20.(MEDIEVAL INDIA)THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE NORTH INDIAN EMPIRE-THE SURS

References: Satish Chandra(Medieval India) .Also minor facts from other books and figure and facts from verified Internet sources.

THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE NORTH INDIAN EMPIRE-THE SURS

• The rise of Sher Shah from the position of a petty leader of troops to being the ruler of one of the biggest empires which had risen in north India since the death of Muhammad bin Tughlaq in the middle of the 14th century is a saga of courage and determination. However, it has also led to uncritical adulation of an individual rather than focusing on the political and social processes at work. 
• The process of building an empire encompassing entire north India started with Sikandar Lodi's final victory over Jaunpur, and was carried forward by Babur and Humayun. Babur's victory over Ibrahim Lodi and Rana Sanga, and Humayun's campaigns in Malwa and Gujarat had shattered the old balance of power. This process was carried forward by Sher Khan's defeat of the ruler of Bengal, and Humayun's campaign in Bihar and Bengal against Sher Khan. Thus, the winner of the struggle between the two was slated to emerge as one who would be the master virtually of the entire north India. As it was, Sher Shah could not complete this process — Gujarat remained out of his empire, and it was Akbar who had to complete the process.
• Thus, Sher Shah's achievement of the unification of north India under one aegis should be seen as a part of an historic process which had been at work for almost half a century.
• Similarly, the rise of Sher Shah to supreme power from the position of a small noble calls attention to the social and political conditions in north India at the time when bold, unscrupulous men could forge ahead. Political duplicity, intrigues, and occasional lack of moral scruples which can be seen on occasions in the case of young Farid (later Sher Shah)have to be seen in this context so that the type of romanticisation of Sher Shah adopted by Afghan historians who wrote more than 40 years after the events can be seen in its proper historical perspective.

Sher Shah's Early Life, and Rise to Power:

• We have hardly any reliable details of Sher Shah's family and his early life or rise to power.
• Sher Shah's grand-father, Ibrahim Sur, who was probably a petty horse-trader, came from Afghanistan to India towards the end of Ibrahim Lodi's reign. One of his early patrons, Jamal Khan Lodi Sarangkhani, assigned a few villages in Hissar-Firuza in modern Haryana to him for the upkeep of 40 troopers. In those uncertain times, the position of an individual depended upon the number of horsemen at his command. 
• Both Ibrahim and his son, Hasan(father of Sher Shah), emerged as leaders of Afghan free-booters whose services were utilized by Raimal, the chief of Shekhawati, so that following the death of his father, Hasan was placed in charge of the entire pargana of Narnaul.
• After the final conquest of Jaunpur, Sikandar Lodi appointed as governor of Jaunpur Jamal Khan Sarangkhani who had supported him in his struggle of succession to the throne. At the death of Jamal 

Khan, his son Khan-i-Azam Ahmad Khan Sarangkhani succeeded with a rank of 20,000 sawars. To 

strengthen his position in a region where the old Jaunpuri nobles were still strong, Ahmad Khan 

appointed Hasan Sur to the iqta of Sahsaram and Khawaspur-Tanda with a rank of 500 sawars (c.1510). 

This was a big raise because Hasan Sur now became a small noble with a standard (flag). Another Sur 

whom Ahmad Khan promoted at this time was Muhammad Khan Sur under whose father Ibrahim Sur 

had served for some time. He was given the adjacent pargana of Chaund with the rank of 1500 sawars. 

Thus, Hasan Khan Sur was not the only person who rose rapidly at a time when bold, adventurous men 

were needed to settle areas which were still under the control of the old Jaunpur nobles, the local 

Rajput rajas and tribal chiefs.

We do not know precisely when and where Farid, later Sher Shah, was born. The consensus of opinion 

among modern scholars 

72 

is that he was born in Narnaul in 1486 or so, during the reign of Bahlol Lodi (d. 1489). We know little 

about the early education of Farid except that, angry at his father's neglect of his mother in preference 

to a younger wife-an Indian slave-girl, Farid came to Jaunpur, and spent a couple of years studying 

religious works, Arabic, history etc. at one of the well-known madrasahs there. After some time, he was 

reconciled to his father who gave him administrative charges of the two parganas held by him (1515-16). 

This gave young Farid first hand experience of the functioning of administration at the pargana and 

village levels.

By all accounts, Farid gave a good account of himself, and helped to settle the parganas distracted by 

Rajput zamindars who could defy the shiqdar on account of the dense jungles around their villages. Farid 

raised local levies to cut down the jungles, and in the case of recalcitrant villages, slaughtered all the 

men, enslaved their women and children, and settled new peasants. To the other villagers, he was strict 

in collecting the dues, but generous in levying them. However, after 3-4 years (1519), due to the 

intrigues of his step-mother, Farid was displaced from his charge. Angry and without a job, Farid took to 

brigandage, robbing the Hindu rajas and zamindars of north and east Bihar. After some time, however, 

he joined the service of Taj Khan Sarangkhani, the commander of Chunar, and then of Nasir Khan 

Nuhani, the muqta of sarkar Ghazipur. A little later, we find him at Agra where he entered the service of 

Darya Khan naib. He submitted a petition to the then ruler, Ibrahim Lodi, through his patron, to dismiss 

his father from his jagir of Sahsaram as he was too old and under the influence of his Indian slave -girl. 

