Founder: Sher Shah Suri
Capital: Delhi
Language: Pashto
Religion: Sunni Islam
Afghan dynasty that ruled northern India
(1540-56), founded by Sher Shah Suri (1540-45), who won great victories at Battle of Chausa (1539) and Battle of Kananj/Bilgram (1540) and drove the Mughals from Delhi.
The shah’s personal name was Farid Khan, the
title of Sher (“Tiger”) was conferred when, as a young man, he killed a tiger.
Sher Shah ruled the whole of north India for five years, annexing Malwa and
defeating the Rajputs. He reorganized the administration, laying foundations on
which the Mughal emperor Akbar later built. He was killed by a cannonball while
besieging the fortress of Kalinjar in central India.
