History
The Delhi Sultanate
Tughlaqs, Sayyids and Lodis (1320–1526)
Tughlaq to Lodi for CGPSC: Muhammad bin Tughlaq's five experiments, Firuz Shah's welfare state, Timur's raid, Sayyids, Lodis, Panipat 1526 and the Bastar link.
Prerequisites
- Foundation, Mamluks and Khaljis: Alauddin’s empire and the coup of 1320
- Feudatory States and Zamindaris: the Kakatiya rulers of Bastar State
The Hook: From Warangal to Bastar
Connect
Every year, Jagdalpur hosts the roughly 75-day Bastar Dussehra (बस्तर दशहरा), built around the goddess Danteshwari and the royal family of Bastar. That family called itself Kakatiya. According to the dynasty’s tradition, its founder Annamdev (अन्नमदेव) was a brother of Prataparudra II, the Kakatiya king of Warangal, and moved into Bastar after Warangal fell to the Delhi army in 1323. The usual date for the new kingdom is 1324.
The army that took Warangal was led by Prince Ulugh Khan, soon to be Sultan Muhammad bin Tughlaq, the most debated ruler in the Sultanate’s history. What did the Tughlaqs try, why did the empire then break apart, and how did it end at Panipat?
Why it matters: Muhammad bin Tughlaq’s “experiments” and Firuz Shah’s measures are among the most asked Sultanate topics in Prelims. Mains asks you to evaluate Muhammad bin Tughlaq and to explain the decline of the Sultanate.
The Tughlaq Dynasty (1320–1414)
Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq (Ghazi Malik), 1320–1325
- A frontier commander under Alauddin, famous for his victories over the Mongols. Took the throne after killing Khusrau Khan (1320).
- Built the fortified city of Tughlaqabad in Delhi.
- His son Ulugh Khan (Jauna Khan) conquered Warangal in 1323 and annexed the Kakatiya kingdom, a break from Alauddin’s tribute-only policy.
- Reversed some of Alauddin’s harsher revenue measures and favoured a moderate state demand.
- Died in 1325 when a wooden pavilion built to welcome him at Afghanpur, near Delhi, collapsed. Whether this was an accident or a plot by his son is debated.
'Hanoz Dilli dur ast'
A famous story says that when the Sultan threatened Sufi saint Nizamuddin Auliya on his way back to Delhi, the saint replied, “Hanoz Dilli dur ast” (“Delhi is still far away”), and the Sultan died before reaching the city. Treat it as legend: it is told about a real tension between the Sultan and the saint, but it is not a contemporary record.
Muhammad bin Tughlaq (मुहम्मद बिन तुग़लक़), 1325–1351
Learned in philosophy, mathematics, medicine and Persian poetry, and the largest Sultanate empire on the map. He is remembered for bold projects that failed in execution.
| # | Experiment | Year (as usually given) | What happened |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Higher taxation in the Doab | Early in his reign | The land-revenue demand was raised in the Ganga–Yamuna Doab just as famine struck. Peasants fled; revolts followed |
| 2 | Transfer of capital to Daulatabad (Devagiri) | 1326–27 | Daulatabad was central and close to the newly annexed Deccan. Much of Delhi’s population was ordered south; many died on the way. The court later returned to Delhi |
| 3 | Token currency | 1329–30 | Copper (or brass) coins to be accepted at par with the silver tanka. Without state control over minting, people forged them at home. The Sultan withdrew the tokens and exchanged them for silver and gold, at great loss to the treasury |
| 4 | Khurasan expedition | Planned | A huge army was raised for a campaign into Central Asia and paid for a year, then disbanded when the political situation there changed |
| 5 | Qarachil expedition | Early 1330s | An expedition into the Kumaon–Garhwal Himalaya was destroyed by terrain and weather |
Agricultural measures:
- Diwan-i-Amir-i-Kohi (दीवान-ए-अमीर-ए-कोही): a new department of agriculture to extend cultivation in the Doab by direct state investment. It failed because of corruption and poorly chosen land.
- Taqavi (तक़ावी) loans to cultivators for seed and wells.
Ibn Battuta (इब्न बतूता): The Moroccan traveller reached Delhi in 1333. The Sultan made him the qazi (judge) of Delhi, and in 1342 sent him as an envoy to China. His Arabic travel account, the Rihla, describes the court, the postal system and the Sultan’s mix of generosity and severity.
