Muslim conquests in the Indian subcontinent

Muslim conquests in the Indian subcontinent mainly took place from the 12th to the 16th
centuries, though earlier Muslim conquests made limited inroads into
modern Afghanistan and Pakistan as early as the time of the Rajput kingdoms in the 8th
century. With the establishment of the Delhi Sultanate, Islam spread across large parts of the
subcontinent. In 1204, Bakhtiyar Khalji led the Muslim conquest of Bengal, marking the
eastern-most expansion of Islam at the time.
Prior to the rise of the Maratha Empire, which was followed by the conquest of India by
the British East India Company, the Muslim Mughal Empire was able to annex or subjugate
most of India's kings. However, it was never able to conquer the kingdoms in the upper
reaches of the Himalayas, such as those of modern Himachal
Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Nepal and Bhutan; the kingdoms of the extreme south of
India, such as Travancore and Tamil Nadu; or the kingdoms in the east, such as the Ahom
Kingdom in Assam.

Contents

 1Early Muslim presence

o 1.1Arab naval expeditions
 2Rashidun Caliphate and the Indian frontier
 3Umayyad expansion in Al Hind
o 3.1Battles in Makran and Zabulistan
 4Al Hajjaj and the East
o 4.1Campaigns in Makran and Zabul
 5Umayyad expansion in Sindh
o 5.1Conquest of Sindh
 6Last Umayyad campaigns in Al Hind
 7Last days of Caliphate control
 8Later Muslim invasions
o 8.1Ghaznavid Period
o 8.2Mu'izz al-Din
o 8.3The Delhi Sultanate
o 8.4Timur
o 8.5Regional sultanates
o 8.6Deccan Sultanates
o 8.7The Mughal Empire
 8.7.1Babur
 8.7.2Aurangzeb
o 8.8Durrani Empire
 9Decline of Muslim rule in Indian subcontinent
o 9.1Maratha Empire
 o 9.2Sikh Empire
 10Impact on India, Islam and Muslims in India
o 10.1Conversion theories
o 10.2Aurangzeb
o 10.3Expansion of trade
o 10.4Cultural influence
 11Iconoclasm
o 11.1Iconoclasm under the Delhi Sultanate
o 11.2Nalanda
o 11.3Martand
o 11.4Vijayanagar
o 11.5Somnath
 12Ghazwa-e-Hind
 13See also
 14Notes and references
o 14.1Notes
o 14.2References
 15External links

Early Muslim presence[edit]

Islam in South Asia existed in communities along the Arab coastal trade routes
in Sindh, Bengal, Gujarat, Kerala, and Ceylon as soon as the religion originated and had
gained early acceptance in the Arabian Peninsula, though the first incursion by the new
Muslim successor states of the Arab World occurred around 636 CE or 643 AD, during
the Rashidun Caliphate, long before any Arab army reached the frontier of India by land.
Arab naval expeditions[edit]
Uthman b. Abul As Al Sakifi, governor of Bahrain and Oman, sent out ships to raid Thane,
near modern-day Mumbai, while his brother Hakam sailed to Broach and a third fleet sailed
to Debal under his younger brother Mughira either in 636 CE or 643 AD. According to one
source all three expeditions were successful,[1] however, another source states Mughira was
defeated and killed at Debal.[2] These expeditions were sent without the Caliph Umar's
consent, and he rebuked Uthman, saying that had the Arabs lost any men the Caliph would
have killed an equal number of men from Utham's tribe in retaliation.[1] The expeditions were
sent to attack pirate nests, to safeguard Arabian trade in the Arabian Sea, and not to start
the conquest of India.[3][4][5]

Rashidun Caliphate and the Indian frontier[edit]

Arab campaigns in the Indian Subcontinent. A generic representation, not to exact scale.

The kingdoms of Kapisa-Gandhara in modern-day Afghanistan, Zabulistanand Sindh (which

