List of Mughal emperors

The Mughal Empire was the dominant power in the Indian subcontinent between the mid-16th century and the end of the 17th century. Founded in 1526, it survived nominally until 1857, when it was supplanted by the British Raj. The dynasty is sometimes referred to as the Timurid dynasty as Babur was descended from Timur.

Mughal dynasty
The Mughal dynasty was founded when Babur, a Muslim Timurid warlord hailing from Ferghana, invaded parts of northern India and defeated Ibrahim Shah Lodhi, the ruler of Delhi, at the First Battle of Panipat in 1526. The Mughal Empire superseded the Delhi Sultanate as rulers of northern India. In time, the state thus founded by Babur far exceeded the bounds of the Delhi Sultanate, eventually encompassing a major portion of India and earning the appellation of Empire. A brief interregnum (1540-1555) during the reign of Babur's son, Humayun, saw the rise of the Afghan Suri Dynasty under Sher Shah Suri, a competent and efficient ruler in his own right. However, Sher Shah's untimely death and the military incompetence of his successors enabled Humayun to regain his throne in 1555. However, Humayun died a few months later, and was succeeded by his son, the 13-year-old Akbar. The greatest portions of Mughal expansion was accomplished during the reign of Akbar (15561605). The empire was maintained as the dominant force of the present-day Indian subcontinent for a hundred years further by his successors Jahangir, Shah Jahan, and Aurangzeb. The first six emperors, who enjoyed power both de jure and de facto, are usually referred to by just one name, a title adopted upon his accession by each Emperor. The relevant title is bolded in the list below. Akbar initiated certain important policies, such as religious liberalism (abolition of the jizya tax), inclusion of Hindus in the affairs of the empire, and political alliance/marriage with the Hindu Rajput caste, that were innovative for his milieu; he also adopted some policies of Sher Shah Suri, such as the division of the empire into sarkars, in his administration of the empire. These policies, which undoubtedly served to maintain the power and stability of the empire, were preserved by his two immediate successors but were discarded by Aurangzeb, who pursued a policy where religious tolerance had little space. Furthermore, Aurangzeb spent nearly his entire career seeking to expand his realm into the Deccan and south India; this venture sapped the resources of the empire while provoking strong resistance from the Marathas, Sikhs of Punjab, and some elements within Hindu Rajputs. After Aurangzeb's reign, the empire fell into decline. Beginning with Bahadur Shah I, the Mughal Emperors progressively declined in power and became figureheads, being initially controlled by sundry courtiers and later by various rising warlords. In the 18th century, the Empire suffered the depredations of invaders like Nadir Shah of Persia and Ahmed Shah Abdali of Afghanistan, who repeatedly sacked Delhi, the Mughal capital. The greater portion of the

empire's territories in India passed to the Marathas before falling to the British. In 1803, the blind and powerless Shah Alam II formally accepted the protection of the British East India Company. The British had already begun to refer to the weakened Mughal as "King of Delhi" rather than "Emperor of India", a usage, formalized in 1803, which avoided the uncomfortable implication that the British sovereign was outranked by the Indian monarch. Nonetheless, for a few decades afterwards, the BEIC continued to rule the areas under its control as the nominal servants of the emperor, and in his name. In 1827 even these courtesies were dispensed with. After some rebels in the Sepoy Rebellion declared their allegiance to Shah Alam's descendant, Bahadur Shah II, the British decided to abolish the institution altogether. They deposed the last Mughal Emperor in 1857 and exiled him to Burma, where he died in 1862. Thus came to an end the Mughal dynasty, which had contributed a momentous chapter to the history of India, Bangladesh and Pakistan.

