Indian History

Ghateshwar Mahadev, Badoli / Image Credit Built in the tenth century AD by the Gurjara Pratihara rulers, Badoli Temples are nine temples located near Rawerbhata in Chittorgarh district of Rajasthan. Of these eight temples is situated within a walled enclosure. The ninth temple is about 1 kilometre from the complex of eight temples.  Four temples are dedicated to Shiva, two to Durga and one each to Shiva-Trimurti, Vishnu and Ganesha. Dedicated to Shiva, Ghateshwara Mahadeva Temple is the most prominent of the Badoli Temples. 

'Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysala', the three Hoysala temples in Karnataka, have been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. These temples are the Chennakeshava temple at Belur, Hoysaleshwara temple at Halebidu and The Keshava temple at Somnathapura. While the first two are in Hassan district, the third is in Mysuru district.  All the three temples are protected by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). Nominations were entered as ‘’The Sacred Ensembles of Hoysalas’’. While the Chennakeshava temple and Hoysaleshwara temple at Halebidu were on the UNESCO’s tentative list since 2014, the Keshava temple at Somanathapur was appended to the other two monuments under the tentative list and all the three were officially nominated by the Centre as India’s entry for 2022-23 in February in 2022. An expert from International Commission on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) concluded the site visits covering all the three temples in September 2022 and the monuments were officially inscri

                                                                 Gate entry to Adilabad Fort Situated southeast of the massive Tughlaqabad Fort, on the opposite side of the Badarpur -Mehrauli road, the relatively unknown Adilabad fort is referred to by historians as the fourth fort of Delhi, the others being Red Fort, Old Fort and Tughlaqabad Fort. Adilabad fort has for long been in the shadows of Tughlaqabad Fort which was built by Ghiyas-ud-din Tughluq , the founder of the Tughluq dynasty, the third of the five dynasties, the combination of which went on to be called the Delhi Sultanate. Adilabad fort, on its part, was built by his son Juna Khan, better known as Muhammad bin Tughluq , who succeeded his father in 1325. 

Q.1. Who among the following was the Delhi Sultanate ruler when the Vijayanagara Empire came into existence?  (a) Muhammad bin Tughlaq (b) Giyas-ud-din Tughlaq (c) Firoz Shah Tughlaq (d) Khizr Khan Q.2. Which of the foreign travelers had visited the Vijayanagara empire during the reign of Krishnadevaraya? (a) Duarte Barbosa (b) Domingo Paes  (c) Abdur Razzaq (d) Both a and b  Q.3. Which of the following Vijayanagara rulers had earned the title of Purvapaschima Samudradhishavara? (a) Deva Raya II (b) Virupaksha Raya (c) Krishnadeva Raya (d) Harihara I Q.4. Which of the following was a bone of contention between Vijayanagara empire and Bahmani Sultanate?  (a) Bijapur (b) Gulbarga (c) Raichur Doab (d) Golconda  Q.5. The correct chronological order in which the following dynasties of the Vijayanagara empire were established: (i) Saluva Dynsty (ii) Tuluva dynasty (iii) Sangama Dynasty (iv) Aravidu dynasty (a) II, I,III,IV (b) II, I, IV,III (c) I, II, IV,III (d) III, I, II, IV Q.6. K

                                             Khairul Manazil, opposite Purana Qila, Delhi. Image credit   Located opposite the Purana Qila in Delhi, Khairul Manzil mosque was built in 1561 by Maham Anga, the foster mother of the Mughal emperor Akabr. She was the mother of powerful Mughal noble Adham Khan who was killed by Akbar in Agra in 1562. Meaning ‘the most auspicious of houses’ in Persian, Khair-ul-Manazil mosque on the Mathura road is Delhi’s first mosque built by the Mughals.  The arch in the middle of the prayer chamber contains the inscription that says that the mosque was built by Maham Anga.