then held Makran) in modern-day Pakistan, all of which were culturally and politically part of
India since ancient times,[6] were known as "The Frontier of Al Hind". The first clash between
a ruler of an Indian kingdom and the Arabs took place in 643 AD, when Arab forces defeated
Rutbil, King of Zabulistan in Sistan.[7] Arabs led by Suhail b. Abdi and Hakam al Taghilbi
defeated an Indian army in the Battle of Rasil in 644 AD at the Indian Ocean sea coast,
[8]
 then reached the Indus River. Caliph Umar ibn Al-Khattab denied them permission to cross
the river or operate on Indian soil and the Arabs returned home.[9]
Abdullah ibn Aamir led the invasion of Khurasan in 650 AD, and his general Rabi b. Ziyad Al
Harithi attacked Sistan and took Zaranj and surrounding areas in 651 AD[10] while Ahnaf ibn
Qais conquered the Hepthalites of Heratin 652 AD and advanced up to Balkh by 653 AD.
Arab conquests now bordered the Kingdoms of Kapisa, Zabul and Sindh in modern-day
Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Arabs levied annual tributes on the newly captured areas,
and leaving 4,000 men garrisons at Merv and Zaranj retired to Iraq instead of pushing on
against the frontier of India.[11] Caliph Uthman b. Affan sanctioned an attack against Makran in
652 AD, and sent a recon mission to Sindh in 653 AD. The mission described Makran as
inhospitable, and Caliph Uthman, probably assuming the country beyond was much worse,
forbade any further incursions into India.[12][13]
This was the beginning of a prolonged struggle between the rulers of Kabul and Zabul
against successive Arab governors of Sistan, Khurasan and Makran in modern-day
Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Kabul Shahi kings and their Zunbil kinsmen blocked access
to the Khyber Pass and Gomal Pass routes into India from 653 to 870 AD,[14] while
modern Balochistan, Pakistan, comprising the areas of Kikan or Qiqanan, Nukan, Turan,
Buqan, Qufs, Mashkey and Makran, would face several Arab expeditions between 661 - 711
AD.[15]The Arabs launched several raids against these frontier lands, but repeated rebellions
in Sistan and Khurasan between 653 - 691 AD diverted much of their military resources in
order to subdue these provinces and away from expansion into Al Hind. Muslim control of
these areas ebbed and flowed repeatedly as a result until 870 AD. Arabs troops disliked
being stationed in Makran,[16] and were reluctant to campaign in the Kabul area and
Zabulistan, the difficult terrain and underestimation of Zunbil's power,[17] Arab strategy to
extract tribute instead of systematic conquest, and the fierce resistance of Zunbil and Turki
Shah stalled Arab progress repeatedly in the "Frontier Zone".[18][19]

Umayyad expansion in Al Hind[edit]

Muawiyah established Umayyad rule over the Arabs after the first First Fitna in 661 AD, and
resumed expansion of the Muslim Empire. After 663/665 AD, the Arabs launched an invasion
against Kapisa, Zabul and what is now Pakistani Balochistan. Abdur Rahman b. Samurra
besieged Kabul in 663 AD, while Haris b Marrah advanced against Kalat after marching
through Fannazabur and Quandabil and moving through the Bolan Pass. King Chach of
Sindh sent an army against the Arabs, the enemy blocked the mountain passes, Haris was
killed and his army was annihilated. Al Muhallab ibn Abi Suffrah took a detachment through
the Khyber pass towards Multanin Southern Punjab in modern-day Pakistan in 664 AD, then
pushed south into Kikan, and may have also raided Quandabil. Turki Shah and Zunbil
expelled Arabs from their respective kingdoms by 670 AD, and Zunbil began assisting in
organizing resistance in Makran.[8]
Battles in Makran and Zabulistan[edit]
Arabs launched several campaigns in eastern Balochistan between 661 - 681 AD, four Arab
commanders were killed during the campaigns, but Sinan b. Salma managed to conquer
parts of Makran including the Chagai area,[20] and establish a permanent base of operations
in 673 AD.[21] Rashid b. Amr, the next governor of Makran, subdued Mashkey in 672 AD,
[22]
 Munzir b. Jarood Al Abadi managed to garrison Kikan and conquer Buqan by 681 AD,
while Ibn Harri Al Bahili, conducted several campaigns to secure the Arab hold on Kikan,
Makran and Buqan by 683 AD.[23][24] Zunbil saw off Arab campaigns in 668, 672 and 673 AD
by paying tribute, although Arabs occupied the areas south of Helmand in 673 AD
permanently[21][25] Zunbil defeated Yazid b. Salm's army in 681 AD at Junzah, and Arabs had
to pay 500,000 dirhams to ransom their prisoners,[26] but the Arabs defeated and
killed[vague] Zunbil in Sistan in 685. The Arabs were defeated in Zabul in next invaded Zabul in
693 AD.[27][vague][not in citation given]

Al Hajjaj and the East[edit]

Al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf Al Thaqifi, who had played a crucial role during the Second Fitna for the
Umayyad cause, was appointed the governor of Iraq in 694 AD, further extended
to Khurasan and Sistan in 697 AD. Al-Hajjaj also sponsored Muslim expansion in Makran,
Sistan, Transoxiana and Sindh.[28][29]
Campaigns in Makran and Zabul[edit]
Arab hold on Makran had weakened when Arab rebels seized the province, and Hajjaj had to
send three governors between 694 - 707 AD before Makran was partially recovered by 694
AD.[18] Al Hajjaj also fought Zunbil in 698 AD and 700 AD. The 20,000 strong army led by
Ubaidullah ibn Abu Bakra was trapped by the armies of Zunbil and Turki Shah near Kabul,
and lost 15,000 men to thirst and hunger, earning this force the epithet of the "Doomed
Army".[30][31] Abd al-Rahman ibn Muhammad ibn al-Ash'ath led 20,000 troops each
from Kufa and Basra[32] in a cautions but successful campaign in 700 AD, but when he
wanted to stop during winter, Al-Hajjaj's insulting rebuke[33] led to mutiny.[34] The mutiny put
down by 704 Ad, and Al-Hajjaj granted a 7-year truce to Zunbil

Umayyad expansion in Sindh[edit]

Main articles: Muhammad bin Qasim and Caliphate campaigns in India
Muhammad bin Qasim's Campaigns in Sindh. A generic representation, not to exact scale.

