who was the revenue minister of Akbar?

a) Birbal

b) Raja Bhagwan Das

c) Raja Todarmal

d) Raja Man Singh

Answer: c) Raja Todarmal

II. Fill in the Blanks

1. Chetak was the name of the horse of Rana Pratap.

2. Ibadat Khana was a hall at FatehpurSikri where scholars of all religions met for a discourse.

3. The Sufi saint who received Akbar’s utmost respect was Salim Chishti.

4. During the reign of Shah Jahan the Zabti system was extended to the Deccan provinces.

5. Suyurghal were tax-free lands given to scholars and religious institutions.

III. Match the following

1. Babur - Ahmednagar

2. Durgavati - Jaipur

3.  Rani Chand Bibi - Akbar

4. Din IIahi - Chanderi

5.  Raja Man Singh - Central Province

Answer:

1. Babur - Chanderi

2. Durgavati - Central Province

3.  Rani Chand Bibi - Ahmednagar

4. Din IIahi - Akbar

5.  Raja Man Singh - Jaipur

IV. True or False

1. Babur inherited Farghana, a small kingdom in Central Asia. [True]

2. Humayun succeeded in recapturing Delhi in 1565. [False]

3. Aurangzeb married a girl of a notable Rajput family. [False]

4. Jahangir ordered execution of Sikh leader Guru Arjun for helping his son Khusrau. [True]

5. During Aurangzeb’s reign, architecture received much patronage. [False]

V. Consider the following statements. Tick (✓) the appropriate answer.

1. Assertion (A): The British established their first factory at Surat.

Reason (R): Jahangir granted trading rights to the English.

a) R is the correct explanation of A.

b) R is not the correct explanation of A.

c) A is wrong and R is correct.

d) (A) and (R) are wrong.

Answer: a) R is the correct explanation of A.

2. Assertion (A): Aurangzeb’s intolerance towards other religions made him unpopular among people.

Reason (R): Aurangzeb re-imposed the jizya and pilgrim tax on the Hindus.

a) R is the correct explanation of A.

b) R is not the correct explanation of A.

c) A is wrong and R is correct.

d) (A) and (R) are wrong.

Answer: a) R is the correct explanation of A.

3. Find out the correct statements

(I) Kamran was the son of Afghan noble, Hasan Suri, ruler of Sasaram in Bihar.

(II) Akbar abolished the jizya poll tax on non-Muslims and the tax on Hindu pilgrims.

(III) Aurangzeb acceded the throne after killing his three brothers.

(IV) Prince Akbar entered into a pact with Shivaji’s son Shambuji in the Deccan.

(i), (ii) and (iii) are correct

(ii), iii) and (iv) are correct

(i), (iii) and (iv) are correct

(ii), (iii), (iv) and (i) are correct

Answer: (ii), iii) and (iv) are correct

4. Arrange the battles in chronological order

i. Battle of Khanwa

ii. Battle of Chausa

iii. Battle of Kanauj

iv. Battle of Chanderi

Answer:

i. Battle of Khanwa - 1527

ii. Battle of Chanderi – 1528

iii. Battle of Chausa - 1539

iv. Battle of Kanauj - 1540

5. Arrange the following administrative divisions in descending order

i. Sarkars

ii. Parganas

iii. Subhas

Answer: (I) Subhas    (II) Sarkars    (III) Parganas

Match the father and son

Father - Son

1. Akbar Dilawar - Khan

2. Daulat Khan Lodi - Rana Pratap

3. Hasan Suri - Humayun

4. Babur - Sher Shah

5. Uday Singh – Jahangir

Answer:

           Father                                 Son

1. Akbar :  Jahangir

2. Daulat Khan Lodi :  Dilawar Khan

3. Hasan Suri : Sher Shah

4. Babur : Humayun

5. Uday Singh : Rana Pradap

VI.Give short answer

1. Write the circumstance that led to the Battle of Panipat in 1526.

Dilawar Khan, who was Daulat Khan Lodi’s son, and Alam Khan, who was the uncle of Sultan of Delhi, arrived in Kabul to seek Babur’s help in removing Ibrahim Lodi from power. Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi in the famous Battle of Panipat in 1526 and occupied Delhi and Agra. The Mughal dynasty came to be established in India with Agra as its capital.

