Category Social Sciences

          Razia Sultana, Iltutmish’s daughter created history as she was the first woman to rule from Delhi. She is also famous for taking control by replacing Iltutmish’s son. Her brother was unpopular among the nobles.

          Razia wore men’s clothes and knew how to fight. She was also good at hunting and rode horses. Many historians viewed her reign as spirited and dynamic. At the zenith of her power, her empire included large parts of modern Pakistan, India and Bangladesh.

           Razia Sultana was believed to be devoted to the cause of her empire and to her subjects. She preferred to mingle with her subjects and they liked her. But, it seems her nobles were not quite fond of her; some of them plotted against her and captured her. She found refuge in Malik Altunia, one of her nobles who eventually married her. Though both of them decided to go to Delhi to defeat the other nobles, they were abandoned by their soldiers on the way and were eventually killed.

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           The Slave kings had a line of prominent rulers like Qutub-ud-din Aibak and Iltutmish. Qutub-ud-din Aibak, the founder of the dynasty was actually a slave of Muhammed Ghori who helped him to conquer India by defeating many Rajput kings. After his death in 1206, Aibak rose to power. However, his reign as the Sultan of Delhi did not last long.

           Aibak’s short-lived rule came to an end with his death in 1210. His son Aram Shah rose to power. Iltutmish, who was once Aibak’s slave defeated Aram Shah in 1211 and went on to become the next Sultan. He also married Aibak’s daughter and is responsible for shifting the capital from Lahore to Delhi.

           Iltutmish is remembered for organizing the administration of the Sultanate and laying the foundation for its dominance over northern India until the Mughal invasion. Iltutmish expanded his domain by defeating the rulers of Ghazni, Multan and Bengal. These kingdoms had previously annexed some of the territories and threatened his domain. He also conquered Ranthambore and Siwalik from their rulers.

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           Their passion for Tamil literature and zeal for building marvellous temples resulted in the production of some of the finest pieces in literature and architecture. These works stood the test of time, bearing the true stamp of the Chola legacy.

           The Chola kings were avid builders. For them, temples were not places of worship alone, but also centre of economic activity.

           Among the temples they built, the Shiva temple at Tanjavur and the temple at Gangaikonda Cholapuram are the most famous. The temple at Gangaikonda Cholapuram has a vimana, 100 feet square at the base and 186 feet high.

           The Cholas also commissioned great many sculptures; Chola sculptures and bronze images include Nataraja, the divine dancer Shiva, dancing the dance of death and destruction. They also pioneered a centralized form of government, thereby establishing a disciplined bureaucracy.

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           In the 9th century, the Cholas emerged as a strong presence in the south when Vijayalaya captured Tanjavur from the Pandyas. He was a Pallava feudatory who managed to establish the Chola Empire. It was later inherited by Aditya Chola who took over the Pallava Empire.

           Rajaraja Chola and his son Rajendra I were the greatest Chola rulers under whom, the dynasty became a military, economic and cultural power in South Asia. They expanded the borders of the Chola Empire by taking over the territories ruled by the Pandyas and the Cheras. Their conquests reached as far as Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Sumatra and other places in the Malay Peninsula.

           They also fought against the western Gangas and Chalukyas. Rajendra Chola I even went north up to Bengal and on his return, he built Gangaikondacholapuram (city of the Chola conquerer of the Ganga), a new capital.

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However, the Chola Empire declined at the beginning of the thirteenth century AD.

           With his capital as Mahodayapuram in present day Kodungallur, Kulashekhara Alwar established the second Chera dynasty. Kulashekhara is also credited with writing Perumal Thirumozhi, one of the most celebrated devotional works of the Tamil Bhakti cult.

           Rama Varma Kulashekhara was the last Chera King of the second Chera dynasty who ruled from AD 1090 to 1102. He fought a war with his contemporary Chola ruler Kulothunga Choladeva, but the prolonged wars weakened the Chera power. Some Naduvazhis (chiefs) took advantage of this chaotic situation to assert their power.

           The Chera kingdom was known for its foreign trade relations; many Arab travellers described the economic boom achieved by the state from its foreign trade. Mahodayapuram fell into the hands of the kingdom of Perumpadappu after the Chera rule.

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