Mughal Empire – Akbar: Consolidation and Administration FAQs

1. At which place was Akbar born in 1542?

2. During Humayun's retreat from Bikaner, shelter and help was gallantly offered to him by the ruler of which place?

3. When Humayun fled to Iran, young Akbar was captured by which relative?

4. Akbar was reunited with his parents after the Mughal capture of which fort?

5. Where was Akbar when Humayun died, commanding operations against Afghan rebels?

6. Bairam Khan, tutor of the prince, became wakil of the kingdom with which title?

7. Before rising under Adil Shah, Hemu had started his career as a superintendent of markets under which ruler?

8. Adil Shah appointed Hemu as wazir with which title?

9. Hemu had not lost a single one of how many battles in which he had fought, before his final defeat?

10. On what date was the Second Battle of Panipat fought between the Mughals and Hemu's forces?

11. Consider the following statements regarding the Second Battle of Panipat: (I) Hemu's artillery had been captured earlier by a Mughal detachment. (II) Hemu fainted after an arrow hit him in the eye. (III) The leaderless Afghan army was defeated and Hemu was captured and executed. Which of the above is/are correct?

12. During Bairam Khan's regency, Mughal territories were extended from Kabul up to which city in the east?

13. What religious charge was levelled against Bairam Khan by his opponents among the nobility?

14. After his dismissal, Bairam Khan was assassinated near which city while on his way to Mecca?

15. Bairam Khan's young son, whom Akbar brought up as his own, later became famous under which title?

16. Who was Akbar's foster-mother, active in nobility politics during Bairam Khan's rebellion?

17. Adham Khan, son of Maham Anaga, was put to death by Akbar's order in 1561 after committing which act?

18. Consider the following statements regarding the Uzbek nobles under Akbar: (I) They held important positions in eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Malwa. (II) They rebelled several times between 1561 and 1567. (III) They formally proclaimed Mirza Hakim as their ruler during their rebellion. Which of the above is/are correct?

19. Akbar's half-brother, who had seized control of Kabul and besieged Lahore, encouraging the Uzbek rebels, was:

20. Akbar crossed which river near Allahabad during the rainy season of 1567 to surprise and rout the rebel Uzbek nobles?

21. Baz Bahadur, whose romance with Rupmati is well known, was the ruler of which kingdom?

22. The 1561 Mughal expedition that first defeated Baz Bahadur of Malwa was led by:

23. Rupmati, famous for her beauty as well as music and poetry, chose suicide rather than be taken into whose haram?

24. The founder who welded together the kingdom of Garh-Katanga, receiving the title Sangram Shah from Bahadur Shah of Gujarat, was:

25. Rani Durgavati of Garh-Katanga, who ruled as regent for her minor son, stabbed herself to death rather than be captured by which Mughal governor?

26. After Akbar dealt with the Uzbek rebellion, he forced Asaf Khan to disgorge his illegal gains and restored the kingdom of Garh-Katanga to whom?

27. Which Rajput fortress, considered the key to central Rajasthan and commanding the shortest route from Agra to Gujarat, did Akbar besiege in 1567-68?

28. On the advice of his nobles, which Mewar ruler retired to the hills before the siege of Chittor, leaving the fort in charge of Jaimal and Patta?

29. Chittor fell to Akbar's forces in which year, after a gallant siege of six months?

30. Consider the following statements regarding the fall of Chittor: (I) Many peasants from the surrounding area had taken shelter within the fort and aided the defenders. (II) About 30,000 defenders and peasants were massacred when the Mughals stormed the fort. (III) This was the first and last time Akbar indulged in such a carnage. Which of the above is/are correct?

31. In honour of which two gallant Rajput warriors did Akbar erect stone statues seated on elephants outside the chief gate of Agra fort?

32. Which fortress, conquered after Chittor, was reputed to be the most powerful fortress in Rajasthan?

33. In 1572, Akbar advanced on Ahmedabad via which city, leading to Gujarat's surrender without a fight?

34. At which place did Akbar see the sea for the first time and ride on it in a boat, also meeting Portuguese merchants for the first time?

35. While besieging Surat, Akbar crossed which river to assault the rebel Mirzas with a small body of 200 men?

36. When rebellions broke out across Gujarat after Akbar's departure, how many days did his forced march from Agra to Ahmedabad take, compared to the normal six weeks?

37. With how large a Mughal force did Akbar defeat the 20,000-strong enemy in Gujarat in 1573?

38. Rana Pratap succeeded Rana Udai Singh to the gaddi of Mewar in which year?

39. The Mughal embassy sent to persuade Rana Pratap to accept suzerainty, and traditionally (though inaccurately) said to have been insulted by him, was led by:

40. At one point Rana Pratap seemed prepared for compromise, sending his son to pay homage to Akbar through Bhagwant Das. Who was this son?

