Medieval India And Political Transition

The founder of Gurjara Prathihara dynasty is Nagabhatta.

Explanation:

Prathiharas ruled the Sindh region. According to the inscriptions, Laxmana who belonged to the Suryavamsa was the founder of their family. But the real available sources stand as an evidence to prove that Nagabhatta is the founder of this Gurjara Prathihara dynasty. Their capital was Kanuj.

Prithivraj Chouhan defeated Mohammed Ghori in the first battle of Terrain.

Explanation:

Prithivraj Chouhan was the most important ruler of the Chauhan dynasty. He was very brave and courageous. When Mohammed Ghori wanted to extend his empire till Sind, he fought a brave battle and defeated Ghori. Ghori was also wounded severely. The First battle of Terrain was fought in the year 1191 C.E.

The prominent Commander of Mohammed Ghori was Qutubuddin Aibak.

Explanation:

Qutubuddin Aibak was bought as a slave by Mohammed Ghori. Aibak was a trained archer and a horse rider. He was very brave. Ghori was much impressed by his valour. He was given the responsibility of attacking India after the second battle of Terrain. Thus, Aibak enjoyed the privilege of being the prominent commander.

The first woman to rule among the Delhi Sultans was Razia Sultana.

Explanation:

Razia Begum was the daughter of Iltutmish. She succeeded her father and assume the title of Sultana. She dressed herself as a man and fought many battles. She ruled from Sindh to Bengal. She was killed by the provincial officers who could not tolerate her rule.

The famous Sultan of Khilji Dynasty was Alauddin Khilji.

Explanation:

Alauddin Khilji was a brave warrior. He was the Governor and military general before becoming as the Sultan of Delhi. Jalaluddin Khilji was the mentor of Alauddin. Alauddin made several changes in the administration, military and the then existent market systems which got him a prominent place in history.

The capital city was shifted from Delhi to Devagiri(daultabad) during the rule of Thuglaq.

Explanation:

Mohammed bin Tughlaq was one of the important rulers of the Tughlaq dynasty. He also had very good knowledge of Mathematics, Physics, Astronomy and languages like Persian and Arabic. He shifted the capital from Delhi to Devagiri(daultabad) in order to protect the capital from foreign invasions and for the establishment of capital in the centre of his empire.

They ruled from the later half of the twelfth century to the first half of the thirteenth century.

Besides the poets in their court, the kings were also scholars. Hence, they made generous contribution to the development of education. Many poets like Padmagupta, Shantisena, Jayadeva were patronised. Languages like Gujarati, Hindi and Rajasthani were encouraged during this period.

Some of the important contributions of the Rajput kings are as follows:

1. King Munja and king Bhoja were poets and they themselves have written many literary works.

2. Many poems were written during the period of Rajputs. Jayadeva’s Geethagovinda, Bharavi’s Keerthanarjuneeya, Bharthruhari’s Ravanavada, Mahendrapala’s Kavya Meemamse were written,

3. The important dramas like Rajashekara’s Bala Ramayana and Karpuramanjari, Bhavabhuti’s Mahaveeracharitha and Uthararamacharitha were written.

4. The other important works of the Rajputs include Kalhana’s Rajatharangini, Jayanika’s Prithiviraja Vijaya and Hemachandra’s kumarapla charitha.

5. Biographies like Prithiviraja Raso by Chand Bardahi and Bhoja Prabandha by Balalla were notable.

In addition to these, many forts and temples were constructed. Painting was also encouraged.

Iltamush belonged to the Ilbari family. He succeeded Qutubuddin Aibak. He was a slave to Aibak. He was the administrator of Gwalior. He was known for the completion of Qutb Minar in Delhi. The construction was started by Qutubuddin Aibak.

Iltamush was a good administrator. The kingdom was well administered by dividing it into Iktars or provinces. The responsibility of managing these provinces was to given to specific officers. This division of kingdom facilitated easy administration. There was a group of forty sardars who assisted and advised him in administration. He sought the advice and opinion of the Prime Minister and Judges.

