BACKGROUND
THE FIRST SIGNS OF THE WEAKNESSES OF THE TUGHLUK EMPIRE began to show with the shifting
of the capital from Delhi to Daulatabad in 1327 by Muhammad Tughluk. There was a weakening of
the central authority of Delhi with the provincial governors enjoying more powers than they did
before. When in the early fifties of the fourteenth century revolt broke out in the Deccan against the
overlordship of the Delhi Sultans these provincial governors who were also incidentally the military
commanders took a prominent part in the revolt and succeeded in weaning away the Deccan from
the hegemony of the Delhi Sultanate. As a matter of fact the chain of events leading to the
independence of the Deccan and the establishment of an independent dynasty under Hasan Gangu
Bahaman Sah started with the rebellion of Bahauddin Gursasp, who held a Jagir at Sagar in 1327.
The rebellion was suppressed, Gursasp first taking asylum with the Hindu Raja of Kampili and then
with Vira Ballala III before his final arrest and execution at Delhi. This rebellion woke the emperor to
the difficulties of administering the far away situated provinces. Hence the decision to have a
second capital at Daulatabad. Superficial calm prevailed in the Deccan till 1333 in which year
rumour broke out of the emperor's illness and death leading to the revolt of Malik Hosahg. When
pursued by the Sultan's army the Malik took refuge in the territory of the Hindu Raja Barbara whose
state lay between Daulatabad and Thana. It was only when the Sultan's army withdrew that Raja
Barbara handed over Hosang to Qutlugh Khan, the governor of Daulatabad. The Sultan retired to
Delhi and with this the scheme of having Daulatabad as the permanent capital fizzled out. The
Sultan had to face another revolt by the governor of Madura, Sayyad Hasan, in complicity with the
nobles of Daulatabad. The Sultan left for the Deccan but could do nothing to suppress the revolt. An
epidemic raged at Warangal and the emperor himself was affected by it. The unsettled and the none
too happy conditions of the Deccan ultimately resulted in the rise of an independent Hindu Dynasty
at Warangal. Efforts at the establishment of separate Hindu Kingdom at Vijayanagar had already
begun to make headway. It will be of interest to note that three Hindu Chiefs Krsna Nayak, at
Warangal, Ballala Deva at Dvarasamudra and Harihar at Vijayanagar played a dominant role in this
upsurge against Muslim domination. A new alignment of political forces began to take place. The
Deccan was again rocked by two successive rebellions in 1337 and in 1340, respectively. In 1337
NusratKhan, the governor of Bidar, proclaimed himself king. His attempt however proved abortive. He was
defeated, made prisoner and sent to Delhi by Qutlugh Khan. In 1340 it was the turn of one Ali Sah
Natthu who declared himself king at Dharur and assumed the title of Alauddin Malik Sah. Malik Sah
was also defeated by the governor of Daulatabad and sent to Delhi. Even though the rebellions
were put down the emperor became deeply suspicious of the old nobility of the empire. He decided
to replace them by a new nobility of his own creation, little realising the power which the old nobility
wielded. He had no idea of the demoralising effect, such a step would have, upon the administrative
fabric of the empire. As a matter of fact this very decision of the emperor hastened the downfall of
the Sultanate and resulted in the secession of the Deccan from the empire. In 1345 the emperor
decided to recall his trusted governor of the Deccan, Qutlugh Khan. This was done on the advice of
some malcontents at Delhi. The Region was reorganised into four Subhas. Accordingly, Alim-ulmulk
was appointed viceroy of the Deccan. Malik Sardawatdar, Malik Mukhlisulmulk, Yusuf Baghra
and Azizuddin Khammar were appointed to the four Subhas of the province. There were strict
orders by the emperor to spare none of the old nobility suspected of participating in the successive
revolts that had taken place in the Deccan during the period 1327—1347. Though, experienced,
these newly appointed officers were extremely unscrupulous in matters of administration. The first
act of the governor of Malva, Azizuddin Khammar was to execute 89 amirs of the province, charged
with complicity in the rebellions. This cruel act, which had no aim other than that of creating terror,
had exactly an opposite effect. The Deccan nobility developed resentment and hatred against such
an outrageous regime. The Malva affair had its repercussions in Gujarat where a rebellion broke
out. The rebels succeeded in forcing a defeat upon its new Governor Malik Maqbul in 1346. The
emperor marched in person to quell the rebellion in Gujarat. He ruthlessly put it down. The rebels
either fled to the Hindu Rajas of Salher and Mulher or sought asylum at Daulatabad. The emperor
then sent emissaries to Daulatabad with instructions to the acting governor of Daulatabad to send
all the amirs implicated in the Gujarat rebellion, and to attend on his person with a picked cavalry of
1,500. The governor accordingly dispatched messengers to the principal amirs of Raicur, Mudgal,
Gulburga, Bijapur, Ganjauti, Berar and other places. The amirs, knowing what the emperor desired
of them deliberately delayed their movements. Among the assembled amirs at Daulatabad was
Hasan Gangu, the founder of the Bahamani dynasty. On the way they killed Malik Ahmad Lachin
and Qaltasb, the emissaries of the emperor. They then returned to Daulatabad and took possession
of the city from the now powerless Alim-ul-mulk. They then elected Ismail Mukh from among
themselves as the first independent Sultan of the Deccan. This event took place in September 1346.
The amirs now redistributed the provinces of the Deccan. Hasan Ganguwas made Amir-ul-Umra and the title or Zatar Khan was bestowed upon him. Nuruddin, another
amir was given the title of Khvaja-i-Jahan.
Taking advantage of the confusion in the Deccan, not a few Hindu Chiefs allied themselves
with the Tughluk officers and fought against the newly established kingdom. Kandhra, the Hindu
chief of Gulburga put to sword many Muslims in the city and wrote to Jalal Dohni who was holding
Kalyani in the name of Sultan Muhammad to send reinforcements. Khvaja Jahan had been sent
against Kandhra. He was now besieging Gulburga. Further assistance was sent to him Kandhra
however, still remained entrenched at Gulburga. Zafar Khan now personally marched, to the town of
Gulburga and besieged the town with all his forces. This was contrary to the orders of the Sultan
Ismail, who wanted Daulatabad to be protected against a possible attack from the emperor. After
the fall of Gulburga, Zafar Khan repaired to Daulatabad. The emperor now decided to put to an end
the pretensions of the Deccan nobility once and for all and marched to the Deccan. He was
accompanied by Imad-ul-mulk Sartez and Malik Yel Afghan. Ismail Mukh also collected a force of
30,000 to oppose the emperor. He was reinforced by the arrival of Zafar Khan from Gulburga. In the
battle near Daulatabad the Deccan army was completely routed with heavy slaughter. The emperor
occupied Daulatabad. Ismail Mukh having fled that city to Dharakhera and the rest of the nobles
fleeing to their respective Jagirs. The triumph of the emperor was short lived. News reached of a
fresh insurrection in Gujarat when the emperor was busy celebrating his recently won victory. The
emperor appointed Khudavandaza Malik Jauhar and Saikh Burhan Bilagrami to the siege of
Dharakhera. He himself marched to Gujarat to deal with the insurrection there. In the meanwhile
Zafar Khan who had moved to his Jagir at Miraj left for Arka and Sagar. He started an intensive
preparation for the coming conflict. He was joined by Iskhandar Khan, the chief of Sagar and other
nobles. He now turned towards Daulatabad and reached the outskirts of the city by forced marches.
There he defeated a contingent of imperial troops. He then decided upon attacking the imperial
troops which had collected at Sindtan under the command of Imad-ul-Mulk Sartez. Reinforced by
1,500 cavalry sent by the Raya of Telengana, Zafar Khan completely routed the imperial; army, few
of whom could escape either death or capture at the hands of the. Deccan forces. Ismail Mukh
received the victorious general! at Nizampur, near Daulatabad and declared his intention to abdicate
in favour of Zafar Khan in the presence of the assembled amirs. As the amirs supported the
declaration, Zafar Khan ascended the throne with, the title of Sikandar-i-Sani Alauddin Hasan
Bahaman Sah-al-wali and crowned himself king on 3 August 1347 at Daulatabad in the mosque of
Kutubuddin Mubarak Sah Khilji. A new dynasty was thus born which was to rule the Deccan for a
period of well over 130 years.
ALAUDDIN HASAN BAHAMAN SHAH
It is not necessary to go into the controversy regarding the ancestry of Bahaman Sah. The
greatness of a person does not depend upon the family from which he hails. It results from his
deeds and achievements. Suffice it to say that Hasan was a nephew of Malik Hizhbaruddin who was
killed in action in 1298 against the Trans Oxianian Mongol hordes and the title Alauddin which he
adopted was a repetition of Ali Sah's title and the revival of the title of Alauddin Khilji, who was the
patron of the family. It, therefore, becomes unnecessary to connect his name with the family of
Kakuyids which ruled Isfahan and Hamadan, as is done by some historians.1
The Kingdom of the Deccan won by Hasan Sah which included his Jagir of Miraj, Hakeri,
Belganv and certain other towns, was certainly not an easy proposition. It was full of sympathisers
of the now defunct rule of the Tughluks. In the establishment of a new dynasty when the conditions
were more or less fluid, these sympathisers saw the opportunity of carving out principalities for
themselves. Among such malcontents were a few Hindu chiefs who would have readily alligned
themselves with such forces at the first sign of such an opportunity.
On his enthronement Hasan sah appointed Malik Saifuddin Ghori, his Wakil-i-Mutlaq or prime
minister, made Samsuddin Ismail Mukh, Amir-ul-umrd, Bahauddin alias Sikandar Khan, his private
secretary, Misami Dawal, Deputy Minister, Rafiuddin alias Fathulmulk, Hajib-i-Khas or Lord
Chamberlain, Ali Sah, Sarpardadar or master of ceremonies and Gangu, Accountant General. As
the Sultan of the Deccan, the first task of Hasan Sah was to pacify the country and bring the
recalcitrant elements to book. He decided to carry this out by sending his commanders to different
parts of the Deccan.2 All these expeditions provedhighly successful and the commanders reported their successes to the Sultan. It may be mentioned
that many Hindu Chiefs such as Akraj of Kandhar, the local chiefs at Maram, Mahendri and
Akkalkot, the chief of Malkhed, Pocha Reddi, the chief of Gulbarga fought valiantly. It was in vain.
They had to submit to the superior forces of Bahamani commanders.
In 1353, rebellion broke out at Sagar headed by Muhammad-bin-Alam, Ali Lachin and
Fakhruddin Muhurdar. Though Khwaja-i-Jahan was ordered to put down the rebels, the Sultan
decided to march personally to quell the rebellion. The Sultan left the capital and arrived at
Gulbarga where he heard of the death of Muhammad-bin-Tughluk. Leaving Gulburga, the Sultan
arrived by forced marches to Sagar where the rebels surrendered without giving a fight. The Sultan,
during his encampment at Sagar, occupied the surrounding territory. The Sultan then left Sagar for
Mudhol which was governed by a Hindu Chief Narayan. On his way he received submissions from
the chiefs of Kembhavi and Melkot. The territory of Mudhol was devastated and the Sultan arrived at
Jamakhindi where Narayan had shut himself up. He besieged the place, Narayan made a night
attack upon the besiegers but the attack was beaten back. The Bahamani army entered the place in
the early hours of dawn. Narayan now fled to Mudhol. This town too was besieged by the Sultan's
troops. The siege lasted for four months. When Narayan found all sources of succour and
reinforcement closed, he surrendered. The Sultan restored to him his Jagir. The Sultan left Mudhol
arid making halts at Miraj, Patan, Sagar, Malkhed and Seram arrived at Gulburga exactly after an
years absence. The early campaigns of his commanders and the expedition he himself had led
personally, had practically eliminated the opposition to Hasan Sah from the leftovers of the Tughluk
rule- But the change in the fortunes of Hasan Sah and his phenomenal rise to power were sure to
create a feeling of jealousy and a sense of insecurity among his erstwhile colleagues. They had
fought shoulder to shoulder along with him to eradicate the Tughluk hegemony.
This led to an emergence of a new type of opposition to the rule of Bahaman Sah. Malik
Maqbul entitled Kir Khan who had formerly been sent to conquer Kalyani revolted under the
influence of one Kale Muhammad. The Sultan, though infirm, marched to Kalyani and
commissioned one of his principal commanders Sikandar Khan to subdue the rebel Kir Khan. In the
meanwhile Kir Khan had occupied Kohir and on hearing of the march of Sikandar Khan to punish
him, he left Kohir. He decided to oppose Sikandar Khan then already on his way from Bidar. Kir
Khan was, however, defeated, made a prisoner, and brought before the King. In spite of the
intercession made in his behalf by Sikandar Khan, the Sultan ordered Kir Khan to be beheaded.
