Medieval Indian History
🔒 Log in to trackMughal Empire & Sher Shah Suri
🔒 Log in to trackEmperor table
| Ruler | Years | Key facts |
|---|---|---|
| Babur | 1526–30 | First Battle of Panipat (21 April 1526) vs Ibrahim Lodi — first use of field guns in India; Khanwa 1527, Chanderi 1528 (Medini Rai), Ghaghra 1529; memoir Tuzuk-i-Baburi / Baburnama in Turki |
| Humayun | 1530–40, 1555–56 | Lost to Sher Shah at Chausa (1539) and Kannauj/Bilgram (1540); regained Delhi 1555; died falling from the stairs of his library (Sher Mandal) |
| Sher Shah Suri | 1540–45 | Silver rupiya & copper dam; rebuilt Grand Trunk Road (Sonargaon–Peshawar); sarais; land measurement; tomb at Sasaram (Bihar); died at Kalinjar |
| Akbar | 1556–1605 | Second Battle of Panipat (1556) vs Hemu (regent Bairam Khan); Mansabdari system; abolished pilgrim tax & jizya (1564); Ibadat Khana at Fatehpur Sikri (1575); Din-i-Ilahi (1582); revenue system Zabti/Dahsala by Raja Todar Mal; Buland Darwaza marks the Gujarat conquest; Haldighati (1576) – Mughal army under Man Singh vs Maharana Pratap |
| Jahangir | 1605–27 | Chain of justice (Zanjir-i-Adl); Nur Jahan; English envoys William Hawkins (1608) and Sir Thomas Roe (1615); executed Guru Arjan Dev (1606); memoir Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri |
| Shah Jahan | 1628–58 | Taj Mahal (for Mumtaz Mahal), Red Fort & Jama Masjid, Delhi (Shahjahanabad); Peacock Throne; golden age of Mughal architecture |
| Aurangzeb | 1658–1707 | Re-imposed jizya (1679); executed Guru Tegh Bahadur (1675); long Deccan wars; died at Ahmednagar, buried at Khuldabad |
| Later Mughals | — | Nadir Shah (Persia) invaded 1739 (Battle of Karnal) under Muhammad Shah "Rangila" and took the Peacock Throne and Koh-i-Noor |
Administration terms
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Mansab | Rank fixed by zat (personal rank) and sawar (cavalry count) |
| Jagir | Revenue assignment given to a mansabdar in lieu of salary |
| Subah / Sarkar / Pargana | Province / district / sub-district |
| Diwan / Mir Bakshi | Finance / military pay & intelligence |
Architecture quick pairs: Humayun's Tomb (Delhi) – first garden-tomb on the Indian subcontinent; Itimad-ud-Daulah (Agra) – built by Nur Jahan for her father, early pietra dura in white marble; Fatehpur Sikri – Akbar's city (Panch Mahal, Jodha Bai palace).
Founding the empire (1526–1556)
Babur, a Chagatai Timurid from Fergana, won the First Battle of Panipat (1526) against Ibrahim Lodi using artillery and the tulughma encircling tactics. In 1527 he beat Rana Sanga of Mewar at Khanwa; Chanderi followed (1528). His memoir, the Baburnama (Tuzuk-i-Baburi), is in Turkish — a candid classic. Humayun lost the empire to Sher Shah Sur at Chausa (1539) and Kannauj (1540), wandered 15 years (Persia's help), returned in 1555, and died within months.
Sher Shah Sur (1540–1545), the gap-filler
An Afghan of Sasaram, Sher Shah ran the empire better than many kings: he issued the rupiya (silver) and dam (copper), rebuilt the Grand Trunk Road (Sonargaon in Bengal to the north-west) with sarais at stages, standardised patta (title deed) and qabuliyat (deed of agreement) in revenue, and organized a spy-run administration. His tomb at Sasaram is a landmark.
Akbar (1556–1605): the empire takes shape
Regent Bairam Khan won the Second Battle of Panipat (1556) over Hemu. Akbar then: conquered Malwa, Chittor (1568) and Ranthambhor, Gujarat and Bengal; pursued a Rajput policy of alliance (marriages with Amber's house; Raja Man Singh and Todar Mal in high service); abolished the pilgrimage tax and jizya; and built Fatehpur Sikri with the Buland Darwaza. Finance minister Raja Todar Mal set the dahsala (zabti) system — revenue fixed on a 10-year average. The mansabdari system graded officers by zat (personal rank) and sawar (cavalry). In 1582 he promulgated Din-i-Ilahi, a syncretic order; Ibadat Khana at Fatehpur Sikri hosted debates. The Navaratna circle: Birbal, Todar Mal, Abul Fazl, Faizi, Tansen, Man Singh and others.
Jahangir, Shah Jahan, Aurangzeb
Jahangir (1605–27): the 'chain of justice', paintings peak, Sir Thomas Roe (James I's ambassador, 1615); Nur Jahan ran the court. Shah Jahan (1628–58): the Peacock Throne (Takht-i-Taus), Taj Mahal (for Mumtaz Mahal), Red Fort, Jama Masjid — the monument age. Aurangzeb (1658–1707): reimposed jizya (1679), executed Guru Tegh Bahadur (1675), fought the Marathas for 25 years in the Deccan — the drain that hollowed the empire.
