"Shah Jahan: The Rise and Fall of the Mughal Emperor" by Fergus Nicoll Free Ebook PDF Download

"Shah Jahan: The Rise and Fall of the Mughal Emperor" by Fergus Nicoll Free Ebook PDF Download

Review:

The vast majority of human history is a relatively monotonous affair and
does not make for interesting reading for most people. Hunting and
gathering, living in smoky wooden huts, even going to work day-in and
day-out at a company simply can’t get antennas buzzing. There are brief
flashes in history, however, which are quite the opposite. Aflame with
drama and social pyrotechnics to the point events seem surreal, the life
of Shah Jahan is one such existence. Fergus Nicoll captures all of its
fleeting glory in his 2009 Shah Jahan: The Rise and Fall of the Mughal
Emperor.
Existing at a time when bloodline was only the starting point for
determining monarchial ascendance, Shah Jahan warred for the throne
amongst his brothers like his, and his father’s fathers, before him.
Primogeniture acquired by force, the Mughal era was a constant bloody
feud at the top. It was also an era of unprecedented wealth in Indian
history. Europe’s kings and queens of the time living in poverty by
comparison, the amounts of silks, women, jewels, gold, elephants, lands,
etc. available to a Mughal lord was lavish to say the least, the limits of
mortality seemingly the only thing separating them from gods. Mix
luxurious parades, palaces, and harems with assassination attempts,
court intrigue, and a tumultuous political scene, and the flickering flame
that was Shah Jahan’s life takes on a dramatic hue few men in history can
boast of.