Sikandar Lodhi
Encyclopedia
Sikandar Lodi born Nizam Khan, was the second ruler of the Afghan
Lodi Dynasty, who reigned over Sultanate of Delhi from 1489 to 1517.
Bahlul Khan Lodi and Bibi Ambha, the daughter of a Hindu
goldsmith of Sirhind.
He became Sultan upon the death of his father on July 17, 1489. His rise to power was troublesome, with his older brother, Barbak Shah, the viceroy
of Jaunpur
, also staking a claim to the throne despite their father's nomination of Sikandar. However, he was able to claim the throne through delegation and was able to avoid massive bloodshed. In fact, he allowed his brother to keep governing Jaunpur
, while also settling differences with an uncle, Alam Khan, who was also suspected of usurping the throne.
Sikandar proved to be a capable ruler who was kind to his Muslim subjects, but was extremely harsh to his Hindu subjects. He expanded Lodi territory into the regions of Gwalior and Bihar
. He made a treaty with Alauddin Hussain Shah
and his kingdom of Bengal
. He was able to bring his native Afghan nobles under his control, and encouraged trade across his holdings. In 1503, he commissioned the building of the present-day city of Agra
.
Much has been written about his religious intolerance. Bodhan - a Hindu renunciate (sadhu), was burnt alive for saying the following:
Islam and Hindu Dharma are both equally acceptable to God if followed with sincerity.
The History of the Delhi sultanate by M.M. Syed says the following about him: he frequently razed temples to the ground and erected mosques in their place, as evidenced by his behaviour at Mandrail, Utgir, and Narwar. At Mathura he prevented Hindus from bathing in their sacred ghats or having themselves shaved. The stones of broken Hindu idols were given away to butchers to be used as weights.
Among the administrative changes made by Sikandar Lodi was the installation of Persian language
as the official language for the accountancy in India. 1514. Mat̲nawī-yi mihr u māh (905H.). Publication of the Iran Pakistan Institute of Persian Studies, serial no.
Sikandar Lodi tried to conquer the Gwalior Fort
, and he attacked 5 times,but was failed all the five times by the king of Gwalior Maharaja Mansingh. He developed Agra as his second capital (after Delhi), as it took a lot of time to travel from Delhi to Gwalior. Finally he attacked a small region, near Gwalior named Narwar, and he had to wait 11 months at the gates of the Narwar fort, after 11 months when the people found that nothing had left to eat, they surrendered to Sikandar lodi. Once again he attacked on Gwalior, and was defeated by Maharaja Mansingh and his wife Mrignayani.
He died in 1517 and has an elaborate burial tomb that resides in Lodi Gardens, Delhi
.
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Pashtun people
Pashtuns or Pathans , also known as ethnic Afghans , are an Eastern Iranic ethnic group with populations primarily between the Hindu Kush mountains in Afghanistan and the Indus River in Pakistan...
Lodi Dynasty, who reigned over Sultanate of Delhi from 1489 to 1517.
Biography
Sikandar Lodi was the son of SultanSultan
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...
Bahlul Khan Lodi and Bibi Ambha, the daughter of a Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
goldsmith of Sirhind.
He became Sultan upon the death of his father on July 17, 1489. His rise to power was troublesome, with his older brother, Barbak Shah, the viceroy
Viceroy
A viceroy is a royal official who runs a country, colony, or province in the name of and as representative of the monarch. The term derives from the Latin prefix vice-, meaning "in the place of" and the French word roi, meaning king. A viceroy's province or larger territory is called a viceroyalty...
of Jaunpur
Jaunpur Sultanate
The Jaunpur sultanate was an independent kingdom of northern India between 1394 to 1479, whose rulers ruled from Jaunpur in the present day state of Uttar Pradesh. The Jaunpur sultanate was ruled by the Sharqi dynasty. The Khwajah-i-Jahan Malik Sarwar, the first ruler of the dynasty was a wazir ...
, also staking a claim to the throne despite their father's nomination of Sikandar. However, he was able to claim the throne through delegation and was able to avoid massive bloodshed. In fact, he allowed his brother to keep governing Jaunpur
Jaunpur Sultanate
The Jaunpur sultanate was an independent kingdom of northern India between 1394 to 1479, whose rulers ruled from Jaunpur in the present day state of Uttar Pradesh. The Jaunpur sultanate was ruled by the Sharqi dynasty. The Khwajah-i-Jahan Malik Sarwar, the first ruler of the dynasty was a wazir ...
, while also settling differences with an uncle, Alam Khan, who was also suspected of usurping the throne.
Sikandar proved to be a capable ruler who was kind to his Muslim subjects, but was extremely harsh to his Hindu subjects. He expanded Lodi territory into the regions of Gwalior and Bihar
Bihar
Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....
. He made a treaty with Alauddin Hussain Shah
Alauddin Hussain Shah
Ala-ud-din Husain Shah was an independent late medieval Sultan of Bengal, who founded the Hussain Shahi dynasty. He became the ruler of Bengal after assassinating the Abyssinian Sultan, Shams-ud-Din Muzaffar Shah, whom he had served under as wazir...
and his kingdom of Bengal
Bengal
Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
. He was able to bring his native Afghan nobles under his control, and encouraged trade across his holdings. In 1503, he commissioned the building of the present-day city of Agra
Agra
Agra a.k.a. Akbarabad is a city on the banks of the river Yamuna in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, India, west of state capital, Lucknow and south from national capital New Delhi. With a population of 1,686,976 , it is one of the most populous cities in Uttar Pradesh and the 19th most...
.
Much has been written about his religious intolerance. Bodhan - a Hindu renunciate (sadhu), was burnt alive for saying the following:
Islam and Hindu Dharma are both equally acceptable to God if followed with sincerity.
The History of the Delhi sultanate by M.M. Syed says the following about him: he frequently razed temples to the ground and erected mosques in their place, as evidenced by his behaviour at Mandrail, Utgir, and Narwar. At Mathura he prevented Hindus from bathing in their sacred ghats or having themselves shaved. The stones of broken Hindu idols were given away to butchers to be used as weights.
Among the administrative changes made by Sikandar Lodi was the installation of Persian language
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
as the official language for the accountancy in India. 1514. Mat̲nawī-yi mihr u māh (905H.). Publication of the Iran Pakistan Institute of Persian Studies, serial no.
Sikandar Lodi tried to conquer the Gwalior Fort
Gwalior Fort
ċċċċċt̪--122.177.251.15 13:02, 20 November 2011 --122.177.251.15 13:02, 20 November 2011 --122.177.251.15 13:02, 20 November 2011 Gwalior Fort in Gwalior, in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, stands on an isolated rock, overlooking the Gwalior town, and contains a number of historic...
, and he attacked 5 times,but was failed all the five times by the king of Gwalior Maharaja Mansingh. He developed Agra as his second capital (after Delhi), as it took a lot of time to travel from Delhi to Gwalior. Finally he attacked a small region, near Gwalior named Narwar, and he had to wait 11 months at the gates of the Narwar fort, after 11 months when the people found that nothing had left to eat, they surrendered to Sikandar lodi. Once again he attacked on Gwalior, and was defeated by Maharaja Mansingh and his wife Mrignayani.
He died in 1517 and has an elaborate burial tomb that resides in Lodi Gardens, Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
.
External links
- Sikandar Lodi Tomb pics Pictures of the tomb of Sikandar Lodi at Delhi
- coin of Sikandar Lodi
- Story of Pakistan
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