BABAR:Zahir-u-din Mohammad Babar has been known as the founder of Mughal empire in India. He was born on 14th Feb 1483 at a town called Andijan in a small state of Farghana in Turkistan, present day Uzbekistan. Babar a Turk was descended on his father’s side from Taimur and was connected on his mother’s side with chengiz khan. Babar ascended the throne of Farghana at the age of 12 in 1494 after the death of his father Umar Sheikh Mirza.His mother was Qutlugh Nigar Khanum. At the time of his accession he was surrounded on all sides by enemies. His uncles & cousins looked greedily towards his state and attacked him from right & left. He faced his relatives very bravely for about 10 years. His uncle Ahmad Mirza died in 1495 after his death babar was able to capture Samarkand in Nov. 1497. While in Samarkand Babar fell ill & his younger brother Jahangir was made king by his ministers in Farghana. When Babar marched from Samarkand to recover Farghana, he could not capture Farghana because Jahangir was securely established there & in the meantime Samarkand was occupied in his absence by his cousin Ali. The result was that in Feb 1498, Babar was not the king of any place. His only possession was Khojend. He had to live a wanderers life for more than a year. However in june 1499 he was able to recapture Farghana. In 1500, Babar again conquered Samarkand but was forced by Uzbeks to leave the same. After the lose of Samarkand, he lost Farghana in the same year. Babar was left with nothing in 1502, so he left his homeland and made his mind to capture Kabul due to political chaos in that country after death of its ruler Ulugh Beg. Babar occupied Kabul in 1504.
Babars gaze soon shifted to India because of fabulous wealth of India. The opportunity to invade india came to babar when he was invited by Daulat Khan Lodi & Rana Sanga to dethrone Ibrahim Lodi. This led to battle between Babar & Ibrahim Lodi on 21 April 1526 at Panipat, where Ibrahim Lodi was defeated and Mughal empire was established in India.
Although Lodi commanded an army of 100,000 men and 100 elephants against Babur's 21,000, superior tactics as well as artillery made Babur victorious. During the next four years he conquered most of northern India and established his capital at Agra, but he died in 1530 before he could consolidate his rule. He was succeeded by his son, Humayun.
Babur was said to be a man of compassion, who would not allow his troops to plunder or to harm innocent people. Highly cultured, he wrote poetry both in Persian and his Turkic mother tongue, and he also left a volume of memoirs that has been widely translated.
Babar died in the Ram Bagh gardens in Agra on Dec. 1530, at the time of his death he was hardly 48 years of age. In accordance with his will, his dead body was taken to Kabul.
Babar’s Invasion of India:
First Invasion:
Babar invaded india first time in1505 A.D. Soon he was successful in taking Bajaur and the fort of bhera. He could not retain these places when he turned back.
Second Invasion:
Babar came to invade india second time in 1519 A.D.,but had to return back from Peshawar due to revolt at Badakshan.
Third Invasion:
In 1520-21 A.D. Babar invaded India for the third time & captured Bajaur, Bhera, & Sialkot.He had to return back due to disorder in Kandhar.
Fourth Invasion:
Babar Invaded India for the fourth time in 1524-26 A.D. Daulat Khan Lodhi & Rana Sanga had invited him. Soon he was able to capture Punjab.
1526 = Battle of Panipat - Babar defeated Ibrahim Lodhi & founded Mughal Dynasty in India.
1527 = Battle of Khanwa - defeated Rana Sanga – Occupied Delhi Agra regions.
1528 = Battle of Chanderi - defeated Medini Rai – Occupied Chanderi in Malwa.
1529 = Ghagra (river) – defeated combined forces of Afghans & Nusrat Shah of Bengal.
Causes responsible for Babar’s Invasion of India:
Following were the causes responsible for babar’s invasion of India:
1.Wealth of India: Babar was drawn to India by the lure of its fabulous wealth, India was known as “golden sparrow” at that time.
2. Political condition of India: Political condition of India was deteriorated as India lacked any strong central power. India was divided into small states fought with each other.
3. Legal right: Babar’s ancestor Timur had invaded India in 1398 AD. Timur had captured Punjab & surrounding areas which were ruled by his successors. Babar thought that he had legal right over these areas.
4. Limited income of Kabul: Income from Kabul was so limited that he was not able to pay to his officials & troopers. So Babar wanted to conquer some fertile place to meet his expenses.
5. Fear of Uzbek invasion: Babar feared that Uzbeks will someday invade Kabul, therefore Babar invade India to keep a shelter for him to carry expeditions against Uzbeks.
6. Invitation from Daulat khan Lodi & Rana Sanga: Ibrahim Lodi had become unpopular he wanted to concentrate all power in his hands. His chiefs invited him to invade India.
CAUSES OF BABARS SUCCESS:
Babar defeated Afghans & Rajputs in the battles due to various reasons:
Political Condition of India: India was divided into small states and lacked any strong central power. These small states were busy fighting each other. There was complete instability in India & had not any powerful ruler who could stand in front of Babar.
