L13: Regional Powers: Gujarat, Jaunpur, Bengal, Ahoms & Kashmir l Medieval History #UPSC

Namaskar Friends, Welcome to Pathfinder. My name is Dr. Mahipal Singh Rathod. Continuing the lecture series of Medieval Indian History, today we will discuss some important dynasties of 15th century India after the Tughlaq period. Gujarat, Bengal, Jaunpur, Kashmir are some important dynasties or regional powers which become powerful in 15th century India after the Tughlaq dynasty is gone. Tughlaq dynasty is the last powerful dynasty of Sultanate period. In last lecture we have studied about Sayyid dynasty. Sayyid dynasty was very weak and at the same time all these dynasties become powerful. Before moving ahead, some important things. You can download lectures pdf from telegram channel. You can follow me on unacademy app on this id. I have special classes related to quality. Apart from that, there are two courses. MCQ course of art and culture which is ongoing right now. And an upcoming history and art and culture crash course for 2022 prelims. 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But this is a very limited period offer. In a few days, the price of subscription is also going to increase. So before that, avail the subscription. If you have any doubt, you can call on this number. Here you will get all the information, best code, best discount, everything. Now let's come to post Tughlaq India. So it is the beginning of 15th century. That is, it is starting from 1401. So this is the time period when in 1398, Taimur attacked Delhi. Tughlaq dynasty was able to save its name. In fact, the Tughlaq dynasty had become so weak that They left Delhi and went towards Gujarat and Malwa. And all the nobles, powerful landlords in the Doab region have become independent. They are de facto independent. And whoever had the strength, he made such a big kingdom. So in the same way, a very big kingdom is made in the Doab region. That is of the Eastern Sultans. And it is called the Jaunpur Sultanate. Approximately for 90 years, this sultanate was running. It has done a lot of development. And it was a very prominent place for writers, etc. So here is the area of the Delhi Sultanate, which you are seeing. Actually, the Delhi Sultanate is not so powerful anymore. Only in North India, there is a small area of Delhi of 200-300 km area. This was the power of the Delhi Sultanate. And here in the area of Uttar Pradesh, especially towards Eastern Uttar Pradesh, The Sharqi dynasty establishes its rule. So the Sharqi dynasty was established in 1394. Malik Sharawar in Uttar Pradesh. The name is important, remember. So Malik Sharawar was first made a vizier under the Tughlaq Sultan. So he was like a very important minister. And later he was made Lord of the East. Malik-us-Sharq. Sharq means East direction in Arabic. So Malik-us-Sharq. That is, he is literally the governor of the Eastern provinces. But this person declared himself independent. In fact, he declared himself independent before the attack of Taimur. He used to rule from Jaunpur. Jaunpur is in Eastern Uttar Pradesh. So Jaunpur was a little closer to the border between Bihar and Bengal. And Jaunpur was called Shiraz of the East. Shiraz is actually a very famous city of Persia. Where the architecture is amazing. And on this basis, the Sharqi Sultans also tried to develop Jaunpur. And many big architectural marvels were made here. So the area of the Sharqi Sultanate was from Aligarh to Darbhanga. And from Nepal to Bundelkhand. At its maximum extent. But in 1479, these Sharqi Sultans lost to the Lodhi dynasty. So Sikandar, I am sorry, Bahlol Lodhi attacked them continuously. And finally, he is able to defeat them in 1479. So this dynasty has a time period of about 90 years. Jaunpur was made its capital. Jaunpur was called Shiraz of the East. And Jaunpur has become famous because here, Learning and culture developed very fast. Many writers, poets, they get support from the state. In fact, Malik Mohammad Jaisi, who wrote Padmavat in the future, He also used to live in Jaunpur. So Jaunpur had become a very developed city. And in fact, it had developed many times from Delhi. So the prominence of Delhi, now that prominence for a few years, For a few decades, becomes of Jaunpur. And here, very big mosques, mausoleums, gardens were built. And their architecture is of a different kind. So in the architecture of Jaunpur, You will find big doors, lofty gates, and huge arches. So you see in this photograph, how big this door is. This is a mosque, but the door of this mosque has been made very big. And the size of these arches has also increased a lot. So that's why this is a unique architecture. So this is the Atala Masjid. Name is important, write it down. Atala