History of the Medieval Period

History of the Emergence of Bangladesh

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 Muslim Conquest

q During the first three hundred years or so of Muslim rule, the Turks (তু িক% )
of one or the other group- the Khaljis (খলজী), the Ilbaris (ইলবাির) and the
Qaraunahs (কেরৗনাহ), ruled Bengal.

q The Abyssinian (হাবশী) slaves occupied the throne for a few years in the
late 15th century, and then came successively the Sayyids (3সয়দ), the
Afghans (আফগান) and the Mughals (মুগল).

q So broadly, the Muslim rulers of Bengal belonged to three racial

groups- the Turks, the Afghans and the Mughals.

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 Muslim Conquest: Bakhtiyar Khalji
q Bakhtiyar Khalji conquered Bengal in 1204 CE, and established Muslim
rule.

q Long before this, the Arab Muslims had established commercial and
religious contact, particularly with coastal areas.

q There are three distinct stages in the expansion of Muslim political

power in the Indian subcontinent.

q First, during the eighth and ninth centuries, the Arabs became the
foremost maritime people in the world. Arabians came to trade in the
trading season, and left when the season was over.
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 Muslim Conquest: Bakhtiyar Khalji

q Second, Muhammad Ghori established the sultanate in Delhi and laid the
basis of the expansion of Muslim rule through the subcontinent.

q Finally, following Ghori's establishment of the Muslim sultanate in Delhi

Bakhtiyar Khalji led an expedition (a journey undertaken by a group of people with a
particular purpose) to Bengal from his base in south Bihar.

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 Muslim Conquest: Bakhtiyar Khalji
q Bakhtiar Khilji set up a provincial government under Delhi kingdom at
Lakhnauti and gradually brought Rarh, Gaurh and Barendra under
control. He came to Bengal after conquering Magadha and Mithila.

q He also led successful campaigns against Kamrup and Tibet. At the same
time he set up a good government in Bengal and patronaised arts and
literature. Among the successors of Bakhtiar the most notable was Sultan
Giasuddin Yaz Khilji (A.D. 1213-1227)

q Bakhtiar declared Independence in Bengal and was an independent ruler

for most of his rules.

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 Muslim Conquest: Bakhtiyar Khalji
q The last significant event in Bakhtiyar's career was his expedition to Tibet,
which was a total disaster, as most of his soldiers were lost in the journey
facing a hostile army. Bakhtiyar managed to cross the river with about one
hundred soldiers.

q The Tibet expeditionʼs fiasco (a complete failure) shattered him mentally

and physically. He died of a consuming fever or was killed by his ambitious
general Ali Mardan Khalji within three months of his return to Devkot
(Dinajpur) in 1206 CE.

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 Muslim Conquest: Bakhtiyar Khalji
q The period from Bakhtiyar's death in 1206 to Iwaz's death in 1227 CE may
be regarded as the initial period of Muslim rule in Bengal.

q Bakhtiyar's death was too sudden to enable him to pay any attention to the
question of succession.

q The first six years were marked by struggles for succession among the
generals of Bakhtiyar, Ali Mardan, Husamuddin Iwaz and Muhammad
Shiran.

q From 1212 to 1227 CE was covered by the rule of Iwaz khalji, the first
notable ruler of Muslim Bengal who tried to expand and consolidate the
Muslim rule in Bengal in a planned way.
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 Muslim Conquest: Bakhtiyar Khalji
q For the next fifty-five years Bengal was under govornors of Delhi kings.
Bengal was divided into three divisions for convenience of administration,
Lakhnauti (Nadia), Sonargaon (Dacca) and Satgaon (Sylhet).

q Fakhruddin Mubarak Shah, defying the Tuglugs, established an

independent kingdom in Bengal with his capital in Sonargaon in A.D. 1338.

q However, it was left for Shamsuddin Ilyas Shah (1342-1357) to set up

independent Muslim rule over the whole of Bengal. He unified Mubarak
Shah's Sonargaon and Satgaon with Tuglug Lakhnauti and assumed the
title of Shah-e-Bangala or Emperor of Bengal.