Ibrahim Lodi sternly turned down his request, censoring him for making a petition against his own 

father. However, he relented when Hasan Khan died (c. 1524). Armed wi th Ibrahim Lodi's farman, Farid 

came to Sahsaram and ousted his step-brothers who had taken possession of his father's property and 

jagir in his absence. There now began the usual tale of family intrigue. Farid's brothers repaired to 

Muhammad Khan Sur, the powerful jagirdar of Chaund, who offered to mediate between Farid and his 

step-brothers. To counter this, Farid, sought the help of Bahar Khan, son of Daulat Khan Nuhani who 

was the governor of Bihar. At issue was the principle whether the jagir should be divided like property 

between sons, as was the Pathan tradition. Farid rejected this, arguing that the traditions of Roh could 

not be continued in 

73 

Hindustan, and the jagir should go to whomsoever the Sultan desired.

Following the defeat of Ibrahim Lodi at Panipat, Bahar Khan declared himself king, under the name 

Sultan Muhammad Shah. Many Afghans who were close to him were honoured. Among these was Farid, 

who according to a modern historian K.R. Qanungo, was awarded the title of Sher Khan either on this 

occasion or earlier for services rendered rather than for killing a tiger (sher), as the Afghan historians 

would have us believe.

Thus, by 1526, by the time Babur established himself in India, Sher Khan had risen to the position of 

being an important figure in the politics of Bihar. He was about forty years at the time, and his rise was 

by no means a sudden one.

The Social and Political background to the Rise of Sher Khan in Bihar

The conflict between Sher Khan and Humayun has been often seen as a conflict between Afghans and 

Mughals, largely ignoring the social and political background of east U.P. and Bihar which played no 

small role in the conflict. An important factor was the attempt of the Nuhanis to establish a separate 

kingdom in Bihar, in opposition to the rulers of Bengal on one hand, and the Mughals on the other. The 

Sarwanis and Farmulis, who had a strong position in east U.P., wanted to restore the old kingdom of 

Jaunpur. For the purpose, they sometimes used the Nuhani king of Bihar, and sometimes Mahmud Lodi, 

the younger brother of Ibrahim Lodi. They could not succeed and, in the process, destabilized the 

Nuhani regime in Bihar. Sultan Muhammad died shortly after the battle of Panipat and along with him, 

the Nuhani dynasty of Bihar virtually came to an end. It was kept alive for some time only due to the 

efforts of Sher Khan.

There was a conflict in almost every Afghan noble household over the transfer or division of the iqta, or 

if we prefer the later word, jagir, held by a member of the family. Babur took advantage of this situation 

by winning over to his side some of the leading Afghan nobles. Thus, Bayazid Farmuli, the brother of 

Maruf, who had been contending for a long with his brother about the iqta of Awadh held by him, came 

over and was awarded Awadh. Likewise, Nasir Nuhani's brother, Mahmud Nuhani, came over and was 

given the iqta of Ghazipur held by his brother. Likewise, Fath Khan Sarwani was given the title of Khan-ijahan and a large 

74 

jagir in east U.P. In this way, Babur threw a spanner among the Afghans of east U.P. Sher Khan, who had 

been ousted from his jagir by Muhammad Khan Sur, also came over to the Mughal governor of Jaunpur, 

Husain Barlas, and received from him his old jagir and a few additional parganas. However, many of 

these Afghan nobles defected, and raised the standard of Afghan nationalism. Threatened first from the 

side of Sanga and later, under Humayun, from the side of Bahadur Shah, the Mughals were not in a 

position to ensure the continued possession of their jagirs by these Mughal-supported Afghan nobles in 

the face of the forces raised by their rivals who gathered first under the banner of Sultan Muhammad, 

and later under Sultan Mahmud Lodi. Sher Khan was also was one of those who defected.

Another factor which helped in the rise of Sher Khan was the important position enjoyed by women in 

Afghan society. This was perhaps a continuation of the greater freedom women traditionally enjoyed in 

tribal societies, as compared to more feudalised hierarchical ones. Thus, when the ruler of Bihar, 

Muhammad Shah, died shortly after Babur's victory at Panipat, power passed into the hands of his 

widow, Dudu, his son, Jalal, being a minor. Sher Khan won over the confidence ot Dudu who appointed 

him the guardian of Jalal leaving the affairs of state in his hands. In another case, when the commandant 

of fort Chunar, Taj Khan Sarangkhani died, his wealth and power passed into the hands of his wife, Lad 

Malika, despite the presence of her stepsons. In the troubled situation, and to save herself, Lad Malika 

proposed marriage to Sher Khan, and at the marriage presented him, according to Abbas Sarwani, one 

hundred and fifty pieces of rare jewels, seven mans of pearls, and 150 mans of gold. Thus, Sher Khan not 

only got money to raise a large army but a powerful fort with the parganas attached to it. Soon, Sher 

Khan had another lucky break. Gauhar Gosain, the childless wife of Nasir Khan 

1Abbas Khan Sarwani, author of Tarikh-i-Sher Shahi, reflecting the less favourable view of women 

prevailing in the more hierarchical society during Akbar's reign, says: " The wise-men have said. " Do not 

repose your trust in women and do not tell them your secrets. Do not take counsel from them in all 

matters and hide from them the amount of your wealth and treasures except your power... It is said that 

jealousy is innate in the very nature of women. They are deficient in wisdom and are well known for 

their variety of cunning expedience. One should not, therefore, be led away by them." 

75 

Nuhani of Ghazipur, was widowed, and as Sher Khan had been in the service of Nasir Khan at one time, 

she proposed marriage to him, and brought him 300 mans of gold. A little later, Bibi Fath Malika, 

daughter of Mian Muhammad Kalapahar Farmuli, who was the sister's son of Sultan Bahlol, came into 

great wealth. She had, with her wealth, supported her husband's brother, Maruf Farmuli, in his 

opposition to the Mughals. After his death, she thought at first of retreating into Bhata (Rewa) in 

Bundelkhand to save her property, but was persuaded by Sher Khan to come to him on a solemn oath of 

protection and non-interference with her wealth and liberty of action. But a little later, Sher Khan took 

300 mans of gold from her or, according to some manuscripts, 70 mans, leaving her a small amount of 

gold and some villages for her maintenance.1

There has been a lot of discussion about the role of Sher Khan in the battle fought by Babur at Ghagra 

(1529) against the Afghan leaders, Biban and Bayazid, and at Dadrah (1532) ag ainst them by Humayun. 

