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Akbar I, Abu al-Fath Jalal al-Din Muhammad
(r. 1556 – 1605 )
First great Mughal emperor. Upon his father Humayun 's death, the adolescent Akbar, third in the Timurid line, conquered and diplomatically integrated all but south India. Initially claiming ideological legitimation by applying Islamic law, leading prayer, and honoring the Sufi shaykh Muin al-Din Chishti , he later perfected absolute power and subjugated the religious scholars. Repealing the tax paid by non-Muslims and including non-Muslims throughout his administration and the military, Akbar established an enduring, indigenously rooted state that nurtured a unique Islamic civilization in South Asia. Some of his administrative and revenue systems were later adopted by the British.
