📌 Topic 03 of 6 · Chapter 08 · Delhi Sultanate
Tughlaq Dynasty — Muhammad bin Tughlaq
Muhammad bin Tughlaq’s experiments — capital transfer, token currency, Doab taxation. Firuz Shah Tughlaq’s welfare measures.
🏛️ Tughlaq Dynasty (1320–1414)
| Ruler | Period | Key Facts |
|---|---|---|
| Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq | 1320–1325 | Founded dynasty; efficient administration; built Tughlaqabad fort; died in a pavilion collapse |
| Muhammad bin Tughlaq | 1325–1351 | “Wisest Fool”; eccentric experiments; Ibn Battuta visited; empire at its largest |
| Firuz Shah Tughlaq | 1351–1388 | Welfare measures; canals; hospitals; founded cities; translated Sanskrit texts |
| Mahmud Shah Tughlaq | 1394–1413 | Last Tughlaq; Timur’s invasion (1398) devastated Delhi |
👑 Muhammad bin Tughlaq (1325–1351) — “Wisest Fool”
Muhammad bin Tughlaq was highly educated and had good intentions, but his experiments failed due to poor implementation. He is called the “Wisest Fool” — brilliant ideas, disastrous execution.
1. Transfer of Capital (1327 CE)
- Transferred capital from Delhi to Devagiri (renamed Daulatabad, Maharashtra)
- Forced the entire population of Delhi to move — 1,500 km journey
- Reason: Daulatabad was more central; easier to control the Deccan
- Failure: Water scarcity; difficulty governing North India from Deccan; reversed after 2 years
- Ibn Battuta described the suffering of people during this forced migration
2. Token Currency (1329 CE)
- Introduced copper and brass coins to replace silver coins
- Idea was sound (like modern paper currency) but failed because:
- Government couldn’t prevent widespread forgery — people made coins at home
- Treasury depleted; scheme abandoned; caused great financial loss
3. Doab Taxation
- Increased taxes in the Doab (between Ganga and Yamuna) — during a famine
- Caused widespread rebellion and suffering
- Peasants fled; agricultural production collapsed
⭐ Ibn Battuta: The Moroccan traveller Ibn Battuta visited India during Muhammad bin Tughlaq’s reign (1334–1342 CE). He served as a qazi (judge) in Delhi. His account Rihla describes Muhammad bin Tughlaq’s eccentric policies, the forced migration to Daulatabad, and Indian society. He also describes the token currency experiment.
👑 Firuz Shah Tughlaq (1351–1388) — The Welfare Sultan
- Reversed Muhammad bin Tughlaq’s harsh policies
- Built canals for irrigation — 5 major canals
- Built hospitals (Dar-ul-Shifa) and rest houses (Sarai)
- Founded new cities: Firozabad, Fatehabad, Jaunpur, Hissar
- Translated Sanskrit texts into Persian
- Abolished torture as punishment
- Weakness: Excessive reliance on nobles; empire weakened
📝 Exam Tip:
• Capital transfer = Delhi to Daulatabad = 1327 CE = reversed after 2 years
• Token currency = copper coins = failed due to forgery
• Ibn Battuta = visited during Muhammad bin Tughlaq = Rihla
• Firuz Shah Tughlaq = welfare measures = canals, hospitals, new cities
• Timur’s invasion = 1398 CE = during Mahmud Shah Tughlaq = devastated Delhi
• Capital transfer = Delhi to Daulatabad = 1327 CE = reversed after 2 years
• Token currency = copper coins = failed due to forgery
• Ibn Battuta = visited during Muhammad bin Tughlaq = Rihla
• Firuz Shah Tughlaq = welfare measures = canals, hospitals, new cities
• Timur’s invasion = 1398 CE = during Mahmud Shah Tughlaq = devastated Delhi