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India in the Persianate Age

Book by Richard M. Eaton. This book covers the history of South Asia (India, Pakistan and Bangladesh) with a focus on the Persian cultural influence over it. A big portion of the book focuses on the Mughal Empire but it also describes earlier Persian-culture conquests.

It starts with the Ghaznavid Empire originating from Ghazni Afghanistan, who invaded Pakistan and northwest India.

The Ghurid dynasty, from Ghor Afghanistan, conquered Pakistan and Northern India, all the way to what’s today Bangladesh. It eventually morphed into an independent unit, known as the Delhi Sultanate, which at its peak extended its borders to south India.

It then follows with Babur (Timurid empire) from Fergana Uzbekistan, who established the Mughal Empire. It covers the major rulers from that dynasty (Humayun, Akbar, Jahangir, Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb). It also discusses the continuous power struggle between the Mughals with southern India.

The final part covers the decline of Mughal empire (which started after Aurangzeb). A famous episode was Nader Shah’s (Iran) sack of Delhi, in which the peacock throne and the Koh-i-Noor were stolen.

Overall excellent book and easy to follow. I learned a lot, especially from Southern India (the Deccan Plateau).