Alauddin Khalji's conquest of Malwa: Difference between revisions

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{{Short description|1305 Dehli victory in India}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2018}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2018}}
{{Use Indian English|date=March 2018}}
{{Use Indian English|date=March 2018}}
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| image            =  
| image            =  
| caption          =  
| caption          =  
| date              = 1305
| date              = 1305 – 23 November 1305
| place            = [[Malwa]]
| place            = [[Malwa]]
| result            = [[Delhi Sultanate]] Victory
| result            = [[Delhi Sultanate]] victory
* End of [[Paramara]] Dynasty
* End of [[Paramara dynasty|Paramara]] Dynasty
| combatant1        = [[File:Sultan of Delhi Flag according to the Catalan Atlas (1375).png|23px]] [[Delhi Sultanate]]
| combatant1        = [[File:Sultan of Delhi Flag according to the Catalan Atlas (1375).png|23px]] [[Delhi Sultanate]]
| combatant2        = [[Paramara dynasty]]
| combatant2        = [[Paramara dynasty]]
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| commander2        = [[Mahalakadeva]]{{KIA}}<br>Gogadeva{{KIA}}
| commander2        = [[Mahalakadeva]]{{KIA}}<br>Gogadeva{{KIA}}
| strength1        = 10,000{{sfn|Kishori Saran Lal|1950|p=133}}
| strength1        = 10,000{{sfn|Kishori Saran Lal|1950|p=133}}
| strength2        = 100,000 Infantry{{sfn|Kishori Saran Lal|1950|p=133}}<br>40,000 Cavalry{{sfn|Kishori Saran Lal|1950|p=133}}<br>'''Total:''' 140,000
| strength2        = 40,000 Cavalry<ref>{{Cite book |last=Mohamed nasr |url=http://archive.org/details/2015.98691.HistoryOfTheKhaljis12901320 |title=2015.98691. History Of The Khaljis 1290 1320 |pages=132-133 |language=English}}</ref><br>100,000 Infantry<ref>{{Cite book |last=K.S.Lal |url=http://archive.org/details/GrowthOfMuslimPopulationInMedievalIndiaAd10001800 |title=Growth Of Muslim Population In Medieval India Ad 1000 1800 |date=1973 |pages=41 |language=English}}</ref>  
| territory        = Malwa annexed by [[Delhi Sultanate]]
}}
}}
<mapframe text="Delhi and Mandu in present-day India" width="400" height="400" zoom="5" longitude="76.32" latitude="25.49">
<mapframe text="Delhi and Mandu in present-day India" width="400" height="400" zoom="5" longitude="76.32" latitude="25.49">
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In 1305, the [[Delhi Sultanate]] ruler [[Alauddin Khalji]] sent an army to capture the [[Paramara]] kingdom of [[Malwa]] in central India. The Delhi army defeated and killed the powerful Paramara minister Goga, while the Paramara king [[Mahalakadeva]] took shelter in the [[Mandu, Madhya Pradesh|Mandu]] fort. Alauddin appointed [[Ayn al-Mulk Multani]] as the governor of Malwa. After consolidating his power in Malwa, Ayn al-Mulk besieged Mandu and killed Mahalakadeva.
In 1305, the [[Delhi Sultanate]] ruler [[Alauddin Khalji]] sent an army to capture the [[Paramara dynasty|Paramara]] kingdom of [[Malwa]] in central India. The Delhi army defeated and killed the powerful Paramara minister Goga, while the Paramara king [[Mahalakadeva]] took shelter in the [[Mandu, Madhya Pradesh|Mandu]] fort. Alauddin appointed [[Ayn al-Mulk Multani]] as the governor of Malwa. After consolidating his power in Malwa, Ayn al-Mulk besieged Mandu and killed Mahalakadeva.


== Background ==
== Background ==
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== Mahalakadeva's death ==
== Mahalakadeva's death ==


After the establishment of peaceful conditions in a large part of Malwa, Ayn al-Mulk marched to [[Mandu, Madhya Pradesh|Mandu]], where the Paramara king Mahalakadeva stayed.{{sfn|Kishori Saran Lal|1950|p=133}} Mahalakadeva sent an army led by his son to fight the invaders. However, his son was killed on the battlefield, and his army was defeated. The Delhi army besieged Mandu, and managed to enter it, after one of Mahalakadeva's fort guards betrayed him. The guard told the invaders about a secret entrance to the fort. Using this passage, the Delhi army entered the Mandu fort at night, taking Mahalakadeva by surprise.{{sfn|Banarsi Prasad Saksena|1992|p=395}}
After the establishment of peace in a large part of Malwa, Ayn al-Mulk marched to [[Mandu, Madhya Pradesh|Mandu]], where the Paramara king Mahalakadeva stayed.{{sfn|Kishori Saran Lal|1950|p=133}} Mahalakadeva sent an army led by his son to fight the invaders. Mahalakadeva's army was defeated and his son killed on the battlefield. The Delhi army besieged Mandu, and managed to enter it, after one of Mahalakadeva's fort guards betrayed him. The guard told the invaders about a secret entrance to the fort. Using this passage, the Delhi army entered the Mandu fort at night, taking Mahalakadeva by surprise.{{sfn|Banarsi Prasad Saksena|1992|p=395}}


