Rulers
List of Mughal Emperors, 1526 to 1857
18 Mughal emperors ruled from 1526 to 1857. The average reign lasted 17.5 years and the longest was Akbar's, at 49 years. 3 were killed and 4 deposed or stepped down.
18rulers
17.5years, average reign
49 yrslongest: Akbar
3killed (17%)
Every ruler, with the length of each reign
1Babur
1526 to 1530
Died naturally. Founded the empire after Panipat. Wrote his memoir, the Baburnama, in Chagatai Turkish. Reigned 1526 to 1530.
2Humayun
1530 to 1556
Died naturally. Lost the throne to Sher Shah Suri, won it back with Persian help, and died months later after a fall on his library stairs. Reigned 1530 to 1540 and 1555 to 1556.
3Akbar
1556 to 1605
Died naturally. Came to the throne at 13. Built the Mughal administration and expanded the empire across north India. Reigned 1556 to 1605.
4Jahangir
1605 to 1627
Died naturally. His wife Nur Jahan was one of the most powerful women in Mughal history. Reigned 1605 to 1627.
5Shah Jahan
1628 to 1658
Deposed or abdicated. Built the Taj Mahal. Deposed by his son Aurangzeb and confined in Agra Fort until he died in 1666. Reigned 1628 to 1658.
6Aurangzeb (Alamgir I)
1658 to 1707
Died naturally. Ruled the empire at its largest and spent his last decades at war in the Deccan. Reigned 1658 to 1707.
7Bahadur Shah I
1707 to 1712
Died naturally. Reigned 1707 to 1712.
8Jahandar Shah
1712 to 1713
Killed. Strangled on the orders of his nephew Farrukhsiyar. Reigned 1712 to 1713.
9Farrukhsiyar
1713 to 1719
Killed. Deposed, blinded and killed by the Sayyid brothers. Reigned 1713 to 1719.
10Rafi ud-Darajat
1719 to 1719
Died naturally. A puppet of the Sayyid brothers who died of illness after a few months. Reigned 1719 to 1719.
11Shah Jahan II
1719 to 1719
Died naturally. Died after a few months on the throne. Reigned 1719 to 1719.
12Muhammad Shah
1719 to 1748
Died naturally. Lost at Karnal to Nadir Shah, who sacked Delhi in 1739. Reigned 1719 to 1748.
13Ahmad Shah Bahadur
1748 to 1754
Deposed or abdicated. Deposed and blinded. Reigned 1748 to 1754.
14Alamgir II
1754 to 1759
Killed. Murdered on the orders of his vizier Imad ul-Mulk. Reigned 1754 to 1759.
15Shah Jahan III
1759 to 1760
Deposed or abdicated. Put on the throne and removed within a year. Reigned 1759 to 1760.
16Shah Alam II
1760 to 1806
Died naturally. Granted the East India Company the revenue of Bengal in 1765. Blinded by Ghulam Qadir in 1788 but kept his throne. Reigned 1760 to 1806.
17Akbar Shah II
1806 to 1837
Died naturally. Lived as a British pensioner in Delhi. Reigned 1806 to 1837.
18Bahadur Shah Zafar
1837 to 1857
Deposed or abdicated. Poet and last emperor. Exiled to Rangoon after 1857, where he died in 1862. Reigned 1837 to 1857.
Bars run from 1526 to 1857. Reign years follow the usual dates in the standard histories; a few rulers who were deposed and later killed are counted as killed. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
How reigns ended, all six dynasties
Rashidun Caliphs5 rulers · 632 to 661
131
60% killed
Umayyad Caliphs14 rulers · 661 to 750
1121
14% killed
Abbasid Caliphs of Baghdad37 rulers · 750 to 1258
22105
27% killed
Ottoman Sultans36 rulers · 1299 to 1922
21510
14% killed
Mughal Emperors18 rulers · 1526 to 1857
1134
17% killed
Kings of Saudi Arabia7 rulers · 1932 to today
4111
14% killed
Died naturallyKilledDeposed or abdicatedStill reigning
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