Masjid of Jaunpur. After that, this is Jama Masjid of Jaunpur. So look at its arch, how big it is. So this Jama Masjid was built by Hussain Shah of Jaunpur. Name is not that important. Just the specialty of Jama Masjid of Jaunpur, Or the architectural specialty of Jaunpur Sultanate, You need to know some important characteristics. So this is the sequence of this dynasty. Just remember two names. One is Malik Sharwar, who established the dynasty. And the second name is Hussain Khan, because he is the last Sultan. Okay. He tried to conquer Delhi many times. But he failed every time. Mostly due to the Lodhi Sultanate. And because of this, he couldn't win Delhi. Ultimately, Bahlol Lodhi attacked him and again included him in his empire. So originally he was a governor. He became independent. He remained independent for 80-90 years. But after that, this kingdom ended and again joined with Delhi. Then let's come to Kashmir. For many centuries, Hindu dynasties ruled in Kashmir. But in the beginning of 14th century, Around 1320, when the Mongols attacked here, After that, a Muslim dynasty was established. And in this dynasty, Sikandar Shah and Zain-ul-Abidin. Two such Sultans whose names you should remember. And what they did and what they didn't do. This should also be known. So the first name is Sikandar Shah. 1389-1413. If you don't remember the exact time period, it's okay. But remember the turn of the 14th century. If you remember like this, it will work. When the 14th century is ending, At that time, Sikandar Shah is the ruler in Kashmir. When Taimur attacked Delhi, At that time, Sikandar Shah ruled Kashmir. Now Sikandar Shah was very notorious because of his anti-Hindu policy. So Hindus were forced to convert. Many Brahmins were forced to leave Kashmir. And those who were living there, They were forced to accept Islam. So there are forced conversions on a very large scale here. And after that, Muslim population starts increasing in Kashmir. So during Sikandar Shah's 25-year tenure, A lot of Muslim population increases here. And it was mainly due to forced conversions. And Hindus were forced to leave the valley. So in fact, Kashmiri Pandits, One of the earliest escape from the valley, It was during the rule of Sikandar Shah. Sikandar Shah was given the name of Buddha Shikand. Buddha Shikand means the person who breaks the idol. So he broke so many temples and idols, That the name itself became Buddha Shikand. But after that, an important ruler comes, Zain-ul-Abideen. Zain-ul-Abideen is also called Badshah. Badshah means the great Sultan. Because he did a lot of good work. So Zain-ul-Abideen is also called Akbar of Kashmir. This is also a title, if you want you can write it. It is not written here on the slide. So Zain-ul-Abideen's rule was very long. It was a 50-year rule. And at this time, many policies were reversed during Sikandar Shah's time. For example, all the atrocities against non-Muslims, Especially against Hindus, were stopped. Jizya tax was stopped. And many Hindus who had left the valley, were called back. Many temples were repaired. Many new libraries were built. In fact, his most important minister was a Hindu, Shriya Bhatt. Who was both Minister of Justice and Court Physician. Zain-ul-Abideen himself married a Hindu princess from Jammu. And here he made an island called Zainalanka, Which is located in Gular Lake. A palace and a mosque were built here. Kalhan's Raj Tarangini, which was written a few centuries ago, It was translated into Farsi by Zain-ul-Abideen. The Mongols attacked Ladakh again. And this attack was repealed. Zain-ul-Abideen captured Baltistan. The area of Baltistan is called the Old Tibet. So Zain-ul-Abideen's rule was very good for Kashmir. Religious freedom was also good. And ultimately Kashmir became a very peaceful place. And Kashmir was again seen as a center of learning. Actually, before the Muslim rule, Many people used to come to Kashmir to study. It was a big center of learning, especially of Shaivism. But in the 14th century, that image was a little down. Because of the attacks, etc. But now in the 15th century, Kashmir becomes very important again in the time period of Zain-ul-Abideen. And many industries also develop. For example, Zain-ul-Abideen increased the carpet industry. Then we come to Eastern India. So after discussing the region of North and UP, If we come to East India, It is important to know what was happening in Bengal and Assam. Now often, while studying medieval history, Students completely deny this part. Not much information is given about it in books. Students often complain to me that Why don't we study about Ahoms? Why don't we study about this dynasty? Why didn't we learn about that king? So today I am telling