The Mughal Dynasty dominated India for three centuries, rivalling the greatest rulers of Europe and the East in its power and splendour. Under such enlightened rulers as Akbar the Great in the 16th century and Jahangir and Shah Jahan in the 17th century, this vast Muslim Empire covered an area from the Kashmir and Afghanistan in the north and west to the Deccan in the south at its height. The English East India Company set up its operations in India after being granted a Royal Charter by Queen Elizabeth I in 1600 and it developed into an organisation powerful enough to raise its own army and conquer more and more territory. This book focuses on the key events from the reign of the Emperor Shah Jahan, who masterminded the creation of the Taj Mahal between 1631 and 1653, through to the final demise of the Mughal Dynasty and the rise and ultimate takeover by the British in 1858, marking the beginning of the Raj, which would rule over India until 1947.Interspersed throughout the book are short sections in italics that describe other relevant major world events happening at that time to give some context with what was happening in India.