The golden age of the city began with the Mughals.

Agra was the foremost city of

the subcontinent and the capital of the Mughal Empire until 1658, when Aurangzeb
shifted the entire court to Delhi.[23]

BABUR
Babur (reigned 1526–30[24]), the founder of the Mughal dynasty, acquired Agra after
defeating the Lodhis and the Tomaras of Gwalior in the First Battle of Panipat in
1526
Babur's connection with Agra began immediately after the battle of Panipat. He sent
forward his son Humayun, who occupied the town without opposition. The Raja of
Gwalior, slain at Panipat, had left his family and the heads of his clan at Agra.
In gratitude to Humayun, who treated them magnanimously, and protected them from
plunder, they presented to him a quantity of jewels and precious stones as a token
of homage. Among these was the famous diamond Koh-i-nur.[25] Babur went on to lay
out the first formal Mughal garden in India, the Aram Bagh (or Garden of
Relaxation) on the banks of the river Yamuna. Babur was determined to establish the
seat of his government at Agra, but was almost dissuaded by the desolate appearance
of the region, as clear from this quote from his memoir Baburnama:[25]

Akbar (reigned 1556–1605[24])

built the modern city of Agra on the right bank of Yamuna, where the majority of
its part still lies. He converted the city into a great centre of political,
cultural and economic importance, connecting it with the various parts of his vast
empire. Akbar raised the towering ramparts of the Agra Fort, besides making Agra a
centre for learning, arts, commerce, and religion.

Akbar also built a new capital city of Fatehpur Sikri, around 35 km from Agra

Before his death, Agra had become probably one of the biggest cities in the east,
with huge amounts of trade and commerce happening through its bazaars.[29] The
English traveller Ralph Fitch who visited Agra in September 1585 in the life-time
of Akbar, writes about the town:[28]

Jaahangir (reigned 1605–27[24])

Agra continued to expand and flourish during Akbar's successor Jahangir's reign as
he wrote in his autobiography Tuzuk-e-Jahangiri:[28][29]

Akbar's mausoleum at Sikandra was completed during Jahangir's reign. The Jahangiri
Mahal in Agra fort and the tomb of Itmad-ud-daulah were also constructed during the
reign of Jahangir.