Marching further, the Sultan captured the fort of Kohir where Kale Muhammad had shut himself up
and returned to Gulburga which he renamed Ahsanabad.The Sultan was now in his early sixties and exhausted by the arduous task of building and
reorganizing a kingdom. He was, however, not destined to spend his last days in peace and
tranquillity. He undertook campaigns in the north, south, east and west. He marched as far as Goa
and subjugated it. During his return, he captured Dabhol, Karad and Kolhapur. In the north he
marched up to Mandu in Malwa, levying tributes on his way. His eastern campaign was not very
successful. He overran Telangana. During the campaigns he suffered reverses at the hands of,
Katya Vema, an officer of Anavata of Kondavidu, at Dharnikota and another cheif Bhaktiraja, at
Peda Konda. Hasan Sah died at the age of 67 on 11th February 1358. Except that he consolidated
his rule in the Deccan there is nothing distinguishing and particular about the reign and person of
Hasan Sah. He ruled as a King and had all the virtues and infallibilities of human nature. During his
reign the Deccan suffered from heavy bloodshed when whole tracts were laid waste and desolate.
The character of Hasan Sah was particularly marred by the wanton execution of Ismail Mukh who
had abdicated in his favour, in the open court, on the charge of his alleged complicity in a plot
against the Sultan. However, the historical poem Futuh-us-salatin dealing with the rise of Muslim
power in the north and the Deccan, was written by Isami under the direct patronage of Hasan Sah. It
is a valuable source for a study of the history of the Deccan.
At the time of his death the Bahamani kingdom extended as far as Mandu in the north, and
Raicur in the south and from Bhongir in the east to Dabhol and Goa in the west. The whole Kingdom
was divided into four divisions, viz., Ahsanabad Gulburga with Raicur and Mudgal, Daulatabad with
Bid, Junnar and Caul, Berar with Mahur, and Indur and Kaulas in Bahamam Telangana. These
divisions were placed under the charge of Malik Saifuddin Ghori, Muhammad-bin-Ali Sah, Safdar
Khan Sistani and Azam-i-Humayun, respectively.1
SULTAN MUHAMMAD I.
Alauddin Hasan Bahaman Sah was succeeded by his eldest son Muhammad, under the title
of Muhammad I on 11th February 1358. Muhammad I continued Malik Saifuddin Ghori in the post of
Prime Minister. Ghori was also the father-in-law of the Sultan and to him goes the credit of preparing
that excellent compendium on polity detailing the duties of a sovereign and such other
administrative officers as Wakll, Wazir, Dabir, Sarhaddar, Qilahdar, Baksi, Qazi, Mufti, Kotwal,
Muhatasib and others. Ghori was himself an experienced politician on whose advice the Sultan
reorganised the former divisions into civil rather thanmilitary units. They were Daulatabad, Berar, Bidar and Gulburga. Each unit was put in charge of a
governor. The governors were specially designated as Musnad-i-Ali, Majlis-i-Ali Azam-i-Humayun
and Malik Naib for the above provinces, respectively with Malik Naib always holding the king's
confidence.
The military was also similarly organised. A special post of commander-in-chief was created
and was designated Amir-ul-umra. Recruiting officers called Barbardaran were appointed to
mobilise the armed personnel. A special bodyguard, one in charge of kings arms, called Yakka
Jawanan or Silahdaran and the other in charge of the Kings person called Khaskhel were also
created. It was during the reign of Sultan Muhammad I that gun powder began to be used as a
weapon of war. It revolutionized the entire system of defensive and offensive warfare. A special
artillery wing of the army was created and was placed under the command of Muqarrab Khan, the
son of Safdar Khan Sistani. It is of interest to note that Sultan Muhammad I put to practical use, the
principles enunciated in that political compendium ' Nasaih' by posting his secret service agents as
far as Delhi. This measures gave him a clue to the alignment of the Deccan Kingdoms of
Vijayanagar and Telangana in the event of a possible attack from Firoz Tughluk of Delhi.
The reign of Muhammad I was not a peaceful one. Muhammad I had to face the growing
power of the Kingdoms of Vijayanagar and Telangana. The immediate cause of friction between
these powers was the conflicting claims of each of them upon the territory that divided their
Kingdoms. The conflict had a wider implication as well. It was the fear entertained by the Hindu
chiefs of the south, who saw that an independent Muslim power was being established in the
Deccan. They instinctively left that their existence was in danger. Under the forceful leadership of
Krsna Nayak and Bukka, respectively, the Kingdoms of Telangana and Vijayanagar had prospered
immensely. They were anxious to get back territories of their former domain. Krsna Nayak
demanded Kaulas, and Bukka, the ruler of Vijayanagar, territories adjacent to Raicur and Mudgal as
far as the river Krsna. Muhammad of course refused to entertain the demands. The forces of
Telangana and Vijayanagar united under the command of Vinayak Dev, the son of Krsna Nayak and
marched towards the fortress of Kaulas. They were, however, defeated by the Bahamani army
commanded by Amir-ul-umra Bahadur Khan, Azam-i-Humayun and Safdar Khan Sistani, near
Kaulas (1362). Peace was concluded on Krsna Nayak agreeing to pay, 1 lac of hons as tribute and
25 elephants as indemnity of war. The peace, however, was short lived. Shortly after, the Sultan
sent the advance guard of his army to Palampet where Vinayak Dev was camping. The Sultan
himself proceeded to Palampet. In the fight that ensued at Palampet Vinayak Dev was captured,
brought before the Sultan and executed.1 With his vengeance satiated, the Sultan started on his return march. However the bloody execution of their prince so
enraged his followers that the guerillas harassed the retreating Bahamani army continuously. A
considerable portion of the four thousand cavalry, which the Sultan had taken along with him was
destroyed in the campaign.
The reverse suffered by the Sultan was a prelude to a still more vigorous and aggressive
campaign in Telangana in 1363. News came of an open invitation extended by the Raja of
Telangana to Firoz Tughluk of Delhi to invade the Deccan. Muhammad ordered the provincial
governors with their forces to the capital. Handing over the charge of administration to Saifuddin
Ghori he marched towards Kaulas with the armies of Bidar, Mahur and Berar. He dispatched Safdar
Khan Sistani to Warangal and closely followed him. Krsna Nayak, unable to face the superior might
of Muhammad I, and in the absence of any succour from the Raja of Vijayanagar, sued for peace,
which was agreed to. The Raja of Telangana gave the Sultan 13 crores of lions, three hundred
elephants, two hundred horses and the fort of Golconda, with its dependencies. In the political
settlement that ensued the boundaries between the two Kingdoms were fixed at Golconda.
With the affairs of Telangana concluded to the advantage of the Bahamams, Muhammad I
now decided to have a trial of strength with the might of Vijayanagar. He invited an attack from Raja,
Bukka of Vijayanagar by drawing a draft upon the Vijayanagar treasury towards the payment of
wages of 300 singers and musicians. These men had participated in the festivals of the marriage of
Prince Mujahid with the daughter of Bahadur Khan. This was a foolish and incomprehensible step.
Bukka, the ruler of Vijayanagar was not expected to take it lying down. The Raja of Vijayanagar with
considerable infantry and cavalry, crossed the Bahamani frontiers at Tungabhadra and captured
Mudgal. The Sultan, with the army of Daulatabad, marched in person, crossed the river Krsna and
arrived before Mudgal. The Vijayanagar forces vacated the fort after a stubborn fight. After resting at
Mudgal for the rainy season Muhammad I issued forth from Mudgal and after crossing the
Tungabhadra entered the territory of Vijayanagar. Bukka himself came out to settle the issue with the Bahamani Sultan. A
sanguinary battle was fought near the village of Kantalam on 20th July 1366 in which the
Vijayanagar army suffered defeat. It could not withstand the strong artilliery attacks of the
Bahamanis. There was heavy slaughter on both sides, each side losing commanders of distinction.
The Sultan, in the flush of his success marched to besiege the city of Vijayanagar. The guerilla
tactics of the Vijayanagar army, however, turned their ignominious defeat into a resounding victory.
Muhammad retreated in the face of mounting attacks from the guerillas, until he reached the
boundaries of his own kingdom. Both the sides had now grown weary of the struggle and peace
talks ensued which put an end to the warfare. The armies of Vijayanagar and the Bahamanis retired
to their respective territories.1
No sooner had the Sultan retired after establishing order on his frontier, than he had to face a
rebellion from one of his officers Bahram Khan Mazendarani, the governor of Daulatabad. The
dispatch of the Daulatabad army on an expedition against Vijayanagar gave the latter an opportunity
to rise in revolt against the Sultan. He conspired with Kumbha Dev (Govind Dev) and other Maratha
chiefs in Berar and Baglana. The Sultan tried to pacify the recalcitrant governor by sending two of
his envoys, Sayyad Jalal Hamud and Sah Malik to Daulatabad. They, however, could not succeed
in persuading Bahram Khan to lay down arms. Sultan Muhammad, therefore, immediately on his
return from the Vijayanagar campaign, marched to suppress the rebellion. He sent Musnad-i-Ali
Khan Muhammad in advance. Bahram Khan advanced up to Paithan. The two forces faced each
other, ready for an action, when a few detachments from the royali army defected to the rebels.
Khan Muhammad had therefore to retire to Sevganv. On getting news of this trouble. Sultan
Muhammad hurriedly advanced from Bid where he was camping. The appearance of the Sultan a
fewmiles away unnerved the Raja of Baglana who withdrew to his country. This move forced Bahrain
Khan to take shelter in the fort of Daulatabad where he was besieged by Sultan Muhammad.
Bahram Khan and Kumbha Dev could not stand the siege. On the advice of Saikh Zainuddin, they
fled to Gujarat. The rebelr lion put down, Sultan Muhammad returned to Gulburga. He appointed
Masnad-i-Ali in charge of the province of Daulatabad.
The rest of the reign of Sultan Muhammad I was uneventful and quiet prevailed both, within
and without the kingdom. The peace of the land enabled the Sultan to entertain the company of
learned men such as Saikh Masaikh Zainuddin Daultabadl, Ainuddin Bijapuri, Maulana Nizamuddin
Barani and Hakim Zahiruddin Tahiri. The Deccan became a meeting ground of the learned, and the
envy of all parts of India. The reign of Sultan Muhammad is marked by some of the finest
architectural constructions in the Deccan such as the Jami Masjid in the Gulbarga fort, the sah
Bazar Mosque in Gulburga town, and the tomb of Hazrat Samsuddin at Osmanabad. The
monuments which are still intact, are pleasing to the eye and are remarkable in appearance.
Muhammad, I died on 21st April 1375. He lies buried at a short distance from his father's
mausoleum at the south gate of the Gulbarga fort.
ALAUDDIN MUJAHID SHAH.
Muhammad I was succeeded by his son Alauddin Mujahid on 21. March 1375. He
reappointed his maternal grandfather Malik Saifuddin Ghori to the post of the prime minister and
replaced Musnad-i-Ali Khan Muhammad by Azam-i-Humayun as Tarafdar of Daulatabad. It may be
recalled that the truce established during the reign of Muhammad I between the Vijayanagar
Kingdom and the Bahamanis was only a temporary one. Hostilities were sure to erupt with the
slightest provocation by either side. The reason for such an eruption was not far to seek and
hostilities started when the two kings wrote to each other about the' settlement of the boundary
dispute. Each side refused to give up its stand. Sultan Mujahid decided to strike the first blow. He
marched with the armies of Daulatabad. Bidar and Berar. He crossed the Tungabhadra, arrived at
Adoni and ordered Safdar Khan Sistani to lay siege to the fort. He then proceeded to the capital but
found that the Raya had taken to the jungles. In vain Mujahid pursued the Raya for six months. The
Raya however returned to the capital when he fell sick. Mujahid advanced on the capital. Fighting
his way to the capital he camped near a hillock where he desecrated a temple of Rangaswamy. The
opposing forces were deployed in battle array and a fierce battle ensued between the two armies.
