Expansion of Delhi Sultanate
A. Fill in the blanks:
1. Jalaluddin Khilji was the founder of Khilji Dynasty.
2. Malik Kafur was bought as a slave for 1000 Dinars in Gujarat.
3. Separate markets known as Shahana-i-Mandis were established by Alauddin Khilji.
4. Muhammad bin Tughlaq shifted his capital from Delhi to Devagiri.
5. Timur, a Mongol ruler, invaded India from 1398 and 1399 CE to loot wealth.
B. Match the following:
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C. Choose the correct answer:
1. __________ was a descriptive role of each soldier in the army.
i) Huliya.[✓]
ii) Dagh. [ ]
iii) Zakat. [ ]
iv) Jizya. [ ]
2. The superintendents of separate markets established by Alauddin were known as ________ .
i) sepoy. [ ]
ii) adhyaksh. [ ]
iii) huliya. [ ]
iv) shahna. [✓]
3. Sayyid Dynasty was founded by ___________ ,
i) Shamsuddin Firoze Shah. [ ]
ii) Khizr Khan. [✓]
iii) Bahlul Lodi. [ ]
iv) Ulugh Khan. [ ]
4. __________ failed to assess the risks associated with his creative ideas.
i) Firoze Shah. [ ]
ii) Muhammad bin Tughlaq. [✓]
iii) Timur. [ ]
iv) Khizr Khan. [ ]
5. Babur defeated ___________ in the First Battle of Panipat.
i) Ibrahim Lodi. [✓]
ii) Sikander Lodi. [ ]
iii) Alauddin Alam Shah. [ ]
iv) Timur. [ ]
D. Answer the following questions:
1. Why did Alauddin introduce the Four Ordinances.
= Alauddin introduced the Four Ordinances to curb the rebellions of the nobles and officers in his administration.
2. State two measures adopted by Alauddin to prevent Mongol invasions.
= The two steps taken by Alauddin are -
i) He constructed new forts and repaired the old ones.
ii) Powerful generals were placed in frontier provinces.
3. Which concept was introduced by Alauddin to reorganise the army?
= He introduced the system of huliya or a descriptive roll of each soldiers. Further, the cavalry used dagh, or the branding of horses with the royal insignia. Espionage system was also placed in the army units. The salaries of the soldiers were reduced and fixed.
4. Why did Alauddin not annex the Deccan Kingdoms to his empire?
= Alauddin realised that it is not possible to effectively administer such a large kingdom. So, he allowed the Deccan kings to rule their territories, but compelled them to accept the supremacy of the Sultan and to pay him annual tributes.
5. Why did the ambitious projects of Muhammad bin Tughlaq fail?
= His ideas had good intensions and were ahead of his time. However, their execution was unplanned. He was always patient to accomplish his dream of earning a lot of wealth to meet the expenditure of his kingdom.
E. Answer the following questions in details:
1. Give an account of Alauddin Khilji's conquests.
= Alauddin Khilji started expanding territories by first conquering Gujarat in 1299 CE.
After Gujarat, he turned his attention towards territories in Rajasthan. Alauddin attacked the fort of Ranthambore, and went on to conquer Chittor, the Capital of Mewar.
Other territories such as Mandu, Dhara, Marwar, Chanderi, Jalore and malwa were annexed by the Khilji army.
After successful campaigns in the northern states, Khilji focussed on the Deccan. Alauddin Khilji was the first Turkish ruler to attack south Indian territories. Under the leadership of Malik Kafur, his capable military leader, the rulers of Devagiri, Warangal, Dwarasamudra, and Madurai were defeated.
2. Describe the main projects undertaken by Muhammad bin Tughlaq.
= The main projects undertaken by Muhammad bin Tughlaq are -
i) Transfer of Capital from Delhi to Devagiri(renamed Daulatabad): He wanted to have greater control over southern provinces and protect his capital from Mongol attacks. So, he decided to transfer his capital from Delhi to Devagiri.
But his this project failed. The reasons of the failure of this project are -
Difficulty in controlling north India from Devagiri.
North-west frontier left vulnerable to Mongol attacks.
The transfer was ordered in summer. This made the long journey from Delhi to Devagiri difficult and harrowing.
He shifted capital back to Delhi after two years.
ii) Increased taxation in the Ganga-Yamuna Doab: Muhammad bin Tughlaq increased taxation 10 to 20 times in revenue in fertile regions of Ganga-Yamuna Doab to bring in additional revenue and enhance military resources.
This second project was also failed because of the following reasons -
He introduced this measure at the time of severe famine.
This resulted discontent and rebellion among peasants.
This adversely affected agriculture.
iii) Introduction of Token Currency: He also introduced token currency in copper and brass, backed by silver and gold kept in treasury to overcome shortage of silver and to deal with financial crisis. This project was also failed because of the given reasons -
Brass and copper coins had same value as silver coins.
He failed to make coin minting a state monopoly.
Counterfeit coins started to circulate on a large scale.
This resulted adverse affect on trade as merchants refused to accept token currency.
3. Write a note on the economic and judicial reforms initiated by Firoze Shah Tughlaq.
= Economic Reforms: Firoze Shah reduced land tax in the doab region and abolished many other taxes.
Four types of taxes were levied:
Zakat: Religious tax paid by Muslims for the benefit and welfare of other people.
Kharaj: Land revenue.
Kham: State's share of plunder acquired by the soldiers during war.
Jizya: Tax charged on non-Muslims.
He repaired old canals and built new ones.
He laid many gardens and orchards that produced good amount of fruits. These fruits were traded internally and externally which generated revenue for the kingdom.
He built new towns like Hissar and Firozabad.
Judicial Reforms: Firoze Shah abolished the brutal torture system.
He punished the guilty with pretty fines and small term imprisonment.
He himself heard the cases and administered the proceedings of the courts.
4. Describe the rule of the Sayyid and Lodi Dynasties.
= Sayyid Dynasty: Timur appointed Khizr Khan as a governor of Multan(Punjab) before leaving India. Khizr Khan established the Sayyid Dynasty in 1414 CE. The Sayyid Dynasty in 1414 CE. The Sayyid Dynasty ruled for 38 years from 1414 to 1451 CE.
The last ruler of Sayyid Dynasty was Alam Shah, who ascended the throne in 1443 CE. The Sayyids claimed that they were descendants of Prophet Muhammad as they belonged to the Quraysh tribe.
Lodi Dynasty: The last ruler of Sayyid Dynasty, Alauddin Alam Shah, voluntarily renounced his throne and left Delhi. In 1451 CE, Bahlul Lodi, an Afghan chief, established the Lodi dynasty. The Lodi Dynasty. was the last ruling dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate.
Sikander Lodi succeeded Bahlul Lodi in 1489 CE and established a new city Sikandarabad, now located in Agra.
Ibrahim Lodi was the last ruler of the Delhi Sultanate and the Lodi Dynasty.
5. What were the factors that led to the decline of the Delhi Sultanate?
= No single emperor can be held responsible for the disintegration of the Delhi Sultanate. There were numerous powerful nobles who had either a clan following of their own or strong links with a region. These clans were powerful and ambitious.
Military generals posted as governors of distant places, such as Bengal, Sind, Gujarat, and Daulatabad, often rebelled as the central administration weakened.
Many rulers of the Sultanate were not tolerant of non-Muslims and imposed Islam on all. Destruction of temples and imposition of jizya an non-Muslims created resentment among the people.
Frequent Mongol invasions greatly weakened the empire.
In the course of its rapid disintegration, there arose regional and provincial states and feudal principalities along with the two great kingdoms of bahmani and Vijayanagara.