Tughlaq Dynasty: Rulers, Reforms, Founder, Tughlaq Dynasty UPSC Notes

Tughlaq Dynasty

Tughlaq Dynasty was one of the significant time periods in the Delhi Sultanate rule. Before 1320, Khalji Dynasty used to rule Delhi Sultanate. Khusro Khan, the last ruler of that dynasty did not get enough support from Muslim nobles and was overthrown by aristocrats, who invited Ghazi Malik or Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq to remove him from power. Let us learn about the rulers of the Tughlaq Dynasty in the sections below.

Tughlaq Dynasty Rulers

The Delhi sultanate was primarily under the control of the Tughlaq dynasty. It began in 1320, ended in 1413, and was headed by several rulers, including Ghazi Malik and Muhammad Bin Tughlaq. Ghiyasuddin Tuglaq was the founder of the Tughlaq dynasty. Nasir-ud-Din Mahmud Shah Tughlaq was the last ruler of this dynasty.

Tughlaq Dynasty PDF

There were many rulers in the Tughlaq Dynasty; the information about them is shared in the chart given below:

Rulers of the Tughlaq Dynasty	Period
Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq	1320-25
Muhammed Bin Tuglaq	1325-51
Feroz Shah Tughlaq	1351-88
Mohammed Khan	1388
Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq Shah 2	1388
Abu Bakar Khan	1389-90
Nasiruddin Muhammed	1390-94
Humayun	1394-95
Nasir-ud-Din Mahmud	1395-1412

Founder of Tughlaq Dynasty – Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq

Ghiyasuddin Tuglaq, popularly known as Ghazi Malik, was the founder of the Tughlaq dynasty who several times restricted the invasion of Mongols in India. His greatest accomplishment was the reinstatement of the Ala-ud-din’s legal system. Under the direction of Mubarak Khilji, Ghiyas-ud-din emerged from obscurity to become the provincial legislative chairman of Dinapur.

• Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq was the Tughlaq dynasty founder. He was popularly known as Ghazi Malik.
• The policy of Ghazi Malik was quite rough for Mongols. In fact, it is said that Ghiyasuddin killed the messenger of Oljeitu, who was the ruler of Iran and punished the Prisoners of Mongol very severely.
• The famous Tughlaqabad fort was also constructed by Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq.
• Ghiyasuddin had established an administration that was headed by Multanis. This displayed his power base in Punjab and Depalpur.
• It was Ghiyasuddin who killed Khusrau Khan, the last ruler of the Khilji dynasty.

Domestic and Foreign Administrative Policies of Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq:

• Ghiyasuddin restored order in his dominion.
• Law enforcement agriculture poster arrangements and irrigation arrangements were considered his top priorities.
• Later in 1320 A.D., he ascended the Throne.
• The Dominions of Odisha, Warangal Utkala, and Bengal were under his control. Moreover, Patraparudra-Deva 2, the Kakatiya monarch of Warangal, was conquered by Fakhruddin Mohammed Juna Khan(his son).
• Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq abducted and imprisoned the invading Mongol chiefs in India.
• A rebellion in Bengal led by Ghiyasuddin Bahadur was put down by him. An incident caused by the collapse of a wooden Pavilion on his return trip from Bengal resulted in his death in 1325.
• Several historians believe that Jauna Khan plotted to kill him because mail Imran Ahmed designed the pavilion.

Muhammad bin Tughlaq

Muhammed Bin Tuglaq is considered an ill-fated ruler as most of the grandiose plans and cutting-edge experiments failed miserably since they were all ahead of their time. During his reign, he practised some initiatives or experiments, which are as follows:

Transfer of Capital:

• Muhammad Bin Tughlaq moved his capital from Delhi to Daulatabad in 1327-1328. This transfer was done in two stages- The royal family members were asked to migrate. The rest of the population was shifted to Daulatabad.
• Sultan had intended to punish the Delhi residents, who had sent threatening letters to Barani, but this didn’t seem to be the proper course of action.
• Modern historians think that the capital of Delhi was moved from Delhi to Daulatabad because the Sultan desired a city that was far from Delhi so that it could be protected against Mongol invasions.
• Mongol invasions host a threat to Delhi. Sultan had direct control strategies for the reason of peninsular India. Hence he chose Deccan as the location of his capital to enable efficient administration and newly annexed areas.

The extent of Transfer:

• Every citizen of Delhi was mandated to relocate to Daulatabad, according to Barani.
• Some contemporary historians say that only members of the royal family court years Sufi saints, Scholars, and bureaucrats work requested to relocate Daulatabad from Delhi and there were no issues for the normal residents.

