The Delhi Sultanate — Part 8: One-Page Revision Summary & Glossary

One-Page Revision Summary

Five Dynasties (1206–1526):

1. Slave/Mamluk (1206–1290)

• Aibak (1206–10): Founded Sultanate; Qutb Minar; died polo accident; capital Lahore
• Iltutmish (1210–36): Real founder; iqta; the 'Forty'; Caliph's recognition 1229; defeated Yalduz 1215, Qubacha 1228
• Raziya (1236–40): Only female Sultan; opposed by Turkish nobility; killed 1240
• Balban (1265–87): Zill-i Ilahi; Sasanian court ceremonial; son Muhammad died Multan 1285

2. Khalji (1290–1320)

• Jalal-ud-din: Moderate; killed by nephew Alauddin 1296
• Alauddin (1296–1316): Gujarat 1299; Ranthambhor 1300; Chittor 1303; Malwa 1305; Siwana and Jalor 1309; Malik Kafur → Devagiri, Warangal, Dwarasamudra, Ma'bar; Sikander Sani; price control; dagh+chehra; Mongols repulsed

3. Tughlaq (1320–1414)

• Ghiyasuddin (1320–25): Restored order; Warangal directly annexed 1321–23; Bengal
• Muhammad bin Tughlaq (1324–51): Capital → Daulatabad; token currency; Khorasan project; Qarachil disaster; maximum extent then rapid contraction
• Firuz Shah (1351–88): Canals; hospitals; Jaunpur founded; orthodoxy; hereditary iqtas
• Timur sacked Delhi 1398 → Tughlaqs collapsed by 1414

4. Sayyid (1414–1451): Khizr Khan = Timurid vassal; four rulers; Sultanate a shadow; Alauddin Alam Shah abdicated 1451

5. Lodi (1451–1526): Afghan dynasty

• Bahlul: Tribal Afghan polity; conquered Jaunpur
• Sikandar: Founded Agra 1504; religious orthodoxy; Gulrukhi
• Ibrahim: Autocratic over Afghans → Afghan nobles invited Babur → First Battle of Panipat 20 April 1526 (tulughma + artillery) → Sultanate ended

Key Dates: 1192 (Tarain II) → 1206 (Sultanate begins) → 1229 (Caliph's recognition) → 1296 (Alauddin) → 1320 (Tughlaqs) → 1398 (Timur) → 1414 (Sayyids) → 1451 (Lodis) → 1526 (Panipat I; Sultanate ends)

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Glossary

1. Mamluk: From Arabic meaning 'owned' or 'slave'; refers to a class of military slaves used as soldiers and administrators; the first dynasty of the Sultanate is known as the Mamluk or Slave dynasty.

2. Iqta: A transferable revenue assignment granted by the Sultan to an officer (muqti) in lieu of salary; the officer collected revenues and maintained troops; holders were regularly transferred to prevent hereditary entrenchment.

3. Muqti: The holder of an iqta; an administrative-military officer who collected revenue and maintained cavalry contingents for the Sultan from his assigned territory.

4. Turkan-i Chihilgani (Bandagan Shamsi): 'The Forty' — the group of forty loyal Turkish slave officers of Iltutmish who became a powerful oligarchic force after his death, dominating Sultanate politics from 1236–1265.

5. Zill-i Ilahi: Persian concept meaning 'Shadow of God on Earth'; used by Balban to express the divine origin and absolute authority of the Sultan, drawing on Sasanian (Persian) imperial tradition.

6. Sijda: Prostration before the Sultan — a practice introduced by Balban as part of his Sasanian court ceremonial to emphasise royal majesty and distance the ruler from ordinary subjects.

7. Dagh: The branding of cavalry horses in Alauddin Khalji's military reforms, used to ensure that nobles maintained the horses for which they were paid and could not substitute inferior animals.

8. Chehra: The descriptive roll (physical description of the soldier) in Alauddin Khalji's army reforms, used alongside dagh to prevent fraud in the military muster and pay system.

9. Shahna: A market controller appointed under Alauddin Khalji's price control system; responsible for supervising compliance with fixed prices in the regulated markets of Delhi.

10. Jauhar: The practice of mass self-immolation by Rajput women when defeat by an enemy was imminent; recorded at Ranthambhor (1301) and Chittor (1303) during Alauddin Khalji's Rajputana campaigns.

11. Tulughma: The flanking cavalry manoeuvre used by Babur at the First Battle of Panipat (1526); combined with field artillery fire, it decisively defeated Ibrahim Lodi's numerically superior force.

12. Malfuzat: Collections of conversations and teachings of Sufi saints; an important source for the social history of the Sultanate period alongside the official Persian court chronicles.

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