🏰 Medieval India
Delhi Sultanate and the Vijayanagara Empire.
🏰 Sultans and Southern Kingdoms
After the Guptas declined (~550 CE), India fragmented into many regional kingdoms. The key medieval period spans roughly 600–1526 CE.
Rajput Era (600–1200 CE): Warrior clans (Pratiharas, Chandellas, Paramaras, Chahamanas) ruled northern India. Famous for their bravery and code of honor (Rajputana values). Built magnificent temples (Khajuraho, Mount Abu).
Delhi Sultanate (1206–1526 CE) — 5 dynasties:
1. Slave/Mamluk (1206–90) — Qutb ud-Din Aibak (founder), Iltutmish, Razia Sultana
2. Khilji (1290–1320) — Alauddin Khilji (greatest military power, repelled Mongols)
3. Tughlaq (1320–1414) — Muhammad bin Tughlaq (eccentric genius), Firuz Shah
4. Sayyid (1414–51) — Weak rulers
5. Lodi (1451–1526) — Ibrahim Lodi (defeated by Babur at Panipat 1526)
Vijayanagara Empire (1336–1646 CE) — South India's greatest empire. Capital: Hampi. Flourished in art, trade, and culture. Krishnadevaraya was its greatest ruler.
Alauddin Khilji (1296–1316) was one of India's most powerful sultans:
• Fixed prices of ALL goods through his Market Control System (4 separate markets for grains, cloth, cattle, slaves/animals)
• Repelled 4 Mongol invasions — saved India from devastation
• Conquered Gujarat, Rajasthan, Deccan — largest Delhi Sultanate extent
• Built Alai Darwaza (Delhi), started Alai Minar (never completed)
• Raziya Sultana (1236–40) was the first female ruler of the Delhi Sultanate
• Founded in 1336 CE by Harihara and Bukka Raya
• Capital Hampi — now a UNESCO World Heritage Site
• Greatest ruler: Krishnadevaraya (1509–29) — poet, warrior, patron of arts
• Krishnadevaraya composed Amuktamalyada in Telugu
• Fought against the Bahmani Sultanate repeatedly
• Defeated at Battle of Talikota (1565) by Deccan Sultans coalition → city destroyed
Delhi Sultanate — 5 Dynasties
Animation320 years, 5 dynasties, 35+ sultans — Delhi was the power center of medieval India.
Medieval India — Key Events
Interactive• First and only female ruler of the Delhi Sultanate
• Iltutmish himself nominated her over his sons, saying she was more capable
• She discarded the veil (purdah) and appeared in open court
• Rode elephants and led armies personally
• Appointed Malik Yakut (an Ethiopian) as her master of horses — deeply controversial
• Deposed by Turkish nobles (the "Forty" or Chalisa) who opposed female and non-Turkish leadership
• Killed in 1240 — ruled only 3.5 years but made history
She proved that medieval India was not entirely closed to female leadership, even if briefly.
Significance:
• At its peak, Hampi was the second largest city in the world after Beijing (population ~500,000)
• Famous for the Virupaksha Temple, Vittala Temple (with musical pillars), and the Stone Chariot
• A major center of trade — Portuguese and Arab traders visited
• Now a UNESCO World Heritage Site (declared 1986)
• Destroyed by the Deccan Sultanate coalition after the Battle of Talikota (1565). Ruins spread over 41 sq km.