you, so know it. So see, in Bengal, You may remember that in the last lecture, I read that a person named Ilyas Established his dynasty there. So the rule of Bengal Sultanate Starts from 1352. And it continues for about 230 years. When Akbar finally won Bengal in 1576. So this is a long rule. And Ilyas established this dynasty. When there was Tughlaq rule in Delhi. Feroz Shah Tughlaq had fought against Ilyas. And it was established in 1340s. But here, a very complex game was going on. Why? So see, here in Bengal, Ilyas established his dynasty. But there was a very powerful kingdom here. Kamrup or Kamata. Which is present in the western part of Assam today. And here was Ahoms. Upper Assam, Upper Brahmaputra Valley area Is the kingdom of Ahoms. More information about Ahoms, I am going to give you in a few minutes. For now, let's see the dynasty of Bengal. So Ilyas Shahi dynasty, Which was established by Ilyas. Here are some important sultans, Whose names you will have to remember. First, Azam Shah. If you see the history of Azam Shah, It is almost parallel to Sikandar Shah of Kashmir. It is almost the same time. So Azam Shah was known for his justice system. In fact, if his own relatives made a mistake, They were also punished. He had very good literary ties with Iran. He called many poets here. Poet Hafiz, who was from Shiraz. This is the same Shiraz of Iran. Which was tried to be copied by Jaunpur. So poets come from there. They live here. They write poems. The development of Bengali literature happens. Azam Shah also had good relations with Ming dynasty of China. Evidence of this is also found in the history of China. That the demand of Buddhist monks was sent. That we need Buddhist monks. And Sultan of Bengal had sent these Buddhist monks. This means that Buddhism has not completely ended yet. Although it has ended on a large scale. But maybe there are still a few monks where Buddhism is being followed. So such Buddhist monks go to China at the request of Azam Shah. Ilyas Shahi, Dynasty of Bengal. There was a lot of business through Chidgong port. In fact, with the Chinese empire, Bengal had a very strong business in the 14th and 15th century. So it is not that the East India Company came and taught us trade. There was a lot of trade in India before. They monopolized their trade. In some Chinese manuscripts, it is also said that a giraffe was gifted from Bengal and sent to the Ming emperor. Now I don't even know where this giraffe came from. Because the giraffe is not found naturally in India. Maybe they brought it here through Arab traders from Africa. And then sent it to China from here. So you see how great the trade is. From Africa to Bengal, from Bengal to China. It is true that this giraffe was gifted by the Sultan of Bengal to the Ming Dynasty. The tomb of Azam Shah is very small. If you look at the tombs of the Sultans of Bengal, they are not so big. There are very few big tombs. So this is situated in Sonargaon which is present day in Bangladesh. After the death of Azam Shah, the Ilyas Shahi Dynasty becomes very weak for a few years. And here a local Hindu king becomes a landlord whose name was Raja Ganesh. So Raja Ganesh removes the Islamic Dynasty and establishes himself in Pandua. Pandua is also one of the capitals of Bengal. In Bengal, many capitals change depending on the king. So here he establishes himself in Pandua and also marries the widow of Azam Shah. So this was a small period of time when Hindu rule came in the middle of Bengal Sultanate. So this is something like rule of Hemu at Delhi which we will study in the coming lectures. But this rule of Raja Ganesh does not last for a long time. Hindu rule does not last because his sons again accepted Islam and started ruling as Muslims. Chinese and Burmese accounts of this time tell that there is an attack of Sharki Dynasty on Bengal but Raja Ganesh defeated them. So Sharki Dynasty tries to expand here in East but Raja Ganesh of Bengal defeated them. So Sharki Dynasty is trying to expand on both sides but it could not expand beyond this limit. So mostly present day Uttar Pradesh area was under their control. Bengal Sultans built many architectural marvels in their two capitals, Pandua and Gaud. In both these capitals, many buildings, mosques and maqbaras were built. And all these architectural styles are different from Delhi's architecture. So this is a very unique factor here. Here bricks are used a lot. So in Delhi, stone is used a lot. In North India, stone is used a lot. Here along with stone, bricks are also used. So you will see here, many bricks are used. So this is Adina Masjid in Pandua which was India's biggest mosque at that time. This was India's biggest mosque for many centuries. Later when