In both cases, Sher Khan was compelled to join the Afghan rebels against his wishes, but he was not 

enthusiastic about a separate Afghan kingdom in Jaunpur because it would have adversely effected his 

position in Sahsaram, and because he had his own ambitions in Bihar. Also, while he considered Biban 

and Bayazid to be brave warriors, he had a poor opinion about their political sagacity and organizing 

capacities. However, Sher Khan's staying away from the battle of Dadrah cannot be considered the 

cause of the defeat of the Afghan leaders who were internally divided, and had no clear plans of battle.

In a manner of speaking, it was Babur who gave Sher Khan the opening which he fully exploited. After 

the death of Sultan Muhammad, his widow Dudu had joined the Bengal king, Sultan Nusrat Shah who 

had already acquired a dominating position in Bihar, having extended his control from Tirhut to Ballia. 

To counter this, Babur restored the Nuhani kingdom, only asking Jalal to pay him one krore of tankas 

annually. As we have noted, since Dudu, the Queen mother, was unable to manage the affairs herself, 

she appointed Sher Khan as naib (deputy) and tutor to her minor son, Jalal, and left all affairs of state in 

his hands, making him the virtual ruler of Bihar. Sher Khan devoted himself in improving the 

administration of Bihar, and centralising power in his hands till the Nuhani chiefs became jealous, and 

began to intrigue against him.

76 

It was the conflict between Bihar and Bengal, and Babur's reluctance to be drawn into it, keeping out of 

Bihar, that gave Sher Khan the first opening in his scheme of dominating Bihar. Renewal of the conflict 

between Bihar and Bengal gave him the next chance. Afraid of the growing power of Sher Khan, the 

ruler of Bihar, Jalal Khan after the death of his mother fled for protection of Sultan Nusrat Shah of 

Bengal who found this a good excuse to invade Bihar and crush Sher Khan. However, the inv-asion 

failed, and only added to the wealth and power of Sher Khan. Also, from now on, the Nuhani dynasty 

was no longer in the picture in Bihar, but had become the agent of an enemy power. 

Sultan Nusrat died in 1535, but the attempt to conquer Bihar was continued by his brother, Sultan 

Mahmud. Sultan Mahmud launched two campaigns, the first against Makhdum-i-Alam, the Bengali 

governor of North Bihar, who was accused of not having helped the earlier campaign against Bihar on 

account of his friendship with Sher Khan. The expedition failed. However, Makhdum-i-Alam was killed, 

and all his property which he had handed over to Sher Khan for safe-keeping in return for his help, 

passed into the hands of the latter. Sultan Mahmud now made a second and final bid to conquer Bihar. 

He sent a large force which was joined by the Nuhanis. But Sher Khan won a decisive victory against this 

combined force at Surajgarh (1534). Although this ended the Bengali threat to Bihar, Sher Khan was not 

prepared to take any chances. In the following year, he invaded Bengal, and forced Sultan Mahmud to 

cede territory upto Sikrigali and to pay a huge indemnity. Sultan Mahmud now tried to seek the support 

of the Portuguese, almost like Sultan Bahadur in Gujarat. To counter this, in 1537, Sher Khan's son, Jalal 

Khan, invaded and captured Gaur after a siege. This meant the virtual end of Sultan Mahmud's dynasty. 

It also ended the danger of Portuguese encroachments on east Bengal.

Thus, the fluid position in eastern U.P. and Bihar which lasted for a considerable period due to Mughal 

pre-occupations elsewhere, the socio-political position inside Bihar and east U.P., and the continuing 

Bihar-Bengal conflict played a definite role in the rise of Sher Khan, Sher Khan was the leading person in 

Bihar ever since the death of Sultan Muhammad (c. 1530) and had at his credit many victories over the 

powerful kingdom of Bengal. Thus, he was far more powerful and self-confident than Humayun ever 

envisaged, or gave him credit for.

77 

The Sur Empire (1540-56)

After his victory over Humayun at Kannauj, Sher Shah formally crowned himself. His first task was to 

hound the Mughals out of India, and to ensure that they were not able to return. He was able to do this 

without much difficulty on account of the deep division in the Mughal camp. As we have seen, at Lahore 

Kamran was neither prepared to fight Sher Khan, nor allow Humayun to take over Kabul, thus forcing 

Humayun to seek his fortune in Sindh, almost alone. At Sher Shah's approach to Lahore Kamran 

retreated to Kabul while Mirza Haider Dughlat moved to Kashmir, and conquered it. Sher Shah's forces 

marched upto the Khyber. While Sher Shah was at Khushab, many Afghan leaders from Roh called on 

him and received favours, while many Afghans from Roh joined his armies. But Sher Shah wisely decided 

not to try and incorporate the freedom-loving Afghans in the area into his empire. Thus, his empire did 

not extend beyond the Indus. This suggests that by this time most of the Afghans who had come to India 

at the time of Bahlol Lodi had become Indianized, and looked upon India as their home. However, as a 

protective measure, Sher Shah thoroughly subdued the Gakhhars who lived in the Salt Ranges, and put 

up a new powerful fort at Rohtas to control them, and to interpose a check on any possible Mughal 

incursion into India. The task of completing this w ork was entrusted to Todar Mal Khatri.

As a part of Humayun's pursuit, Sher Shah had sent an army to Multan, and himself spent some time 

there. This was to put pressure on the rulers of Sindh not to support Humayun, but to capture him. 

