Jalal ud din Firuz Khilji

Jalaluddin Khilji
Sultan
Imaginary portrait of Sultan Firuz Khalji, Khwaja Hasan, and a dervish.
Reign	13 June 1290 – 20 July 1296
Coronation	13 June 1290
Successor	Alauddin Khilji
Died	20 July 1296 Kara-Manikpur, India
Burial	Delhi, India
House	Khilji dynasty

Jalaluddin Firuz Khilji (Urdu: جلال الدین فیروز خلجی‎) (died 20 July 1296) was the first sultan of the Khilji dynasty, who reigned from 1290 to 1296. Jalaluddin built his capital at Kilughari, a few miles from the city of Delhi, and completed the unfinished palace and gardens of Sultan Qaiqabad.^[1] He ruled much of Northern India for six years, from 1290 to 1296.

Early life and accession

Jalaluddin Khalji was born as Malik Firuz,^[1] in Qalat, Zabul Province, into Khilji family.^[2][3] He was of Turkic ethnic background.^[4][5]

He was appointed by Sultan Qaiqabad to the fief of Baran and the command of the army. Soon, Sultan Qaiqabad suffered from a paralytic stroke and Firuz marched towards Delhi. The nobles placed Kayumars, the three-year-old son of Qaiqabad on the throne. But the sons of Firuz dashed into the city and carried away the infant Sultan, defeating a force sent in pursuit of them. Most of the Turkic nobles now submitted to Firuz. Qaiqabad was put to death and his corpse was thrown into the Yamuna. On 13 July 1290 Jalal-ud-Din Firuz was enthroned in the palace of Kalughari.He was made a slave from there.^[6]

Reign of Jalal ud din Khilji

A coin of Jalal-ud-din Firuz Khilji

After the accession to the throne, Jalaluddin allowed Malik Chhajju, the nephew of Balban to retain his freedom of Kara-Manikpur. The post of wazir was conferred on Khvaja Khatir, who had held it under Balban and Qaiqabad. Fakhr-ud-Din, the kotwal of Delhi was also allowed to continue. Jalaluddin's eldest son received the title of Khan Khanan, his second son received the title of Arkali Khan and his third son received the title of Qadr Khan. He appointed his younger brother the ariz-i-mumalik (army minister) and conferred upon him the title of Yaghrush Khan. His two nephews, Alauddin and Almas Beg received significant responsibilities in the royal household.^[1]

In 1292, the Sultan defeated a Mongol army who had invaded the Dipalpur-Multan region. He then allowed them to retreat.^[7] Jalaluddin was killed in 1296 by his nephew Alauddin.^[8][9]

References

1. Majumdar, Ramesh Chandra; Pusalker, A. D.; Majumdar, A. K., eds. (1960). The History and Culture of the Indian People. VI: The Delhi Sultanate. Bombay: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. p. 12. [Describing the Khalji Dynasty:] The accession of Malik Firuz on the throne of Delhi in June 1290 as Jalal-ud-din Firuz Shah ... [he] made Kilughari his capital, completed the unfinished palace and gardens of Kaiqubad ... Malik Chhatjju, nephew of Balban and the only survivor of the late royal family, was allowed to retain the fief of Kara-Manikpur. The office of chief minister (wazir) was conferred on Khavja Khatir, who had held it under Balban and Kaiqubad. Fakhr-ud-din, the kotwal of Delhi, continued to hold his position. The king's eldest son obtained the title of Khan Khanan; the second, Arkali Khan, and the third, Qadr Khan. His younger brother was ennobled as Yaghrush Khan and appointed army minister (ariz-i-mumalik). His nephews, Ala-ud-dun and Almas Beg, obtained important posts in the royal household.
2. "Khalji Dynasty". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 2010-08-23. this dynasty, like the previous Slave dynasty, was of Turkic origin, though the Khiljī tribe had long been settled in what is now Afghanistan...
3. Thorpe, Showick Thorpe Edgar (2009). The Pearson General Studies Manual 2009, 1/e. Pearson Education India. p. 1900. ISBN 81-317-2133-7. Retrieved 2010-08-23. The Khilji dynasty was named after a village in present Afghanistan. Most Historians like Bharani and Wolse Haig explain in their accounts that the rulers from this dynasty who came to India, though they had temporarily settled in Afghanistan, were originally Turkic.
4. Chaurasia, Radhey Shyam (2002). History of medieval India: from 1000 A.D. to 1707 A.D. Atlantic Publishers & Distributors. p. 337. ISBN 81-269-0123-3. Retrieved 2010-08-23. The Khiljis were a Central Asian Turkic dynasty but having been long domiciled in Afghanistan, and adopted some Afghan habits and customs. They were treated as Afghans in Delhi Court.
5. Cavendish, Marshall (2006). World and Its Peoples: The Middle East, Western Asia, and Northern Africa. Marshall Cavendish. p. 320. ISBN 0-7614-7571-0. Retrieved 2010-08-23. The sultans of the Slave Dynasty were Turkic Central Asians, but the members of the new dynasty, although they were also Turkic, had settled in Afghanistan and brought a new set of customs and culture to Delhi.
6. Mahajan, V.D. (1991, reprint 2007). History of Medieval India, Part I, New Delhi: S. Chand, ISBN 81-219-0364-5, pp.116-7
7. Sen, Sailendra (2013). A Textbook of Medieval Indian History. Primus Books. p. 81. ISBN 978-9-38060-734-4.
8. Majumdar, Ramesh Chandra; Pusalker, A. D.; Majumdar, A. K., eds. (1960). The History and Culture of the Indian People. VI: The Delhi Sultanate. Bombay: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. p. 17. another assassin ... cutting off [Firuz's] head, presented it to Ala-ud-din (July 20, 1296).
9. Jackson, Peter (2003). The Delhi Sultanate: A Political and Military History (Reprinted ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 56. ISBN 978-0-52154-329-3.

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