Provincial Kingdoms of Medieval India (Part 2)

Introduction

Provincial Kingdoms of Medieval India were aroused in the wake of the downfall of the Delhi Sultanate in various parts of India. The major kingdoms that emerged after the disintegration of the Delhi Sultanate include the Vijayanagara and Bahmani kingdoms.

Image 1 − Map of the Delhi Sultanate

Several important provinces of medieval India include Kashmir, Jaunpur, Bengal, Gujarat, Malwa, Mewar (Udaipur), Marwar, Khandesh (South India), The Bahmani Kingdom (South India), and Kingdom of Vijayanagara in South India.

Overview of Provincial Kingdoms of Medieval India

Some major provincial kingdoms of medieval India are mentioned below.

Image 2: Provincial Kingdoms of Medieval India

• Kashmir − Suhadeva successfully established the United State of Kashmir in the year c. 1301 A.D., even after he was receiving constant threats from his enemies from eastern and western boundaries.

  In the year 1320 A.D., Rinchana captured Kashmir and Suhadeva was involuntarily asked to leave Kashmir. In 1338 A.D., Rinchana was defeated and killed by Udayana Deva and the administration was handed to Kotta (Wife of Rinchana) as her sons were minors then.

  Tracing to that period, Shah Mir became a powerful sultan, where he imprisoned Kotta and his son and occupied the throne of Kashmir in the year 1339 A.D. He was the first Muslim ruler of Kashmir who got the title up his sleeve of Shams- ud-din Shah.

  Kashmir became violent under the rule of Shah as he was intolerant towards all other religions residing in Kashmir. He used to destroy temples and torture Hindus and forced them to leave their houses or accept Islam.

• Jaunpur − The city was founded by a famous personality Firuz Shah Tughluq and Malik Sarvar founded Jaunpur as an independent kingdom. Malik Sarvar was defeated and killed by his adopted son who later achieved the title of Sultan Mubarak Shah. After the death of Mubarak Shah in the year 1402 A.D., his brother Shams-ud- din Ibrahim Shah became the ruler (Melaku, 2020).

  During this period, the city became the centre of learning and culture, and on the other side, the fight between the kingdoms of Delhi and Jaunpur became strong. Finally, the Muslim ruler, Husain Shah was defeated by Bahlul Lodi (Delhi Sultanate). Bahlul Lodi captured Jaunpur who was then defeated by Sikander Lodhi and ended the Sharqi dynasty.

• Bengal − Senas ruled Bengal in 12th century and by Palas in 8th century and the state was the easternmost province of the Delhi Sultanate. In the year c.1338 CE, Bengal again got divided from Delhi due to Muhammad bin Tughlaq’s preoccupation with rebellions.

  In the 14th century, Bengal became one of the independent states of India. Ilyas Shah Dynasty ruled Bengal for about 125 years. Hussain Shahi dynasty ruled Bengal for about 44 years and after that, Suri rulers ruled the state. The most efficient Suri ruler was Shar Shah Suri who forced the Mughal ruler, Humayun to leave Delhi.

• Gujarat − Delhi Sultanate is popularly known for its amazing handicrafts, fertile land, and thriving sea-ports, and Gujarat was under its head as a wealthiest province. Alauddin Khalji, the first Sultan of Gujarat under the Delhi Sultanate, ruled the province during c.1297 CE.

  Firoz Tughlaq encouraged idol worship and the Hindu religion in Gujarat during his rule. Gujarat became independent in the year c.1407 CE when Timur sat on the throne of Delhi and was founded Muzaffarid dynasty and supposedly gave Muzaffar Shah title to his name.

Famous Personalities of Provincial Kingdoms

Some eminent rulers of major provincial kingdoms of India are mentioned below.

Gujarat Gujarat was ruled by the Muzaffarid Dynasty from c.1407 CE - c.1573 CE by some major rulers. The rulers of that time include Mahmud Begarha, Muzaffar Shah, and Ahmed Shah I.

Kashmir − Kashmir was ruled by the rulers of the Shah Mir Dynasty from c. 1339-1555 CE. The eminent rulers of that time include Shamsuddin Shah Mir, Sultan Shihab-ud-din, Sikander Shah, and Zain-ul-Abideen.

Jaunpur − Jaunpur was in eastern Uttar Pradesh and was ruled by some eminent rulers who ruled from c.1394 CE–c.1505 CE. The rulers of that time include Muhammad Shah, Hussain Shah Sharqi, Mahmud Shah, Ibrahim Shah, Mubarak Shah, and Malik Sarwar.

Bengal − Bengal was ruled by the rulers of the Ilyas Shah Dynasty from c.1342 – c.1538 CE. The eminent rulers of Bengal of that time include Ghiyasuddin Mahmud Shah, Nasiruddin Nasrat Shah, Haji Shamsuddin Ilyas Khan, Alauddin Hussain Shah, and Ghiyasuddin Azam.

Provincial Kingdoms of India after the Delhi Sultanate

Some major provinces of medieval India that emerged after the downfall of the Delhi sultanate are listed below.

Kingdom	Capital	Eminent Rulers
Gujarat	Kannauj	Muzaffar Shah Ahmed Shah I Mahmud Begarha
Khilji Dynasty of Malwa	Mandu	Dilawar Khan Ghori Mahmud Khilji
Sisodia Dynasty of Mewar	Chittoor	Rana Kumbha Rana Sanga
Rathore Dynasty of Mewar	Jodhpur	Rao Chunda Rao Jhodha Maldeva
Kashmir	Kashmir	Shamsuddin Shah Mir Sultan Shihab-ud-din Sikander Shah Zain-ul-Abideen
Jaunpur	Jaunpur	Malik Sarwar Ibrahim Shah Sharqi
Bengal	Gaud	Ilyas Shah Alau-ud-din Shah
Orissa	Jajnagar	Kapilendra
Assam	Charqua	Sukapha Suhungmung

Table 1 − Provincial kingdoms of India

Conclusion

Some vital provincial kingdoms that emerged after the decline of the Delhi Sultanate were kingdoms of South and Deccan. These 2 were provinces of the Vijayanagara and Bahmani kingdoms. The major rulers of early medieval India were the rulers of Gujarat. Some eminent rulers of Gujarat were Muzaffar Shah, Ahmed Shah I, and Mahmud Begarha. In the year c. 1573, CE Gujarat was annexed by King Akbar.

FAQs

Q1.Who was the founder of the Chak Dynasty?

Ans.The Chak Dynasty was founded in the year c. 1555 CE by Muhammad Ghazi Shah Chak. The dynasty ended when Akbar conquered Kashmir in the year c. 1586 CE.

Q2.Who was Malik Sarwar?

Ans.Malik Sarwar founded the Sharqi dynasty and was governor of independent Jaunpur. His son, Malik Qaranfal ascended the throne after his death and achieved the title of Mubarak Shah.

Q3.Who were the major rulers of the Gajapati Dynasty?

Ans.The Gajapati dynasty was also denoted as Suryavamsi dynasty. The major rulers of this dynasty were Kapilendra Deva, Purushottama Deva, and Prataparudra Deva.