Delhi Sultanate - Quiz

The Delhi Sultanate was a Muslim sultanate based mostly in Delhi that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for 320 years (1206-1526). Five dynasties ruled over the Delhi Sultanate sequentially: the Mamluk dynasty (1206-90), the Khilji dynasty (1290-1320), the Tughlaq dynasty (1320-1414), the Sayyid dynasty (1414-51), and the Lodi dynasty (1451-1526). Three dynasties (Mamluk, Khilji and Sayyid) were of Turkic origin, one dynasty (Tughlaq) was of Turko-Indian origin, and the last dynasty (Lodi) was of Pashtun origin. The sultanate is noted for being one of the few states to repel an attack by the Mongol Empire, and enthroned one of the few female rulers in Islamic history, Razia Sultana, who reigned from 1236 to 1240.

Qutb al-Din Aibak, a former slave of Muhammad Ghori, was the first sultan of Delhi and his dynasty conquered large areas of northern India. Afterwards, the Khilji dynasty was also able to conquer most of central India, but both failed to unite the Indian subcontinent. The sultanate reached the peak of its geographical reach during the Tughlaq dynasty, occupying most of the Indian subcontinent. This was followed by decline due to Hindu rebellions, states such as the Vijayanagara Empire asserting independence, and new Muslim sultanates such as the Bengal Sultanate breaking off.

Aram Shah was the second sultan of the Mamluk dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate. He reigned from 1210 to 1211.

The relationship of Aram Shah with Qutb al-Din Aibak (the first sultan of Delhi, who ruled from 1206 to 1210) is a subject of controversy. According to some, he was Aibak's son, but Minhaj-i-Siraj distinctly writes that Qutb al-Din only had three daughters. Abul Fazl has made the "astonishing statement" that Aram Shah was Qutb al-Din's brother. A modern writer has hazarded the opinion that "he was no relation of Qutb al-Din" but was selected as his successor as he was available on the spot.

The Tughlaq dynasty, also referred to as Tughluq or Tughluk dynasty, was a Muslim dynasty of Turko-Indian origin which ruled over the Delhi sultanate in medieval India. Its reign started in 1320 in Delhi when Ghazi Malik assumed the throne under the title of Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq. The dynasty ended in 1413.

Ala ud-Din Khilji (r. 1296-1316) was the second and the most powerful ruler of the Khilji dynasty of Delhi Sultanate in South Asia.

Alauddin was a nephew and a son-in-law of his predecessor Jalaluddin. When Jalaluddin became the Sultan of Delhi after deposing the Mamluks, Alauddin was given the position of Amir-i-Tuzuk (equivalent to Master of ceremonies). Alauddin obtained the governorship of Kara in 1291 after suppressing a revolt against Jalaluddin, and the governorship of Awadh in 1296 after a profitable raid on Bhilsa. In 1296, Alauddin raided Devagiri, and used the loot to stage a successful revolt against Jalaluddin. After killing Jalaluddin, he consolidated his power in Delhi, and subjugated Jalalaudidn's sons in Multan.

First capital of Delhi Sultanate was Lahore. From 1206 to 1210 Lahore was the capital of Delhi Sultanate.

Sultan Sikandar Lodi, the Muslim ruler of the Delhi Sultanate, founded Agra in the year 1504. After the Sultan's death, the city passed on to his son, Sultan Ibrahim Lodi. He ruled his Sultanate from Agra until he fell fighting to Mughal Badshah (emperor) Babar in the First battle of Panipat fought in 1526.

The Qutub complex also spelled Qutab or Qutub is an array of monuments and buildings at Mehrauli in Delhi, India. The best-known structure in the complex is the Qutub Minar, built to honor the Sufi saint Qutbuddin Bakhtiar Kaki. Its foundation was laid by Qutb-ud-din Aibak, who later became the first Sultan of Delhi of the Mamluk dynasty. The Minar was added upon by his successor Iltutmish (a.k.a. Altamash), and much later by Firoz Shah Tughlaq, a Sultan of Delhi from the Tughlaq dynasty in 1368 AD. The Qubbat-ul-Islam Mosque (Dome of Islam), later corrupted into Quwwat-ul Islam, stands next to the Qutb Minar. It was built on the ruins of Lal Kot Fort (built by Anangpal, the Tomar ruler, in 739 CE) and Qila-Rai-Pithora (the Chauhan emperor Prithviraj Chauhan's city), whom Ghori's Afghan armies had earlier defeated and killed in the Second Battle of Tarain.

5th Sultan of Delhi Sultanate was Razia Sultana.

Razia Sultana was the daughter of Shams-ud-din Iltutmish, who had begun life as a Turk slave and ended it as Sultan of Delhi. Iltutmish had been a great favorite of his master, Qutb ud din Aibak, the first Sultan of Delhi, so Aibak had his daughter Qutub Begum married to Iltutmish. Qutub Begum was the mother of Razia, and Razia was thus a maternal granddaughter of Qutb ud din Aibak and Shamshad Begum (Valide Sultan). Razia also had a brother, Nasiruddin Mahmud. Razia, being a member of the ruling family, grew up in privileged circumstances and was close to the levers of power both within the harem (where her mother was dominant) and in the court, where she was a favorite of both her maternal grandfather and her father. This was in contrast with her half-brothers Rukn ud din Firuz and Muiz ud din Bahram, who were the sons of former slave-girls, and thus grew up quite distant from the centers of power.

Explanation: The Delhi Sultanate was established by the Ghurid conqueror Muhammad Ghori after defeating the Rajput Confederacy led by Prithviraj Chauhan in 1192.

Explanation: The influx of nomadic Turkic peoples from the Central Asian steppes can be traced back to the 9th century when the Islamic Caliphate began fragmenting in the Middle East.