HISTORY PROJECT

THE DELHI SULTANATE

History
By 962 AD, Hindu and Buddhist kingdoms in South Asia were under a wave of raids from Muslim
armies from Central Asia. Muhammad-bin-Qasim, a general of the Umayyid Dynasty, was the 1 st
Muslim ruler to invade India.The rulers who ruled substantial parts of the North India more than 300
years (between 1200 to 1526 CE) were termed as Sultans and the period of their rule as the Delhi
Sultanate. These rulers were of Turkish and Afghan origin. Two important powerful and independent
states that emerged in Central Asia under the Turks were Ghazni and Ghori. These rulers invaded
India during the medieval period. The last of the Delhi Sultan, Ibrahim Lodi was defeated by the
Mughals under the leadership of Babur in 1526 CE who established the Mughal Empire in India.
 INVASION OF MUHMAD OF GHAZNI
Mahmud of Ghazni invaded the Indian subcontinent 17 times. He raided Bhatinda, Thaneshwar,
Mathura, Kannauj, Kalinjar and Somnath temple. He occupied Multan and Punjab and had made
inroads into the ganga-Yamuna doab. He was a great patron of art and literature. He died in 1030 CE.
The Ghaznavid empire shrank soon after his death because of his weak successors.
INVASION OF MUHAMMAD GHORI
Muhammad Ghori was the ruler of Ghor, a small kingdom in Afghanistan. He was the one who laid
the foundation of Muslim domination in India. In 1175 CE, he captured Multan. He attacked and
captured Peshawar in 1179 CE.
First battle of Tarain
The First battle of Tarain was fought in 1191 CE with Prithviraj Chauhan, Ghori lost the battle and he
had no choice but to flee back to his country
Second battle of Tarain
Ghori again attacked Prithviraj Chauhan in 1192 CE. With the help of the ruler of Kannauj, Jaichand
Ghori defeated Prithviraj.

THE FOUNDATION OF DELHI SULTANATE

The Delhi Sultanate was an Islamic empire based in Delhi that stretched over large parts of
the Indian subcontinent. In the 16th century, the last of their line was overthrown by the Mughals,
who established in the Mughal Empire in India. Five dynasties ruled over the Delhi Sultanate are:

 the Mamluk Dynasty (1206–1290)

 the Khilji Dynasty (1290–1320)
 the Tughlaq Dynasty (1320–1414)
 the Sayyid Dynasty (1414–1451)
 the Lodi Dynasty (1451–1526)

THE SLAVE DYNASTY

The Mamluk Dynasty was directed into Northern India by Qutb ud-Din Aibak,
a Turkic Mamluk general from Central Asia. The Mamluk Dynasty ruled from 1206 to 1290; it was
the first of five dynasties to rule as the Delhi Sultanate.

QUTB-UD-DIN-AIBAK
Qutb-ud-din Aibak, the governor of Delhi and, subsequently, the first sultan of the Delhi
Sultanate (ruling from 1206–1210 CE). he was a generous and kind-hearted man and was
known as Lakbaksh. The Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque in Delhi and Adhai-din ka Jhonpra
mosque in Ajmer were constructed during his reign. he started the construction of the Qutb
Minar in 1192, which was completed after his death by his successor Iltutmish.

ILTUTMISH
After Qutb-ud-din Aibak’s death, his son Aram Shah became the sultan. He was however
replaced by Iltutmish also known as Shams-ud-din, the son-in-law of Qutbuddin.
 Iltutmish conquered Multan and Bengal from contesting Muslim rulers, as well
as Ranthambore and Siwalik from the Hindu rulers
 He shifted his capital from Lahore to Delhi
 Iltutmish helped to save India from a possible attack of the Mongols.

RAZIA SULTAN (1236-1240 CE)

Iltutmish felt that his daughter Razia was far capable than his sons and hence nominated her
as the next sultan of the Delhi Sultanate. The powerful group of the Turkish nobles was not
ready to accept a woman as their sultan so they made Rukn-ud-din Feroz Shah as their
sultan. Razia was a brave and intelligent ruler and even led the army in the battle. She was
the first woman to rule India. She was killed in 1240.

NASIR UD-DIN MAHMUD (1246-1266)

Nasir ud-din Mahmud, the youngest son of Iltutmish was elected by the nobles as sultan of
Delhi. He gave up the working of administration to his Deputy cum father-in-law Balban.

GHIYAS-UD-DIN BALBAN (1266-1286 CE)

Ghiyas-ud-din Balban was one of the most capable sultans of the Delhi sultanate. He
undertook the following measures to strengthen the position of the sultan: -
 He defeated many local rulers.
 He defended his kingdom from Mongol invasions and internal revolts
 He established an efficient spy system
 He restored law and order in the Ganga-Yamuna doab, by adopting a policy of
“Blood and Iron”
 He mercilessly punished robbers and destroyed the Zamindars defied his authority.

THE KHALJI DYNASTY (1290 – 1320 CE)

The Khalji dynasty was a Turko-Afghan dynasty which ruled on the Delhi sultanate, covering
large parts of the Indian subcontinent for nearly three decades between 1290 and
1320. Founded by Jalal ud din Firuz Khalji as the second dynasty to rule the Delhi Sultanate of
India.

Jalal-ud-din Firuz Khalji (1290-1296 CE)

Jalal-ud-din Khalji established Khalji Dynasty at the age of 70. He married the daughter of
the Mongol Leader Ulugh Khan. He was a picious man who did not undertake any large-
scale expansionist programme. In 1296 CE Alauddin murdered Jalal-ud-din and ceased
power.

