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Introduction
Alau-dīn Khaljī, who goes by the common name Alauddin Khilji was a Turco-Afghan born under the name of Ali Gurshasp. He was the leader and emperor of the Khalji dynasty. Under the rule of Alauddin, he made major changes in administration, revenues, society, and prices. Alauddin Khilji was a son-in-law and nephew of Jalaluddin, his predecessor. Alauddin Khalji tomb is located in a madrasa, also called Islamic school, located in Qutb Minar, Mehrauli, Delhi, India. It was built in 1315 by Alauddin himself, and the tomb is located inside the madrasa.
The early life of Alau-din- Khilji
There is not much stored in the childhood history of Alauddin Khilji, but he started his march to Ranthambore from 1300 to 1301 when he was 34 years old. Ali Gurshasp was the real name of Alauddin Khilji, and he was the eldest son of the brother of Sultan Jalaluddin named Shihabuddin Mas’ud. Jalaluddin took Alauddin under his patronage after the death of Shihabuddin. Alauddin and Almas Beg, who was his brother, married the daughters of Jalaluddin Khilji.
Alauddin married Malika-i-Jahan, who was Sultan Jalaluddin’s daughter. This was before the revolution of Khalji even began. As Jalaluddin rose to power and became the Sultan of Delhi Sultanate, Malika-i-Jahan became arrogant and was dominant over Alauddin. Alauddin Khilji married a second woman named Mahru. According to historians, this was one of the main causes of misunderstanding and tensions among Malika-i-Jahan and Alauddin. Alauddin did not get along with his mother in law as she had a tremendous influence on the Sultan. She was always suspicious of Alauddin and was behind Malika-i-Jahan’s arrogance and dominance over Alauddin.
The uprising of Alauddin Khilji
Malik Chajju instigated Ala-ud-din Khilji for revolting against Jalaluddin. Malik Chajju put a deep emphasis on the fact that Ala-ud-din needed a huge army and a lot more money for revolting. For the need of money, Alauddin started raiding the Hindu kingdoms, and it was carefully planned invasions that weakened Bhilsas. He also targeted the Yadava kingdom in the Deccan region, which had immense wealth, and then he also came to know about Devagiri. So he surrendered the loot he made from Bhilsa to the Sultan to garner the Sultan’s confidence and withheld the Yadava kingdom information. This led to Sultan granting Alauddin’s request to garner additional troops from the surplus revenue. Khilji raided Devagiri successfully in 1296 after years of planning.
He garnered a huge amount of wealth and metals and jewels that were quite precious. He also gained enslaved people, horses, elephants, and other valuable things. Sultan Jalal-ud-din thought that Alauddin would present all the loot to the Sultan, but instead, he marched directly to Kara with all the wealth. Jalaluddin had faith in Alauddin and thought that he would carry the wealth from Kara to Delhi, but Alauddin sent a letter to Jalaluddin stating that their enemies might have poisoned the mind of Sultan. As the messengers knew about Alauddin’s military strength and conspiracy plans, they were intercepted by Alauddin and prevented from communicating with Sultan. Almas Beg gave the assurance to Sultan that Alauddin won’t revolt. Jalaluddin went with a small army and directed Ahmad Chap to take the main army group via land route. Alauddin Khilji killed Jalaluddin on 20 July 1296, after pretending to greet the Sultan and then crowned himself the Sultan of Delhi Sultanate.
Power Consolidation
Alauddin did power consolidation by making endowments and grants. He also appointed many people in governmental positions. Alauddin Khilji maintained a balance between Mamluks officers and one appointed under Jalaluddin. The army’s strength increased significantly under his reign, and he gave each soldier a salary advance in cash. Aallaudin’s initial years as a ruler was a good year for Delhi Citizens, according to chronicler Ziauddin Barani. After the Multan conquest, Nusrat Khan was appointed by Alauddin Khilji as wazir. Elimination and eradication of all the people that the Sultan did not appoint began after gaining strength over Delhi.
The aristocrats that joined Khilji and deserted Jalaluddin were also blindsided or killed and their properties and money confiscated. Except for Malik Nasiruddin Rana, Malik Amir Jamal Khalji, Malik Qutbuddin Alavi, all the other older aristocrats were replaced with loyal nobles. Alauddin, governor at Kara Ala-ul Mulk, came to Delhi with elephants, officers, and wealth that Alauddin left in Kara. After this, Ala-ul-Mulk was appointed Delhi’s kotwal and given the charge for all the municipal employees of non-Turkish origin. Nusrat Khan was appointed the governor of Kara as Ala-ul Mulk became unhealthy.
Conclusion
Alauddin Khalji was one of the defining rulers of the Khilji dynasty. He rose to power as the Sultan of Delhi after he murdered Jalaluddin Khalji, his father-in-law and predecessor. Under Alauddin Khiji’s reign, he defended his kingdom against the invasion by Mongols at Delhi, Kili, Amroha, Jaran-Manjur, and Sivistan. He also raided and consolidated the power and wealth from Hindu kingdoms based in Ranthambore, Gujrat, Malwa, Chittor, and Jalore. Alauddin later died due to suffering an illness. His tomb is located in a madrasa, also called Islamic school, located in Qutb Minar, Mehrauli, Delhi, India.
