Delhi Sultanate

The Delhi Sultanate , or Sulthanath-e-Hind / Sulthanath-e-Dilli refers to the various dynasties that ruled in India from 1210 to 1526 . Several Turko-Afghan dynasties ruled from Delhi: the Slave dynasty (1206-90), the Khilji dynasty (1290-1320), the Tughlaq dynasty (1320-1413), the Sayyid dynasty (1414-51), and the Lodi (1451-1526). During the last quarter of the twelfth century, Muhammad of Ghor invaded the Indo-Gangetic plain , conquering in succession Ghazni , Multan , Sindh , Lahore , and Delhi . Qutb-ud-din Aybak , one of his generals, proclaimed himself Sultan of Delhi and established the first dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate, the Slave or Mamluk dynasty ( mamluk means "slave") after Muhammad's death in 1206 . The territory under control of the sultans expanded rapidly. By mid-century, northern India from the Khyber Pass to Bengal was under control of the sultanate, although the northwest was contested with the Mongols . Iltutmish (1210-35) and Balban (1266-87) were among the dynasty's most well-known rulers. Faced with revolts by conquered territories and rival families, the Malmuk dynasty came to an end in 1290. The Khilji or Khalji dynasty, who had established themselves as rulers of Bengal in the time of Muhammad Ghori, took control of the empire in a coup which eliminated the last of the Mamluks. The Khiljis conquered Gujarat and Malwa , and sent the first expeditions south of the Narmada River , collecting tribute and sacking temples as far south as Tamil Nadu . Muslim rule continued to extend into southern India, first by the Delhi sultans, then by the breakaway Bahmani Sultanate of Gulbarga , and, after the breakup of the Bahmani state in 1518 , by the five independent Deccan sultanates . The Hindu kingdom of Vijayanagar united southern India and arrested Muslim expansion for a time, but it fell to the Deccan sultanates in 1565 . In the first half of the 14th century the Sultanate introduced a monetary economy in the provinces ( sarkars ) and districts ( parganas ) that had been established and founded a network of market centers through which the traditional village economies were both exploited and stimulated and drawn into the wider culture. State revenues remained based on successful agriculture, which induced sultan Muhammad bin Tughluq (1325-51) to have village wells dug, offer seed to the peasants and to encourage cash crops like sugar cane (Braudel 1984, pp 96f, 512ff). The sultans of Delhi enjoyed cordial, if superficial, relations with Muslim rulers in the Near East but owed them no allegiance. The sultans based their laws on the Qur'an and the sharia and permitted non-Muslim subjects to practice their religion only if they paid jizya or head tax. The sultans ruled from urban centers--while military camps and trading posts provided the nuclei for towns that sprang up in the countryside. Perhaps the greatest contribution of the sultanate was its temporary success in insulating the subcontinent from the potential devastation of the Mongol invasion from Central Asia in the thirteenth century. The sultanate ushered in a period of Indian cultural renaissance resulting from the stimulation of Islam by Hinduism. The resulting "Indo-Muslim" fusion left lasting monuments in architecture, music, literature, and religion. The sultanate suffered from the sacking of Delhi in 1398 by Timur ( Tamerlane ), and independent Muslim sultantates were established in Awadh , Bengal , Jaunpur , Gujarat and Malwa . The Delhi Sultanate revived briefly under the Lodhis before it was conquered by the Mughal emperor Babur in 1526 . Note: Islamic Empires in India (part of the History of South Asia series) has more information at Islamic_Empires_in_India#Delhi_Sultanate

During the Delhi Sultanate , several Turkic and Afghan dynasties ruled from Delhi, including the Mamluk dynasty (1206–90), the Khilji dynasty (1290–1320), the Tughlaq dynasty (1320–1413), the Sayyid dynasty (1414–51), and the Lodi dynasty (1451–1526). In 1526 the Delhi Sultanate was absorbed by the emerging Mughal Empire .

