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The Sultanate of Delhi, 711–1526 A.D. c22.s2: Sikandar Lodi, 1489—1517

The Sultanate of Delhi, 711–1526 A.D. c22.s2

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Sikandar Lodi, 1489—1517

His accession

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On Bahlol's death his chief nobles became divided on the question of succession to the throne. One group favoured the succession of his third son, Nizam Khan, who was popularly known as Sikandar Shah; but the other and the more powerful party objected to Nizam’s succession on the ground that his mother was the daughter of a goldsmith and urged the claim of Barbak Shah, the eldest son of the deceased and at that time the ruler of Jaunpur. This party had persuaded Bahlol, on his death-bed, to send for Nizam from Delhi lest he should seize the throne in the event of his father’s death. But on one pretext or another Nizam had refused to proceed. Meanwhile, Bahlol died. Nizam’s mother, who was in the camp with her husband, asserted her son’s claim. But she was abused by Isa Khan, Bahlol’s cousin, who bluntly told her that a goldsmith mother’s son was not eligible for the throne of Delhi. Some of the nobles of the majority party now sympathised with the widow for the discourtesy shown to her. The result was that the Khan-i-Khana manoeuvred things in such a manner as to get the support of the majority of the Pathan nobles for Nizam Khan who was proclaimed king under the title of Sikandar Shah on July 17, 1489.

Suppression of rebellions

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Sikandar had to justify his selection. By his policy, character and firm adminstration he showed within a short time that he was the right choice and fittest of all the sons of Bahlol to fill the throne of Delhi. His first task was to set his own house in order by reducing his rivals to submission and increasing the strength of his followers. His uncle, Alam Khan, was one of the candidates for the throne and was preparing to assert his independence in Rapari and Chandawar. Sikandar besieged him at Rapari, defeated him and drove him away from there. Alam Khan took shelter with Isa Khan who was one of the front-rank men who had opposed Sikandar’s accession. By a conciliatory policy, Sikandar won over Alam Khan, separated him from Isa Khan and appointed him to the fief of Etawah. He then defeated Isa at Patiali, the latter dying after a few days of the battle. Next, Sikandar defeated his cousin, Azam Humayun, who, too, was a candidate for the throne, took away Kalpi from him and bestowed it upon Muhammad Khan Lodi. Then he defeated Tatar Khan Lodi, another opponent, but generously allowed him to remain in possession of Jhatra. Thus, within a year of his accession, Sikandar succeeded in either subduing or pacifying his opponents and consolidating his power.

Subduing of Barbak Shah

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Sikandar was alive to the danger of a divided monarchy. Accordingly, he was anxious to persuade his elder brother, Barbak Shah of Jaunpur, to live in subordinate alliance with him. He sent a mission of peace to Jaunpur which, however, did not meet with success. Sikandar probably felt that, having deprived him of his birth-right, he should make amends to Barbak Shah. But being instigated by Husain Shah, the ex-king of Jaunpur, who had taken shelter in Bihar and felt that a quarrel between the two brothers might open a way for him to recover his lost kingdom, Barbak refused to come to terms with his brother. Sikandar, therefore, prepared to fight. He defeated Barbak who had advanced at the head of an army as far as Kanauj. After this discomfiture, Barbak fled to Badaun, but he was besieged there and compelled to surrender. Sikandar was generous enough to restore him to Jaunpur as a titular king; but he divided that kingdom into fiefs which he distributed among his own followers and placed spies even at Barbak's court and household. A little after, a great rebellion of zamindars residing in the kingdom of Jaunpur occurred. It was instigated by Husain Shah. Barbak could not cope with the situation and had to abandon Jaunpur and flee to Driyabad near Lucknow. Sikandar took prompt action, crushed the rebellion and reinstated Barbak Shah a second time in his kingdom as his vassal. But Barbak proved an utterly incompetent administrator and was, therefore, removed and placed in confinement. Sikandar then appointed his own governor at Jaunpur.

