Akbar was the third and the greatest Mughal Emperor. Let’s
have a look at his life history, reign, administration,
contribution, achievements and timeline.
Jalaluddin Muhammad Akbar, more famously known as
Akbar the Great, was the third emperor of the Mughal
Empire, after Babur and Humayun. He was the son of
Nasiruddin Humayun and succeeded him as the emperor
in the year 1556, at the tender age of just 13. Succeeding
his father Humayun at a critical stage, he slowly enlarged
the extent of the Mughal Empire to include almost all of
the Indian sub-continent. He extended his power and
influence over the entire country due to his military,
political, cultural, and economic dominance. He
established a centralised system of administration and
adopted a policy of marriage alliance and diplomacy. With
his religious policies, he won the support of his non-
Muslim subjects as well. He was one of the greatest
emperors of the Mughal dynasty and extended his
patronage to art and culture. Being fond of literature, he
extended support to literature in several languages.
Akbar, thus, laid the foundations for a multicultural
empire during his reign.
At the time of his ascent to the Mughal throne, Akbar’s
empire encompassed Kabul, Kandahar, Delhi and parts of
Punjab. But the Afghan Sultan Mohammad Adil Shah of
Chunar had designs on the throne of India and planned to
wage war against the Mughals. His Hindu general Samrat
Hem Chandra Vikramaditya or Hemu in short, led the
Afghan army to capture Agra and Delhi soon after
Humayun’s death in 1556. The Mughal Army faced a
humiliating defeat and they soon receded with their
leader, Commander Tardi Baig absconding. Hemu
ascended the throne on October 7, 1556 and established
Hindu rule in North India after 350 years of Muslim
Imperialism.