Mansabdari System and its Evolution under Mughals.

Evolution of Mansabdari System

Mansabdari was a unique system formally introduced by Mughal emperor Akbar in 1571 AD. However, the origins of the system can be traced back to Changez Khan.

Changez Khan organised his army on a decimal basis, the lowest unit was ten and the highest 10k (toman) was headed by commanders known as khans.

The word “Mansab” is of Arabic origin, meaning rank or position. Hence, mansabdar means the holder of a rank or an office. 

Merits of Mansabdari System-

• The Mansabdari system formed the backbone of the administration. It is said that till the system functioned, the Mughal state functioned well. 
• It introduced the concept of uniformity in the administration, which led to political unification. 
• The Mansabdari system also weakened the caste and feudal system. There was no discrimination on account of caste and religion. The Mansabdars were advised to make a mixed and diverse troop contingent.
• The system gave recognition to merit. Akbar took stern measures to stop the dynastic influences. It helped in curbing the power of the feudal class and the nobility.
• The Rule of Zabti further increased the efficiency of this system where the jagirs were not transferable and hereditary, They were confiscated by the emperor after death. 

Mechanism of the Mansabdari System-

The Mansabdars were paid either in cash (naqd) or in the form of assignment of an area (jagir) of which they collected the tax. They took the salary and their expense and sent the revenue to the emperor. The Mansabdar was liable to pay the salary of the cavalrymen he maintained either from the excess revenue of jagir, or the cash salary he received. 

Although the term mansabdar was a generic term, only nobles with the rank of 500 and below were called mansabdars, those between 500-2500 mansab were called Amirs while the smaller and topmost section with 2500+ mansab was known as Amir Umda.

Though, the process of reaching the top ranks was through a gradual way where one enters at the lowest mansab and paves his path to the top. But the king could and often appointed distinguish people at a higher level from the beginning itself.

Under Akbar -

By bringing the Mansabdari system into the empire, Akbar tried to integrate three major functionaries into a common pool of administration.

1. Class of Nobility

2. Armed Forces

3. The Bureaucracy

The minimum mansab ranked 10 and the maximum was 10000. But during the period of Akbar the maximum rank was 5000, only with two exceptions - Mirza Ajij Koka and Raja Man Singh who were granted 7000 mansab and were called sat-hazari.

By 1591 AD, the member of the mansab came to be adopted in the form of pair. The first value of the pair was the zat and the second was sawar.

Zat - Personal pay depicting the status of the noble

Sawar - Actual number of horsemen the mansabdar was expected to entertain.

Abul Fazl classified the Zat and Sawar ranking into 3 categories - 

• Sawar was equal to Zat
• Sawar was half of Zat
• Sawar was less than half of Zat

Only in the case of war and agression the fourth case of Sawar being more than Zat - Mashrut Mansab was applicable. After the necessity was fulfilled, it was disbanded and brought back to any of the above three classifications.

Mansabdars were appointed only by the rulers on the recommendation of the Mir Bakshi. On promotion, the number of zat was increased. 

Each mansabdar was given dual responsibility for both civil and military obligations. Akbar started the rule of Dahbisti - For 10 savers there should be 20 horses, as cavalry was the main fighting force of the Mughals, and horses were required on the battlefield.

Under Jahangir

The system introduced by Jahangir in the already existing Mansabdari system was called “du-aspah si-aspah” system. The term literally means trooper with two or three horses.

Under this system, selected nobles could be allowed to maintain a large quota of soldiers without making any change in their zat rank. It implied that a mansabdar or noble holding du-aspah si-aspah rank had to maintain double the quota of troops indicated by his sawar rank. The advantage of this was Jahangir was facilitated to keep more soldiers without facing the financial burden.

Under Shah Jahan

Shah Jahan introduced the month scale or month-ratio system.

The number of mansabdars was increasing, but there was a shortage of land because of the Jagirdari crisis. Hence, Shah Jahan passed an order to reduce the number of sawars under a particular mansabdar.

Now, mansabdars were to be paid on a monthly scale. If a Mansabdar did not get the total salary of 12 months, he could reduce the number of savers under them. If a mansabdar was not able to get a salary of even 6 months, he was allowed to bring a huge reduction in the number of sawars keeping his zat rank, enact.

Aurangzeb & Conclusion- 

By the time of Aurangzeb, the number of mansabdars increased to 14500, which used to be used 800 during the time of Akbar. This led to the even shorter area of jagirs and thus creating the whole jagirdari crisis, where even nobles were not able to maintain their luxurious lifestyles.

The system however was inherently weak. According to Badayuni, during Akbar’s reign, Mansabdars brought muster men from the street in uniforms and passed them off as soldiers. It took Akbar many years to stamp out the corruption.

The Mansabdari system could only work under a strong ruler because it was an intensely centralized form of administration. After the death of Aurangzeb, as the Mughal empire witnessed a series of weak and incompetent rulers, it led to factionalism in the administration. Thus, each mansabdar wanted to work in their own interest.

Nevertheless, the Mansabdari system was one of the major cause and the backbone of the Mughal empire and its efficiency with administration and revenue.