DELHI SULTANATE 1200AD TO 1500AD(LATE MEDIEVAL INDIA)CBSE

 DELHI SULTANATE 1200AD TO 1500AD(LATE MEDIEVAL INDIA)

Delhi was a prominent city in India in the twelfth century. It was the capital city of the Tomara Rajputs. The Tomara dynasty who as per bardic traditions, were one of the 36 Rajput tribes. Anangapal founded the Tomar kingdom's capital at Delhi in 11th century CE & eventually incorporated Delhi within the Chauhan (Chahamana) kingdom in 1164. Tomars ruled over present-day Delhi, Haryana and some parts of Uttar Pradesh.

Tomara Rajputs were defeated in the twelfth century by the Chauhans of Ajmer. The Tomara was an Indian dynasty that ruled parts of present-day Delhi and Haryana during the 9th-12th century. Prithviraj Chauhan ruled Delhi during 1175 -1192. Prithviraja's defeat in 1192 in the second battle of Taraori ( a place in Harayana today) (Tarain) at the hands of the Muḥammad Ghorī marked a watershed in medieval history of India.

When Mohamed Ghori defeated Prithviraj Chauhan and captured Delhi in 1192, he marked the establishment of the Delhi Sultanate. However, it was Qutub-ud-din Aibak, one of his slaves and general who proclaimed himself as the ruler of Delhi. He led to the foundation of the Delhi sultanate with his lineage of rulers known as the Slave Dynasty. Later on, many other notable Delhi sultanate dynasties also ruled the land.

The defeat of the Rajputs ended their supremacy in northern India and gave way for the Turkish rulers to establish themselves under the Delhi sultanate.

Delhi Sultanate Dynasties

The Delhi sultanate dynasty was a brief period of 1210- 1526 where many Muslim leaders ruled Delhi. Ghori left his kingdom to his trusted lieutenant and former slave Qutub-ud-din Aibak who started the Slave or Mamluk Dynasty. He laid the foundation of the famous Qutub Minar which was later completed by Illtutmish. Delhi Sultanate can also be termed as the successor of the Ghurid dynasty.

An Overview of the Delhi Sultanate.

From 1206 to 1526, that is to say, about 320 years Delhi Sultanate, which was an Islamic empire, had ruled a substantial part of India. The capital of the Sultanate was Delhi and it was expanded to the great part of the Indian Subcontinent. In these 320 years, a total of 5 dynasties of the Delhi Sultanate had ruled over Delhi and the subsequent Indian sub-continent. These five dynasties were Mamluk, Khalji, Tughlaq, Sayyid, Lodi. If we have to understand the territorial region of the Delhi Sultanate in modern geographical terms, then we can say that the territory of the Delhi Sultanate covered modern-day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and some regions of Nepal.

Qutb ud-Din Aibak (Reign: 1206 – 1210)The first ruler of the Mamluk Dynasty.Born to a Turkish family in Central Asia.Sold as a slave to Muhammad Ghori, the ruler of Ghor in Afghanistan.Aibak rose up the ranks and became Ghori’s trusted general and commander.He was given the charge of Ghori’s Indian possessions after 1192.When Ghori was assassinated, Aibak declared himself Sultan of Delhi in 1206. Started construction of the Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque in Delhi. This is one of the first Islamic monuments in northern India.He began the construction of Qutb Minar in Delhi.He was also known as Lakh Bash (Giver of Lakhs) for his generosity. However, he was also responsible for the destruction and desecration of many Hindu temples.He reigned till his death in 1210. He was said to have been trampled to death by a horse.He was succeeded by Aram Shah.Iltutmish (Reign: 1211 – 1236) Aram Shah was a weak ruler. It is not clear whether he was a son of Aibak or not. He was conspired against by a group of nobles who invited Shamsuddin Iltutmish to be the ruler. Iltutmish was a son-in-law of Aibak. He ruled Ghurid regions of northern India.He was a Turkic slave born in Central Asia. Iltutmish was the greatest of the slave rulers of Delhi. He shifted his capital from Lahore to Delhi.He died in 1236 and was succeeded by his daughter Razia Sultana as he did not consider his sons equal to the task.

