The
Mughal emperors were a branch of the
Timurid dynasty. From the early 16th century to the early 18th they built and ruled the
Mughal Empire on the
Indian subcontinent, mainly corresponding to the modern countries of Bangladesh, India and Pakistan. Their power rapidly dwindled during the 18th century and the last of the emperors was deposed in 1857, with the establishment of the
British Raj. The dynasty was of central Asian
Turco-Mongol origin from an area now part of modern-day
Uzbekistan, and the emperors claimed direct descent from both
Timur and
Genghis Khan, through his son
Chagatai Khan.