Military Conquests of Alauddin Khilji

Alauddin Khilji

The second ruler of the Khilji dynasty of the famed Delhi Sultanate, Alauddin Khilji was a militarist and imperialist to the core. He was very ambitious. In a haste to be the Khilji Sultan, he usurped the throne for himself by killing treacherously his loving uncle and father-in-law Jalaluddin Firuz Khilji, the founder of the Khilji Dynasty.

It is natural for a self-willed and ambitious ruler to embark on the path of annexation of new territories to his kingdom. Alauddin, whose original name was Ali Gurshap, loved to style himself “the Second Alexander” (Sikander-i-Sani). As a matter of fact, with the assumption of power at Delhi begins ‘the imperial phase of the Sultanate’.

Conquest of Gujarat

The kingdom of Gujarat was then ruled by king Karna Dev of the Vaghelas who were feudatories of the Solanki Rajput rulers also called Chalukyas. The Gujarat kingdom was famed for vast fortunes which it acquired from sea-borne trade with Arabs and Persians. In 1299   Alauddin send a military expedition to this kingdom under the joint command of his two ablest generals Ulugh khan and Nusarat Khan, who invaded Anhilwad, the capital of Gujarat. As Karna Dev Vaghela was not ready for sudden attack, he was caught unawares and fled to the Yadava kingdom of Devagiri in Northern Deccan with his daughter Dewal Devi. His chief queen Kamaladevi was taken prisoner by the victorious army. Kamaladevi later became the favourite wife of Alauddin. A large booty was accrued to the Khilji’s coffer by the plunder of the rich port of Cambay. However, the prized capture during the Gujarat conquest by Nusarat Khan was Hindu turned Muslim slave Malik Kafur (also known as hazardinari).  Kafur was a eunuch who later on rose to become Alauddin’s most important military general and the malik naib of the Khilji dynasty. He led many successful military expeditions of the Khilji ruler in the coming years.

Expedition to Ranathambhor

After the conquest of the Vaghela kingdom of Gujarat, Alauddin turned his attention to Rajputana, where he conquered Ranathambhor in 1300-1 from Hamir Deva, a descendant of Prithviraj Chauhan, who was defeated in the Second Battle of Tarain by Muhammad Ghori in 1192, resulting in the establishment of Muslim rule in Delhi.  

Chittor Conquest

After the subjugation of Ranathambhor was complete, Alauddin attacked Chittor, the capital of the powerful kingdom of Mewar, in 1303. Mewar was ruled by the Guhilot king Rana Ratan Singh. Various Rajput sources and Padmavat by Malik Muhammad Jayasi say that Alauddin’s invasion of the Rajput kingdom was driven by his infatuation with the Padmini, the beautiful queen of Rana Ratan Singh. However this episode served as the casus belli of the Mewar invasion is in the realm of debate. The opponents of the theory cite example of the legendary royal court poet Amir Khusro of Delhi Sultanate who makes no mention of the story though he himself was the part of Alauddin’ entourage during the latter’s Mewar expedition. Besides, this story is unknown to other contemporary sources. After a long siege of eight months, success attended the Khilji army in the capture of Chittor, which was named Khizrabad, after the name of Alauddin’s eldest son Khizr Khan.

Annexation of Malwa

With the incorporation of Gujarat, Mewar and Ranathambhor into the Delhi Sultanate, Alauddin sent a military expedition for the conquest of Malwa under the generalship of Ain-ul-mulk Multani. Malwa was ruled by Mahlak Dev, who along with his general Harnanda Koka, were killed in the bloody war that took place between the Sultan army and the Malwa forces in 1305. Malwa with its centres of power like Dhara, Mandu and Dhara and Chanderi fell into the hands of the victor and Ain-ul-mulk Multani was appointed governor of the province.

South Indian Conquests

After annexation of North India, Alauddin embarked on a military expedition under the command of Malik Kafur for the subjugation of South India. There were four major kingdoms ruling South India at the time. These were Yadava dynasty of Devagiri, Kakatiya kingdom of Warangal, the Hoyasala dynasty of Dwarasamudra and Pandyas of Madurai. Malik Kafur defeated the Yadava King Ramchandra in 1307, the Kakatiya King Pratap Rudra Deva II in 1309-10 and the Hoyasala King Vira Ballal III in 1311. But Kafur’s invasion of the Pandyan kingdom remained inclusive as Vira Pandya and Sundara Padya, the claimants to the Pandyan throne, refused to acknowledge the suzerainty of the Delhi Sultanate. In 1313, after the death of the Yadava ruler Ramchandra, when his son Singhana III declared his independence, Malik Kafur again marched towards Devagiri and annexed it to the Khilji kingdom.

Vikram Samvat, India’s most important indigenous dating system

Vikram Samvat or the Vikrama Era is the most important of the India’s many systems of dating that were or are in use in India. It was traditionally introduced by the legendary King Vikramaditya of Ujjaini who drove the Sakas out of Ujjain and thus founded the era to mark his victory. Since Chandra Gupta II (c. 376-415) of the Gupta Dynasty is the only king who assumed the title of Vikramaditya and drove the Sakas out of Ujjain, he cannot be person who introduced the Vikrama Era which began in 58 BC. It is so because the Gupta King lived some 400 years after the beginning of this era. So the legend is certainly incorrect.  

