Jaunpur Earthquake Devastates North India

1674

A powerful earthquake struck the Mughal province of Jaunpur in the Gangetic plain, toppling minarets, cracking fortress walls, and burying entire villages under alluvial mud. Contemporary chroniclers recorded fissures swallowing livestock and the Ganges running backward for hours. The disaster strained Aurangzeb's already overtaxed treasury and deepened rural misery across the heartland.