Raja Dahir of Sindh had refused to return Arab rebels from Sindh[2][35] and
furthermore, Meds and others.[36] Meds shipping from their bases
at Kutch, Debal and Kathiawar.[36] in one of their raids had kidnapped Muslim women
travelling from Sri Lanka to Arabia, thus providing a casus belli[36][37] against Sindh Raja
Dahir[38] when Raja Dahir expressed his inability to help retrieve the prisoners. After two
expeditions were defeated in Sindh[39][40][40] Al Hajjaj equipped an army built around 6,000
Syrian cavalry and detachments of mawali from Iraq,[41] six thousand camel riders, and a
baggage train of 3,000 camels under his Nephew Muhammad bin Qasim to Sindh. His
Artillery of five catapults were sent to Debal by sea[41] ("manjaniks").
Conquest of Sindh[edit]
Muhammad bin Qasim departed from Shiraz in 710 CE, the army marched along the coast to
Tiaz in Makran, then to the Kech valley. Muhammad re-subdued the restive towns of
Fannazbur and Armabil, (Lasbela)[42] finally completing the conquest of Makran then the army
met up with the reinforcements and catapults sent by sea near Debal and took Debal
through assault.[41] From Debal the Arabs moved north along the Indus, clearing the region up
to Budha, some towns like Nerun and Sadusan (Sehwan) surrendered peacefully[41] while
tribes inhabiting Sisam were defeated in battle. Muhammad bin Qasim moved back to Nerun
to resupply and receive reinforcements sent by Hajjaj.[41] The Arabs crossed the Indus further
South and defeated the army of Dahir, who was killed.[43][44] The Arabs then marched north
along the east bank of the Indus after the siege and capture of Rawer. Brahmanabad, then
Alor (Aror) and finally Multan, were captured alongside other in-between towns with only light
Muslim casualties.[41] Arabs marched up to the foothills of Kashmir along the Jhelum in 713
AD,[45] and the stormed on Al-Kiraj (probably the Kangra valley)[46]Muhammad was deposed
after the death of Caliph Walid in 715 AD. Jai Singh, son of Dahir captured Brahmanabad
and Arab rule was restricted to the Western shore of Indus.[47] Sindh was briefly lost to the
caliph when the rebel Yazid b. Muhallab took over Sindh briefly in 720 AD.[48][not in citation given][49]

Last Umayyad campaigns in Al Hind[edit]

Main article: Caliphate campaigns in India

Early Arab conquest of what is now Pakistan by Muhammad bin Qasim for Umayyad caliphate rule c.
711 CE.

Junaid b. Abd Al Rahman Al Marri became the governor of Sindh in 723 AD. Secured Debal,
then defeat and killed Jai Singh[48][not in citation given][50] secured Sindh and Southern Punjaband
stormed Al Kiraj (Kangra valley) in 724 AD.[46][51] Junaid next attacked a number of Hindu
kingdoms in what is now Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh aiming at permanent
conquest, but the chronology and area of operation of the campaigns during 725 - 743 AD is
difficult to follow because accurate, complete information is lacking.[46] The Arabs moved east
from Sindh in several detachments[1] and probably from attacked from both the land and the
sea, occupying Mirmad (Marumada, in Jaisalmer), Al-Mandal (perhaps Okhamandal in
Gujarat) or Marwar,[52] and Dahnaj, not identified, al-Baylaman (Bhilmal) and Jurz (Gurjara
country—north Gujarat and southern Rajasthan).[53] and attacking Barwas (Broach),
sacking Vallabhi.[54] Gurjara king Siluka[55] repelled Arabs from "Stravani and Valla", probably
the area North of Jaisalmer and Jodhpur, and the invasion of Malwa but were ultimately
defeated by Bappa Rawal and Nagabhata I in 725 AD near Ujjain.[56] Arabs lost control over
the newly conquered territories and Sindh due to Arab tribal infighting and Arab soldiers
deserting the newly conquered territory[57] during in 731 AD.
Al Hakam b. Awana Al Kalbi recovered Sindh, and in c733 AD, founded the garrison city of
Al Mahfuza ("The Well Guarded") similar to Kufa, Basra and Wasit, on the eastern side of a
lake near Brahmanabad.[46] Hakam next attempted to reclaim the conquests of Junaid in Al
Hind. Arab records merely state that he was successful, Indian records at Navasari[58] details
that Arab forces defeated "Kacchella, Saindhava, Saurashtra, Cavotaka, Maurya and
Gurjara" kings. The city of Al Mansura ("The Victorious") was founded near Al Mahfuza to
commemorate pacification of Sindh by Amr b. Muhammad in c738 AD.[46] Al Hakam next
invaded the Deccan in 739 AD with the intention of permanent conquest, but was decisively
defeated at Navsari by the viceroy Avanijanashraya Pulakeshin of the Chalukya
Empire serving Vikramaditya II. Arab rule was restricted to the west of Thar desert.