Break-up: Revolts multiplied in his last years and new states broke away:
| Breakaway state | Year (usual) | Founder |
|---|---|---|
| Madurai Sultanate (Ma’bar) | c. 1335 | Jalaluddin Ahsan Shah |
| Vijayanagara | 1336 | Harihara and Bukka (Sangama brothers) |
| Bahmani Sultanate (capital Gulbarga) | 1347 | Alauddin Hasan Bahman Shah |
He died in 1351 at Thatta (Sindh) while pursuing the rebel Taghi.
Firuz Shah Tughlaq (फ़िरोज़ शाह तुग़लक़), 1351–1388
Firuz turned away from expansion and built what is often called a welfare state on orthodox lines.
| Area | Measures |
|---|---|
| Taxation | Abolished many non-canonical cesses and levied the four taxes allowed by Islamic law: kharaj, jizya, khams and zakat. Added haqq-i-sharb, an irrigation charge on canal-watered land. Extended jizya to Brahmins, who had earlier been exempt |
| Irrigation | Dug or restored canals from the Yamuna and the Sutlej and other rivers; built wells and dams |
| Towns | Founded Firuzabad (Delhi; the citadel is Feroz Shah Kotla), Hisar, Fatehabad and Jaunpur (named after Muhammad bin Tughlaq, whose earlier name was Jauna Khan) |
| Welfare | Diwan-i-Khairat (charity, including help for the poor to marry their daughters); a hospital, Dar-ul-Shifa; employment bureau for the jobless |
| Slaves | Diwan-i-Bandagan, a separate department for a very large body of state slaves, many trained in crafts |
| Nobility | Made iqtas and offices hereditary, which pleased the nobles but weakened central control |
| Heritage | Moved two Ashokan pillars from Topra (Haryana) and Meerut to Delhi (the Topra pillar in 1356); repaired the Qutb Minar after lightning struck it in 1368 |
| Learning | Wrote a short account of his reign, Futuhat-i-Firuz Shahi; patronised scholars and had Sanskrit works translated into Persian |
Evaluation in one paragraph
Firuz’s reign brought peace and prosperity after the turmoil of his predecessor’s last years: canals extended cultivation, prices stayed low and the state looked after the poor. But hereditary iqtas, a bloated slave corps, a weakened army and his religious orthodoxy (jizya on Brahmins, curbs on non-Muslim practice) stored up the problems that broke the Sultanate after 1388.
Collapse and Timur’s invasion (1398)
Firuz’s successors fought each other. In December 1398, the Central Asian conqueror Timur (Tamerlane) defeated the last Tughlaq Sultan, Nasiruddin Mahmud Shah, and sacked Delhi. Provinces became independent kingdoms: Jaunpur (Sharqi), Gujarat, Malwa and others.
The Sayyid Dynasty (1414–1451)
| Ruler | Key point |
|---|---|
| Khizr Khan (1414–1421) | Timur’s governor of Multan; captured Delhi in 1414. Did not take the title Sultan; called himself Rayat-i-Ala and had the name of Timur’s son Shah Rukh read in the khutba |
| Mubarak Shah (1421–1434) | Yahya bin Ahmad Sirhindi wrote the Tarikh-i-Mubarak Shahi in his name |
| Muhammad Shah (1434–1445) | Weak; relied on Bahlul Lodi, governor of Sirhind |
| Alauddin Alam Shah (1445–1451) | Withdrew to Badaun and abdicated in favour of Bahlul Lodi in 1451 |
The Sayyid “Sultanate” barely extended beyond Delhi and its neighbourhood.
The Lodi Dynasty (1451–1526): the first Afghan rulers of Delhi
Bahlul Lodi, 1451–1489
- The first Afghan ruler of Delhi. Treated the Afghan nobles as near-equals, a tribal idea of kingship.
- His great achievement was the conquest of the Sharqi kingdom of Jaunpur.
- Issued a copper coin, the Bahluli.
Sikandar Lodi, 1489–1517
- The ablest Lodi. Strengthened royal authority over the Afghan nobles.
- Developed Agra as a city and seat of government; 1504 is the usual date for its founding, though a settlement existed earlier.
- Introduced the Gaz-i-Sikandari, a standard measuring yard of about 32 inches, used for land measurement.
- Wrote Persian verse under the pen name Gulrukhi.
