Alauddin Khilji

Sultan

Afghan Qalat, Zabul Province, Afghanistan

Quick Info

ProfessionSultan
NationalityAfghan
BirthplaceQalat, Zabul Province, Afghanistan
Date of Death04/01/1316

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Bio/Wiki

Alauddin Khilji, born Ali Gurshasp or Juna Khan Khalji, was a prominent figure in the Delhi Sultanate. He harbored a burning ambition to conquer the world, famously aspiring to emulate Alexander the Great. His contemporaries and followers even bestowed upon him the title “Sikander-i-Sani” (Second Alexander).
Alauddin Khilji, born Ali Gurshasp (also known as Juna Khan Khalji), was the second and most powerful ruler of the Khalji dynasty and the Sultan of Delhi from 1296 to 1316. He harbored a burning ambition to conquer the world, famously aspiring to emulate Alexander the Great, earning him the title 'Sikander-i-Sani' (Second Alexander). His reign marked the greatest territorial extent of the Delhi Sultanate, covering large parts of the Indian subcontinent, and he implemented significant military, administrative, and economic reforms.

Personal Life

Marriages
  • Married Jalaluddin's daughters
  • Mahru
  • Kamaladevi
  • Jhatyapali
  • Malika-i-Jahan (daughter of Jalaluddin)
  • Kamaladevi (former wife of Karna, the last Vaghela king of Gujarat)
  • Jhatyapali (princess of Devagiri)
Children
  • Khizr Khan
  • Shadi Khan
  • Qutb ud din Mubarak Shah
  • Shihab-ud-din Omar
SexualitySpeculated to be bisexual due to his close relationship with Malik Kafur

Family

FatherShihabuddin Mas’ud
SiblingsAlmas Beg (Ulugh Khan), Qutlugh Tigin, Muhammad
SpouseMalika-i-Jahan
UncleJalaluddin Khalji (founder of the Khalji dynasty)

Career

Title as New KingAlauddunya wad Din Muhammad Shah-us Sultan
Major Conquests
  • Ranathambor
  • Gujarat
  • Mewar
  • Jalore
  • Malwa
  • Mabar
  • Warangal
  • Madurai
  • Gujarat (1299, annexed 1304)
  • Jaisalmer (1299)
  • Ranthambore (1301)
  • Chittor (1303)
  • Malwa (1305)
  • Siwana (1308)
  • Jalore (1311)
  • Devagiri (1308)
  • Warangal (1310)
  • Dwarasamudra (1311)
  • Pandya kingdom (1311)
  • Deccan kingdoms
Defeats
  • Mongols in battles of Jalandhar, Kili, Amroha, Ravi
  • Mongols in battles of Jaran-Manjur (1297–1298)
  • Sivistan (1298)
  • Kili (1299)
  • Delhi (1303)
  • Amroha (1305)
  • Ravi riverbank (1306)
Positions Held
  • Amir-i-Tuzuk (Master of Ceremonies) under Jalaluddin
  • Governor of Kara (1291)
  • Governor of Awadh (1296)
  • Sultan of Delhi (1296-1316)
Key Advisors/Commanders
Reforms
  • Established state-controlled market system to regulate prices
  • Introduced agrarian reforms and tax system changes (Ghari and Charai taxes)
  • Centralized power and funded a large standing army
  • Abolished the Wazir's office

Some Lesser Known Facts

1. The first Muslim ruler who conquered Southern India was the founder of the Bahmani Sultanate.
2. He introduced a rigorous system for surveillance and intelligence gathering.
3. His construction of Siri Fort involved using the heads of defeated Mongols.
4. He initiated agrarian reforms and controlled market prices during his reign.
5. He murdered his uncle, Jalaluddin, to seize the throne in 1296.
6. He became increasingly paranoid and reliant on Malik Kafur in his later years.
7. He abolished the Wazir's office and executed his brother-in-law, Alp Khan, in his later years.
8. His death on January 4, 1316, was under suspicious circumstances, with suspicions of conspiracy involving Malik Kafur.
9. He is compared by some to Alexander the Great due to his ambitious expansionist policies.
10. The Khalji dynasty ended four years after his death and was succeeded by the Tughlaq dynasty.
Information on this page is collected from public sources and may not be 100% accurate. Report an error
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