BABUR: Founder of the Mughal Empire in India

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The influence of the Great Mughals on every aspect of Indian life - social, economic and political - has been profound and far-reaching. But historical accounts of their life and career are not only few, but also outdated; most of them having been written fifty years before, Erskine's Baber and Humayun, for instance, was published as far back as 1854; 131 years ago to be exact. As for Babur, his biographers have devoted far greater space to his Central Asian career than to the last five years (1525-30) of his life in Hindustan. Besides, several aspects of his cultural and political background, the early influence which shaped his character, his conception of sovereignty, and his administrative structure have not received adequate attention.

This study concentrates on Babur's Indian career. With the aid of a large number of original sources, it uncovers several hitherto unknown facets of Babur's political career, examines the problems involved in establishing and consolidating Mughal rule in India, and advances our understanding of Mughal society, polity, economy and administration. The author deals with these aspects with sensitivity and insight.

A truly outstanding work of scholarship which no student of medieval Indian history will be able to do without and which will make engaging reading for the ordinary reader as well.

About the Author:

Professor Mohibbul Hasan was educated in Lucknow and London. He was Lecturer in Islamic History and Culture in Calcutta University from 1943 to 1956. He then joined the Aligarh Muslim University as Reader in History. In 1963 he was appointed Professor and Head of the Department of Indian History and Culture, Jamila Millia Islamila, New Delhi. From September 1970 to July 1974 he was Professor and Head of the Department of History in the University of Kashmir. He is the author of History of Tipu Sultan and Kashmir under the Sultans, and has edited the Waqai-i Manazil-i Rum (Persian), Historians of Medieval India; Reading in Democracy and Messages of Freedom.