Mind Setup of Babar: Babar was attracted towards India, because of her fabulous wealth. India was known as “golden sparrow” at that time. Babar had ambition to achieve this wealth of India. So he was mentally prepared to defeat Indian rulers.
Ibrahim’s unpopularity: Oppressive policies of Ibrahim Lodhi towards everyone. Babar took full advantage of this feeling of unrest among the general masses.
Dissensions & Quarrels among the Rajputs: Dissensions & Quarrels among the Rajputs had made them powerless & selfish. They could not join hands even to save their motherland.
Babar’s Artillery: Babur’s Artillery not only destructed Indians it also shattered their spirits. Ustad Ali & Mustafa were two such gunners who could play havoc with any big army.
Disciplened Army: Babar’ Army was acquainted with the new methods of warfare. The Indian armies acted like a mob in the battlefield.
Devotion of Babar’s Soldiers: Babar’s soldiers loved their king & were ready to die for him in battlefield whereas the Indian soldiers came to battlefield for the sake of money.
Babar’s Personality: The most important cause of Babar’s victory was his impressive personality. He never lost his heart or showed signs of weakness in battlefield. He was a great orator & had the capacity to infuse spirit in dead bodies with his lively speeches. He was a born General & fully conversant with the tactics of war.
Battle of Panipat 1526:
First battle of Panipat took place between Babur and Sultan Ibrahim Lodi. It was fought in the year 1526 A.D. at Panipat, few miles away from Delhi. Babur`s forces consisted of fifteen thousand men and had only fifteen to twenty pieces of field artillery. Lodi had one lakh men along with hundred war elephants. The battle started on the morning of 21 April 1526 A.D. and by noon it was over. Ibrahim Lodi lay dead on the field and his army was destroyed.Ibrahim Lodi was abandoned by his vassals and generals. It marked the reign of the Mughals in India.
The artillery, the Tulghuma method of warfare and superior generalship of Babur on one hand, and the weaknesses of Ibrahim Lodi, on the other hand, were responsible for the success of Babur in this battle. Babur had fine artillery, a more effective mobile cavalry and he used better war-tactics while Ibrahim had no artillery and fought in a traditional way depending on his war-elephants which having no experience of facing fire-arms and destroyed their own army in panic. Ibrahim`s army was not well-organised. The first battle of Panipat was significant in a way because it was one of the earliest battles which involved the use of gunpowder firearms and field artillery.
Battle of Khanua 1527:
Battle of Khanua was fought between Babur and the Raiput ruler Rana Sanga. The battle took place on 17th march 1527 A.D. The primary cause of the battle of Khanua was the decision of Babur to remain in India as the king of Delhi. Rana Sanga had agreed to support Babur against Ibrahim Lodj. He hought that Babur would leave India after plundering it as was done bythe previous invaders. In that case, he could capture Delhi for himself. But the decision of Babur, to remain in India foiled his plans and therefore he preferred to support the Afghans against the Mughal. He gave shelter to fugitive Alam Khan, accepted Mahmud Lodi as the ruler of Delhi and sought the support of Hasan Khan Mewati and other Afghan nobles again Babur. Therefore, the battle between the Rajputs and the Mughals became inevitable.
Babur blamed Rana Sanga for not helping him against Ibrahim Lodi while Rana Sanga challenged the capture of Bayana, Dhoipur and Kalpi by Babur. The Rajput army took the offensive and proceeded with a view to capture Bayana and Agra. Mahmud LodI and Hasar Khan Mewati joined their ranks. The two advanced parties of Babur were defeated by the Rajputs. Babur realised that he had to face a more serious challenge from the Rajputs than what he had faced at Panipat from the Afghans. The Rajput valour was commendable and their leader Rana Sanga was an experienced general who had fought nearly one hundred battles in his life.
The two armies met at Khanua, a place ten miles ahead of Fatehpur Sikri. Babur described the number of the Rajput army as two lakhs. The battle on 17 March 1527 A.D. and continued for ten hours. Rana Sanga was badly wounded and was taken away from the battlefield and the Rajput army was routed. The victory went to the Mughals. Once again, the Mughals succeeded in the battle because of their superior tactics, commandership and artillery. Rana was wounded during the course of the battle and failed to provide leadership to his soldiers at the critical moment. It also demoralised his soldiers.
Battle of Khanua proved to be a more decisive battle as compared to the first battle of Panipat. It proved the superiority of the military tactics of the Mughals against the natives. It weakened the Rajput power. Rana Sanga died in 1528 A.D. and that finished the dream of the Rajputs to conquer Delhi forever. It also reduced the power of resistance of the Afghans against the Mughals. The position of Babur was secure in India. Of course, he had to fight more battles in India but all of them were for the consolidation of their power. Babur was firmly established In India and his centre of power shifted from Kabul to Delhi.
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