Aurungzebe

Aurungzebe, one of the most powerful of the Mogul emperors of Hindostan, was the third son of Shah Jehan, and was born in 1618. His original name was Mohammed but his father altered it to Aurungzebe, which means "Ornament of the Throne." He affected great piety in early life, but in conjunction with his brother Morad rose against Shah Jehan and seized the throne in 1659. He then killed both his brothers, but kept his father in honourable captivity. By his conquests in Thibet, Golconda, Vizapur, and the Mahratta territory he greatly enlarged his dominions, which he administered with wisdom and justice. His children, however, avenged the wrongs clone to their grandfather by embittering the emperor's life. Some of them he put to death, and in 1707, when he expired at Aurungabad, he divided the empire between his surviving sons. He was the last of the Moguls who ruled with vigour and firmness.