He was a brave warrior. He conquered Ranthambore, Mandora, Gwalior, Bhilsa, Kanauj and Ajmer. He defeated the Mongolians when they invaded India.

Alauddin Khilji was the most important ruler of the Khilji dynasty. He became the sultan of Delhi after killing his mentor Jalaluddin. He fought many battles and conquered the kingdoms of Malwa, Jalore, Bundhi, Mandore and Tonk. He invaded many other kingdoms like Devagiri, Dwarasamudra and Madurai in order to plunder the wealth.

He introduced many administrative, Military and Market reforms during his reign.

The following are some of the noteworthy features of his administration:

1. The people of his kingdom were prohibited from consuming alcohol and drugs. The game of dice was banned.

2. He introduced a network of intelligence which informed him about the threats and activities of the invaders and enemies. This enabled him to plot against them.

3. He abolished the system of gifting lands, subsidy and other religious endowments.

4. Tax system was introduced in which both the rich landlords and poor farmers were made to pay their taxes.

5. He appointed revenue officers to collect these taxes.

6. His sardars or the generals formed associations among themselves. Alauddin Khilji banned these associations. He did not allow these people to mingle with the other class of the society.

Mohammed-bin-Tughlaq was one of the important rulers of the Tughlaq. He was not only a successful warrior but also a scholar. He brought so many changes in administration, revenue and military areas. He was the only ruler of the Tughlaq dynasty who established a vast empire. He was an efficient administrator. The reforms introduced by him include the changes in the revenue system, shifting of capital, introduction of symbolic coins etc., The following are the administrative reforms introduced by Mohammed-bin-Tughlaq:

1. He introduced the system of keeping a record of the land details of the empire.

2. Agriculture department was introduced which enabled the cultivation of uncultivable lands.

3. Financial assistance was given to the farmers.

4. The farmers who had land between two rivers had to pay more taxes.

5. He introduced gold coin named Dinar and silver coin named Adli.

6. The value of the currency was based on the value of gold and silver. Gradually coins made of copper and brass were also brought into circulation.

Mohammed-bin-Tughlaq shifted his capital from Delhi to Devagiri. He wanted the capital to be at the centre of his kingdom and he ensured the protection of capital from foreign invasions. But this failed as it was not implemented properly.

The Delhi sultans were great patrons of art and architecture. There was a blend of Indian and Islamic style. This style of architecture was termed as Indo-Islamic architecture. Features of Persian, Arabic and Turkish styles were also there. They built many domes, arches and minarets. A tall and slender tower is referred as a Minaret. Qutb Minar in Delhi is the finest example of a minaret. A dome is a semi -circular roof with a sharp tip. The Allai Dharavaja which is in the Qutb Minar complex is an example of dome built by the Delhi sultans. The Delhi sultans also constructed many forts, mosques, palaces, madrasas and Dharamshalas. Quvat-ul-Islam mosque, Juwait Khana mosque are some of the examples.

1.Ajmer

2. Jaipur

3. Gwalior

4. Udaipur

5.Jodhpur

1. Ranthambore

2. Gwalior

3. Ajmer

4. Benares

5. kannauj

6. Madurai.

Delhi Sultans were great lovers of art and architecture. They built many tombs, forts, minarets and mosque in Indo-Islamic style of architecture.

Qutb Minar:

The Construction of Qutb Minar, the tallest minaret was started by Qutubuddin Aibak in 1193. It was finished by Iltamush. It is a 73 meter tall tower. It is located at Mehrauli in New Delhi.

Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque:

This was the first mosque in Delhi after the entry of the muslims in India.

Alaudin Khilji’s tomb:

This is the finest example of amateur Indo-Islamic architecture.

Tughlaqabad:

Tughlaqabad was constructed by Tughlaq dynasty. The entire construction was made with stone ramparts. Tomb of Sultan Ghiyasuddin is noteworthy.