The Delhi Sultanate

A. Turkish Invasions:

• Mahmud of Ghazni (997–1030 CE): Led 17 plundering raids across Northern India to loot temple treasures (Somnath in Gujarat, 1025 CE). Accompanied by scholar Al-Beruni (wrote *Kitab-al-Hind*).
• Muhammad Ghori: Aimed to establish an empire. Defeated by Prithviraj Chauhan in the First Battle of Tarain (1191 CE); returned in 1192 CE with $120,000$ cavalry to crush Prithviraj in the Second Battle of Tarain (1192 CE), establishing Muslim political dominance in India.

B. The Mamluk (Slave) Sultans:

1. Qutb-ud-din Aibak (1206–1210 CE): Ghori's slave-general. Established the Sultanate; called *Lakhbaksh* ("Giver of Lakhs") for generosity; commenced Qutb Minar and Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque; died playing Chaugan (polo).
2. Shams-ud-din Iltutmish (1210–1236 CE): Real consolidator of the Sultanate. Saved India from Mongol conqueror Genghis Khan; introduced pure silver Tanka and copper Jital; organized the Chalisa / Turkan-i-Chahalgani (corps of forty powerful Turkic nobles); introduced the Iqta system (land grants to military nobles in lieu of cash salaries).
3. Razia Sultana (1236–1240 CE): Nominated by Iltutmish as his successor; the first and only woman monarch to sit on the throne of Delhi. Discarded purdah, wore male tunic (*qaba*) and cap, held open court, and rode war elephants. The conservative Turkish nobility rebelled, leading to her murder near Kaithal in 1240 CE.
4. Ghiyas-ud-din Balban (1266–1287 CE): Broke the power of the treacherous Chalisa; established the Theory of Divine Kingship (declared Sultan as *Zill-i-Ilahi*, "Shadow of God on Earth"); enforced Persian court etiquette: Sajda (prostration) and Paibos (kissing the Sultan's feet); instituted the ruthless "Blood and Iron Policy" to crush bandits and rebellions.

A. Alauddin Khalji's Imperial Conquests:

Alauddin assassinated his uncle Jalaluddin Khalji to seize the throne. He conquered Gujarat, Malwa, Ranthambore, and Chittor (Rani Padmini legend). His general Malik Kafur conquered Southern India (Yadavas of Devagiri, Kakatiyas of Warangal, Hoysalas of Dvarasamudra, Pandyas of Madurai), extracting colossal gold tributes while leaving local rulers on the throne as vassals.

B. Military & Market Control Reforms:

• Military Reforms: Maintained India's first permanent large standing army paid in cash from the royal treasury. Introduced Dagh (branding of horses to prevent substitution of fine warhorses with inferior ponies) and Chehra (maintaining a descriptive roll of every soldier to prevent proxy enlistment).
• Market Control Regulations: To sustain his massive army on fixed pay, Alauddin strictly fixed the prices of all commodities—from grain, sugar, and cooking oil to horses, slaves, and cloth!
  • Established three separate government markets in Delhi under market superintendents (Shahna-i-Mandi) and intelligence spies (Munhiyans).
  • Severe punishment: Any merchant caught under-weighing or cheating had an equal weight of flesh carved from his body! Grain was hoarded in state granaries to prevent famine.

A. Muhammad bin Tughlaq (1325–1351 CE):

A scholar of mathematics, astronomy, medicine, and philosophy, described as a "mixture of opposites" whose brilliant visionary ideas failed catastrophically due to poor practical execution:

1. Transfer of Capital (1327 CE): Transferred the capital $1,500\text{ km}$ south from Delhi to Daulatabad (Devagiri) in Maharashtra to better control the Deccan and defend against Mongol invasions. He forced the entire civilian population of Delhi to march in scorching summer heat; thousands died on the road. Facing northern revolts and water shortages, he ordered everyone to march back to Delhi!
2. Introduction of Token Currency (1330 CE): Facing a global silver shortage, he issued bronze and brass token coins with the legal value of silver Tankas. However, he failed to make the royal mint exclusive; citizens began forging coins in their homes. Trade collapsed, foreign merchants refused brass coins, and the Sultan had to pay gold and silver to redeem mountains of forged brass!
3. Taxation in the Doab: Increased agricultural revenue taxes in the fertile Ganga-Yamuna Doab at the worst possible time—during a severe famine! Peasant farmers abandoned their fields, leading to peasant revolts.

B. Firoz Shah Tughlaq (1351–1388 CE):

Consolidated what remained. Built extensive canal irrigation networks from the Yamuna and Sutlej rivers, constructed public hospitals (*Dar-ul-Shafa*), established the charity bureau *Diwan-i-Khairat*, and founded historical cities (Firozabad, Jaunpur, Hisar).

A. Timur's Invasion (1398 CE):

Central Asian Mongol-Turkic conqueror Amir Timur (Tamerlane) invaded Northern India in 1398 CE, massacred over 100,000 citizens in Delhi, looted immense wealth, and left the Tughlaq dynasty in ruins.

B. The Sayyid & Lodi Dynasties:

• Sayyids (1414–1451 CE): Founded by Khizr Khan; weak rulers paying tribute to Timur's heirs.
• Lodis (1451–1526 CE): First Afghan (Pashtun) dynasty. Bahlul Lodi; Sikandar Lodi (founded Agra in 1504 CE, introduced standard measurement yard *Gaz-i-Sikandari*); Ibrahim Lodi (arrogant, alienated Afghan nobles).

C. First Battle of Panipat (21 April 1526 CE):

Disgruntled Afghan nobles (Daulat Khan Lodi) invited Zahir-ud-din Muhammad Babur, ruler of Kabul. Babur met Ibrahim Lodi at Panipat. Although Lodi commanded $100,000$ soldiers and 1,000 war elephants, Babur used gunpowder artillery (cannons) and Ottoman flanking tactics (Tulghuma) to annihilate Lodi's army. Ibrahim Lodi died on the battlefield, ending the Delhi Sultanate and establishing the Mughal Empire!