Muqarrab Khan who was in charge of the artillery attacked the Vijayanagar army effectively. The
Raya issued forth from the fort, with heavy reinforcement and turned the scales in his favour. There
were heavy losses on both sides. Sultan Mujahid thought it fit to retreat and arrived at Adoni where
his forces were in siege of the fort for a considerable time. The armies of Vijayanagar under
Chenappawho were subse quently released when the Bahamanis raised the siege and retreated
towards their own territory. On the way back Sultan Mujahid went on a fishing expedition where he
was murdered as the result of a conspiracy by Masud Khan1 and Daud Khan (the Sultan's uncle) on
16 April 1378.2
In the confusion that prevailed on the murder of Mujahid Sah, Daud, the cousin of the
deceased Sultan, ascended the throne on 16 Aprill 1378. His succession did not prove to be a
happy one because there developed another faction in the court which favoured Bahaman Sah's
son Mahmud (David's brother) as the right claimant to the throne. The sympathies of Safdar Khan
Sistani and Azam-i-Humayun clearly lay with Mahmud. They proceeded directly to their respective
provinces without paying homage to the newly crowned Sultan. Saifuddin Ghori played safe by
supporting Daud Sah. However, Daud was not destined to rule for long. Soon after his accession he
was stabbed by a slave, Bakah, on Friday, 21st May 1378 when he was attending prayers in the
great mosque of Gulburga. He died soon afterwards. The master-mind behind this plot was Ruh
Parwar, Sultan Mujahid's sister, who with her object achieved, placed Mahmud Sab on the throne.
SULTAN MAHMUD.
Mahmud, on accession, reappointed Malik Saifuddin Ghori to the post of prime minister in
spite of the latter having takensides with Daud Sah, the murdered Sultan. At this time the Vijayanagar forces, after their rout of the
Bahamani army at Adoni, were battering the fort of Raicur which they had besieged. Mahmud tried
to put an end to these hostilities but without success- Desultory warfare continued between the two
kingdoms throughout ithe reign of Mahmud Sah with fortune fluctuating from one side to the other.
The Bahamanis were expelled from Goa by the Raja of Vijayanagar, Harihara II. A crushing defeat
was inflicted on the Bahamani forces at Adoni in 1380 by Chenappa, the nephew of Harihara II.
Ranjani was captured from them in 1395 by Baichappa, a Vijayanagar general. The setbacks
suffered by the Bahamanis on the battlefield were due to the disorganised, state of affairs that
prevailed in the kingdom consequent upon the chain of princely murders following the death of
Muhammad. The weakness of the Sultan in dealing firmly with the problem of external aggression
incited a few officers of the kingdom to revolt. One such incident occurred at Sagar. Muhammad and
Khvaja, the two sons of the Thanedar of Sagar Bahauddin, rose in insurrection. They had been
charged with the offence of embezzlement. They offered stiff resistance to Yusuf Azhdar who had
been sent to suppress the rebels. Bahauddin also joined hands with his sons. The rebellion was,
however, suppressed when Bahauddin was treacherously murdered by one of his own man.
The reign of Mahmud Sah was otherwise peaceful. Considerable progress was registered in
the field of learning. A marked feature of Mahmud Sah's reign was the complete disappearance of
the influence of the North and the creation of a new political barrier in the form of emergent states of
Malva, Gujarat and Khandes between the South and the North. A new factor was also emerging in
the politics of the Deccan. It was the continuous influx of foreigners from Iran, Iraq and Arabia. They
held considerable sway over the politics of the Deccan during the three hundred years rule of the
Bahamanis and the five Sultanates. Mahmud himself was a learned person. Gulburga, Bidar,
Kandhar, Ellicpur, Daulatabad, Junnar; Caul and Dabhol developed as centres of learning. The
region of Mahmud came to a close with his death on 20 April 1397. Malik Saifuddin Ghori who had
seen five successive reigns as the prime minister also died 'the following day. Mahmud had
nominated his elder son Ghiyasuddin as his heir and successor.
GHIYASUDDIN.
Ghiyasuddin ascended the throne under the title of Ghiyasuddin Tahamatan on 20 April 1397.
When Mahmud nominated Ghiyasuddin to the throne, he had directed Firoz Khan and Ahmad Khan,
sons of his predecessor Daud Sah to pay homage to his son. Incidentally both the brothers were
married to the daughters of Sultan Muhammad I and were thus the brothers-in-law of the new
Sultan. The enthronement of Ghiyasuddin was not destined to last long. The Deccan witnessed two
quick depositions oil the throne just as it had witnessed two gruesome murders before the late
Sultan Mahmud came to the throne in 1378. On coming to power Ghiyasuddin appointed Salabat Khan as Governor of Berar in place of
his father Safdar Khan Sistani who had died. Azam-i-Humayun Khan Muhammad was made
Sarnaubat Ahmad Beg Qazvini was appointed as the Pesva. These appointments of persons of
Persian origin irked the old nobility of Turkish descent. Taghalacln had aspired to be the prime
minister. The Sultan, in his vanity, dismissed the claims of Taghalcin as coming from a low born and
underserving person. Disappointed in his aspiration and fearing the very security of his person, he
decided to take a revenge upon the Sultan. Taghalacln had a beautiful daughter. He arranged
matters in such a way that the Sultan became enamoured of her beauty. Taghalacln then threw a
big party to which he invited the Sultan. The Sultan intoxicated by passion for the daughter of
Taghalacln accepted the invitation. At the party he indulged in heavy drinks and became intoxicated.
On the request of Taghalacln he dismissed his attendants. While his eyes were anxious to see the
enchanting beauty of the beloved of his dreams Taghalacln blinded Ghiyasuddin with the sharpened
points of his dagger.
SHAMSUDDIN DAUD SHAH.
Taghalacin, now master of the situation, sent Ghiyasuddin in confinement at Sagar and raised
his step brother Samsuddin Daud to the throne under the title of Samsuddin Daud II on 14 June
1397, exactly 7 weeks after the enthronement of Ghiyasuddin. On the advice of his mother who was
raised to the rank of Makhduma-i-Jahan, Samsuddin Daud appointed Taghalacin to the post of
Malik Naib and Mir Jumla of the Kingdom. This turn of events was not to the liking of Firoz Khan and
Ahmad Khan and they decided to intervene. When Taghalacin got scent of the plot he obtained
orders from the Sultan for the imprisonment of Firoz and Ahmad. They made good their escape' to
Sagar. From Sagar they wrote to the Sultan protesting their loyalty. They, however, demanded the
dismissal of Taghalacin. The Sultan who was completely under the thumb of Taghalacin flatly
refused to comply with this demand. The brothers, thereupon marched with an army of three
thousand on Gulburga, hoping that the bulk of the royal army would join them. When they arrived on
the banks of Bhima, Firoz declared himself king. They were now within 8 miles of the capital. The
royal troops sent by Taghalacin defeated Firoz and Ahmad and forced them to flee to Sagar.
When Firoz and Ahmad found that they could not succeed by recourse to arms they decided
to achieve what they wanted by political treachery. They sent Mir Ghiyasuddin and Sayyad
Kamaluddin to the court offering their apologies for their past behaviour. They themselves
proceeded to the capital with a contingent of armed personnel. Having arrived at the capital, they
allied themselves with the court faction opposed to Taghalacin and headed by such nobles as
Azhdar Khan, Malik Sitab, Sayyad Tajuddin Jakajal Qutb-ul-mulk and others. They made a forced
entry into the Darbar and killed Taghalacin's sons. Inthe melee that ensued, Taghalacin was killed by Mir Ghiyasuddin. Samsuddin was blinded. Firoz
Khan now ascended the throne as Tajuddin. Firoz on 16 November 1397. Samsuddin, an innocent
victim of political outrages died 17 years later in Medina.
FIROZ SHAH.
On his accession to the throne, Firoz Sah created his brother Khan-i-Khanan. He appointed
Mir Fazlullah Inju as Malik Naib and Wakil or prime minister. It was not long after the accession of
Firoz Sah that the peace and tranquillity of the Bahamani Kingdom was broken with, rebellions
breaking out from within, and aggressions taking place from without. The Bahamani contingent at
Sagar was thrown out by the local chief who revolted. Raja Narsing Dev of Kherla, seeking
assistance from the Chiefs of Mandu and Asir, crossed the Bahamani frontiers and advanced as far
as Mahur. Vijayanagar was also not slow to take advantage of the turmoil and confusion that
prevailed at the Bahamani court. Bukka entered the Bahamani territory with a welt equipped army.
He crossed the Tungabhadra and sent forces against Mudgal, Raicur and Telangana. Bukka was
assisted by Katya Vema of Rajamahendri. Their combined forces defeated the Bahamani army in
Telangana. In the north the position of Firoz Sah became precarious with the advance of the Kherla
chief. He was forced to send the contingents of Berar and Daullatabad to the north as
reinforcements. The opposing forces of the Bahamani and Vijayanagar were now entrenched on the
either banks of Krsna which was in floods due to the rainy season. This stalemate continued. One
dark night Firoz Sah sent a few of his trusted soldiers in the guise of dancers and musicions who
murdered the Vijaynagar prince at an entertainment. On getting a signal from the opposite bank, the
Bahamani army crossed the river and broke up the Vijayanagar camp. The Vijayanagar army was
pursued right up to the gates of Vijayanagar. A force was sent under Malik Naib to devastate, the
southern districts of the Vijayanagar kingdom. On Harihara's request peace was' concluded.
Harihara agreed to pay 10 lacs of hons as present. Firoz Sah agreed to release all prisoners of war.
Firoz Sah then withdrew from the Vijayanagar territory.
When Firoz Sah was engaged in conflict with Vijayanagar, the rebellion at Sagar was quelled
with the help of the Hindu chiefs Annadeva Velama and Siddhu (Ghorpade). In the engagements
Siddhu lost his life and his son Bhairav Singh was granted the Jagir of Mudhol in the Raibag district.
Firoz Sah now personally visited the town of Sagar which he renamed Nusratabad. On his return
march he halted on the banks of Bhima and there founded the town of Firozabad.
The Sultan was now free to deal with Narsingh Dev of Kherla. After staying at the capital for a
few months he began his northward march and came to Mahur. The commandant of Mahurwho had sided with the Kherla chief now submitted and paid tribute. After staying for 35 days at
Mahur the Sultan proceeded towards Kherla. Undeterred by the strength of the Bahamanis,
Narsingh Dev refused to submit. He advanced to meet the Bahamani forces. A fierce action ensued
in which four Bahamani generals Sujat Khan, Bahadur Khan, Dilavar Khan and Rustam Khan were
killed. A rout of the Bahamanis seemed imminent. But the forces regrouped under Khan-i-Khanan
and Malik Fazlullah Inju and launched a counter-attack in which Khuspal Singh, Narsingh Dev's son
was captured. The Raja then withdrew from the field of battle and locked himself up in the fortress of
Kherla. The fort was besieged. The siege continued for a couple of months when Narsingh Dev
submitted. He waited on the Sultan who was away at Ellicpur and paid tribute. Narsingh Dev was
enrolled among the nobility and the fortress of Kherla was restored to him.
The Sultan now marched to Telangana where the Velamas, the vassals of the Bahamanis
and the Vemas, the feudatories of Vijayanagar had been fighting. He was accompanied by
Annadeva and other Velama chiefs. He is said to have captured many forts and occupied
Rajmahendri. He however suffered a reverse at the hands of Dodday Alia, the Commander-in-Chief
of Katya Vema and had to retrace his steps without being able to subjugate the territory. Firoz Sah
never succeeded in fully annexing the territory of the turbulent chiefs of Andhra. His role was that of
siding with one chief against another.
The conflict with Vijayanagar started again. Bukka II was dead and his brother Deva Raya I
had ascended the throne of Vijayanagar. The incident that led to the flaring up of hostilities between
the two kingdoms involved a beautiful girl, Parthal, from Mudgal whose beauty enamoured Deva
Raya. Deva Raya sent a messenger to Mudgal to the parents of Parthal demanding the hand of
their daughter in marriage. Parthal refused. Deva Raya decided to secure by force what he could
not gain by persuasion and marched towards Mudgal. In the meanwhile Parthal and her parents fled
to the jungle and Deva Raya disappointed in his design, retreated with plunder and loot. On his way
he was defeated by Faulad Khan, the governor of the Raicur doab. Faulad Khan informed the
Sultan of the happenings at his camp at Firozabad.1 In 1407 Sultan Firoz decided to march against Vijayanagar and with Khan Khanan and Inju.
advanced as far as the city of Vijayanagar. The city was so strongly guarded that the Sultan thought
it futile to attack and sent his generals to lay waste the territories of the Vijayanagar Kingdom. The
generals returned with huge booty and prisoners. The Sultan left the command of the army to Khan
Khanan and marched towards Adoni when the Raya sued for peace. There was nothing exciting
about the peace terms except perhaps the clause regarding the marriage of the king's daughter with
Sultan Firoz Sah. The marriage was celebrated and the Sultan returned to his Capital. The new
friendship resulting from this matrimonial alliance did not last long because the marriage was only a
marriage of convenience and political expediency. After a few years the Bahamanis once again
aspired to extend their dominions on the eastern coast. They penetrated as far as Rajamahendri
and Orissa. The Raja of Vijayanagar lost no time in invading Telangana and subjugatingthe fortress of Pangal. This forced the Sultan to retrace his steps. He marched southward to lay
siege to Pangal. The Bahamanis failed to dislodge the garrison. The siege dragged on for two
years. The tide was now turning against the Bahamanis. Deva Raya seduced the Velamas to his
side and marched with a huge army to the relief of the fort. The Bahamani army was completely
routed and pursued with heavy losses. Firoz Sah, disappointed, returned to the capital where he
was faced with the hostile attitude of Khan Khanan Ahmad Khan, his brother, who now aspired for
the throne. Firoz Sah had appointed his son Hasan Khan as heir apparent. This was not to the liking
of Ahmad Khan who was backed by the celebrated Muslim Saint Sayyad Gesu Daraz of Gulburga.
