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The Early Bengal Sultanate

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India in the Persianate Age
This chapter is in the book India in the Persianate Age
763Ster eS oyp spanerSrop dCpIndia, which were located in Central Asia or the Middle East. This made India itself the spiritual home of Chishti Sufism. Seeking to establish their legitimacy both as Muslims and as Indians, Delhi’s rulers consequently turned to prominent Chishti shaikhs for blessings and support.The charismatic authority of eminent Sufi shaikhs, however, was a double-edged sword. Just as Sufis could help transmit Delhi’s polit-ical authority to its far-flung provinces, Sufis patronized by provincial authorities could be enlisted to bless their patrons’ rebellions againstDelhi. Such revolts, after all, were integral to the nature of a sultan-ate, since any powerful governor or i qt a‘d a r could, under the right circumstances, turn his province or land assignment into the nucleus of a new sultanate. Everybody knew that India’s first sultanate, the Ghaznavids, had been launched in eastern Afghanistan by a power-ful i qt a‘d a r of the Samanid state who had declared his independence from his overlord in Bukhara. It was now India’s turn to experience such splintering, notably in Bengal and the Deccan.The Early Bengal SultanateBengal is a low-lying floodplain laced with numerous rivers and chan-nels, making overland communication and transportation extremely difficult. By the eighth century large, regionally based imperial sys-tems had emerged in the greater delta region, some of them, such as the Palas (750–1161) and Chandras (c. 825– 1035), patronizing Bud-dhism and others a revitalized Brahmanism, in particular the Senas (c. 1097–1223). The latter, after wresting their independence from their Pala overlords, consolidated their base in western Bengal and then moved into the eastern hinterland. By the early thirteenth century, the centre of civilization and social power in eastern India had moved from Bihar to Bengal, while royal patronage had shifted from a mainly Buddhist to a mainly Hindu orientation. By this time, too, the grant-ing of land to Brahmins who officiated at court rituals had become a kingly duty. As elsewhere in India, kings of the Sena dynasty sought to replicate cosmic order by building monumental stone temples hous-ing an image of their patron overlord.9780713995824_IndiaInThePersianateAge_TXT.indd 7613/06/19 10:36 pm
© 2021 University of California Press, Berkeley

763Ster eS oyp spanerSrop dCpIndia, which were located in Central Asia or the Middle East. This made India itself the spiritual home of Chishti Sufism. Seeking to establish their legitimacy both as Muslims and as Indians, Delhi’s rulers consequently turned to prominent Chishti shaikhs for blessings and support.The charismatic authority of eminent Sufi shaikhs, however, was a double-edged sword. Just as Sufis could help transmit Delhi’s polit-ical authority to its far-flung provinces, Sufis patronized by provincial authorities could be enlisted to bless their patrons’ rebellions againstDelhi. Such revolts, after all, were integral to the nature of a sultan-ate, since any powerful governor or i qt a‘d a r could, under the right circumstances, turn his province or land assignment into the nucleus of a new sultanate. Everybody knew that India’s first sultanate, the Ghaznavids, had been launched in eastern Afghanistan by a power-ful i qt a‘d a r of the Samanid state who had declared his independence from his overlord in Bukhara. It was now India’s turn to experience such splintering, notably