Babur, whose guns sounded the death-knell of the Sultanate of Delhi, laid the foundations of Mughal Empire, which lasted for more than 300 years, that is till the exile of the last emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar. The Mughal Era is an epoch known for National Integration and Stability, religious rapprochement and tolerance and flourishing of Art and Culture, amidst the reign of various rulers.
MUGHAL RULE
The Mughal rule begins with the victory of Babur over Ibrahim Lodhi in the First Battle of Panipat (1526 AD).
BABUR (1526-30 AD)
Babur was the founder of the Mughal Empire in India. His family belonged to the Chaghtai section of the Turkish race. Zahir-ud-din Muhammad Babur was born on 14th February, 1483 in Ferghana. He succeeded his father, Umar Sheikh Mirza, as ruler of Ferghana in Central Asia at the age of eleven. Unable to fulfil his political ambitions in Central Asia, due to the influential Uzbeks, Babur turned his eyes towards India. Babur’s move over Punjab prompted by the changes in the political situation in India.
The death of Sikandar Lodhi at Agra towards the end of 1517 AD, gave an opportunity to the Afghan nobles, to try to regain some of the power and influence, they had lost under his strict rule.
Under these circumstances, the Governor of Lahore, Daulat Khan Lodhi, who was in arrears in settling the accounts of his charge with Ibrahim Lodhi and was apprehensive of action against him by young Sultan, sent his son Dilawar Khan to Babur in Kabul. in 1521-22 AD.
He invited Babur to invade India since, the ruler, Ibrahim Lodhi, was a cruel and had maltreated the Afghan nobles. Alam Khan Lodhi, the son of Bahlul Lodhi and another claimant to the throne, also visited Kabul to invite Babur.
It seems that it was at this time that Babur also received a deputy from Rana Sanga (Sangram Singh) of Mewar, the most powerful Rajput prince of that time. Though Babur needed no invitation to attack India, the arrival of these envoys convinced him that the situation was ripe for undertaking the conquest on India.
SIGNIFICANCE OF BABUR’S ADVENT INTO INDIA
Babur’s advent into India was significant from many reasons. For the first time, Kabul and Kandahar became integral parts of an empire comprising North India. It gave India security from external invasions for almost 200 years. Babur smashed the power of the Lodhis and the Rajput confederacy led by Rana Sanga. He destroyed the balance of power obtaining in the area.
Babur introduced a new mode of warfare in India. He showed what a skilled combination of artillery and cavalry could achieve under Ustad Ali and Mustafa. Babur introduced a new concept of the state which was to be based on the strength and prestige of the crown, absence of religious and sectarian bigotry and the careful fostering of culture and the fine arts.
Babur died in 1530 AD and was buried at Arambagh in Agra; later his body was taken to Kabul and buried there. He was, besides being a good general, a cultured and literary man who wrote Persian poetry. His memoir in Chagatai Turkic, (Baburnama) Tuzuk-i-Baburi is a valuable work and shows his humane outlook and sensitivity to the beauty of nature. During emperor Akbar’s reign, the work was completely translated to Persian by a Mughal courtier, Abdul Rahim. Babur obtained the Kohinoor diamond from the king of Gwalior, Raja Vikramajit and gifted it to Humayun.