Rajput Policy of Jahangir
Jahangir continued the Rajput policy of Akbar in much the same spirit as his father. Being himself the son of a Rajput princess, he was naturally liberal and broad-minded in his religious outlook, and this personal disposition shaped his approach to the Rajput ruling houses throughout his reign.
- The temporary rupture in his relations with Raja Man Singh over the Khurram episode had no lasting adverse impact on the Rajput policy of Jahangir. Raja Man Singh lost influence at the imperial court, but not his position, status, or fortunes.
- Jahangir, like his father, entered into matrimonial relations with the Rajputs, marrying a number of Rajput princesses and maintaining cordial relations with the Rajput ruling houses throughout his reign.
- Jahangir’s own successor, Prince Khurram, was born of a Rajput princess — the daughter of Raja Udai Singh of Jodhpur (Marwar).
- As under Akbar, the imperial court continued to be adorned by generals, scholars, and artists drawn from all communities, and the doors of civil and military service remained wide open to Hindus.
War and Peace with Mewar
Renewed Conflict at Accession
- At the time of Jahangir’s accession, Mewar remained in a state of war with the Mughal Empire. It was widely believed that the continued survival of an independent Mewar owed something to Jahangir’s own earlier conduct, since, as a prince, he had refused to obey his father’s order to undertake its subjugation.
- The conquest of Mewar, therefore, became a matter of personal prestige for Jahangir — the existence of a rebellious principality at the heart of an otherwise all-powerful Mughal Empire was a source of continual irritation.
- Immediately after his accession, he ordered the despatch of a military expedition to Mewar under Prince Parvez, assisted by the imperial minister Asaf Khan Jafar Beg, against Rana Amar Singh of Mewar.
The First Phase of the Struggle
- The imperial forces were accompanied by Sagar, an uncle of Rana Amar Singh, who had deserted his own people and was living as a pensioner at the Mughal court.
- A bloody but indecisive battle was fought between the Rana and the imperial troops at the pass of Dewar.
- The Mughals installed Sagar as their protégé at Chitor, hoping to sow discord among the Rajputs of Mewar — but the people refused to accept the traitor as their Rana, and Sagar was soon forced to vacate Chitor in disgrace.
- With the sudden outbreak of Khusrau’s revolt, Jahangir recalled the Mughal armies from Mewar, bringing the first phase of the Mewar–Mughal struggle under his reign to a close.
Four Expeditions (1608–1615 CE)
After settling the affair of Khusrau’s rebellion, Jahangir once again turned his attention to Mewar. Between 1608 and 1615 CE, he despatched as many as four military expeditions for its subjugation:
- 1608 CE: Mahabat Khan led the imperial armies into Mewar and overran its territories in the plains, though the Rana continued to hold out in the forested hills and valleys of the region; Mahabat Khan was eventually recalled to court.
- 1609 CE: Abdullah Khan attacked Mewar, but without success.
- 1611 CE: Mirza Aziz Koka and Prince Khurram were directed to lead the imperial troops against Mewar, but their mutual disputes led to the expedition’s failure.
- 1613 CE: Jahangir finally resolved to launch a sustained military campaign against Mewar under his own personal supervision. He shifted his headquarters to Ajmer and directed the full might of the imperial army at Mewar, giving Prince Khurram exclusive command of the invading force.
Prince Khurram’s Scorched-Earth Campaign
- Khurram adopted a scorched-earth policy in Mewar — ravaging towns, razing villages to the ground, and destroying standing crops.
- Areas held and defended by the Rajputs were placed under blockade, with all outside supplies cut off. To compound the devastation, Mewar was struck by famine and epidemic, uprooting the people of its plains and threatening them with annihilation.
- The contest between the tiny state of Mewar and the mighty Mughal Empire was hopelessly unequal — and, in the eyes of many, even an undesirable one. Hard-pressed on all sides, Rana Amar Singh and his associates finally recognised the futility of prolonging a struggle that had devastated the entire state and inflicted untold suffering on its people.
