Editing Aurangzeb (section)

===War of succession===
{{Main|Mughal war of succession (1658–1659)}}

[[File:Payag - The Battle of Samugarh - 1999.298 - Arthur M. Sackler Museum.jpg|thumb|The [[Battle of Samugarh]] was fought in 1658, part of the [[Mughal war of succession (1658–1659)|Mughal war of succession]]]]
The four sons of Shah Jahan all held governorships during their father's reign. The emperor favoured the eldest, [[Dara Shikoh]].<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://scroll.in/article/879195/aurangzeb-and-dara-shikohs-fight-for-the-throne-was-entwined-with-the-rivalry-of-their-two-sisters |title=Aurangzeb and Dara Shikoh's fight for the throne was entwined with the rivalry of their two sisters |first=Ira |last=Mukhoty |work=Scroll.in |date=17 May 2018}}</ref> This had caused resentment among the younger three, who sought at various times to strengthen alliances between themselves and against Dara. There was no Mughal tradition of [[primogeniture]], the systematic passing of rule, upon an emperor's death, to his eldest son.<ref name="Chandra2005p267" /> Instead it was customary for sons to overthrow their father and for brothers to war to the death among themselves.<ref name="Markovits-2004">{{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=96 |isbn=978-1-84331-004-4}}</ref>

Historian [[Satish Chandra]] says that "In the ultimate resort, connections among the powerful military leaders, and military strength and capacity [were] the real arbiters".<ref name="Chandra2005p267" /> The contest for power was primarily between Dara Shikoh and Aurangzeb because, although all four sons had demonstrated competence in their official roles, it was around these two that the supporting cast of officials and other influential people mostly circulated.<ref>{{harvtxt|Richards|1996|pp=151–152}}</ref> There were ideological differences&nbsp;– Dara was an intellectual and a religious liberal in the mould of Akbar, while Aurangzeb was much more conservative&nbsp;–&nbsp;but, as historians [[Barbara D. Metcalf]] and [[Thomas R. Metcalf]] say, "To focus on divergent philosophies neglects the fact that Dara was a poor general and leader. It also ignores the fact that factional lines in the succession dispute were not, by and large, shaped by ideology."<ref>{{cite book |title=A Concise History of Modern India |url=https://archive.org/details/concisehistorymo00metc |url-access=limited |first1=Barbara D. |last1=Metcalf |first2=Thomas R. |last2=Metcalf |author-link1=Barbara D. Metcalf |author-link2=Thomas R. Metcalf |edition=2nd |location=Cambridge |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2006 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/concisehistorymo00metc/page/n55 20]–21 |isbn=978-0-521-86362-9}}</ref>

Marc Gaborieau, professor of Indian studies at l'[[École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ceias.ehess.fr/index.php?90 |title=Marc Gaborieau |publisher=Centre d'Études de l'Inde et de l'Asie du Sud |date=6 July 2016 |language=fr |access-date=2 May 2016}}</ref> explains that "The loyalties of [officials and their armed contingents] seem to have been motivated more by their own interests, the closeness of the family relation and above all the charisma of the pretenders than by ideological divides."<ref name="Markovits-2004" /> Muslims and Hindus did not divide along religious lines in their support for one pretender or the other nor, according to Chandra, is there much evidence to support the belief that Jahanara and other members of the royal family were split in their support. Jahanara, certainly, interceded at various times on behalf of all of the princes and was well-regarded by Aurangzeb even though she shared the religious outlook of Dara.<ref name="Chandra2005p271" />

