The largest state in human history was the Mongol Empire founded by the great conqueror Genghis Khan. In the first half of the thirteenth century, Genghis Khan united the Mongols, and the Mongols, led by Genghis Khan, set out from Mongolia in East Asia to conquer the world and establish their vast empire by destroying or subjugating numerous states. The Mongol Empire stretched from Eastern and Central Europe to the Sea of Japan. The Mongol Empire extended to the North Pole to the north, the South Asian subcontinent to the east and south, the mainland of Southeast Asia and the Iranian Plateau, and the Levant and Carpathian Mountains to the west.
After the death of Genghis Khan in 1226, the great Mongol Empire was divided into four large parts. These were the China-centric Yuan Empire, the Russia-centric Golden Horde, the Iran-centric Ilkhanat, and the Central Asia-centric Chaghatai Khanat. Although divided into 4 parts, the heroism of the Mongols was intact, and they were a source of terror to other states. All nations are more or less cruel in the conduct of wars, but the Mongols gained a special notoriety for genocide, torture of women, plunder and arson in their conquered territories.
The war strategy of the Mongols became clear from a few examples. In 1218–1222, Genghis Khan conquered the Khorezm Empire in Central Asia, and his troops destroyed the cities of Bukhara, Marv, Nishapur, and Urgench, famous for their economic and cultural activities in Central Asia. The Mongol invasion of Central Asia killed about 1.7 million people, a quarter of the population of the Khorezm Empire. Batu Khan, the grandson of Genghis Khan, invaded Russia in 1237–1240 and destroyed the Russian and Volga Bulgarian economic and cultural centers in Belarus, Bulgaria, Moscow, Ryazan, Vladimir, Kiev, etc. The attack killed about 1.6 million Volga Bulgarians and 500,000 Russians. In 1258, Halaku Khan, the grandson of Genghis Khan, overthrew the Abbasid Caliphate and Baghdad, one of the best cities in the Muslim world. The bomber struck shortly after noon in front of a rally in Baghdad, killing at least 0.8million-1.6 million people.
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| In 1258, the Mongols invaded and occupied Baghdad, killing most of the city's inhabitants; Source: The Detailed History via Medium |
The Mongols also attacked India several times, but fortunately for the Indians none of these attacks were aimed at occupying India. In 1221, Genghis Khan pursued Jalaluddin, the prince of the Khorejam Empire, to the frontier of India, and defeated Jalaluddin in a battle on the banks of the Indus, but returned without advancing into India. In 1235, the Mongols occupied Kashmir and the Mongols ruled Kashmir for a long time. Between 1241 and 1290, the Mongol-ruled Chaghatai Khanat invaded the border areas of India several times, but none of these were large-scale attacks and the main purpose of these attacks was looting.
But in the 1290s and 1300s, the Mongols invaded India six times in a row and tried to capture Delhi twice. Every attack of the Mongols ended in failure and as a result India was saved from the horrors of the Mongol invasion. And the main credit for repelling the Mongol invasion of India went to an Indian Muslim ruler. This ruler was Sultan Alauddin Khilji of the Delhi Sultanate.
Alauddin is a controversial figure in Indian history. Indian Hindutva activists called Alauddin an "oppressive, Hindu-oppressive, foreign Muslim" ruler. But the actual history is not so simple. Alauddin belonged to the Khilji dynasty, which is believed to have been a combination of Turks and Pashtuns. He was born in 1266 in Delhi. In 1290 his uncle Jalaluddin Khilji seized the power of the Delhi Sultanate and 6 years later Alauddin assassinated him and took over the rule of Delhi himself. Alauddin's reign was famous for political oppression, economic reforms and conquest of various states.
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| Alauddin Khilji was the Sultan of the Delhi Sultanate for 20 years from 1298 to 1317; Source: Times of India |
It is unreasonable to call Alauddin a 'foreign ruler' because Alauddin was born in India and he did not invade India by invading from outside, but the Delhi Sultanate was a Muslim-ruled independent Indian state at that time and Alauddin was its ruler. Historians agree that Alauddin was a cruel and in some cases oppressive ruler. But Alauddin's oppression was not for religious purposes, but for political purposes, and for political gain he persecuted certain sections of the population, Hindus and Muslims alike. That is why Alauddin cannot be described as a 'Hindu-oppressive Muslim ruler'. Moreover, Alauddin was the first Sultan of Delhi to separate religion from the state. He is even known to have planned to establish his own religion.
Whatever Alauddin was as the ruler, the greatest achievement of his reign was to repel the six invasions of the Mongols. It is to be noted that during the reign of Jalaluddin, the previous Sultan of Alauddin, the Mongols invaded India anew in 1291–1292 and failed to resist the Mongols through war. Note that during this conflict a large number of Mongols converted to Islam and settled in the Delhi Sultanate.
