Ibrahim Adil Shah I
Encyclopedia
Ibrahim Adil Shah I was a sultan
Sultan
Sultan is a title with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic language abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", and "dictatorship", derived from the masdar سلطة , meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be used as the title of certain rulers who...
and later shah
Shah
Shāh is the title of the ruler of certain Southwest Asian and Central Asian countries, especially Persia , and derives from the Persian word shah, meaning "king".-History:...
of the Indian kingdom of Bijapur
Bijapur, Karnataka
Bijapur Urdu:بیجاپور city is the district headquarters of Bijapur District of Karnataka state. Bijapur city is well known for its historical monuments of architectural importance built during the rule of Adil Shahi dynasty...
. He succeeded his elder brother, Mallu Adil Shah
Mallu Adil Shah
Mallu Adil Shah, of the Adil Shahi dynasty, was the king of the Bijapur Sultanate, India, for a short period in 1534.Mallu Adil Shah succeeded his father Ismail Adil Shah's death. He was supposed to be in the company of evil habits...
, through the machinations of the afaqi faction at the court. He was the first Adil Shahi ruler to assume the royal title of SHAH
Shah
Shāh is the title of the ruler of certain Southwest Asian and Central Asian countries, especially Persia , and derives from the Persian word shah, meaning "king".-History:...
.
Faith
On his accession, he deleted the names of the twelve Shi’ah Imams from the Khutbah and restored the exercise of the Sunni practices. He deviated from the traditions of his predecessors and introduced many innovations in the political and religious policies. He struck a fatal blow to the afaqi faction by degrading them (with a few exceptions); and in their place enrolled the DeccaniDeccan sultanates
The Deccan sultanates were five Muslim-ruled late medieval kingdoms—Bijapur, Golkonda, Ahmadnagar, Bidar, and Berar—of south-central India. The Deccan sultanates were located on the Deccan Plateau, between the Krishna River and the Vindhya Range. These kingdoms became independent during the breakup...
(including Maratha
Maratha
The Maratha are an Indian caste, predominantly in the state of Maharashtra. The term Marāthā has three related usages: within the Marathi speaking region it describes the dominant Maratha caste; outside Maharashtra it can refer to the entire regional population of Marathi-speaking people;...
s) and Habashis to the services and retained only four hundred afaqi troops as his bodyguard. Consequently, many Maratha
Maratha
The Maratha are an Indian caste, predominantly in the state of Maharashtra. The term Marāthā has three related usages: within the Marathi speaking region it describes the dominant Maratha caste; outside Maharashtra it can refer to the entire regional population of Marathi-speaking people;...
s acquired great influence at his court and it is noteworthy that public accounts began to be maintained in Marathi
Marathi language
Marathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
.
Policies
Ibrahim’s anti-afaqi policy, however, considerably weakened the kingdom as the dismissed personnel joined the service of the neighbouring rulers. This exposed the kingdom to a series of invasions. Yet it was the veteran afaqi leader Asad Khan Lari (Buried in BelgaumBelgaum
Belgaum is a city and a municipal corporation in Belgaum district in the state of Karnataka, India. It is the fourth largest city of the state of Karnataka, the first three being Bangalore, Mysore, Hubli-Dharwad....
), who acting as a diplomatic counselor to Ibrahim, saved the kingdom in the hour of crisis.
Reign
The reign of Ibrahim, which lasted twenty-four years and a few months, was full of alliances and counter-alliances with and against Ahmadnagar, BidarBidar
Bidar is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the north-eastern part of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of the Bidar District....
, Berar
Berar Sultanate
-Berar in Ancient History:Subah Berar and Gondwana the Vidarbha region known as Gulshan-e-Berar in medieval period since Khilji dynasty to mughal period according Aine-Akbari and Alimgeer Namah report the berar is hole Fourteen sarkar...
, Golkonda
Golkonda
Golkonda or Golla konda a ruined city of south-central India and capital of ancient Kingdom of Golkonda , is situated 11 km west of Hyderabad.The most important builder of Golkonda was a Hindu Kakatiya King...
and Vijayanagar
Vijayanagara Empire
The Vijayanagara Empire , referred as the Kingdom of Bisnaga by the Portuguese, was an empire based in South Indian in the Deccan Plateau region. It was established in 1336 by Harihara I and his brother Bukka Raya I of the Yadava lineage. The empire rose to prominence as a culmination of attempts...
. Although there were continuous expeditions much territorial expansion was not made, for gains in one direction were compensated by loss on the other side. Thus while Bidar
Bidar
Bidar is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the north-eastern part of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of the Bidar District....
was conquered, Solapur
Solapur
Solapur is a city in South Western Maharashtra, India governed by municipal corporation.Solapur is one of the four districts that form the region of Western Maharashtra . It is the fourth largest district in Maharashtra in terms of land area and seventh largest in terms of population...
and Kalyani
Basavakalyan
Basavakalyan is a town in Bidar District of the state of Karnataka, India, and was historically known as Kalyan.-History:Basavakalyan's history dates back to 3000 years with its name being mentioned in Guru Charitra....
were lost to Ahmadnagar. On the other hand considerable acquisitions were made in the south along the west-coast.
Death
The farthest point of Bijapur territory now extended south of GoaGoa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
. Further, though Golkonda
Golkonda
Golkonda or Golla konda a ruined city of south-central India and capital of ancient Kingdom of Golkonda , is situated 11 km west of Hyderabad.The most important builder of Golkonda was a Hindu Kakatiya King...
was not subdued, Bijapur arms were able to reach the walls of Golkonda
Golkonda
Golkonda or Golla konda a ruined city of south-central India and capital of ancient Kingdom of Golkonda , is situated 11 km west of Hyderabad.The most important builder of Golkonda was a Hindu Kakatiya King...
fort and return triumphantly. He was buried near the famous Sufi saint Hazrat Chandah Hussaini Ashrafi in Gogi, where his father, Ismail and grandfather Yusuf
Yusuf Adil Shah
Yusuf Adil Shah , referred as Adil Khan or Hidalcão by the Portuguese, was the founder of the Adil Shahi dynasty that ruled the Sultanate of Bijapur for nearly two centuries...
were also buried.