Malik Husamuddin/Ghiyathuddin Iwaz Khalji | |
|---|---|
 Coin of Ghiyath al-Din 'Iwad. Governor of Bengal, AH 614–616 AD (1217–1220). Struck in the name ofShams al-Din Iltutmish, Sultan of Delhi. | |
| Sultan of Bengal | |
| In office 1212 – 1227 | |
| Preceded by | Ali Mardan Khalji |
| Succeeded by | Nasiruddin Mahmud |
| Governor of Bengal | |
| In office 1208 – 1210 | |
| Preceded by | Muhammad Shiran Khalji |
| Succeeded by | Ali Mardan Khalji |
| Personal details | |
| Born | c. 1150 |
| Died | c. 1227 |
| Children | Ali Sher Khalji |
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Ḥusām ud-Dīn ʿIwaz bin Ḥusayn Khaljī (Bengali:হুসামউদ্দীন ইওজ বিন হোসেন খলজী,Persian:حسام الدین عوض بن حسین خلجی), later known by hisregnal title asGhiyās ud-Dīn ʿIwazShāh (Bengali:গিয়াসউদ্দীন ইওজ শাহ,Persian:غیاث الدین عوض شاه), was a two-time governor ofBengal under theDelhi Sultanate and a member of theKhalji dynasty of Bengal. During his second term, lasting from 1212 to 1227, Khalji declared himself as an independent ruler of Bengal.
His regime has been described as "constructive" as Khalji made major developments to Bengal by innovating flood defence systems and interlinking major cities by means of constructing South Asia's earliest-recorded embankments and extending theGrand Trunk Road.[1][2] Khalji was also responsible for establishing Bengal's first naval force, the complete fortification ofLakhnauti (Gaur), and the founding of the fort-town of Basankot.[3]
He was a member of theKhalaj tribe,[4][5][6][7] a tribe of Turkic origin that settled inAfghanistan.[8][9][10] He was born into aMuslim family inGarmsir, and his father's name was Husayn Khalji. During his early life, Iwaz Khalji transported goods with his donkey. On one occasion, he provided food and drink to a group ofdervishes who later prayed for him and instructed him to enter South Asia.
Iwaz Khalji became a deputy duringBakhtiyar Khalji's advances towardsBihar andBengal, and in recognition of his contribution, he was made theJagirdar ofKangori inNorth Bengal.[11]
During the infighting of Bengal's Khaljis, the Delhi sultanQutb al-Din Aibak sent an army led by Qaimaz Rumi, the governor ofAwadh, to dethroneMuhammad Shiran Khalji, the governor of Bengal. The army passed through Kangori, where they were welcomed by Iwaz. Upon the army's victory, Rumi appointed Iwaz as the next governor of Bengal in 1208. Iwaz governed Bengal for two years untilAli Mardan Khalji returned to Bengal in 1210, at which point he freely gave up his governorship of Bengal to the latter.[12][13]
Ali Mardan proved to be an unpopular governor among the population, however. In response, the nobles of Bengal led a conspiracy against Ali Mardan and executed him, thus reinstating Iwaz as the governor of Bengal in 1212. During this second term, Iwaz made major developments to Bengal and later established himself as independent of theDelhi Sultanate. He undid Ali Mardan's exiles of nobles by inviting them back to Bengal. He transferred the capital fromDevkot toLakhnauti (Gaur), which he newly rebuilt and completely fortified in all four directions (with three loftyramparts and making use of the river to the west of the city).[14] Opposite his new capital, Iwaz established a fort-town named Basankot. Not disregarding the former major cities like Devkot, he constructed embankments interlinking these areas together. He also became the first to develop a powerful navy andflotilla for Bengal and built severaldykes with arched bridges after analysing the vastness of theBengal Delta and its vulnerability to floods.[11]
To strengthen his independent authority in Bengal, Khalji showed his connection with the formerGhurid dynasty as opposed to Delhi's sultanIltutmish, who belonged to theMamluk dynasty. He had theFridaykhutbahs read in his own name and also invoked the name of theCommander of the Faithful (Abbasid caliphAl-Nasir ofBaghdad) in his coins to enhance his position in the eyes of the locals and equate his status with that of the Delhi sultan.[citation needed]
