Mughal Foreign Policy

Q. What were the concerns that shaped Mughal policies and attitudes towards regions outside the subcontinent? Ans. 1. Iran and Turan :The political and diplomatic relations between the Mughal kings and the neighbouring countries of Iran and Turan based on the control of the frontier defined by the Hindukush mountains that separated Afghanistan from the regions of Iran and Central Asia. 2. To control strategic out-posts (such on Kabul and Qandhar) : A constant aim of Mughal policy was to secure the north west this potential danger by controlling strategic outposts-notably in Kabul and Qandhar. 3. Qandhar as a bone of contention Qandhar was a bone of contention between the Safavids and the Mughals. Qandhar, The fortress-town had initially been in the possession of Humayun, reconquered in 1595 by Akbar. While the Safavid court retained diplomatic relations with the Mughals, it continued to stake claims to Qandhar In 1613 Jahangir sent a diplomatic envoy to the court of Shah Abbas to plead the Mughal case for retaining Qandhar, but the mission failed. In the winter of 1622 a Persian army besieged Qandhar. The ill-prepared Mughal garrison was defeated and had to surrender the fortress and the city to the Safavids.

4. Relation with Ottomans: The relationship between the Mughals and the Ottomans was marked by the concern to ensure the free movement of pilgrims in the territories under Ottoman control. This was especially true for the Hijaz, that part of Ottoman Arabia where the important pilgrim centres of Mecca and Medina were located.

Mughal emperors usually combined religion and commerce by exporting valuable merchandise to Aden and Mokha, both Red Sea ports, and distributing the proceeds of the sales in charity to the keepers of shrines and religious men there. However, when Aurangzeb discovered cases of misappropriation of funds sent to Arabia, he favoured their distribution in India which, he thought, “was as much a house of God as Mecca”