He is supposed to have exercised a considerable influence over the people of Deccan. Firoz Sah
who was now past 70 had handed over the reins of Government to two slaves Hosiyar and Bedar,
whom he gave the titles of Ain-ul-mulk and Nizam-ul-mulk. These two incited the Sultan and
secured orders from him to imprison and blind Ahmad Khan. Ahmad Khan, getting suspicious, fled
to Khanapur with his son Zafar Khan and friend Khalaf Hasan, who in future was to play a decisive
role in the political history of the Deccan. Ahmad Khan was soon overtaken by the two slaves with
an army of well over twenty thousand and thirty elephants. Ahmad Khan, however, succeeded in
defeating the royal army and was proclaimed king on the battle field.1 Firoz Sah advanced a few
miles from the capital to engage his brother with seven thousand cavalry. His forces went over to Ahmad Khan. Firoz Sah succumbed to the inevitable, abdicated the
throne in favour of his brother and to the great relief of Ahmad Sah died a week afterwards on 28th
September 1422.
Firoz Sah was one of the most learned kings of the Bahamani dynasty. He was a great
scholar of jurisprudence, scholastic philosophy, Euclidian geometry, dialectics and mathematics.
Besides, he was an excellent poet and a linguist too. Like his predecessors he was obsessed by his
antagonism towards the Hindu Kingdom of Vijayanagar. This led to unwanted destruction and
mutual antagonism between the two kingdoms. During his reign trade and commerce prospered and
Bahamani ships sailed over the seas from their ports of Dabhol and Goa.1 But how different the
Bahamani ruler was at heart could be seen from the dispatch of an embassy to Timur when the
rumour of hisreported invasion of India gained ground. It was surprising that such a powerful ruler of the Deccan
as Firoz Sah should inform Timur of his allegiance to him and accept from Timur his confirmation as
the ruler of the Deccan.1
AHMAD SHAH.
The accession of Sahabuddin Ahmad Sah I took place on 22 September 1422. Soon after his
accession to the throne he decided to shift his capital from Gulburga to Bidar. Perhaps the
immediate cause that led Ahmad to take such a decision was the death of his supporter and
religious preceptor Khvaja Sayyad Muhammad Gesu Daraz. One reason was the existence of a
faction riddled nobility which could at any time bring his own position into danger by declaring him
an usurpur. Gulburga had a bad history of royal personages who ascended the throne. The
atmosphere stunk of regicide and perhaps Ahmad thought himself to be a possible victim of the
Bahamani tradition of regicides. The proximity of Gulbarga to the borders of the Vijayanagar Empire
across the Krsna seems to have influenced Ahmad Sah to shift his capital to Bidar at a safer
distance from Vijayanagar, Bidar was renamed Muhammadabad after Prince Muhammad. He was
entrusted with the task of preparing a layout for the new capital and supervising its construction.
Ahmad Sah moved to the new capital in June 1424, about 21 months after his accession to the
Bahamani throne.
Ahmad Sah was quite aware of the clanger from the factions which were opposed to him. He
appointed Khalaf Hasan Basri as his prime minister, creating him Malik-ut-Tujjar. His nephew,
Hasan Khan, the son of the late King, was given a mansab of 500 and a Jagir. His staunchest
enemies Hosiyar Ain-ul-mulk and Bedar Nizam-ul-mulik were appeased by being made Amir-ul-
Umra and Sarlaskar of Daulatabad respectively. Ahmad Sah reorganised the Mansabdari system by
fixing the mansab of each office holder of the Kingdom such as Sarlaskar 2000, Amir-ul-Umra 1500,
Wakil 1200. To each of the amirs of the kingdoms, were given mansabs ranging from 100 to 1000
depending upon the rank the incumbent held in the court. It was perhaps for the first time during the
Bahamani rule of about 70 years in the Deccan that the Sultanate had fights with the Kingdoms of
Gujarat, Malva and Khandes. The reign of Ahmad Sah, thus was filled with these events.Qasim Beg Safsikan and the members of the family of Sah Nimatullah Kirmani appeared
before the Sultan and unfolded the story of the dastardly plot of the oldcomers. They informed the
Sultan of the numerous petitions they had sent to the Court and wondered how they were not
received. The Sultan realised that he was duped in signing the false order of arrest and execution of
the newcomers and the duplicity and treachery of Mustafa Khan who was in charge of receiving
petitions. Under the orders of the Sultan, Mustafa Khan was arrested and executed and the
properties of prominent oldcomers including those of Musir-ul-mulk and Nizam-ul-mulk were
confiscated. The Sultan also decreed that all the oldcomers now camping at Cakan should be
arrested forth with and brought in chains to Bidar for further inquiry. As a recompense for the
agonies suffered by the newcomers, the Sultan conferred numerous titles and honours upon the
newcomers and raised many of them to positions of status and responsibility. He created Qasim
Beg, Malik-ut-tujjar and appointed him Sarlaskat of Daulatabad. He deposed the prime minister
Miyan Minnallah, the foremost representative of the oldcomers. A few years later the Sultan
received a lengthy communication from Saikh Azari who was then in Khurasan reprimanding the
Sultan for the wanton massacre of the newcomers at Cakan. He then ordered the execution of all
the old comers who were in custody since the affairs of Cakan. The controversy appeared to have
subsided for the time being but the hatred between the oldcomers and newcomers could not be
extinguished. It raised its ugly head with greater force and brought about the disintegration of the
Bahamani kingdom as the subsequent events would show.
In the year 1455, the Bahamani Kingdom was rocked by a rebellion in Telangana, headed by
the brother-in-law of the Sultan, Jalal Khan, the grandson of Sayyad Jalal Bukhari. After his
marriage with the Sultan's sister, Jalal Khan was given a Jagir in Nalgonda. A rumour now
circulated that the Sultan was dead. Perhaps it was deliberately spread by Jalal Khan with a view to
profit by the confusion that would result from such a rumour. Jalal Khan crowned himself King at
Nalgonda. When the news of the revolt was received by Sultan Alauddin he hurriedly marched to
suppress the revolt. When Jalal Khan got the news of the approach of the Sultan he took shelter in
the citadel and sent his son Sikandar Khan to Mahmud Khilji, the Sultan of Malva. Sikandar
informed Mahmud that Sultan Ahmad was dead and that there was anarchy and unrest in the whole
kingdom. It was therefore necessary to restore peace and order in the state and it could be done
only if Mahmud Khilji agreed to help his father Jalal Khan, who had now assumed the titles of
royalty. Mahmud Khilji, who was an ambitious ruler, did not try to find out the truth about the actual
state of affairs. He was eager to fish in troubled waters. He readily consented to the proposal and
invited Mubarak Khan Faruqi of Khandes to join him. He quickly marched to the south, and joined
hands with Mubarak Khan. Together they crossed the frontiers of the Bahamani Kingdom in 1456. They
met Sikandar Khan at Mahur. Ahmad now ordered the armies of Bijapur, Berar and Daulatabad to
collect at Nalgonda. When the troops arrived, Ahmad had a force of 1,80,000 under him. He
marched towards Mahur. On approaching Mahur he divided his army in three contingents. He sent
one to oppose the Malva forces, another to oppose the Khandes army. The third was placed under
his command. He waited at a distance of eight miles from the scene of confrontation in battle
readiness. When the opposing armies were deployed in battle array, Mahmud Khilji suddenly
withdrew from the field of battle. He was faced with a force three times his own strength. Now that
the rumours of Ahmad's death had been proved to be baseless, he decided to withdraw his support
to Jalal Khan. He retired to Malva leaving a token force of 1,000 men behind him. Sikandar Khan,
disheartened at the withdrawal of support from Mahmud Khilji did not offer any battle.
At this time the Sultan conferred upon Mahmud Gavan, one of the newcomers from Qawan
near Resht in Northern Iran a mansab of 1,000 with order; to suppress the insurrection of Jalal Khan
Mahmud Gavan who was to play a prominent role in the Bahamani politics for the next three
decades proceeded to Nalgonda and besieged the citadel where Jalal Khan had shut him self up. In
the meanwhile Sikandar Khan left Mahur ano approached Nalgonda. Here he met Mahmud Gavan
and on obtaining a promise of pardon hastened to the fort of Nalgonda to persuade his father to lay
down the arms. With no chance of any succour from any quarters, Jalal Khan sent his submission.
He handed over the fort to Mahmud Gavan. The Sultan pardoned both the father and the son and
restored to them their old jagir of Nalgonda. Even though the insurrection of Jalal Khan was
suppressed, all was not well in Telangana. Trouble was brewing on the eastern frontier of the
Bahamani Kingdom. Kapilesvar was the ruler of Orissa. He possessed a force of well over two
thousand elephants. The Bahamani forces were evicted from the fort of Bhongir by the local chief.
Sanjar Khan who was appointed as the Sarlaskar of Telangana had to make a show of force before
he could take possession of the fort. The Gajapati ruler Kapilesvar who was alleged to have
received help from the Bahamani Sultan in deposing Bhandeva IV had increased his strength. He
was in possession of the region of Bejvada and Kondapalli He had also extended his territorial
possessions in the south. He posed a threat to the eastern frontiers of the Bahamani Kingdom. To
forestall any attack from Kapilesvar Sanjar Khan the Sarlaskar of the Telangana Subha, marched
against him. No general engagement took place between the two forces because the Sultan
immediately ordered Sanjar Khan to withdraw. However, there is enough evidence to show that
skirmishes did take place between the Bahamani contingents and the troops commanded by Rahutanaya, the Oriyan commander. In these skirmishes the Bahamanis
seem to have suffered heavily1.
The Sultan did not survive for long after the Telangana campaign. He died shortly afterwards
on 3rd April 1458 from the malignant wound in his skin from which he had been suffering for a long
time. Alauddin did not possess any great qualities. The whole of his reign was full of external
aggressions and internal conflicts. And nowhere did Alauddin emerge with marked success. It is
doubtful whether he could be attributed with the possession of any humane qualities because he
had the blood of newcomers and oldcomers on his hand. Under the influence of wine he ordered the
massacre of the innocent newcomers at Cakan. When he realised his great folly he ordered the
execution of the oldcomers. His humane treatment of prince Muhammad and for that matter of Jalal
Khan, cannot wipe away the stigma of recklessness, cruelty and political immaturity on his part
which were mainly responsible for the execution of thousands of oldcomers and newcomers.
The reign of Alauddin Ahmad II was followed by two short reigns of Alauddin Humayun and
Nizamuddin Ahmad III at the end of which the Bahamanis settled down to a period ot prosperity
under the able and competent guidance of Khvaja Jahan Mahmud Gavan. A short description of the
important events of the reigns of Alauddin Humayun and Nizamuddin Ahmad III is given in what
follows.
ALAUDDIN HUMAYUN SHAH.
Sultan Alauddin Ahmad II was succeeded by his eldest son Humayun under the title of
Alauddin Humayun. The accession of Humayun to the throne was not, however, without an incident.
