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Bengal, Sultanate of
PATIT PABAN MISHRA
Sambalpur University, India
From its beginnings in the middle of 14th
century, the Bengal Sultanate encompassed
present-day Bangladesh, portions of West
Bengal in India, and segments of western
Myanmar (Burma). During its existence
between 1352 and 1576, the Sultanate wit-
nessed the efflorescence of a unique culture,
the development of urbanization, and signif-
icant territorial expansion. It has left its
imprint in the history and culture of the
Indian subcontinent in medieval times.
ORIGIN, GROWTH, AND DECLINE OF
THE BENGAL SULTANATE
Firuz Shah Tughlaq (r.1351–1388) of the
Delhi Sultanate did not make any attempt
at territorial aggrandizement and endeavored
to consolidate the empire. His forays into the
provincial kingdom of Bengal were abortive,
and it seceded from the control of the
Tughlaqs. It was Shamsuddin Ilyas Shah
(r.1342–1358) who established a sultanate
of the unified Bengal after annexing the king-
dom of Sonargaon in 1352. A decade earlier
he had become the ruler of the kingdom of
Lakhnaut after murdering his foster-brother
Ali Mubarak. A capable ruler, Shamsuddin
was able to impose taxes on the neighboring
areas of Tirhut and northeastern Odisha.
Sikandar Shah, his son, succeeded in 1358
and his reign was successful as well as
prosperous. His son Ghiyasuddin Azam
(r.1389–1409) had diplomatic relations
with China.
The Encyclopedia of Empire, First Edition. Edited by John M. MacKenzie.
© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Published 2016 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
DOI: 10.1002/9781118455074.wbeoe393
From 1409, there was an interregnum and
the Ilyasi hold over Bengal was usurped by a
Hindu chief who had embraced Islam. But the
Ilyasis wrested back control in 1442 and the
Ilyas Shahi dynasty continued to rule over
Bengal until 1493. Islam Shah (r.1442–1459)
built the famous Sonargaon mosque.
Ruknuddin Barbeck (r.1459–1474) fought
an indecisive battle with the ruler of Kamrup
(part of modern-day Assam). It was a glorious
period in the development of Bengali litera-
ture. After a period of chaotic and anarchical
rule by Abyssinian nobles, Husain Shah
(r.1493–1519) took power and founded a
new dynasty as one of the most capable rulers
of eastern India in the medieval period. He
governed his domains efficiently, crushed
several rebellions, and, being of a charitable
disposition, gave support and assistance to
learned persons.
Nusrat Shah (r.1519–1532), Husain’s son
and successor, was a remarkable ruler – a
conqueror and an efficient administrator.
Babur, the founder of the Great Mughal
dynasty, adulated Nusrat Shah in his memoirs
Baburnama. He was a patron of arts and
learning, a great builder, and the possessor
of a formidable army. Apart from conquering
Tirhut, the Sultan gave asylum to the Delhi
Afghans fleeing Babur after the first battle
of Panipat (1526). His reign also witnessed
the coming of the Portuguese to Bengal.
Ghiyasuddin Mahmud Shah (r.1533–1538)
was the last ruler of the dynasty. Bengal had
become a focus of conflict between the rising
Mughals and the Sur rulers of Delhi. Sher
Shah Suri (r.1540–1545) occupied Bengal
and the Sultan became an exile. Bengal was
once again ruled by provincial governors of
the Suri Empire until 1555. The Muhammad
Shah dynasty (1554–1564) checked the
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onslaught of the Mughals, but the last inde-
pendent dynasty, the Karrani dynasty
(1564–1576), came under Mughal control.
After the death of Daud Shah in 1576, Bengal
became a part of the Mughal Empire and was
administered by governors of the Mughal
court until 1717.
ECONOMY, SOCIETY, AND CULTURE
The Bengal Sultanate was known throughout
the Indian subcontinent as far away as China,
Southeast Asia, and across the Arab world,
having diplomatic relations with the Chinese
Empire and the Islamic holy places of Mecca
and Medina. The ruling elite was multicul-
tural, comprising Turks, Khurasanis, Ghuris,
Khalajs, and others. The court of the sultans
reflected to a large extent Persian imperial
forms, and a strong Persian influence revol-
ving around statecraft, induction of slaves
into the governmental machinery, and a
monetized economy. Cultural inspiration
came from Persia, the Delhi Sultanate, and
the Abbasid Caliphate. A remarkable increase
in the use of silver coins was another feature
of the economy of Bengal. The land revenue
was calculated in silver coins or tankas, which
had become the standard currency. The econ-
omy was mainly agrarian with rice cultivation
the main occupation of the vast bulk of the
peasantry. Chittagong was an important port
and the sultanate had trade relationships with
China, Southeast Asia, and around the Indian
Ocean. Sugar, cotton, and silk fabrics were the
main items of export, and seashells were
imported from the Maldives and salt from
Hormuz. Shipbuilding was an important
industry, and artisans were accomplished in
the making of pottery, plates, knives, scissors,
and other items.