List of Mughal Emperors

Certain important particulars regarding the Mughal Emperors is tabulated below:

Emperor

Birth

Reign Period

Death

Notes

Zahiruddin Mohammed Baber''

February 14, 1483

15261530

December Founder of the Mughal Dynasty. 26, 1530

Nasiruddin Mohammed Humayun

March 6, 1508

15301540

January 1556

Reign interrupted by Suri Dynasty. Youth and inexperience at ascension led to his being regarded as a less effective ruler than usurper, Sher Shah Suri.

Sher Shah Suri 1472

15401545

Deposed Humayun and led the Suri Dynasty; May 1545 introduced tight, effective administration policies that would later be adopted by Akbar. 2nd and last ruler of the Suri Dynasty, with less control of the empire than his father; claims of sons Sikandar and Adil Shah were eliminated by Humayun's restoration. Restored rule was more unified and effective than initial reign of 1530-1540; left unified

Islam Shah Suri c.1500

15451554

1554

Humayun (restored)

March 6, 1508

15551556

January 1556

empire for his son, Akbar. Akbar added the most territory to the Empire and is regarded as the most illustrious ruler of the Mughal Dynasty; he married Jodhaa, a October 27, princess, from Rajputana like him. Jodhaa 1605 was a Hindu and many opposed at first, but under him, harmonic Muslim/Hindu relations were at their highest.One of India's best Emperors. Jahangir set the precedent for sons rebelling against their Emperor fathers. Opened first relations with the British East India Company. Reportedly was an alcoholic and his wife Empress Nur Jahan became the real power behind the throne and competently ruled in his place. Under him, Mughal art and architecture reached their zenith; constructed the Taj Mahal, Jahangir mausoleum and Shalimar Gardens in Lahore. Deposed and imprisoned by his son Aurangzeb. Much less extravagant or tolerant of Hindus and Hinduism than his predecessors; brought the empire to its greatest physical extent and imposed Islamic Sharia on the Mughal Empire. Extreme policies left many enemies to undermine the empire after his death. First of the Mughal emperors to preside over a steady and severe decline in the empire's control and power. After his reign, the emperor became a progressively insignificant figurehead.

Jalaluddin Mohammed Akbar

November 155614, 1542 1605

Nuruddin Mohammed Jahangir

October 1569

16051627

1627

Shahabuddin Mohammed Shah Jahan

January 5, 16271592 1658

1666

Moinuddin Mohammed Aurangzeb Alamgir

October 21, 16581618 1707

March 3, 1707

Bahadur Shah I October 14, 1707a.k.a Shah 1643 1712 Alaam I

February 1712

Jahandar Shah 1664

17121713

February 1713

He was merely a puppet in the hands of his Chief Minister Zulfikar Khan. The acts of Jahandar Shah brought down the prestige of the Mughal Empire. In 1717 he granted a firman to the English East India Company granting them duty free trading rights for Bengal, and confirmed their position in India.

Furrukhsiyar

1683

17131719

1719

Rafi Ul-Darjat Unknown Rafi Ud-Daulat a.k.a Shah Unknown Jahan II Nikusiyar Mohammed Ibrahim Unknown

1719

1719

1719

1719

1719

1743

Unknown

1720

1744

Mohammed Shah

1702

17191720, 17201748

1748

Suffered the invasion of Nadir-Shah of Persia in 1739.

Ahmad Shah Bahadur

1725

1748-54 1754

Alamgir II

1699

17541759

1759

Shah Jahan III

Unknown

Briefly 1770s in 1759

Shah Alaam II 1728

17591806

1806

Suffered the invasion of Ahmed-Shah-Abdali in 1761; granted the 'Nizami' of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa to the BEIC in 1765, formally accepted the protection of the BEIC in 1803.

Akbar Shah II

1760

18061837 18371857

1837

titular figurehead under British protection

Bahadur Shah II

1775

1862

Deposed by the British people and exiled to Burma following the Great Mutiny.

Islam Khan
Shaikh Alauddin Chisti (? - 1613) was a Subahdar and general of the army of the Mughal empire in Bengal, and the first governor of the city of Dhaka, the capital of modern Bangladesh. He was awarded the titular name of Islam Khan by Mughal emperor Jahangir.