Jama Masjid was built in Delhi, it became bigger than this. And you can see the condition of this. Its roof has broken a lot. So this is there but in a very bad shape today. So Adina Masjid at Pandua was built by Bengal Sultans. After that, Badshah-e-Taqt is also located at Adina Masjid. So here also you can see the use of bricks. Stone is used below and bricks are used above to make arches. Then this is a typical Bengal roof. So this is a very important feature of Bengal's architectural style. That the shape of the roof here is something like this. This arch that you can see, this arch shape can be seen in many places in Bengal's architecture. So this is a special roof in Gaud. This is basically a mausoleum roof. So the use of bricks, this kind of sloping roof. Here you can see the slope. This is a sloping roof. Later we will see dome shaped roofs in Mughal architecture etc. So don't forget this roof. This is very important for art and culture. Then Bengal's Sultans also increased the Bengali language a lot. There is a Bengali famous poet, Maladhar Basu, who wrote Shri Krishna Vijay. And he was given the title of Guneraj Khan. And his son was also honoured with the title of Satyaraj Khan. So all these were in the court of Bengal's Sultans. They were supported by the Bengal Sultans. That's why the Bengali language also develops a lot here. Then there is another name, Alauddin Hussain Shah. He founded the Hussain Shah dynasty. So a person changed the dynasty, that is, the family changed. But it is the rule of the Bengal Sultans. So this is the Hussain Shah dynasty. At this time, the growth of the Bengali language is the most. And in the time of Alauddin Hussain Shah, Hindus are given big titles. Like Wazir, Chief of Bodyguard, Master of Mint etc. Here, at this time, the Bhakti Saints named Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu are also alive. Their time period is very important. Mark it as 1486 to 1534. That is, at the end of the 15th century and at the beginning of the 16th century, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu was telling people about his Bhakti in Bengal. So he was spreading Vaishnavism at that time. He is one of the most prominent Vaishnavite Saints in the Bhakti tradition. Vaishnavism grows a lot here in Bengal during the time of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. And he had two disciples, Rupa and Sanatan. Sanatan was also in a very high post. He left his post in the Bengal Sultanate and came to take the message of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu to the people. So they were under the service of Sultan Alauddin Hussain Shah. Alauddin Hussain Shah won Chittagong, i.e. this area, from the king of Burma, a kingdom named Arakan. And he also annexed Tripura for some time. He also annexed Tripura and expanded the kingdom a lot. During the time of Ilyas Shahi dynasty, I had told you about Kamta and Kamrup. So here a different tripartite struggle is going on. Don't write this as tripartite struggle. But this is a struggle of three parties, Bengal, Kamrup and Ahoms. So in this struggle, at one time, Alauddin Hussain Shah attacked Kamta and also told Ahoms to attack from there. So when both of them attacked, Kamta lost badly. Kamtapur kingdom almost ended. And both of them divided into two, Bengal and Ahoms. Did you see any parallel here? In World War II, a similar thing happened with a country. Which country was that? You tell me. Due to the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact, one country faced the same fate as Kamtapur. Tell me in the comments if anyone knows. So Kamtapur kingdom lost badly due to the combined attack of Bengal and Ahoms. And after that, Ahoms became very powerful here. So the Ahom dynasty has been present for many centuries. But now it has become very powerful. Almost the whole of Assam is now under its control. So 2930 is written here. This whole area has come under the control of Ahoms. But some of these areas used to be the Dimsah kingdom. So Dimsah kingdom, which is now the Kachar district, if you have heard its name. Kachar hills, Kachar district in Assam. So there used to be a Kachar dynasty here too. They also used to compete with Ahoms. So they also had a lot of territory. But yes, Ahoms has now become very powerful. When Alauddin Hussain Shah won the area of Kamtapur, he built a mosque there. Panbari Masjid in Gwalpara district of Assam. So this is the Panbari Masjid in Gwalpara district of Assam. Alauddin Hussain Shah made his son Prince Daniyal the governor here in Kamta. But here, unfortunately, his rule does not last for so long. So the local chieftains of Kamtapur, or the local big landlords, who were powerful soldiers, landowners, they killed