Lodhi dynasty

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Lodhi Dynasty (Pashto: سلطنت لودھی) was a Ghilzai (Khilji) Pashtun dynasty, who ruled over the Delhi Sultanate during its last phase. The dynasty founded by Bhalul Lodhi ruled from 1451 to 1526. The last ruler of this dynasty, Ibrahim Lodhi was defeated and killed by Babur in the first Battle of Panipat on April 20, 1526.

Contents 1 Bahlul Lodhi 2 Sikandar Lodhi 3 Ibrahim Lodhi 4 See also 5 Notes 6 References

[edit] Bahlul Lodhi

Bahlul Khan Lodhi (r.1451-89) was the nephew and son-in-law of Islam Khan (Malik Sultan Shah Lodhi), the governor of Sirhind (Punjab) in India and succeeded him as the governor of Sirhind during the reign of Sayyyid dynasty ruler Muhammad Shah (Muhammad-bin-Farid). Muhammad Shah raised him to the status of an Amir. After the last Sayyid ruler of Delhi, Ala-ud-Din Alam Shah voluntarily abdicated in favour of him, Bahlul Khan Lodhi ascended the throne of the Delhi sultanate on April 19, 1451^[1]. He quelled uprisings in the provinces and garnered political support by granting extensive lands to his native Afghan nobles. Bahlul spent most of his time in fighting against the Jaunpur Sultanate and ultimately annexed it. He placed his eldest surviving son Barbak on the throne of Jaunpur in 1486.

[edit] Sikandar Lodhi

Sikandar Lodhi (r.1489-1517) (born Nizam Khan), the second son of Bahlul, succeeded him after his death on July 17, 1489 and took up the title Sikandar Shah. He was nominated by his father to succeed him. However, nobles backed the rule of Barbak Shah, his elder son, who had been appointed viceroy of Jaunpur. A power struggle ensued; Sikandar eventually won the struggle against Barbak and his ally, Hussain Shah of Jaunpur and was crowned as king on July 15,1489. He proved to be a capable ruler, and was somewhat merciful to his opponents. He allowed Barbak the governorship of Jaunpur and also resolved differences with an uncle, Alam Khan, who had conspired to overthrow him. Sikandar also brought many Afghan nobles under his control, conquered Gwalior and Bihar, and encouraged trade across his holdings. He was a kind ruler and founded the present-day city of Agra in 1504. But, in one occasion, he also ordered for destruction of Hindu temples in Mathura and the construction of the mosques in their places^[2]

[edit] Ibrahim Lodhi

Sultan Ibrahim Khan Lodhi (1489-1526)^[3] was the last Sultan of Delhi during the Lodhi Dynasty.^[4] Ibrahim Lodhi(r.1517-26) was the youngest son of Sikandar. Sultan Ibrahim was a fearless military leader and kept out the opposition for almost a decade. He was engaged in warfare with the Afghans and the Mughals for most of his reign and died trying to keep the Lodhi Dynasty from annihilation. Sultan Ibrahim was defeated in 1526 at the Battle of Panipat.^[5] This marked the end of the Lodhi Dynasty and the rise of the Mughal Empire in India led by Babar (r. 1526-1530).^[6]

By the time Ibrahim ascended the throne, the political structure in the Lodhi Dynasty had dissolved due to abandoned trade routes and the depleted treasury.^[7] The Deccan was a coastal trade route, but in the late fifteenth century the supply lines had collapsed.^[8] The decline and eventual failure of this specific trade route resulted in cutting off supplies from the coast to the interior, where the Lodhi empire resided.^[9] The Lodhi Dynasty was not able to protect itself if warfare were to break out on the trade route roads; therefore, they didn’t use those trade routes, thus their trade declined and so did their treasury leaving them vulnerable to internal political problems.^[10]

Another problem Ibrahim had when trying to ascend the throne as the next Lodhi emperor were the Afghan chiefs. The Afghan chiefs didn’t like Sultan Ibrahim, so they split the Lodhi empire and gave Ibrahim’s older brother, Jalaluddin the area in the east at Jaunpur and gave Ibrahim the area in the west, Delhi.^[11] Despite the situation, Sultan Ibrahim being the military man that he was, gathered enough military support and killed his brother and reunited the kingdom by the end of that same year in 1517.^[12] After this incident, he arrested Afghan nobles who opposed him.^[13] The Afghan nobles tended to be loyal to the Governor of Bihar, Dariya Khan because they wanted him to rule Delhi, not Sultan Ibrahim.^[14]

Men who tried to take over the Lodhi throne were extremely common during Sultan Ibrahim’s time. From what sources there are on Sultan Ibrahim, not one mentioned him making a law regarding succession to the throne. Due to the lack of this law of succession, Ibrahim was forced to put down a great deal of these ambitious men. His own uncle, Alam Khan, working off his own ambitions, betrayed Ibrahim because he wanted to rule Delhi. Alam Kahn decided to place his loyalty in the Mughal emperor, Babur.^[15]

