<P> The Mughal Empire (Urdu: مغلیہ سلطنت ‬ ‎, translit . Mughliyah Saltanat) or Mogul Empire, self - designated as Gurkani (Persian: گورکانیان ‎, Gūrkāniyān, meaning "son - in - law"), was an empire in the Indian subcontinent, founded in 1526 . It was established and ruled by a Muslim dynasty with Turco - Mongol Chagatai roots from Central Asia, but with significant Indian Rajput and Persian ancestry through marriage alliances; only the first two Mughal emperors were fully Central Asian, while successive emperors were of predominantly Rajput and Persian ancestry . The dynasty was Indo - Persian in culture, combining Persianate culture with local Indian cultural influences visible in its traits and customs . </P> <P> The Mughal Empire at its peak extended over nearly all of the Indian subcontinent and parts of Afghanistan . It was the second largest empire to have existed in the Indian subcontinent, spanning approximately four million square kilometres at its zenith, after only the Maurya Empire, which spanned approximately five million square kilometres . The Mughal Empire ushered in a period of proto - industrialization, and around the 17th century, Mughal India became the world's largest economic power, accounting for 24.4% of world GDP, and the world leader in manufacturing, producing 25% of global industrial output up until the 18th century . The Mughal Empire is considered "India's last golden age" and one of the three Islamic Gunpowder Empires (along with the Ottoman Empire and Safavid Persia). </P> <P> The beginning of the empire is conventionally dated to the victory by its founder Babur over Ibrahim Lodi, the last ruler of the Delhi Sultanate, in the First Battle of Panipat (1526). The Mughal emperors had roots in the Turco - Mongol Timurid dynasty of Central Asia, claiming direct descent from both Genghis Khan (founder of the Mongol Empire, through his son Chagatai Khan) and Timur (Turco - Mongol conqueror who founded the Timurid Empire). During the reign of Humayun, the successor of Babur, the empire was briefly interrupted by the Sur Empire . The "classic period" of the Mughal Empire started in 1556 with the ascension of Akbar the Great to the throne . Under the rule of Akbar and his son Jahangir, the region enjoyed economic progress as well as religious harmony, and the monarchs were interested in local religious and cultural traditions . Akbar was a successful warrior who also forged alliances with several Hindu Rajput kingdoms . Some Rajput kingdoms continued to pose a significant threat to the Mughal dominance of northwestern India, but most of them were subdued by Akbar . All Mughal emperors were Muslims; Akbar, however, propounded a syncretic religion in the latter part of his life called Dīn - i Ilāhī, as recorded in historical books like Ain - i - Akbari and Dabistān - i Mazāhib . </P> <P> The Mughal Empire did not try to intervene in the local societies during most of its existence, but rather balanced and pacified them through new administrative practices and diverse and inclusive ruling elites, leading to more systematic, centralised, and uniform rule . Traditional and newly coherent social groups in northern and western India, such as the Marathas, the Rajputs, the Pashtuns, the Hindu Jats and the Sikhs, gained military and governing ambitions during Mughal rule, which, through collaboration or adversity, gave them both recognition and military experience . </P>

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