Mongol invasion of India (1303)
Siege of Delhi 1303 | |||||||
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Part of Mongol invasions of India | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Chagatai Khanate | Delhi Sultanate | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Taraghai | Alauddin Khalji | ||||||
In 1303, a
The invasion was one of the most serious Mongol invasions of India, and prompted Alauddin to take several measures to prevent its recurrence. He strengthened military presence along the Mongol routes to India, and implemented economic reforms to ensure adequate revenue streams for maintaining a strong army.
Background
According to the 14th century chronicler
Meanwhile, Alauddin captured Chittor in August 1303, and appointed his own governor there. He left Chittor 7 days after the conquest, probably when he learned about the Mongol plans.[7]
Alauddin's preparations
Alauddin reached Delhi around a month before the Mongols did, but he was unable to make adequate preparations for the impending battle. The weapons of his army had been ruined in the rainy season, during the Siege of Chittor.[6] Plus, he had not been able to replace the horses and the materials that his army had lost in Chittor.[8]
Alauddin sent messages to his provincial governors, ordering them to send reinforcements to Delhi.[9] However, the Mongols had set up blockades on all the roads leading to Delhi.[10] The merchant caravans were also forced to stop, leading to the scarcity of goods in Delhi.[6]
The army that Alauddin had sent to capture Warangal had abandoned its mission, and had reached close to Delhi after a long journey. But it had lost several men and its baggage in the process.
Given these difficult circumstances, Alauddin decided to avoid a personal confrontation with the Mongols. He exited the fortified city of Delhi, and set up his royal camp at the under-construction
Mongol invasion of Delhi
The Mongols faced the vanguard of the Delhi army two or three times. Neither side achieved a decisive victory in these conflicts, and the Mongols were unable to enter Alauddin's Siri camp.[6]
Although repulsed from Siri, the Mongols proceeded to other parts of the present-day Delhi. Barani names these parts as Chautara-i Subhani, Mori, Hudhudi and the royal tank (Hauz-i Sultani). The modern identity of these areas is not certain; Hauz-i Sultani probably refers to Hauz-i-Shamsi. The Mongols also ransacked the royal stores, and sold corn and other commodities from it to the public at a cheap rate.[6]
The invaders spent two months in and around Delhi, but were unable to breach Alauddin's Siri camp. Taraghai realized that further stay in hostile territory would put his army in a precarious situation. Therefore, he decided to return with the plunder he had gathered until that point.[12] Taraghai's return might have also been influenced by the conflict between Duwa and Chapar in his home country.[11] A later fabrication claims that Taraghai retreated as a result of the prayers of the Sufi saint Nizamuddin Auliya.[12]
Ziauddin Barani, who was a resident of Delhi at that time, later wrote that the city had never witnessed such fear of Mongols. According to him, if Taraghai had decided to stay in Delhi for another month, the city would have fallen to him.[6]
Aftermath
Before the Mongol invasion of 1303, Alauddin had personally led many expeditions and sieges. However, Taraghai's near-conquest of Delhi made him more careful. Subsequently, nearly all his campaigns (with the exception of Siwana) were led by his generals (such as Malik Kafur). Alauddin himself stayed at Siri, where he built a palace. Siri (then a town outside the fortified city of Delhi) thus became the capital of the Delhi Sultanate, and its population increased rapidly. Alauddin also had the old fort wall of Delhi repaired.[13]
To weaken the Mongol threat, Alauddin strengthened the military presence along the Mongol routes to India. He had several old forts repaired and new ones built along this route. Powerful
Alauddin also implemented a series of economic reforms. Barani suggests that his main objective was to ensure sufficient revenue inflows for the maintenance of a strong army to deal with the Mongol threat.[14]
These measures did not prevent the Mongols from invading India, but ensured that the invaders were decisively defeated in their further attempts to invade Alauddin's territory.[15]
References
- ^ a b Banarsi Prasad Saksena 1992, p. 366.
- ^ a b Banarsi Prasad Saksena 1992, p. 368.
- ^ René Grousset 1970, p. 339.
- ^ Peter Jackson 2003, pp. 222–224.
- ^ Banarsi Prasad Saksena 1992, p. 340.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Banarsi Prasad Saksena 1992, p. 369.
- ^ Kishori Saran Lal 1950, p. 120.
- ^ Mohammad Habib 1981, p. 267.
- ^ a b Kishori Saran Lal 1950, p. 164.
- ^ Kishori Saran Lal 1950, p. 165.
- ^ a b Peter Jackson 2003, pp. 223–224.
- ^ a b Banarsi Prasad Saksena 1992, p. 370.
- ^ a b Banarsi Prasad Saksena 1992, p. 372.
- ^ Banarsi Prasad Saksena 1992, p. 373.
- ^ Kishori Saran Lal 1950, p. 167.
Bibliography
- OCLC 31870180.
- OCLC 685167335.
- OCLC 923204503.
- ISBN 978-0-521-54329-3.
- ISBN 978-0-8135-1304-1.
External links
- Description of Taraghai's invasion by the 14th century chronicler Ziauddin Barani (English translation by Mohammad Habib)