Merits and Demerits of Mansabdari
System
 |
Mansabdari
System
|
Merits :- Mansabdari system was a
progressive system adopted by Akbar for the reorganization of the army. No
other Indian ruler had ever thought and planned on such lines as followed by
Akbar. He tried to establish a link between chieftainship and feudalism through
Mansabdari. Some of the Mansabdars were given liberty to recruit their soldiers
from their own tribe and religion but they had to owe unconditional allegiance
to the central government. The system of Mansabdari freed the emperor from the
grips of the feudal lords as it put an end to the Jagirdari system. The post of
a Mansabdar was not hereditary; hence every new Mansabdar received his mansab
from the emperor. His promotion and demotion also depended on the mercy of the
emperor, hence he had to be faithful and devoted to the emperor, failing which
he was deprived of all the privileges by the emperor. It lessened the chances
of revolt in the empire. Akbar also sought the help of his hereditary martial
elements and brave citizens to join the royal army and he, thus, contributed to
the political unification of the country.
Demerits :- Besides these merits
there were also certain demerits of the Mansabdari system. As most of the
Mansabdars were foreigners, they did not have any love towards Indian empire,
hence Akbar failed to organize a national army with the help of these
mansabdars. Moreover as the soldiers were recruited by the Mansabdars and they
received their salary and promotion from the Mansabdars, they remained loyal to
their masters instead of the Mughal emperors.
The central army remained weak as the
soldiers of the Mansabdars had different training of arms and discipline with
their Mansabdars. They failed to coordinate with the royal army at the time of
repel. As no systematic training was imparted to the soldiers by the central
government before waging wars, their fitness remained always in doubt and their
weapons and standards remained poles apart from one another. The failure of
Kalinjor expedition was a glaring example of military weakness of the Mughals.
They failed to strengthen the artillery and to maintain a powerful navy.
Whatever steps were taken for strengthening the army, they were taken during
the reign of Akbar. No ruler made any serious effort before and after him for
the development and organization of army.
With the passage of time the Mughal
army began to deteriorate, the high officers of the army began to take their
wives and concubines with them on the battlefields which affected the power and
speed of the army otherwise. Prostitutes and slave boys and girls also went
with the army. They affected the discipline adversely.
The Mansabdari system created some
malpractices in the army system. As the soldiers received their salaries
through Mansabdars, they embezzled a lot of amount in transaction. Moreover,
these Mansabdars did not maintain the required number of soldiers and horses
and thus amassed a huge amount. High ranking military officers such as
Amir-ul-Umra and Khan-i-Jahan, literally rolled in wealth and led a comfortable
and luxurious life. Their demoralization also adversely affected the army
discipline and brought decay and downfall of the Mughal Empire.
However, Dr. R.P. Tripathi lavishly
praises the army organization of Akbar, “It was even superior to that of Babur
which had been pronounced as ‘efficient and successful’ and hardly inferior to
the Ottoman army of Sulaiman the magnificent which was admittedly one of the
best of its kind in Europe.” His successors failed to follow in his footsteps
and the army structure of Akbar collapsed under the regime of his successors.
Hi. I’m Designer of Blog Magic. I’m CEO/Founder of ThemeXpose. I’m Creative Art Director, Web Designer, UI/UX Designer, Interaction Designer, Industrial Designer, Web Developer, Business Enthusiast, StartUp Enthusiast, Speaker, Writer and Photographer. Inspired to make things looks better.
0 टिप्पणियाँ:
एक टिप्पणी भेजें
THANKS FOR YOUR COMMENTS
टिप्पणी: केवल इस ब्लॉग का सदस्य टिप्पणी भेज सकता है.