The Sultanate of Delhi, 711–1526 A.D. c19.s3.t1: Project of conquests

c19.s3.t1.1

Ala-ud-din was one of the most ambitious rulers that ever sat upon the throne of Delhi. After he had attained some success against the rebels and invaders, sometimes he dreamt of emulating the example of Alexander the Great and conquering the whole world. He even wanted to establish a religion of his own. One of his honest and experienced courtiers, Ala-ul-mulk, the kotwal of Delhi, advised him to give up the wild project of founding a new religion, and to undertake the difficult, but .desirable, task of conquering the whole of India before embarking on the conquest of the world. Ala-ud-din accepted the advice and set before him a grand scheme of subduing the independent Hindu states outside the borders of the Sultanate of Delhi. His foreign policy, therefore, was directed towards the achievement of one aim, namely, not to leave any independent Hindu chief in the country. It was not necessary to wait for any plausible cause or even pretext before invading a neighbour's territory. His wars were mostly unprovoked and undertaken in pursuit of a resolute ideal, namely, the conquest of the entire country. His policy of conquests may be divided into two parts: (1) conquest of northern India, and (2) conquest of south India.