Last days of Caliphate control[edit]

When the Abbasid Revolution overthrew the Umayyads in 750 AD after the Third Fitna,
Sindh became independent and was captured by Musa b. K'ab al Tamimi in 752 AD.[59] Zunbil
had defeated the Arabs in 728 AD, and saw off two Abbasid invasions in 769 and 785 AD.
Abbasids attacked Kabul several times and collected tribute between 787 Ad - 815 Ad and
extracted tribute after each campaign. Abbasid Governor of Sindh, Hisham (7in office 768 -
773 AD) raided Kashmir, recaptured parts of Punjab from Karkota control,[60] and launched
naval raids against ports of Gujarat in 758 and 770 AD,[61] which like other Abbasid Naval
raids launched of 776 and 779 AD, gained no territory. Arabs occupied Sindian (Southern
Kutch) in 810 AD, only to lose it in 841 AD.[62] Civil war erupted in Sindh in 842 AD, and the
Habbari dynasty occupied Mansurah, and by 871, five independent principalities emerged,
with the Banu Habbari clan controlling in Mansurah, Banu Munabbih occupying Multan, Banu
Madan ruling in Makran, with Makshey and Turan falling to other rulers, all outside direct
Caliphate control.[63] Ismaili missionaries found a receptive audience among both
the Sunni and non-Muslim populations in Multan, which became a center of the Ismaili sect
of Islam. The Saffarid Dynasty of Zaranj occupied Kabul and the kingdom of Zunbil
permanently in 871 AD. A new chapter of Muslim conquests began when the Samanid
Dynasty took over the Saffarid Kingdom and Sabuktigin seized Ghazni.

Later Muslim invasions[edit]

See also: Rajput kingdoms of North India and List of Rajput dynasties
Muslim incursions resumed under later Turkic and Central Asian Mongol dynasties with more
local capitals, who supplanted the Caliphate and expanded their domains both northwards
and eastwards and led to the establishment of the Delhi Sultanate.
Ghaznavid Period[edit]
Main article: Mahmud of Ghazni

Tomb of Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni in 1848.

Under Sabuktigin, Ghazni found itself in conflict with the Shahi Raja Jayapala. When

Sabuktigin died and his son Mahmud ascended the throne in 998, Ghazni was engaged in
the North with the Qarakhanids when the Shahi Raja renewed hostilities.
In the early 11th century, Mahmud of Ghazni launched seventeen expeditions into South
Asia. In 1001, Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni defeated Raja Jayapala of the Hindu Shahi Dynasty
of Gandhara (in modern Afghanistan), the Battle of Peshawar and marched further
into Peshawar(in modern Pakistan) and, in 1005, made it the center for his forces.
The Ghaznavid conquests were initially directed against the Ismaili Fatimids of Multan, who
were engaged in an ongoing struggle with the Abbasid Caliphate in conjunction with their
compatriots of the Fatimid Caliphate in North Africa and the Middle East; Mahmud apparently
hoped to curry the favor of the Abbasids in this fashion. However, once this aim was
accomplished, he moved onto the richness of the loot of wealthy temples and monasteries.
By 1027, Mahmud had captured parts of North India and obtained formal recognition of
Ghazni's sovereignty from the Abbassid Caliph, al-Qadir Billah.
Ghaznavid rule in Northwestern India (modern Afghanistan and Pakistan) lasted over 175
years, from 1010 to 1187. It was during this period that Lahore assumed considerable
importance apart from being the second capital, and later the only capital, of the Ghaznavid
Empire.
At the end of his reign, Mahmud's empire extended from Kurdistan in the west
to Samarkand in the Northeast, and from the Caspian Sea to the Punjab. Although his raids
carried his forces across Northern and Western India, only Punjab came under his
permanent rule; Kashmir, the Doab, Rajasthan, and Gujarat remained under the control of
the local Indian dynasties. In 1030, Mahmud fell gravely ill and died at age 59. As with the
invaders of three centuries ago, Mahmud's armies looted temples
in Varanasi, Mathura, Ujjain, Maheshwar, Jwalamukhi, Somnath and Dwarka.
Mu'izz al-Din[edit]
Main article: Mu'izz al-Din

Map of the Ghurid dynasty at its greatest extent under Ghiyath al-Din Muhammad.

