Editing Hemu (section)

==Death==

The elephant carrying the wounded Hemu was captured and led to the Mughal camp. Bairam Khan asked the 13-year-old Akbar to behead Hemu. According to Akbar's later courtier [[Abu'l-Fazl ibn Mubarak]], he refused to take the sword to a dead man. However, this is not attested by contemporary chronicler Muhammad Arif Qandhari who composed the "Tarikh-i-Akbari", stating that Akbar followed Bairam Khan's advice and himself beheaded Hemu and took the title of [[Ghazi (warrior)|Ghazi]].<ref>{{Cite book |author=Ashirbadi Lal Srivastava|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/837892 |title=Akbar the Great. |date=1962 |publisher=Shiva Lal Agarwala|page=10|quote=Bairam Khan asked his royal ward to earn the title of Ghazi by slaying the infidel Hemu, with his own hands. We are told by a contemporary writer, Muhammad Arif Qandh, that he complied with the request and severed Hemu’s head from his body. Abul Fazl’s statement that he refused to kill a dying man is obviously wrong|language=English |oclc=837892}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|author=Kishori Saran Lal|author-link=K. S. Lal|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HmBuAAAAMAAJ|title=Theory and Practice of Muslim State in India |date=1999|publisher=Aditya Prakashan|page=67|quote=It may be recalled that as an adolescent, Akbar had earned the title of Ghazi by beheading the defenseless infidel Himu|isbn=978-81-86471-72-2 |language=en}}</ref>{{sfn|Chandra|2004|p=93}} The account of Akbar's refusal to behead Hemu is probably a later invention of his courtiers.<ref>{{Cite book|author=S. Roy|chapter=AKBAR|editor=R.C. Majumdar|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kHpDAAAAYAAJ |title=The History and Culture of the Indian People: The Mughal Empire |date=1974 |publisher=Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan|page=106|quote=Bairam Khan begged him to slay Himu with his own hands in order to gain the reward of Jihad (crusade against infidels) and the title of Ghazi (hero combating infiedels). Akbar accordingly struck Himu with his sword. The story of Akbar's magnanimity and refusal to kill a fallen foe seems to be a later courtly invention|language=en}}</ref> Hemu's head was sent to [[Kabul]] while his body was [[gibbet]]ed on a gate in Delhi.{{sfn|Tripathi|1960|p=176}} A minaret was subsequently constructed of the heads of the other dead.{{sfn|Chandra|2004|p=93}}

===Aftermath===
[[File:Mughal miniature painting from an Akbarnama manuscript depicting a tower of skulls being built with the remains of Hemu's soldiers and supporters, circa 1590.webp|thumb|Mughal miniature painting from an [[Akbarnama]] manuscript depicting a tower of skulls being built with the remains of Hemu's soldiers and supporters, {{circa|1590}}.]]
Hemu's family who lived in Machari (near [[Alwar]]) was captured by Pir Muhammad, a Mughal officer who had fought at Panipat. Pir Muhammad offered to spare the life of Hemu's elderly father if he converted to Islam. When the older man refused, he was executed.{{sfn|Tripathi|1960|loc=p. 177|ps=: Tripathi quotes from the [[Akbarnama]]:<ref>{{cite book|author1=Abu'l-Fazl|author-link1=Abu'l-Fazl ibn Mubarak|title=Akbarnama|url=http://persian.packhum.org/persian/main?url=pf%3Ffile%3D00701022%26ct%3D18|access-date=8 July 2016|chapter=Vol II, Chapter XI|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160815184219/http://persian.packhum.org/persian/main?url=pf%3Ffile%3D00701022%26ct%3D18|archive-date=15 August 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref>
{{quote|The place was strong and there was much fighting, and the father of Hemū was captured and brought alive before the Nāṣir-al-mulk. The latter called upon him to change his religion. The old man answered, "for eighty years I've worshipped my God, according to this religion. Why should I change it at this time, and why should I, merely from fear of my life, and without understanding it come into your way of worship."

Pir Muḥammad treated his words as if he heard them not and answered him with the tongue of the sword.}}}} However, Hemu's wife managed to escape.{{sfn|Chandra|2004|p=93}}{{sfn|Tripathi|1960|p=177}}

With the passing of Hemu, Adil Shah's fortunes also took a turn for the worse. He was defeated and killed by [[Ghiyasuddin Bahadur Shah II|Khizr Khan]], son of [[Muhammad Khan Sur]] of Bengal, in April 1557.{{sfn|Chandra|2004|p=93}}{{sfn|Tripathi|1960|p=177}}

The spoils from the battle at Panipat included 120 of Hemu's war elephants. Their destructive rampages impressed the Mughals so much that the animals soon became integral to their military strategies.{{sfn|Roy|2013|p=47}}