- Abolished duty on grain; orthodox in religious policy.
Ibrahim Lodi, 1517–1526
- Tried to assert the Sultan’s supremacy over proud Afghan nobles, who rebelled.
- Daulat Khan Lodi, governor of Punjab, invited Babur, the Timurid ruler of Kabul. Babur’s memoirs say that Rana Sanga of Mewar also sent him an envoy.
- First Battle of Panipat, 21 April 1526: Babur defeated and killed Ibrahim Lodi, using field artillery and the tulughma flanking tactic. The Delhi Sultanate ended and the Mughal Empire began.
Why Did the Sultanate Decline? (Mains)
| Cause | Detail |
|---|---|
| No law of succession | Every death set off a struggle; nobles made and unmade Sultans |
| Personal despotism | The system depended on strong individuals (Balban, Alauddin); weak successors could not hold it |
| Muhammad bin Tughlaq’s failures | Drained the treasury, alienated nobles and peasants, and triggered breakaway states in the Deccan |
| Firuz’s policies | Hereditary iqtas and offices, a slave corps, a weaker army |
| Timur’s raid (1398) | Destroyed Delhi’s wealth and prestige; provinces broke away |
| Size and communication | An empire stretching to Madurai could not be controlled from Delhi with medieval transport |
| Narrow social base | Dependence on a small foreign-origin nobility and on military force; limited participation by the wider population |
| Afghan tribal politics | The Lodis’ nobles saw the Sultan as first among equals; Ibrahim’s attempt to change this caused revolt |
| External challenge | Babur’s artillery and tactics at Panipat (1526) |
Chhattisgarh Angle
Chhattisgarh during the Sultanate centuries
- No lasting Sultanate rule. The Chhattisgarh plains remained with the Kalachuris of Ratanpur, whose junior Raipur branch emerged in the 14th century (Raipur inscription of Brahmadeva, c. 1402). See Kalachuris of Ratanpur and Raipur.
- Bastar. By tradition, Annamdev, brother of Prataparudra II, founded the Kakatiya kingdom of Bastar around 1324, after Ulugh Khan’s conquest of Warangal (1323). The Delhi campaigns thus indirectly shaped the dynasty that ruled Bastar until the princely states merged after Independence.
- Kabirdham. The Madwa Mahal near Bhoramdeo was built in 1349 under the Phani Nagavanshi king Ramchandra Dev, while Muhammad bin Tughlaq ruled in Delhi. See Temples and Monuments.
A Mains answer on the Sultanate’s extent can use these lines to show that central India’s forest belt stayed outside Delhi’s direct control.
Memory Tricks
Muhammad bin Tughlaq's five experiments: 'Dad Took Two Kids Quickly'
Doab taxation · Transfer of capital (1326–27) · Token currency (1329–30) · Khurasan · Qarachil
Firuz Shah's 'C' list
Canals · Charity (Diwan-i-Khairat) · Cities (Firuzabad, Hisar, Jaunpur, Fatehabad) · Columns (Ashokan pillars moved) · Canonical taxes only (+ haqq-i-sharb)
The end game
1398 Timur sacks Delhi → 1414 Khizr Khan (Sayyid) → 1451 Bahlul (Lodi) → 1526 Panipat. “Ninety-eight, fourteen, fifty-one, twenty-six.”
Don’t Confuse
| This | vs | That |
|---|---|---|
| Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq built Tughlaqabad | vs | Firuz Shah built Firuzabad (Kotla) |
| Diwan-i-Amir-i-Kohi: agriculture (Muhammad bin Tughlaq) | vs | Diwan-i-Khairat: charity (Firuz) · Diwan-i-Bandagan: slaves (Firuz) |
| Ibn Battuta: Moroccan, came under Muhammad bin Tughlaq | vs | Al-Biruni: came with Mahmud of Ghazni, 11th century |
| Vijayanagara (1336): Harihara and Bukka | vs | Bahmani (1347): Hasan Bahman Shah, Gulbarga |
| Bahlul Lodi: first Afghan Sultan; Bahluli coin | vs | Sikandar Lodi: Agra, Gaz-i-Sikandari, Gulrukhi |
| First Panipat (1526): Babur vs Ibrahim Lodi | vs | Khanwa (1527): Babur vs Rana Sanga |
| Jaunpur founded by Firuz Shah | vs | Sharqi kingdom of Jaunpur later conquered by Bahlul Lodi |
Common Mistakes
MCQ traps
- “Token currency was made of leather or paper.” It was copper or brass.