Multan, which was considered to be a part of Punjab, was brought under Sher Shah's control, but no 

effort was made at this stage to enter upper Sindh, and to pursue Humayun any further. As it was, with 

the dispersal of the Mughal forces, Humayun was no longer a threat to Sher Shah.

Two years later, in 1543, Sher Shah organized a campaign to liberate Multan from the Biloch tribes 

which had over-run it. The commander, Haibat Khan Niazi, was asked " to destroy the robber chief Fath 

Khan Jat of (Kot) Kabulah and expel the Baloches from Multan and restore its prosperity." Perhaps, this 

step was designed to safeguard India's trade with West and Central Asia in which Multan was a principal 

mart. This was also the purpose of Sher Shah building a new road from Lahore to Multan. The step also 

had a strategic purpose: it was designed to put pressure on 

78 

Maldeo who was hobnobbing with Humayun. Haibt Khan carried out a thorough policy of pacification, 

and Multan as well as upper Sindh, including Bhakkar and Sehwan, were annexed to the Afghan empire.

Having secured his position in Punjab and the North West, Sher Shah had time to building up a sound 

system of administration, rather than to engage himself in a career of constant conquest, as was the 

current ideal. Thus,,apart from pinpricks, no serious effort was made to dislodge Mirza Haider Dughlat 

from Kashmir, even though he had proclaimed Humayun as the sovereign by having the khutba and 

sikka in his name. First, Sher Shah nipped in the bud signs of a rebellion in Bengal, where the l ocal 

governor had married a daughter of the late Sultan Mahmud, and started reviewing troops sitting on a 

raised platform like the former Bengal rulers. Thereafter, Sher Shah's campaigns were confined to 

Malwa, Rajasthan, and, as we have seen, Multan and Upper Sindh. His last step was to assert his 

suzerainty over Bundelkhand. We are told that he had planned to invade the Deccan, i.e. Khandesh and 

Ahmadnagar, after this campaign.

After the retreat of Humayun from Malwa, Mallu Khan had, under the title of Qadir Khan, declared 

himself king, but he had been forced to allow local chiefs, including the Rajputs of Chanderi and Raisin, 

to function as almost independent potentates. Sher Khan invaded and conquered Malwa in 1542, but 

allowed many of the Hindu rajas to continue in their principalities. The following year, he returned to 

Malwa to crush a rebellion there, and used the opportunity to oust the powerful Rajput chief Puranmal 

from Chanderi-22 miles from modern Bhopal. Puran Mal who had defied Sher Shah earlier, withstood 

the siege. He came out of the fort with four thousand Rajputs and their families after a binding 

agreement had been reached by the two parties. But the Rajputs and their families were slaughtered 

when they were resting near Sher Shah's camp, despite the promise of a solemn safe conduct. This is a 

blemish on Sher Shah which cannot be washed away by the argument of some Afghan historians that no 

promise needed to be kept with an infidel king, and that the Rajputs had kept Muslim women from 

respected families in their houses, a charge which Puran Mal had denied. It might be mentioned that a 

similar charge was levied earlier on his father, Silhadi.

The conquest of Malwa and Chanderi was a prelude to the conquest of Marwar where Maldeo had 

ascended the gaddi in 

79 

1531. He had steadily augmented his power till it comprised almost the whole of western and eastern 

Rajasthan including Sambhal and Narnaul in Shekhawati. His armies were also said to have been seen 

near Hindaun and Bayana on the outskirts of Agra. He had strongly fortified the old forts, such as those 

of Ajmer, Merta and Jodhpur, and built new ones at strategic points. His conquest of Satalmir and 

Pokharan had enabled him to induct into his army large number of Bhatis who were famous for their 

valour. His last conquest had been that of Bikaner ruled by his kinsmen who had died fighting to the last 

man before the fort surrendered. However, two of the ruler's son, Kalyanmal and Bhim, had escaped 

earlier, and taken shelter at the court of Sher Shah, along with Biramdeo of Merta.

In his mad policy of expansionism, Maldeo came into conflict not only with the thikanedars (hereditary 

fief, holders) his kinsmen, subordinate to him whom he had ousted from their thikanas, but also with 

the Rana of Mewar, the Kachhawahas, the Shaikhawati chiefs etc. These internal divisions played a big 

role in the subsequent defeat and downfall of Maldeo.

It is difficult to say what the true ambitions of Maldeo were. That he wanted to establish a Rathor 

hegemony over the whole of Rajasthan is understandable. But the argument of K.R. Qanungo that he 

had before him the vision of a political mirage of reviving the eighth century Rashtrakuta empire 

appears unhistorical. As Qanungo himself points out, unlike Sanga, Maldeo did not have the support of 

the Rajput " tribes" i.e. various clans of Rajputs or even his own clan of Rathors because of his policy of 

unbridled aggrandizement and his many faults of character. However, in term of real politik, no empire 

based only on Rajasthan could hope to successfully challenge and defeat a power which had behind it 

the backing and combined resources of Punjab and the Upper Ganga Valley upto the border of Bihar. 

Maldeo was aware of this, and shrank from an open confrontation with Sher Shah. Thus, after his 

conquest of Malwa in 1541, Sher Shah occupied Ranthambhor, and the Kachhawaha country of eastern 

Rajasthan without encountering any opposition from Maldeo. Sher Shah's next step was to capture 

Shaikhawati, including Nagor. This and a message to Maldeo agreeing to recognize his conquest of 

Bikaner if he would expel or capture Humayun, with an implied threat of invasion if he did not comply 

was sufficient for Maldeo to grow cold towards Humayun who was advancing towards 

80 

Jodhpur with a small retinue on the basis of an earlier invitation extended to him by Maldeo. In this 

changed situation, it was wise for Humayun to turn away, though it does not follow that Maldeo had 

intended to arrest his own guest. This averted Sher Shah's threatened invasion, but as events proved, it 

only postponed the day of reckoning. No power based on Delhi and Agra was likely to tolerate a power 

in Rajasthan which could threaten it from the flanks, and disrupt communications with Malwa and 

Gujarat.