The Treaty of Peace (1615 CE)
- In 1615 CE, the Rana sent his maternal uncle, Shubh Karan, to negotiate peace with Jahangir on honourable terms. Both Prince Khurram and Jahangir welcomed this turn of events, and on Khurram’s recommendation, the Emperor ratified a treaty of peace with Mewar on the most liberal terms ever granted to any Rajput vassal state by the Mughals.
Terms of the treaty:
- Rana Amar Singh formally recognised Jahangir as his suzerain.
- The Mughals restored all the territories of Mewar to the Rana, including Chitor — annexed ever since the beginning of the conflict with Mewar under Akbar.
- No limit was placed on the armed forces the Rana could maintain.
- As a matter of prestige for the Mughal Empire, the Rana agreed that the fort of Chitor would not be repaired or refortified, so that it could never again serve as a stronghold against imperial authority.
- Rana Amar Singh was not required to attend the imperial court or enter imperial service, nor was he obliged to enter into a matrimonial alliance with the Mughals.
Jahangir himself records in his memoirs that when Rana Amar Singh visited Prince Khurram in his military camp in Mewar, the prince “behaved to him with perfect kindness.”
The Reception of Prince Karan
- According to Jahangir, a custom prevailed among the Rajputs whereby the heir-apparent did not accompany his father to pay respects to a king or prince. In keeping with this custom, the Rana did not bring his son Karan, who had received the tika (designation as heir), with him.
- Karan therefore paid homage to Prince Khurram at a later date and was received with equal warmth, subsequently accompanying Khurram to pay his personal respects to Jahangir at Ajmer.
- The warm and affectionate treatment extended to Karan, the crown prince of Mewar, reflected not merely a shrewd stroke of diplomacy and statesmanship on Jahangir’s part, but also his sincere desire — much like Akbar before him — to win the genuine love and cooperation of the Rajputs.
Significance of the Treaty
The Treaty of Peace with Mewar (1615 CE) marked a major breakthrough in the history of Mughal rule in India. It represented the ultimate triumph of the policy of political unification and the establishment of a secular nation-state, first envisioned by Akbar in 1562 CE. The Rajput policy of Jahangir was thus crowned with success — both Jahangir and his son, Prince Khurram (later Emperor Shah Jahan), had faithfully absorbed Akbar’s national policy and carried it forward in the same spirit.
Jahangir deserves considerable credit for securing the submission of Mewar through a policy of liberality and friendship rather than outright annexation. Mewar continued to enjoy complete autonomy through the reigns of Jahangir and Shah Jahan, and remained loyal to the Mughal throne until the last quarter of the 17th century. It was only under Aurangzeb, who reversed the liberal and secular policies of his ancestors, that many subordinate Hindu chiefs — including Rana Raj Singh of Mewar — were compelled to revolt and break away from the Mughal Empire.
Summary
- Jahangir continued the Rajput policy of his father Akbar in a similar spirit, shaped in part by his own Rajput lineage and liberal religious outlook.
- The temporary rupture in his relations with Raja Man Singh over the Khurram episode had no lasting adverse impact on his broader Rajput policy.
- Jahangir entered into matrimonial relations with several Rajput princesses and maintained cordial ties with the Rajput ruling houses; at the time of his accession, however, Mewar remained at war with the Mughal Empire.
- Immediately after his accession, Jahangir despatched a military expedition to Mewar, though it was later recalled following the sudden outbreak of Khusrau’s revolt.
- Between 1608 and 1615 CE, Jahangir sent as many as four military expeditions to Mewar in an effort to subjugate it.
- The conflict was finally resolved through the Treaty of Peace with Mewar (1615 CE), a major breakthrough in the history of Mughal rule in India.
- The Rajput policy of Jahangir was ultimately crowned with success, and Mewar enjoyed complete autonomy during his reign — a legacy of conciliation that continued under Shah Jahan before being reversed by Aurangzeb.