There is a school of thought which says that Era of Vikram was founded by the Malava tribe identified with the Malloi referred to by the Greek historians. It was after the Malavas that the region around Ujjaini, north of the Narmada River, got its name and came to be known as Malwa.  Some scholars credit Azes, an early Indo-Scythian king, for founding the Vikram era but this theory has found few acceptances.

Vikrama Era was more popular in North India. Its new year began originally with the month of Kartitika. However, by the medieval period while its new years commenced in the bright half of Chaitra in North India, in the South India in the dark half of the same month. Today it is the official calendar in the Himalayan country of Nepal.

British Library Showcases Mughal India in London

British library is organizing an exhibition in London where more than 200 exquisite objects of art belonging to the Mughal period from 16^th to 19^th century have the potential of overwhelm the visitors.

The exhibition, which will run until 2 April 2013, is showcasing historical accounts, paintings and portraits of the Mughal emperors who were equally adept in imperialism and promotion of art and culture.

A portrait of Prince Dara Shikoh [1615-59], the liberal son of Emperor Shah Jahan and brother of orthodox Aurangzeb is one of the highlights of the exhibition. The portrait depicts Dara listening to a debate between two persons of different persuasions.

A portrait of later Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah depicting him in a love making act is one of the works of art displayed at the exhibition, titled the 'Mughal India: Art, Culture and Empire'. The visitor can find here a photograph of Bahadur Shah II, the last Mughal Emperor who was sentenced by the British to exile in Rangoon, where he breathed his last in 1862. Read full story.

Great Pallavas of Kanchi

The Goddess Durga (Mahishasuramardini) destorying the Buffalo Demon, Mahisha, Mamallapuram. 7th century / Image Credit

Today, the seaside village of Mamallapuram in Chengalpattu district of Tamil Nadu is witness to some of brilliant works of architecture by the Pallavas who ruled from A.D. 300-900 in the region south of Krishna-Tungbhadra rivers. Kanchi (modern Kanchipuram in Tamil Nadu) was the capital of their Kingdom.

Pallava dynasty was one of the most powerful and famous kingdoms of South India. The rulers of this dynasty are known to be the creators of one of most exquisite pieces of temple architecture in India. During the rule of the Pallavas, Hinduism was in a state of flourish and they are responsible for introducing Aryan institutions in South India to a great measure.

Early Pallavas

Nothing much can be said with certainty about the early history of the Pallavas.  We learn that in about the middle of the 4^th century AD a Pallava king named Vishnugopa was captured and then set free by the great Gupta ruler Samudragupta. Siva-Skandavarman was another famous Pallava ruler who is said to have performed the Aswamedha (Horse-sacrifice). He assumed the pontifical title of “righteous king of great kings”. According to the Jaina text Lokavibhaga, a Pallava king named Simhavarman IV ascended the throne in A.D. 436.

Later Pallavas

It was, however, in the 6^th century AD that Pallavas rose into prominence. It was from the reign of Simhavishnu Avanisimha, who ascended the throne in about AD 575, that the history of Pallava dynasty emerged into clarity and becomes more definite.  Simhavishnu is considered to be the real founder of the Pallava power. He was a fierce militarist and is credited with having defeated his southern adversaries including Ceylon. After his death his son Mahedravikramavarman, famously known as MahendravarmanI, ascended the throne. A man of versatile genius, he is known for his play Mattavilasa Prahasana.   

Mahendravarman I was succeeded by his son Narasimhavarman I who defeated Chalukya king Pulakesin II who was earlier having an upper hand in his battles with the Pallavas. The battle between the Pallavas and the Chalukyas became frequent with the passage of time.

Nandivarman II Pallavamalla (reigned 735-797) was one of the last great kings of the Pallava dynasty. He was chosen by an assembly of nobles and ministers to ascend the throne as the previous Pallava monarch Paramesvaravarman II died issueless. He is credited with the construction of the Mukteshwar Temple and Baikunth Perumal temple at Kanchi. He was a contemporary of great saint scholar Tirumala Alavar.

After Nandivarman II the Pallava rulers had to face the repeated invasions of the Pandyas, the Gangas and the Rashtrakutas. The fortunes of the kingdom were now on a declining mode. At the end of the 9^th century (c AD 893) the Chola ruler Aditya I, who was a feudatory of the Pallava rulers, defeated and killed Aprajita, the last Pallava ruler. Thus came the end of the Pallavas who were supplanted by the Cholas of Thanjavur (Tanjore). 

Indian History Trivia

image source: incredibleindia.org

The Great Rashtrakuta emperor Amoghavarsha I cut off the fingers of his left hand as a sacrifice to the Goddesses Mahalakshmi of Kolhapur to avert the calamites being faced his kingdom.