Early life
A son of Shaikh Badruddin Chisti and grandson of Shaikh Salim Chisti of Fatehpur Sikri, Islam Khan was a childhood playmate of Jahangir, then crown-prince to the throne held by emperor Akbar. He received education formal education in the traditions of Mughal nobility, but apparently did not receive much military training. Despite this, he entered the service of the Mughal army. Prior to his coming to Bengal he was subahdar of the province of Bihar.

Conquest of Bengal
Emperor Akbar had sent many missions to subjugate the Bengal region, but they largely failed owing to feudal rebellions. Upon taking the throne, emperor Jahangir also sent a few missions to the province, but suffered failure. In 1608, he selected Islam Khan, then only 38 years old. Khan studied the politics of Bengal carefully and meticulously plotted his campaign. He sought to remove the Bhati of the Bara-Bhuiyans and the Afghan nobles under Khwaja Usman, believing them to be the chief obstacles to a Mughal takeover.

Reorganising the army and the navy, Islam Khan planned to march against the Bara-Bhuiyans first. He felt that the effective means of warfare in the low-lying, riverine Bhati area, was a strong fleet of war-boats. Appointing experienced and skilled officers, Islam Khan began a carefully organised military assault on the Bhati region, subjugating their allies such as the powerful Raja Pratapaditya of Jessore and Raja Satrajit of Bhusna first. Islam Khan also sent an army against the refractory zamindars of northwest Bengal. By June 1609 CE, Islam Khan's armies had progressed from Rajmahal to Ghoraghat. He spent the first few months of 1610 fighting against the Bara Bhuiyans before reaching Dhaka in about June-July of the same year. The Bhuiyans were not subdued; they fortified their positions on both sides of the Lakhya river. Islam Khan did not spare them any relief, but after fortifying Dhaka sent expeditions against all stations of the Bhuiyans and before the end of 1611 all the Bara-Bhuiyans including their chief Musa Khan submitted to Islam Khan. After his victory, Islam Khan turned his forces to attack the territories controlled by Khwaja Usman and his Afghan warlords. The Afghans fled to Uhar (in Maulvibazar) and continued their stubborn resistance. On Islam Khan's request, the emperor sent Shujaat Khan to lead the army against Usman. Although both armies clashed in a bloody stalemate, the sudden death of Khwaja Usman gave the Mughals an edge. Intensifying the offensive, Mughal forces destroyed their opposition and subjugated the Afghan forces under Bayazid Karrani at Sylhet. Islam Khan would also subsequently annex the Kamarupa kingdom.

Governor of Bengal
Islam Khan had established Mughal domain over all of Bengal save the Chittagong region. Attacking his enemies one-by-one, he exploited their differences and rivalries to advance Mughal power. He did not allow the defeated zamindars, Bhuiyans and chiefs to go back to their respective territories; though their territories were returned to them, they were forced to join the Mughal army and their war-boats were confiscated. Joining the Mughal army, they had to fight against their fellow zamindars and Bhuiyans. Following the defeat of the Bhuiyans, Islam Khan decided to move the provincial capital from Rajmahal, situated in western Bengal to the centre of the region in Dhaka. This strategic move gave the Mughal army permanent access to the heartland of Bengal and enabled them to respond speedily to political events. Occupying Dhaka, Islam Khan renamed it as "Jahangir Nagar" and established a modern city.

Death
Islam Khan governed Dhaka and Bengal from 1608 to 1613. He died mysteriously and unexpectedly at Bhawal about 25 miles north of Dhaka towards the end of 1613. He was first buried at Badshahi Bagh (old High Court premises), Dhaka, but later his coffin was taken to Fatehpur Sikri and laid to eternal rest by the side of his grandfather Shaikh Salim Chishti. There is a large mosque in Dhaka dedicated to Islam Khan.