Editing Aurangzeb (section)

=== Military ===
{{See also|Army of the Mughal Empire|Mughal weapons|Mughal artillery}}
[[File:Dagger (khanjar) of Emperor Aurangzeb (reigned 1658-1707) and sheath LACMA M.76.2.7a-b (3 of 9).jpg|thumb|upright|A dagger (Khanjar) of Aurangzeb (''Badshah Alamgir'').]]
[[File:Darbarscene.jpg|thumb|Aurangzeb seated on a golden throne holding a [[Hawk]] in the [[Durbar (court)|Durbar]]. Standing before him is his son, [[Azam Shah]].]]

It is reported that Aurangzeb always inspected his cavalry contingents every day, while testing his cutlasses sheep carcass, brought before him without the entrails and neatly bound up, in one strike.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Rosalind O'Hanlon |title=Military Sports and the History of the Martial Body in India |journal=Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient |year=2007 |volume=50 |issue=4 |pages=490–523 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/25165208 |publisher=Brill |doi=10.1163/156852007783245133 |jstor=25165208 |language=En |issn=1568-5209 |quote=...''Bernier reported that the emperor Aurangzeb inspected his contingents of cavalry every day. During these inspections, "the King takes pleasure also in having the blades of cutlasses tried on dead sheep, brought before him without the entrails and neatly bound up. Young Omrahs, Mansebdars and Gourze-berdars or mace bearers, exercise their skill and put forth all their strength to cut through the four feet, which are fastened together, and the body of the sheep at one blow."...''"}}</ref>

In 1663, during his visit to [[Ladakh]], Aurangzeb established direct control over that part of the empire and loyal subjects such as Deldan Namgyal agreed to pledge tribute and loyalty. Deldan Namgyal is also known to have constructed a Grand Mosque in [[Leh]], which he dedicated to Mughal rule.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mg8My6WaWRcC&pg=PA63 |title=Rediscovery of Ladakh |first=H. N. |last=Kaul|publisher=Indus Publishing |year=1998 |page=63 |access-date=29 April 2012|isbn=978-81-7387-086-6 }}</ref>

[[File:Emperor Awrangzib Receives Prince Mu'azzam (CBL In 34.7).jpg|thumb|upright|Aurangzeb Receives [[Bahadur Shah I|Prince Mu'azzam]]. [[Chester Beatty Library]]]]

In 1664, Aurangzeb appointed [[Shaista Khan]] [[subedar]] (governor) of Bengal. Shaista Khan eliminated Portuguese and [[Arakanese people|Arakanese]] pirates from the region, and in 1666 recaptured the port of [[Chittagong]] from the Arakanese king, [[Sanda Thudhamma]]. Chittagong remained a key port throughout Mughal rule.<ref>{{cite book |date=2004 |orig-date=First published 1994 as ''Histoire de l'Inde Moderne'' |editor-first=Claude |editor-last=Markovits |title=A History of Modern India, 1480–1950 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uzOmy2y0Zh4C |edition=2nd |location=London |publisher=Anthem Press |page=106 |isbn=978-1-84331-004-4 |quote=Shayista Khan ... was appointed [Bengal's] governor in 1664 and swept the region clean of Portuguese and Arakanese pirates ... in 1666, he recaptured the port of Chittagong ... from the king of Arakan. A strategic outpost, Chittagong would remain the principal commercial port of call before entering the waters of the delta.}}</ref>

In 1685, Aurangzeb dispatched his son, [[Muhammad Azam Shah]], with a force of nearly 50,000 men to capture [[Bijapur Fort]] and defeat [[Sikandar Adil Shah]] (the ruler of Bijapur) who refused to be a vassal. The Mughals could not make any advancements upon Bijapur Fort,<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sxhAtCflwOMC&q=Aurangzeb+bijapur+1686&pg=PA263|title=A Comprehensive History of Medieval India: Twelfth to the Mid-Eighteenth Century|isbn=978-81-317-3202-1|last1=Farooqui|first1=Salma Ahmed|year=2011|publisher=Pearson Education India }}</ref> mainly because of the superior usage of cannon batteries on both sides. Outraged by the stalemate Aurangzeb himself arrived on 4 September 1686 and commanded the [[siege of Bijapur]]; after eight days of fighting, the Mughals were victorious.<ref>{{cite wikisource |title=1911 Encyclopædia Britannica, Volume 3 |volume=3 |year=1911 |work=Encyclopædia Britannica |language=en}}</ref>