Early in 1543, Sher Shah advanced from Agra with an army of 80,000 horses, and a strong park of 

artillery, and camped at Jaitaran, mid-way between Jodhpur and Ajmer. Maldeo had an army of 50,000 

but the Rajputs lacked artillery. In his usual fashion, Sher Shah had dug trenches and earthworks around 

his camp to protect his position including his artillery. It would have been suicidal for Maldeo to attack 

the well fortified Afghan camp. After facing each other for a month, it seems that Rao Maldeo wanted to 

retreat to Jodhpur and Siwana where he could prepare a better defence. But this was not to the liking of 

Maldeo's sardars who considered retreat, even a strategic one, to be dishonourable. Difference of 

opinion, or forged letters from Sher Shah sowing doubts in Maldeo's mind about the loyalty of some of 

his sardars, led to disunity in the Rajput camp of which Sher Shah took advantage. While Maldeo 

retreated with the bulk of his army, Sher Shah had little difficulty in overcoming the small gallant band 

of Rajputs. Maldeo took shelter in the fort of Siwana, but Jodhpur and Ajmer fell to the Afghans. After 

establishing his outposts there, Sher Shah turned to Mewar. The Rana purchased peace by surrendering 

Chittor. Sher Shah set up his out-posts upto Mt. Abu. Thus, he became master of all Rajasthan except a 

tract in the west. Sher Shah's oft quoted remarks that " I had given away the country of Delhi in 

exchange for a handful of millets" should not lead us to conclude that victory was almost in Maldeo's 

grasp if he had attacked boldly. Sher Shah's remark was, in fact, a tribute to the gallantry of Jaita and 

Kupa, the leaders of the Marwar army, and the willingness of the Rajputs to face death even in the face 

of impossible odds.

The conquest of Rajasthan should logically have led to the conquest of Gujarat, upper Sindh with its 

capital at Bhakhar, having been captured earlier. But for some odd reason, from Rajasthan Sher Shah 

turned to the conquest of Bhata (Rewa) in Bundelkhand. While besieging its fort, Kalinjar, Sher Shah 

died in 

81 

May 1545 from burns when a rocket rebounded from the wall, and set fire to a bundle of rockets where 

he was standing. But he had the satisfaction of seeing the surrender of the fort before he died.

Sher Shah was succeeded by his second son, Jalal Khan, who took the title of Islam Shah. Islam Shah's 

reign of almost nine years was spent mostly in the civil war with his elder brother, Adil Khan, and in 

struggle with the nobility. Although Islam Shah had been a noted warrior in Sher Shah's time, he was 

both harsh and deeply suspicious, specially in his dealings with those nobles who had been close to his 

father, and who had helped to build the empire. At the same time, Islam Shah tried to assert the 

superior position of the monarchy, treating the nobles as servitors instead of being considered partners 

in the kingdom, as was the Afghan tradition. Thus, he issued detailed instructions which were read out 

every Friday in a gathering of high grandees where the slipper and the quiver of the Sultan were put on 

a high chair (qursi), and all the high grandees who were commanders of 20,000 or 10,000 or 5000 

sawars advanced in proper orders and bowed to them. He also tried to exercise greater financial control 

over the iqtas or jagirs of the nobles which led to the charge that he wanted to bring all the jagirs under 

imperial control (khalisa). He also tried to pay cash salaries to the soldiers, instead of jagirs.

All these steps led to resentment on the part of the Afghan nobles which burst forth after the death of 

Islam Shah in 1553, and led to the speedy disintegration of the Sur empire. This gave an opportunity to 

the Mughals to reassert themselves.

Contribution of Sher Shah and Islam Shah

Although Sher Shah ruled only for about five years, he has many contributions to his credit. Sher Shah's 

foremost contribution was the establishment of law and order over the length and breadth of the 

empire. Sher Shah laid great emphasis on making the roads safe, and took stern action against robbers 

and dacoits. He was convinced that the safety of the roads could only be ensured if the zamindars, some 

of whom were in league with the robbers, were kept under control. Thus, he took stern action against 

Fath Khan Jat who had devastated the entire tract of Lakhi Jungle (in the modern Montgomery district, 

and the old sarkar of Dipalpur) and had caused confusion from Lahore to Delhi by his violent behaviour. 

The governors of the sarkars Sambhal (near modern 

82 

Moradabad) and of Lucknow suppressed the contumacious zamindars and rebels of the area so 

thoroughly that, we are told, they cut with their own hands the jungles " which they had nursed like 

their own babes" where they had found shelter, and sought deliverance after repenting for having 

committed theft and highway robbery. Similarly, we are told that the governor of Kannauj dealt sternly 

with rebels and highway plunderers in the area under his control. Thus, establishment of law and order 

implied not only making the roads safe, but of bringing to book zamindars and the raiyat which were

remiss in paying land revenue, or in carrying out imperial orders.