Khalji had appointed his son and heir,Ali Sher Khalji, as the governor ofBirbhum and northwestern Bengal.[15] In 1221, akhanqah was constructed by Ibn Muhammad ofMaragheh for the Muslim preacher Makhdum Shah in Birbhum, during the governorship of Ali Sher.[16][17] This contains the earliest known stone inscription mentioning a Muslim ruler in Bengal.[18] Thus, Khalji became an early patron ofIslamic education in Bengal by establishing mosques and giving pensions to theulama (Islamic scholars and teachers). He arranged for the arrival of Muslim preachers from Central Asia, such as Jalaluddin bin Jamaluddin Ghaznavi, to come to Bengal and give lectures in his court.[19][4]
He recognized that Bengal's rainy season and geography of rivers and creeks madecavalry ineffective. As a result, he recruited infantry known aspaiks and established a boat fleet.[20]
After establishing peace in Bengal and developing the region, Iwaz Khalji turned his attention towards the expansion of his kingdom towards the south and the east. 13th-century Persian historianMinhaj-i Siraj Juzjani has asserted that Iwaz conqueredLakhnur, a conquest that enabled Iwaz to gain treasures and capture many elephants. After taking control of the region, he appointed his ownamirs to govern there.[citation needed]
Khalji carried out invasions intoVanga,Tirhut andUtkala; making them histributary states.Jajnagar,Kamarupa, Tirhut and Vanga all sent tributes to him.[21]
During 1214–15, he was able to repel an invasion by the Chhatesvera of Orissa.[20]
Khalji's conquest ofBihar was perceived as a threat toIltutmish, which finally initiated a war against the former. A large force from Delhi advanced towards Bihar and Bengal. Delhi easily regained Bihar in 1225 with no opposition before confronting Khalji's army inTeliagarhi who attempted to prevent Delhi soldiers from crossing theGanges. Eventually, a treaty was made between Delhi and Bengal in which Khalji was to give 8 milliontakas and 38 war elephants to Iltutmish and denounce his independence (by striking coins and having khutbahs read with the name of Iltutmish).[21]
The Delhi forces then left Bengal and entrustedAlauddin Jani with the governorship ofBihar. Following the treaty, however, Khalji declared independence for a second time and expelled Jani from Bihar. With an uprising ofHindus inAwadh preoccupying the Delhi forces, Khalji left his capital to conduct an invasion of eastern Bengal in 1227. PrinceNasiruddin Mahmud, who was leading the Delhi forces, made way for Bengal after swiftly suppressing the rebellion in Awadh. Khalji hurried back to Lakhnauti, where the two forces came into conflict where he was killed and succeeded by Nasiruddin Mahmud.[22]
{{cite encyclopedia}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link){{cite encyclopedia}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)The Khaljis were a Turkish tribe from southwest Ghur. However, Bakhtiyar was ungainly in appearance...
His ancestors, after having migrated from Turkistan, had lived for over 200 years in the Helmand valley and Lamghan, parts of Afghanistan called Garmasir or the hot region, and had adopted Afghan manners and customs. They were, therefore, wrongly looked upon as Afghans by the Turkish nobles in India as they had intermarried with local Afghans and adopted their customs and manners. They were looked down as non Turks by Turks.
The prejudice of Turks was however misplaced in this case, for Khaljis were actually ethnic Turks. But they had settled in Afghanistan long before the Turkish rule was established there, and had over the centuries adopted Afghan customs and practices, intermarried with the local people, and were therefore looked down on as non-Turks by pure-bred Turks.
The Khaljis were a Turkish tribe but having been long domiciled in Afghanistan, had adopted some Afghan habits and customs. They were treated as Afghans in Delhi Court.
| Preceded by | Khalji Dynasty of Bengal 1208-1210 (1st Reign) 1212-1227 (2nd Reign) | Succeeded by |