But after gaining power, Alauddin abandoned Jalaluddin's policy of peace and adopted the policy of armed struggle against the Mongols to repel their attacks.
First Mongol invasion (1296–1298)
In the winter of 1297, the 'Khan' (title of the Mongol rulers) of the Chaghatai dynasty sent an army of 100,000 troops to invade India. The force was led by Mongol commander Kadar. The Mongol forces led by Qadr crossed the Sulaiman Mountains and invaded the Punjab, which belonged to the Delhi Sultanate. This was the first large-scale Mongol invasion of India. The Mongol troops carried out extensive looting and arson in the Punjab and advanced as far as the city of Kasur, setting the city on fire.
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| The extent of the Mongol Empire in 1294; Source: The Wire |
After learning of the Mongol invasion, Alauddin sent an army led by his brother Ulugh Khan and General Zafar Khan to repel the Mongols. The Delhi troops rushed towards the Punjab and reached the banks of the Sutlej river. The Delhi army did not have any boats to cross the river, so the troops had to swim across the river on the instructions of Ulugh Khan. After crossing the river, the Delhi army confronted the Mongol army at a place called 'Zaran Manjur' on the other side of the river. In this battle, which took place on 6 February 1298, the Mongol forces were defeated miserably.
About 20,000 Mongol soldiers were killed in the battle and another 20,000 were captured by the Delhi army. The remaining Mongol forces were forced to retreat from the lands of the Delhi Sultanate. The Delhi army killed the wounded Mongol soldiers and chained the rest and took them to the capital Delhi. Alauddin executed the prisoners of war and the captured Mongol soldiers were crushed to death under the feet of elephants. This marked the end of the first major Mongol invasion of India. This victory increased the status of the new Sultan Alauddin among the elite and the masses of the Delhi Sultanate and strengthened his position on the throne of Delhi.
Second Mongol Invasion (1298–1299)
Towards the end of 1296, a Mongol army invaded the province of Sindh on the western border of the Delhi Sultanate and captured the fort of Sivistan (present-day Sehwan in Pakistan). These Mongols were not under the Chaghatai Khanate. They were members of a Mongol sect called the Neguderi, who settled in Afghanistan. It is believed that a group of Negroes, who were expelled from their homeland in Afghanistan, were trying to establish a colony in the frontier region of Mongol India and invaded the Indus as part of this. The leader of the invading Mongols was a man named Saldi or Sogetei.
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| Map of the Chagatai Khanate in the late thirteenth century; Source: Wikimedia Commons |
At that time the main part of the Delhi army was engaged in the Gujarat expedition led by Ulugh Khan and Nusrat Khan, so Alauddin sent a relatively small army led by Jafar Khan to retrieve Sivistan. In early 1299, the Delhi army reached the Sivistan fort and laid siege to it. Jafar Khan laid siege to the fort without the necessary military equipment for the siege, and the arrows of the Mongol armies caused considerable damage to the Delhi troops. Nevertheless, the Delhi army was able to enter the fort and engaged in a fierce battle with the Mongols, using axes, swords, spears and lances. After a fierce battle, the Delhi army was able to recapture the fort.
A large number of Mongol soldiers, including the Mongol leader Saldi / Sogetai, were captured by the Delhi army and sent to Delhi in chains. It is unknown at this time what he will do after leaving the post. However, victory in this battle earned Zafar Khan the honor of being a skilled general and enhanced his rank.
Rebellion of the Mongol army (1299)
During the reign of Jalaluddin, the captive Mongol soldiers who converted to Islam and settled in Delhi were included in the Delhi army. In 1299, the Delhi army led by Ulugh Khan and Nusrat Khan conquered Gujarat and plundered a huge amount of wealth. The Mongol troops also took part in the operation. Arriving at Jalor on their way back to Delhi from Gujarat, the Delhi generals ordered the troops to deposit 'khums' (one-fifth of the spoils). Some Mongol soldiers were punished for trying to hide the looted goods. As a result, a section of the Delhi army, mainly led by the Mongols, revolted.
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| Extension of Delhi Sultanate during the reign of Alauddin Khilji. The dark green part was directly under the rule of the Delhi Sultanate and the light green part was the tributary states under the Sultanate; Source: Wikimedia Commons |
On the first day of the revolt, the rebels killed Nusrat Khan's brother Malik Aizuddin, and on the second day, 3,000 to 4,000 Mongol rebels attacked Ulugh Khan's tent. At this time they killed one of the nephews of Sultan Alauddin, but Ulugh Khan escaped and took refuge in the tent of Nusrat Khan and was able to gather the loyal troops. Within the next two days the loyal troops defeated the Mongol rebels and forced them to retreat. The revolt terrified the generals of Delhi and they quickly returned to Delhi without demanding khums from the soldiers. Among the rebel Mongol leaders, Muhammad Shah and Kavru took refuge with King Hammir Dev of Ranasthambhapur (now Ranthambore) and two other rebel leaders, Yalhaq and Burrak, joined the defeated king Karna of Gujarat.