Q.1. Malik Kafur was the lieutenant of which Delhi Sultanate ruler? (a) Muhammad Bin Tughlaq  (b) Alauddin Khilji  (c) Firoz Shah Tughlaq  (d) Jalaluddin Khilji Q.2. Which of the following Mughal emperors was a proficient Veena player? (a) Akbar (b) Jahangir (c) Shahjahan (d) Aurangzeb Q.3. Thomas Roe was sent to the court of Mughal emperor Jahangir as an official ambassador of which British monarch? (a) James I (b) King George V (c) Queen Mary (d) Queen Elizabeth  Q.4. Who of the following reigned the longest? (a) Akbar (b) Babur (c) Shah Jahan (d) Jehangir Q.5. The Mansabdari system introduced by Akbar was borrowed from where? (a) Afghanistan (b) Turkey (c) Persia (d) Mongolia Q.6. Which of following Sultans of Slave (Mamluk) dynasty was the first to issue regular currency and declare Delhi as the capital of Delhi Sultanate?  (a) Iltutmish (b) Balban (c) Aram shah (d) Nasiruddin mahmud Q.7. Which of the following rulers of Delhi Sultanate was the first to introduce th

Q.1. Which of the following Delhi Sultanate rulers had prohibited Muslim women from worshipping the graves of saints? (a) Alauddin Khilji (b) Muhammad Bin Tughlaq (c) Firoz Shah Tughlaq (d) Sikander Lodhi Q.2. Which of the following Delhi Sultanate rulers had earned the sobriquet of ‘Lakh Baksh’?  (a) Qutb-ud-din Aibak (b) Balban (c) Jalaluddin Khilji (d) Ghiasuddin Tughlaq Q.3. Zain-ul-Abidin who forbade cow slaughter in his Sultanate was a ruler of  (a) Bengal (b) Kashmir (c) Khandesh (d) Madurai Q.4. Which battle was declared by Babur a Jihad (holy war)? (a) First Battle of Panipat (b) Battle of Chanderi (c) Battle of Khanwa  (d) Battle of Ghagra Q.5. The architectural raw material most widely used in Akbar's period was_________ (a) Redstone (b) Marble (c) Brick (d) Limestone Q.6. Abdur Razzaq was sent to the court of Vijayanagar ruler Dev Raya II as an ambassador of  (a) Sultan Shah Rukh of Persia (b) Sultan Bahzad of Turkey (c) Sultan Alauddin of Iraq (d) Sultan Bahaman of Egy

Telangana's 13th-century Rudreswara temple, more famously known as Ramappa Temple, has been bestowed the much-coveted title of World Heritage Site by UNESCO's World Heritage Committee.  Ramappa Temple is a glowing specimen of the exquisite architecture patronized by Kakatiya kings who ruled over an area corresponding to the modern day Andhra Pradesh, Telangana,  eastern Karnataka  and parts of southern Odisha from the late 12th to early 14th centuries AD.     Built in 1213 AD during the reign of the greatest Kakatiya ruler Ganapati Deva (ruled 1199–1262) by his general Recharla Rudra, the Ramappa Temple is located in a valley at the village of Palampet, approximately 77 km away from Warangal and 200km north-east of Hyderabad.  Mandapa inside Ramappa temple  /  Copyright:  © ASI Venetian traveller Marco Polo, who visited this Kakatiya temple during the reign of his successor Rudrama Devi, had described the temple as the "brightest star in the galaxy of medieval temples of

Accession of Jalaluddin Firoz Khalji to the throne of Delhi Sultanate in AD 1290 resulted in the foundation of Khilji Dynasty which ruled till 1320. He became the first Khilji Sultan after murdering Slave Sultan Kaiqubad (grandson of Slave Sultan Balban) and deposing latter’s infant son Kayumars. With the rise of the Khiljis, the Turkish nobility began to lose their influence.  His coronation was held in Kilokhari (Kilughari), a suburb of Delhi, not in the city, for the dominant Turkish population of Delhi considered him to be an Afghan usurper and consequently resented his accession to the throne.   Jalaluddin Khilji was in his seventies at the time of his ascension.  Lenient in his treatment of his opponents and fellow Muslims, Jalaluddin Khilji was averse to punishing even those who sought to overthrow him. When Balban’s nephew Malik Chajju, governor of Kara, unfurled the banner of revolt in the second year of Jalaluddin Khaljis reign, the sultan entertained him with wine and releas

Qiran-us-sadin is the first historical masnavi of Amir Khusrau , the mediaeval Sufi mystic and poet. Written in verse in 1289, it describes the much talked about meeting between Bughra Khan, a Bengal Sultan and his son Kaiqubad (Kaiqubad), the last ruler of the Mamluk dynasty of Delhi Sultanate. Bughra Khan, who was appointed governor of Bengal by his father Balban, declined to be the Delhi Sultan and instead became an independent ruler of Bengal after the death of his father in 1287. Balban was succeeded by Kaiqubad on the throne of Delhi Sultanate.  Qiran-us-sadin was written on the instructions of Kaiqubad. 