RAZIA SULTAN( 1236 -1240) In 1236, Razia Sultana, daughter of Iltutmish, became the queen of the Slave dynasty. Nobles of that time could not accept a lady or a queen as their ruler. So, they opposed the rule of Razia Sultana. They regarded women to be inferior to men and hence not fit to rule over the people. Also, the nobles were not happy at her attempts to rule independently.Razia Sultan was removed from the throne in 1240 CE, She remains the only woman to have sat upon the throne of Delhi. Some accounts suggest that she was trampled to death by elephants, while others suggest that she and her husband was was killed by her captors on 13 October 1240.Overall, the exact circumstances of Razia Sultana’s death remain somewhat unclear, but it is generally agreed that she died in a battle while fighting for her right to rule over the Delhi Sultanate. Her legacy as a brave and intelligent ruler has endured to this day and has inspired generations of women in India and beyond.

Nasir-ud-din Mahmud’s accession to the throne after Razia’s death and as a matter of fact while she was away from Delhi in connection with checking revolts, the ‘Corps of forty’ had made Bahram Shah, (1240- 1242) the son of Iltutmish as the Sultan of Delhi.

The ‘Corps of Forty’ pressurised the Sultan to work according to their dictates.The Sultan, however, tried to exert himself which cost him his life.After Bahram Shah, the ‘Corps of Forty’ managed to make Masood Shah (1242-46) the Sultan of Delhi. The Sultan was forced to delegate all his power to the ‘Corps of Forty’. A conspiracy was hatched against the Sultan and he was murdered. After the deposition of Masood, the ‘Corps of Forty’ made Nasir-ud- din the youngest son of Iltutmish, as the Sultan of Delhi. Balban one of the ‘Corps of Forty’ became so powerful that he assumed all the real powers of the Sultan. Nasir-ud-din remained the Sultan in name only.He knew the power of the Turkish nobles and was aware of the fact that his two predecessors who had dared to challenge the authority of the nobles were murdered. Balban was the ‘Naib’ or the Deputy to the Sultan and enjoyed vast powers. He married his daughter to the Sultan.

An estimate of Nasir-ud-din: (1246AD TO 1266AD)

Some historians hold the view that Nasir-ud-Din was a religious minded man. He had no wordly desires or ambitions. Several anecdotes became popular about him. It is said that he earned his living by copying the ‘Quran’ and selling it.

Again it is stated that his wife prepared his meals. One day, her fingers were burnt and she requested the Sultan to keep a maid-servant. But the Sultan refused to do soon the plea that he was simply a trustee of the state and therefore, could not utilise public money for his personal convenience. It may also be remembered that his wife was the daughter of Balban, his ‘Naib’-holding the most important post.It is stated by several historians that such claims are exaggerated. According to P. Saran, the Sultan was very much afraid of the Turkish nobles and therefore kept himself aloof from active politics. It is accepted that he possessed the virtues of continence, frugality and practical piety and simplicity but more than that the circumstances had forced him to behave like that. He knew the power of the Turkish nobility.

Therefore, as Prof. K.A. Nizami writes, “The surrender was absolute” the Sultan did nothing which could provoke the displeasure of ‘forty.’ According to historian Islami,” He expressed no opinion without their prior permission; he did not move his hands or feet except at their order. He would never drink nor go to sleep except with their knowledge.

Ghiyas ud din Balban (1266AD TO 1287AD) took the throne after the death of Sultan Nasiruddin Mahmud and ruled with an iron hand for 20 years, but the death of his eldest son Mohammad was a big blow, and he died of a broken heart at the age of 71. His reign was full of terror among the nobles and public equally. He successfully recaptured Bengal and fought the invasion of the Mongol forces.

EARLY LIFE OF BALBAN

Balban was captured by the Mongols at a very young age and taken to Ghazni. He was enslaved and went through a chain of being sold to different people and was finally purchased by Iltutmish. He was one of the 40 Turkish slaves Iltutmish had.

When Kaiqubad (1287 AD TO 1290 AD)ascended the throne of Delhi, he was seventeen years old. He had an attractive personality and polite nature. He had been brought up under the strict watch of his grandfather, Balban, who was a great disciplinarian. Barani writes that by the time of his enthronement he had not tasted a drop of wine not had he seen the fair face of a beautiful damsel. After his accession to the throne, he found himself free from the bondage of his grandfather. His suppressed passions were now in full play and he lost himself in wine, women and luxury. The splendor and magnificence of the court changed him a lot. He became so much absorbed in luxuries that the administration of the sultanate began to suffer. The atmosphere of Balban’s court was completely changed. Discipline and conventions vanished and the court became a centre for dancers and buffoons. The nobles and courtiers also followed in the footsteps of the Sultan and gave themselves up to luxuries and sensual pleasures. One Nizamuddin, son-in-law of Fakhruddin, the Kotwal of Delhi, held the powers of the kingdom in his own hands and the position of the Sultana became weak.As Kaiqubad was crippled by paralysis, Jalaluddin and the Turkish nobles installed Kayumars, an infant child of Kaiqubad on the throne. Kaiqubad was kicked to death by a Khalji soldier and thrown in the river Yamuna. For sometime Jalaluddin held the charge of regent on behalf of the infant Sultan. He was got murdered after three months and Jalaluddin took over as the Sultan of Delhi. Thus a new Khalji dynasty came to power in place of the slave dynasty in A.D. 1290