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 Ilyas Shahi dynasty
q The credit for coining the name of 'Bengal' for the territories of Rarh,
Gaurh, Barendra, Samatata, Banga, and Harikela, indeed, belongs to
Shamsuddin Ilyas Shah.

q With the arrival of the new rulers, new people, and a new faith, the stage
was set for the subsequent changes in the society and the body politic of the
country as a whole.

q More significant was the foundation of the Bengal Sultanate, which lasted
for more than three centuries and the independent sultans contributed
enormously to the growth of an enlightened and prosperous Bengal, and
local people could participate in the administration.
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 Ilyas Shahi dynasty
q The dynasty founded by Iliyas shah ruled Bengal for nearly one hundred
and fifty years (1342-1487 CE)

q Iliyas Shah, was a vigorous and efficient ruler and earned for himself the
titles of Shah-i-Bangalah, Shah-i-Bangaliyan and Sultan-i-Bangalah.

q The period from 1342 to 1487 CE witnessed remarkable expansion of the

territory of the Bengal Sultanate under Ilyas Shah, Sikandar Shah,
Jalaluddin Muhammad Shah, Nasiruddin Mahmud Shah, Ruknuddin Barbak
Shah, Yusuf Shah and Jalaluddin Fath Shah.

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 Society and Culture
q With the fall of the Buddhist Pala rule and the ascendancy of the Senas with
aggressive Brahmanical domination, Buddhism declined fast and eventually
disappeared from the land of its birth but still counted one third of
population of the world as its followers.

q The Hindus outnumbered the other religious communities and were also
politically and economically advanced.

q The caste system dominated their social life, including their manners,
morals and thoughts.

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 Society and Culture
q Four occupational groups, namely, the Brahmans (the priestly class),
Khatriyas (the political and military groups), the Vaishas (in charge of
trade, agriculture & commerce) and Sudras (service groups), had existed
for a long time.

q Bakhtyar Khalji's conquest of Bengal and establishment of the Muslim

Kingdom led to the growth of a Muslim Society in this country.

q It was composed of local converts as well as the Muslims who came trom
outside and settled in Bengal (Muslim rulers, their relatives, officials and
the thousands of soldiers who came in the wake of Muslim invasion).

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 Society and Culture
q Soon many other immigrants from Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, Arabia,
Afghanistan and upper India joined them.

q Mosques formed the most important feature of Muslim society and

culture.

q Established Maktabs and Madrasas for teaching religious education.

q Madrasas were also established by private initiatives, and many of them

maintained residential accommodation providing food and lodgings for
both teachers and students.

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 Society and Culture
q A large number of Sufis came to Bengal. There is hardly any town or
locality where a Sufi had not come and settled. Their contributions in the
preaching and expansion of Islam in the rural Bengal were noticeable in
expanding Muslim political power.

q Their influence over the ruling classes was an additional attraction to the
people, providing religious instructions to everybody who gathered round
their Khanqas, and their influence over Society as spiritual leaders and
comforters of people in distress spread among the passes, which were
gradually attracted to the new faith.

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 Society and Culture
q The spread of Islam and the formation of the Muslim society under the
Bengal sultanate did not go unchallenged.

q There were reactions which took different forms: First, people accepted the
new faith as they thought it would be their conversion to faith with a
manifest ideology of equity;

q Secondly, the orthodox section adhered to their own faith, right or wrong;

q Finally, the establishment of Islam created an urge among a section of

enlightened people to reform their own religion taking good things of Islam
and shunning bad things from their own religion.

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 Society and Culture
q The sultans of Bengal attached great importance to education as it was
considered part of their religious duties, resulted, remarkable progress of
learning and sharing knowledge in medieval Bengal in which the Muslim
and the Hindu scholars greatly contributed (translation of Sanskrit works
into Bengali added significance to literary life)

q Lakhnawati, Sonargaon, Rangpur and Chittagong became centers of Islamic

learning whereas Sylhet, and Vishnupure were developed as the centers of
Sanskrit and Hindu religious studies

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 Society and Culture
q Development of Bengali language and literature was more significant
during the sultanate period.

q Bangla language was given a respectable place at the court as well as in the
civil society, which helped the integration of the Bengali speaking territory
and population as well as new social and cultural understanding between
the Hindus and the Muslims in building a common platform of the two
communities of Bengal.

q This period was the formative phase of Bengal's political and socio-cultural
life. The real identity of Bengal and Bengali people began with the
establishment of the independent sultanate in Bengal.

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 Society and Culture
q The interaction of Islam and Hinduism in practical life led to syncretistic
tradition in the Bengal society and brought an unique sense of unity among
the people.

q There was also economic prosperity due to internal stability and extension
of external trade based on indigenous manufacture and agricultural
products.

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Thank You!