In 1656, a general under [[Qutb Shahi dynasty]] named Musa Khan led an army of 12,000 musketeers to attack Aurangzeb, who was [[Siege of Golconda|besieging Golconda Fort]]. Later in the same campaign, Aurangzeb, in turn, rode against an army consisting of 8,000 horsemen and 20,000 [[Karnataka|Karnataki]] musketeers.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Syed |first1=Anees Jahan |year=1977 |title=Aurangzeb in Muntakhab-al Lubab |publisher=Somaiya Publications |pages=64–65 |oclc=5240812}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Kolff |first1=Dirk H. A. |author1-link=Dirk H. A. Kolff |year=2002 |orig-date=1990 |title=Naukar, Rajput, and Sepoy: The Ethnohistory of the Military Labour Market of Hindustan, 1450–1850 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SrdiVPsFRYIC&pg=PA22 |edition=illustrated, revised |publisher=Cambridge University Press |page=22 |isbn=978-0-521-52305-9}}</ref>

After making clear his desire for his son Dara to take over after him, Shah Jahan fell ill with [[strangury]] in 1657. He was kept in seclusion and cared for by Dara in the newly built city of [[Shahjahanabad]] (Old Delhi). Rumours spread that Shah Jahan had died, which led to concerns among his younger sons. These younger sons took military actions seemingly in response, but it is not known whether these preparations were made in the mistaken belief that the rumours of death of Shah Jahan were true and that Dara might be hiding it for political gain, or whether the challengers were taking advantage of the situation.<ref name="Chandra2005p267">{{cite book |title=Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals |volume=2 |publisher=Har-Anand Publications |year=2005 |isbn=978-81-241-1066-9 |first=Satish |last=Chandra |author-link=Satish Chandra |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Rm9MC4DDrcC&pg=PA267 |pages=267–269 |access-date=29 September 2012}}</ref>

[[Shah Shuja (Mughal)|Shah Shuja]] in [[Bengal]], where he had been governor since 1637 crowned himself King at RajMahal. He brought his cavalry, artillery and river flotilla upriver towards Agra. Near Varanasi his forces confronted a defending army sent from Delhi under the command of Prince Sulaiman Shukoh, son of Dara Shukoh, and Raja Jai Singh.<ref>{{harvtxt|Richards|1996|p=159}}</ref>

Murad did the same in his governorship of Gujarat and Aurangzeb did so in the Deccan.

After regaining some of his health, Shah Jahan moved to Agra and Dara urged him to send forces to challenge Shah Shuja and Murad, who had declared themselves rulers in their respective territories. While Shah Shuja was defeated at [[Varanasi|Banares]] in February 1658, the army sent to deal with Murad discovered to their surprise that he and Aurangzeb had combined their forces,<ref name="Chandra2005p271" /> the two brothers having agreed to partition the empire once they had gained control of it.<ref name="Chandra2005p272" />

The two armies clashed at [[Battle of Dharmat|Dharmat]] in April 1658, with Aurangzeb being the victor. Shuja was chased through [[Bihar]]. The victory of Aurangzeb proved this to be a poor decision by Dara Shikoh, who now had a defeated force on one front and a successful force unnecessarily pre-occupied on another. Realising that his recalled Bihar forces would not arrive at Agra in time to resist the emboldened Aurangzeb's advance, Dara scrambled to form alliances in order but found that Aurangzeb had already courted key potential candidates.<ref name="Chandra2005p271"/>

When Dara's disparate, hastily assembled army clashed with Aurangzeb's well-disciplined, battle-hardened force at the [[battle of Samugarh]] in late May, neither Dara's men nor his generalship were any match for Aurangzeb. Dara had also become over-confident in his own abilities and, by ignoring advice not to lead in battle while his father was alive, he cemented the idea that he had usurped the throne.<ref name="Chandra2005p271">{{cite book |title=Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals |volume=2 |publisher=Har-Anand Publications |year=2005 |isbn=978-81-241-1066-9 |first=Satish |last=Chandra |author-link=Satish Chandra |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Rm9MC4DDrcC&pg=PA270 |pages=270–271 |access-date=29 September 2012}}</ref> "After the defeat of Dara, Shah Jahan was imprisoned in the fort of Agra where he spent eight long years under the care of his favourite daughter Jahanara."<ref name="sen2">{{Cite book |last=Sen |first=Sailendra |title=A Textbook of Medieval Indian History |publisher=Primus Books |year=2013 |isbn=978-9-38060-734-4 |page=183}}</ref>