Humayun was extremely hot headed. He had antagonised a few of his father's courtiers when he
was a prince. Among them were Raja Rustam Nizam-ul-mulk, his son Malik-ut-tujjar, Sah
Habibullah, Mallu Khan and other amirs of the kingdom. Of these the officers headed by Raja
Rustam Nizam-ul-mulk being mortally afraid of their lives fled to Gujarat. The party headed by Sah
Habibullah took a bolder stand and put on the throne Hasan, the younger brother of Humayun. As
this news spread, commotion broke out in the capital. Humayun got the support of Sah Muhib-ullah,
the younger brother of Sah Habibullah to whom his sister was married. Though hot tempered
Humayun possessed daring and courage. He collected a faithful band of followers and backed by
Muhibullah, sword in hand, fought his way through the crowd and reached the palace. He went to
the room where the throne was situated, dragged Hasan from the throne and himself ascended the
throne. He then ordered the imprisonment of all the supporters of Hasan including Habibullah. This
episode took place on 3 Aprili 1458, the same day on which Alauddin Ahmad breathed his last. On
accession to the throne Humayun appointed
1 Sewell and Aiyanoor, 122 ; Banerji, 291-292. Khvaja Najmuddin Mahmud Gilani alias Khvaja Jahan Mahmud Gavan as Vakil-i-Saltanat or prime
minister. He conferred upon him the title of Malik-ut-tujjar and entrusted to him the administration of
the Subha of Bijapur; At the same time he conferred the title of Khvaja-i-Jahan upon Malik Sah,
appointing him to the Subha of Telangana and made Sikandar Khan, the erstwhile rebel, the Sipah
Salar of the same province.
Sikandar Khan assumed the new charge and once more thought of rising in revolt against the
new Sultan who was his cousin. He went to Nalgonda, the place of his father's Jagir and persuaded
his father Jalal Khan to join him. Sikandar Khan was not alone in this adventure this time. He had
the support of the Velamas who promised him their wholehearted co-operation. When the Sultan
received the news of the revolt by Sikandar Khan, the rebels were already advancing on Golconda.
The Sultan immediately dispatched Malik Sah Khvaja-i-Jahan. However he could not prove equal to
the task. Defeated by Sikandar Khan, he had to retire. The Sultan now decided to march against the
rebels in person. Before attacking the rebels the Sultan offered them terms of compromise and
promised them pardon if they surrendered. Sikandar refused to come to terms. Instead, he attacked
the Sultan's camp with all the forces at his command. The Sultan still talked of peace and offered
Sikandar complete pardon and claim to any territory that he desired to have as his Jagir in the
Subha of Daulatabad. The softness on the part of the Sultan encouraged Sikandar Khan to adopt a
more insulting attitude towards the Sultan. He challenged the claims of the Sultan to the throne. He
offered as his terms of compromise the partition of the Kingdom into two, with one half going to
Humayun and the other half going to himself as he claimed to be the grandson of Sultan Ahmad
Sah Wali from his mother's side. Nothing further was now needed by Sultan Humayun to put down
the rebel and assert his supremacy. The battle was declared. Fighting went on for the whole day
and it seemed as if fortune would favour Sikandar. When all hopes had been lost by Humayun,
Malik-ut-tujjar Mahmud Gavan and Khvaja-i-Jahan Turk rushed with reinforcement and attacked the
army of Sikandar from both the flanks. The tired army of Sikandar was routed on the battle field.
Sikandar was mortally wounded and fell dead on the battle field, trampled by the horses which had
run amock in the confusion. With his son dead, Jalal Khan retreated from the battle field and took
shelter in the fort of Nalgonda. The Bahamam army now laid siege to the fort. With, the best part of
his army vanquished and no hopes of succour from any quarters Jalal Khan approached Mahmud
Gavan to intercede in his behalf with the king and begged for pardon. Sultan Humayun, did not
further press the matter. He pardoned Jalal Khan but imprisoned him for life.
The suppression of Sikandar's rebellion did not put an end to the unrest in Telangana. On the
contrary it brought in its wake the confrontation of the Bahamanis with the Gajapatis of Orissa. In the rebellion of Sikandar, the Velamas had sided with the rebels. It may be recalled here that
Linga VII, the Velama ruler, had rendered help to Alauddin Ahmad when Jalal Khan, the father of
Sikandar Khan had rebelled in the reign of that Sultan. Humayun now decided to punish the
Velamas for the active support they had rendered to Sikandar. He marched against their stronghold
of Devarkonda. The fortress was besieged by Khvaja-i-Jahan Turk and Nizam-ul-mulk with 20,000
horse and 40 elephants. Linga now found himself in dire straits. He appealed to the various chiefs of
Telangana. He also approached Kapilesvar, the Raja of Orissa, promising him considerable tribute.
Kapilesvar, who had earlier fought against the Bahamanis, eagerly seized the opportunity that would
enable him to extend his sway further south over the Bahamani Telangana. He sent his general
Hamvira with a huge force. The Bahamani generals wrangled over the tactical deployment of their
forces. Khvaja-i-Jahan insisted upon the continuance of the siege whereas Nizam-ul-mulk advised
the raising of the siege, to draw out the enemy and defeat him. In the meanwhile Hamvira had
arrived and the besiegers were themselves besieged. The confident Linga now issued out of the fort
and attacked the Bahamani army which was surrounded on all sides by the forces of Hamvira.
There was a complete rout of the Bahamanis who lost heavily in dead and wounded. Nizam-ul-mulk
and Khvaja-i-Jahan managed to flee the battle field. The triumphant Hamvira and Linga marched
towards Warangal and Rajachal respectively and captured the places by inflicting heavy defeats
upon the Bahamani defenders. Unaware of the happenings, Sultan Humayun was marching
towards Devarconda when on his way Khvaja-i-Jahan met him and related the tragic events that led
to the complete rout of the Bahamanis. He however put the blame squarely upon Nizam-ul-mulk for
slackening the siege operations. The hot tempered Sultan got extremely wild at Nizam-ul-mulk for
the mismanagement of the entire expedition. Nizam-ul-mulk thought his life to be in danger, fled the
camp and took asylum with the Sultan of Malva.
It may be recalled here that after the death of Alauddin Ahmad an attempt was made to put
on the throne, Hasan, one of the younger sons of the dead Sultan. The attempt failed and Humayun
imprisoned Hasan and others including Habibullah who had participated in the plot. They were kept
in a prison at Bidar. Also in the prison were Jalal Khan, the old rebel and Yahya Khan, the Sultan's
brother. All these persons were released from the prison by Yusuf Turk who treacherously entered
the prison on a forged pass and killed the Kotval of the prison. Sultan Humayun received the news
of these happenings while in Telangana. He, therefore, put Mahmud Gavan in charge of the
Telangana affairs and himself hurriedly marched towards the capital, where he arrived in March
1460. In the meanwhile the entry of Yusuf Turk in the prison had alerted the guarding establishment.
They moved together in force and attacked the party led by Hasan and Habibullah. A general action ensued in which Jalal Khan and Yahya Khan
were killed. Hasan and Habibullah made good their escape to the jagirs of Habibullah located in the
district of Bid. At Bid Hasan crowned himself king and appointed Yusuf Turk and Habibullah, to the
posts of Amir-ul-Umra and Wakil-i-Saltanat, respectively. The kingship of Hasan was short lived as
he was defeated by the Bahamani forces sent against him. He fled to Bijapur, accompanied by
Habibullah, on his way to Vijayanagar. At Bijapur he was intercepted by the vice-governor Siraj
Khan Junaidi. In the scuffle that followed Habibullah was killed while Hasan was made prisoner.
Siraj Khan sent Hasan in chains to Bidar along with all his supporters. It was now that the ferocious
nature of Humayun came to the fore. No doubt three attempts to dethrone him had disturbed the
even tenor of his character and he now decided to take complete revenge upon all, even on those
distantly associated in the plots against him. He made Hasan a prey to the tigers. His supporters
were trampled by elephants. He invented new methods of physical tortures and made his
antagonists suffer physically in the same manner as they had made him suffer the mental agonies
of possible dethronement. The indescribable cruelties inflicted by Humayun upon his opponents
gave him a nickname of "The Tyrant". Suspecting complicity of the newcomers Humayun distributed
honours and titles upon a number of oldcomers among whom was Malik Hasan Bahri, the father of
Malik Ahmad, the founder of the Nizam Sahi dynasty of Ahmadnagar. He was given the title of
Sarang Khan. But the days of the tyrant were numbered too. He himself was murdered while in
sleep by a maid servant on 1 September 1461.1 There is nothing distinguishing about the short reign of Humayun which lasted for three and a
half years. No doubt he ascended the throne on an auspicious note when he said "Nobles of my
kingdom I am confident that it is impossible to carry on the government of Kingdom efficiently
without the appointment of a minister who should be well known the world over and who should
excel in wisdom among the Arabs as well as the Ajmis. We are on the threshold of a new epoch in
the history of this country and I cannot do better than follow the advice of one who should be clothed
with the outward attributes of truth and good faith and who should inwardly be free from vices and
vanity. I have therefore made up my mind to appoint Khvaja Najmuddin Mahmud Gilani, one of the
best known in the State for his sense of justice as well as for his deep thought, to be my chief
minister". However, there was no fulfilment of the aims he had chalked out at the beginning of his
reign. He did not possess a firm grip over the State affairs. This resulted in the recurrence of
rebellions throughout his reign. Like his predecessors he was haunted by the spectre of the
cleavage between the oldcomers and the newcomers. The way he ordered the rebels who were
mostly newcomers to be flayed or burned alive brings to the fore the grim happenings of Cakan not
long ago. There is no exaggeration in his description by Ferishta and no attempt to placate his evil
deeds by Mahmud Gavan could exonerate Humayun from the stigma of wanton cruelty.1
NIZAMUDDIN AHMAD III.
On the death of Humayun his minor son Ahmad succeeded to the throne under the title of
Nizamuddin Ahmad III on 4 September 1461. Before his death Humayun appointed a Council of
Regency consisting of Khvaja-i-Jahan Turk, Malik-ut-tujjar Mahmud Gavan and the dowager Queen
Makhduma-i-Jahan Nargis Begum to look after the administration of the Kingdom till Ahmad
assumed the reins of royalty. Khvaja-i-Jahan who was appointed Wakil and Tarafdar of Telangana
and Mahmud Gavan who was created Jumlat-ul-mulk, Wazir-i-Kul and appointed Tarafdar of Bijapur
advised the young king in mattersof administration in consultation with Nargis Begum. The Queen mother held a special prerogative
in the Council of Regency and her words commanded respect and attention.
The political atmosphere in the capital was far from quiet and there was every danger of
frontier eruptions taking place. Though the Council of Regency was all powerful yet its successful
continuance was likely to depend upon the deftness and adroitness with which it would deal with
internal affairs and handle the frontier situation. The council started with a hopeful and sober note by
releasing all the persons imprisoned during the late king's regime. The council also adopted a policy
of appeasement towards both the newcomers and oldcomers without favouring or disfavouring an
individual or a section belonging to either groups. But in the very nature of things the composition of
the council was such and the internal policy it adopted was so hesitating that it could not bring that
fusion of altitudes which it aimed at doing. The oidcomers doubted the intentions of the council and
looked upon its actions as some sort of a trap. Barring the Queen, the council was composed
entirely of newcomers. The newcomers on the other hand were not very happy about the policies of
the council because they saw in them a gradual waning of their influence.
The relations of the Bahamanis were far from happy with their Hindu as well as Muslim
neighbours. Sultan Humayun had suffered a humiliating defeat at the hands of Gajapati Kapilesvar.
The latter now decided to take the advantage of the death of Humayun and the accession of a minor
king. He collected a huge force, allied himself with the Velamas in Telangana and marched into the
Bahamani territory. He occupied Kaulas and came within 10 miles of the capital itself. The council
ordered Khvaja-i-Jahan Turk to assemble a force and. march against Kapilesvar. As the account
goes the young king accompanied the Bahamani army. The opposing forces drew into battle array
and a general action ensued. There were pitched battles and hand to hand fighting between the
Bahamanis and the army of Orissa with both sides suffering heavily. With his supply lines extending
over a long distance, Kapilesvar regarded the chances of defeating the Bahamani army not very
bright. He decided to retreat from the battle-field. As the account goes, Khvaja-i-Jahan Turk pursued
him up to the very frontiers of his kingdom and retired only when Kapilesvar agreed to pay an
indemnity of five lakhs of silver tankas.
With the settlement of affairs on the eastern frontiers of the kingdom, the new regime had to
face a renewal of hostilities by the Sultan of Malva. The various states which had come into
existence after the disappearance of the Tughluk rule were all expansionist in nature. The
Bahamanis, the Sultans of Malva, Gujarat and the kings of Vijayanagar were no exception. The
difficulties of the Bahamanis were now regarded as an excellent opportunity by Sultan Mahmud Khilji of Malva. He posed a threat from the northern frontiers of the
Bahamani kingdom and brought the three States of Malva, Gujarat and the Bahamanis at war with
each other.
