Unit -4

The Delhi Sultanate

Learning Objectives

To acquaint ourselves with

™™Turkish Sultans of various dynasties who ruled India from Delhi
™™Their military conquests and extension of sovereignty
™™Administration of the Delhi Sultanate
™™Art and architecture of this period

Introduction Slave Dynasty (1206 - 1290)

During the eleventh century, the Turkish Muslim rule in India was established by
horsemen pillaged northern India and due to Muhammad Ghori in 12th century A.D. (CE).
their persistent campaigns, they succeeded As he had no sons, he nurtured special slaves
in seizing political control of the Gangetic called bandagan (a Persian term used for slaves
plain by the next century. Though the success purchased for military service). These slaves were
of their conquests could be attributed to their
posted as governors and they were later raised to
audacity and ferocity, their success is really due
the status of Sultans. After Ghori’s death in 1206,
to the failure of Indians to defend themselves
one of his slaves Qutb-ud-din-Aibak who had
and their territories. Indians viewed each
been left behind by Muhammad Ghori to govern
other with distrust, failing to take note of the
the territories he had conqured, proclaimed
success of Islam in early years of its spread. The
superior military might of Muslim soldiers was himself ruler of the Turkish territories in India.
yet another factor that contributed to success He laid the foundation of the Slave Dynasty.
in their conquests. In this lesson, we discuss This dynasty is also known as Mamluk dynasty.
how Turkish warriors set about founding and Mamluk is an Arabic word meaning ‘‘slave’’.
consolidating their Islamic rule till the advent Qutb-ud-din-Aibak, Shams-ud-din-Iltutmish
of Babur. and Ghiyas-ud-din-Balban were the three great
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 Sultans of this dynasty. The Slave Dynasty ruled reign that the threat of Mongols under Chengiz
over the sub-continent for about 84 years. Khan loomed large over the frontiers of India.
He averted the impending danger by refusing
Qutb-ud-din-Aibak (1206 - 1210)
to provide shelter to the Kwarezm Shah Jalal-
Qutb-ud-din-Aibak began his rule by ud-din, who had been driven out by Chengiz
establishing Lahore as the capital of his kingdom. Khan. In order to counter the possible attack
Later he shifted his capital to Delhi. He was of the Mongols, Iltutmish organised Turkish
active all through his rule in Delhi conquering nobility into a select group of 40 nobles known
new territories and suppressing rebellions. as chahalgani or The Forty.
He personally led military campaigns to the
Iltutmish granted iqtas (land) to members
central and western Indo-Gangetic plain (north
of his army. Iqta is the land granted to army
India) and left the conquest of the eastern
officials in lieu of a regular wage. The iqta
Gangetic Plain (Bihar, Bengal) to the care of
holder is called the iqtadar or muqti who had
Bakhtiar Khalji. Aibak built the Quwwat-ul-
to provide the Sultan with military assistance
Islam Masjid (mosque) in Delhi. This mosque is
in times of war. The iqtadar collected revenue
considered to be the oldest in India. He also laid
from his iqta to meet the cost of maintaining his
the foundation of the Qutb-Minar, but he was
troops and horses.
unable to complete it. It was later finished by his
son-in-law and his successor Iltutmish. Aibak
died of injuries received during an accidental
fall from a horse, while playing polo in 1210.

Quwwat-ul-Islam Masjid

Iltutmish (1210 - 1236)

Aibak’s son Aram Shah proved incompetent
and so the Turkish nobles chose Iltutmish, the
son-in-law of Aibak as the Sultan, who served Qutb-Minar

as a military commander of Aibak. Iltutmish Iltutmish completed the construction of

