We know during the reign of Firoz Shah Tughlaq, Timur invaded India. Timur came in India in 1398 and withdrew from India in 1399. Actually, his invasion delivered a death blow to the Tughlaq Dynasty.
After defeating the army of Delhi Sultanate in 1398, Timur appointed Khizr Khan as the ruler of Multan. From here started the story of Saiyyd Dynasty of Delhi Sultanate
Saiyyd Dynasty
Khizr Khan, the appointed governor of Timur occupied Delhi and founded Saiyyd Dynasty. He did not assume the title of the Sultan but was comfortable with the title of Rayati-Ala.
The author of the Tarikh-i-Mubarak Shahi, Yahya Sirhindi claims that the founder of the Saiyyd Dynasty was a descendant of the prophet. But, after Khizr Khan’s death Mubarak Shah (1412-1434) and Muhammad Shah (1434-1445) ascended the throne respectively.
In 1445, Alam Shah ascended the throne and became the Sultan of the Saiyyd Dynasty. But he was totally incompetent or incapable Sultan. Alam Shah’s wazir Hamid Khan invited Bahlol Lodhi to take charge of the army. So after realizing that it would be difficult to continue as Sultan, Alam Shah left from the throne. From, here started the story of the first Afghan Dynasty in India. It was the Lodhi Dynasty.
Lodhi Dynasty (1451-1526 CE)
Lodhi Dynasty was the last ruling family of the Delhi Sultanate. Bahlol Lodhi established the Lodhi Dynasty in Delhi.
Lodhi Dynasty: Bahlol Lodhi
To appease Afghan noble Bahlol publicly declared that he considered himself one of the Afghan Peer and not king. He did not sit on the throne nor did he insist his nobles stand in his court. In 1476, he defeated the Sultan of Jaunpur and annexed it to Delhi Sultanate.
He was also successful in suppressing the revolts in Mewat and Doab. Finally, he brought the ruler of Kalpi and Dholpur under the suzerainty of Delhi.
Sikandar Lodhi (1489-1517 CE)
Sikandar Lodhi showed little tolerance towards non-Muslims. He was the last Sultan of Delhi Sultanate who reimposed Jaziyah on non-Muslims. He was the king of the Lodhi Dynasty, who believed in the superior position of the Sultan and nobles.
So, he compelled nobles and amirs to show formal respect to the Sultan in Darbar and outside. He also treated them harshly. He re-annexed Bihar, Dholpur, Narwar, and some parts of the Kingdom of Gwalior and Nagaur. Sikandar Lodhi introduced a new Gaz or measurement unit known as Gaz-i-Sikandari of 32 digits.
He was fond of literature and poetry and wrote verses in Persian under the name of Ghirlakhi. The main achievement of the Sultan was the conquest and annexation of Bihar. Sikandar Lodhi built Agra in 1504 CE and shifted the capital from Delhi to Agra in 1506.
Ibrahim Lodhi (1517-1526 CE)
He succeeded Sikandar Lodhi. He became Sultan in 1517. Firstly his own brother Jalal Lodhi rebelled. Sultan got him murdered. Daulat Khan the governor of Punjab also rebelled and invited Babur of Kabul to invade India. Babur defeated Sultan Ibrahim Lodhi in 1526 in the Battle of Panipat. So, this ended the Lodhi Dynasty and laid down the foundation of the Mughal rule in India.
The Sultanate of Delhi which had its birth on the Battlefield of Tarain in 1192, breathed its last in 1526, a few miles away on the battlefield of Panipat.
This was all about Delhi Sultanate. In the next coming post, we will discuss the Mughal Empire.
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