Latest / Aurangzeb: The Emperor Who Expanded and Broke the Mughal Empire — Fexingo History / Aurangzeb's Rajput Rebellion: The 30-Year War That Broke the Mughals
Transcript
- Lucas: If you've been stepping into history with us episode by episode, you know Aurangzeb's reign was a cascade of conflicts—Deccan, Sikh, Maratha. But one of the longest, costliest, and most personal wars he fought wasn't against an enemy—it was against an ally. The Rajputs. Luna: The Rajputs? I thought they were the backbone of the Mughal military under Akbar. Lucas: They were. The alliance between the Mughals and the Rajput kingdoms—especially the Rathores of Marwar—had been a pillar of imperial stability since Akbar's time. Rajput princes served as generals, governors, even married into the imperial family. But Aurangzeb's policies shattered that trust. Luna: How did it start? Lucas: It starts with a death. In 1678, Maharaja Jaswant Singh of Marwar—a loyal Mughal general who had served Aurangzeb in the Deccan and even fought alongside him in the war of succession—died in the Khyber Pass. He was only in his forties. And here's the problem: he had no living son at the time. His pregnant wives were back in Jodhpur. When Aurangzeb heard the news, he saw an opportunity. Lucas: He immediately declared Marwar a crown territory—khalisa—and sent Mughal officials to take over Jodhpur. He also tried to force one of Jaswant's infant nephews to become a puppet ruler, under a Mughal regent. This was a direct violation of the long-standing agreement that Rajput kingdoms would remain autonomous in internal affairs. Luna: So he basically annexed the state. That must have infuriated the Rathores. Lucas: Enraged is more like it. But here's where the story gets dramatic. Jaswant's widows back in Jodhpur, Rani Hadi and Rani Jaswant Kanwar, were pregnant. And the Rajput nobles, especially a young warrior named Durgadas Rathore, were determined that the child—if a boy—would inherit the throne, not Aurangzeb's puppet. Lucas: Quick honest thing—a handful of listeners chip in monthly through buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo, and that's literally what funds making episodes like this one. No ads, no corporate backing—just people who love history. It makes a real difference. Luna: Yeah, it's a small group that keeps the whole thing going. And it means we can spend time on stories like Durgadas Rathore—who most people have never heard of. Lucas: Exactly. So back to Durgadas. In 1679, a son—Ajit Singh—was born to Jaswant Singh's posthumous wives. And Durgadas immediately smuggled the infant and the queens out of Jodhpur, right under the noses of the Mughal garrison. They fled to the fortress of Kelwa, then deeper into the desert. Luna: That's like a scene out of a movie. How did Aurangzeb respond? Lucas: He was furious. He sent a massive army to Marwar, led by his son Prince Akbar, who was the governor of Ajmer. The Mughals sacked Jodhpur, destroyed temples, and occupied the major forts. But the Rathores didn't give battle in the open—they used the desert, the hill forts, and hit and run tactics. Lucas: For the next three years, Durgadas waged a guerrilla war. He intercepted Mughal supply lines, raided outposts, and kept Ajit Singh hidden. The war spread to neighboring Rajput kingdoms—the Sisodias of Mewar joined in, and soon Aurangzeb was fighting a general Rajput uprising. Luna: So the Mughal-Rajput alliance that Akbar built—it completely unraveled under Aurangzeb. Lucas: Completely. And then in 1681, something even more shocking happened. Aurangzeb's own son, Prince Muhammad Akbar—the one commanding the Rajput campaign—rebelled. He allied with Durgadas Rathore and the Rajputs, declared himself emperor, and marched on Aurangzeb's camp. Luna: Wait—the emperor's son joined the Rajputs? That's incredible. Lucas: It was a massive crisis. Aurangzeb, who was in the Deccan, had to race north. He managed to outmaneuver Akbar and the Rajputs through a combination of bribery and diplomacy—he convinced Akbar's generals to desert. But Akbar fled to the Marathas, then to Persia, never to return. And the Rajput rebellion continued. Lucas: For the next 25 years, Aurangzeb poured resources into Marwar. He built a line of police posts—thanas—across the desert, but he could never pacify the region. Durgadas Rathore became a legend. He even traveled to the Mughal court in Delhi in disguise to negotiate, and later to the Maratha court to secure alliances. Luna: And Ajit Singh—did he ever recover his throne? Lucas: Yes, but only after Aurangzeb died. In 1707, as the empire fragmented, Durgadas and Ajit Singh marched into Jodhpur and reclaimed it. Ajit Singh ruled as a free monarch—he even refused to acknowledge Mughal suzerainty for a time. But the cost was staggering. The war in Marwar had drained Mughal treasure, distracted the emperor from the Deccan, and turned the Rajputs from allies into permanent enemies. Luna: It's almost like Aurangzeb's policies created the very rebellions that broke his empire. Lucas: Absolutely. The Rajput rebellion was a slow bleed. It tied down armies, wasted revenue, and alienated the one community that had made Mughal rule sustainable in northern India. Historians estimate that Aurangzeb spent more than a third of his reign's military resources on Marwar, for no real gain. Lucas: So when you think about the decline of the Mughal Empire, don't just think of the Marathas or the British. Think of a baby smuggled through the desert, a warrior who never gave up, and an emperor who could not trust his own allies. Luna: That's a powerful way to put it. I'll never look at Jodhpur the same way again. Lucas: And that's the thing about history—it's not always in the big battles. Sometimes it's in the choices made in a palace, or a desperate ride across the sand.