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There were thirty-three grades of mansabdars ranging from 'commanders of 10' to 'commanders of 10,000'. Till the middle of Akbar's reign, the highest rank an ordinary officer could hold was that of a commander of 5,000. The more exalted grades between commanders of 7,000 and 10,000 were reserved for
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in the system. Different views have been expressed regarding these terms. According to
Blochmann, every mansabdar had to maintain as many soldiers as were indicated by his rank of zat while the rank of sawar indicated the number of horsemen among them. Irlos IV expressed the view that zat indicated
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origin meaning rank or position. The system determined the rank and status of a government official and military generals. Every civil and military officer was given a mansab, which determined their salaries & allowances. The term manasabadar means a person having a mansab. (which means a role)
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has opined that while the rank of zat indicated the total number of soldiers under a mansabdar, the rank of sawar indicated the number of horsemen under him. During the reign of Akbar, the mansabdars were asked to keep as many horsemen as were indicated by numbers of their ranks of sawar. But, the
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per horse. Therefore, if a mansabdar received the rank of 500 sawar he was given rupees one thousand additional allowance. Abdul Aziz is of the opinion that while the rank of zat fixed the number of other soldiers under a mansabdar, the rank of sawar fixed the number of his horsemen.
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Additionally, there was no distinction between the civil and military departments. Both civil and military officers held mansabs and were liable to be transferred from one branch of the administration to another. Each mansabdar was expected to maintain prescribed number of horses,
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7. In addition to meeting his personal expenses, the mansabdar had to maintain out of his salary a stipulated quota of horses, elephants, camels, mules and carts. A mansabdar holding a rank of 5,000 had to maintain 340 horses, 100 elephants, 400 camels, 100 mules and 160 carts.
148:. Asad Yar Jung mentioned 66 grades of mansabdars, but in practice there were around 33 mansabs. During the early reign of Akbar, the lowest grade was ten and the highest was 5,000 (later raised to 7,000 and 10,000). Higher mansabs were given to imperial princes and
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2. Reduction in the number of soldiers: Shah Jahan reduced the number of soldiers kept by a mansabdar. Now each mansabdar was required to keep one-third of the original number. Sometimes, it was even reduced to one-fourth or one-fifth.
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5. The salary due to the soldiers was added to the personal salary of the mansabdar. At times, for paying salaries to soldiers, a jagir was given to him. But the revenue was realised by officers and necessary adjustments made.
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In the mansabdari system founded by Akbar, the mansabdars were military commanders, high civil and military officers, and provincial governors. Those mansabdars whose rank was one thousand or below were called
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8. Handsome salaries were paid to a mansabdar. A mansabdar with a rank of 5,000 got a salary of 30,000 rupees per month, one of 3,000 could get 17,000 rupees, while a mansabdar of 1,000 got 8,200 rupees.
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10. For every ten cavalry men, the mansabdar had to maintain twenty horses for horses that had to be provided rest while on a march and replacements were necessary in times of war.
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3. Difference in the categories of mansabdars: During the time of
Jahangir and Shah Jahan, the number of categories"of mansabdars was reduced to 11 as against 33 mentioned by
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3. There were 33 categories of the mansabdars. The lowest mansabdar commanded 10 soldiers and the highest 10,000 soldiers. Only the princes of the
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11. A record was kept of the description (‘huliya’) of each horseman under a mansabdar and branding (‘dag’) of horses to prevent corruption.
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144:, or revenue assignment (not land itself), for services rendered by them, with the direct control of these nobles in the hands of the
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According to I W Butlar, the rank of sawar was given to mansabdars to fix up their additional allowances. A mansabdar was paid two
243:, and equipment, according to his rank and dignity. These rules, though initially strictly enforced, were later slackened. During
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159:. he was appointed to lead the christian community in Agra. However, he has very small role in Mughal imperial court itself.
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There are occasion of foreigner appointed as
Mansabdar, such as the case of an english man William Hawkins during the era of
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4. Sometimes a mansabdar was paid his salary in cash also. Other source of income of mansabdar was grant of jagirs.
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the actual number of cavalry under a mansabdar besides other soldiers while sawar was an additional honour.
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4. Relaxation in control: With Akbar's death, the control exercised over mansabdars became a bit slack.
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12. The troops raised by the emperor but not paid directly by the state and placed under the charge of
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1. The emperor himself appointed the mansabdars. He could enhance the mansab, lower it or remove it.
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that states a
Knowledge editor's personal feelings or presents an original argument about a topic.
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1. Difference in the highest mansab: After Akbar, higher mansabs were introduced. During
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as well. Akbar made important changes to the system and made it more efficient.
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9. The horses were classified into six categories and the elephants into five.
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212:(c)No. of Sawar < Less than 1/2 the No. of Zat => 3rd Class Mansabdar
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2. A mansabdar could be asked to perform any civil or military service.
447:. New Transculturalisms, 1400–1800. Springer Nature. pp. 156–158.
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During later years of his reign, Akbar introduced the ranks of zat and
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209:(b)No. of Sawar > 1/2 the No. of Zat => 2nd Class Mansabdar
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It was a system whereby nobles were granted the rights to hold a
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Jesuit and
English Experiences at the Mughal Court, c. 1580–1615
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206:(a )No. of Sawar = the No. of Zat. => 1st Class Mansabdar
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Military unit in the administrative system of the Mughal Empire
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Mansabdars were graded on the number of armed cavalrymen, or
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was a military unit within the administrative system of the
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The
Ashgate Research Companion to Modern Imperial Histories
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personal reflection, personal essay, or argumentative essay
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History of
Medieval India: From 1000 A.D. to 1707 A.D.
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practice was not maintained by other Mughal emperors.
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152:rulers who accepted the suzerainty of the emperor.
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310:Changes introduced by Jahangir and Shah Jahan
279:6. The mansabdari system was not hereditary.
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67:Learn how and when to remove this message
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269:rulers were given a mansab of 10,000.
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476:"Mansabdari"
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200:A K Mathur
88:Mansab-Dar
519:Routledge
505:(2016) .
375:Hyder Ali
339:Akbarnama
334:Abul Fazl
245:Aurangzeb
241:elephants
110:Mansabdar
82:Mansabdar
360:Subahdar
349:See also
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157:Jahangir
460:12 July
305:Dakhili
173:Humayun
163:History
146:emperor
94:Country
43:Please
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267:Rajput
217:sowars
193:rupees
150:Rajput
130:Arabic
128:is of
126:mansab
509:. In
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395:Jagir
390:Nawab
370:Sepoy
365:Sawar
229:sowar
185:sawar
169:Babur
142:jagir
118:Akbar
523:ISBN
462:2024
449:ISBN
422:ISBN
318:and
171:and
135:Amir
108:The
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