Arts and literature flourished under the
patronage of the sultans. The sultans and
nobles adopted Arabic as the language of reli-
gion, and Persian was the court language. As
the administration was in tune with Islamic
laws, or Sharia, the functionaries of the
Department of Justice (Diwan al-Qaza) were
proficient in Arabic. Sultan Ghiyasuddin was
a renowned poet in Persian and the famous
Persian poet Shams al-Din Hafiz of Shiraj
was a visitor to Sultan’s court. The Yusuf-
Zulekha was penned by the poet Shah
Muhammad Sagir. A lexicon in the Persian
language entitled Sharf namah was composed
by Ibrahim Qawwam Faruqi during the reign
of Sultan Ruknuddin Barbeck. A book on
archery, Hidayat-i-Rami, was written by
Muhammad Budai. Madaris, which func-
tioned as educational seminaries, were estab-
lished in the sultanate, and the lingua franca
was both Arabic and Persian.
It was a period of development of Bengali
literature. The Hindu classical texts were
translated into Bengali. Krittibas Ojha and
Kavindra Parameswar translated the Hindu
classical epics the Ramayana and Mahabha-
rata into Bengali. Jashoraj Khan composed
the Sree Krishna Vijoy. Sultan Alauddin
Hussain Shah was a benefactor of Bengali
poets such as Maladhar Basu, Vijayagupta,
and Bipradasa. The Adina (Friday) mosque
at Pandua, the largest in the subcontinent,
and Gaur’s Dakhil Darwaza were the finest
specimens of sultanate architecture. Kotwali
Darwaza, Chata Sona Masjid, Baro Sona Mas-
jid, and Shat Gambuj Masjid were con-
structed during the rule of the sultans.
The pluralistic nature of Indian culture was
enriched with rapprochement between indig-
enous and foreign cultures. There was reli-
gious harmony among common people,
although there was conflict within the elite
of the Bengal Sultanate. The influential
(Muslim) Sufi and (Hindu) Bhakti saints
emphasized religious harmony and equality
of humankind, their message revolving
around egalitarianism, simple living, and
rapprochement between Muslims and
non-Muslims. The Bengali Shaikh Ala Haqq
and his son Shaikh Nur Qutb Alam were

prominent saints belonging to the Sufi Chisti
order; and the Vaishnavite saint Chaitanya
who believed in bhakti or devotion, and espe-
cially worshipped Krishna and his consort
Radha, was also from Bengal. He holds a spe-
cial place in the bhakti tradition of medieval
India. In his lifetime as well as after his death,
he left a permanent religious legacy not only
to India but also the world. The rule by the
Bengal Sultanate thus forms an important
chapter in the history of Indian empires.
SEE ALSO: Abbasid Caliphate; Delhi
Sultanate; Islam and empire; Mughal Empire;
Religion and empire
FURTHER READING
Akhtaruzzaman, M. 2009. Society and Urbaniza-
tion in Medieval Bengal. Dhaka: Asiatic Society
of Bangladesh.
Alamgir, K. 2011. Sultanate Architecture of Bengal:
An Analysis of Architectural and Decorative Ele-
ments. New Delhi: Kaveri Books.
Eaton, R. M. 1993. The Rise of Islam and the Bengal
Frontier, 1204–1760. Berkeley: University of
California Press.
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Encyclopaedia Iranica: Bengal. Accessed April 30,
2015, at http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/
bengal
Hussain, S. E. 2003. The Bengal Sultanate: Politics,
Economy and Coins, A.D. 1205–1576. New
Delhi: Manohar.
Majumdar, R. C. 1973. History of Medieval Bengal.
Calcutta: G. Bharadwaj.
Nahar, K. n.d. “Racial Origin of the Muslim Pop-
ulation and Their Social Stratification under
Bengal Sultanate.” Accessed April 30, 2015, at
http://www.mukto-mona.com/Articles/kamrun_-
nahar/Racial_Origin.pdf
Rahim, M. A. 1967. Social and Cultural History of
Bengal, Volume 1: 1201–1576. Karachi: Pakistan
Publishing House.
Salim, G. H. 1903. Riyazu-s-Salatin: A History
of Bengal, trans. A. Salam. Delhi: Idarah-i
Adabiyat-i Delli.
Sarkar, J. 1973. The History of Bengal: Muslim
Period, 1200–1757. Patna: Academica Asiatica.
Sarkar, J. N. 1985. Hindu–Muslim Relations in
Bengal (Medieval Period). Delhi: Idarah-i Ada-
biyat-i Delli.
Taneja, A. 2003. Sufi Cults and the Evolution of
Medieval Indian Culture. New Delhi: Indian
Council of Historical Research.
Tarafdar, M. R. 1995. Trade, Technology and
Society in Medieval Bengal. Dhaka: International
Centre for Bengal Studies.