Study Notes: Reshaping India’s Political Map (11th–17th Centuries)

Defining the ‘Medieval’ Period and the Changing Landscape\n- The period between the 11th and 17th centuries in Indian history is often referred to as the latter part of the ‘medieval period’.\n- The term ‘medieval’ literally means ‘between two ages’ (the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century CE and the Renaissance during the 14th–16th centuries). It was originally applied to European history and is not an ideal fit for Indian history, as scholars often disagree on the exact timeline.\n- This era began in the 11th century with unprecedented invasions from beyond the Hindu Kush mountains, reshaped by Central Asian peoples—primarily Turkic and Afghan.\n- These invaders were motivated by India’s reputed riches, territorial ambitions, and the desire to spread their religions by force of violence if necessary.\n\n# The Rise and Fall of the Delhi Sultanate\n- The Delhi Sultanate was established in 1206 after the defeat of King Prithviraj Chauhan (who ruled parts of northwestern India) in 1192.\n- The Sultanate was ruled by five successive foreign dynasties of Turkic-Afghan origin:\n 1. The Mamluks (or ‘Slave dynasty’).\n 2. The Khiljis (or Khaljis).\n 3. The Tughlaqs.\n 4. The Sayyids.\n 5. The Lodis (or Lodhis).\n- Political Instability: Nearly two out of three sultans seized power by eliminating their predecessor. The average reign of a sultan was hardly more than nine years.\n- Ala-ud-din Khilji: At the turn of the 14th century, he conducted military campaigns across north and central India and repelled Mongol invasions. He minted coins with the inscription ‘Sikander Sani’ meaning ‘the second Alexander’ in Persian. His slave-general, Malik Kafur, plundered Hindu centers including Srirangam, Madurai, Chidambaram, and Rameswaram to finance the military.\n- Muhammad bin Tughlaq: Ruled from Delhi and controlled most of the Subcontinent for the first time since the Mauryan Empire. However, his ambitious schemes often failed:\n - Moving the capital from Delhi to Daulatabad (Devagiri, near Sambhaji Nagar), forcing people to travel over $1,000\,km$, leading to massive loss of life.\n - The introduction of ‘token currency’ using cheap copper coins to represent gold or silver value, which caused counterfeiting and economic decline.\n\n# Religious and Social Impact of the Sultanate\n- Iconoclasm: Defined as the rejection or destruction of icons or religious images considered idolatrous. This period saw numerous attacks on Buddhist, Jain, and Hindu temples.\n- The Term ‘Image’: Traditional Indian texts use terms like ‘mūrti’, ‘vigraha’, ‘pratimā’, or ‘rūpa’. In English, ‘image’ is considered a neutral term, whereas ‘idol’ or ‘icon’ can be pejorative in monotheistic contexts.\n- Jizya: A discriminatory tax imposed on non-Muslim subjects for ‘protection’ and exemption from military service. It created an economic burden and an incentive for conversion to Islam.\n- Timur’s Invasion: In 1398, the Turkic-Mongol conqueror Timur attacked Delhi, killing and enslaving large numbers to plunder wealth and wage war on ‘infidels’ (someone who does not share the faith of a given religion). He left the city in ruins.\n\n# Resistance to the Delhi Sultanate\n- Eastern Ganga Kingdom (Kalinga): Failed to be subdued by the Sultanate. King Narasimhadeva I (mid-13th century) repelled Sultanate advances, defeated the governor of Bengal, and built the Sūrya temple at Konark to commemorate his victories.\n- Musunuri Nayakas: Telugu chieftains who formed a confederacy of over 75 leaders to expel the army of Muhammad bin Tughlaq from Warangal (present-day Telangana) around 1330–1336.\n- Hoysala Kingdom: Located in present-day Karnataka, they initially fended off the Sultanate. The Hoysala emblem comes from a legend where a young man named Sala fought a lion at the command of his guru: ‘Hoy (strike)! Sala’. The kingdom was eventually absorbed into the Vijayanagara Empire.\n- Regional Powers: The 15th century saw resistance from the Mewar kingdom in Rajasthan under Rana Kumbha, who built the Kumbhalgarh Fort and its 36-kilometre-long wall.\n\n# The Vijayanagara Empire (14th–17th Century)\n- Founded by two brothers, Harihara and Bukka (former governors under the Tughlaqs), at Hampi (Karnataka) after they were inspired by the sight of a hare chasing a pack of hounds.\n- Titles of Power: Kings were called ‘Narapati’ (Lord of Men), whereas Bahmani rulers were ‘Ashwapati’ (Lord of Horses) and Maratha rulers ‘Chhatrapati’ (Lord of the Umbrella/Parasol).\n- Krishnadevaraya: The empire’s most celebrated ruler (16th century). He was a patron of Sanskrit, Telugu, and Kannada literature and wrote the Telugu epic poem ‘Āmuktamālyada’ on policies of governance (Rājanīti). He provided grants to Tirupati and constructed the Vitthala temple, famous for its ‘musical pillars’ that emit notes when struck.