in Bengal and the Deccan.The Early Bengal SultanateBengal is a low-lying floodplain laced with numerous rivers and chan-nels, making overland communication and transportation extremely difficult. By the eighth century large, regionally based imperial sys-tems had emerged in the greater delta region, some of them, such as the Palas (750–1161) and Chandras (c. 825– 1035), patronizing Bud-dhism and others a revitalized Brahmanism, in particular the Senas (c. 1097–1223). The latter, after wresting their independence from their Pala overlords, consolidated their base in western Bengal and then moved into the eastern hinterland. By the early thirteenth century, the centre of civilization and social power in eastern India had moved from Bihar to Bengal, while royal patronage had shifted from a mainly Buddhist to a mainly Hindu orientation. By this time, too, the grant-ing of land to Brahmins who officiated at court rituals had become a kingly duty. As elsewhere in India, kings of the Sena dynasty sought to replicate cosmic order by building monumental stone temples hous-ing an image of their patron overlord.9780713995824_IndiaInThePersianateAge_TXT.indd 7613/06/19 10:36 pm
© 2021 University of California Press, Berkeley

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter i
  2. Contents v
  3. List of Illustrations ix
  4. List of Maps xi
  5. Acknowledgements xiii
  6. Introduction
  7. Stereotypes and Challenges 1
  8. Two Transregional Worlds: Sanskrit and Persianate 10
  9. 1 The Growth of Turkic Power, 1000–1300
  10. A Tale of Two Raids: 1022, 1025 19
  11. Political Culture in the Sanskrit World 23
  12. Political Culture in the Persianate World 30
  13. The Ghurid Conquest of North India, 1192– 1206 37
  14. The Delhi Sultanate under the Mamluks, or Slave Kings 45
  15. Conclusion 57
  16. 2 The Diffusion of Sultanate Systems, 1200–1400
  17. Imperial Expansion Across the Vindhyas 62
  18. Settlers, Shaikhs and the Diffusion of Sultanate Institutions 73
  19. The Early Bengal Sultanate 76
  20. Sultanates of the Deccan: the Bahmanis and Vijayanagara 80
  21. The Early Kashmir Sultanate 88
  22. The Decline of the Tughluq Empire 92
  23. Conclusion 97
  24. 3 Timur’s Invasion and Legacy, 1400–1550
  25. Overview 100
  26. Upper India 105
  27. Bengal 111
  28. Kashmir 114
  29. Gujarat 119
  30. Malwa 122
  31. Emerging Identities: the Idea of ‘Rajput’ 128
  32. Writing in Vernacular Languages 133
  33. Conclusion 138
  34. 4 The Deccan and the South, 1400–1650
  35. Links to the Persianate World 142
  36. Successors to the Bahmani State 149
  37. Political and Cultural Evolution at Vijayanagara 157
  38. Gunpowder Technology in the Deccan 167
  39. Cultural Production in the Gunpowder Age 173
  40. Vijayanagara’s Successors and South India 175
  41. Conclusion 190
  42. 5 The Consolidation of Mughal Rule, 1526–1605
  43. Overview 195
  44. Babur 198
  45. Humayun 206
  46. Akbar’s Early Years 215
  47. Emerging Identities: Rajputs 217
  48. Mughal Expansion Under Akbar 224
  49. Akbar’s Religious Ideas 233
  50. Conclusion 239
  51. 6 India under Jahangir and Shah Jahan, 1605–1658
  52. Jahangir 244
  53. The View from the Frontier 252
  54. The Deccan: Africans and Marathas 259
  55. Emerging Identities: the Idea of ‘Sikh’ 264
  56. Assessing Jahangir 271
  57. Shah Jahan 273
  58. Conclusion 282
  59. 7 Aurangzeb – from Prince to Emperor ‘Alamgir, 1618–1707
  60. Prince Aurangzeb – Four Vignettes 288
  61. War of Succession, 1657– 9 301
  62. ‘Alamgir’s Early Reign 309
  63. Emerging Identities: the Marathas from Shahji to Tarabai 314
  64. ‘One Pomegranate to Serve a Hundred Sick Men’ 325