Only one remaining ruler, [[Abul Hasan Qutb Shah]] (the [[Qutb Shahi dynasty|Qutbshahi]] ruler of [[Golconda]]), refused to surrender. He and his servicemen fortified themselves at Golconda and fiercely protected the [[Kollur Mine]], which was then probably the world's most productive diamond mine, and an important economic asset. In 1687, Aurangzeb led his grand Mughal army against the Deccan Qutbshahi fortress during the [[siege of Golconda]]. The Qutbshahis had constructed massive fortifications throughout successive generations on a [[granite]] hill over 400&nbsp;ft high with an enormous eight-mile long wall enclosing the city. The main gates of Golconda had the ability to repulse any war elephant attack.<ref name="University of Sindh">{{cite journal |title=The Rise and fall of Persian to the Muslims of South Asia |issn=2643-9670 |year=2022 |publisher=University of Sindh |page=267 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/360259941 |access-date=19 March 2024 |issue=4 |volume=6 |journal=International Journal of Academic Multidisciplinary Research |via=ResearchGate}}</ref>

Although the Qutbshahis maintained the impregnability of their walls, at night Aurangzeb and his infantry erected complex [[scaffold]]ing that allowed them to scale the high walls. During the eight-month siege the Mughals faced many hardships including the death of their experienced commander [[Kilich Khan II|Kilich Khan Bahadur]]. Eventually, Aurangzeb and his forces managed to penetrate the walls by capturing a gate, and their entry into the fort led Abul Hasan Qutb Shah to surrender. He died after twelve years of Mughal imprisonment.<ref name="University of Sindh"/>

Mughal [[cannon]] making skills advanced during the 17th century.<ref>{{cite book |title=Modern World System and Indian Proto-industrialization: Bengal 1650–1800 |volume=1 |first=Abhay Kumar |last=Singh |pages=351–352 |publisher=Northern Book Centre |location=New Delhi |year=2006 |isbn=978-81-7211-201-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WwNUblS-jpwC&pg=PA351 |access-date=30 September 2012}}</ref> One of the most impressive Mughal cannons is known as the Zafarbaksh, which is a very rare ''composite cannon'', that required skills in both wrought-iron forge welding and [[bronze]]-casting technologies and the in-depth knowledge of the qualities of both metals.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Balasubramaniam |first1=R. |last2=Chattopadhyay |first2=Pranab K. |year=2007 |title=''Zafarbaksh'' – The Composite Mughal Cannon of Aurangzeb at Fort William in Kolkata |url=http://www.insa.nic.in/writereaddata/UpLoadedFiles/IJHS/Vol42_2_5_RBalasubramaniam.pdf |journal=Indian Journal of History of Science |volume=42 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222081939/http://www.insa.nic.in/writereaddata/UpLoadedFiles/IJHS/Vol42_2_5_RBalasubramaniam.pdf |archive-date=22 December 2015}}</ref> The ''Ibrahim Rauza'' was a famed cannon, which was well known for its multi-barrels.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lDRbAAAAQAAJ |title=Bombay and western India: a series of stray papers |volume=2 |first=James |last=Douglas |publisher=Sampson Low, Marston & Company |year=1893}}</ref> [[François Bernier]], the personal physician to Aurangzeb, observed Mughal gun-carriages each drawn by two horses, an improvement over the bullock-drawn gun-carriages used elsewhere in India.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Khan |first1=Iqtidar Alam |editor-last=Buchanan |editor-first=Brenda J. |chapter=The Indian Response to Firearms, 1300-1750 |title=Gunpowder, Explosives And the State: A Technological History |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7n6Cg9znFrUC&pg=PA59 |publisher=Ashgate Publishing |year=2006 |page=59 |isbn=978-0-7546-5259-5}}</ref>

During the rule of Aurangzeb, in 1703, the Mughal commander at [[Coromandel Coast|Coromandel]], [[Daud Khan Panni]] spent 10,500 coins to purchase 30 to 50 war elephants from [[Ceylon]].<ref>{{Google books |id=3C1vz5ioOMwC |page=122 |title=Mughal Warfare: Indian Frontiers and Highroads to Empire, 1500–1700 }}</ref>