Sultan Alauddin's son, Prince Daniyal, i.e. the governor, and took the power to themselves. So many Afghans were also established here to establish the rule. But they were all killed by these 12 Bhuyans. So 12 Bhuyans, i.e. 12 soldier landowners, took control of Kamtapur again and removed the Muslim rule from here. But no king is ruling here. It was working like a confederacy. Confederacy means where some people are ruling together. Ultimately, some internal power struggles took place here, and the Kutch dynasty was established. So the Kutch dynasty has been going on here for many centuries. It was established in 1515 by Biswa Singha. So Kutch is the princely state of Bihar, which you will also hear about in the time of the British. So this Kutch-Bihar-Bahi-Kutch dynasty starts from here. Recently, the Kamtapur Liberation Organization was in the news. Just a few weeks ago, it was in the news. So keep in mind which area is Kamtapur. So read page no. 134-135 of the 11th class medieval history NCRT. And why is this Kamtapur named? Why is it called KLO Organization? Because they want a separate state named Kamtapur in Assam. Then let's come to the Ahoms. So the Ahom dynasty was established in the 13th century. To be very specific, around 1228. A Chinese or Burmese prince named Sukhfa. So he comes to India from China's Yunnan territory or Burma. He was expelled from there. The country was expelled. There was a fight between his family. Probably due to that, he crossed the mountains and he came over to the territory of present-day Assam. So he comes to the territory of present-day Assam. His name was Sukhfa. And he establishes a new dynasty here. So the Ahoms were of Tibetan-Burmese origin. They were of Tibetan-Burmese origin. Sukhfa established the Ahom dynasty here. This is the time period of the 13th century, 1228. And after that, this dynasty ruled for around 600 years. So this is one of the longest ruling dynasties in medieval and modern day time period. The Ahoms ruled for 600 years. And of course, there was a period when the initial kings were not that powerful. But they gradually increased their power. And by the time, 15th-16th century comes. By 15th century, they were already very powerful. In 16th century, the most powerful ruler of Ahoms, Sohung-Mung was in power. And then, the entire Brahmaputra valley, almost the area of present-day Assam, was under the control of the Ahoms. Their kingdom was mainly based along the Brahmaputra river. And now, they have become multi-ethnic. How are they multi-ethnic? So, in their rule, there were Hindus, Muslims, and here, they were Tibetan-Burmese. Now, they haven't completely adopted Hinduism. But during Sohung-Mung, after around 300 years, they adopted Hinduism. And the king himself changed his name to Swargnarayan. So, you can see here, their Hinduization starts. So, Ahoms were originally not Hindus, but over the period of time, they gradually started adopting Hinduism or Riti-Rivaz. And ultimately, this will happen when the king himself changes his name. So, this happens only when there is more pressure from the people, then the king changes his name. So, Sohung-Mung changed his name to Swargnarayan. And after that, all the kings of the Ahom dynasty, you will see their Hindu names. And Sohung-Mung stopped the Muslim attacks. The Ahoms were attacked by Bengal. They were repelled. Bengal's Sultan Nusrat Shah attacked the Ahoms. But that attack was completely crushed. And later, when Bengal came under the control of the Mughals, then the Mughals also attacked the Ahoms. There were 17 battles. And in those 17 battles, Ahoms defeated the Mughals almost every time. There were some battles in which the Mughals also won. They won once or twice in the Battle of Guwahati. Guwahati also took control. But ultimately, Guwahati is won by them again. And the Ahoms never let the Mughals establish themselves completely in Assam. Yes, the Mughals reached the region of Kamtapur. But we will discuss that later. But the majority of the Mughals were Ahoms. Now this was the time period when Shankar Dev, a Vaishnavite reformer, was very active in Assam. He was born in 1449. He died in 1568. Again, the end of the 15th century and the middle part of the 16th century. So you can say that Shankar Dev was active in both the 15th and 16th centuries in Assam. He promotes Vaishnavism a lot in Assam. So the Vaishnav sect of Hinduism, the Vaishnav sect of Hinduism, spreads very fast in Assam. And even today, the Satra established by him, you can see, is very widespread in Assam. Satra was also in the news recently. In the border dispute of Assam-Meghalaya, a decision was made because of Satra. I have also made a video on this. Please go and watch it. There I told