Unlock Elite Access: Level Up Your Preparation with Exclusive Content

History Optional PYQ Master Pack · Model answer

“Aurangzeb is a much maligned monarch.” Argue the case for and against the proposition.

  • UPSC 1994
  • Mughal Empire in the Seventeenth Century

Aurangzeb (r. 1658–1707) occupies a uniquely contested place in Indian historiography — condemned by nationalist historians as a bigot who wrecked the empire, defended by revisionists as a disciplined, able ruler undone by structural forces beyond any single man's control.

You are reading the opening of the model answer. The full answer is part of the History Optional PYQ Master Pack.

What the full answer covers

  • The Case Against Aurangzeb
  • The Case For Aurangzeb ("Maligned")
  • Weighing the Two Cases

Unlock this answer and 1,350+ more

  • 1,350+ solved UPSC History Optional PYQs from 1985 to 2025, Paper-1 and Paper-2
  • Topic-wise across Ancient, Medieval, Modern, Post-Independence and World History
  • Model answers with a clear structure and historian citations
  • Map section solutions included, at no extra cost
  • Read online on lotusarise.com, plus PDF download

₹1,499₹2,50040% off

Get History Optional PYQ Master Pack @ ₹1,499 →

One-time payment · No subscription · Instant access · UPI, cards, RuPay

See every Mughal Empire in the Seventeenth Century question (51 solved) →Already enrolled? Log in