  65. Religion and Sovereignty Under ‘Alamgir 327
  66. Conclusion 338
  67. 8 Eighteenth century Transitions
  68. Political Changes, 1707– 48 340
  69. Maratha Uprisings 350
  70. Sikh Uprisings 355
  71. Emerging Identities: Muslims in Bengal and Punjab 361
  72. Early Modern Globalization 368
  73. Conclusion 377
  74. Conclusion and Epilogue
  75. India in the Persianate World 380
  76. The Mughals in the Sanskrit World 386
  77. The Lotus and the Lion 390
  78. Towards Modernity 393
  79. Notes 399
  80. Index 461
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https://doi.org/10.1525/9780520974234-014

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter i
  2. Contents v
  3. List of Illustrations ix
  4. List of Maps xi
  5. Acknowledgements xiii
  6. Introduction
  7. Stereotypes and Challenges 1
  8. Two Transregional Worlds: Sanskrit and Persianate 10
  9. 1 The Growth of Turkic Power, 1000–1300
  10. A Tale of Two Raids: 1022, 1025 19
  11. Political Culture in the Sanskrit World 23
  12. Political Culture in the Persianate World 30
  13. The Ghurid Conquest of North India, 1192– 1206 37
  14. The Delhi Sultanate under the Mamluks, or Slave Kings 45
  15. Conclusion 57
  16. 2 The Diffusion of Sultanate Systems, 1200–1400
  17. Imperial Expansion Across the Vindhyas 62
  18. Settlers, Shaikhs and the Diffusion of Sultanate Institutions 73
  19. The Early Bengal Sultanate 76
  20. Sultanates of the Deccan: the Bahmanis and Vijayanagara 80
  21. The Early Kashmir Sultanate 88
  22. The Decline of the Tughluq Empire 92
  23. Conclusion 97
  24. 3 Timur’s Invasion and Legacy, 1400–1550
  25. Overview 100
  26. Upper India 105
  27. Bengal 111
  28. Kashmir 114
  29. Gujarat 119
  30. Malwa 122
  31. Emerging Identities: the Idea of ‘Rajput’ 128
  32. Writing in Vernacular Languages 133
  33. Conclusion 138
  34. 4 The Deccan and the South, 1400–1650
  35. Links to the Persianate World 142
  36. Successors to the Bahmani State 149
  37. Political and Cultural Evolution at Vijayanagara 157
  38. Gunpowder Technology in the Deccan 167
  39. Cultural Production in the Gunpowder Age 173
  40. Vijayanagara’s Successors and South India 175
  41. Conclusion 190
  42. 5 The Consolidation of Mughal Rule, 1526–1605
  43. Overview 195
  44. Babur 198
  45. Humayun 206
  46. Akbar’s Early Years 215
  47. Emerging Identities: Rajputs 217
  48. Mughal Expansion Under Akbar 224
  49. Akbar’s Religious Ideas 233
  50. Conclusion 239
  51. 6 India under Jahangir and Shah Jahan, 1605–1658
  52. Jahangir 244
  53. The View from the Frontier 252
  54. The Deccan: Africans and Marathas 259
  55. Emerging Identities: the Idea of ‘Sikh’ 264
  56. Assessing Jahangir 271
  57. Shah Jahan 273
  58. Conclusion 282
  59. 7 Aurangzeb – from Prince to Emperor ‘Alamgir, 1618–1707
  60. Prince Aurangzeb – Four Vignettes 288
  61. War of Succession, 1657– 9 301
  62. ‘Alamgir’s Early Reign 309
  63. Emerging Identities: the Marathas from Shahji to Tarabai 314
  64. ‘One Pomegranate to Serve a Hundred Sick Men’ 325
  65. Religion and Sovereignty Under ‘Alamgir 327
  66. Conclusion 338
  67. 8 Eighteenth century Transitions
  68. Political Changes, 1707– 48 340
  69. Maratha Uprisings 350
  70. Sikh Uprisings 355
  71. Emerging Identities: Muslims in Bengal and Punjab 361
  72. Early Modern Globalization 368
  73. Conclusion 377
  74. Conclusion and Epilogue
  75. India in the Persianate World 380
  76. The Mughals in the Sanskrit World 386
  77. The Lotus and the Lion 390
  78. Towards Modernity 393
  79. Notes 399
  80. Index 461
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