In the 1750s, India witnessed the decline of the Mughal Empire and the emergence of regional successor states. After Aurangzeb’s death in 1707, weak rulers called the Later Mughals struggled to maintain control, leading to fragmentation and the rise of autonomous kingdoms across the subcontinent.

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• Mughal Empire weakened after Aurangzeb’s death in 1707
• Bahadur Shah (1707-1712) tried pacifying Rajputs, Marathas, Sikhs
• Jahandar Shah (1712-1713) ruled under Zulfiqar Khan’s influence, abolished jizyah
• Farukh Siyar (1713-1720) controlled by Saiyyid brothers, later killed
• Muhammad Shah (1719-1748) saw Mughal authority collapse further
• Hyderabad founded by Nizam-ul-Mulk Asaf Jah in 1724
• Bengal dominated by Murshid Quli Khan, later Alivardi Khan
• Awadh established by Saadat Khan in 1722, made hereditary
• Mysore rose under Hyder Ali, later Tipu Sultan modernized army
• Economic decline continued; India lagged behind Europe in science, technology