1. To view animation on PC: hit F5
Panipat April 21, 1526
Strategic Context
Babur, descendant of both Tamerlane and Genghis Khan, attempts to assert his manifest authority by seizing Samarkand, but fails in the end and settles in the Kabul valley. In 1514, he realizes that there are too many mighty factions fighting for supremacy to the west and begins to look east. Babur builds up his strength and invades northwestern India in 1525 at the expense of the Delhi Sultanate, ruled by the increasingly unpopular Ibrahim Lodi dynasty. Ibrahim leads an army from Delhi and finds Babur’s Mughal army occupying a firm defensive position near the town of Panipat in For a week, the two armies wait for the other to launch an attack. Babur eventually orders a night raid which fails in disorder. However, the Mughals’ poor performance convinces Ibrahim to attack the next day.
To view animation on PC: hit F5
To view animation on Mac: hit ⌘ + enter
Stakes
+ A Delhi victory would crush the Mughal invasion and grant Ibrahim a chance to regain support for his rule.
+ A Mughal victory would depose Ibrahim and allow Babur to establish an empire in northwestern India.
By Jonathan Webb, 2011

2. Panipat, 1526 Strength Delhi Sultanate Well Mughals Well Ibrahim Lodi
Babur
40,000 cavalry
24,000 cavalry
30,000 infantry
3,000 infantry
1,000 war elephants
20 guns
By Jonathan Webb, 2011

3. India c. 1500

4. The battlefield is flat and featureless except for the town of Panipat in the northwest and a dry river in the northeast.
Mughals
(Babur)
Yamuna River
Panipat
Delhi Sultanate
(Ibrahim)

5. Delhi Sultanate Mughals
With the Delhi center halted at the wagon line, Babur sends his heavy cavalry wings through the gaps against the Delhi wings and his light Mongol cavalry deep into the Delhi rear. The Mughal wings defeat their Delhi counterparts and hit the flanks of the Delhi center while the light Mongol cavalry fire a volley of arrows before charging into the Delhi rear. The Delhi masses, hemmed in on three sides, make easy targets for cannon, matchlocks and archers.
Ibrahim renews the advance and engages the Mughals but his troops are held up at the wagon line and their movement restricted by their own density; they meanwhile suffer horrendously from an assortment of Mughal projectiles. On the Mughal right, desperate attacks by Delhi cavalry threaten to outflank the Mughal line.
The Delhi troops advance only to discover that a line of wagons protects the Mughal army; unsure as to still advance against this obstacle or reform ranks, the front ranks hesitate, causing the rear ranks to bump into them. This has a ripple effect, inflicting disorder all the way to the rear. Mughal artillery and then matchlocks open fire, frightening the Delhi elephants which play no further part in the battle. Babur notices the Delhi left wing edging ahead of the rest of the line and thus reinforces his right from his reserve.
Babur deploys his army behind a line of wagons, protected on the flanks by the town of Panipat and a dry river made more difficult by felled trees. At the wagon line, he deploys his cannon, matchlocks and archers, but maintains gaps in the line to allow cavalry to move through, most of which deploys to the rear. Babur plans to stymie the Delhi attack with his massive firepower before launching his heavy cavalry on the wings and light Mongol cavalry on the extreme flanks to hit the Delhi flanks and rear. Ibrahim deploys a mixed mass of infantry and cavalry in depth at his center with war elephants in front. He places cavalry on the wings along with more war elephants. Ibrahim plans to overwhelm the Mughal center with his own while his left wing penetrates between the Mughal right flank and the town of Panipat.
The Delhi troops begin to panic and flee. Ibrahim personally leads a desperate cavalry attack to rally his wavering men but it is too late. Ibrahim dies along with many of his soldiers as his army disintegrates.
Mughals
(Babur)
Delhi Sultanate
(Ibrahim Lodi)
40,000 cavalry
30,000 infantry
1,000 war elephants
Mughals
(Babur)
24,000 cavalry
3,000 infantry
20 guns
Yamuna River
Panipat
Delhi Sultanate Mughals
Infantry Missile troops
Cavalry Cavalry
War elephants Artillery
Wagons
Symbol guide
Delhi Sultanate
(Ibrahim)
Landmarks

6. Panipat, 1526 Casualties & Aftermath
Delhi Sultanate:
Mughals:
20,000 or
29%
≈4,000 or
15%
Babur unleashed a rapid pursuit which ended only at the gates of Delhi itself. Babur spent the subsequent months consolidating his rule and laying the foundations of the Mughal empire. In 1527, Babur went to war against Rana Sanfram of the Rajput Confederacy, resulting in a Mughal victory at the battle of Khanua. In 1529, Babur defeated Ibrahim’s brother, Mahmud Lodi, at the battle of Gogra, Babur’s final battle before his death the following year.
By Jonathan Webb, 2011

7. The Art of Battle: Animated Battle Maps
By Jonathan Webb, 2011