Alauddin Khalji's raid on Bhilsa

Last updated

Alauddin Khalji's raid on Bhilsa
Part of Sieges involving Delhi Sultanate
Date1293
Location
Bhilsa
Result Delhi Sultanate victory
Belligerents
Delhi Sultanate Flag.svg Delhi Sultanate Paramara
Commanders and leaders
Delhi Sultanate Flag.svg Alauddin Khalji Mahalakadeva
Alauddin Khalji's raid on Bhilsa
Kara and Bhilsa in present-day India

As a general of Jalal-ud-din Khalji, his nephew Alauddin Khalji (then known as Ali Gurshasp) raided the Paramara city of Bhilsa in 1293 CE. He damaged the city's Hindu temples, and looted a large amount of wealth.

Contents

Background

Alauddin Khalji was the governor of Kara in Sultan Jalaluddin's Delhi Sultanate. Although he feigned allegiance to the Sultan, he was determined to dethrone Jalaluddin, and sought to raise money for a successful coup. Towards this objective, he decided to target Bhilsa, a wealthy city in the Paramara kingdom of Malwa. By the 1290s, the Paramaras had been weakened by Chahamana, Vaghela, and Yadava invasions. [1] In late 1292 CE, Alauddin Khalji obtained the Sultan's permission to raid Bhilsa. [2]

The raid

In 1293 CE, Alauddin marched towards Bhilsa via the Chanderi-Ujjain road. [3] [2] His sudden attack took the city's residents by surprise. [2]

The town had several richly-endowed Hindu temples, from which Alauddin obtained a large amount of wealth, including precious metals and cattle. [3] The residents of Bhilsa concealed their idols in the riverbed of Betwa to prevent Alauddin's army from desecrating them. But Alauddin had these idols hauled out of Betwa. He damaged a number of temples, and plundered a large amount of wealth. [2] According to Badauni's Muntakhab-ut-Tawarikh , Alauddin also brought to Delhi a large Hindu idol, which was placed at the Badaun Gate to be trampled by the people. [4] [5]

Aftermath

At Bhilsa, Alauddin learned of the immense wealth of the southern Seuna (Yadava) kingdom, and about the routes leading to their capital Devagiri. Therefore, he shrewdly surrendered the loot from Bhilsa to Jalaluddin to gain the Sultan's confidence, while withholding the information on the Yadava kingdom. [6]

A pleased Jalaluddin rewarded Alauddin with the office of Ariz-i Mamalik (Ministry of War), which his father once held. Jalaluddin also made him the governor of Awadh, and granted his request to use the revenue surplus for hiring additional troops. [3] [7] Subsequently, in 1296, Alauddin raided Devagiri, and used that loot to raise an army and usurp the power from Jalaluddin. [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Qutbuddin Mubarak Shah</span> Ruler of the Delhi Sultanate

Qutb-ud-din Mubarak Shah also known as Ikhtiyar al-Din, was a ruler of the Delhi Sultanate of present-day India. A member of the Khalji dynasty, he was a son of Alauddin Khalji.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malik Kafur</span> Indian slave-general

Malik Kafur, also known as Taj al-Din Izz al-Dawla, was a prominent slave-general of the Delhi Sultanate ruler Alauddin Khalji. He was captured by Alauddin's general Nusrat Khan during the 1299 invasion of Gujarat, and rose to prominence in the 1300s.