firmly established his control over the territories the Qutb-Minar, started by Aibak. Iltutmish
by suppressing rebellions. It was during his died in April 1236 after ruling for 26 years.
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 Razia (1236 - 1240) cordial relationship with the Mongols. He
obtained from Hulagu Khan, a grandson of
As the most capable son of Iltutmish, Rukn-
Chengiz Khan and the Mongol viceroy in Iran,
ud-din-Firuz, was dead, Iltutmish nominated
the assurance that Mongols would not advance
his daughter Razia Sultana as his successor to
beyond Sutlej.
the throne of Delhi. Razia was an able and brave
fighter. But she had a tough time with Turkish Balban built forts to guard his empire
nobles as she favoured non-Turkish nobles. She against the Mongol attacks. He patronised the
also faced the situation of the ferocious Mongols famous Persian poet Amir Khusru. Balban died
raiding Punjab during her reign. in 1287. Balban’s son Kaiqubad turned out to
be weak. In 1290 Malik Jalal-ud-din Khalji, the
Razia made an Ethiopian slave named
commander of the army, assumed the office
Jalal-ud-din Yakut as her personal attendant
of Naib (a deputy to the Sultan) and ruled the
and started trusting him completely. This led
kingdom in the name of Kaiqubad. Then one
to a revolt of the Turkish nobles who conspired
day, Jalal-ud-din sent one of his officers and had
against her and got her murdered in 1240.
Kaiqubad murdered. Jalal-ud-din then formally
Ghiyas-ud-din Balban (1266 - 1287) ascended the throne. With him began the rule
After Razia, three weak rulers in succession of Khalji dynasty.
ascended the throne. After them came Ghiyas-
Khalji Dynasty (1290 - 1320)
ud-din Balban. Balban abolished The Forty
Jalal-ud-din Khalji (1290 - 1296)
as it was hostile to him. He established a
department of spies to gather intelligence There were many military campaigns
about the conspirators and the trouble makers during the reign of Jalal-ud-din. But they were
against his rule. He dealt with insubordination mostly organised and led by his nephew, Ala-
and defiance of royal authority sternly. Tughril ud-din, the governor of Kara. One significant
Khan, a provincial governor of Bengal, who military expedition was against the Deccan
raised a banner of revolt against Balban, was kingdom Devagiri. Ala-ud-din, after defeating
captured and beheaded. He was ruthless in the Yadava king Ramachandra, plundered
dealing with enemies like Meos of Mewat (a the city and returned with huge wealth. Ala-
Muslim Rajput community from north-western ud-din treacherously killed Jalal-ud-din after
India). Balban, however, took care to maintain buying off the prominent nobles and important
commanders with the wealth he had brought
from the Deccan and declared himself as the
Sultan of Delhi in 1296.
Ala-ud-din Khalji (1296 - 1316)
Ala-ud-din Khalji consolidated the
Delhi Sultanate. The range of his conquests is
impressive: in the Punjab (against the Mongols),
in Rajasthan and in Gujarat. With his northern
Tomb of Balban frontiers secure, he sent his chief lieutenant
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 Malik Kafur into the southern parts who took Ala-ud-din died in 1316. The failure of his
even the distant Madurai in 1310. The Yadavas successors to retain power led to the seizure of
of Devagiri, the Kakatias of Warangal, the power by Ghiyas-ud-din Tughluq, who founded
Hoysalas of Dwarasamudra and the Pandyas of the Tughluq dynasty.
Madurai accepted Ala-ud-din’s suzerainty.
Tughluq Dynasty (1320 - 1414)
Sack of Chittor (1303): Ghiyas-ud-din (1320 - 1324)
When Ala-ud-din’s army One of the major tasks of Ghiyas-ud-
overwhelmed the Rajput
din as the Sultan was to recover the territories
army in Chittor and in the
that the Sultanate had lost during the turmoil
context of threat of defeat,
following the death of Ala-ud-din. Ghiyas-
the men and women
ud-din Tughluq sent his son Jauna Khan to
of the fortress, in accordance with their
fight against Warangal. Jauna Khan defeated
old custom, performed the rite of jauhar.
Pratabarudra of Warangal and returned with a
According to this custom, left with no other
rich booty. With this looted wealth, Ghiyas-ud-
way to survive, the men would go out and
din is said to have laid the foundation of the city
die in the field of battle and women would
Tughluqabad near Delhi. However, as Ala-ud-
burn themselves on a pyre.
din treacherously killed his uncle, Jauna Khan
was said to have killed his father and ascended
the throne with title Muhammad-bin-Tughluq
in 1325.