Aurangzeb then broke his arrangement with Murad Baksh, which probably had been his intention all along.<ref name="Chandra2005p272" /> Instead of looking to partition the empire between himself and Murad, he had his brother arrested and imprisoned at Gwalior Fort. Murad was executed on 4 December 1661, ostensibly for the murder of the ''[[Diwan (title)|diwan]]'' of Gujarat. The allegation was encouraged by Aurangzeb, who caused the ''diwan's'' son to seek retribution for the death under the principles of [[Sharia law]].<ref>{{harvtxt|Richards|1996|p=162}}</ref>

Meanwhile, Dara gathered his forces, and moved to the [[Punjab region|Punjab]]. The army sent against Shuja was trapped in the east, its generals [[Jai Singh I|Jai Singh]] and Dilir Khan submitted to Aurangzeb, but Dara's son, Suleiman Shikoh, escaped. Aurangzeb offered Shah Shuja the governorship of Bengal. This move had the effect of isolating Dara Shikoh and causing more troops to defect to Aurangzeb. Shah Shuja, who had declared himself emperor in Bengal began to annex more territory and this prompted Aurangzeb to march from Punjab with a new and large army that fought during the [[battle of Khajwa]], where Shah Shuja and his [[chain mail|chain-mail]] armoured war elephants were routed by the forces loyal to Aurangzeb. Shah Shuja then fled to [[Rakhine State|Arakan]] (in present-day Burma), where he was executed by the local rulers.<ref>''The Cambridge History of India'' (1922), vol. IV, p. 481.</ref>

With Shuja and Murad disposed of, and with his father immured in Agra, Aurangzeb pursued Dara Shikoh, chasing him across the north-western bounds of the empire. Aurangzeb claimed that Dara was no longer a Muslim {{citation needed |date=June 2018}} and accused him of poisoning the Mughal [[Grand Vizier]] [[Saadullah Khan (Mughal Empire)|Saadullah Khan]]. After a series of battles, defeats and retreats, Dara was betrayed by one of his generals, who arrested and bound him. In 1658, Aurangzeb arranged his formal coronation in Delhi.

On 10 August 1659, Dara was executed on grounds of apostasy and his head was sent to Shah Jahan.<ref name="sen2"/> This was the first prominent execution of Aurangzeb based on accusations of being influenced by Hinduism, however some sources argue it was done for political reasons.<ref>{{cite book |last=Larson |first=Gerald James |title=India's Agony Over Religion |publisher=State University of New York Press |year=1995 |isbn=978-0-7914-2411-7 |page=111 |author-link=Gerald James Larson}}</ref> Aurangzeb had his allied brother Prince [[Murad Baksh]] held for murder, judged and then executed.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Allan |first1=J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9_48AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA416 |title=The Cambridge Shorter History of India |last2=Haig |first2=Sir T. Wolseley |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1934 |editor-last=Dodwell |editor-first=H. H. |editor-link=H. H. Dodwell |page=416}}</ref> Aurangzeb was accused of poisoning his imprisoned nephew [[Sulaiman Shikoh]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Smith |first=Vincent Arthur |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p2gxAQAAMAAJ&pg=PG412 |title=The Oxford History of India: From the Earliest Times to the End of 1911 |publisher=Clarendon Press |year=1920 |page=412 |author-link=Vincent Arthur Smith}}</ref> Having secured his position, Aurangzeb confined his frail father at the Agra Fort but did not mistreat him. Shah Jahan was cared for by Jahanara and died in 1666.<ref name="Chandra2005p272">{{cite book |title=Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals |volume=2 |publisher=Har-Anand Publications |year=2005 |isbn=978-81-241-1066-9 |first=Satish |last=Chandra |author-link=Satish Chandra |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Rm9MC4DDrcC&pg=PA270 |page=272 |access-date=29 September 2012}}</ref>