41. The Battle of Haldighati was fought below a narrow defile leading to which fort, then Rana Pratap's capital?

42. Who led the Mughal force of 5,000 deputed by Akbar to campaign against Rana Pratap, resulting in the Battle of Haldighati?

43. In Rana Pratap's army at Haldighati, the van consisted of an Afghan contingent led by:

44. After Haldighati, which strong point evacuated by Rana Pratap did the Mughal forces occupy?

45. In which year did Rana Pratap die, aged 51, from an internal injury incurred while trying to draw a stiff bow?

46. Following Maldeo's death in 1562, which of his sons succeeded to the Marwar gaddi and later rose in rebellion against Mughal pressure?

47. After Chandrasen's rebellion, Akbar appointed which noble to look after Jodhpur once it was brought under direct Mughal administration?

48. Udai Singh of Jodhpur married his daughter, Jagat Gosain (Jodha Bai), to which Mughal prince?

49. Rana Pratap was succeeded by his son, whose long dispute with the Mughals over Mewar was finally settled by Jahangir. Who was he?

50. In 1613, which Mughal prince (later Shah Jahan) was deputed with a large army to invade the mountainous parts of Mewar?

51. Consider the following statements regarding the final Mewar-Mughal settlement under Jahangir: (I) Prince Karan Singh was received graciously and embraced by Jahangir in darbar. (II) The rana was not required to pay personal homage or enter royal service. (III) All territories of Mewar including Chittor were restored, but Chittor's fortifications were not to be repaired. Which of the above is/are correct?

52. Although the Afghan rulers had continued to dominate Bengal and Bihar and had overrun Orissa, they avoided giving offence to the Mughals by reading the khutba in whose name?

53. Which Afghan ruler of Bengal declared independence, giving Akbar the excuse he was seeking to invade?

54. Which city did Akbar first capture in this campaign, securing Mughal communications in Bihar, before returning to Agra?

55. After Akbar returned to Agra, which experienced officer was left in charge of the continuing Bengal campaign?

56. In which year was Daud Khan finally defeated and executed in a stiff battle in Bihar, ending the last Afghan kingdom in northern India?

57. Whose system of land revenue administration, based on measuring cultivated area and drawing up a crop rate (ray), did Akbar initially adopt?

58. Under Sher Shah's system as adopted by Akbar, the crop rate schedule was converted every year into what?

59. Which hereditary local officials, conversant with local conditions, were ordered to report on actual produce and prices when Akbar reverted to annual assessment?

60. Officials called karoris, appointed all over north India after 1573, were responsible for the collection of how much revenue?

61. In which year did Akbar institute the new dahsala system of revenue assessment?

62. Under the dahsala system, what fraction of the average produce was fixed as the state's share?

63. The system of measurement using bamboos linked with iron rings, on which the dahsala system was further based, is known as what?

64. With which revenue official's name is the zabti system particularly associated, sometimes called his "bandobast"?

65. Which land revenue assessment system involved dividing the actual harvested produce between peasant and state in a fixed proportion, considered very fair but requiring an army of honest officials?

66. Under which system was the state demand invariably taken in cash, for crops such as cotton, indigo, oil seeds and sugarcane?

67. Which system, also called kankut, was a rough calculation of the peasant's dues based on what he had paid in the past?

68. Land which remained under cultivation almost every year was classified as what?

69. Land that had been left fallow for two to three years was classified as what?

70. Consider the following statements regarding Akbar's land revenue system: (I) Parati (fallow) land paid at the full polaj rate once it was cultivated again. (II) Land was further classified into good, middling and bad based on productivity. (III) The amil was expected to advance loans called taccavi to peasants for seeds, implements and animals. Which of the above is/are correct?

71. Consider the following statements regarding the dahsala system: (I) It was a ten-year settlement fixed permanently without further modification. (II) It calculated average produce and average prices over the preceding ten years. (III) With some changes, it remained the basis of Mughal land revenue until the end of the seventeenth century. Which of the above is/are correct?

72. Under the mansabdari system, what was the lowest rank (mansab) assignable to an officer?

73. Towards the end of Akbar's reign, the highest mansab rank a noble (other than princes) could attain was raised from 5000 to what?

74. Which two premier nobles of the empire were honoured with the rank of 7000 each?

75. From which regnal year of Akbar's reign were mansab ranks divided into zat and sawar categories?

76. In the mansabdari system, which rank category fixed a person's personal status and salary?

77. The sawar rank in the mansabdari system indicated what?

78. What was the descriptive roll maintained for each soldier, as part of the dagh system of horse branding, called?

79. Under the ideal 10-20 rule for cavalry, how many horses was a mansabdar expected to maintain for every ten cavalrymen?