Abasement of the nobility

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Having established his absolute authority over his paternal kingdom by reducing Jaunpur to submission, Sikandar turned to the task of bringing his Afghan nobles under proper discipline and control. Without making a fundamental change in the system of government, the Sultan, who was aware of the fissiparous tendencies of his chiefs, wanted to put a curb on their individualistic tendency and tribal independence and to make them contribute to the common good of the entire Pathan community in India. He insisted on proper audit of the accounts of income and expenditure of his governors and other officers. He severely punished defalcation and embezzlement. Mubarak Khan Lodi, one of the chief nobles who had been entrusted with the collection of revenues of Jaunpur, was punished and compelled to pay into the treasury the state revenues which he had embezzled. Moreover, Sikandar compelled his nobles to show formal respect to the king in the *darbar* and outside. He would not tolerate any discourtesy or disrespect on their part. While playing polo at Jaunpur some of the nobles indulged in a free fight in the presence of the king. Sikandar was highly enraged and ordered one of the offending nobles to be flogged in his presence and he dealt harshly with others. The nobles, in their turn, conspired to depose Sikandar and place his younger brother, Fateh Khan, on the throne. But the conspiracy was divulged and the Sultan banished twenty-two of his nobles from the court. By his strict policy Sikandar, thus, succeeded in bringing the Afghan peers under proper discipline. Not only was he respected as an embodiment of authority, but even his orders were received with a formal ceremony by governors and fief-holders. When Sikandar issued a *farman* to a noble, the latter had to receive it six miles in advance and with due ceremony. When the *farman* was read aloud, all had to listen to it standing.

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Much of Sikandar’s success as an administrator was due to the excellent espionage system which he borrowed from Ala-ud-din Khalji. The Sultan appointed trustworthy spies and news-writers and posted them everywhere, including even in the houses of his nobles. He was so well posted with up-to-date information that people credited him with supernatural powers. It was widely believed that the Sultan was supplied with news by *genii*. Sikandar was not only a strict disciplinarian but he even tried to administer justice evenly according to the Islamic standard. That was another reason why he succeeded in restoring respect for law and order. Sikandar’s reign was marked by material prosperity for which the Sultan was to some extent responsible. He abolished duties on corn and removed the galling restrictions on trade. Grain and cloth and other necessities of life became cheap.

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Sikandar’s religious policy was that of a fanatical Muslim. Even as a prince he had given evidence of bigotry. He wanted to prohibit the Hindus from bathing in the sacred tank at Thaneshwar. When he became king, he indulged in the policy of destroying temples and images, and building mosques in their places. He broke the sacred image of the *Jwalamukhi* temple at Nagarkot and gave its pieces to butchers to use them as weights to weigh meat with. He destroyed many a temple at Mathura, Mandrail, Utagir, Narwar, Chanderi and other places. He ordered a Hindu, named Bodhan, to be put to death for no other offence than saying that "Hinduism is as true a religion as Islam." Sikandar did not permit Hindus to bathe in the Yamuna at bathing ghats and he prohibited barbers from shaving their beards. Like Firoz, he made an attempt to seduce Hindus and convert them to Islam. Such a policy was bound to alienate a large section of his subjects.

Conquest of Bihar

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Unlike his father, Sikandar was a man of lofty ambitions and had formed the design of conquering as many of the lost provinces of the Turkish Sultanate of Delhi as possible. His subjugation of his brother, Barbak Shah, and annexation of Jaunpur to his kingdom brought him into conflict with Bihar which was then considered a part of Bangal. Some of the zamindars of the Jaunpur province had intimate relations with the ex-king, Husain Shah Sharqi, who now lived in exile in Bihar. Sikandar was anxious to reduce these zamindars to complete submission. He, therefore, led an expedition against Phaphamau (near Allahabad) whose ruler, Raja Bhil, was a leader of the disaffected barons. Inspite of the Sultan's exertion, the raja could not be effectively subdued. On the other hand, in the expedition of 1494 the Sultan's army suffered greatly and a considerable number of his horses died in the campaign. The rebel rajas, who were in league with Husain Shah, invited him to invade Jaunpur and fight Sikandar, writing to him that nine-tenths of the horses of the Sultan's army had perished and that he was not in a position to offer resistance. Husain Shah, in response to this invitation, arrived from Bihar with a huge force. Sikandar proceeded to obstruct his passage and a severe battle was fought near Banaras which resulted in the defeat and flight of Husain. Sikandar pursued the retreating enemy and occupied Bihar which, thus, became a part of the Sultanate of Delhi. He stayed in Bihar for some time and raided Tirhut whose raja was obliged to submit and agreed to pay a tribute.

Treaty with Bangal

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This invasion of Bihar was resented by Ala-ud-din Husain Shah, king of Bangal, who had treated Sultan Husain of Jaunpur The scanned page appears to be completely blank.

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INDIA IN 1517 A.D. Sikandar Lodi.