Muhammad-bin-Tughluq (1325 - 1351)

Chittor Fort
Muhammad-bin-Tughluq was a learned
Ala-ud-din’s political and administrative man. Yet he was a person of cruelty. Ala-ud-
reforms were as impressive as his military din had conquered, looted and left the old
conquests. Ala-ud-din undertook a survey of ruling families as his dependents. In contrast,
the agrarian resources around his capital and Muhammad Tughluq dreamt of making the
fixed a standard revenue demand. He entrusted whole of the subcontinent his domain. With
the task of collecting the revenue to the military the view to facilitating extended sovereignty, he
officers. This measure deprived the local chiefs shifted his capital from Delhi to the centre of
and rajas of their time memorial privilege. the kingdom, namely Devagiri. He also changed
Ala-ud-din established a system of forced its name to Daulatabad. When Muhammad
procurement of food grains for Delhi and other himself decided that the move was a mistake,
garrison centres. The procurement prices were he ordered a return to Delhi as the capital again.
fixed and grain collected as tax was stored in state When Ibn Battuta, the Morocco traveller who
granaries. In order to ensure the enforcement
was with the Sultan, returned to Delhi, he found
of his new regulations, he employed spies who
Delhi ‘empty, abandoned and had but a small
were responsible to report to him directly.
population’.
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 revolts of the provincial governors. The
It was a 40-days march to Daulatabad
Governors of Awadh, Multan and Sind revolted
from Delhi. Many people left. Some hid
and declared themselves independent. In South
themselves. When they were found, they
India, several states arose. The new Daulatabad
were punished cruelly, even though one
and the conquered territories around them were
was a blind man and another a paralytic.
declared independent sultanate called Bahmani.
Describing the city as spreading over eight
Its founder after whom it was named, was a
or ten miles, a historian observed: ‘All was
soldier formerly in Tughluq service. Madurai
destroyed. So complete was the ruin that not
was proclaimed a separate sultanate in 1335.
a cat or a dog was left among the buildings
Bengal became independent in 1346. Tughluq
of the city in its palaces or in its suburbs.’
died on 23 March 1351.
Tughluq changed the Ala-ud-din’s system
Firoz Shah Tughluq (1351 - 1388)
of revenue collections in grain and ordered
that land revenue, which was increased, should
henceforward be collected in money. This
proved disastrous during famines. When he
discovered that the stock of coins and silver
was inadequate for minting, he issued a token
currency in copper. Counterfeiting soon
became order of the day and, as a result, the
entire revenue system collapsed. Trade suffered
as foreign merchants stopped business. This Tomb of Firoz Shah Tughluq
forced Sultan to withdraw the token currency Firoz, the son of Ghiyas-ud-din’s younger
and pay gold and silver coins in exchange. brother, succeeded Muhammad-bin-Tughluq.
This move led the state to become bankrupt. Firoz could neither suppress revolts nor win
Tughluq increased land tax in the Doab region, back the provinces that had broken away. He
which triggered peasant revolts. As the revolts also showed no interest in re-conquering the
were cruelly dealt with, peasants abandoned southern provinces. He refused to accept an
cultivation, which resulted in the outbreak of invitation (c. 1365) from a Bahmani prince to
frequent famines. intervene in the affairs of the Deccan. Firoz
rewarded Sufis and other religious leaders
generously and listened to their advice. He also
created charities to aid poor Muslims, built
colleges, mosques, and hospitals. He adopted
many humanitarian measures. He banned
inhuman punishments and abolished taxes not
Coins of Muhammad-bin-Tughluq recognised by Muslim law.

