The second Mughal emperor, Humayun (1530–1556), had a troubled reign which fell between two of the most impressive periods in Islamic garden history. His father Babur introduced Central Asian traditions of garden design into India with the conquest of 1526 AD. His son Akbar (1556–1607) erected massive architectural complexes, including gardens, in his capitals at Agra, Lahore, and Fatehpur Sikri (figure 1). Judged by these standards, Humayun fares poorly. Not one of his shortlived projects survives today. Fourteen years after ascending to the throne at Agra, he lost all his territory to Sher Shah Suri, an Afghan from Bihar. He fled precariously into Persia, abandoned by his brothers, and haemorrhaging followers and resources along the way. Although he eventually reconquered Delhi in 1555, he promptly fell down a set of stairs and died.