Lodi dynasty: Difference between revisions

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The '''Lodi dynasty''' ({{lang-fa|سلسله لودی}}) was a dynasty that ruled the [[Delhi Sultanate]] from 1451 to 1526.{{sfn|Bosworth|1996|p=304}} It was the fifth and final dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate, and was founded by [[Bahlul Khan Lodi]] when he replaced the [[Sayyid dynasty]].<ref name="sen2">{{Cite book |last=Sen |first=Sailendra |title=A Textbook of Medieval Indian History |publisher=Primus Books |year=2013 |isbn=978-9-38060-734-4 |pages=122–125}}</ref>

After the last Sayyid ruler of [[Delhi]], [[Alam Shah|Alauddin Alam Shah]] voluntarily abdicated in favour of him, Bahlul Khan Lodi ascended the throne of the Delhi sultanate on 19 April 1451.<ref>Mahajan, V.D. (1991, reprint 2007). ''History of Medieval India'', Part I, New Delhi: S. Chand, {{ISBN|81-219-0364-5}}, p. 244</ref> The most important event of his reign was the conquest of the [[Jaunpur Sultanate]]. Bahlul spent most of his time in fighting against the [[Sharqi dynasty]] of the Jaunpur Sultanate and ultimately annexed it. He placed his eldest surviving son Barbak on the throne of [[Jaunpur Sultanate|Jaunpur]] in 1486. The Sharqis remained in control of Bihar, from which they re-occupied Jaunpur, but were again repulsed to Bihar.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=jNSNDwAAQBAJ&dq=sharqi+reoccupied+jaunpur&pg=PT173 |title= The Sultanate of Delhi (1206–1526) |author= Aniruddha Ray |isbn= 9781000007299 |access-date= 10 February 2023 |archive-date= 19 March 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230319093909/https://www.google.ca/books/edition/The_Sultanate_of_Delhi_1206_1526/jNSNDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=sharqi+reoccupied+jaunpur&pg=PT173&printsec=frontcover |url-status= live }}</ref>

His father nominated him as his successor and he was crowned sultan on 15 July 1489. He founded [[Agra]] in 1504 and built mosques. He shifted the capital from Delhi to Agra.<ref>Mahajan, V.D. (1991, reprint 2007). ''History of Medieval India'', Part I, New Delhi: S. Chand, {{ISBN|81-219-0364-5}}, p.256</ref> He patronized trade and commerce. He was a reputed poet, composing under Guru's pen name.{{what|Guru's pen name?}} He was also a patron of learning and ordered translations of [[Sanskrit]] works in medicine into Persian.<ref>Prof K.Ali  (1950, reprint 2006)"A new history of Indo-Pakistan" Part 1, p.311</ref> He curbed the individualistic tendencies of his Pashtun nobles and compelled them to submit their accounts to a state audit. He was thus able to infuse vigour and discipline in the administration. His greatest achievement was the conquest and annexation of [[Bihar]] from the Sharqis.<ref>Srivastava, A.L (1966). The Sultanate of Delhi (711 - 1526 A.D), Agra: Shiva Lal Agarwala and Company, p. 245</ref>

Ibrahim Khan Lodi ({{reign|1517|1526}}), the eldest son of Sikandar, was the last Lodi Sultan of Delhi.<ref name="sardesai146">{{cite book |first=D. R. |last=SarDesai |title=India The Definitive History |publisher=Westview Press |year=2008 |page=146 |isbn=978-0-81334-352-5}}</ref> He had the qualities of an excellent warrior, but he was rash and impolitic in his decisions and actions. His attempt at royal absolutism was premature and his policy of sheer repression unaccompanied by measures to strengthen the administration and increase the military resources was sure to prove a failure.{{citation needed}}  

By the time Ibrahim ascended the throne, the political structure in the Lodi dynasty had dissolved due to abandoned trade routes and the depleted treasury. The [[Deccan]] was a coastal trade route, but in the late fifteenth century the supply lines had collapsed. The decline and eventual failure of this specific trade route resulted in cutting off supplies from the coast to the interior, where the Lodi empire resided. The Lodi dynasty was not able to protect itself if warfare were to break out on the trade route roads; therefore, they didn't use those trade routes, thus their trade declined and so did their treasury leaving them vulnerable to internal political problems.<ref name="richards">{{cite journal |last=Richards |first=John F. |author-link=John F. Richards |title=The Economic History of the Lodi Period: 1451-1526 |journal=Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient |volume=8 |issue=1 |pages=47–67 |jstor=3596342 |doi=10.1163/156852065X00020 }}</ref>  

After being assured of the cooperation of Alam Khan and [[Daulat Khan]], Governor of the Punjab, Babur gathered his army. Upon entering the Punjab plains, Babur's chief allies, namely Langar Khan Niazi advised Babur to engage the powerful Janjua Rajputs to join his conquest. The tribe's rebellious stance to the throne of Delhi was well known. Upon meeting their chiefs, Malik Hast (Asad) and Raja Sanghar Khan, Babur made mention of the Janjua's popularity as traditional rulers of their kingdom and their ancestral support for his patriarch Emir Timur during his conquest of Hind. Babur aided them in defeating their enemies, the Gakhars in 1521, thus cementing their alliance. Babur employed them as Generals in his campaign for Delhi, the conquest of Rana Sanga and the conquest of India.{{citation needed}}

The new usage of guns allowed small armies to make large gains on enemy territory. Small parties of skirmishers who had been dispatched simply to test enemy positions and tactics, were making inroads into India. Babur, however, had survived two revolts, one in [[Kandahar]] and another in [[Kabul]], and was careful to pacify the local population after victories, following local traditions and aiding widows and orphans.{{citation needed}}

File:Rajon_ki_Baoli's_baoli.jpg|right|The [[Rajon ki Baoli]] stepwell was built by [[Sikandar Lodi]] in 1516.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Sahai |first1=Surendra |title=Indian Architecture: Islamic Period, 1192-1857 |publisher=Prakash Books, India |isbn=978-81-7234-057-5 |page=37 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pUnqAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA37 |language=en |quote="Rajon ki baoli ( 1516 ) is one of the major public welfare projects of Sikandar Lodi ." |access-date=14 May 2022 |archive-date=19 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230319093909/https://books.google.com/books?id=pUnqAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA37 |url-status=live }}</ref>

*{{cite book |last1=Dale |first1=Stephen Frederic |author1-link=Stephen Dale |editor1-last=Peacock |editor1-first=A.C.S. |editor2-last=McClary |editor2-first=Richard Piran |editor1-link=A. C. S. Peacock |title=Turkish History and Culture in India: Identity, Art and Transregional Connections |publisher=Brill |page=74-75 |chapter=Turks, Turks and türk Turks: Anatolia, Iran and India in Comparative Perspective|quote=Persian became, ipso facto, the language of his [Babur's] administration, if for no other reason than that the Lodi Afghans had used it – and definitely not Pushtu – for their revenue records.}}

* {{Cite book|first=Gopinath |last=Sharma|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jIs9AAAAMAAJ|title=Mewar & the Mughal Emperors (1526-1707 A.D.)|publisher=S.L. Agarwala|language=en}}

*{{cite journal |last=Ud-Din |first=Hameed |title=Historians of Afghan Rule in India |journal=Journal of the American Oriental Society |volume=82 |issue=1 |pages=44–51 |jstor=595978  |doi=10.2307/595978 }}