| The Delhi Sultanate and the "seven cities" of Delhi in the 1300's | |
| (*The story begins in the 1200's...*) | |
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An overview of the rapid rise,
constant
fluctuations, and steep decline of the Sultanate; and here's a *dynastic
chart* and a *map
of early Delhi monuments*; also a good *coin research site* |
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(2) SIRI-- A new seven-gated fort (now gone) was built in 1303 by Ala ud-Din Khilji (r.1296-1316) after dangerous Mongol raids |
| *ALA'I DARVAZA* |
To the Qutb Minar complex Ala
ud-Din Khilji added the impressive "Ala'i Darvaza" |
| *ALA'I MINAR* |
He also planned to
build an ambitious victory tower in the precincts of the Qutb that
would overtop the Qutb Minar itself |
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(3) TUGHLUQABAD-- Its massive (anti-Mongol) walls were built with great speed by by Sultan Ghiyas ud-Din Tughluq (r.1320-25), who didn't live long enough to profit from them |
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Appropriately, Tughluqabad contains Sultan Ghiyas ud-Din's tomb (he died in the collapse of a victory pavilion built to celebrate his return from suppressing a revolt in Bengal) |
|
1335* |
(4) JAHANPANAH-- Muhammad Tughluq (r.1325-51) gave this name to his early and short-lived attempt to unite the fortifications of Dilli, Siri, and Tughluqabad; under him the Sultanate briefly (c.1330-35) controlled almost the whole subcontinent |
|
BATUTA* |
During Muhammad Tughluq's reign the famous traveller Ibn Batuta paid him a visit, and left a vivid record of both his generosity and his vengefulness |
|
ABAD* |
In 1327, Muhammad Tughluq dragged the whole population of Delhi down to Daulatabad, near Aurangabad (1327-35), thus giving a strong impetus to the development of what later became Urdu |
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He also experimented with issuing some remarkable *bronze coins*; but he was too far ahead of his time, and the attempt proved disastrous |
|
NAGAR* |
In 1336, the south broke away, and the new kingdom of Vijayanagar was established; it lasted till 1565 |
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In 1342, always-restive Bengal broke away forever; the town of PANDUA, near Gaur, became its new capital, and repeated expeditions to reclaim it all failed |
|
BARGA* |
Then in 1347, the Deccan broke away and became the new Bahmani Sultanate, with its early capital at Gulbarga (1347-1425), its later one at *Bidar* (1425-1518) |
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(5) FIROZABAD-- Firoz Shah ka Kotla, built by Firoz Shah Tughluq (r.1351-88), survives as a series of ruins (with his carefully installed Ashokan pillar) |
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Firoz Shah's tomb is at Hauz Khas, in the complex of madrasah, mosque, and tank that he constructed there |
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One of Firoz Shah's courtiers, Junan Shah Maqbul, built the Kalan Masjid (1387) near the dargah of Hazrat Nizamuddin |
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Eid celebrations at Firoz Shah ka Kotla, 2004: two views |
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Timur's sack of Delhi and massacre
of its
people in 1398 was a blow from which the Sultanate never really
recovered: the *Tarikh-i-Rashidi*
offers a Mongol-centric view |
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At just thie time, the great Tunisian historian *Ibn Khaldun* (1332-1406) was developing his famous theory: from tough desert marauders to effete urban elites in three generations |
| *The story continues in the 1400's...* | |