It will be remembered that during the reign of Humayun some of the nobles had fled to the
neighbouring kingdom, being mortally afraid for their lives. Of these, Raja Rustam Nizam-ul-mulk
was now at the Malva court. He incited the Sultan of Malva to invade the Bahamani Kingdom.
Perhaps the dispatch of an envoy by the Sultan of Khandes to the Bahamani capital after the
accession of Ahmad was not a mere formality. It must have aimed at a study of Bahamani politics at
close quarters. In 1462 the Sultan of Malva formed an alliance with the Gajapati Kapilesvar of
Orissa and the Sultan of Khandes. The combined armies entered the Bahamani territory from
Khandes and came within 32 miles of the Bahamani capital of Bidar. The resemblance between the
invasion of Kapilesvar in the previous year and the one undertaken now by the Sultans of Malva and
Khandes and the king of Orissa is very striking. The Orissa king had advanced to within 8 miles of
the capital and now the combined forces had come within 32 miles of the capital. It speaks of a state
of loose military preparedness and lack of centralised control by the Bahamanis over the
discontented provincial officers of the Kingdom. However, instructions were conveyed to the officers
commanding the armies at Bijapur, Daulatabad and Berar to assemble with their troops at Bidar.
When the armies had assembled at the capital an order was given to them to march against the
combined forces. The Bahamani army along with the young Sultan, and commanded by Malik-uttujjar,
Mahmud Gavan, Khvaja-i-Jahan Turk, and Sikandar Khan Turk then marched out of the
capital and came face to face with the combined forces at Kandhar. The centre of the Bahamani
army was commanded by the Sultan himself with Khvaja-i-Jahan Turk and Sikandar Khan to
support him. They had a force of 11,000 cavalry and 140 elephants under them. The centre of the
opposing army was under the command of the Sultan of Malva, Mahmud Khilji. He had a strong
cavalry force under him. One flank of the Bahamani army was under the command of Nizam-ul-mulk
Turk. It consisted of 10,000 lancers and 100 elephants. His opponents were Raja Rustam Nizam-ulmulk
Ghori and Prince Giyasuddin of Malva. The other flank of the Bahamani army which was
commanded by Mahmud Gavan consisted of 10,000 cavalry and 40 elephants. He was opposed by
Mahabat Khan of Canderi and Zahir-ul-mulk. The first round of the battle went in favour of the
Bahamanis. Mahmud Gavan scored a victory and killed both his opponents, Mahabat Khan, and
Zahir-ul-mulk. Nizam-ul-mulk defeated his opponents. Prince Giyasuddin was wounded in the
encounter. All seemed lost and Mahmud Khilji thought of retreating from the field of battle. However,
an insignificant occurrence saved the day for him and turned his defeat into a glorious victory. The Bahamani forces were now busy plundering the bag and baggage of the
defeated forces, when a marl elephant from the centre of the Bahamani army was struck by a stray
arrow. The elephant turned back and ran helter skelter stampeding all that came its way. Sikandar
Khan who com manded the centre viewed the situation and perceived a danger to the life of Sultan
Ahmad. He thought of removing the Sultan away from the battle field to a safe place. Without
consulting any other responsible officer and without considering the consequences of such retreat
upon the morale of the men under him, he selected a picked guard and took the Sultan directly to
Bidar. The absence of the Sultan from the mounted elephant was soon detected by the Bahamani
forces. They suddenly lost nerve and left the battle field precipitately, in utter confusion and
disorder. Mahmud Gavan, Khvaja-i-Jahan Turk, Nizam-ul-mulk Turk also fled the battle field and
arrived in the capital. Mahmud Khilji who observed this spectacle of the victorious army suddenly
taking to heels took it to be a grand scheme of the Bahamani generals to draw him in and destroy
him completely. He, therefore, did not pursue the retreating forces but started regrouping his army
to face a possible attack from the Bahamanis. The attack did not materialise because the Bahamani
generals were too confused to arrive at an agreement as to who was responsible for their defeat.
On reaching Bidar, Mahmud Gavan complained to the Queen about the hasty action of Sikandar
Khan in removing the Sultan from the battle field and reasoned that Sikandar Khan was solely
responsible for the disaster that befell the Bahamani army. Sikandar Khan was, therefore, put under
arrest.
He vainly remonstrated that when the Bahamani armies led by Muhmud Gavan and Khvaja-i-
Jahan were busy looting the Malwese equipage, there was no one to protect the Sultan. He had,
therefore, out of extreme loyalty to the Sultan and in order to save the Sultan's life, brought him
safely back to Bidar. He represented to the Queen that it was Khvaja-i-Jahan who should be
punished. The Queen, however, was powerless at the moment to take any action against the
Khvaja-i-Jahan.
With no trace of the Bahamani army on, or near the battle field, Mahmud Khilji was convinced
that God had gifted him with a victory. He straightway made for the capital of the Bahamanis. In the
meanwhile, thinking that it would be difficult to hold the town of Bidar against the combined forces,
Mahmud Gavan decided to withdraw from the capital. Accordingly, the town of Bidar was put in
charge of Mallu Khan Deccani and the Sultan was removed to Firozabad. No sooner had the
Bahamanis evacuated their capital than Mahmud Khilji occupied it. Only the citadel of Bidar was
held by Mallu Khan. Mahmud Khilji now occupied the districts and provinces of Berar, Bid and
Daulatabad. Mahmud Khilji's occupation of such a vast portion of Bahamani territory brought the
once mighty nower of the Bahamanis to its knees. With danger threatening it from all sides, and faced by the bleak prospects of total extinction, the Council of
Regency wrote to the Sultan of Gujarat, Mahmud Sah begging for his assistance. Mahmud Sah
eagerly seized the opportunity to interfere in the affairs of the Deccan. He, therefore, marched with a
force of 8,000 troops, and halting only at Sultanpur on his way he crossed into Bahamani territory.
The author of Burhan-i-Masir quotes a letter supposedly written by Ahmad Sah to Mahmud Sab. on
receiving the report of Sultan Mahmud's arrival to help him in his fight against Sultan Mahmud Khilji.
The letter reproduced below does no credit to the Bahamani Sultan. It places the Bahamani ruler in
the unenviable position of inviting an outsider to assist him. It was not a war which the Bahamanis
were fighting against the Hindu Kingdoms of Vijayanagar or Orissa. It was a defensive war which
the Bahamanis were fighting against one of the Muslim states, a spectacle not uncommon
throughout the period of Muslim domination in the Deccan in the mediaeval period. The letter runs
as follows: "The Almighty be praised for strengthening the foundation of our countries by the mutual
help of God-fearing and strong kings and for having made the hearts and the innermost recesses of
man lighted by the brilliance of the sword of princely unity. It has been found from the petition of
Musnad-i-Ali Nizam-ul-mulk and Malik Ushsharq Muhammad, Parviz Sultan, Thanadar of Fathabad
that your Majesty has arrived on the frontiers of my kingdom for strengthening the bonds of Islamic
brotherhood. I am now happy to make known to your Majesty that our infantry as well as our cavalry
is ready to meet any eventuality."
The letter was followed by the march of Mahmud Gavan with 6,000 cavalry through, the
district of Bid. He was joined by a force of 20,000 Gujarat troops near the frontier. Mahmud Gavan
levied additional troops on his way and when he marched back he had a force of 40,000 troops
under his command. From Firozabad, Khvaja-i-Jahan was sent with a force to relieve the city
garrison of Bidar defended by Mallu Khan. When Mahmud Khilji heard of the combination of the
Gujarati and the Bahamani forces he decided to withdraw from a trial of strength with the ruler of
Gujarat. He withdrew from the city of Bidar and turned towards Kalyani. Khvaja-i-Jahan started in
hot pursuit of the retreating army. A detachment of the Gujarat forces being reported to be moving
towards Kalyani, Mahmud Khilji changed directions and retreated towards Burhanpur and Asir in
Khandes. To his discomfiture he found his line of retreat completely cut off by Mahmud Gavan. In
desperation Mahmud Khilji destroyed his heavy baggage and turned in the direction of Gondvana,
Ellicpur and Akola. He was reduced to miserable straits from the attacks of Gonds. Thousands of
his men died on their return march to Malva. It was with great difficulty that Mahmud reached Malva.
It was, however, not an end to the conflict between the Bahamanis and the Malva rulers. No sooner
had Sultan Mahmud Sah of Gujarat retired to his country, than, in 1463 Mahmud Khilji of Malva
again collected a huge force of 90,000 and entered the Bahamani territory. He advanced as far as Fathabad defeating the
Bahamani forces on his way. It appeared as if the same story was going to repeat itself. So it did.
The powerless Bahamanis again sent urgent messages to Mahmud Sah of Gujarat informing him of
the invasion of Mahmud Khilji and begging him to help counter this invasion. Mahmud readily
agreed and marched to Sultanpur on his way to the south. When Mahmud Khilji received the news
of the arrival of Mahmud Sah, he withdrew from the Bahamani territory without risking an encounter
with Mahmud Sah and retired to Malva. Shortly after, Sultan Ahmad III died on 30 July 1463 after a
short reign of about two years. The Bahamani power was now in shambles after a succession of
wars with Malva and Orissa. It presented a pathetic spectacle of a semi-independent state looking
upon the Sultan of Gujarat as its protector. If it was to recover from the, miserable state to which it
had been reduced, it required a leader of ability, foresight and intelligence. It found such a person in
Mahmud Gavan who in the next reign, by his deft and adroit handling of the political situation
restored the Bahamani State to its original strength. It was Mahmud Gavan who dominated the
Bahamani politics during the next two decades. It would be in the fitness of things to describe this
period as the age of Mahmud Gavan.
SHAMSUDDIN MUHAMMAD III.
On the death of Nizamuddin Ahmad III, his younger brother Muhammad Khan, who was
barely nine or ten years of age, ascended the throne under the title of Samsuddin Muhammad III on
30 July 1463. The beginning of the reign was marked by the cruel assassination of Khvaja-i-Jahan
Turk in 1466 by Nizam-ul-mulk in the presence of the Sultan under the explicit commands of the
Queen-mother Nargis Begum. As the account goes Khvaja-i-Jahan upset the balance of power in
the Council of Regency. He dismissed the old nobility from the various posts of honour and
responsibility held by them and appointed to the posts persons who were in his favour. He even
caused Malik-ut-tujjar Mahmud Gavan to be despatched on a mission away from the capital. The
old nobility was thus irked by the impudent behaviour of Khvaja-i-Jahan. The Turkish guards headed
by Sikandar Khan wanted to take revenge upon him for the deliberate imprisonment of Sikandar
Khan at his instance after the disastrous battle of Kandhar in the previous reign. He was unaware of
the plot that was being hatched against him at the instance of the Queen mother. One day as usual
when he was proceeding to pay his respects to the Sultan, Nizam-ul-mulk seized him at the
entrance to the Sultan's chamber and murdered him in cold blood. Thus was dissolved the Council
of Regency consisting of Mahmud Gavan, Khvaja-i-Jahan and the Queen mother created by the late
Sultan Humayun. There was nothing spectacular in the achievements of the Council of Regency
during the period of its existence of five years from 1461 till its end on 1466. As a matter of fact
during this period the Bahamanis suffered greatly in their wars with their neighbours. They were practically reduced to the position of vassals of their powerful neighbour, the Sultan of Gujarat. At
home also the conditions were far from happy. The weak centre had lost its control over the
powerful provincial governors who rarely respected the com- mands issuing from the centre, or,
even if they did, did so in a Half hearted manner. No attempt to settle the dispute amicably between
the oldcomers and newcomers was made. The jealousy between them raised its ugly head time and
again. It ultimately led to the cruel assassination of Khvaja-i-Jahan.
With the murder of Khvaja-i-Jahan there was now no one left in the kingdom except Mahmud
Gavan who could reorganize the affairs of the kingdom and put them on a sound footing. The young
Sultan and the Queen mother soon realised this and accepted the inevitable. The Sultan made a
declaration some time in 1466 appointing Malik-ut-tujjar Mahmud Gavan as the Prime Minister and
the sole administrator of the kingdom. He was created Khvaja-i-Jahan with a special bodyguard of
2,000 Moghal troops. He was henceforward addressed as the Lord of the habitants of the globe,
Secretary of the Royal Mansion, Deputy of the Realm in all the official documents. Such enormous
power in unscrupulous hands could easily have been misused. It goes to the credit of Mahmud
Gavan, the new Bahamani Prime Minister, that he made use of his powers not for personal
aggrandisement, but for the benefit of the country.
