Sher Shah Suri (1486 – 22 May 1545) was the founder of the
Sur Empire in
North India, with its capital at
Delhi. An ethnic
Pashtun, Sher Shah took control of the
Mughal Empire in 1540. After his accidental death in 1545, his son
Islam Shah became his successor. He first served as a
private before rising to become a commander in the Mughal army under
Babur and then as the governor of
Bihar. In 1537, when Babur's son
Humayun was elsewhere on an expedition, Sher Khan overran the state of
Bengal and established the Sur dynasty. A brilliant strategist, Sher Shah proved himself as a gifted administrator as well as a capable general. His reorganization of the empire laid the foundations for the later Mughal emperors, notably
Akbar, son of Humayun.