Mu'izz al-Din better known as Shahāb-ud-Din Muhammad Ghori was a conqueror from the
region of Ghor in Afghanistan. Before 1160, the Ghaznavid Empire covered an area running
from central Afghanistan east to the Punjab, with capitals at Ghazni on the banks of Ghazni
river in present-day Afghanistan, and at Lahore in present-day Pakistan. In 1160, the
Ghorids conquered Ghazni from the Ghaznavids, and in 1173 Muhammad Bin Sām was
made governor of Ghazni. He raided eastwards into the remaining Ghaznavid territory, and
invaded Gujarat in the 1180s but was defeated by the Indian queen Naikidevi of Gujarat.[64]
[65]
 In 1186 and 1187 he conquered Lahore in alliance with a local Hindu ruler, ending the
Ghaznavid empire and bringing the last of Ghaznavid territory under his control, and seemed
to be the first Muslim ruler seriously interested in expanding his domain in the sub-continent,
and like his predecessor Mahmud initially started off against the Ismailikingdom
of Multan that had regained independence during the Nizari conflicts, and then onto booty
and power.
In 1191, he invaded the territory of Prithviraj III of Ajmer, who ruled much of present-
day Rajasthan and Punjab, but was defeated at the First battle of Tarain.[66] The following
year, Mu'izz al-Din assembled 120,000 horsemen and once again invaded India. Mu'izz al-
Din's army met Prithviraj's army again at Tarain, and this time Mu'izz al-Din won; Govindraj
was slain, Prithviraj executed[67] and Mu'izz al-Din advanced onto Delhi. Within a year, Mu'izz
al-Din controlled Northern Rajasthan and Northern Ganges-Yamuna Doab. After these
victories in India, and Mu'izz al-Din's establishment of a capital in Delhi, Multan was also
incorporated into his empire. Mu'izz al-Dinthen returned east to Ghazni to deal with the threat
on his eastern frontiers from the Turks and Mongols, whiles his armies continued to advance
through Northern India, raiding as far east as Bengal.
Mu'izz al-Din returned to Lahore after 1200. In 1206, Mu'izz al-Din had to travel to Lahore to
crush a revolt. On his way back to Ghazni, his caravan rested at Damik near Sohawa (which
is near the city of Jhelum in the Punjab province of modern-day Pakistan). He was
assassinated on 15 March 1206, while offering his evening prayers. The identity of Ghori's
assassins is disputed, with some claiming that he was assassinated by local
Hindu Gakhars and others claiming he was assassinated by Hindu Khokhars, both being
different tribes.
The Khokhars were killed in large numbers, and the province was pacified. After settling the
affairs in the Punjab. Mu'izz al-Din marched back to Ghazni. While camping at Dhamayak in
1206 AD in the Jehlum district, the sultan was murdered by the Khokhars[68]
Some claim that Mu'izz al-Din was assassinated by the Hashshashin, a
radical Ismaili Muslim sect.[69][70]
According to his wishes, Mu'izz al-Din was buried where he fell, in Damik. Upon his death his
most capable general, Qutb-ud-din Aybak, took control of Mu'izz al-Din's Indian conquests
and declared himself the first Sultan of Delhi.[citation needed]
The Delhi Sultanate[edit]
Main article: Delhi Sultanate

Delhi Sultanate reached its zenith under the Turko-Indian Tughlaq dynasty.[71]

Muhammad's successors established the first dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate, while

the Mamluk Dynasty in 1211 (however, the Delhi Sultanate is traditionally held to have been
founded in 1206) seized the reins of the empire. Mamluk means "slave" and referred to the
Turkic slave soldiers who became rulers. The territory under control of the Muslim rulers in
Delhi expanded rapidly. By mid-century, Bengal and much of central India was under the
Delhi Sultanate. Several Turko-Afghan dynasties ruled from Delhi: the Mamluk (1206–1290),
the Khalji (1290–1320), the Tughlaq (1320–1414), the Sayyid (1414–51), and
the Lodhi (1451–1526). During the time of Delhi Sultanate, the Vijayanagara Empireresisted
successfully attempts of Delhi Sultanate to establish dominion in the Southern India, serving
as a barrier against invasion by the Muslims.[72] Certain kingdoms remained independent of
Delhi such as the larger kingdoms of Punjab, Rajasthan, parts of the Deccan,
Gujarat, Malwa (central India), and Bengal, nevertheless all of the area in present-day
Pakistan came under the rule of Delhi.
The image, in the chapter on India in Hutchison's Story of the Nations edited by James Meston,
depicts the Bakhtiyar Khilji's massacre of Buddhist monks in Bihar, India. Khilji destroyed
the Nalanda and Vikramshilauniversities during his raids across North Indian plains, massacring
many Buddhist and Brahminscholars.[73]

