Mongol invasion of India (1306): Difference between revisions

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== Other Mongol contingents ==
Some of Kopek's soldiers escaped to the other Mongol contingent led by Iqbalmand and Tai-Bu, and were pursued by the Delhi army.{{sfn|Banarsi Prasad Saksena|1992|p=394}} Iqbalmand and Tai-Bu had marched southwards to [[Nagaur]] in present-day [[Rajasthan]].{{sfn|Kishori Saran Lal|1950|p=171}} The Delhi army, led by Malik Kafur and Malik Tughluq, launched a sudden attack on them. Iqbalmand and Tai-Bu fled across the [[Indus River]], having heard about Kopek's defeat.{{sfn|Kishori Saran Lal|1950|p=172}} The Delhi army killed and captured a large number of Mongols in their pursuit.{{sfn|Banarsi Prasad Saksena|1992|p=394}}
Amir Khsurau's writings suggest that Kopek, Iqbalmand and Tai-Bu were commanders of three contingents in the same campaign. However, the later chronicler Ziauddin Barani states that three generals invaded India on three occasions, in different years: Kunk or Gung (Kopek) was defeated at Khekar. Later, another Mongol army led by an unnamed general ransacked the [[Shivalik Hills|Shivalik]] region, and was defeated while returning, on the banks of an unnamed river.{{sfn|Kishori Saran Lal|1950|p=173}} A third Mongol army, led by Iqbalmand, was defeated at a place called Amir Ali.{{sfn|Kishori Saran Lal|1950|p=174}} The later chroniclers such as Nizamuddin and [[Firishta]] have adapted Barani's account. Firishta, for example, mentions Kopek's invasion and Iqbalmand's invasion as two campaigns, and states that Iqbalmand was defeated by Ghazi Malik Tughluq.{{sfn|Kishori Saran Lal|1950|p=174}}
Historian [[Kishori Saran Lal]] believes that Khusrau's account is accurate, because he wrote during Alauddin's lifetime. Lal dismisses Barani's account as inaccurate, because it was written much later, and because Barani does not provide specific details about these supposedly three campaigns (such as the year, and the names of the Delhi generals).{{sfn|Kishori Saran Lal|1950|p=174}} Moreover, historical evidence indicates that Kopek's invasion was the last Mongol of invasion to have happened during Alauddin's reign. Barani's contemporary [[Isami (historian)|Isami]] does not mention any other Mongol invasion after Kopek's invasion. Duwa Khan died in 1306-1307, and the Chagatai Khanate was too weak to launch an invasion of India over the next few years. In fact, Alauddin's governor of [[Dipalpur]] plundered [[Kabul]] in the Chagatai territory during these years. All these evidences cast doubt on Barani's claim that the Mongols invaded India twice during Alauddin's reign after Kopek's defeat.{{sfn|Kishori Saran Lal|1950|p=175}}
Historian [[Peter Jackson (historian)|Peter Jackson]] also believes that Barani and other later chroniclers misinterpreted Khusrau's account.{{sfn|Peter Jackson|2003|p=227}}
== Aftermath ==
== Aftermath ==


Revision as of 10:37, 24 June 2025

Aftermath

The Mongols intended to settle down in the Indian territory after capturing it, and therefore, had brought their women and children with them.[1] The Delhi Sultanate army imprisoned these women and children along with the defeated Mongol soldiers, and took them to Delhi.[2]

Tens of thousands of Mongols were killed, including their commander Kopek.[3] According to the contemporary Persian historian Wassaf, the dead Mongols numbered 60,000. Wassaf adds that Alauddin ordered the construction of a tower made of their skulls in front of the Badaun Gate, to serve as a warning to the future generations.[4] Ziauddin Barani, in his Tarikh-i-Firuz Shahi (1357), states that this tower could still be seen in his day.[5]

The 16th century chronicler Firishta claims that the Mongol camp originally included 50,000-60,000 people: out of these, less than 3,000-4,000 had survived. Alauddin ordered the male survivors to be trampled under the feet of elephants. The women and children were sold in Delhi and other parts of India.[2]

According to Amir Khusrau, this defeat scared the Mongols so much that they retreated to the mountains of Ghazni.[6] They did not launch any further expeditions into India during Alauddin's reign. On the other hand, Tughluq, Alauddin's governor of Dipalpur, adopted an aggressive policy against the Mongols. Over the next few years, he annually raided Kabul, Ghazni, Kandahar, and Garmsir, which were located on the Mongol frontier. He plundered these territories, and levied tribute on the residents, without any resistance from the Chagatai Khanate.[7] Amir Khusrau, in his Tughluq-Nama, alludes to Tughluq's 20 victories, most of which were against the Mongols. Barani states that Tughluq, who also received the iqta' of Lahore at some point, defeated the Mongols 20 times. The Moroccan traveler Ibn Battuta states that a mosque in Multan had an inscription, in which Tughluq claimed to have defeated the Mongols 29 times. It is uncertain if these victories refer to the above-mentioned raids.[8]

An undated letter addressed by the Delhi general Haji Badr to Alauddin's son Khizr Khan suggests that Alauddin's rule extended to Ghazni. When Haji Badr's army arrived in Ghazni one winter, the Mongols of the city and its environs accepted Alauddin's suzerainty. The Friday khutbah at the local Jama Mosque was read in Alauddin's name.[9]

References

  1. ↑ Banarsi Prasad Saksena 1992, p. 400.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Kishori Saran Lal 1950, p. 172.
  3. ↑ Banarsi Prasad Saksena 1992, p. 394.
  4. ↑ Abraham Eraly 2015, p. 144.
  5. ↑ Peter Jackson 2003, p. 230.
  6. ↑ Kishori Saran Lal 1950, p. 177.
  7. ↑ Kishori Saran Lal 1950, p. 175.
  8. ↑ Peter Jackson 2003, p. 229.
  9. ↑ Kishori Saran Lal 1950, p. 176.

Bibliography

  • Abraham Eraly (2015). The Age of Wrath: A History of the Delhi Sultanate. Penguin Books. ISBN 978-93-5118-658-8.
  • Banarsi Prasad Saksena (1992) [1970]. "The Khaljis: Alauddin Khalji". In Mohammad Habib and Khaliq Ahmad Nizami (ed.). A Comprehensive History of India: The Delhi Sultanat (A.D. 1206-1526). Vol. 5 (Second ed.). The Indian History Congress / People's Publishing House. OCLC 31870180.
  • Kishori Saran Lal (1950). History of the Khaljis (1290-1320). Allahabad: The Indian Press. OCLC 685167335.
  • Peter Jackson (2003). The Delhi Sultanate: A Political and Military History. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-54329-3.
  • René Grousset (1970). The Empire of the Steppes: A History of Central Asia. Rutgers University Press. ISBN 978-0-8135-1304-1.
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