Turkic languages Turkic mythology Pre-14th century v t e The Delhi Sultanate was a Delhi -based Muslim kingdom that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for 320 years (1206–1526). Five dynasties ruled over Delhi Sultanate sequentially, the first four of which were of Turkic origin and the last was the Afghan Lodi . The Lodi dynasty was replaced by the Mughal dynasty . The five dynasties were the Mamluk dynasty (1206–90); the Khilji dynasty (1290–1320); the Tughlaq dynasty (1320–1414); the Sayyid dynasty (1414–51); and the Afghan Lodi dynasty (1451–1526). Qutb-ud-din Aibak , a former slave of Muhammad Ghori , was the first sultan of Delhi and his dynasty conquered large areas of northern India. Afterwards the Khilji dynasty was also able to conquer most of central India, but both failed to unite the Indian subcontinent . Delhi sultanate is also noted for being one of the few states to repel an attack from the Mongol Empire . Delhi Sultanate reached its peak in terms of geographical reach, during the Tughlaq dynasty, covering most of Indian subcontinent. The Delhi Sultanate declined thereafter, with continuing Hindu-Muslim wars, and kingdoms such as Vijayanagara Empire re-asserting their independence as well as new Muslim sultanates such as Bengal Sultanate breaking off. The Sultanate caused destruction and desecration of ancient temples of South Asia, as well as led to the emergence of Indo-Islamic architecture . The Delhi Sultanate is the era that enthroned one of the few female rulers in Islamic history, Razia Sultana from 1236 to 1240. In 1526 the Delhi Sultanate fell and was replaced by the Mughal Empire . Hindavi was recognized as a semi-official language by the Sor Sultans (1540-55) and their chancellery rescripts bore transcriptions in the Devanagari script of the Persian contents.

Successive Islamic dynasties that ruled large parts of the Indian subcontinent (1206–1526) Today part of Bangladesh India Pakistan The Delhi Sultanate was an Islamic empire based in Delhi that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for 320 years (1206–1526). Five dynasties ruled over the Delhi Sultanate sequentially: the Mamluk dynasty (1206–1290), the Khilji dynasty (1290–1320), the Tughlaq dynasty (1320–1414), the Sayyid dynasty (1414–1451), and the Lodi dynasty (1451–1526). Qutb al-Din Aibak , a former Turkic Mamluk slave of Muhammad Ghori , was the founder of the Delhi Sultnate, and his Mamluk dynasty conquered large areas of northern India. Afterwards, the victories of the Khilji dynasty expanded in the south. The sultanate reached the peak of its geographical reach during the Tughlaq dynasty, occupying most of the Indian subcontinent . This was followed by decline due to Hindu reconquests, states such as the Vijayanagara Empire and Mewar asserting independence, and new Muslim sultanates such as the Bengal Sultanate breaking off. In 1526, the Sultanate was conquered and succeeded by the Mughal Empire . The sultanate is noted for its integration of the Indian subcontinent into a global cosmopolitan culture (as seen concretely in the development of the Hindustani language and Indo-Islamic architecture ), being one of the few powers to repel attacks by the Mongols (from the Chagatai Khanate ) and for enthroning one of the few female rulers in Islamic history , Razia Sultana , who reigned from 1236 to 1240. Bakhtiyar Khalji 's annexations were responsible for the large-scale desecration of Hindu and Buddhist temples (leading to the decline of Buddhism in East India and Bengal ), and the destruction of Buddhist universities and libraries. Although at first disruptive for the Indian elites, the sultanate largely left its vast non-Muslim subject population to its own laws and customs. By repeatedly repulsing Mongol raiders, the sultanate saved India from the devastation visited on West and Central Asia, setting the scene for centuries of migration of fleeing soldiers, learned men, mystics, traders, artists, and artisans from that region into the subcontinent, thereby creating a syncretic Indo-Islamic culture . Hindavi was recognized as a semi-official language by the Sor Sultans (1540–1555) and their chancellery rescripts bore transcriptions in the Devanagari script of the Persian contents. The practice is said to have been introduced by the Lodis (1451–1526).