you what was the role of Satra. What is Satra? It is a kind of monastery. Where the saints live. And from here, the Satrya dance also starts. So you will read all this information in Art and Culture. And again, you will have to correlate it here too. So Shankar Dev is a Vaishnavite reformer. He has a lot of name in Assam. And there is a very important island related to Shankar Dev or Vaishnavite sect. Can you tell me its name in the comments? Let's know a little about Odisha too. So see, Odisha still has the rule of Gajapati kings. We are talking about the 15th century. And there are fights between them and the Bengal Sultanate. There are small fights. Many times, the Gajapati kings took control of the area of Midnapur and today's Hooghly district of Bengal. But yes, the sultans of Bengal also continued to attack Puri and Katak. So this back and forth is going on between Bengal and Odisha. Even today, there is a fight over Rasgulla. Then we come to Gujarat. So see, we have discussed all the important kingdoms. Then Gujarat is left. Now we are in the 15th century. So Gujarat is the area that the Delhi Sultanate always wanted to control. Because it is a very fertile area. It is very fertile. Trade can be done. Very profitable trade can be done from here. You have access to ports if you have control of Gujarat. And it is relatively easy to conquer Gujarat compared to Bengal. Firstly, the distance is a little less. And geography wise also, it is a bit easier to conquer than Bengal. So Gujarat remains the first target. Whoever conquers Delhi, his target is to bring Gujarat under his control first. Gujarat is also a rich province. Because of course, trade, agriculture, everything is good. So it is still very rich. You already know. And it has been throughout the course of history. The soil here is very good. Handicraft, seaports for trade. So that's why every sultan of the time period tried to bring Gujarat under his control. Why did Alauddin Khilji attack Chittor? Because he ultimately wanted to reach Gujarat. He wanted to reach Gujarat. That's why he attacked Mewar and Rajasthan in between. During the rule of Feroz Shah Tughlaq, a person named Zafar Khan was made governor here. A few years after Taimur's attack, Zafar Khan declared himself independent. He saw that there is no one powerful in the center. The sultan himself came to Gujarat. So he bid farewell to the sultan. And declared himself independent here. So Zafar Khan established the Gujarat Sultanate. From 1407 to 1573. Approximately 160 years this Gujarat Sultanate has been in existence. There are three important names that you have to remember. First, Muzaffar Shah. Who is Muzaffar Shah? This is Zafar Khan. He changed his name after becoming a sultan and named himself Muzaffar Shah. Second name, Ahmed Shah. Because he established Ahmedabad city. And third, Mehmood Begada. Who is the most powerful sultan of this dynasty. The most powerful sultan and who increased the empire. That is Mehmood Begada. Initially, his capital was Patan. Which is situated in North Gujarat. You must have heard about Patan. We had discussed it in previous lectures. And it's old name was Anhilwada. Write this as well. Anhilwada was the old name of Patan. But then capital was shifted from Patan to Ahmedabad. Who did this? Ahmed Shah the first. There is a rule between 1411 to 1443. This is not that important. If you remember middle of 15th century, then it will work. Ahmedabad city was established in 1413. And capital was shifted here. New city was established. With his own name. It has a different meaning. Establish a city with your own name. So in 1413, capital was shifted to Ahmedabad. And again, a lot of new construction was done here. Many mosques, many forts. All this was built. And it's architectural style is completely different. So in the empire of Gujarat, you will get to see architectural style. There is a lot of mesh work in it. Fine mesh is carved. Then there are slender turrets here. Exquisite stone carvings are there. Ornate brackets are there. And where is all this style taken from? From Jain temples. So Jain architecture is very prominent in Gujarat. Because there are a lot of Jain temples there. And copying their style, some of its architectural characteristics were taken here. And this kind of mosque was built. So this is a mosque. But if you see it, you will see it completely different from Delhi's architectural style mosque. So that's why a very different kind of architectural style is developed here. This is Ahmedabad's Jama Masjid. Again, its architectural style is very different from Delhi's sultanate period. This is Ahmedabad's three doors. So in every old city, there is a wall. And to get out of that wall, there are some