 During this period, Bengalis served in the Mughal military, and took part in manh wars undertaken by the Mughals.In 1717, Murshid Quli Khan, who was the provincial governor of the Mughal province of Bengal, taking advantage of the weakness of the declining Mughal Empire, declared the independence of Bengal and established himself as the Nawab of Bengal.Bengal remained independent until 1764, when the British annexed the region.