Sher Shah laid great emphasis on improving roads and the system of communications, both to help 

military movements and to foster trade and commerce. The roads also ensured greater control over the 

countryside. Thus, he restored the old imperial road from the river Indus in the west to Sonargaon in 

Bengal. He also built a road from Agra to Jodhpur and Chittor, which must have linked up with the roads 

leading to the sea-ports of Gujarat. He built a third road from Lahore to Multan which was the starting 

point for caravans to west and central Asia. He built a fourth road from Agra to Burhanpur, again linking 

it with the roads leading to the sea-ports of Gujarat. We are told that for ensuring safety on the roads 

and for extending comforts to the travellers, he built sarais on the highway at a distance of two karohs 

(4 miles). Separate apartments were built for the Hindus and the Muslims where they could get beds 

and cooked food, and Muslim and Brahman cooks were appointed for the purpose. There also was 

provision for uncooked food-supplies being given to Hindus who had their own caste rules. According to 

Abbas Khan, Sher Shah made a rule to the effect that " whoever came to the sarai was to be served with 

food out of government money according to one's rank and his pony was given grain and drink." A 

custodian (shahna) was appointed in each sarai to safeguard the goods of the merchants, and rent-free 

lands were allotted in the neighbourhood for their expenses, and for the expenses of the imam and the 

muezzin for the mosque which was built in each sarai.

We are told that Sher Shah built 1700 such sarais. They were really fortified inns, and were built strongly 

because some of them have survived even to-day. We are told that Sher Shah caused markets to be set 

up in every sarai. Many of the sarais became 

83 

mandis where the peasants came to sell their produce, and were the nucleus for the growth of towns 

(qasbas) where trade and handicrafts developed.

These sarais must have been popular because we are told that later, Islam Shah ordered a sarai to be 

built between every two sarais of Sher Shah. The sarais were also used for dak chowkis (postal service) 

for which two horses were kept at every sarai. By this means, by relays of horses news from a distance 

of 300 kos could reach in a day.

Sher Shah adopted other measures, too, to promote trade and commerce. He struck fine coins of silver 

and copper of uniform standard in place of the debased coins of mixed metals of earlier times. His silver 

rupee remained a standard coin for a long time. He also made some effort to standardize weights and 

measures.

In Sher Shah's empire, goods paid customs duty only two times—at the place of entry and at the time of 

sale. As an example, Abbas Sarwani tells us: " When they (the merchandise) came from Bengal, the 

custom was levied at Garhi (Sikrigali)" . He adds, " When it (merchandize) came from the direction of 

Khurasan, the custom duty was levied on the borders of the kingdom, and again a second duty was 

levied at the place of sale." It is not clear why the produce of Bengal was clubbed with foreign 

merchandize. Abbas Sarwani goes on to say, " No one dared to levy other customs, either on the road or 

at the ferries, in town or village." 

For the safety and tranquility of the roads Sher Shah made it a rule to make the muqaddams (headmen 

of villages) and zamindars responsible for apprehending the culprits if the theft took place within their 

charge, or to make good the loss if they were unable to do so. If murder had been carried out, and the 

murderer not traced, the muqaddams themselves were to be put to death. It was a barbrous rule to club 

the innocent with the guilty, but it was based on the principle that theft and highway robbery were 

committed either at the instance of the muqaddams or that the muqaddams at least had full

information about them. In any case, Sher Shah's approach appear to have yielded good results so that 

Abbas Sarwani uses the traditional metaphor for the situation that " In the days of the rule of Sher Khan 

if an old white-haired woman proceeded on the road with a basket full of good and ornaments on her 

head, none of the thieves and night patrols, out of dread of Sher Khan, could even go near her." This 

was a 

84 

traditional metaphor used by many writers to emphasize safety on the roads, and is not meant to be 

taken literally. Abbas Khan's emphasis was on the dictum " First make the roads safe from the robbers, if 

you want the country to remain populous and prosperous." 

Sher Shah also urged the local and other officials not to injure the travellers and the merchants, and not 

to lay their hands on the property of the merchants if any one of them should die by accident and 

without heirs. Also, officials were to purchase goods from the merchants only at their market price. That 

these injunctions were not always followed in practice is shown by similar regulations being made later 

on by Jahangir, and Bernier's complaint of the mistreatment of the merchants by high nobles under 

Shah Jahan.

It has been said that the most striking contribution of Sher Shah was his reform of the revenue system. 

He was well qualified to do so because he was fully acquainted with the prevailing revenue system as 

incharge of his father's jagir, and as the virtual ruler of Bihar for ten years after 1530. Sher Shah wanted 

that the assessment of land-revenue should not be based on cropsharing or estimation. Nor should the 

village head-men and zamindars be allowed to pass their burden on to the shoulders of the weaker 

sections. Hence, as a ruler, he insisted upon the system of measurement (zabt). Although a system of 

measurement of the sown area was very old in India, and had been instituted or revived by Alauddin 

Khalji, the system of measurement introduced by Sher Shah was different from the traditional system. In 

the traditional system, the crop-yield was estimated on the basis of sample cuttings in the sown area. 

Under Sher Shah, lands were divided into three categories — good, bad and middling, and the average 

yield computed. One-third of the average yield was the share of the state. On this basis, a crop-rate (ray) 

was drawn up, so that as soon as the sown field was measured, the share of the state could be 

determined. This could then be converted into rupees on the basis of local rates. The peasants were 

given the option of paying in cash or kind, though Sher Khan preferred cash. We are told that only 

Multan was excluded from measurement on account of special circumstances, the old system 

continuing there, with the state share being only one-fourth. He also laid down the charges to be paid to 

the measuring parties. 

85 

The measurement of fields was to be carried out every year. As a safeguard against famine which was a 

recurrent feature, a cess at the rate of two and a half seers per bigha was also levied.