80. A sawar who possessed only one horse instead of the prescribed number was considered how much of a sawar?

81. Consider the following statements regarding the composition of noble contingents under Akbar: (I) Contingents were generally required to be mixed, drawn from Mughal, Pathan, Hindustani and Rajput groups. (II) Only Mughal and Rajput nobles were allowed contingents exclusively of their own group. (III) In course of time, mixed contingents became the general rule even for Mughal and Rajput nobles. Which of the above is/are correct?

82. What was the average monthly salary of a sawar under Akbar?

83. How was a mansabdar generally paid the salary due to himself and his soldiers?

84. Persons holding mansab ranks below 500 zat were designated by which term?

85. Persons holding ranks of 2500 zat and above were designated by which term?

86. The origins of the mansabdari system's decimal organization of command are traced back to which historical figure?

87. A mansabdar holding a zat rank of 5000 was required to maintain how many elephants?

88. What was the monthly salary a mansabdar with a rank of 5000 could receive?

89. Akbar's gentleman troopers, persons of noble lineage answerable only to the emperor with a separate muster-master, were called:

90. In whose capacity had Bairam Khan exercised the powers of an all-powerful wazir, before Akbar reorganized the administration?

91. Under Akbar's reorganization, the post of wakil was stripped of power and became largely what?

92. The head of the revenue department under Akbar, generally not holding a high mansab himself, was known by which preferred title?

93. The diwan held control over which categories of land, being responsible for all income and expenditure?

94. Which officer was considered the head of the nobility, with recommendations for mansab appointments routed through him to the emperor?

95. The mir bakhshi also headed the intelligence and information agencies of the empire, receiving reports from intelligence officers called barids and news reporters called what?

96. Which officer was in charge of the imperial household, including supply of provisions for the haram, and oversaw the royal karkhanas?

97. The judicial department was headed by the chief qazi, a post sometimes combined with which other office responsible for charitable and religious endowments?

98. Akbar divided the empire into how many circles for the purpose of granting and administering inam lands?

99. The daily open darbar where petitions were attended to, following Akbar's morning jharoka appearance, was called what?

100. Akbar's private consultation chamber for confidential discussions with ministers, situated near his bathing apartment, came to be known by what name?

101. In which year did Akbar divide the empire into twelve subas?

102. Consider the following pairs of provincial officials appointed to each of Akbar's twelve subas: (I) Subedar – Governor (II) Bakhshi – Military officer (III) Waqia-navis – News reporter Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?

103. Consider the following statements regarding revenue lands under Akbar: (I) Income from khalisa villages went directly to the royal exchequer. (II) Inam lands were allotted to learned and religious men. (III) Jagirs were allotted to nobles and members of the royal family, including queens. Which of the above is/are correct?

104. When Humayun returned to India, he pursued a deliberate policy of matrimonial alliances with zamindars. Whose daughter did he marry, cementing the submission of Jamal Khan Mewati?

105. Bhara Mal, ruler of which state, came to Akbar's court immediately after Akbar's accession and made a favourable impression when his men stood firm before a maddened elephant?

106. In 1562, Bhara Mal cemented his alliance with Akbar by marrying which daughter to him?

107. To what rank did Bhara Mal's grandson, Man Singh, eventually rise?

108. Which infant Mughal prince was sent to Amber to be brought up by Bhara Mal's wives?

109. In 1572, when Akbar dashed to Gujarat, Bhara Mal was given the signal honour of being placed in charge of which city, where the royal ladies resided?

110. Which Rajput ruler, though entering into no matrimonial relations with Akbar, was placed in charge of Garh-Katanga and rose to the rank of 2000?

111. In which year did Akbar abolish the jizyah, the poll tax which had sometimes been used by the ulama to humiliate non-Muslims?

112. Consider the following statements regarding Akbar's early measures of religious toleration: (I) He abolished the pilgrim tax on bathing at holy places such as Prayag and Banaras. (II) He abolished the practice of forcible conversion of prisoners of war to Islam. (III) He abolished the jizyah in 1564. Which of the above is/are correct?

113. As a Rajput noble enrolled in Mughal service, Bhagwant Das of Amber was appointed to which position?

114. Jahangir, whose own mother was a Rajput princess, married princesses from which Rajput houses in addition to Kachhawaha and Jodhpur?

115. In 1593, when the son-in-law of Rai Singh of Bikaner died from a fall from his palki, Akbar personally visited to console him and dissuaded his daughter from performing which practice?

