Mughal Empire: Babur and Humayun

Babur founded the Mughal empire in 1526, after defeating Ibrahim Lodi in the first battle of Panipat.
The “Great Mughals” dynasty, consisting of Babur, Humayun, Akbar, Jahangir, Shah Jahan, and Aurangzeb, made significant contributions to Indian history.
The empire fell following Aurangzeb’s death in 1707 due to coming weak rulers.

Babur (Zahiruddin Muhammad) was a descendant of Turco-Mongol conqueror Timur on his father’s side and Genghis Khan on his mother’s.
In the 15th century, the Timurids ruled much of Central Asia before being driven away by the increasing Safavid authority.
Babur rose to the throne of a minor Fergana kingdom at the age of twelve, but he quickly lost control of his family domain.
Babur took control of Kabul at the age of 24 in 1504 and then reached India via the Khyber Pass.
He defeated Ibrahim Lodi of the Lodi dynasty in the 1st battle of Panipat in 1526 and established the Mughal Dynasty in India.

The first battle of Panipat took place between Babur’s army and Ibrahim Lodi’s.
Babur won the fight decisively, defeating Ibrahim Lodi’s far bigger force with better tactics and technology. Babur’s deployment of artillery and muskets provided a substantial edge over the Sultanate’s conventional cavalry-based army.
The fight lasted only a few hours, but the Delhi Sultanate sustained significant losses.
Ibrahim Lodi was slain in the fight, signaling the end of the Delhi Sultanate and the beginning of Mughal rule in India
Babur’s techniques were unique. He skillfully used the Rumi (Ottoman) technique of combat. Cannons played a significant role in sixteenth-century combat. Babur utilized them efficiently at the first Battle of Panipat.

Battle of Khanwa 1527– Babur and Rana Sanga’s armies met at Khanwa, near Fatehpur Sikri. Rana Sanga faced defeat in 1527, and Babur’s superior military tactics once again proved successful. The fall of Rana broke the strongest challenge in north India.
The Battle of Chanderi, 1528- Babur defeated Medini Rai at Chanderi.
Battle of Ghagra in 1529– Babur fought Afghans (Ibrahim Lodi’s brother Mohammad Lodi) and destroyed them.

He was a scholar of Persian and Arabic.
He penned his autobiography, Tuzuk-i-Baburi, in the Turki language. Later, it was translated into Persian, among other languages.

He had to deal with the fast rise in power of the Afghans and the Bahadur Shah of Gujarat.
In the Battle of Chausa in 1539, Sher Khan (Sher Shah Suri) defeated Humayun near Buxar. He had to flee from the combat.
In the Battle of Kannauj in 1540, Sher Khan defeated Humayun again. He fled again and remained in exile for fifteen years.
He sought refuge at the Iranian king’s court and, with his support, conquered Kandahar and Kabul in 1545.
Humayun conquered Delhi in 1555, following the collapse of the Suri Empire, but died the next year.
Humayun established a new city in Delhi that he named “Dinpanah”.
He built mosques in Delhi including the Jamali mosque and the Isa Khan mosque.
His wife, Amida Benu Begum, built Humayun’s tomb (UNESCO site).
Humayun’s sister, Gul Badan Begum, wrote “Humayun-Nama” in the Persian language.
Humayun patronized the Mughal painting during his time in Persia.

Sher Shah Sur, known as Farid, was a minor jagirdar from Sasaram, Bihar.
He conquered Humayun at Chausa and Kannauj, establishing the Suri Empire in northern India.
He reestablished law and order throughout the empire.
His empire stretched from Bengal to the Indus, except Kashmir; in the west, he conquered Malwa and nearly all of Rajasthan.
He restored the old Grand Trunk Road, which connected the Indus River in the west to Bengal in the east.
Sher Shah Sur started building a new walled city in Delhi, which later came to be known as Purana Qila.
He built several Sarai on trunk roads.
He also tried to fix standards of weights and measures.
He undertook several currency reforms. His standardized Rupiya(Silver coin) was the main currency till the British time
Sher Shah built his mausoleum in Sasaram.
Malik Muhammad Jayasi wrote ‘Padmavat’ in Awadhi during his reign.