Jamadagni

Image Source: Wikipedia

An ancient rishi (sage), Jamadagni was the father of Parashurama (Rama with the axe), the sixth Avatar (“Descent”) or Incarnation of Vishnu. Once Jamadagni was robbed by the wicked King Kartavirya, the most famous of the Haihaya kings. As a result, Parashurama killed Kartavirya. Jamadagni was in turn killed by the sons of Kartavirya. This enraged Parashurama who exterminated all the males of the Kshatriya caste with the axe given to him by Shiva twenty-one times in succession.

Some accounts say that Jamadagni was killed by Kartavirya himself.

Jamadagni’s wife was Renuka who is known for her wifely fidelity.

Presidents of Indian National Congress

Year	Location of Session	President
1885	Bombay	Womesh Chandra Bonnerjee
1886	Calcutta	Dadabhai Naoroji
1887	Madras	Badruddin Tyabji
1888	Allahabad	George Yule
1889	Bombay	William Wedderburn
1890	Calcutta	Pherozeshah Mehta
1891	Nagpur	P. Ananda Charlu
1892	Allahabad	Womesh Chandra Bonnerjee
1893	Lahore	Dadabhai Naoroji
1894	Madras	Alfred Webb
1895	Poona	Surendranath Banerjea
1896	Calcutta	Rahimtulla M. Sayani
1897	Amraoti	C. Sankaran Nair
1898	Madras	Ananda Mohan Bose
1899	Lucknow	Romesh Chunder Dutt
1900	Lahore	Narayan Ganesh Chandavarkar
1901	Calcutta	Dinshaw Edulji Wacha
1902	Ahmedabad	Surendranath Banerjea
1903	Madras	Lalmohan Ghosh
1904	Bombay	Henry Cotton
1905	Benares	Gopal Krishna Gokhale
1906	Calcutta	Dadabhai Naoroji
1907	Surat	Rashbihari Ghosh
1908	Madras	Rashbihari Ghosh
1909	Lahore	Madan Mohan Malaviya
1910	Allahabad	William Wedderburn
1911	Calcutta	Bishan Narayan Dar
1912	Bankipur	Rao Bahadur Raghunath Narasinha Mudholkar
1913	Karachi	Nawab Syed Mohammad Bahadur
1914	Madras	Bhupendra Nath Bose
1915	Bombay	Satyendra Prasanna Sinha
1916	Lucknow	Ambica Charan Mazumdar
1917	Calcutta	Annie Besant
1918	Bombay	Syed Hasan Imam
1918	Delhi	Madan Mohan Malaviya
1919	Amritsar	Motilal Nehru
1920	Calcutta	Lala Lajpat Rai
1920	Nagpur	C. Vijayaraghavachariar
1921	Ahmedabad	Hakim Ajmal Khan
1922	Gaya	Chittaranjan Das
1923	Cocanada	Maulana Mohammad Ali
1923	Delhi	Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
1924	Belgaum	Mahatma Gandhi
1925	Kanpur	Sarojini Naidu
1926	Gauhati	S. Srinivasa Iyengar
1927	Madras	Mukhtar Ahmad Ansari
1928	Calcutta	Motilal Nehru
1929	Lahore	Jawaharlal Nehru
1931	Karachi	Vallabhbhai Patel
1932	Delhi	Madan Mohan Malaviya
1933	Calcutta	Nellie Sen Gupta/Madan Mohan Malaviya
1934	Bombay	Rajendra Prasad
1935	Lucknow	Jawaharlal Nehru
1936	Faizpur	Jawaharlal Nehru
1938	Haripura	Subhas Chandra Bose
1939	Tripuri	Subhas Chandra Bose
1940	Ramgarh	Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
1946	Meerut	J. B. Kripalani
1948	Jaipur	Pattabhi Sitaramayya
1950	Nashik	Purshottam Das Tandon
1951	New Delhi	Jawaharlal Nehru
1953	Hyderabad	Jawaharlal Nehru
1954	Kalyani	Jawaharlal Nehru
1955	Avadi (Madras)	U. N. Dhebar
1956	Amritsar	U. N. Dhebar
1957	Indore	U. N. Dhebar
1958	Gauhati	U. N. Dhebar
1959	Nagpur	U. N. Dhebar
1960	Bangalore	Neelam Sanjeeva Reddy
1961	Bhavnagar	Neelam Sanjeeva Reddy
1962	Patna	Neelam Sanjeeva Reddy
1964	Bhubaneswar	K. Kamaraj
1965	Durgapur	K. Kamaraj
1966	Jaipur	K. Kamaraj
1968	Hyderabad	S. Nijalingappa
1969	Faridabad	S. Nijalingappa
1969	Bombay	Jagjivan Ram
1972	Calcutta	Shankar Dayal Sharma
1975	Chandigarh	Dev Kanta Borooah
1978	New Delhi	Indira Gandhi
1983	Calcutta	Indira Gandhi
1985	Bombay	Rajiv Gandhi
1992	Tirupati	P. V. Narasimha Rao

1997 Calcutta Sitaram Kesri