gates, some doors. So this was also a similar door. But usually there is one door. Here they wanted to make it a little grand. That's why they made three doors. Ahmed Shah I expanded the kingdom a lot. Consolidated. Increased a lot. And brought all the nobles or landlords in this area under his control. Settled the administration. Because after the departure of Tughlaq, many people did not consider him the true sultan here. His power was not so established. But Ahmed Shah gave a lot of stability to the government here. There were many local rulers in Saurashtra. Many Rajput rulers were ruling. Saurashtra was not under their control. See, when he came to power, the governors of the sultanate period, they mostly had this one, which is the area of northern Gujarat. This was under their control. They did not have control over Saurashtra. This is also a very fertile area. And trade can be done from here too. So this area was not under their control. So Ahmed Shah attacked here and defeated many local kings here. Okay. And after that, he took over the Girnar Fort. However, he won the Girnar Fort and gave it back to the local king. Because the king said here that we will give you tribute. Which king was he? The Chudasmar dynasty ruled here. This was a Rajput dynasty which ruled from 9th to 15th century in this region of Saurashtra. Girnar is in Junagadh. So see, Junagadh city is located just below the Girnar mountain. Ahmed Shah destroyed a Hindu pilgrimage center called Sidhpur. There were many temples there. He destroyed them by attacking there. This is a photo of that place. Rudra Mahalaya Temple of Sidhpur. This is a very magnificent architectural marvel. Here you see the toran inside the gate. Such beautiful toran are made. The architectural style of this place was very amazing. But many of them were destroyed during the attacks of Ahmed Shah. And Ahmed Shah destroyed Rudra Mahalaya and made a mosque here. Ahmed Shah imposed Jizya on Hindus. Jizya was never imposed in Gujarat before this. And in spite of imposing Jizya, many Hindus were kept on high positions under the rule of Ahmed Shah. Especially, big Hindu merchants like Manik Chand and Modi Chand. Don't you think that there are some similarities? In some countries like Russia, oligarchy is very prominent. It seems that it is not possible to rule without oligarchs. What do you think about this? Tell me in the comments. Ahmed Shah attacked Saurashtra but this area was not under his direct rule. He used to collect tax from here. Mehmood Begada has the privilege of fully integrating Saurashtra region in Gujarat Sultanate. Mehmood Begada who is the most important and powerful Sultan of Gujarat Sultanate. He attacked two forts and that's why his name is Begada. In Gujarati language, Begada means two forts. So, he attacked two forts of Girnar i.e. Junagadh and Pawagadh i.e. Champaner. These two forts were named after the winner. This was a title, Begada. So, Mehmood Begada has a long time period of 50 years. And he has won two important Gujarat forts. In fact, he has won two of the most powerful forts. Earlier, his rule was only in this area. So, after winning Saurashtra, Junagadh somewhere over here and Pawagadh somewhere over here. After winning this, his area increases a lot. And Gujarat Sultanate becomes very powerful. So, in 1472, he was attacked on the fort of Girnar. This is a very old and historical fort. You must remember that in the Mauryan time period, Ashoka had put an inscription here. Ashokan inscription, the Girnar rock inscription is situated over here. That same fort was won by Mehmood Begada. The name of the king who was defeated was Raja Mandilik III of Chudasma dynasty. He was defeated and converted to Islam. Junagadh was changed to the name of the city and was named as Mustafabad. A mosque was built here. Jumma Masjid in Junagadh. You can still see it today. It was built by Mehmood Begada. And remember that Jain and Hindu temples are still present on the Girnar mountain. After that, the next target was Champaner. So, Champaner was targeted because of its location. Pawagadh is a fortress on the top of a hill. There is a fort of Pawagadh on the mountain and there is a city of Champaner below. So, this is the location. And its location was chosen so that Malwa and Khandesh can be attacked in the future. So, if you have control of this place, you can attack on Malwa and Khandesh. In fact, after defeating Pawagadh, Mehmood Begada shifted his capital from Ahmedabad to here. Although, today this city is completely abandoned. Just like Fatehpur Sikri. But for about 40 years, this was the capital of Gujarat Sultanate. So, Pawagadh was ruled by a ruler named Jai Sim Chauhan. He was a descendant of Prithviraj Chauhan. I