Hizabruddin, better known by his title Zafar Khan, was a general of the Delhi Sultanate ruler Alauddin Khalji. He held charge of Multan, Samana, and Sivistan, Sindh at various times during Alauddin's reign.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alauddin Khalji</span> Turco-Afghan emperor of Khalji dynasty 1296–1316

Alauddin Khilji, born Ali Gurshasp, was a ruler from the Khalji dynasty that ruled the Delhi Sultanate in the Indian subcontinent. Alauddin instituted a number of significant administrative changes, related to revenues, price controls, and society. He also successfully fended off several Mongol invasions of India. Alauddin was a nephew and a son-in-law of his predecessor Jalaluddin. When Jalaluddin became the Sultan of Delhi after deposing the Mamluks, Alauddin was given the position of Amir-i-Tuzuk. After suppressing a revolt against Jalaluddin, Alauddin obtained the governorship of Kara in 1291, and the governorship of Awadh in 1296, after a profitable raid on Bhilsa. In 1296, Alauddin raided Devagiri, and acquired loot to stage a successful revolt against Jalaluddin. After killing Jalaluddin, he consolidated his power in Delhi, and subjugated Jalaluddin's sons in Multan.

Shihab-ud-din Omar was the third Sultan of the Khalji Dynasty and fourteenth Sultan of Delhi Sultanate in India. After the death of his father Alauddin Khalji in 1316, he ascended the throne as a minor, with the support of Alauddin's slave-general Malik Kafur. His brother Qutb-ud-din Mubarak became the regent after the assassination of Kafur and subsequently dethroned him to become the Sultan.

Almas Beg, better known by his title Ulugh Khan, was a brother and a general of the Delhi Sultanate ruler Alauddin Khalji. He held the iqta' of Bayana in present-day India.

In the winter of 1297, Kadar, a noyan of the Mongol Chagatai Khanate invaded the Delhi Sultanate ruled by Alauddin Khalji. The Mongols ravaged the Punjab region of modern day Pakistan and India, advancing as far as Kasur. Alauddin sent an army led by his brother Ulugh Khan to check their advance. This army defeated the invaders on 6 February 1298, killing around 20,000 of them, and forcing the Mongols to retreat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alauddin Khalji's raid on Devagiri</span>

In 1296, Alauddin Khalji raided Devagiri, the capital of the Yadava kingdom in the Deccan region of India. At the time, Alauddin was the governor of Kara in Delhi Sultanate, which was ruled by Jalaluddin Khalji. Alauddin kept his march to Devagiri a secret from Jalaluddin, because he intended to use the wealth obtained from this raid for dethroning the Sultan.

In November 1296, the Delhi Sultanate ruler Alauddin Khalji sent an expedition to conquer Multan. His objective was to eliminate the surviving family members of his predecessor Jalaluddin Khalji, whom he had assassinated to usurp the throne of Delhi. Multan was governed by Jalaluddin's eldest son Arkali Khan. Alauddin's generals Ulugh Khan and Zafar Khan besieged Multan for around two months. They managed to gain control of the city after Arkali Khan's officers defected to their side. The surviving family members of Jalaluddin were imprisoned, and later, several of them were either blinded or killed.

Karna was the last Vaghela king of Gujarat region in India. Little is known about his life except his defeat against Alauddin Khalji of the Delhi Sultanate. Alauddin's forces ransacked his kingdom in 1299, forcing him to flee Gujarat. Karna seems to have gained control of at least some part of his territory in the subsequent years. However, a second invasion in 1304 resulted in the end of the Vaghela dynasty.

In 1305, the Delhi Sultanate ruler Alauddin Khalji sent an army to capture the Paramara kingdom of Malwa in central India. The Delhi army defeated and killed the powerful Paramara minister Goga, while the Paramara king Mahalakadeva took shelter in the Mandu fort. Alauddin appointed Ayn al-Mulk Multani as the governor of Malwa. After consolidating his power in Malwa, Ayn al-Mulk besieged Mandu and killed Mahalakadeva.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alauddin Khalji's conquest of Devagiri</span>

Around 1308, the Delhi Sultanate ruler Alauddin Khalji sent a large army led by his general Malik Kafur to Devagiri, the capital of the Yadava king Ramachandra.

