DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY
PAPER I- MAJOR CORE
History of Medieval India: From 8thCentury to 18th Century
UNIT I-Early Medieval India: Political Dynamics, Society, and Economic
Transformations (10 HRS)
1. Medieval Historiography; Evolution of Rashtrakutas, Palas, Pratihars; Rise of the
Rajputs.
2. Indian Merchants in Overseas Trade (8th to 15th Centuries); Arabs in Sind
3. Indian Cultural Expansion in Early Medieval Asia across Southeast Asia, the Far East,
Champa, Kambuja, and the Malay Archipelago (Java, Sumatra, Bali, Borneo)
4. Foundation & Consolidation of the Delhi Sultanate under Slave Dynasty
UNIT II- Later Delhi Sultanate and the Rise of Regional Powers: Political, Social, and
Cultural Developments (10 HRS)
1. Successive Dynasties after Delhi Sultanate; Khaljis; Tughlaqs; Sayyids; Lodhis
2. Nobility; Military, Administrative and Economic reforms; Art and Architecture;
Society
3. Bhakti and Sufi Movements
4. Rise of Provincial Kingdoms of (a) Gujarat (b) Assam (c) Bengal (d) Malwa (e) Orissa
(f) Jaunpur
UNIT III- South Indian Kingdoms: 8-17th Century (15 HRS)
1. South Indian Kingdoms: Cholas, Cheras, Pandyas
2. Their Expansion
3. Vijaynagara Kingdom
4. Bahamani Kingdom
UNIT IV- The Mughal Empire: Consolidation, Expansion, and (15 HRS)
1. Consolidation of the Mughal Empire: Babur to Aurangzeb; Administrative Structure-
Mansabdari; Jagirdari; Religion & Society; Revenue Policies; Zamindars and
peasantry.
2. Rise of the Autonomous states: Sikh, Jats, Marathas, Bengal, Oudh
3. Decline of the Mughal Empire
*Activity: Educational tour of Fatehpur Sikri/ the Taj Mahal/ the Red Fort for a better
understanding of medieval India's historical monuments and architecture.
10
DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY
Suggested Reading List:
• Ashraf, K. M., Life and Conditions of the People of Hindustan, Munshiram
Manoharlal, Delhi, 1970.
• Brown, Percy, Indian Architecture (Islamic Period), D. B. Taraporevala Sons & Co.,
Bombay, 1942.
• Chand, Tara, Influence of Islam on Indian Culture, Indian Press, Allahabad, 1946.
• Chandra, Satish, A History of Medieval India (2 Vols.), Har-Anand Publications, New
Delhi, 1997.
• Habib, Mohammad and K. A. Nizami (eds.), A Comprehensive History of India, Vol.
V: The Delhi Sultanat, People’s Publishing House, New Delhi, 1970.
• Jackson, Peter, The Delhi Sultanate: A Political and Military History, Cambridge
University Press, Cambridge, 1999.
• Maclean, Derryl N., Religion and Society in Arab Sindh, Brill, Leiden, 1989.
• Raychaudhuri, Tapan and Irfan Habib (eds.), The Cambridge Economic History of
India, Vol. I: c. 1200–1750, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1982.
Research Papers
1. Alam, Muzaffar, “The Culture and Politics of Persian in Precolonial Hindustan,”
Modern Asian Studies, Vol. 38, No. 2, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2004.
2. Eaton, Richard M., “Temple Desecration and Muslim States in Medieval India,”
Journal of Islamic Studies, Vol. 11, No. 3, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2000.
3. Habib, Irfan, “Economic History of the Delhi Sultanate – An Essay in Interpretation,”
Indian Historical Review, Vol. 4, No. 2, New Delhi, 1978.
11
DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY
SEMESTER II
PAPER II MAJOR CORE
The Early Modern West (8th Century to 18th Century)
UNIT I- Feudal Societies in Medieval Europe (8th – 14 centuries) (10 hrs)
1. The emergence of medieval monarchies, aristocracies and nobilities
2. Early feudal state and the Church
3. Transitions in the feudal economy from 11th – 14th centuries (i) Agriculture: changes
in serfdom and seigneurie (ii) Onset of 'feudal crisis' in 13th and 14th centuries
UNIT II- From Constantinople’s Fall to the Renaissance: Europe’s Transformation (10
HRS)
1. Fall of the Constantinople & its Impact
2. Maritime discoveries in Europe
3. Renaissance: Causes, Main Features and Impact
4. The Printing Press and the Communication Revolution in Europe
UNIT III- The Reformation, Counter-Reformation, and the Rise and Decline of Spain (10
HRS)
1. The Reformation in Germany: An Overview
2. Counter-Reformation and its effects
3. Internal Administration and Foreign Policy of Spain
4. Dutch War of Independence (1568-1648)
5. Decline of Spain
UNIT IV- War, Empire, and Revolution: Major Political Changes in Early Modern
Europe (20 HRS)
1. Religious Conflict and the Rise of the Modern State System: Thirty Years’ War: Causes
& Major Phases; Treaty of Westphalia
2. Absolutism and State-Building in Europe: Louis XIV’s Policies, Peter the Great’s
Reforms, Catherine the Great and Expansionism, Frederick the Great and the War of
Austrian Succession
3. Power Politics and Territorial Reorganization in Europe: Partition of Poland, War of
Austrian Succession (contextual European rivalry)
4. Atlantic Revolutions and the Crisis of Monarchy: Causes, Course and Result of the
American Revolution, Causes, Course and Result of the French Revolution
12
DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY
Suggested Readings:
• Burke, Peter, The European Renaissance: Centres and Peripheries, Blackwell
Publishers, Oxford, 1998.
• Diamond, Jared, Upheaval: Turning Points for Nations in Crisis, Little, Brown and
Company, New York, 2019.
• Gombrich, E. H., A Little History of the World, Yale University Press, New Haven,
2005 (English edition).
• Khurana, K. L., Modern Europe (1453–1789 A.D.), Lakshmi Narain Agarwal, Agra,
2010 (revised ed.).
• Khurana, K. L., World History (1453–1966 A.D.), Lakshmi Narain Agarwal, Agra,
2010 (revised ed.).
• Lowe, Norman, Mastering Modern World History, Palgrave Macmillan, London, 2005
(3rd ed.).
• Harman, Chris, A People’s History of the World: From the Stone Age to the New
Millennium, Verso, London, 1999.
Research Papers
1. Burke, Peter, “The Renaissance as a Concept and Historical Period,” History of
European Ideas, Vol. 19, No. 4–6, 1994.
2. Diamond, Jared, “The Worst Mistake in the History of the Human Race,” Discover
Magazine, May 1987.
3. Parker, Geoffrey, “The Military Revolution, 1560–1660: A Myth?” The Journal of
Modern History, Vol. 48, No. 2, University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1976.
13