Mahalakadeva fled to a spring called Sar (''Chashm-i Sar'' in the Delhi chronicles), where he was killed.{{sfn|Banarsi Prasad Saksena|1992|p=395}} The Delhi army captured the fort on 23 November 1305, and Alauddin assigned it to Ayn al-Mulk.{{sfn|Peter Jackson|2003|p=198}}<!-- Banarsi Prasad Saksena dates this to December 1305, but most other authors date it to November 1305. --> An inscription from [[Udaipur (Madhya Pradesh)|Udaipur]] indicates that the Paramara dynasty survived in the north-eastern part of Malwa in 1310. However, this area had also come under the Delhi Sultanate rule by the [[Tughluq dynasty|Tughluq]] period in 1338.{{sfn|Peter Jackson|2003|p=199}}
Mahalakadeva fled to a spring called Sar (''Chashm-i Sar'' in the Delhi chronicles), where he was killed.{{sfn|Banarsi Prasad Saksena|1992|p=395}} The Delhi army captured the fort on 23 November 1305, and Alauddin assigned it to Ayn al-Mulk.{{sfn|Peter Jackson|2003|p=198}}<!-- Banarsi Prasad Saksena dates this to December 1305, but most other authors date it to November 1305. --> An inscription from [[Udaipur (Madhya Pradesh)|Udaipur]] indicates that the Paramara dynasty survived in the north-eastern part of Malwa in 1310. However, this area had also come under the Delhi Sultanate rule by the [[Tughluq dynasty|Tughluq]] period in 1338.{{sfn|Peter Jackson|2003|p=199}}
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[[Category:Battles involving the Rajputs]]
[[Category:Battles involving the Rajputs]]
[[Category:Paramara dynasty]]
[[Category:Paramara dynasty]]
[[Category:History of Madhya Pradesh]]

Latest revision as of 02:23, 24 March 2026


Delhi Sultanate annexation of Malwa
Date1305 – 23 November 1305
Location
Result

Delhi Sultanate victory

Territorial
changes
Malwa annexed by Delhi Sultanate
Belligerents
Delhi Sultanate Paramara dynasty
Commanders and leaders
Alauddin Khalji
Ayn al-Mulk Multani
Mahalakadeva 
Gogadeva 
Strength
10,000[1] 40,000 Cavalry[2]
100,000 Infantry[3]
Map
Delhi and Mandu in present-day India

In 1305, the Delhi Sultanate ruler Alauddin Khalji sent an army to capture the Paramara kingdom of Malwa in central India. The Delhi army defeated and killed the powerful Paramara minister Goga, while the Paramara king Mahalakadeva took shelter in the Mandu fort. Alauddin appointed Ayn al-Mulk Multani as the governor of Malwa. After consolidating his power in Malwa, Ayn al-Mulk besieged Mandu and killed Mahalakadeva.

Background[edit | edit source]

The Paramara dynasty ruled the Malwa region in central India. By 1305, nearly all the Indian rulers to the north of Malwa had acknowledged Alauddin's suzerainty. The Paramara king Mahalakadeva was a weak ruler, and his prime minister (pradhan) Goga (called Koka in Muslim chronicles) was more powerful than him.[4]

Goga's death[edit | edit source]

In 1305, Alauddin sent a cavalry to capture Malwa. It is not clear who commanded this army, but he might have been Ayn al-Mulk Multani, whom Alauddin later appointed as the governor of Malwa.[4] According to the Delhi chronicler Amir Khusrau, the Delhi army comprised 10,000 soldiers, who had been selected specifically for the mission.[1]

According to Khusrau, the Malwa army commanded by Goga comprised a 30,000-40,000 strong cavalry and an "innumerable" infantry.[5] The later historians Yahya, Firishta, and Hajiuddabir state that the Malwa army comprised 40,000 cavalry and 100,000 infantry.[1]

In the ensuing battle, the Delhi army emerged victorious. Khusrau states that the battlefield was "bloody with mud" as far as the human eye could see.[1] Goga's horse was caught in a mire, and he was killed by arrows.[4] His head was sent to Delhi, where it was trampled under the feet of horses at the palace gates.[1]

Alauddin appointed Ayn al-Mulk as the governor of Malwa. Ayn al-Mulk raided the former Paramara capital Dhara, where he broke the Dhar iron pillar. The former Paramara vassals were forced to recognize Alauddin's suzerainty. These included the chiefs of the Ujjain, Dhar, and Chanderi cities. Ayn al-Mulk sent a detailed record of his success to Delhi, where a week-long celebration was held and sweets were distributed among public for the entire week.[6]

Mahalakadeva's death[edit | edit source]

After the establishment of peace in a large part of Malwa, Ayn al-Mulk marched to Mandu, where the Paramara king Mahalakadeva stayed.[1] Mahalakadeva sent an army led by his son to fight the invaders. Mahalakadeva's army was defeated and his son killed on the battlefield. The Delhi army besieged Mandu, and managed to enter it, after one of Mahalakadeva's fort guards betrayed him. The guard told the invaders about a secret entrance to the fort. Using this passage, the Delhi army entered the Mandu fort at night, taking Mahalakadeva by surprise.[4]

Mahalakadeva fled to a spring called Sar (Chashm-i Sar in the Delhi chronicles), where he was killed.[4] The Delhi army captured the fort on 23 November 1305, and Alauddin assigned it to Ayn al-Mulk.[7] An inscription from Udaipur indicates that the Paramara dynasty survived in the north-eastern part of Malwa in 1310. However, this area had also come under the Delhi Sultanate rule by the Tughluq period in 1338.[8]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Kishori Saran Lal 1950, p. 133.
  2. Mohamed nasr. 2015.98691. History Of The Khaljis 1290 1320. pp. 132–133.
  3. K.S.Lal (1973). Growth Of Muslim Population In Medieval India Ad 1000 1800. p. 41.
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Banarsi Prasad Saksena 1992, p. 395.
  5. Kishori Saran Lal 1950, pp. 132-133.
  6. Kishori Saran Lal 1950, p. 134.
  7. Peter Jackson 2003, p. 198.
  8. Peter Jackson 2003, p. 199.

Bibliography[edit | edit source]

External links[edit | edit source]