There has been a good deal of controversy as to the extent to which these reforms were applied to 

different parts of the empire under Sher Shah and Islam Shah, and whether the settlement was made 

with each individual cultivator, or with the village headmen (muqaddams) and zamindars. Although Abul 

Fazl says that under Sher Shah and Islam Shah, Hindustan passed from crop-sharing and estimation to 

measurement, detailed study by Irfan Habib show that even under Akbar the system of measurement 

was prevalent only in the settled parts of the empire in the doab, Punjab and Malwa, and that even 

there it is probable that it did not cover the whole land in any province. However, the starting of the 

zabt system was undoubtedly a significant development. We are told that the amount each peasant had 

to pay was written down on a paper called patta, and each one was informed of it. No one was allowed 

to charge anything extra. This has led some modern historians to compare it to the ryotwari system of 

the British whereby the state established direct relations with the peasants. However, modern research 

does not support this. While an attempt was made to assess the obligations of individual cultivators, the 

local head-men and zamindars were involved both in the process of assessment and collection of the 

land-revenue, and received remuneration for their services. No attempt was made by the medieval state 

to do away with the muqaddams and the zamindars because it was in no position to do so. All that it 

could do was to limit their exactions.

We find some contradictory elements in Sher Shah's attitude towards the peasantry. We are told that he 

was very solicious of the interests of the peasantry. While looking after his father's jagir, he is supposed 

to have said, " I know that the humble raiyat are the pivot of agriculture. If they are happy the 

cultivation will thrive. If the raiyat are in a bad condition, the agricultural output will diminish." Thus, he 

was very careful that when his army marched the cultivated fields were not affected. Horsemen were 

posted to prevent the soldiers entering into the cultivated portions of the farmers' land, and he took 

stern action against those soldiers who were found violating this. Abbas Khan says that if on account of 

the narrowness of the passage, the cultivation came to be trampled down by acts of necessity, 

trustworthy amins were 

86 

appointed to measure the devastated portion of the cultivation and then to pay the compensation 

money to the raiyat.

However, Sher Shah solicitude applied only to peasants who were fully loyal, observed the imperial 

regulations, and paid their dues without demurr. No mercy was to be shown to those zamindars and 

their followers who were remiss in making the payments, or did not attend the office of the amils. In 

that case, their villages were to be captured, the men slain, women and children enslaved, their animals 

and property seized, and new peasants settled in the area. This, apparently, was a traditional practice.

It does not seem that Sher Shah made any changes in the system of government in the country. The 

lowest unit was the pargana which comprised a number of villages. Each village had a headman 

(muqaddam) who looked after law and order, and a patwari who kept accounts. Neither of them were 

government servants, but were entitled to a share in the produce. The pargana was under the charge of 

a shiqdar who looked after law and order and general administration, and a munsif or amil whose 

responsibility was to measure the land for land-revenue. Both these officials were responsible for the 

collection of land-revenue. They were assisted by two clerks who maintained accounts both in Persian 

and the local language (Hindavi).* There was also a khazanadar or poddar who kept the cash and the 

money collected. Sher Shah considered the posts of amils to be profitable ones, and changed the amils 

every two years so that others close to him could also benefit. This implies that the regulations he had 

made prohibiting collection of cesses and charges beyond those permitted were flouted in practice, and 

he had no means of stopping it.

Above the pargana was the shiq to which the word sarkar had begun to be used increasingly from the 

time of the Lodis. Although we are told that the sarkar was headed by a shiqdar-i-shiqdaran, no persons 

with such a title is found anywhere. The word used for the head of the sarkar was the faujdar or the 

muqta, and he was assisted by a munsif or munsif-i-munsifan who was responsible for the assessment of 

land revenue, and settling the boundary disputes between parganas. Both these officials were 

responsible for the collection of land-revenue which sometimes implied militarily operations, as we have 

seen.

There has been a lot of controversy whether Sher Shah had a system of provincial organization or not. 

Recent research shows 

87 

that in the Sultanat there was no provincial organization as such but sometimes a number of shiqs were 

grouped together, and called khitta or vilayat. This generally happened in frontier areas such as Bengal 

or Punjab, or some of the more turbulent areas. It appears that Sher Shah more or less maintained the 

same system. In Lahore, Bihar, Multan, Jodhpur, Ranthambhor and the hill-areas around Nagarkot, a 

number of shiqs or sarkars were group together under the control of an amin or muqta who was really a 

military commander. Thus, Haibat Khan Niazi was placed in charge of the vilayat of Punjab, Haji Khan 

was placed in charge of entire Malwa, and Khawas Khan was placed in charge of the vilayat of Jodhpur 

so that the faujdars of the sarkars of Ajmer, Nagor, Mewat were under him. Bengal was fragmented into 

units or shiqs because of fear of rebellion, and a non-military man, Qazi Fazilat, was appointed amin, 

merely to coordinate.

Thus, provincial governments evolved only under the Mughals. Sher Shah's contribution was to stabilize 

and further consolidate the boundaries and structure of the shiqs or sarkars which remained the real 

unit of administration even under the Mughals.

We know very little about the structure of the central government under Sher Shah. We are told that 

Sher Shah did not like the Mughal system of government in which large powers were left in the hands of 

the ministers who were corrupt. Hence, he looked into everything himself, and devoted himself to work 

unremittingly, and constantly toured the country.

This type of personal administration is supposed to be typified by his army organization. He introduced 

the branding system (dagh) of the horses and descriptive-rolls (chehra) which had fallen into disuse. He 

imposed it very harshly. Descriptive rolls of even sweepers and female slaves in the palace were 

recorded. We are told that he used to personally interview every soldier and fixed his pay before he was 

inducted into the army, and had the horses branded in his own presence. He maintained a personal 

army of 150,000 cavalry, 25,000 bowen and infantry men, including matchlock-men and bowmen, a park 

of artillery and 5,000 war elephants. In addition, there were nobles, some of whom were commanders 

of 20,000 sawars, or 10,000 or 5,000 sawars. We do not know how their soldiers were recruited. 

Perhaps, the Afghan nobles must have recruited them on a tribal basis. Although we are told that Sher 

Shah himself fixed the monthly stipends of newly recruited soldiers, we do not know how much they 

were 

88 

paid. It seems that both the nobles and the soldiers were paid by means of land-assignments or iqtas. 