After hearing the news of the revolt, Alauddin ordered the capture of the wives and children of the Mongol rebels living in Delhi. Nusrat Khan brutally punished the family members of the Mongol rebels who were involved in the killing of Nusrat Khan's brother. At his behest, the wives of these rebels were raped and forced into prostitution, and their children were dismembered. Historians of the Delhi Sultanate strongly condemned the incident in their writings.
Third Mongol Invasion (1299)
In the middle of 1299, the Chaghatai dynasty attacked the Delhi Sultanate with full force. About 200,000 troops, led by Kutlugh Khwaja, son of Mongol Khan Dua, took part in the attack, although the number is disputed. The purpose of this Mongol invasion was to destroy the Delhi Sultanate and establish the authority of the Chaghatai Khanate in India. For this the Mongols came prepared for a long-term expedition and brought enough food and supplies. Moreover, this time they refrained from occupying the fort or plundering the city like other times for the convenience of collecting supplies locally.
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| 'Sultan-e-Hind' Alauddin Khilji; Source: WikiBio |
Troops deployed at Multan, Saman and other bases on the border of the Delhi Sultanate tried to repel the invading Mongols, but the Mongols fought them and rushed to Delhi without inflicting heavy casualties. At that time Jafar Khan, Alauddin's general, was on a tour of the Punjab, and he sent a messenger to Kutlugh Khazar, urging him to go to war with him, but Kutlugh rejected the call, saying, "Only kings fight kings."
The Mongols are about 10 km from the outskirts of Delhi. They set up camp in a place called Kili in the distance and the local people took refuge in the city of Delhi for fear of them, which led to a refugee problem in Delhi. The Mongols intercepted all the trade caravans coming to Delhi, causing immense suffering to the people of Delhi. Alauddin's advisers were alarmed to see the huge army of the Mongols and advised Alauddin to make peace with the Mongols. Alauddin rejected the suggestion, saying, "If I am afraid to deal with the invaders, how can I hold on to power in Delhi?" Alauddin proceeded to fight against the Mongols.
Although advancing to war, Alauddin was not immediately in favor of the Mongol invasion. He had more troops than the Mongols, but he did not have enough time to prepare for war and was willing to delay the war. His intention was that the delay would allow more troops to come from the east and join him, and that the Mongols' supplies would be reduced. But without the permission of Alauddin, Jafar Khan attacked the Mongols and a part of the Mongol army retreated and separated Jafar Khan and his army from the main army of Delhi. Despite this, Jafar fought valiantly and was killed in battle, but before his death he and his men were able to inflict heavy losses on the Mongol army.
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| Alauddin was personally a brave and skilled warrior and in many expeditions he himself led the Delhi army; Source: WikiBio |
Another army of Delhi, led by Jafar Khan's son Dili Khan, attacked another army of Mongols and forced them to retreat. On the other hand, another army of Mongols attacked the main army of Delhi led by Alauddin, but was defeated. The Mongol leader Kutlugh Khwaja was seriously wounded in this battle. For the next two days the armies of the Mongols and the Delhi Sultanate faced each other, but refrained from attacking each other. The generals of Delhi were disappointed at Zafar Khan's death and advised Alauddin to retreat, but Alauddin remarked that Zafar Khan had died for disobeying his orders and that he would not retreat under any circumstances.
Meanwhile, the situation of the wounded Kutlugh Khwaja deteriorated and the Mongols decided to retreat as the battle was heavily damaged. Therefore, two days after the battle, they set out for Chaghatai Khanate and died on the way. The Delhi army refrained from any attack on the retreating Mongols, as they too had suffered heavy casualties in the battle. Thus this attack of the Mongols also failed. Jafar Khan displayed the pinnacle of heroism in this battle, but Alauddin was furious with him for disobeying orders and during his reign Jafar Khan's name was removed from all royal documents.
This is a article about the Mongol invasions of India in 1297–1306.
Sources:
1. Peter Jackson. "The Delhi Sultanate: A Political and Military History." Cambridge University Press, 2010.
2. Konstantin Nossov and Brian Delf. "Indian Castles 1206–1526: The Rise and Fall of the Delhi Sultanate." Osprey Publishing, 2006.
3. Seshadri Kumar. "India Should Be Grateful to Alauddin Khilji for Thwarting the Mongol Invasions." The Wire, December 9, 2017. https://www.google.com/amp/s/m.thewire.in/article/history/india-grateful-alauddin-khilji-thwarting-mongol-invasions/amp
Source of the featured image: Glogster
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