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Mughal Artillery Corps
The mid-17th-century Mughal artillery (Topkhana) was one of South Asia's most systematic firearms forces, equipped with bronze and cast-iron guns, si…
Timeline
- c. 1641–1650Agra arsenal workshops · AgraThe empire established a dedicated artillery bureau (Topkhana), comprising gunfounders, powder loaders, and gunners, casting bronze guns in capital workshops and maintaining siege and field artillery batteries.
- c. 1643–1655North Indian battlefields and fortresses · IndiaThe court hired European gunners and introduced casting and aiming techniques; artillery provided fire suppression in northwestern frontier sieges and Deccan expeditions, coordinating with infantry and cavalry to form the typical Mughal way of war.
Sources
- Mughal Warfare: Indian Frontiers and Highroads to Empire, 1500-1700 — Jos Gommans (2002)
- The Gunpowder Empires — William H. McNeill (1989)