Zahiruddin Muhammad Babur founded the Mughal Empire in India after defeating Ibrahim Lodhi in the Battle of Panipat in 1526.
At the age of 14, Babur ascended the throne of the Central Asian kingdom of Farghana. His greatest ambition was to rule Samarkand. He fought many battles in the pursuit of this goal, winning and losing his kingdom many times in the process. In 1504, he ventured into what is now Afghanistan and conquered Kabul.
His position in Central Asia was precarious at best. In order to consolidate his rule, he invaded India five times, crossing the River Indus each time. The fifth expedition resulted in his encounter with Ibrahim Lodhi in the first battle of Panipat in April 1526. Babur's army was better equipped than Lodhi's; he had guns while the sultan relied on elephants. The most successful of Babur's innovations was the introduction of gunpowder, which had never been used before in the Sub-continent. This combined with Babur's newer tactics gave him a greater advantage. Babur's strategy won the war and Ibrahim Lodhi died fighting.
Panipat was merely the beginning of the Mughal rule. Akbar laid its real foundation in 1556. At the time of the battle of Panipat, the political power in India was shared by the Afghans and the Rajputs. After Panipat, the Hindu princes united under Rana Sanga, the Raja of Mewar, resulting in a sizable force. Babur's army showed signs of panic at the size of the huge opposing army. To prevent his forces retreat, Babur tried to instill confidence in his soldiers by breaking all his drinking cups and vessels, and vowed never to drink again if he won. His soldiers took heart, and when the armies met in the battle at Kanwaha, near Agra on March 16, 1527, Babur was able to win decisively. Kanwaha confirmed and completed Babur's victory at Panipat. Babur thus became the king of Central India.
Map showing Babar's Empire
The foundations of Mughal art were laid by Humayun
Emperor Humayun
Babur was succeeded by his eldest son Humayun. Humayun failed in asserting a strong monarchical authority. He inherited a freshly won empire with a host of troubles; the Afghan nobles, the Rajputs and worst of all, his three treacherous brothers. They caused numerous problems for him. Following his father's advice, Humayun treated his brothers kindly and appointed them to high positions. Kamran was appointed as the Governor of Kabul, Kandhar and later even Punjab. Askari was the Governor of Sambhal, and Hindal the Governor of Alwar. In return, his brothers hindered him at every step and betrayed him in his hour of need. All of them coveted the throne. This was a curse that each successful Mughal king had to deal with. Humayun almost lost the empire his father had fought so hard to bequeath him. In the first ten years of his rule, he faced so many challenges not only from his younger brothers but also from the Afghan General Sher Shah Suri who had served under Babur. Sher Shah Suri defeated Humayun in the battles of Chausa and Kanauj in 1540. This defeat was the first setback to the infant Mughal Empire. He lived the next 15 years of his life, from 1540 to 1555, self-exiled in Persia. Later on, with the help of the King of Persia, he captured Kabul and Kandhar. He was finally able to re-ascend the throne at Delhi and Agra after defeating Sikandar Suri. After recovering his throne, Humayun devoted himself to the affairs of the kingdom and towards improving the system of government. He laid the foundation of the Mughal style of painting. Later on, during the reign of Akbar, a fusion of Persian and Indian style of painting took place.
Unfortunately, after recovering his empire, Humayun was not destined to rule for long. In January 1556, he met his tragic end by slipping from the famous building known as Din Panah. After him his eldest son Akbar took over the rule of the empire.
Bairam Khan was an extraordinary military general who served for Mughal emperors Humayun and his son Akbar and had great contributions in expanding their kingdom. Bairam led Akbar to his victory against Hemu in the second battle of Panipat. As an able regent, he guided Akbar during hostile situations. Bairam was loyal to the Mughal Empire until Akbar came close to his nurse Mahan Anga's that developed differences between the two.
