1526–1530
Babur, full name Zahīr al-Dīn Muhammad Babur, Persian: بابر
Babur · 乌兹别克斯坦
Early-16th-century Timurid prince of Fergana and founder of the Mughal Empire (1526–1530 as Emperor of India), also author of the *Baburnama*.
Born on 14 February 1483 in Andijan in the Fergana Valley (now Uzbekistan), he was descended on his father's side from Timur and on his mother's side from Genghis Khan. He inherited the throne of Fergana at 12, seized Samarkand three times and lost it three times, turned to Kabul in 1504, briefly retook Samarkand in 1511 and lost it again at once. In 1526 at the First Battle of Panipat he defeated the Delhi Sultan Ibrahim Lodi with firearms and cavalry tactics, founding the Mughal Empire; in 1527 at Khanwa he defeated the Rajput confederacy, and in 1529 at the Battle of the Ghaghra he defeated the Afghan confederacy. He died in Agra on 26 December 1530 and was buried in 1531, as he wished, in Bagh-e Babur (Babur Garden), Kabul, as his will requested. His memoir *Baburnama*, written in Chagatai Turkic, is known for its frank accounts of warfare, gardening, and court life, and is a first-hand source for Central–South Asian history.
People & stories
Places in their life
Birthplace Andijan (Fergana); thrice-contested place Samarkand.
People
Cultural significance
A key figure linking the Central Asian Timurid Renaissance with the South Asian Mughal Empire; his memoir and garden aesthetics profoundly influenced Mughal court culture, and make Samarkand–Fergana a core narrative of Uzbekistan's historical tourism today.