1206–1526 empire in the Indian subcontinent Not to be confused with Sultanate of Deli . Today part of Bangladesh India Pakistan Nepal The Delhi Sultanate or the Sultanate of Delhi was a late medieval empire primarily based in Delhi that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for more than three centuries. The sultanate was established around c (1206-1210) in the former Ghurid territories in India. The sultanate's history is generally divided into five periods: Mamluk (1206–1286), Khalji (1290–1316), Tughlaq (1320–1388), Sayyid (1414–1451), and Lodi (1451–1526). It covered large swaths of territory in modern-day India , Pakistan , Bangladesh , as well as some parts of southern Nepal . The foundation of the Sultanate was established by the Ghurid conqueror Muhammad Ghori , who routed the Rajput Confederacy , led by Ajmer ruler Prithviraj Chauhan , in 1192 near Tarain in a reversal of an earlier battle . As a successor to the Ghurid dynasty, the Delhi Sultanate was originally one of several principalities ruled by the Turkic slave-generals of Muhammad Ghori, including Taj al-Din Yildiz , Qutb ud-Din Aibak , Bahauddin Tughril and Nasir ad-Din Qabacha , that had inherited and divided the Ghurid territories amongst themselves. Khalji and Tughlaq rule ushered a new wave of rapid and continual Muslim conquests deep into South India . The sultanate finally reached the peak of its geographical reach during the Tughlaq dynasty, occupying most of the Indian subcontinent under Muhammad bin Tughluq . A major political transformation occurred across North India , triggered by the Central Asian king Timur 's devastating raid on Delhi in 1398, followed soon afterwards by the re-emergence of rival Hindu powers such as Vijayanagara Empire and Kingdom of Mewar asserting independence, and new Muslim sultanates such as the Bengal and Bahmani Sultanates breaking off. In 1526, Timurid ruler Babur invaded northern India and conquered the Sultanate , leading to its succession by the Mughal Empire . The establishment of the Sultanate drew the Indian subcontinent more closely into international and multicultural Islamic social and economic networks, as seen concretely in the development of the Hindustani language and Indo-Islamic architecture . It was also one of the few powers to repel attacks by the Mongols (from the Chagatai Khanate ) and saw the enthronement of one of the few female rulers in Islamic history , Razia Sultana , who reigned from 1236 to 1240. During the sultanate's rule, there was no mass forcible conversion of Hindus, Buddhists, and other dharmic faiths , and Hindu officials and vassals were readily accepted. However, there were cases like Bakhtiyar Khalji 's annexations, which involved a large-scale desecration of Hindu and Buddhist temples and the destruction of universities and libraries. Mongolian raids on West and Central Asia set the scene for centuries of migration of fleeing soldiers, intelligentsia, mystics, traders, artists, and artisans from those regions into the subcontinent , thereby establishing Islamic culture there. Grey flag with black vertical stripe according to the Catalan Atlas ( c. 1375): in the depiction of the Delhi Sultanate in the Catalan Atlas Kadoi, Yuka (2010). S2CID 263250872 . ...helps identify another curious flag found in northern India – a brown or originally silver flag with a vertical black line – as the flag of the Delhi Sultanate (602–962/1206–1555). Note: other sources describe the use of two flags: the black Abbasid flag, and the red Ghurid flag, as well as various banners with figures of the new moon, a dragon or a lion. The Administration of the Sultanate of Delhi . Large banners were carried with the army. In the beginning, the sultans had only two colours : on the right were black flags, of Abbasid colour; and on the left, they carried their colour, red, which was derived from Ghor. Qutb-ud-din Aibak's standards bore the figures of the new moon, a dragon or a lion; Firuz Shah's flags also displayed a dragon. The Dhvaja, Standards and Flags of India: A Study . Hindavi was recognized as a semi-official language by the Sor Sultans (1540–1555) and their chancellery rescripts bore transcriptions in the Devanagari script of the Persian contents. The practice is said to have been introduced by the Lodis (1451–1526). Journal of World-Systems Research. 12 (2): 222–223. A Cultural Encyclopedia of Lost Cities and Civilizations . Delhi Sultanate , Encyclopædia Britannica A. It was a similar combination of political and economic imperatives which led Muhammad Ghuri, a Turk, to invade India a century and half later, in 1192. His defeat of Prithviraj Chauhan, a Rajput chieftain, in the strategic battle of Tarain in northern India paved the way for the establishment of the first Muslim sultanate... A Comprehensive History of India: The Delhi Sultanat (A.D. 1206–1526) . History of Medieval India . History and Culture of Rajasthan (From Earliest Times upto 1956 A.D.) . The Khaiji rule proved much stronger for the Rajput principalities ... A new wave of invasions and conquests began, which ended only when practically the whole of India had been bought under the sway of the Delhi kingdom. The Delhi sultanate made no break with the political traditions of the later Hindu period—namely, that rulers sought paramountcy rather than sovereignty. It never reduced Hindu chiefs to unarmed impotence or established an exclusive claim to allegiance. The sultan was served by a heterogeneous elite of Turks, Afghans, Khaljīs, and Hindu converts; he readily accepted Hindu officials and Hindu vassals. Threatened for long periods with Mongol invasion from the northwest and hampered by indifferent communications, the Delhi sultans perforce left a large discretion to their local governors and officials. Gul and Khan (2008) "Growth and Development of Oriental Libraries in India" , Library Philosophy and Practice , University of Nebraska–Lincoln Richard Eaton, Temple Desecration and Muslim States in Medieval India at Google Books , (2004) Richard Eaton (September 2000). The Delhi Sultanate: a political and military history . Cambridge studies in Islamic civilization (Reprint ed.).