Khilji, Tughlaq, Sayyid & Lodi

The Delhi Sultanate lasted from 1206 to 1526 — about 320 years of Muslim rule in India — and is divided into five dynasties. After the Slave dynasty come the four covered here.

• The five dynasties in order: Slave → Khilji → Tughlaq → Sayyid → Lodi.
• The Slave/Mamluk dynasty (1206–1290) was the first; this chapter begins with the Khilji.
• The Sultanate ended with the First Battle of Panipat (1526) and the start of the Mughal Empire.

The Khilji dynasty replaced the Slave dynasty and is best known for strong, centralised administration and large-scale military expansion into the Deccan and South India.

• It is famous for strong administration, military expeditions and Alauddin Khilji's economic reforms.
• Alauddin Khilji expanded the kingdom and introduced market (price) control reforms.
• The dynasty's coming to power (the Khiljis were of Turkish origin settled in Afghanistan) is often called the "Khilji Revolution".

Jalaluddin founded the dynasty but ruled gently, and was murdered by his ambitious nephew and son-in-law, Alauddin.

• He kept his capital at Kilokhri near Delhi.
• He was killed by Alauddin Khilji (his nephew) at Kara, after which Alauddin seized the throne.

Alauddin Khilji is regarded as the most powerful and effective ruler of the Delhi Sultanate — a brilliant administrator and conqueror who controlled both the army and the economy.

• He took the title Sikander-i-Sani / "Second Alexander".
• He was the first Sultan to invade South India (the Deccan).
• He started a religious slogan-policy and styled himself "Nasir-Amir-ul-Momin".
• Army reforms: introduced permanent (cash) salaries for soldiers and recruitment controls.
• Introduced the Daag (branding of horses) and Huliya (descriptive roll of soldiers) system to stop fraud in the army.
• Revenue reforms: the first to make revenue assessment on the measured/cultivated land; used Biswa as the unit of land measurement.
• Fixed land tax (kharaj) at a high 50% of produce.
• Created a new tax department called the Diwan-i-Mustakhraj to collect revenue arrears.

• He was a wise administrator who strengthened both the economy and the army, keeping prices low and the military strong.

This is Alauddin's most famous achievement — a strict system of fixing prices of all goods so that he could maintain a huge standing army cheaply.

• Fixed prices applied to grain, cloth, horses, slaves and cattle.
• He set up separate markets and officers to enforce the rates and punish cheating.
• The main aim was to maintain a large standing army at low cost.

Alauddin conquered the major Rajput forts in the north and, through his general Malik Kafur, carried Khilji power deep into South India for the first time.

• Malik Kafur (also called Malik Mani) was purchased/found by Alauddin in Gujarat.
• Bairam I won 39 battles during the campaigns of this era (raids across the Deccan kingdoms).

• The fall of Chittorgarh (1303) is tied to the legend of Rani Padmini (the basis of the film *Padmaavat*).
• Alauddin Khilji died on 2 January 1316.

Alauddin was also a great builder; several monuments in and around Delhi date to his reign and reflect his power and ambition.

The Tughlaqs ruled the longest of these four dynasties and are remembered for ambitious ideas, bold experiments and major public works — a mix of capable rulers and famous failures.

• The dynasty is known for ambitious ideas, experiments and administrative changes.
• Its three most important rulers were Ghiyasuddin, Muhammad bin Tughlaq and Firoz Shah Tughlaq.

Ghiyasuddin founded the dynasty, was a capable administrator and builder, and famously died in a collapsing structure built by his own son.

• He built the new city of Tughlaqabad as his capital.
• He reduced land taxes and introduced an irrigation system and a postal (dak) department.
• He extended the Sultanate up to Bengal.
• He died in 1325 (in a collapsing pavilion at Afghanpur); his son Juna Khan (Muhammad bin Tughlaq) then took the throne.

Muhammad bin Tughlaq was the most learned ruler of the Sultanate, but his bold experiments failed so badly that he is nicknamed the "wisest fool" / "Paagal Raja".

• He is called "Paagal Raja" because of the failure of his policies.
• Transfer of Capital: he shifted the capital from Delhi to Daulatabad (he renamed Devagiri as Daulatabad), then reversed it — a costly failure.
• Token Currency: he introduced token (bronze/copper) coins in place of silver; widespread forgery made it a failure.
• He set up Diwan-i-Kohi, a department to promote agriculture.
• The Moroccan traveller Ibn Battuta visited his court in 1333 and wrote the book "Kitab-ul-Rehla" (Rehla) describing India.

Firoz Shah was a liberal, practical ruler focused on public welfare — famous for digging canals, founding new towns, and being the first to impose jizya on Brahmins.

• He built canals and a Haq-e-Sharb (water/irrigation tax).
• He was the first Sultan to impose jizya on Brahmins.
• He founded several new cities — including Firozabad, Jaunpur (Siraz-e-Hind) and Fatehabad.
• He brought two Ashokan pillars (from Topra/Lumbri and Meerut) to Delhi and renovated the Qutub Minar.
• He wrote his autobiography, "Futuhat-e-Firozshahi".
• He set up welfare departments such as Diwan-i-Khairat (charity) and Diwan-i-Bandagan.

The Tughlaq dynasty was fatally weakened by Timur's brutal invasion of 1398; in the chaos that followed, Khizr Khan founded the short-lived Sayyid dynasty.

• Timur (1336–1405) was a brutal Central Asian conqueror.
• The Sayyid dynasty (1414–1451) was founded by Khizr Khan.
• The Sayyids were weak rulers with limited, mostly nominal authority around Delhi.

The Lodis were the first Afghan dynasty of Delhi and the last rulers of the Sultanate; they strengthened the administration and expanded the kingdom before falling to Babur.

• It was founded by Bahlol Lodi.
• Ibrahim Lodi was the last ruler, defeated by Babur at the First Battle of Panipat (1526).

• First Afghani Sultan of the Delhi Sultanate; laid the foundation of strong Afghan rule.
• Did a demonetisation and launched the Bahloli coin.

• Founded the city of Agra in 1504 and made it his capital.
• Introduced a new land measurement, the Gaz-e-Sikandari.
• A patron of arts — wrote poetry under the name Gulrukhi and loved the Shehnai.

• The last ruler of the Lodi dynasty and of the whole Delhi Sultanate.
• Defeated and killed by Babur at the First Battle of Panipat (1526), which began the Mughal Empire.

The Delhi Sultanate ran on a system of departments called Diwans; several were created or shaped by the rulers in this chapter — a popular matching topic.