To understand and appreciate the composite culture of India, (Which is a pre-requisite for Civil Services Aspirant) a proper understanding of Medieval India (800 to 1709, death of Aurangzeb) is must. The Chola, Rashtrakuta, Pallava, Pal , Mamluk, Mughals and many others shaped the culture and woven it in the fabric of Socio-Economic-Political tapestry in such a way, that our culture became unique. It is enthralling to study Sufi, Bhakti, Sikkhism, Din-e-elahi

The period of 4 century depicts a unique trend of growth of regional powers in India, war for dominance and invasion from North-Western side of Indian Peninsula. 

Integration of Islamic culture from west was a new wave in the existing culture of 13th Century India, had given a new dimension in the field of religion, manifested as sufi tradition, architectural marvels, a genesis of Indo-Islamic architecture. 

The culture matrix of Indian society got a new dimension in the field of music,architecture,warfare and trade. The fusion was marked in the field of administration, Land revenue also, both in north and south.

Mughal dynasty, Mughal also spelled Mogul, Arabic Mongol, Muslim dynasty of Turkic-Mongol origin that ruled most of northern India from the early 16th to the mid-18th century. After that time it continued to exist as a considerably reduced and increasingly powerless entity until the mid-19th century. The Mughal dynasty was notable for its more than two centuries of effective rule over much of India, for the ability of its rulers, who through seven generations maintained a record of unusual talent, and for its administrative organization. A further distinction was the attempt of the Mughals, who were Muslims, to integrate Hindus and Muslims into a united Indian state.

Akbar’s son JahāngÄ«r (reigned 1605–27) continued both his father’s administrative system and his tolerant policy toward Hinduism and thus proved to be a fairly successful ruler. His son, Shah Jahān (reigned 1628–58), had an insatiable passion for building, and under his rule the Taj Mahal ofAgra and the JāmiÊ¿ Masjid (Great Mosque) of Delhi, among other monuments, were erected. His reign marked the cultural zenith of Mughal rule, but his military expeditions brought the empire to the brink of bankruptcy. JahāngÄ«r’s tolerant and enlightened rule stood in marked contrast to the Muslim religious bigotry displayed by his more orthodox successor, Aurangzeb (reigned 1658–1707). Aurangzeb annexed the Muslim Deccan kingdoms of Vijayapura (Bijapur) and Golconda and thereby brought the empire to its greatest extent, but his political and religious intolerance laid the seeds of its decline. He excluded Hindus from public office and destroyed their schools and temples, while his persecution of the Sikhs of the Punjab turned that sect against Muslim rule and roused rebellions among the Rajputs, Sikhs, and Marathas. The heavy taxes he levied steadily impoverished the farming population, and a steady decay in the quality of Mughal government was thus matched by a corresponding economic decline. When Aurangzeb died in 1707, he had failed to crush the Marathas of the Deccan, and his authority was disputed throughout his dominions.