When Humayun got the news about Islam Shahs death, he became enthusiastic to invade India. At this point of time, Bairam Khan came to his aid. Punjab was conquered, the Afghans were defeated and Delhi was captured without any oppositions. Bairam's contribution was immense as the Mughal Empire again rose to glory. Humayun died when Akbar was only fourteen years old and Bairam took the responsibility to guide Akbar. Under his care, Akbar consolidated the shaken Mughal kingdom, into a vast empire. The Afghan army under Hemu Vikramaditya captured Agra and Delhi but Akbar's army led by Bairam defeated Hemu in the second battle of Panipat (1556) and recaptured the lost territories.
Akbar's nurse Mahan Anga had other ideas. She, along with his son Adham Khan hoped to rule herself. She forced Akbar to remove Bairam who in any way had grown old. Akbar was influenced and he arranged an excursion for Bairam to go on Hajj to Mecca. Bairam left for Mecca but on his way was met by an army sent by Adham Khan, which as per say was sent to escort him from the Mughal territories. Bairam felt humiliated and led an attack against the forces. Bairam was imprisoned and brought to the court of Akbar. Instead of disrespect, Akbar offered respect and honor and funded his proper excursion to Mecca. However destiny had other plans for Bairam, when he reached the port city of Cambay he was stabbed to death by a Afghan, whose father had been killed five years ago in a battle let by Bairam. Bairam died on January 31, 1561.
A savanna, or savannah, is a grasslandecosystem characterized by the trees being sufficiently small or widely spaced so that thecanopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to support an unbroken herbaceous layer consisting primarily of C4grasses.[1] Some classification systems[which?] also recognize a grassland savanna from which trees are absent.[2] This article deals only with savanna under the common definition of a grassy woodland with a significant woody plant component.
It is often believed that savannas feature widely spaced, scattered trees. However, in many savannas, tree densities are higher and trees are more regularly spaced than in forest. Savannas are also characterized by seasonal water availability, with the majority of rainfall confined to one season. Savannas are associated with several types of biomes. Savannas are frequently in a transitional zone betweenforest and desert or prairie. Savanna covers approximately 20% of the Earth's land area. The largest area of savanna is in Africa.
Pastoralists are people who depend for their living primarily on livestock. They inhabit those parts of the world where the potential for crop cultivation is limited due to lack of rainfall, steep terrain or extreme temperatures. In order to optimally exploit the meager and seasonally variable resources of their environment and to provide food and water for their animals, many pastoralists are nomadic or semi-nomadic.
The type of livestock pastoralists keep varies according to area, and includes sheep, goats, cattle and camels, but also yaks and horses in Central Asia, buffalo in South Asia, llamas and alpacas in South America, and reindeer in the Palearctic region. An important characteristic of pastoralists is their close relationship with their animals. The identity of pastoralists is based on the close association with their livestock that forms a key component of their social and ritual life. By keeping animals under conditions that are close to the wild, but giving them the benefit of protection and health care, pastoralists represent a cultural counterpoint to industrialized animal production in the west.
There is no reliable information available on the number of pastoralists worldwide. According to one estimate, there are around 17.3 million pastoralists in Africa, 3.4 million in the Middle East and South Asia and no more than 2 million in Central Asia (Sandford, 1983).
Pakistan has highest deforestation rate in Asia COMMEMORATED every year on June 5, since 1972, the World Environment Day is a principal vehicle through which the awareness of the environment is stimulated across the world.
It was started by the United Nations General Assembly in 1972 and is hosted every year by different countries with a different theme. It was the first occasion on which the political, social and economic problems of the global environment were discussed at an intergovernmental forum with a view to actually taking corrective action.
The World Environment Day is an opportunity for us all to be involved in something which is critical for our shared future and work in a coordinated manner to empower us all to play an active role in protecting our environment.
The theme of the World Environment Day 2011, in support of the UN International Year of Forests (IYF), is “Forests: Nature at Your Service” a theme that encompasses the issues of deforestation and need to protect green spaces. It also underscores the variety of life-sustaining services that forests provide and calls for action to protect these resources and move towards a green economy.