Alauddin Khalji (1296-1316 CE)

Alauddin Khalji was one of the most powerful emperors of the Khalji Dynasty that ruled
Delhi. He is known for the reforms in revenue and price policies. He brought several
administrative changes during his reign.
 The conquest of Gujarat, Malwa, Rajasthan, Ranthambore, Chittoor, dwarasamudra,
Madurai etc.
 Tackling the Mongol menace by strengthening the forts and frontier provinces under able
generals.
 Collection of revenue based on the measurement of land and appointment of revenue
officials.
 Starting a system of market control fixed prices for various commodities.
 Organising a very efficient spy system.
 He introduced the branding of horses to prevent substitution by inferior ones (dagh) and a
description for each soldier (chehra).
He built the Alai Darwaza, next to the Qutb Minar, of sandstone. He died in 1316 CE and was
succeeded by weak rulers. The last ruler of the Khalji dynasty was defeated by Ghiyas-ud-din
Tughluq who established Tughluq dynasty.

THE TUGHLUQ DYNASTY

The Tughlaq dynasty was a Muslim dynasty of Turkic origin which ruled over the Delhi
sultanate in medieval India. Its reign started in 1320 in Delhi when Ghazi Malik assumed the
throne under the title of Ghiyas ud-Din Tughluq. The dynasty expanded its territorial reach
through a military campaign led by Muhammad bin Tughluq, and reached its zenith between
1330 and 1335. It ruled most of the Indian subcontinent.

Ghiyas-ud-din Tughluq (1320-1325 CE)

Ghiyas-ud-din Tughluq was an efficient administrator and military commander. He built the
famous Tughlaqbad fort in Delhi. He accidently died in 1325 when the roof of a reception
hall collapsed on his head, which was built by his son Jauna Khan for his reception .
MUHAMMAD-BIN-TUGHLAQ (1325-1351)
MUHAMMAD-BIN-TUGHLAQ was the eldest son of Ghiyas-ud-din Tughlaq. He was the greatest rulers
of the Tughlaq Dynasty. He was a great poet and cultured scholar of philosophy, astronomy,
mathematics and physical science. He is referred to as the wise fool in Indian history because he
undertook numerous administrative reforms but most of them failed due to the lack of plan and
judgement. Those reforms were:
 Taxation in the Doab
 Transfer of capital (1327)
 Introduction of token currency (1330)
Muhammad bin Tughluq died in 1351 without an heir and he was succeeded by his cousin Firoz
Shah Tughlaq.

FIROZ SHAH TUGHLAQ (1351-1388 CE).

Muhammad bin Tughluq was succeeded by his cousin Firoz Shah Tughlaq, who was nominated
by the nobles and ulemas. He was well known for the welfare measures and the contribution in
the field of architecture.
 He imposed a tax on non-Muslims called jaziyah.
 He adopted reformist measures like building canals, wells, rest houses etc.
 Many kingdoms gained independence from the sultanate during his reign
His successors were weak and ruled up to 1414.

SAYYID DYNASTY (1414-1451)

The Sayyid dynasty was the fourth dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate, with four rulers ruling
from 1414 to 1451. Founded by Khizr Khan, a former governor of Multan. The 4 rulers were
Khizr Khan Sayyid, Mubarak Shah Sayyid, Muhammad Shah Sayyid and Ala-ud-din Alam
Shah Sayyid. The last ruler of the Sayyid dynasty, Alauddin Alam Shah was defeated by
Bahlul Lodi, who started the Lodi dynasty. 

LODI DYNASTY (1451-1526 CE)

The Lodi dynasty was an Afghan dynasty that ruled the Delhi Sultanate from 1451 to 1526.
It was the fifth and final dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate, and was founded by Bahlul Khan
Lodi.

BAHLUL LODI (1451-1489 CE)

After ascending to the throne, Bahlul decided to dispose of Hamid Khan. His cousin and brother-
in-law Malik Mahmud Khan alias Qutb-ud-din Khan (Governor of Samana) imprisoned Hamid
Khan. Bahlul Lodi achieved much for his dynasty and prepared the way further for his son
and successor, Sikandar Lodi. He died in 1489.
SIKANDAR LODI (1489-1517 CE)
Sikandar Lodi was an Afghan Sultan of the Delhi Sultanate between 1489 and 1517. He was
the second and most successful ruler of the Lodi dynasty, he was also a poet of the Persian
language and prepared a diwan of 9000 verses. He conquered Bihar and Bengal, and
transferred the capital from Delhi to Agra.

IBRAHIM LODI (1517-1526 CE)

Ibrahim Lodi was the last sultan of the Lodi Dynasty and Delhi Sultanate. He was defeated
by Babur in the First battle of Panipat in 1526 CE. This battle marked the beginning of the
Mughal rule India.

CONCLUSION
As a successor to the Ghurid dynasty, the Delhi Sultanate was originally one among a
number of principalities ruled by the Turkic slave-generals of Muhammad Ghori, including
Yildiz, Aibek and Qubacha, that had inherited and divided the Ghurid territories amongst
themselves. After a long period of infighting, the Mamluks were overthrown in the Khalji
revolution which marked the transfer of power from the Turks to a heterogeneous Indo-
Muslim nobility. Both of the resulting Khalji and Tughlaq dynasties respectively saw a new
wave of rapid Muslim conquests deep into South India. The sultanate finally reached the
peak of it s geographical reach during the Tughlaq dynasty, occupying most of the Indian
subcontinent. This was followed by decline due to Hindu reconquests, Hindu kingdoms such
as the Vijayanagar Empire. In 1526, the Sultanate was conquered and succeeded by the
Mughal Empire.

Bibliography
Me ‘n’ Mine ICSE History & Civics text book
Longman History and Civics text book

courses.lumenlearning.com

www.wikipedia.org