We shall first discuss the extensive military expeditions undertaken by Khvaja-i-Jahan
Mahmud Gavan and then the efforts made by him to consolidate the gains by introducing various
reforms in the administrative machinery of the kingdom. Mahmud Gavan had to face considerable
opposition in the execution of his schemes. He succeeded in temporarily bridging the gulf between
the oldcomers and the newcomers. He also softened the hostility of the Hindu Kingdoms of
Vijayanagar and Orissa by adopting a conciliatory attitude towards them. On assumption of power,
Mahmud Gavan was faced with a threat of invasion from Mahmud Khilji, the Sultan of Malva.
Mahmud Khilji was still smarting under the defeat he had suffered at the hands of the combined
forces of Gujarat and Bahamanis. The accession of Muhammad III and the murder of Khvaja-i-
Jahan gave Mahmud Khilji an opportunity to renew hostilities against the Bahamanis. He made
extensive preparations for the invasion of the Bahamani territory. As a pretext for an attack he
demanded the cession of Mahur and Ellicpur to Malva. The demand was rejected outright by the
Bahamanis. Sultan Muhammad Sah appointed Musnad-i-Ali Malik Yusuf Turk alias Nizam-ul-mulk
commander of the army of Berar and ordered him to counter any move by Mahmud Khilji to invade
the northern frontiers of the Bahamani kingdom. The Sultan also dispatched a communication to
Mahmud Sah of Gujarat requesting him to help him. Mahmud Gavan himself proceeded with a force
to Fathabad to distract the attention of the Malva army. Malik Yusuf Turk who was appointed commander of the Berar army proceeded to Kherla to
forestall any attack by the Majva Ruler. Kherla was besieged. The chief of Kherla sent urgent
messages to Sultan Mahmud Khilji to send reinforcements. When the siege was going on, Siraj-ulmulk,
the Majva commander arrived with a considerable force to the relief of the besieged. In the
engagement which took place, the Malva forces were routed. The Malva general was made a
prisoner. Malik Yusuf Turk, however, allowed the Malva army to march out of the fort of Kherla after
the fort was occupied by the Berar army. The triumph of Malik Yusuf Turk was, however, short lived.
He was murdered by two Rajput soldiers of the Malva army who approached him under the pretext
of submitting to him. The body of the dead commander was carried to Bidar by two of his lieutenants
Abdullah Yaghrach Khan and Fathullah Wafa Khan. Sultan Muhammad made them the mansabdars
of one thousand and honoured them with the titles of Adil Khan and Darya Khan, respectively.
On hearing of the murder of Malik Yusuf Turk and, in spite of the losses suffered by his army
in the battle of Kherla, Mahmud Khilji decided to march personally to attack Kherla. However,
Mahmud Gavan quickly moved from Fathabad. The move of Gavan would have cut off the way of
retreat of Mahmud Khilji if he had advanced. Mahmud Khilji realised the futility of proceeding further.
He withdrew to his own territory. Both the parties had now grown weary of war. The confrontation
did not benefit either. It resulted in wanton destruction of life and property. When Mahmud Gavan
became aware of the desire of the other party to cease hostilities and come to terms he sent Khane-
Azam Sadr Khan as a special envoy to Sadiabad Mandu, the capital of Malva. The embassy from
the Bahamanis was reciprocated by Sultan Mahmud Khilji who sent two eminent persons of his
court saraf-ul-mulk and Khalaful Masaikh Saikh Daud-i-Mandavi. In a letter addressed to Sultan
Muhammad, he recalled the attention of Bahamani Sultan to the treaty of friendship entered into
between Sultan Hosang Sah and Sultan Ahmad Sah Wall. He pointed out that both the Sultans had
then agreed that Berar should go to the Bahamanis and Kherla to Malva. Sultan Mahmud Khilji
reasoned that there should not be any obstacle in the observance of that treaty. Sultan Mahmud
Khilji, however, offered very caustic comments on Mahmud Gavan who, he pointed out, did not
seem to have been very sanguine about the intentions of the King of Malva. Mahmud Gavan knew
that the Sultan of Malva had broken his plighted word often and had carried out wanton attacks. He
would have put an end to the Bahamani Kingdom itself if help had not been forthcoming from
Gujarat in the reign of Nizam-uddin Ahmad III. Mahmud Gavan himself did not spare the Malva
Sultan when the letter was discussed with the Malva ambassadors. He said in one of his letters to
Saikh Daud that on his part the Khilji Sultan had shown his opposition and antagonism instead of
love and alliance. He had not desisted from the wrong path. He pointed out that the promises made by the Khiljis were as slender as a spider's
web. Nothing further could be done unless the outward purity of action was brought in line with the
inward purity of intention. This embassy was followed by another which brought a fresh message of
goodwill and peace from Sultan Mahmud Khilji. Finally a treaty of friendship was signed between the
two kingdoms under the terms of which Berar was retained by the Bahamanis while Kherla went to
Malva. The hatchet of enmity between the two kingdoms which had brought them to the brink of
destruction was finally buried. The credit for this achievement goes to Mahmud Gavan.
When these events were taking place in the Bahamani kingdom, great political changes were
taking place in Vijayanagar. There Virupaksa was on the throne. However, most of the power was
concentrated in the hands of his minister Saluva Narasimha. The Bahamanis and the Vijayanagar
rulers combined in a war against Kapilesvar of Orissa in 1470 and defeated him. Shortly after this,
Kapilesvar died. His death was followed by the usurpation of power by one Mahgal Rai who
deposed the legal heir to the throne, Hamvira. The prince petitioned to the Bahamani Sultan to help
him in the acquisition of the throne. The Sultan agreed and it was decided to send Malik Hasan
Bahri on the campaign. The Bahamani army met with success in the Orissa campaign. Mangal AIi
was defeated and Hamvira was placed on the throne. The Bahamani army then marched further
south and subjugated Rajmahendry and Kondavidu. On his return from the campaign Malik Hasan
Bahrl was greatly honoured and made Sarlaskar of Telangana with the title of Nizam-ul-mulk.
By thus following a conciliatory policy towards the Hindu and Muslim neighbours of the
Bahamani kingdom, Mahmud Gavan succeeded in pacifying the northern and eastern frontiers of
the Kingdom. The western coast, however, had been restive since the disaster which had fallen
upon Malik-ul-tujjar Khalaf Hasan Basri in his illfated Konkan campaign in the reign of Alauddin
Ahmad II. The local chiefs had disowned their allegiance to the Bahamanis. A report was received
that the Rajas of Khelna and Sangamesvar were practically in command of the Konkan coast and
were pillaging the country engaged in commerce. The achievements of those two chiefs deserve
attention. The Raja of Sarigamesvar had collected a naval force of 130 battle crafts and was
daringly attacking the ships carrying Muslim pilgrims to Mecca. Mahmud Gavan now decided to
settle the western coast. He collected a considerable army consisting of both infantry and cavalry.
He proceeded to the western coast in the beginning of 1467 and marched to Kolhapur which he
made his headquarters. On a reconnaissance of the country he found that the terrain was
unsuitable for cavalry movements. He, therefore, sent back the cavalry and ordered infantry
reinforcements from his own province of Bijapur. Contingents began to arrive from Dabhol, Karad,
Junnar, Cakan, Caul, Wal and Man, accompanied by such officers as Khus Qadam, Asad Khan and others, The news of the advance of the Bahamani
forces was received by the Rajas of Khelna 1 and Sangamesvar. They made preparations to meet
the Bahamani forces. The thick and dense jungles which brought about the doom of Khalaf Hasan
were ordered to be cut down by Mahmud Gavan. Mahmud Gavan advanced cautiously feeling his
way and testing the strength and preparations of his opponents. The Rajas with their small
resources were no match to the superior strength of the Bahamanis and resorted to guerilla tactics
of warfare. Scores of skirmishes were fought between the opposing forces. The rainy season then
started. The continuous downpour of rain made operations difficult. Mahmud Gavan retired to his
camp at Kolhapur. After the rainy season had ended Mahmud Gavan left his camp to besiege
Rangana, a hill fort, extremely steep and difficult to capture. Its subjugation would have been
possible only with great difficulty. Mahmud Gavan decided to capture the fort by other means,
possibly by bribing. He succeeded in his intentions by offering to the commandant of the fort
frankish cloth, belts studded with jewels, palanquins, Arab steed and arms of the most exquisite
pattern. The commandant surrendered the fort after the payment of an indemnity of twelve lakhs in
cash and kind, on 19 July 1470. Mahmud Gavan then marched towards the fort of Machal and
besieged it with all the resources at his command. The fort was taken by escalade and the garrison
made prisoners. After this the surrender of the fort of Khelna of Visalgad did not take long. The Raja
of Khelna sent his son to hand over the charge of the fort to Mahmud Gavan. The fort capitulated on
14 January 1471. It was now an year since Mahmud Gavan had started upon his campaign for the
subjugation of the Konkan region. The difficult terrain and the unceasing hostility of the local chiefs
had taken a heavy toll of men and material. The difficult phase of the campaign still lay ahead with a
certain and determined opposition from Jakhurai, the Raja of Sangamesvar. Mahmud Gavan,
therefore, thought it necessary to recoup the losses he had suffered. He wrote to Bidar to send
immediate reinforcement. But all was not well in the capital. The continued absence of the Khvaja
had given an opportunity to his enemies to plot against him. This state of affairs has been
graphically described by Mahmud Gavan himself in his communications. In one of his letters he
says, "I am very much grieved at the wanton acts of the iniquitous and theenvious and am grateful for the regard of the small number of my helpers. The delay in the arrival of
the army of Asad Khan and the refusal to commission troops in the name of his Majesty are all
matters of deepest concern". At another place he says, "If any one believes in the help of the
nobles, Khans and Maliks of this Kingdom, he can only reap a harvest of utter failures and
hopelessness The Konkan country is full of jungles and mountains. It is impossible for the army to
pass through without cutting down the trees and levelling the ground.". When Mahmud Gavan
became aware of the plots of his enemies to delay the dispatch of reinforcements and their attempts
to poison the mind of the Sultan against him he wrote, "At this hour the arrows of affliction and
calumny are being shot against my heart from the bow of the enmity of the envious. Untruths are
being made to hide the faint sparks of truth and these are sent up as the food to the Royal throne."
Mahmud Gavan remained undaunted by the obstacles that beset him. After the capitulation of
Visalgad he proceeded further. He captured Bulwara, Miriad and Nagar. The rainy season set in
soon after. He retired to his base camp of Kolhapur during the monsoon. After the rainy season had
ended, he marched from Kolhapur towards Sahgamesvar, the capital of Raja Jakhurai. The fort was
besieged and the Raja was reduced to dire straits. None of his efforts succeeded in forcing the
Bahamanis to loosen their grip on the fort. Ultimately the Raja sent his son to Mahmud Gavan to
negotiate terms for peace. Mahmud Gavan accepted the offer. Sangamesvar capitulated on 13
December 1471. With the submission of the Konkan region, Mahmud Gavan appointed officers to
stabilise the Bahamani rule in the country of Konkan. The conquest of the western coast of
Maharastra was thus practically completed. There remained only one stronghold on the western
coast viz., Goa. Mahmud Gavan decided to take advantage of the unsettled political situation in the
Vijayanagar kingdom and conquer Goa. He made a two pronged attack on Goa from sea as well as
from land accompanied by a deep penetration in the Vijayanagar territory to prevent any succour
reaching Goa. This strategy helped the easy capture of Goa which was annexed to the Bahamani
Kingdom on 1 February 1472. Putting a strong garrison to command the fort of Goa, Mahmud
Gavan marched back to the capital which he reached on 19 May 1472. The huge booty and the
spoils of war which Mahmud Gavan presented to the Sultan, extremely pleased him and he was
honoured by the honorific titles of Lord of the Benign council, great leader and Lord, Wielder of the
Pen and the Sword. Kolhapur, Goa and Londha were added by the Sultan to Gavan's Jagir
territories.1 The Konkan campaign was followed by the subjugation of Virakheda and Antur in the north
western part of the kingdom where the Maratha chief had risen in rebellion. Yusuf Adil Khan, the
governor of the Maharastra provinces and the protege of Mahmud Gavan was sent on this
expedition and he defeated Jansing Ray, the Maratha chief of Virakheda. The new subjugated
territory was granted in Jagir to Yusuf Adil Khan.
In the meanwhile news of unrest was received from the territory surrounding the fort of Goa. It
was reported that Parketa, the chief of Belganv, and the Sipahdar of Bankapur had risen in rebellion
at the instigation of the Raja of Vijayanagar. The Sultan decided to lead the campaign himself. The
Sultan left the capital on 15 March 1473. He ordered Mahmud Gavan to accompany him. The
Sultan reached Belganv shortly afterwards. The fort was too strong to be taken by a surprise attack.
