Question

What was the pan-regional rule? What were its impacts?

Answer 1

Hint: The downfall of Mughal Empire actually led to the commencement of regional rule in the Indian subcontinent. Slowly and gradually the regional rulers took over the Mughal territories.

Complete answer: The pan-regional rule signifies the rule beyond one’s own state, in other words, the extension of an empire to the new territories. This process started in the 18th century and stretched till the first half of the subsequent century. Awadh, Bengal and Hyderabad were the prominent regions which took the control of regional autonomy from the later Mughal emperors. Saadat khan ruled the region of Awadh, Bengal was controlled by Murshid Quli Khan and Asaf Jah led Hyderabad.
Mughal emperors extended their empire vastly. Aurangzeb is the only ruler after Ashoka who ruled over the vast territorial stretch of India till the south, but due to the highly centralised ruling system the state eventually fragmented into regional autonomies. The emergence of regional states destroyed the sovereignty of the Mughal State, on the other hand, it led to the exchange of cultural and socio-political traditions across the regions. Another significant change was that the British threat became more visible, the battle of Plassey is the finest example of it.

Note: 18th century is also known as the ‘Dark age’ of modern Indian history as during this period there was no strong ruler who could actually save the Mughal empire from the internal as well as external threats.