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as his protege and Bihar as a part of his kingdom. He sent his son, Daniyal, to oppose the progress of the Delhi army and the latter, under Mahmud Khan Lodi and Mubarak Khan Lohani, got ready to fight. But both, Sikandar and Ala-ud-din Husain, agreed to conclude a treaty without fighting. Each party bound itself not to invade the territory of the other. The king of Bangal promised, in addition, not to give shelter to Sikandar's enemies. Thus the eastern boundary of Sikandar's dominion was pushed to the western frontier of Bangal.

Conquest of Dholpur and other places

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Sikandar was fired with the ambition of conquering Gwalior and Dholpur. After a stubborn fighting, which lasted for a considerable time, the Sultan succeeded in capturing Dholpur from its chroniclers bestow lavish praise on him, and maintain that he was an extremely able, just, benevolent and God-fearing ruler. Their opinion has generally been endorsed by modern writers. A critical examination of the important events of his reign and the details of his administration and policy will, however, show that there were two facets of Sikandar's personality and character. He was, without doubt, a competent ruler; but his policy of religious persecution was calculated to alienate the sympathy of the vast majority of his subjects and neutralise the effect of his otherwise good administration.

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Sikandar Lodi was gifted with kingly looks. He was tall, handsome and well built. Abdullah, the author of *Tarikh-i-Daudi*, says that Sikandar was so handsome in his boyhood that Shaikh Hasan, a well known Muslim divine, fell in love with him and the prince, who did not like the Shaikh's visits, one day singed his beard by holding his face forcibly near the fire. He was also very impressive in his bearing and daily conduct. Very highly educated, he was fond of literature and poetry and wrote verses in Persian under the *nom de plume* of 'Gul Rukh'. Born of a Hindu mother, he was anxious to show to his co-religionists that he was a *pakka* Muslim, not inferior in any way to those who belonged to pure Afghan lineage. He was thoroughly devoted to his religion, though he was not punctillious about saying the five daily prayers. Unlike his predecessors and against the common Islamic practice, he shaved his beard. He was fond of wine, though he did not drink it openly. Sikandar was very energetic, smart and full of activity. His whole reign was spent in incessant warfare. Of course, he was a good soldier and a successful commander.

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In conformity with oriental practice, Sikandar dispensed a lot of charity. Cooked and uncooked food was distributed and large sums of money were spent in charity on Muslim festivals, such as, the anniversary of Muhammad's birth and death, Muharram, Shab-i-Barat and the two 'Ids. Stipends and subsistence allowances were granted to the *ulema* and to Muslim scholars and poor people. Like Firoz Tughluq, he used to arrange for dowry for the daughters of Muslim widows on the occasion of their marriage.

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As a ruler, Sikandar attained more than ordinary success. While his father had been content with the position of *primus inter pares*, Sikandar's ideal of kingship was more akin to the Turkish and Hindu conception of sovereignty than to that of the Afghans. He rightly believed that the Afghan conception of kingship could not be applicable to India, as India was not Afghanistan. In view of this, Sikandar attempted to undo the effects of divided sovereignty and brought his brother, Barbak Shah of Jaunpur, under his complete control. He curbed the individualistic tendencies of his Afghan nobles and compelled them to submit their accounts to the State audit. The highest of the Afghan peers were obliged to show formal respect to the king and to obey his orders. Not only did it become impossible for any noble, however highly placed he might be, to defy the Sultan’s orders but none even dared to show disrespect to his *farmans* which had to be received with ceremony. Sikandar was, thus, able to infuse vigour and discipline in the administration. The prestige of the Sultanate as well as of the crown, which had fallen low during the days of the later Tughluqs, was restored.

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The main achievement of the Sultan was the conquest and annexation of Bihar. Besides he conquered and annexed Dholpur, Narwar, Chanderi and a part of the kingdom of Gwalior.

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Sikandar was a patron of learning. He was surrounded by scholars. By his orders a Sanskrit treatise on medicine was translated into Persian and given the name of *Farhang-i-Sikandari*. He patronised music and built many mosques. He made Agra his capital and beautified it with buildings, mosques and caravan-sarais. He built his father’s tomb at Delhi.

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The greatest blot on Sikandar’s character as a ruler was his relentless bigotry. He had made it a rule to destroy Hindu temples during the course of his expeditions and to build mosques on their sites. He tried to repress Hinduism and exalt Islam in every possible way. Under him the Sultanate became as active a proselytising agency as in the time of Firoz Tughluq. His religious policy was, therefore, unwise and calculated to alienate the sympathy of his Hindu subjects and undermine his own authority.

Cites (8)