had told you in the previous lectures that Prithviraj Chauhan's son went to Ranthambore and ruled. After the attack of Alauddin Khilji in Ranthambore, some descendants of that dynasty came here. They travelled to Gujarat and established themselves here. And started ruling from Pawagadh fort. So, Jai Sim Chauhan from Chauhan dynasty, he was the ruler. And this is not 1454. I made a typing mistake. So, this is supposed to be 1484. In 1484, Mehmood Begada won this fort. For 20 months, the army surrounded the fort. It took 20 months of siege to capture this fort. It was such a powerful fort. When Pawagadh was ultimately won, a fort was built here. Just like Chittorgarh. A big fort is also built here. And later, Mehmood built a village called Champaner. There, he built a city called Mohammedabad. Today, it is called Champaner. So, the UNESCO World Heritage Site is called Champaner Pawagadh Archaeological Complex. So, the Pawagadh fort is situated on the top of the hill. There is also a very famous Mahakali temple. There is also a Jain temple there. And in the foothills below, a new city of Champaner is built. And Mehmood Begada shifted his capital here. And huge structures were built here. Like this Jama Masjid. And in this, you will get to see fusion architecture. So, you will see some touches of Rajput architecture, Kshatriya. And some Jain architecture which is used in temples. Like carvings on pillars. Carvings on pillars is a very important characteristic of Jain architecture. You will get to see all this in the architectural site of Champaner. So, a huge palace was built. A mosque was built. And there are a lot of structures today. And although all this is abandoned today. But still, it was a large structure. And this capital was built for 40 years. So, Mehmood Begada shifted his capital. First capital was Patan. Second capital was Ahmedabad. And third capital was Champaner. Of Gujarat Sultanate. Okay. This Gujarat Sultanate ultimately ends during the time of Mughals. Mughals attacked here and won Gujarat. Mehmood Begada annexed entire Saurashtra. Attacked Dwarka. Destroyed Hindu temples here. And during the time of Begada, an interesting thing happens. Portuguese come to India. So, India has come to Vasco da Gama at this time. And Portuguese are now interfering in the trade of Gujarat. Why was Gujarat so rich? Because the trade was very good. But now, the trade of Gujarat is getting affected. Portuguese are slowly making their monopoly. So, the trade of Gujaratis was getting affected. Because earlier, they used to trade with China and Arabs. So, now, in the middle of this trade, Portuguese are trying to make their monopoly. And this upset Gujarat Sultanate a lot. So, they tried to get rid of Portuguese. So, an alliance is formed in which Mamluk Sultanate ruled in Egypt. They were also upset with Portuguese. Gujarat Sultanate was also upset with them. So, both of them fought with Portuguese. And Portuguese lose here in Battle of Chol. Battle of Chol happens in 1508. In which Portuguese lost. But, after a few months, Portuguese again bring their navy. And Battle of Diu happens. And in this, there was Portuguese navy on one side and Gujarat navy on the other side. Admiral Malik Ayaz is the leader. Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt, they are also very powerful. Their navy, Zamorin of Calicut's navy, Ottoman Empire's navy, Venice and Ragusa, Croatia. Basically, these are Christian states. They were also upset with Portuguese. They also came here to fight. Portuguese fought in front of 6 people. And Portuguese win. And Battle of Diu was such a decisive battle. Which helped a lot in establishing Portuguese in India. So, this was a big naval victory for Portuguese in India. And after that, all these powers never look up to Portuguese. They tried a little bit. But, never in such a large number, they will not challenge Portuguese with their navy. And Portuguese in the next 50 years, establish themselves almost in the entire western coast. So, remember at the time of Mahmud Begada, Portuguese came to India. Questions of this kind of chronology can also be asked. In Begada's court, there was a court poet named Uday Raj. He used to write in Sanskrit. Portuguese traveler Barbosa also visited his court. Okay. First, they were friends. Later, they tried to fight. Begada himself was not there in this fight, by the way. Because, he was old. So, that's why he sent his naval commander Malik Ayaz here. So, with this, we end this chapter of 15th century. Now, in the next lecture, what am I going to tell you? So, see, in the next lecture, we will study three important dynasties here. One is Lodhi dynasty, Mewar, and Malwa. 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