The Sultan therefore ordered the siege of the fortress. Parketa on his part tried to seduce the
Bahamani generals. In his attempts he succeeded to some extent. The generals approached the
Sultan informing him of the alleged willingness of Parketa to submit. The Sultan realised the real
state of affairs. He instructed his gunners to build a redoubt opposite to the fortress, to concentrate
their fire on the fort and capture it within a fortnight's time. Mahmud Gavan was told to deploy his
contingent to fill in the ditches which surrounded the fort.
The efforts of Mahmud Gavan did not meet with success as Parketa undid during the night
time what Mahmud Gavan achieved during the day. However, the concentrated bombardment of the
fort and the mining of the fort walls by Mahmud Gavan, Yusuf Adil and Fathullah Imad-ul-mulk
caused a breach in the fort walls. Seeing that further resistance was useless, the Raja offered to
submit. The fort capitulated and was added to the Jagirs of Mahmud Gavan. Parketa was made an amir of the Bahamani Court. It was after the
conclusion of this campaign that Sultan Muhammad sah assumed the title of Laskari by which name
he is known in history.
The Bahamani conquest in the west and its accommodation with the neighbouring kingdoms
of Gujarat, Malva, Vijayanagar, Orissa and Khandes clearly defined its borders. The Bahamani
territory included the whole of the Konkan coast from Caul. Goa was its southernmost possession
on the west. In the east its jurisdiction extended over the whole of Telangana. The coastal districts
of Andhra were still outside its authority. In the south its sway was limited by the Tungabhadra. To
the north its possessions included Berar and its frontiers touched those of Khandes and Malva. The
Bahamani Kingdom had been formerly divided into the four administrative divisions of Berar,
Daulatabad. Gulburga and Telangana by Sultan Muhammad I well over a century ago. Mahmud
Gavan now thought of redistributing the old provinces and the new acquisitions added to them. The
reform in the administrative divisions had become necessary not only because the old divisions had
grown into unwieldy administrative units, but because the governors of the provinces were tending
to grow powerful. The object of the reform was to curb their powers and bring them within the orbit
of central authority. Mahmud Gavan divided the Bahamani possessions into eight smaller compact
units as under; Berar into Gavil and Mahur; Daulatabad into Daulatabad and Junnar, the latter
comprising, the whole territory between Daman, Bassein, Goa and Belganv; Gulburga into Bijapur
(up to the river Mora and including Raicur and Mudgal) and Ahsanabad Gulburga (from Sagar to
Naldurg along with Solapur), Telangana into Rajmehendry (including Nalgunda, Masuli-patam and
the Oriya territory) and Warangal. To put a further check upon the powers of the provincial
governors a certain portion of the territory in each provincial division was brought under the direct
control of the royal authority. In the past the Sultans had found to their chagrin that the provincial
governors never fulfilled their military commitments even though they had complete control over the
military affairs of the province. They maintained their own militia which was not in accordance with
the standards prescribed by their mansab. In times of emergency the Sultan was invariably let down
by the provincial governors. Mahmud Gavan decreed that in future the provincial governors would
have, only one fort under their control. The rest of the fortified places in the province would he
manned by officers appointed by the Central Government. To put the administrative and military
machine of the State in order and to root out lethargy and corruption, Mahmud Gavan introduced
the system of cash payment to a mansabdar in proportion to the mansab held by him. He made it
incumbent upon the mansabdar to surrender his cash grant if the stipulated militia was not
maintained by him. The irresponsible manner in which jagirs were distributed by the former regimes irrespective of the attributes of the recipient had reduced the
financial affairs of the State to a state of utter confusion. It was difficult to formulate the estimates of
the state revenue in the absence of a regular system of taxation and record-of-rights. Mahmud
Gavan ordered a systematic measurement of land fixation of the boundaries of villages and towns
and a thorough inquiry into the assessment of revenue. This considerably eased the financial
stringency of the Bahamani government.
Mahmud Gavan was quite conscious of the rivalry between the oldcomers and newcomers.
He had realised the utter futility of this controversy and also the warning which this controversy
contained. Though he himself was a newcomer he tried to patch up the differences between the two
factions by the only available and practicable method and that was the even distribution of the
powers and responsibilities in the administration of the kingdom. He thus appointed Fathullah Imadul-
mulk and Malik Hasan Nizam-ul-mulk both oldcomers as Sarlaskars of Mahur and Gulburga,
respectively. From among the newcomers he made Azam Khan, Sarlaskar of Warangal and
appointed Yusuf Adil Khan and Fakhrul Mulk Gilani to the charge of Daulatabad and Junnar,
respectively. He put the province of Bijapur under his own charge. His policy of reconciliation did not
however succeed as the subsequent events would testify.
For two years after the conclusion of the Goa campaign, the whole of the Deccan was
devastated by a terrible famine known in the history as the Bijapur famine. The Bahamanis geared
up their administration for providing relief to the needy and the sufferers. The famine declined in its
severity in late 1475 and conditions returned to normal, when news was received of trouble in the
eastern part of the Bahamani Kingdom. Purusottam and Hamir Rai of Orissa formed an alliance to
oust the Bahamani power from Telangana. They seduced to their side most of the local chiefs of the
region. Their combined armies defeated Nizam-ul-mulk, the Sarlaskar of Telangana, and forced him
to retreat to Wazirabad. On hearing the news Sultan Muhammad Sah himself marched against
Rajmahendry and ordered another contingent to proceed to Malikpur. On the approach of the
Bahamani army, Hamir Rai retreated to Kondavidu. The Bahamani forces occupied Rajmahendry.
From here the Sultan proceeded against Purusottam who had pitched his camp on the hanks of
Godavari. No general action was fought between the two armies. In one of the skirmishes in the rear
of the Orissa encampment, Darya Khan defeated a contingent of Purusottam. It appears that both
the sides came to terms thereafter and peace was established between the two kingdoms of Orissa
and the Bahamanis. The uneasy peace did not last long and the Sultan led another expedition into
Orissa in the latter part of the year 1478. He marched into the heart of the Orissa country and
stayed their for six months making it impossible for the Raja to offer any effective resistance. The
Raja offered submission and peace was again established between the two kingdoms. The Sultan did not directly return to the
capital but stayed at Rajmahendry for two years consolidating the gains of the campaign he had so
successfully led.
In 1480, the Sultan led a campaign again in the eastern provinces. At this time a rebellion had
broken out at Kondavidu whose chief had aligned himself with Narasimha, the defacto ruler of the
Kingdom of Vijayanagar. A siege was laid to the fortress. The fortress capitulated shortly after and
Narasimha retreated to his own territory. The fort was handed over to the charge of Nizam-ul-mulk
along with the surrounding territory. The Sultan then retired to the capital and thought of undertaking
an expedition into Vijayanagar. It may be mentioned that Nizam-ul-mulk who wanted the
governorship of the entire province of Telangana was not happy over the division of the province
under the administrative reforms of Mahmud Gavan. Under the new arrangement he was made to
handover the charge of Warahgal to Azam Khan. Nizam-ul-mulk, therefore, petitioned to the Sultan
that he might be allowed to appoint his son Malik Ahmad as his deputy in the province, while he
himself be allowed to accompany the Sultan in his proposed campaign against Vijayanagar. The
Sultan agreed to the request of Nizam-ul-mulk. The Sultan now left the capital and marched towards
the capital of Vijayanagar Kingdom. The Sultan halted at Nellore. Narasimha, as the account goes,
on the approach of the Bahamani army, had already fled to the capital. He now offered to submit
and sent priceless presents to the Sultan. His surrender was accepted by the Sultan. The Sultan
who had in his mind an intention to further penetrate into the Vijayanagar territory proceeded from
Nellore towards Kanci. He reached Kanci on 12 March 1481 by forced marches, accompanied by
Nizam-ul-mulk and Khan-i-Azam Adil Khan. The town was reduced and looted. This was the last
independent campaign of Sultan Muhammad when the Bahamani power was at the height of its
glory under the able guidance of Mahmud Gavan. But this point of climax which the Bahamanis had
reached was also the beginning of an end that was to come soon. The administrative and military
reforms introduced by Mahmud Gavan were not to the liking of the new officers of the Kingdom
because it took away from them all their power. Gavan's attempts to bridge the gulf that divided the
oldcomers and newcomers failed miserably. The enmity was so deep rooted that neither side could
forget the wrongs done to them by the other. Mahmud Gavan had become a target of hatred from
all those who had opportunity to destroy Mahmud Gavan. Nizam-ul-mulk headed suffered in the loss
of their power. They were now seeking on his party. They contrived to obtain the seal of Mahmud
Gavan affixed on a letter purported to be written by him to the king of Orissa inviting him to invade
the Bahamani Kingdom. The letter ran thus: "Although I have been brought up on the salt of my
royal master, still if you swear over all that you hold sacred according to your own religious belief, that you would agree to partition the Deccan between
you and me, I would promise to help you to the best of my ability. As all authority, financial and civil,
rests with me and I have full control over matters of policy as well as those relating to the army, you
can well understand that there is nothing which is outside my purview and I can do what I like to fulfil
our joint purpose."
This letter was placed before the Sultan in the Court at Kondavidu while on his return march
from the Vijayanagar campaign. The Sultan who believed in the contents of the letter ordered
Mahmud Gavan to his presence immediately. Mahmud who was told by his friends of the plot
against him was advised by them to disobey the summons and flee the State. Mahmud Gavan
refused the suggestion and appeared in the Court to pay his respects to the Sultan. The Sultan,
without ordering any enquiry held Mahmud Gavan guilty of treachery and made a sign to his slave
Jauhar to finish off Khvaja Jahan Mahmud Gavan. Thus died Mahmud Gavan on April 5, 1481 A.D.1
The Sultan followed up the execution of Mahmud Gavan by putting to death Said Khan Gilani
and the other sympathisers of the dead minister. The Sultan ordered the loot of Khvaja's treasure.
To his great surprise the Sultan found that his great Wazir was penniless. It was now that the Sultan
realised that a mistake might have been committed in the execution of Mahmud Gavan. He ordered the
conspirators to produce the man who had brought the letter purported to be written by Mahmud
Gavan to the Raja of Orissa. No such person could be found. The Sultan now repented and
hastened back to Bidar full of remorse. But his repentence and sorrow at the execution of Mahmud
Gavan was not going to turn the wheels of destiny in his favour. There was no one to take the place
of Mahmud Gavan and no one to check the tide of rebellion that had now started in the Bahamani
kingdom. Already signs of restlessness were visible among the Court nobility. Provincial governors
viz., Imad-ul-mulk, Khudavand Khan and Yusuf Adil who had accompanied the Sultan on his
expedition to Vijayanagar politely but firmly refused to respect the commands of the Sultan. On the
contrary they forced the Sultan to agree to their scheme of redistribution of the provincial posts.
Accordingly Imad-ul-mulk and Khudavand Khan were confirmed to their respective charges and
Yusuf Adil was put in charge of Bijapur. Nizam-ul-mulk was made the Wakil and Pesva of the
kingdom while Qiwam-ul-mulk, the elder and Qiwam-ul-mulk, the younger were put in charge of
Rajmahendry and Warahgal, respectively. Six months had now elapsed since the return of the
Sultan to the capital. The events that had taken place during that period brought remorse to him.
The miserable Sultan foresaw the shape of things to come. He appointed his son Mahmud as heir
apparent and immersed himself in drinks and debauchery. He died on 27 March 1482 exactly a year
after the execution of Mahmud Gavan. The subsequent history of the Bahamani Kingdom is one of steady disintegration. The name
of the Bahamani dynasty continued till 1538 when the last scion of the Bahamani family
disappeared from history. The rulers who succeeded Sultan Muhammad were Sihabuddin Mahmud
(26 March 1482—7 December 1518), Ahmad IV (7 December 1518—15 December 1520), Alauddin
Sah (28 December 1520—5 March 1523), Waliullah (5 March 1523—1526) and Kalimullah (1526—
1538). “They never ruled. They only reigned. The provincial governors declared their independence.
Effective power at Bidar was wielded by Qasim Barid. The Sultans became mere puppets in the
hands of Qasim Barid and pawns in the game of power politics between the five Sultanates which
came into existence from out of the remnants of the Bahamani kingdom viz., Ahmadnagar, Bijapur,
Berar, Golconda and Bidar. It is not necessary to detail separately the subsequent history of the
Bahamani dynasty after the death of Muhammad Sah as it merges into the history of the five
Sultanates of the Deccan. The history of these five Sultanates will be detailed at length in the
chapters to follow.
