Shah Ismail I
Founded the Safavid state and made Twelver Shi'a Islam its official faith.
Era 9 of 12 · Station nine
The Safavids & the Mughals
In 1501 a fourteen-year-old named Ismail was crowned shah in Tabriz and began the Safavid dynasty of Iran. Twenty-five years later, at Panipat in northern India, Babur defeated the Sultan of Delhi and founded the Mughal Empire. Between them, these two states left Isfahan's tiled squares, the Taj Mahal and a Persian-language culture of poetry, painting and architecture that stretched from Iran to Bengal.
Who led, and when
Six who shaped the era
The rulers who shaped the era, in order.
Shah Abbas I
Moved the capital to Isfahan and reorganised the army and the state.
Babur
Descendant of Timur who won Delhi at Panipat and founded the Mughal line.
Akbar
Expanded the empire, built an efficient administration and gathered scholars and artists at court.
Shah Jahan
Mughal builder of the Taj Mahal and the Red Fort in Delhi.
Aurangzeb
Ruled for almost fifty years, and the empire reached its widest extent in his reign.
The lands of the era
From Iran to Kabul
The Safavids ruled the Iranian plateau while the Mughals ruled most of the Indian subcontinent. Persian was the language of the court and of poetry in both.
- IranSafavid heartland and Persian culture
- IsfahanShah Abbas's showpiece capital
- DelhiMughal capital and Red Fort
- AgraAkbar's fort and the Taj Mahal
- KabulBabur's base and burial place
This map is a simple sketch to help you picture where events took place. Positions, distances and borders are approximate, so please use it for reference only, not as an accurate map.
At a glance
The era in six facts
The years, the people, the places, and what the era left behind.
- Years
- 1501–1857Safavids 1501 to 1736 in Iran; Mughals 1526 to 1857 in India, ending after the uprising of 1857.
- Rulers
- Ismail I and Abbas I in Iran; Babur, Akbar, Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb in India.
- Capital
- Tabriz, Qazvin and then Isfahan (from c. 1598) for the Safavids; Agra and Delhi, with Fatehpur Sikri for a time, for the Mughals.
- Lands
- Iran and parts of the Caucasus and Iraq under the Safavids; northern India, the Deccan, Kabul and Bengal under the Mughals.
- Turning points
- The Safavid turn to Twelver Shi'ism in 1501, Panipat in 1526, Akbar's long reign from 1556, and Aurangzeb's death in 1707.
- Legacy
- Isfahan and the Taj Mahal, Persian and Urdu literature, miniature painting, and large Muslim communities across Iran and South Asia.
Key moments
Six stops on the road
- 1Ismail I is crowned shah in Tabriz at the age of fourteen.
- 2Babur defeats Ibrahim Lodi at Panipat on 21 April.
- 3Akbar becomes emperor at the age of thirteen.
- 4Shah Abbas I moves the Safavid capital to Isfahan.
- 5Work begins on the Taj Mahal at Agra for Shah Jahan's wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died in 1631.
- 6After the uprising, British rule replaces the Mughals, and Bahadur Shah Zafar, the last emperor, is later exiled to Rangoon.
The chapters
Read the era, in six parts
Six short chapters take you through the era in order.
- 01The Safavids and the new Iran1501–1736A new dynasty unites Iran, and Isfahan becomes its showpiece capital.Read
- 02Babur and the road to Delhi1526A Central Asian prince wins Delhi at Panipat and begins the Mughal line.Read
- 03Akbar1556–1605A young emperor builds a strong administration and a court of scholars and artists.Read
- 04Shah Jahan and the Taj Mahal1628–1658Marble, gardens and the Red Fort: the height of Mughal building.Read
- 05Aurangzeb1658–1707The empire reaches its widest extent in a reign of almost fifty years.Read
- 06Decline and the last Mughal1707–1857Regional powers rise, Delhi is raided, and British rule replaces the Mughals.Read
Rihla · a journey to play
Take the Rihla through this era
There is no journey for these two empires yet. Ibn Battuta's travels (Journey 6) reach Delhi in the 1330s, long before the Mughals.
Sources
Sources for this era
The books, lectures and maps behind this page are listed on our Sources page.
- Classical history
- Modern study
- Lecture series
- Map & atlas
How we choose sources
Classical histories first, checked against trusted modern scholarship. Approximate dates carry a “c.”
Athar’s sources