Not only was Ibrahim threatened by his uncle, Alam Khan, who joined forces with Babar, but he was also threatened by the Rajput leader, Rana Sanga of Mewar (1509-1526).^[16] Daulat Khan, the governor of Punjab also spoke with Babar about Sultan Ibrahim. Khan pledged his allegiance to Babar as well.^[17] Sultan Ibrahim Khan Lodhi was easily threatened because his region was surrounded by several other dynasties and territories. The Khalji Dynasty was positioned to the northeast.^[18] The Rajputs were located to the northwest and the Sultan of Gujarat blocked the sea to the east.^[19] To the south, lied the Khandesh and Berar regions.^[20] The Sultanate of Jaunpur located in modern day Uttar Pradesh also surrounded the Lodhi Dynasty.^[21]

After being confronted by these men, Alam Khan (Ibrahim’s uncle) and Daulat Khan, Babar gathered his army. Babar wanted to fight Sultan Ibrahim because he wanted Sultan Ibrahim’s power and territory.^[22] They did not fight against each other because of religious affairs.^[23] Babur and Sultan Ibrahim were both Sunni Muslims.^[24] Babar and his army of 24,000 men marched to the battlefield armed with cannons and artillery.^[25] Sultan Ibrahim prepared to fight. He gathered 100,000 men and 1,000 elephants.^[26] This is known as the Battle of Panipat in 1526.^[27] Sultan Ibrahim was at a disadvantage. Even though he had more men, Sultan Ibrahim had never fought in a war with artillery and cannons.^[28] Strategically, Sultan Ibrahim didn’t know what to do militarily. Babar had the advantage. Sultan Ibrahim perished on the battlefield along with 20,000 of his men in April 1526.^[29] He had withstood foreign invasion and obliteration for almost an entire decade.

After Sultan Ibrahim’s tragic death on the battle field, Babar named himself emperor over Sultan Ibrahim’s territory, instead of placing Alam Khan (Ibrahim’s uncle) on the thrown.^[30] Sultan Ibrahim’s death lead to the establishment of the Mughal Empire in India. He was the last emperor of the Lodhi Dynasty. What was left of his empire was absorbed into the new Mughal Empire. Babar continued to engage in more military campaigns.^[31]

Historically, after Sultan Ibrahim’s death, the Rajput, Rana Sanga and the Rajput states joined forces against Babar.^[32] Babar managed to boost the morale of his troops, which enabled them to defeat the Rajputs.^[33] Sultan Ibrahim’s brother, Sultan Mahmud in Bihar, also fought an important battle against Babar; the Battle of Khandwa, which Babar won.^[34] Thus, his continuous successful military battles resulted in his control of the Jumna and central Ganges region.^[35]

Sultan Ibrahim was a fearless military leader and kept out the opposition for almost a decade. He was engaged in warfare with the Afghans and the Mughals for most of his reign and died trying to keep the Lodhi Dynasty from annihilation. Very little did Sultan Ibrahim know that his death would lead to the rise of the Mughal Empire, which lasted well into the 1700s.

[edit] See also

• Lodhi
• Lodhi Gardens

[edit] Notes

[edit] References

Beck, Sanderson. INDIA & Southeast Asia to 1800: Ethics of Civilization. California: World Peace Communications, 2006. <http://www.san.beck.org/2-9-MughalEmpire1526- 1707.html>.

Desoulieres, Alain. “Mughal Diplomacy in Gujarat (1533-1534) in Correia's 'Lendas da India'.” Modern Asian Studies, Vol. 22, No. 3. pp. 454. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/312590>.

Haider, Najaf. “Precious Metal Flows and Currency Circulation in the Mughal Empire.” Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, Vol. 39, No. 3 (1996), pp. 298- 364. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/3632649>. India. Indian History: Medieval History. 2005. <http://india.gov.in/knowindia/medieval_history1.php>. 3/10/09.

Jacob, Lt. Gen. Jack Frederick Ralph. “History: The Battle of Panipat.” Chandigarh Tribune Online Edition, April 24, 2003. <http://www.tribuneindia.com/2003/20030425/cth2.htm>.

Richards, John F. “The Economic History of the Lodi Period: 1451-1526.” Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, Vol. 8, No. 1 (Aug. 1965). <http://www.jstor.org/stable/3596342>.

SarDesai, D.R. India The Definitive History. Colorado: Westview Press, 2008.

Subrahmanyam, Sanjay. “A Note on the Rise of Surat in the Sixteenth Century.” Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, Vol. 43, No. 1 (2000), pp. 23-33. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/3632771>.

The World Book Encyclopedia, 1979 ed. “Mogul Empire.”

Ud-Din, Hameed. “Historians of Afghan Rule in India.” Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 82, No. 1 (Jan. - Mar., 1962), pp. 44-51. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/595978

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