A military leader in 18th century South India, Tipu Sultan (ruled from 1782-99) was the ruler of Mysore for a seventeen-year-period until his death in 1799 . He succeeded to the throne when his father Hyder Ali died on December 7, 1782 during the course of Second Anglo-Mysore War (1780-84). The  Second Anglo-Mysore War   came to an end by the Treaty of Mangalore (March 1784) on the basis of mutual restitution of conquests.  Tipu Sultan was born in 1750 in Devanahalli (near Bangalore in Karnataka).  Unlike his father who was a de facto ruler, Tipu assumed royal title of Sultan by dethroning the Hindu raja of Mysore in 1786. The increasing power of Mysore made the Marathas and the Nizam enter into a coalition in 1786 against Tipu Sultan who became successful in defeating them by crossing the flooded Tungabhadra in rafts and basket boats in a brilliant military feat. The defeat brought the Marathas and the Nizam closer to the English who were eyeing opportunity to avenge the past defeat

Mansabdari system was a unique feature of the administrative system of the Mughal empire. It was introduced by Akbar with a view to organizing his nobility as well as army. Under the system, all officers of the state were entitled to a mansab. Mansabdari system was, in sum, “the army, the peerage, and the civil administration, all rolled into one.”     Mansabdar (holder of a rank, or an officer) is a title derived from the word Mansab which is of Arabic origin and means a rank or a position.  Under the system, each mansabdar held a mansab (rank) and was to maintain a quota of horses, elephants, camels, beasts of burden and carts. They were paid either in cash (naqd) or allotted land (jagir). The mansabdars who received pay in cash were known as naqdi and those paid through assignments of jagirs were called jagirdars. According to the Ain –Akbari , there were thirty-three grades of mansabdars ranging from the dahbashi (commanders of 10) to the dah hazari (commanders of 10,000). Mansabs

Today, Budaun may be a non- descript town in the district of the same name in the western Uttar Pradesh, history weighs heavily on it.  About 235 km from Delhi, Budaun came into prominence when it became a centre of power during the reign of  Iltutmish of the Slave Dynasty of Delhi Sultanate. Iltutmish, who ruled from AD 1210 to 1236, served as the governor of Badaun under the Delhi Sultan Qutab ud-din Aibak before becoming the Sultan. It was at Badaun where Tajuddin Yalduz, successor of Muhammad of Ghor in Ghazni and a rival of Iltutmish, was beheaded on the instruction of the latter in 1216. The imposing Shamsi mosque in the town was commissioned by Iltutmish.  Budaun was the birthplace of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya (1236-1325), one of the most famous Sufi saints of Chisti order. His Dargah in Delhi attracts a large number of visitors.  Alauddin Alam Shah , the last ruler of Sayyid Dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate, found it better to retire in Badaun after abdicating the throne in favou

The Rashtrakutas were the feudatories of the Chalukyas of Badami or Vatapi, also known as early Chalukyas. Their kingdom was founded by Dantidurga or Dantivarman who overthrew the Chalukya dynasty about 753. After him, his uncle Krishna I became the next ruler whose accession to the Rashtrakuta throne proved to be the final nail in the coffin for the Chalukyas of the Badami. Kailasnatha Temple , the crowning achievement of Ellora, was excavated on the instructions of Krishna I . Krishna I was succeeded by his eldest son Govinda II who, in turn, was dethroned by his younger brother Dhruva Dharavarsha who ruled from c. 779 to 793-94. He decisively intervened in the  tripartite struggle for the supremacy of Kannauj in north India and defeated both the Pala king Dharampal and Pratihara ruler Vatsaraja. After these victories he added the emblem of Ganga and Yamuna to his imperial insignia.  Next Rashtrakuta ruler was Dhruva’s illustrious son Govinda III (A.D. 793-814), who fought a successf