2. Mention the Humayun recapture the Delhi throne in 1555?

Sher Shah defeated Humayun at Chausa (1539) and again at Kanauj (1540). Humayun, defeated and overthrown, had to flee to Iran. With the help of the Persian ruler Shah Tahmasp of the Safavid dynasty, Humayun succeeded in recapturing Delhi in 1555.

3. Write a note on Mansabdari system.

Akbar introduced the Mansabdari system. Mansabdar rank was dependent on Zat and Sawar. The former indicated ones’s status. Sawar was the number of horses and horsemen he had to maintain. His salary was fixed on the basis of the number soldiers each Mansabdar received ranging from 10 to 10,000. Their horses were branded to prevent theft. The Emperor could use the troops maintained by a Mansabdar whenever he wished.

VII.Answer the following

1. Describe the land revenue administration of the Mughals.

Land revenue administration was toned up during the reign of Akbar. Raja Todar Mal, Revenue Minister of Akbar, adopted and refined the system introduced by Sher Shah. Todar Mal’s zabt system was put in place in the north and north-western provinces. According to this system, after a survey, lands were classified according to the nature and fertility of the soil. The share of the state was fixed at one-third of the average produce for 10 years. During the reign of Shah Jahan, the zabt or zabti system was extended to the Deccan provinces.

The Mughal emperors enforced the old iqta system, renaming it jagir. It is a land tenure system developed during the period of Delhi Sultanate. Under the system, the collection of the revenue of an area and the power of governing it were bestowed upon a military or civil official now named Jagirdar. Every Mansabdar was a Jagirdar if he was not paid in cash. The Jagirdar collected the revenue through his own officials. The Amal Guzar or the revenue collector of the district was assisted by subordinate officers like the Potdar, the Qanungo, the Patwari and the Muqaddams.

Those appointed to collect the revenue from the landholders were called zamindars. Zamindars collected taxes and maintained law and order with the help of Mughal officials and soldiers. The local chieftains and little kings were also called zamindars. But at the end of the sixteenth century, the zamindars were conferred hereditary rights over their zamin. The zamindar was empowered to maintain troops for the purpose of collecting revenue. The emperor granted lands to scholars, holy men and religious institutions. These lands called suyurghal were tax-free.

2. Estimate Akbar as a patron of learning.

Akbar was a great patron of learning. His personal library had more than four thousand manuscripts. He patronised Abul Fazl, Abul Faizi and Abdur Raahim Khan-i-Khanan, the great storyteller Birbal, competent officials like Raja Todar Mai, Raja Bhagwan Das and Raja Man Singh. The great composer and musician Tansen and artist Daswant adorned Akbar’s court as well.

VIII.HOTs

1. Shah Jahan’s time witnessed the climax of Mughal splendour. Support this statement in comparison with the times of other Mughal rulers.

Shah Jahan’s time witnessed the climax of Mughal splendour. The famous peacock throne, covered with expensive jewels, was made for the Emperor to sit on. Then rose the world famous Taj Mahal, by the side of the Jumna river at Agra. Besides Taj, he built the Moti Masjid, the pearl mosque at Agra, the great Jama Masjid of Delhi and the Diwan-i-Khas and Diwan-i-am in his palace in Delhi. Red Fort, also called Lal Qila, in Delhi was the residence of the Mughal emperors. It was constructed in 1639 by Emperor Shah Jahan as the palace of his fortified capital Shajahanabad. The Red Fort is named for its massive enclosing walls of red sandstone.

Babur introduced the Persian style of architecture to India by building many structures at Agra, Biana, Dholpur, Gwalior and Kiul (Aligarh), but only a few of them exist today.

During Akbar's time the Diwan-i-Khas, Diwan-i-Am, Panch Mahal (pyramidal structure in five stories), Rang Mahal, Salim Chishti’s Tomb and Buland Darwaza were built. Jahangir completed Akbar’s tomb at Sikandara and the beautiful building containing the tomb of Itmad-ud- daula, father of Nur Jahan, at Agra.

During Aurangzeb’s reign, architecture did not receive much patronage. The Bibi Ka Maqbara in Aurangabad, a mausoleum built by his son Prince Azam Shah as a loving tribute to his mother in the late seventeenth century, is, however, worth mentioning.

IX. Map

Mark the extent of Mughal Empire during the reign of Akbar and Aurangzeb with special focus on important battle fields.

IX.Activity

Collect information about the scholars in Akbar’s court and conduct a mock Ibadat khana in the class.