Later Mughals
Successors were puppets (the Sayyid brothers as king-makers). Nadir Shah's invasion (1739, Battle of Karnal) stripped the Kohinoor and Peacock Throne from Muhammad Shah 'Rangeela'; Ahmad Shah Abdali raided repeatedly. The empire shrank to Delhi before 1857's end.
Question types you will see
Each type: how to recognise it, the method step by step, and one question to try.
Babur, Humayun and Sher Shah: battles and reforms
First/Second Panipat, Khanwa, Chausa-Kannauj, Sher Shah's rupiya/road/patta, Baburnama language.
Babur: Panipat 1526 (Ibrahim Lodi) → Khanwa 1527 (Rana Sanga); wrote Baburnama in Turkish.
Humayun lost at Chausa 1539 and Kannauj 1540 to Sher Shah.
Sher Shah: rupiya, GT road with sarais, patta-qabuliyat, tomb at Sasaram.
The Grand Trunk Road revived by Sher Shah connected the north-west with —
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Sonargaon in Bengal — with sarais (rest houses) and trees along the stages.
Akbar: conquests, administration and Din-i-Ilahi
Second Panipat, Rajput policy, Todar Mal's dahsala, zat-sawar, Din-i-Ilahi, jizya abolition, Navaratna.
2nd Panipat 1556: Bairam Khan's regency beat Hemu.
Revenue: Todar Mal's dahsala/zabti (10-year average); officers graded by zat-sawar (mansabdari).
Ideology: Din-i-Ilahi (1582), Sulh-i-kul, Ibadat Khana; jizya and pilgrimage tax abolished; Rajput alliances (Amber's house).
Who devised the dahsala (zabti) revenue system of Akbar's reign?
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Raja Todar Mal — assessments based on a ten-year average yield and prices.
Jahangir–Shah Jahan–Aurangzeb: courts, monuments, policies
Chain of justice, Sir Thomas Roe, Peacock Throne, Taj Mahal, jizya reimposed, execution of Guru Tegh Bahadur.
Jahangir: 'chain of justice', Sir Thomas Roe (1615), Nur Jahan's influence, Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri.
Shah Jahan: Peacock Throne, Taj Mahal (Mumtaz), Red Fort, Jama Masjid.
Aurangzeb: jizya reimposed (1679), Guru Tegh Bahadur executed (1675), endless Deccan war.
Who came as the ambassador of England's James I to Jahangir's court (1615)?
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Sir Thomas Roe — securing trading concessions that led to the East India Company's factories.
Later Mughals and the empire's decline
Nadir Shah's invasion and loot, Muhammad Shah 'Rangeela', Sayyid brothers, Abdali raids, shrinking to Delhi.
Nadir Shah, 1739: won at Karnal under Muhammad Shah 'Rangeela'; took the Kohinoor and Peacock Throne.
Sayyid brothers = 'king-makers' of the later Mughals.
Ahmad Shah Abdali's raids (Third Panipat 1761) finished Mughal hopes in the north.
Nadir Shah invaded India in 1739 during the reign of —
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Muhammad Shah 'Rangeela' — after the Battle of Karnal, Delhi was sacked and the Peacock Throne and Kohinoor carried off.
Shortcuts that save time
Babur → Humayun → Akbar → Jahangir → Shah Jahan → Aurangzeb. Sher Shah sits between Humayun's two reigns (1540–55).
Which ruler came between Humayun's two reigns?
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Sher Shah Suri (and his Sur successors), 1540–1555.
1526 Babur beats Ibrahim Lodi · 1556 Akbar (Bairam Khan) beats Hemu · 1761 Ahmad Shah Abdali beats the Marathas. Gap pattern: +30 years, then +205 years.
Mistakes to avoid
Where most students lose marks on this subtopic.
Rupiya was introduced by Sher Shah, not Akbar.
Din-i-Ilahi = 1582, Ibadat Khana = 1575 — do not swap.
Haldighati Mughal commander = Man Singh, not Akbar in person.
Taj Mahal = Shah Jahan; Itimad-ud-Daulah = Nur Jahan.
Quick revision
Read this the night before the exam.
Babur: Panipat 1526 → Khanwa 1527; Baburnama in Turkish. Humayun: Chausa 1539, Kannauj 1540.
Sher Shah: rupiya, GT road + sarais, patta-qabuliyat; Sasaram tomb.
Akbar: 2nd Panipat (Hemu), Todar Mal's dahsala, zat-sawar mansab, Din-i-Ilahi 1582, jizya abolished, Fatehpur Sikri.
Jahangir-Roe; Shah Jahan-Peacock Throne/Taj; Aurangzeb-jizya 1679, Tegh Bahadur 1675.
1739 Nadir Shah (Karnal) under Muhammad Shah 'Rangeela'.
Practice: 12 questions
Sets of 10, mixed across the question types above. Every answer has a step-by-step explanation.
Topic test · 12 questions
Suggested time 5 min · wrong answers go to your mistake notebook automatically.