                                           Malik Ambar / Wikimedia Commons Malik Ambar was the regent of the Ahmadnagar Sultanate, known more famously as the Nizam Shahi Dynasty, from 1607 to 1626. He was a thrice manumitted Ethiopian slave who is known in the medieval period as a great statesman and able administrator. Malik Ambar installed Murtaza II as ruler of Nizam Shahi dynasty with his capital at Parenda. He is known for instituting the innovative techniques in guerrilla warfare known as bargigiri which was later perfected by the Marathas.  He employed this warfare tactic with great effect against the Mughals. However, his gallant resistance to the Mughal forces ended when he was defeated by Mughal prince Khurram first in 1617 and again in 1621. This victory earned Prince Khurram the title of Shah Jahan (King of the World) from his father Jahangir, the fourth Mughal Emperor. He founded the city of Khirki, which was later named Aurangabad by the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb.

After his death at Lahore in early November in 1210, Qutb-ud-din Aibak, the founder of the Slave (Mamluk) dynasty, was succeeded by Aram Bakhsh who ascended the throne of Delhi Sultanate under the title of Sultan Aram Shah. The exact nature of relationship of Aram Bakhsh with Qutb-ud-din is not known. According to one school of thought, he was his son. However, contemporary historian Minhaj –us-Siraj makes no mention of Qutb-ud-din’s son and says that he had only three daughters. According to Abul Fazal, court historian of Mughal Emperor Akbar, Aram Shah was  Qutb-ud-din ’s brother.  Sultan Aram Shah proved to be an inexperienced and incapable ruler. The nobles and amirs invited Qutb-ud-din Aibak’s son-in-law Iltutmish, then governor of Badaun, who defeated Aram Shah in the plains of Jud near Delhi. Thus ended the eight month rule of Aram Shah who was not heard of afterwards.   

After the death of Sher Shah Suri, the founder of Sur dynasty that almost supplanted the nascent Mughal Empire resulting in the exile of the second Mughal emperor Humayun from India, he was succeeded on the throne by his second son Jalal Khan on 25th May 1545 AD. Sher Shah died on 22nd May from an accidental explosion of gunpowder during his siege of the Hindu fort of Kalinjar in central India. Since it was felt by the nobles of the empire that someone was needed to be raised to the throne as early as possible they forsake his eldest son Adil Khan in favour of Jalal Khan who was in the town of Rewah which was nearer to Kalinjar than Ranthambore where the eldest son was present at the time of Sher Shah’s demise.    Jalal Khan ascended the throne with the title of Islam Shah though he is more popularly known as Salim Shah. The fort he built in Delhi is also known as Salimgarh Fort, lying adjacent to the Red Fort built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan, the builder of Taj Mahal.  A ruin

Ahmad Shah was a Mughal ruler whose reign lasted from 1748 to 1754. After the death of his father Muhammad Shah in 1754, he ascended the throne at an age of 22.  He was the son of Udham Bai, a dancing girl of low intellect and dubious character. Though he was a man of 22 at the time of his accession, he is said to have received no education and did not hold any civil or military office ever. A pleasure seeking ruler with debased taste, Ahmad Shah was an illiterate and indulging in sensual pursuits. Spending time with women and eunuchs for weeks, he remained content by entrusting the task of running the state to the queen mother Udham Bai and her shameless paramour and powerful eunuch Javid Khan, who dominated the affairs of the state. Javid Khan was grated the title of Nawab Bahadur and Udham Bai was got the title of Qibla-i-Alam and the rank of 50,000 horses. Her brother Man Khan, a ill-mannered professional dancer, got the title of Mutqat-ud-Daula and the rank of 6,000. During this p

Razia Sultan was the first Muslim woman ruler of India and has been praised for her rule by historians.  If you are a history buff, chances are that you will have the temptation of visiting Razia Sultan's tomb. However, it is not so easy. There are different versions by the authorities on where the 13th century Sultanate empress's grave is located.   According to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Razia’s tomb is situated on Deli Turqman Gate. Haryana government on the other hand, believes that her tomb is at Siwan near Kaithal and has spent Rs.58 lakh on its restoration. According to Syed Sadique Ali the tomb built at a height is that of Razia. Recently, Dr Syed Sadique Ali, a lecturer from Tonk’s government PG College, has claimed that Razia was actually buried in Tonk in Rajasthan. The confusion, according to him, has arisen due to the incorrect translations of famous 13th century historian Minhaj-i-Siraj's book Tabaqat-i-Nasiri by Maj