Latest / Aurangzeb: The Emperor Who Expanded and Broke the Mughal Empire — Fexingo History
Aurangzeb's Mosque at Benares: The Gyanvapi Dispute
In 1669, Aurangzeb ordered the demolition of the Vishwanath temple in Benares and built the Gyanvapi Mosque in its place. This episode unpacks that controversial act: the political context of the Jat and Maratha uprisings, the emperor's own writings justifying the demolition as a blow against 'falsehood', and the afterlife of the site—from the 18th-century Maratha restoration attempts to the 20th-century legal battles that still resonate today. We look at the architecture of the mosque, its Persian inscriptions, and what historians like Audrey Truschke make of Aurangzeb's…
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