Before undertaking any campaign, he asked his chiefs and soldiers if any of them was without iqtas so 

that arrangements could be made for grants to them before setting out. The chiefs were under strict 

instructions not to take anything out of the iqtas reserved for the soldiers. Thus, the question of Sher 

Shah wanting to do away with the iqta or jagir system does not arise.

However, howsoever hard an individual might work, it was impossible for him to personally supervise 

the administration of a vast country such as Hindustan. It seems that there was a revenue department 

and a department of the ariz which looked after the army. There also was a sadr who looked after the 

revenue-free grants made to religious people, scholars, etc., the sadr being asked to review all the 

grants made earlier. Thus, the traditional departments must have continued, but those at their head 

were perhaps allowed little power or authority. Such over-centralization proved harmful once a 

masterful man like Sher Shah had been removed from the scene.

Sher Shah gave great emphasis on justice. He used to say, " Justice is the most excellent of religious 

rites, and is approved alike by the king of infidels and of the faithful." Also that " None of the devotions 

and prayers can be equated with justice and here all the sections of infidels and Islam are one on the 

point." " Justice implied making no distinction between men of his own tribe and near relations and 

others in awarding punishment, and to prevent oppression by those in power, i.e. the high grandees and 

others to " avert the sighs of the injured and the oppressed." It is difficult to say how effective he was in 

practice in this sphere, despite the presence of a large number of spies who reported on everything. 

Qazis were appointed throughout the kingdom to dispense justice though we know little about their 

working. Panchayats and caste bodies must have continued to provide civil law to the Hindus, while 

zamindars and shiqdars were also involved in providing criminal justice.

Sher Shah's reputation as a builder rests largely on the magnificent mosoleum he had built for himself at 

Sahsaram which was in a class by itself for strength, stability and harmony. He built a city at Delhi on the 

bank of the Jamuna the only surviving parts of which are the Old Fort with its massive battlements, and 

the magnificent mosque inside it. These examples 

89 

suffice to show that Sher Shah had great understanding and sensibility for architecture.

Although Sher Shah was generous in providing support and patronage to religious divines and scholars, 

the Sur period was too brief to produce any remarkable work of note, the only exception being the Hindi 

work Padmavat by Malik Muhammad of Jais in east U.P.

Character of the State under the Surs

Sher Shah's state is said to be " a compromise between the Afghan and Turkish theories of sovereignty" 

The Afghan sardars were not supposed to be partners in the kingdom, but like Sher Shah himself, any of 

them could aspire to suzerainty. Although Sher Shah was a despot, and kept the nobles under strict 

control with the help of spies, he paid attention to the susceptibilities and needs of his nobles and the 

soldiers. He paid special attention to the recruitment of Afghans who rallied around him. Large jagirs or 

iqta were given to the nobles. Khawas Khan, a favourite and leading noble of Sher Khan, had the whole 

sarkar of Sirhind as his maintenance iqta which he placed under the charge of his slave, Bhagwant. 

Khawas Khan, it may be noted, was not an Afghan, but the son of an Indian slave of Sher Shah, Malik 

Sukkha. However, the nobility under Sher Shah and Islam Khan was predominantly Afghan. Recent 

research has shown that Barmazid Kur who was a close confidant of Sher Shah, and who had been 

appointed in charge of the sarkar of Ajmer after its conquest whom K.R. Qanungo had wrongly identified 

as Brahmajit Gaur as a brahman from east U.P., was in fact a Sur and was called as such by some of the 

Afghan historians of the time. The word " Kur" which meant one-eyed, or squint eyed was applied to 

him as a sobriquet. He had a reputation for cruelty because when Humayun fled from Agra after his 

defeat at Kannauj, Barmazid captured a few hundred Mughals and executed each one of them. He also 

killed any prisoner entrusted to him.

Sher Shah tempered his despotism by generosity and benevolence. He is reported to have ordered his 

high officials to maintain records of all the disabled and handicapped persons in different towns, cities

and territories. All of them received maintenance allowances as well as cash grants. He maintained a 

large langar khana (free kitchen) for the poor and the needy and this example was followed by some of 

his nobles.

90 

Sher Shah was an orthodox Muslim and observed his prayers regularly. He was well acquainted with 

religious sciences, and constantly associated with learned men and religious divines. However, he was 

not bigoted. The cruel treatment meted out to Puran Mal of Chanderi cannot be justified, but it was a 

political measure which was given a religious gloss. Although jizyah continued to be collected, it is called 

a city tax which implies that it was collected in the countryside as a part of land-revenue. There are no 

reference to destruction of temples. There are a few references to grant of rent-free lands not only to 

Muslims and foreign scholars, but also to brahmans, temples and maths. Thus, when Sher Shah was 

leading the expedition to Kalinjar, he met a brahman and was impressed by his frankness in speaking 

and gave him in grant one entire village in sarkar Kalpi and five hundred rupees in cash.

Islam Shah took an important step in limiting the influence of the ulama. He issued detailed orders not 

only on administration and revenue matters which had to be followed in every sarkar, but also in 

religious matters, without bothering whether they were in conformity of the sharia or not, and " none 

could dare refer any of these orders to the qazi or the mufti." As the administration tightened, more and

more Hindus were appointed to the revenue department, to the discomfiture of the Afghans. 

Opportunities for the Hindus broadened till under Adali, a successors of Islam Shah, Hemu, who had 

started official life as a shuhna of the market at Delhi, rose to the highest position of wazir. Although this happened in a period of disintegration, it showed a trend whereby the Afghans state set up by Sher Shah was slowly opening out and the social base of the ruling class becoming broader. But a basic change had to await the arrival of Akbar.