- “Muhammad bin Tughlaq shifted the capital permanently to Daulatabad.” The court returned to Delhi.
- “Firuz Shah exempted Brahmins from jizya.” The opposite: he extended jizya to them.
- “Khizr Khan took the title of Sultan.” He ruled as Rayat-i-Ala and acknowledged Shah Rukh.
- “The Lodis were Turks.” They were Afghans, the first Afghan dynasty at Delhi.
- “Firuz Shah Tughlaq founded Agra.” Agra is associated with Sikandar Lodi.
Practice
All questions below are original practice questions in CGPSC style. They are not previous-year questions.
Level 1: Foundation
- The Moroccan traveller whom Muhammad bin Tughlaq appointed qazi of Delhi was ______.
- The founder of the Sayyid dynasty was ______.
- The First Battle of Panipat was fought on ______.
Answers
- Ibn Battuta.
- Khizr Khan (1414).
- 21 April 1526.
Level 2: Prelims MCQs
Q1. Consider the following statements about Firuz Shah Tughlaq:
- He set up the Diwan-i-Khairat to help the poor and needy.
- He exempted Brahmins from jizya for the first time.
- He brought an Ashokan pillar from Topra to Delhi.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- (a) 1 only
- (b) 2 and 3 only
- (c) 1 and 3 only
- (d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer and explanation
(c) 1 and 3 only. Statement 2 reverses the fact. Brahmins had earlier been exempt, and Firuz imposed jizya on them. The Topra pillar was moved to his citadel at Firuzabad (Feroz Shah Kotla).
Q2. Match List I (Ruler) with List II (Measure or event):
| List I | List II |
|---|---|
| A. Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq | 1. Gaz-i-Sikandari |
| B. Muhammad bin Tughlaq | 2. Construction of Tughlaqabad |
| C. Khizr Khan | 3. Diwan-i-Amir-i-Kohi |
| D. Sikandar Lodi | 4. Title of Rayat-i-Ala |
- (a) A-2, B-4, C-3, D-1
- (b) A-3, B-2, C-4, D-1
- (c) A-2, B-3, C-4, D-1
- (d) A-2, B-3, C-1, D-4
Answer and explanation
(c) A-2, B-3, C-4, D-1. Ghiyasuddin built Tughlaqabad. Muhammad bin Tughlaq created the agriculture department, Diwan-i-Amir-i-Kohi. Khizr Khan ruled as Rayat-i-Ala, acknowledging the Timurids. Sikandar Lodi introduced the Gaz-i-Sikandari.
Q3. Which of the following states broke away from the Delhi Sultanate during the reign of Muhammad bin Tughlaq?
- Vijayanagara
- Bahmani Sultanate
- Sharqi kingdom of Jaunpur
Select the correct answer:
- (a) 1 only
- (b) 1 and 2 only
- (c) 2 and 3 only
- (d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer and explanation
(b) 1 and 2 only. Vijayanagara (1336) and the Bahmani Sultanate (1347) arose under Muhammad bin Tughlaq. The Sharqi kingdom of Jaunpur became independent after Timur’s invasion of 1398, half a century later.
Q4. The token currency of Muhammad bin Tughlaq failed mainly because:
- (a) The coins were made of leather and wore out quickly
- (b) The state could not prevent the coins from being forged
- (c) Merchants from Central Asia refused to trade in Delhi
- (d) The Caliph declared the coins unlawful
Answer and explanation
(b). The copper or brass tokens were easy to imitate, and the state had no means to stop private minting. Forged tokens flooded the market, and the Sultan had to redeem them in silver and gold.
Q5. The ruling family of Bastar State traditionally traced its origin to Annamdev, a brother of the king of which kingdom conquered by the Delhi Sultanate in 1323?
- (a) Devagiri
- (b) Dwarasamudra
- (c) Warangal
- (d) Madurai
Answer and explanation
(c) Warangal. By tradition Annamdev was a brother of the Kakatiya king Prataparudra II of Warangal and founded the Bastar kingdom around 1324, after Ulugh Khan’s conquest.
Level 3: Mains Answer Writing
Q1. (150–200 words) “Muhammad bin Tughlaq was a man of ideas who failed in execution.” Discuss with reference to his major projects.
