BABER. Zehir-ed-dîn Mahomet, sumamed Baber, or the Tiger, the famous conqueror of India and founder of the so-called Moghul dynasty, was born on the 14th February 1483. He was a descendant of Genghis Khan and Timur, and his father, Omar Sheikh, was king of Farghana, a district of Transoxiana, lying east of Samarcand. Omar died in 1495, and Baber, though only twelve years of age, succeeded to the throne. An attempt made by his uncles to dislodge him proved unsuccessful, and no sooner was the young sovereign firmly settled than he began to meditate an extension of his own dominions. In 1497 he attacked and gained possession of Samarcand, to which he always seems to have thought he had a natural and hereditary right. A rebellion among his nobles robbed him of his native kingdom, and while marching to recover it, his troops deserted him, and he lost Samarcand also. After some reverses he regained both these places, but in 1501 his most formidable enemy, Schaibani Khan, ruler of the Usbeks, defeated him in a great engagement, and drove him from Samarcand. For three years he wandered about trying in vain to recover his lost possessions; at last, in 1504, he gathered some troops, and crossing the snowy Hundu Kush, besieged and captured the strong city of Cabul. By this dexterous stroke he gained a new and wealthy kingdom, and completely re-established his fortunes. In the following year lie united with Hussain Mirza of Herat against Schaibani. The death of Hussain, put a stop to this expedition, but Baber spent a year at Herat, enjoying the pleasures of that capital. He returned to Cabul in time to quell a formidable rebellion, but two years later a revolt among some of the leading Moghuls drove him from his city. He was compelled to take to flight, with very few companions, ...