The Sultans of Delhi enjoyed cordial, if superficial, relations with Muslim rulers in the Near
East but owed them no allegiance. They based their laws on the Quran and the sharia and
permitted non-Muslim subjects to practice their religion only if they paid the jizya (poll tax).
They ruled from urban centres, while military camps and trading posts provided the nuclei for
towns that sprang up in the countryside.
Perhaps the most significant contribution of the Sultanate was its temporary success in
insulating the subcontinent from the potential devastation of the Mongol invasion from
Central Asia in the 13th century, which nonetheless led to the capture of Afghanistan and
western Pakistan by the Mongols (see the Ilkhanate Dynasty). Under the Sultanate, "Indo-
Muslim" fusion left lasting monuments in architecture, music, literature, and religion. In
addition it is surmised that the language of Urdu (literally meaning "horde" or "camp" in
various Turkic dialects) was born during the Delhi Sultanate period as a result of the mingling
of Sanskritic Hindi and the Persian, Turkish, Arabic favoured by the Muslim invaders of
India[citation needed].
The Sultanate suffered significantly from the sacking of Delhi in 1398 by Timur, but revived
briefly under the Lodi Dynasty, the final dynasty of the Sultanate before it was conquered
by Zahiruddin Babur in 1526, who subsequently founded the Mughal Dynasty that ruled from
the 16th to the 18th centuries.
Timur[edit]
Main article: Timur
Tīmūr bin Taraghay Barlas, known in the West as Tamerlane or "Timur the lame", was a
14th-century warlord of Turco-Mongoldescent,[74][75][76][77] conqueror of much of western and
central Asia, and founder of the Timurid Empire (1370–1507) in Central Asia; the Timurid
dynasty survived until 1857 as the Mughal dynasty of India.
Timur defeats the Sultan of Delhi, Nasir-u Din Mehmud, in the winter of 1397–1398

Informed about civil war in South Asia, Timur began a trek starting in 1398 to invade the
reigning Sultan Nasir-u Din Mehmud of the Tughlaq Dynasty in the north Indian city of Delhi.
[78]
 His campaign was politically pretexted that the Muslim Delhi Sultanate was too tolerant
toward its "Hindu" subjects, but that could not mask the real reason being to amass the
wealth of the Delhi Sultanate.[79]
Timur crossed the Indus River at Attock (now Pakistan) on 24 September. In Haryana, his
soldiers each killed 50 to 100 Hindus.[80]
Timur's invasion did not go unopposed and he did meet some resistance during his march to
Delhi, most notably with the Sarv Khap coalition in northern India, and
the Governor of Meerut. Although impressed and momentarily stalled by the valour of
Ilyaas Awan, Timur was able to continue his relentless approach to Delhi, arriving in 1398 to
combat the armies of Sultan Mehmud, already weakened by an internal battle for ascension
within the royal family.
The Sultan's army was easily defeated on 17 December 1398. Timur entered Delhi and the
city was sacked, destroyed, and left in ruins. Before the battle for Delhi, Timur executed
more than 100,000 "Hindu" captives.[74][78]
Timur himself recorded the invasions in his memoirs, collectively known as Tuzk-i-Timuri.[74][74]
[78][81][82]
 Timur's purported autobiography, the Tuzk-e-Taimuri ("Memoirs of Temur") is a later
fabrication, although most of the historical facts are accurate.[83]
Muslim historian Irfan Habib writes in "Timur in the Political Tradition and Historiography of
Mughal India" that in the 14th century, the word "Hindu" (people of "Al-Hind", "Hind" being
"India") included "both Hindus and Muslims" in religious connotations.[84]
When Timur entered Delhi after defeating Mahmud Toghloq's forces, he granted an amnesty
in return for protection money (mâl-e amâni). But on the fourth day he ordered that all the
people of the city be enslaved; and so they were. Thus reports Yahya, who here inserts a
pious prayer in Arabic for the victims’ consolation ("To God we return, and everything
happens by His will"). Yazdi, on the other hand, does not have any sympathy to waste on
these wretches. He records that Timur had granted protection to the people of Delhi on the
18th of December 1398, and the collectors had begun collecting the protection money. But
large groups of Timur's soldiers began to enter the city and, like birds of prey, attacked its
citizens. The "pagan Hindus" (Henduân-e gabr) having had the temerity to begin immolating
their women and themselves, the three cities of Delhi were put to sack by Timur's soldiers.
"Faithless Hindus", he adds, had gathered in the Congregation Mosque of Old Delhi and
Timur's officers put them ruthlessly to slaughter there on the 29th of December. Clearly,
Yazdi's "Hindus" included Muslims as well.[clarification needed][85]
However, that does not prove that the men gathering at the mosque were Muslims as it could
have been Hindus who gathered at the Mosque for protection.
The statement implying that Muslims were targeted during the Delhi massacre was
contradicted by Timur's own words, during the 15 day massacre of Delhi, Timur himself
stated that "Excepting the quarters of the sayyids, the 'ulama and the other Musalmans
(Muslims), the whole city was sacked", proving that Timur differentiated between the two
religious groups (Muslims and Hindus).[86]
During the mass murder of Delhi, Timur's soldiers massacred more than 150,000 Indians,
and all inhabitants not killed were capturedand enslaved.[87]
Timur's memoirs on his invasion of India describe in detail the massacre of "Hindus", looting
plundering and raping of their women and the plunder of the wealth of Hindustan (Greater
India). It gives details of how villages, towns and entire cities were rid of their "Hindu" male
population through systematic mass slaughters and genocide.
Timur left Delhi in approximately January 1399. In April he had returned to his own capital
beyond the Oxus (Amu Darya). Immense quantities of spoils were taken from India.
According to Ruy Gonzáles de Clavijo, 90 captured elephants were employed merely to
carry precious stones looted from his conquest, so as to erect a mosque at Samarkand —
what historians today believe is the enormous Bibi-Khanym Mosque. Ironically, the mosque
was constructed too quickly and suffered greatly from disrepair within a few decades of its
construction.
Regional sultanates[edit]
Kashmir was conquered by the Shah Mir dynasty in the 14th century. Regional kingdoms
such as Bengal, Gujarat, Malwa, Khandesh, Jaunpur, and Bahmanis expanded at the
expense of the Delhi Sultanate. Gaining conversions to Islam was easier under regional
Sultanates.[88]
Deccan Sultanates[edit]
See also: Battle of Talikota

