Humayun was the son of the first Mughal Emperor, Babur and he had ruled India after Babur’s death for a decade but was later expelled. He was thrown out of powers, while he was busy enjoying his luxurious palaces in Dilli and Agra, by an opportunist Sher Shah. Humayun eventually had to take refuge with the Safavid shah of Persia, who later helped him regain Dilli in 1555. Soon after regaining the throne Humayun passed away in 1556 after falling in his own library. His Persian wife, Hamida Banu Begum, supervised the construction from 1562-1572 of her husband’s tomb in Dilli.
The Humayun Tomb was built in 1565 A.D. on the bank of the Yamuna river adjoining the shrine of an important Sufi Chistiyya saint, Nizamud-Din Awliya. The Chistiyya was particularly venerated by the Mughals; Humayun’s son, Akbar, would build his new palace at Fatehpur Sikri next to the shrine of another saint of the Chistiyya order. Inside the walled enclosure of the tomb, the most notable features are the garden squares (charbagh) with pathways water channels, centrally located well proportional mausoleum topped by double dome.
There are several graves of Mughal rulers located inside the walled enclosure and from here in 1857 A.D; Lieutenant Hudson had captured the last Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah II. Located near the crossing of Mathura road and Lodhi road, this magnificent garden tomb is the first real example of Mughal architecture in India.
The Humayun Tomb established some of the important norms for later Mughal mausolea. It is set in a geometrically arranged garden criss-crossed by many water channels and probably representing symbolically a paradise setting. Such typical Persian gardens had been introduced into India by Babur; later they would be found in the Red Fort in Dilli and at the Taj Mahal in Agra.
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