Model answer outline
- Intro: Scholar-Sultan (1325–51) who ruled the largest Sultanate empire; his reign is remembered for bold experiments.
- Ideas with a rationale: Daulatabad was central and close to the newly annexed Deccan; token currency answered a silver shortage and had parallels elsewhere; Diwan-i-Amir-i-Kohi and taqavi loans aimed at agrarian expansion.
- Execution failures: forced migration of Delhi’s people; no state control over token minting, so mass forgery; Doab tax rise during famine; Khurasan army raised and disbanded; Qarachil disaster.
- Consequences: empty treasury, peasant flight, distrust among nobles, revolts; Vijayanagara (1336), Bahmani (1347) and Madurai broke away.
- Balanced view: contemporary chroniclers (Barani, Ibn Battuta) describe both generosity and harshness; modern historians stress poor timing and the absence of institutions to carry out his plans.
- Chhattisgarh link (one line): the Warangal conquest he led as prince (1323) is linked by tradition to the founding of the Kakatiya kingdom of Bastar.
- Conclusion: a visionary whose impatience and lack of administrative machinery turned reforms into crises.
Q2. (150–200 words) Explain the causes of the decline of the Delhi Sultanate.
Model answer outline
- Intro: A 320-year state (1206–1526) that shrank to the area around Delhi by the 15th century.
- Structural causes: no law of succession; despotism resting on individuals; a narrow, foreign-origin ruling class; the iqta system turning hereditary under Firuz.
- Policy failures: Muhammad bin Tughlaq’s projects; Firuz’s slave corps and weakened army.
- External blows: Timur’s sack of Delhi (1398); Babur at Panipat (1526).
- Regional assertion: Vijayanagara, Bahmani, Jaunpur, Gujarat, Malwa; distance and poor communications.
- Afghan politics: nobles’ resistance to Ibrahim Lodi’s centralisation; Daulat Khan’s invitation to Babur.
- Conclusion: internal weakness made the external blows decisive.
Quick Revision Table
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq | 1320–1325; Tughlaqabad; Warangal annexed 1323; died at Afghanpur |
| Muhammad bin Tughlaq | 1325–1351; Daulatabad 1326–27; token currency 1329–30; Khurasan; Qarachil; Doab tax |
| Agriculture | Diwan-i-Amir-i-Kohi; taqavi loans |
| Ibn Battuta | Arrived 1333; qazi of Delhi; envoy to China 1342; Rihla |
| Breakaways | Madurai c. 1335; Vijayanagara 1336; Bahmani 1347 |
| Firuz Shah | 1351–1388; canals; Firuzabad, Hisar, Jaunpur, Fatehabad; Diwan-i-Khairat; Diwan-i-Bandagan; Dar-ul-Shifa; jizya on Brahmins; Topra pillar 1356; Futuhat-i-Firuz Shahi |
| Timur | Sacked Delhi, December 1398 |
| Sayyids | 1414–1451; Khizr Khan (Rayat-i-Ala); Alam Shah abdicated at Badaun |
| Lodis | 1451–1526; Afghans; Bahlul (Jaunpur, Bahluli), Sikandar (Agra 1504, Gaz-i-Sikandari, Gulrukhi), Ibrahim |
| Panipat I | 21 April 1526; Babur defeats Ibrahim Lodi |
| Bastar link | Annamdev, c. 1324, after the fall of Warangal (tradition) |
Key Takeaways
Key Takeaways
- The Tughlaqs annexed the Deccan (Warangal, 1323), unlike Alauddin’s tribute policy.
- Muhammad bin Tughlaq’s five experiments had a logic but failed in execution, and the empire began to fragment.
- Firuz Shah traded expansion for welfare, canals and orthodoxy, but hereditary iqtas weakened the centre.
- Timur (1398) broke the Sultanate; the Sayyids and Lodis ruled a much smaller state.
- Panipat (1526) ended the Sultanate; in Chhattisgarh, the fall of Warangal is linked by tradition to the Kakatiya kingdom of Bastar.
What’s Next
- Administration, Revenue and Military: how the Sultans governed and taxed
- Art, Architecture and Literature: Tughlaqabad, Firuzabad and the Lodi tombs
- The Mughal Empire: Babur and the state that followed
- Bastar Dussehra: the Kakatiya royal tradition in Bastar
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