The Mughal empire in the 17th century
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can explain the development of the Mughal Empire during the 17th century.
Key learning points
- Jahangir, Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb ruled the Mughal Empire for most of the 17th century.
- Shah Jahan contributed significantly to Mughal architecture.
- The Mughal Empire reached its maximum extent during the reign of Aurangzeb.
- Expansion and conflict made the empire increasingly costly to maintain.
- Rebellions increasingly destabilised the Mughal Empire by the late 17th century.
Keywords
Destabilised - a government or country is destabilised when it begins to lose power and control
Guru - a guru is a religious leader in the Sikh religion
Discrimination - discrimination involves treating a person or particular group of people in a worse way from the way in which you treat other people, because of characteristics like their race or religion
Martyr - a martyr is a person who suffers very much or is killed because of their religious or political beliefs; they are often admired because of this suffering
Common misconception
Expansion of an empire always means that is growing stronger.
As the Mughal Empire expanded, the costs of maintaining its rule across India also increased and new tensions were created with groups who lost out from extended Mughal control.
Teacher tip
To engage further with the enquiry question, students could be asked what caused more problems for Aurangzeb: his religious policies or his use of violence. Students can discuss in pairs and may be encouraged to consider links between the two issues.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering
Depiction or discussion of mental health issues
Supervision
Adult supervision required
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Before Akbar abolished it, non-Muslims paid the tax in the Mughal Empire.
Q2.Under Akbar's rule, religious debates were held at the...
Q3.What was the Akbarnama?
Q4.There was a risk that religious could lead to a serious rebellion in the Mughal Empire.
Q5.When Akbar became emperor the systems of the Mughal Empire were chaotic.
Q6.Why was the dahsala an improvement on the Mughal Empire's old taxation system?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Aurangzeb's royal name 'Alamgir' meant...
Q2.Which Deccan state resisted the Mughal Empire most strongly?
Q3.The Mughal-Maratha war led to the deaths of over million soldiers in the Mughal army.
Q4.In the late seventeenth century a rebellion broke out against Aurangzeb's attempt to take over the Rajput kingdom of...
Q5.Aurangzeb reintroduced the tax.
Q6.Which religious group was mistreated by Aurangzeb in the late seventeenth century?
To help you plan your 8 history lesson on: The Mughal empire in the 17th century, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 8 history lesson on: The Mughal empire in the 17th century, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 3 history lessons from the The Mughal Empire: how important was violence to the Mughal conquests in India? unit, dive into the full secondary history curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.