The environment day is observed every year to highlight troubles and issues pertaining the environment, and how issues like poverty, economy and health are essentially linked to environmental degradation. This year’s theme, forests, harbours the world’s most precious natural resources and communities. These resources are utilised in food, agriculture, medicine, clothing and much more, hence making them a critically important link in the environmental chain.
Pakistan has only 2.5 percent of forest cover with an alarming rate of deforestation. The annual rate of deforestation in Pakistan is -2.1 percent, no Asian country has a forest degradation rate higher than this.
The largest conversions of forest land have taken place in Punjab and Sindh, corresponding to 99,711 acres and 27,874 acres respectively and this is distressing as the government continues with deforestation.
Forests are important in the fight against greenhouse gasses which are impacting climate change. They absorb water and ensure that it is filtered, sustained, and gradually available for consumption. Their degradation does not only impact forest cover ratio of a country, it also leads to real life problems such as soil erosion, damaged watershed areas, leading to pollution in water bodies and endangering water availability in the long term.
A senior lawyer and president of ECO Green Society, Akhtar H Awan, said that he believed that environmental development was one of the key pillars that would achieve sustainability for future generations. He said that the need of the hour was to formulate policies and strategies aiming at sustainable forestry development by adopting holistic and integrated approach to manage forests’ resources.
Forests cover one third of the earth’s land mass, performing vital functions and services around the world which make our planet alive with possibilities. In fact, 1.6 billion people depend on forests for their livelihoods.
Pakistan being in a region of mountains and glaciatic landscape is more susceptible to climatic changes, obvious examples regarding the fact are the intermittent flash floods and harsh weather conditions, to which forests are the keys to cope with these issues.
Class VII
The Early Mughals
Savanna Date: 30th Jan.-3rd Feb. 2012
The Early Mughals (Worksheet)
C.W.
Q1. Illustrate and write a detailed account of battle of Panipat?
Q2. What was Babur’s will and how was it helpful for the coming rulers?
Q3. Describe Humayun’s personality as a ruler.
Q4. Who was Bairam Khan? What is his contribution in the History of Mughals?
Q5. What are the achievements of Sher Shah Suri?
Extension task: -
Q6. Bairam Khan helped Akbar in getting a strong foot-hold in the Subcontinent. Justify.
H.W.
Read Chapter “Akbar’s Reforms”
Humayun in exile.
·The Mughal domain came under the control of one of those nobles, Farid Khan Suri, who assumed the regional name of Sher Shah Suri. Humayun would spend the next 15 years in exile in Sind, Iran, and then Afghanistan.
·During this exile, Humayun's Persian wife, Hamida Begum, a native of Turbat-I Shaykh Jam in Khurasan, gave birth to the future emperor Akbar.
·After Sher Shah's death on 1545 AD, the kingdom survived for about nine years in the hands of his son, Islam Shah. But Islam Shah's unconciliatory nature alienated many Afghan chieftains.
·Eventually, the squabbling for succession among Sher Shah's followers allowed Humayun and the Mughals to return to power in 1555 Iran's Shah Tahmasb (1524-76) had provided Humayun with the necessary troops to recapture Kandahar and then Kabul. Unfortunately, less than a year after regaining power, Humayun died unexpectedly at the age of 48 when he fell down the steps of his library with a handful of books while in his haste to obey the muezzin’s call to prayer on 27 January 1556.
Sher Shah Suri
Sher Shah Suri was born as Farid Khan and took the name Sher Khan (the Lion King).
Sher Shah Suri was a brilliant strategist and proved himself as a gifted administrator and an able commander.
He built the Grand Trunk Road (Sadak-i-Azam), and a network of caravanserais (inns) for travellers.
He also planted trees and dug wells. Sher Shah introduced a silver coin rupee called rupiya , as a standard mode of exchange His government also minted gold coins called mohur and copper coins called dam . Sher Shah Suri died from a gunpowder explosion during the siege of Kalinjar fort on May 22, 1545 fighting against the Chandel Rajputs.
