“The Last Mughal ” by William Dalrymple

“The Last Mughal” by William Dalrymple is about “the fall of a dynasty. Delhi. 1857”. The dynasty in question is, of course, the Mughal dynasty, founded by Zahiruddin Muhammad Babur in 1526  by defeating Sultan Ibrahim Lodi in the First Battle of Panipat . After ruling large parts of India for centuries, the Mughal Empire shrank over time and with the advent of the British by the 1850s was a spent force. Bahadur Shah Zafar II (1775-1862) was Emperor in name only. However, in the eyes of many he still remained a rallying point as he was the Khalifa, God’s Regent on earth. Continue reading ““The Last Mughal ” by William Dalrymple”