Hemu

Hemu : 1501-1556

Muhammad Adil Shah sat the throne after killing a Firoz Shah, the 12 year son of Islam Shah Suri. Muhammad Adil Shah was a debauched brute who left the real power in his trusted Hindu Vazir Hemu. There was a struggle among all the Suri cousins such as Sikandar Shah and Ibrahim Shah. Now the Suri Empire was divided into four Suris, none of them was important.

But, at that time, there was a revolt in Agra by one more Sur with the name Ibrahim. This Ibrahim defeated Adil Shah and became Emperor Ibrahim Shah Suri. But all of these surs were controlling separate territories, the broken slices of empire of Sher Shah as follows:

1. Delhi and Agra were now under Ibrahim Shah Suri
2. Agra to Bihar was under the defeated Adil Shah Suri.
3. Another comrade Ahamad Khan Suri, who styled himself as Sikandar Shah Suri took Punjab (Sirhind)
4. One more fellow Muhammad Khan Suri was now sovereign king of Bengal.

However, this division of empire did not end the rivalry among these Afghan rookies. Men of Sikandar Shah were able to swipe Ibrahim Shah out of Delhi and took possession of Delhi & Agra. The able prime minister of Adil Shah named Hemu appeared in the scene, defeated the Lodis, advanced to Bengal and killed Muhammad Khan Suri.

When Humayun died, this able Hindu general who, in his early life was a small time shopkeeper in Rewari in Haryana was in Bengal. He returned and defeated Tardi Beg, the general of Mughals in Agra and then advanced to crush the Mughal forces in Delhi. He defeated the Mughals at Delhi and styled himself with the historic title of “Raja Hemachandra Vikramaditya“.

The news reached Akbar, who had been newly proclaimed the “Shahanshah” at Sirhind, was struggling with Sikandar Shah. Sikandar Shah had been drove to the mountains and now Akbar was to fight this new Hindu threat “Hemu”. Akbar had the veteran general Bairam Khan at his side, who advised him to march Delhi and face Hemu.