\n- Foreign Accounts: Portuguese traveler Domingo Paes described the capital as larger than Rome, beautiful, and the ‘best provided city in the world’.\n- Fall of the Empire: In 1565, at the Battle of Talikota, a coalition of Deccan Sultanates (Bijapur, Golconda, Berar, Ahmednagar, Bidar) defeated Ramaraya. The city of Vijayanagara was destroyed and its population massacred.\n\n# The Mughal Empire (1526–1707 and beyond)\n- Babur: A descendant of Timur, he defeated Ibrahim Lodi at the First Battle of Panipat in 1526 using field artillery and matchlock guns. In his autobiography, the ‘Baburnama’, he expressed a mix of cultural curiosity and brutal conquest (taking pride in ‘towers of skulls’).\n- Akbar: Ascended the throne at age 13. Early in his reign, he was brutal, ordering the massacre of 30,000 civilians at the Chittorgarh Fort in 1568, where Rajput women committed ‘jauhar’ (mass self-immolation to avoid capture). Later, he shifted toward stability and tolerance:\n - Abolished the jizya tax.\n - Promoted ‘sulh-i-kul’ (universal peace).\n - Established a ‘house of translation’ for texts like the Mahābhārata (Razmnama) and Rāmāyaṇa.\n - His reign lasted nearly 50 years ($1556–1605$). \n- Shah Jahan: Known for building the Taj Mahal, Humayun’s tomb, and Red Forts in Delhi and Agra.\n- Aurangzeb: Seized power in 1658 after executing his brother Dara Shikoh and imprisoning his father. He named himself ‘Alamgir’ (conqueror of the world). He reversed Akbar’s policies by banning music/dance, reimposing jizya, and ordering the destruction of temples at Banaras, Mathura, and Somnath in 1669.\n\n# Resistance to Mughal Dominance\n- Rani Durgavati: Queen of the Garha kingdom (Gond). She repelled invasions with an army of 20,000 soldiers and 1,000 elephants until she took her own life on the battlefield in 1564 to avoid capture by Akbar’s forces.\n- Maharana Pratap (Mewar): Refused Mughal suzerainty. After the Battle of Haldighati (1576), he engaged in guerrilla warfare from the Aravalli hills with support from the Bhil tribal warriors (featured on the Mewar emblem).\n- The Ahoms: Located in the Brahmaputra Valley, they used the ‘paik system’—compulsory state service by all able-bodied men. Led by Lachit Borphukan, 10,000 Ahom men defeated 30,000 Mughals at the Battle of Saraighat (1671) on the river.\n- The Sikhs: Founded by Guru Nanak. Guru Arjan (the 5th Guru) was tortured to death by Jahangir. Guru Tegh Bahadur (the 9th Guru) was beheaded in 1675 at Chandni Chowk by Aurangzeb for protecting Kashmiri Pandits. This led Guru Gobind Singh to form the ‘Khalsa’, a martial brotherhood. Maharaja Ranjit Singh eventually unified the Sikhs into a powerful empire in the 19th century.\n\n# Administration and Economy\n- Iqta System (Sultanate): Lands assigned to nobles (iqtadars) to collect taxes to maintain the army. Posts were not hereditary.\n- Mansabdari System (Mughal): Officers (mansabdars) held ranks and were expected to maintain specific numbers of horses and troops. They were paid via land grants (jagirs).\n- Revenue: Todar Mal (Akbar’s finance minister) introduced surveys for crop yields and land to boost collection. Tax was usually one-fifth ($\frac{1}{5}$) of produce but sometimes reached one-half ($\frac{1}{2}$).\n- Trade Finance: The ‘hundi’ was a written instruction to pay, allowing fund transfers across borders without physical currency to prevent plunder.\n- Temple Ecosystems: Many temples acted as economic hubs, managing land held in trust, providing credit to merchants, and building infrastructure like ‘dharmaśhālās’ and ‘chhatrams’.\n- Agricultural Tools: The ‘Persian wheel’ was used to draw water for irrigation, increasing the production of crops like cotton, silk, and sugarcane.\n\n# Questions & Discussion\n- Q: Why did Ala-ud-din Khilji call himself \"the second Alexander\"?\n- A: This likely reflected his ambition for global conquest and his military expansion across large areas of India, similar to the historical campaigns of Alexander the Great.\n- Q: What resources were needed to maintain an army in those days?\n- A: Expenditure involved weapons, food for soldiers, animals (horses/elephants), and the construction of roads for logistical movement.\n- Q: Why were locations like the Aravalli hills chosen for medieval forts?\n- A: These strategic locations provided natural security against invaders due to dense forests and steep slopes, though they were difficult to supply in long sieges.\n- Q: How did the Paik system affect daily life in the Ahom kingdom?\n- A: It ensured a large standing force without a permanent centralized army, requiring labor in exchange for land rights, which helped build public infrastructure but placed a duty of military service on all men.", "title": "Study Notes: Reshaping India’s Political Map (11th–17th Centuries)"}