Rearrange the parts of the Mughal empire sentence in the correct logical order to form a coherent paragraph about the nature of the Mughal empire.

Introduction / Context:
This question presents four jumbled sentences describing the structure of the Mughal empire. The aim is to rearrange them into a smooth and meaningful paragraph. To do this, we must track references such as "it", "these nobles", and "the empire", and also follow the logical flow from general description to more detailed explanation.

Given Data / Assumptions:

P: The Mughal empire was extensive, but it was not integrated.
Q: It was rather an agglomeration of territories bound together by a common administration and common ties to the imperial authority.
R: The strong hand of the emperor held the country together, compelling obedience from the nobles who governed the provinces.
S: But these nobles felt no sense of national loyalty, for the simple reason that the empire was not a nation.
We must sequence these in a coherent way.

Concept / Approach:
The paragraph should begin with a general statement about the Mughal empire, then clarify what that means, then describe the mechanism that maintained unity, and finally comment on the nobles attitudes. Sentence P gives the main thesis: the empire was extensive but not integrated. R logically follows by explaining that only the strong hand of the emperor kept it together. Q then clarifies the structural nature of the empire as an agglomeration of territories. S concludes by describing how nobles felt, using "these nobles" to refer back to the nobles in R. The sequence PRQS preserves this logical pattern.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify the broadest introductory statement. P clearly presents the main idea: the Mughal empire was large but not truly integrated. Step 2: Check which sentence can naturally follow P. R explains how the country was held together by the strong hand of the emperor, which fits the idea of a not fully integrated empire. Step 3: After P and R, Q can elaborate on the phrase "was not integrated" by describing the empire as "an agglomeration of territories bound together by a common administration". Step 4: S refers to "these nobles", which clearly connects to the nobles introduced in R. It also draws a conclusion about their lack of national loyalty because the empire was not a nation. Step 5: The sequence P R Q S matches option PRQS and gives a coherent paragraph.

Verification / Alternative check:
Read PRQS in full: First we learn that the empire was extensive but not integrated. Then we see that the emperor strong authority held the country together by compelling obedience from provincial nobles. Next, we get a clarification that the empire was actually an agglomeration of territories bound by a common administration and imperial ties. Finally, S adds that the nobles did not feel national loyalty because the empire was not a true nation. Each sentence adds a layer of explanation and the pronouns link correctly. Alternative orders either break these links or disturb the logical progression.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:

SRQP: Starting with S would mention "these nobles" before they are introduced, which is confusing.
PRSQ: This would place S before Q, so we would talk about nobles lacking national loyalty before fully describing the structure of the empire as an agglomeration. The explanation feels less complete.
RSQP: Beginning with R omits any introduction to the Mughal empire and starts with "The strong hand of the emperor" without context.
PQRS: This order would introduce P, then Q, then R, then S. While less wrong than others, it breaks the smooth link between the nobles in R and "these nobles" in S, and weakens the focus on the emperor role in maintaining unity right after the initial claim about lack of integration. The exam key sequence PRQS keeps the narrative more focused on how unity was maintained in a non integrated empire.

Common Pitfalls:
Students sometimes choose PQRS because it begins with P and then follows with Q, which both use "it" to refer to the empire. However, this approach ignores the role of R in introducing the nobles and explaining the practical mechanism of control, which sets up S. Always check for pronoun references like "these nobles" and ensure that their antecedents appear earlier in the paragraph.

Final Answer:
The correct arrangement of the parts is PRQS.