In late 1309, the Delhi Sultanate ruler Alauddin Khalji sent his general Malik Kafur on an expedition to the Kakatiya capital Warangal. Malik Kafur reached Warangal in January 1310, after conquering a fort on the Kakatiya frontier and ransacking their territory. After a month-long siege, the Kakatiya ruler Prataparudra decided to negotiate a truce, and surrendered a huge amount of wealth to send to the Delhi Sultanate, besides promising to send annual tributes to Delhi.

In late 1310, the Sultan of Delhi Alauddin Khalji sent his slave-general Malik Kafur on an expedition to the southernmost regions of India. In February 1311, Malik Kafur besieged the Hoysala capital Dwarasamudra, and the defending ruler Veera Ballala III surrendered without much resistance. Ballala agreed to pay the Delhi Sultanate an annual tribute, and surrendered a great amount of wealth, elephants and horses.

Nusrat Khan was a general of the Delhi Sultanate ruler Alauddin Khalji. He served as Alauddin's wazir during the start of his reign, and played an important role in the Sultan's Devagiri (1296) and Gujarat (1299) campaigns. He was killed during the Siege of Ranthambore in 1301.

Ayn al-Mulk ibn Shihab Multani was a military commander and official who served the Khalji and Tughluq dynasties of the Delhi Sultanate in present-day India. He served as Alauddin Khalji's governor of Malwa and Devagiri, and after Alauddin's death, suppressed a revolt in Gujarat.

In 1311, the Delhi Sultanate ruler Alauddin Khalji ordered a mass massacre of the "New Muslims", after some Mongol amirs of Delhi conspired to kill him. According to chronicler Ziauddin Barani, 20,000 or 30,000 Mongols were killed as a result of this order.

Chhan is a village in the Sawai Madhopur district of Rajasthan, India. It is identified with Jhain, which is mentioned in the Delhi Sultanate chronicles as an important town of 13th and 14th century India.

Malika-i-Jahan was the first and chief wife of Sultan Alauddin Khalji, the most powerful ruler of the Khalji dynasty that ruled the Delhi Sultanate. She was the daughter of Alauddin's predecessor and paternal uncle, Sultan Jalaluddin Khalji, the founder of the Khalji dynasty.

The Paramaras of Siwana were one of the many Rajput rulers in Rajasthan who ruled a principality centered on the fort of Siwana. They belonged to the Rajput Agnivanshi clan of Paramaras. The last ruler, Sitala Deva was eventually defeated and his domain annexed by the sultan of Delhi, Alauddin Khilji.

References

  1. ↑ Banarsi Prasad Saksena 1992, p. 321.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Kishori Saran Lal 1950, p. 44.
  3. 1 2 3 Banarsi Prasad Saksena 1992, p. 322.
  4. ↑ Dineshchandra Sircar 1971, p. 117.
  5. ↑ Kishori Saran Lal 1950, pp. 44–45.
  6. ↑ A. B. M. Habibullah 1992, p. 322.
  7. 1 2 Kishori Saran Lal 1950, p. 45.

Bibliography

  • A. B. M. Habibullah (1992) [1970]. "The Khaljis: Jalaluddin Khalji". In Mohammad Habib; Khaliq Ahmad Nizami (eds.). A Comprehensive History of India. Vol. 5: The Delhi Sultanat (A.D. 1206-1526). The Indian History Congress / People's Publishing House. OCLC   31870180.
  • Banarsi Prasad Saksena (1992) [1970]. "The Khaljis: Alauddin Khalji". In Mohammad Habib; Khaliq Ahmad Nizami (eds.). A Comprehensive History of India: The Delhi Sultanat (A.D. 1206-1526). Vol. 5 (Second ed.). The Indian History Congress / People's Publishing House. OCLC   31870180.
  • Dineshchandra Sircar (1971). Studies in the Religious Life of Ancient and Medieval India. Motilal Banarsidass. ISBN   978-81-208-2790-5.
  • Kishori Saran Lal (1950). History of the Khaljis (1290-1320). Allahabad: The Indian Press. OCLC   685167335.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.