116. What was the main administrative grievance that fuelled the 1580-81 rebellion in Bengal and Bihar?

117. Which of Akbar's relatives abetted the 1580-81 rebellion, holding out the hope of invading the Punjab to help the rebels?

118. During the 1580-81 rebellion, the rebels in Bengal and Bihar proclaimed which person as their ruler?

119. For roughly how long did the 1580-81 rebellion keep the empire distracted?

120. Which officer was despatched by Akbar with a force to bring Bihar and Bengal under control during the 1580-81 rebellion?

121. Who was despatched to check the expected attack of Mirza Hakim on the Punjab during this rebellion?

122. With how large a force did Akbar himself march on Lahore, forcing Mirza Hakim into a hasty retreat?

123. After the retreat of Mirza Hakim, Akbar marched to Kabul in which year, crowning his success over the rebellion?

124. Who was the hereditary enemy of the Mughals in Central Asia whose rising power, including the overrunning of Badakhshan in 1584, again drew Akbar's attention to the northwest?

125. Consider the following statements regarding Akbar's northwest campaigns after 1584: (I) Akbar sent Man Singh to march to Kabul while he himself moved to Attok on the Indus. (II) He sent expeditions against Kashmir in 1586 and against Baluchistan. (III) Raja Birbal lost his life in an expedition to clear the Khyber Pass of rebellious tribesmen. Which of the above is/are correct?

126. Which regions, called Tibet Khurd and Tibet Buzurg, came under Mughal domination along with Kashmir?

127. Akbar's conquest of which region in 1590 opened trade down the river Indus for Punjab?

128. Akbar stayed at Lahore until 1598, when the death of Abdullah Uzbek removed the threat from which direction?

129. Orissa, under Afghan domination, was conquered by which Mughal governor of Bengal?

130. Which foster-brother of Akbar conquered Kathiawar in the west?

131. By the turn of the century, Mughal control had been extended up to which point, bringing the Mughals into direct contact with the Marathas for the first time?

132. In which year did Akbar build the Ibadat Khana, or Hall of Prayer, at his new capital, Fatehpur Sikri?

133. Consider the following statements regarding the early proceedings of the Ibadat Khana: (I) Discussions were at first confined to Muslims only. (II) The mullahs wrangled, shouted, and abused each other even in the emperor's presence. (III) Akbar later opened it to people of all religions, including Christians, Zoroastrians, Hindus, Jains and atheists. Which of the above is/are correct?

134. Who was found to be extremely corrupt and tyrannical in the distribution of charitable lands (madad-i-maash) while holding the post of chief sadr, and was eventually dismissed and ordered to Mecca?

135. In 1580, during the Bengal-Bihar rebellion, a number of qazis issued fatwas declaring Akbar to be what?

136. What term is used for the declaration signed by leading ulama, asserting Akbar's right to choose among conflicting interpretations of the Quran when there was disagreement among qualified interpreters?

137. In 1582, Akbar discontinued the debates in the Ibadat Khana because they had led to what outcome instead of a better understanding between religions?

138. Which leading Jain saint of Kathiawar spent a couple of years at Akbar's court at his invitation?

139. To understand Christian doctrines better, Akbar sent an embassy requesting missionaries from which Portuguese-controlled centre?

140. What was the literal meaning of the term tauhid-i-Ilahi, used by Abul Fazl and Badayuni for Akbar's so-called new path?

141. Which day of the week was fixed for initiation into the tauhid-i-Ilahi?

142. Approximately how many nobles were enrolled in Akbar's most select, totally devoted inner group (as distinct from the thousands enrolled as ordinary disciples/murids)?

143. Which Brahman noble, given the title Raja Birbal, was a constant companion of Akbar and among the very few Hindu nobles to join the inner circle?

144. Akbar restricted having more than one wife unless the first wife suffered from which condition?

145. To what age was the minimum age of marriage raised for girls under Akbar's social reforms?

146. Consider the following statements regarding Akbar's reform of sati: (I) Sati was stopped unless the widow herself, of her own free will, persistently desired it. (II) Widows of tender age who had not shared the bed with their husbands were not to be burnt at all. (III) Widow remarriage was also legalised. Which of the above is/are correct?

147. Which two Sanskrit epics, along with the Gita, were taken up for translation into Persian following the Singhasan Battisi, the Atharva Veda and the Bible?

148. Which two brothers, persecuted earlier by the mullahs for sympathy with Mahdawi ideas, became among the most noted members of Akbar's court of talented, liberal-minded people?

23. Mughal Empire – Akbar: Consolidation and Administration