Tughluq ruled as Sultan for 25 years. He promoted agriculture by waiving off the
During his long reign, he had to face many debts of the agriculturalists and constructing
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 many canals for irrigation. He laid out 1200 Timur’s Invasion (1398)
new gardens and restored 30 old gardens of Ala-
The sacking and massacre by Tamerlane or
ud-din-Khalji. He had built new towns such as
Timur of Delhi came a decade after Firuz
Firozabad, Jaunpur, Hissar and Firozpur.
Shah Tughluq died. As a ruler of the region
Despite adopting a peaceful approach and around Samarkand in Central Asia, Timur had
taking efforts to organise the Sultanate well, he occupied some parts in the north-west of India.
had to spend his last days in unhappiness. His Taking advantage of India’s weakness, he entered
own son Muhammad Khan revolted against India in December 1398 and plundered Delhi.
him and Firoz Shah died in September 1388, at Punjab, besides the Delhi city, was the province
the age of 83. that suffered most by Timur’s raid. Timur, apart
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 from carrying huge wealth in the form of gold, throne in 1451. This gave Bahlol Lodi, then the
silver, jewels, also took along Indian artisans like governor of Sirhind (Punjab), the opportunity
carpenters and masons to work on monuments to become the new Sultan of Delhi, leading to
in Samarkand. the establishment of Lodi dynasty.
Sayyid Dynasty (1414 - 1451) Lodi Dynasty (1451 - 1526)
Though the Sultanate fragmented into a In 1489, Bahlol Lodi was succeeded by his son
number of independent kingdoms, it endured Sikandar Lodi. Sikandar was a patron of arts
for 114 years more, till the Mughal invasion. and learning. He founded the city of Agra and
Before leaving Delhi, Timur had left behind his made it his capital. He died in 1517 and was
representative Khizr Khan as the governor of succeeded by his son, Ibrahim Lodi, who was
the territories he had conquered (Delhi, Meerut defeated by Babur in 1526 in the Panipat battle.
and Punjab). He founded the Sayyid Dynasty in Thus the Lodi dynasty and the Delhi Sultanate
1414, which lasted till 1451. The last ruler of this were ended by Babur who went on to establish
dynasty, Ala-ud-din Alam Shah, abdicated the the Mughal Empire in India.

Islamic art and architecture: The mansions of high-ranking Muslim nobles, soldiers and officials
were built first in cities and the neighbourhoods. Around them, the mosques in the imperial
style were constructed by successive Muslim regimes in Delhi. Mosques and Madrasas looked
architecturally different. The graceful decorations of doorways and walls with lines from the
Koran made a distinct appearance in these buildings. The shape of all these buildings was Persian,
while the decoration was Indian. So, it is called Indo-Saracenic architecture. Qutb Minar, Alai-
Darwaza, Quwwat-ul Islam Masjid, Moth-ki-Masjid, the tombs of Iltutmish, Balban and the forts
of Daulatabad and Firozabad were all constructed in this style.

Daulatabad Fort Alai-Darwaza

Summary
™™Establishment of Muslim rule in India by Muhammad Ghori
™™Slave dynasty founded by Qutb – ud- din- Aibak and consolidated by his Son-in-law Iltutmish
™™Razia, the daughter of Iltutmish, a brave fighter and a great administrator
™™Balban’s espionage system and the abolition of The Forty, to reduce the power of Turkish nobles

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 ™™Ala – ud- din- Khalji as the founder of Khalji dynasty - his military conquests and administrative
reforms
™™Firoz Shah Tughluq as a compassionate ruler with his concentration on the well - being of the
people
™™The sacking of Delhi by Timur
™™Khizr Khan founding the Sayyid dynasty and Bahlol Lodi the governor of Sirhind establishing
the Lodi dynasty
™™The first battle of Panipat paving the way for the foundation of Mughal Empire by Babur in A.D.
(CE)1526

Glossary
எக்கணமும் நடைபெற இருக்கிற/
impending about to happen
அச்சுறுத்தும் நிலையில் இருக்கிற
ferocious cruel, violent மூர்க்கமான/ அச்சம் தருகிற வகையில்
someone who conspires secretly with other
conspirator சதிகாரர்கள்
people to do something unlawful or harmful
patron supporter, promoter புரவலர்
plunder to steal goods forcibly from a place especially
க�ொள்ளையடி
during a war
procurement the process of getting supplies க�ொள்முதல்
disastrous causing great damage பேரழிவு
fragment break into pieces துண்டு துண்டாக
counterfeit fake ப�ோலியான
waiving exempting விலக்கு அளி

Evaluation 2. Qutb-ud-in shifted his capital to Delhi

from_____________.