Battle of Talikota.

Five Muslim kingdoms had formed a coalition against Vijayanagra during the Battle of

Talikota.
Map of the Deccan Sultanates.

The Mughal Empire[edit]

Main article: Mughal Empire
See also: Ahom–Mughal conflicts
India in the 16th century presented a fragmented picture of rulers who lacked concern for
their subjects and failed to create a common body of laws or institutions.[citation needed] Outside
developments also played a role in shaping events. The circumnavigation of Africa by the
Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama in 1498 allowed Europeans to challenge Muslim
control of the trading routes between Europe and Asia. In Central Asia and Afghanistan,
shifts in power pushed Babur of Ferghana (in present-day Uzbekistan) southward, first
to Kabul and then to India. The dynasty he founded endured for more than three centuries.

The Mughal EmperorAkbar shoots the Rajput warrior Jaimal during the Siege of Chittorgarh in
1567.
 


 Bullocks dragging siege-guns up hill during Mughal Emperor Akbar's attack on Ranthambhor
Fort in 1568.
 

The Mughal Armycommanded by Akbar attack members of the Sannyasa during the Battle of

Thanesar.
 Mughal Emperor Akbar attempts to dissuade the young Hindu girl from committing sati[89]
 

The Mughal Emperor Akbar fights Pehlwaniwith his Hindu general Raja Man Singh I.
 

Rajput women commit Jauhar during Akbar's invasion.

 

A War elephantexecuting the opponents of the Mughal Emperor Akbar.

Babur[edit]
Main article: Babur

Babur and the Mughal Army at the Urvah valley in Gwalior.

Claiming descent from both Genghis Khan and Timur, Babur combined strength and courage
with a love of beauty, and military ability with cultivation. He concentrated on gaining control
of Northwestern India, doing so in 1526 by defeating the last Lodhi Sultan at the First battle
of Panipat, a town north of Delhi. Babur then turned to the tasks of persuading his Central
Asian followers to stay on in India and of overcoming other contenders for power, mainly
the Rajputsand the Afghans. He succeeded in both tasks but died shortly thereafter in 1530.
The Mughal Empire was one of the largest centralised states in premodern history and was
the precursor to the British Indian Empire.
Babur was followed by his great-grandson, Shah Jahan (r. 1628–58), builder of the Taj
Mahaland other magnificent buildings. Two other towering figures of the Mughal era
were Akbar (r. 1556–1605) and Aurangzeb (r. 1658–1707). Both rulers expanded the empire
greatly and were able administrators. However, Akbar was known for his religious tolerance
and administrative genius while Aurangzeb was a pious Muslim and fierce advocate of more
orthodox Islam.
Aurangzeb[edit]
Main article: Aurangzeb
In the year 1690 the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb's realms spanned from in the
west Kabul to Chittagong in the east; from Leh in the north to Cape Comorin in the south.[90]

While some rulers were zealous in their spread of Islam, others were relatively liberal.
Moghul emperor Akbar was relatively liberal and established a new religion, Din E Elahi,
which included beliefs from different religions. He abolished the jizya twice. In contrast, his
great-grandson Aurangazebwas a more religious and orthodox ruler.
In the century-and-a-half that followed the death of Aurangzeb, effective Muslim control
weakened. Succession to imperial and even provincial power, which had often become
hereditary, was subject to intrigue and force. The mansabdari system gave way to
the zamindari system, in which high-ranking officials took on the appearance of hereditary
landed aristocracy with powers of collecting rents. As Delhi's control waned, other
contenders for power emerged and clashed, thus preparing the way for the eventual British
takeover.
Durrani Empire[edit]
Main article: Durrani Empire
See also: Ahmad Shah Durrani, Third Battle of Panipat, and Pashtun empires and dynasties