Problems due to the Capital Transfer:

• Barani claimed that because of such an initiative, the people of Delhi suffered greatly. He made a point of saying that half of the people lost their lives while migrating to Daulatabad due to summer, homesickness, and plague, and some died while migrating back.
• This is because people were not just unsatisfied with the results of the sultan’s unfortunate actions but also due to the untimely relocation in the month of April when the temperature was rather hot.

Bringing the capital back to Delhi:

• Later the Sultan realized his flaws and gave the order for people to return back to Delhi.
• This decision was made because Muhammed Bin Tuglaq found the altered geopolitical condition at the local level.
• A terrible disease pandemic destroyed the Deccan part of India, whereas Peninsular India was completely out of control. The epidemic of plague caused a feasible portion of the sultan’s troops to perish.
• Governors of several provinces proclaimed their Independence, and Madurai proclaimed its independence in 1335, while Harihara and Bukka created Vijaynagar in 1336.
• By this time, Sultan Muhammad Bin Tughlaq was not in a position to immediately conquer his territories again. So Muhammed Bin Tughlaq returned back to Delhi because having capital at Daulatabad was necessary throughout the circumstances.

Firoz Shah Tughlaq

Firoj Shah Tughlaq was a highly optimistic ruler in terms of development. Infrastructure development was his priority for his dominion. Also, he gave his time to renovating the buildings and monuments erected by his predecessors like Qutub Minar. Feroz Shah is better known for commissioning structures with unusual architectural forms for his time.

• Firoz Shah Tughlaq was the younger brother of Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq and was born in 1351 A.D. he took the throne when he was 46 years old.
• Firoz Shah Tughlaq was known for his liberal policies and services for the well-being of the populace.
• There is an autobiography of Feroz Shah Tughlaq named Futuhat-i-Feroz Shahi. Also, he supported the scholar Ziauddin Barani.
• Under his rule, a number of Sanskrit works on Art, Science, and medicine were translated into Persian.
• Various Administrative Reforms of Firoz Shah Tughlaq are famous for being liberal in nature.

Administrative Reforms of Firoz Shah Tughlaq

• Several reforms and Public Work project work were carried out with the help of Khan-e-Jehan Maqbool, who was a converted Hindu.
• Rather than paying monetary salaries to his military officers reinstated the Alauddin Jagir system.
• Warriors and administrators were granted iqtas and their positions were made hereditary.
• Since the number of capable Warriors had decreased. This brought a detrimental effect on the army of Firoz.
• Through manufacturing operations and royal workshops, Feroz Shah formalized slavery institutions.
• For the Welfare of the people, a separate Department called Diwan-i-Bandagan was established.
• As part of its Charity program, the government established the Deewan-i-Khairat to provide assistance to poor people, orphans, widows, and unobtrusive Muslim women who were in need of financial assistance.
• Free food and medical assistance were provided at Darul Shafa, which was a type of charitable hospital in Delhi.
• In addition, he founded a nonprofit organization known as Diwan-i-Istibqaq, which provides services to people who are in need and underprivileged.

Successors of Firoz Shah Tughlaq:

There were three successors of Firoz Shah Tughlaq. They were:

1. Ghiyas-ud-din Tughlaq II
2. Abu Bakr Shah
3. Nasir-ud-din Muhammad Tughlaq

End of the Tughlaq Dynasty

The Successors of Feroz Shah Tughlaq lacked both competences and might. The majority of regions attained Independence by the end of the 14th century, but Punjab and Delhi continued to be ruled by Tughlaqs. However, the Tughlaq dynasty was brought to an end with the invasion of Timur in 1398 A.D.

Tughlaq Dynasty UPSC

Tughlaq Dynasty UPSC is a very important topic in the medieval history of the history subject of UPSC Syllabus. Students preparing for the IAS exam need to prepare all the topics in depth. Read this article thoroughly and learn about all the rulers of the Tughlaq Dynasty, along with their administrative reforms, policies, timeline, successors, etc.

Tughlaq Dynasty UPSC Question

Q1. Which ruler of the Tughlaq dynasty died due to the collapse of a wooden structure in the pavilion?

1. Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq
2. Muhammed Bin Tughlaq
3. Qutubuddin Aibak
4. Firoz Shah Tughlaq

A1. Option A

Q2. For which period did Muhammad Bin Tughlaq rule the Delhi Sultanate?

1. 1325-51 A.D.
2. 1320-25 A.D.
3. 1234-45 A.D.
4. 1345-68 A.D.

A2. Option A

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