I Choose the correct answer a) Lahore b) Poona

c) Daulatabad d) Agra
1. ____________laid the foundation of 3. ______________ completed the
‘Mamluk’ dynasty. construction of the Qutb-Minar.
a) Mohammad Ghori a) Razia
b) Jalal-ud-din b) Qutb-ud-din -Aibak
c) Qutb-ud-din Aibak c) Iltutmish
d) Iltutmish d) Balban
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 4. _________laid the foundation of the city V. 
Match the statement with the
Tughluqabad near Delhi. [Link] the appropriate answer
a) Muhammad-bin -Tughluq 1) Assertion (A):Balban maintained cordial
b) Firoz shah Tughluq relationship with Mongols
c) Jalal –ud-din Reason (R): The Mongol ruler, a grandson
d) Ghiyas –ud-din of Chengiz Khan, assured that Mongols
would not advance beyond Sutlej.
II Fill in the Blanks
a) R is the correct explanation of A.
1. ___________ was the founder of Tughluq b) R is not the correct explanation of A.
dynasty. c) A and R are wrong.
2. Muhammad–bin-Tughluq shifted his d) A is wrong and R is the correct.
capital from Delhi to___________. 2) Find out the correct pair
3. ____________ patronized the famous a) Hoysala - Devagiri
Persian poet Amir Khusru. b) Yadavas - Dwarasamudra
4. Quwwat-ul-Islam Masjid in Delhi was c) Kakatias - Warrangal
built by______________ . d) Pallavas - Madurai

5. The threat of Mongols under Chengizkhan 3) Find out the wrong statement
to India was during the reign a) After Ghori’s death in 1206, his slave Qutb-
of_________________________. ud-din Aibak proclaimed him self the ruler
III Match the following of the Turkish territories in India.
b) Razia established the department of spies to
1.  Tughril Khan - Governor of Kara gather intelligence about the conspirators
2.  Ala-ud-din - Jalal-ud-din Yakut and the trouble makers against her rule.
3.  Bahlol Lodi - Governor of Bengal c) Balban built forts to guard his empire
4.  Razia - Governor of Sirhind against the Mongol attack.
d) Ibrahim Lodi was defeated by Babur in
IV State true or false
1526.
1. Qutb-ud-din Aibak died of mysterious
VI Answer the following in one or
fever.
two sentences
2. Razia was an able and brave fighter.
1. Name the land granted to army officials in
3. The Turkish nobles chose Iltutmish, son of lieu of a regular wage.
Aibak, as Sultan after the death of Aibak. 2. Who founded the city of Agra?
4. FirozShah Tughluq refused to accept 3. Name the ruler who established Muslim
an invitation from a Bahmani Prince to rule in India in 12th century A.D (CE).
intervene in the affairs of the Deccan. 4. Write a note on chahalgani.
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 5. How did Ala-ud-din Khalji consolidate the X Student Activity
Delhi Sultanate?
1. Match the Father with Son
6. List out the contributions of Firoz Shah
Tughluq. 1. Qutb-ud-din Rukn-ud-din-Firuz
Aibak
VII Answer the following
2. Iltutmish Kaiqubad
1. Write about the invasion of Timur in 1398. 3. Balban Ala-ud-din
VIII HOTs 4. Ghiyas-ud-din Sikandar Lodi
5. Bahlol Lodi Aram Shah
1. How would you evaluate Muhammad-bin-
Tughluq as Sultan of Delhi? 2. Prepare an album of pictures of Islamic art
IX. Map Work and architecture of the Delhi Sultanate .

On the river map of India draw the extent References

of Tughluq Dynasty and mark the following 1. Abraham Eraly, The Age of Wrath, New
places. Delhi:Penguin, 2014.
2. R.C Majumdar, H.C. Ray Chaudhuri and
1. Delhi
Kalikinkar Datta, An Advanced History of
2. Devagiri India, New Delhi:Trinity, 2018.

3. Lahore 3. Burton Stein, A History of India, New Delhi:

Oxford University Press, 2004 (Reprint).
4. Madurai.
4. S.K. Singh, History of Medieval India, New
Delhi: Axis Books, 2013.

ICT CORNER

The Delhi Sultanate

PROCEDURE :

Step 1: Open the Browser and type the URL given below (or) Scan the QR Code.

Step 2: Keep Scrolling and go to ‘Timeline’

Step 3: Click any period and you can explore the historical events with pictorial descriptions
(ex. Delhi Sultanate)

The Delhi Sultanate URL:

[Link] (or) scan the QR Code

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