The Khalji Dynasty ruled on the Delhi Sultanate. The rule of the Khalji Dynasty started in 1290 and ended in 1320. The coming of Khalji dynasty is seen as a revolution as their entry decreased the effect of Turk officials in the administration.

Tughlaq Dynasty (AD 1320-1412)

The founder of the Tughlaq dynasty was Ghazi Malik who ascended the throne as Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq in AD 1320. After a brief rule, he died in AD 1325 and his son Muhammad Bin Tughlaq ascended to the throne.

Muhammad Bin Tughlaq (1325–51),was one of the Tughlaq dynasty’s most notable and fascinating rulers. He instituted certain notable administrative measures that, while failing, were notable and exceptional in nature. Firoz Shah Tughlaq was chosen as the ruler of the Tughlaq dynasty after the death of Muhammad Bin Tughlaq. He was the cousin of Muhammad Bin Tughlaq.Firoz Shah Tughlaq(1351 AD to 1388 AD )was successful in eliminating conspirators and reigned for 37 years and died at the age of 79.

The Sultan Firoz Shah Tughluq died in 1388 AD. Tughluq Khan grand son of Firoz shah Khan assumed power, but died in conflict. In 1389, Abu Bakr Shah assumed power, but he too died within a year.Abu Bakr was also the grandson of Firoz Shah Tughlaq. He was a Sultan of the Tughlaq dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate; he ascended to the throne in 1388 C.In August 1390, Abu Bakr was deposed, and Muhammad Shah uncle of Abu Bakr took his place as king, lasting between 1390 until 1394. Following his defeat, Abu Bakr was confined in the fort of Meerut, where he died soon after.Muhammad Shah , the last king of the Tughlaq dynasty, ruled the Delhi Sultanate from August 31, 1390, until January 20, 1394. After his death, his older son Ala ud-din Sikandar Shah succeeded him, but he died of illness on March 8, 1394, and his younger brother Nasiruddin Mahmud took his place. He was the Tughlaq dynasty’s final ruler.

Conclusion

The Tughlaq Dynasty aided in the integration of the world’s most amazing cultures, resulting in the Delhi Sultanate being a period of tremendous culture and religion. The Tughlaq dynasty’s steady fall resulted in friction and disagreements between the Muslim nobles and Hindu chieftains seeking autonomy from the Muslims. According to historical records, Sultan Mohammad Tughlaq, who was well-versed in all elements of literature and education, was exceedingly tolerant of his people’ religious customs, reflecting the nature of his political leadership. With Timur’s assault, practically everything in the Delhi Sultanate was destroyed, including buildings and people, resulting in a traumatic experience for those who survived.

Sayyid Dynasty was founded by Khizr Khan in 1414 A.D, and the rule of this dynasty ended when Ala-ud-din Shah was the ruler. Lodi Dynasty began from 1451 A.D.

  Lodi dynasty Delhi Sultanate

   1451–1489 Bahlol Lodi (first)

     1489–1517 Sikander Lodi (2nd)

     1517–1526 Ibrahim Lodi (last)

Lodhi Dynasty

The Lodhi Dynasty was a ruling dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate in India. It lasted from 1451 to 1526. The Lodhi Dynasty marked a significant era in Indian history, ruling from 1451 to 1526. Founded by Bahlul Khan Lodhi, they established a reign in the Delhi Sultanate. While fostering administrative reforms, they faced challenges from regional powers. Their rule ultimately paved the way for the Mughal Empire's emergence. The most significant event during the Lodhi Dynasty's rule was the Battle of Panipat in 1526. Ibrahim Lodhi, the last Sultan of the dynasty, faced a military confrontation with Babur, who had established the Mughal Empire. Ibrahim Lodhi was defeated, and this battle marked the end of the Lodhi Dynasty and the beginning of Mughal rule in India.

The Lodhi Dynasty's rule had a significant impact on the Delhi Sultanate. They tried to consolidate their power by implementing administrative reforms and promoting cultural and architectural developments. However, their rule was relatively short-lived and overshadowed by the emergence of the Mughal Empire.