Ahmad Shah Durrani and his coalition decisively defeat the Maratha Confederacy, during the Third
Battle of Panipat and restored the Mughal Empire to Shah Alam II.[91]

Ahmed Shah Abdali – a Pashtun – embarked on a conquest in South Asia starting in 1747.
[92]
In the short space of just over a quarter of a century, he forged one of the largest Muslim
empires of the 18th century. The high point of his conquests was his victory over the
powerful Marathas in the third Battle of Panipat 1761. In the Indian subcontinent, his empire
stretched from the Indus at Attock all the way to the outskirts of Delhi. Uninterested in long-
term of conquest or in replacing the Mughal Empire, he became increasingly pre occupied
with revolts by the Sikhs.[93] Sikh holocaust of 1762 took place under the Muslim provincial
government based at Lahore to wipe out the Sikhs, with 30,000 Sikhs being killed, an
offensive that had begun with the Mughals, with the Sikh holocaust of 1746,[94] and lasted
several decades under its Muslim successor states. His empire started to unravel not long
after his death.

Decline of Muslim rule in Indian subcontinent[edit]

See also: Maratha Empire and Sikh Empire
Maratha Empire[edit]

Maratha Empire at its zenith in 1760 (yellow area) stretching from the Deccan to present-day Pakistan.
The Marathas even discussed abolishing the Mughal throne and placing Vishwasrao Peshwa on
the Mughalimperial throne in Delhi.[95]

There is no doubt that the single most important power to emerge in the long twilight of the
Mughal dynasty was the Maratha Confederacy (1674 CE - 1818 CE).[96] The Marathas are
responsible, to a large extent, for ending Mughal rule in India.[97] The Maratha Empire ruled
large parts of India following the decline of the Mughals. The long and futile war bankrupted
one of the most powerful empires in the world. Mountstart Elphinstone termed this a
demoralizing period for the Muslims as many of them lost the will to fight against the Maratha
Empire.[98][99][100] Maratha empire at its peak stretched from Tamil Nadu (Trichinopoly)
"present Tiruchirappalli" in the south to the Afghan border in the north.[101][102][103] In early 1771,
Mahadji, a notable Maratha general, recaptured Delhi and installed Shah Alam II as the
puppet ruler on the Mughal throne. In north India, the Marathas thus regained the territory
and the prestige lost as result of the defeat at Panipath in 1761.[104] However regions
of Kashmir, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Western Punjab, were captured by Marathas between
1758 and 1759, remained in Afghan rule before ascension of Sikh power.[105] Mahadji ruled
the Punjab as it used to be a Mughal territory and Sikh sardars and other Rajas of the cis-
Sutlej region paid tributes to him.[106] A considerable portion of the Indian subcontinent came
under the sway of the British Empire after the Third Anglo-Maratha War, which ended the
Maratha Empire in 1818.
Sikh Empire[edit]

Sikh Empire, established by Ranjit Singh in North-west India.

In northwest India, in the Punjab, Sikhsdeveloped themselves into a powerful force under the
authority of twelve Misls. By 1801, Ranjit Singh captured Lahore and threw off the Afghan
yoke from North West India.[107] In Afghanistan Zaman Shah Durrani was defeated by
powerful Barakzai chief Fateh Khan who appointed Mahmud Shah Durrani as the new ruler
of Afghanistan and appointed himself as Wazir of Afghanistan.[108] Sikhs however were now
superior to the Afghans and started to annex Afghan provinces. The biggest victory of
the Sikh Empire over the Durrani Empire came in the Battle of Attock fought in 1813 between
Sikh and Wazir of Afghanistan Fateh Khan and his younger brother Dost Mohammad Khan.
The Afghans were routed by the Sikh army and the Afghans lost over 9,000 soldiers in this
battle. Dost Mohammad was seriously injured whereas his brother Wazir Fateh Khan fled
back to Kabul fearing that his brother was dead.[109] In 1818 they slaughtered Afghans and
Muslims in trading city of Multan killing Afghan governor Nawab Muzzafar Khan and five of
his sons in the Siege of Multan.[110] In 1819 the last Indian Province of Kashmirwas conquered
by Sikhs who registered another crushing victory over weak Afghan General Jabbar Khan.
[111]
 The Koh-i-Noor diamond was also taken by Maharaja Ranjit Singh in 1814. In 1823 a Sikh
Army routed Dost Mohammad Khan the Sultan of Afghanistan and his brother Azim Khan at
Naushera (Near Peshawar). By 1834 the Sikh Empire extended up to the Khyber Pass. Hari
Singh Nalwa the Sikh general remained the governor of Khyber Agency till his death in 1837.
He consolidated Sikh hold in tribal provinces. The northernmost Indian territories
of Gilgit, Baltistan and Ladakh was annexed between 1831-1840.[112]