Biography of Ala-Ud-Din Khilzi (1296—1316)

Foundation of Khilzi Dynasty:

With the passage of time, the course of the history of the Delhi Sultanate changed and the power transferred from the hands of the Balbari dynasty to Khilji dynasty. It is said that in his death, Balban heard the death knell of his dynasty.

After the death of his eldest son prince Muhammad, Balbon had realized the end of his dynasty in near future as his other successors were weak and incompetent.

His youngest son, Bughra Khan, the governor of Bengal, had become disobedient and he did not turn up to Delhi when he was summoned by his father. So a few days before his death, Balban nominated Kai Khusrav the son of his eldest son Muhammad as his heir. He died in 1287. Soon after his death the nobles and officers of Delhi set aside the nomination Kai Khusrav and put Kaiqubad, son of Bughra Khan, on the throne.

Kaiqubad was weak and incompetent and he used to spend most of his time in merry-making. The young Sultan, being indulged in wine and women utterly neglected the administration. This gave the nobles a golden opportunity to play their foul games. There was chaos and confusion in the kingdom.

The nobles were divided into two groups. One group was Khilzi party headed by its leader Jalaluddin Firoz. The other one was a group of Turkish nobles called Turkish Party. There was a bitter quarrel and rivalry between the two groups for power and supremacy. At last the Khilzi Party came out victorious and its leader Jalal-ud-din is said to have killed many Turkish nobles.

He also killed the Sultan Kaiqbad and his infant son Kayumars and declared himself as the Sultan of Delhi in 1290. The Sultan Kaiqubad only ruled for three years and after his death the Balban dynasty came to an end. With the accession of Jalal-ud-din Firoz Khilzi in the throne of Delhi, there began the rule of Khalzi dynasty. Ala-ud-din Khilzi, the nephew and son-in-law of Jalal-ud-din Khilzi was one of the most outstanding rulers of this dynasty.

Ala-ud-din’s Early Career and Accession:

Ala-ud-din Khilzi was the nephew and son-in-law of Jalal-ud-din Khilzi, the founder of Khilzi dynasty. He was young, bold courageous and ambitious. He had not got much education but he was good at display of sword. When Jalal-ud-din became Sultan, he offered Ala-ud-din the title of Amir-i-Tuzak and also made him the governor of Kara and Manikpur. Jalal-ud-din was impressed by his military talent and gave his daughter in marriage to him.

Jalal-ud-din was the greatest benefactor of him on earth and also desired him to succeed him after his death. But Ala-ud-din on the other hand was very ambitious and was impatient for the throne. He was also tempted by some of his followers to capture power. Ala-ud-din was dissatisfied with his personal life as he was not in good terms with his proud wife and mother-in-law.

He also knew that it would be much delay to get the throne if he waits for the same till the natural death of his uncle. All those factors encouraged him to strike. But he was waiting for an opportunity for this and to get his ambition fulfilled. In 1292 A.D. he successfully attacted Bhilsa and was awarded governorship of Awadh.

In 1296 he invaded Devagiri and got enormous booty which helped him in bringing the supporters of the Sultan to his side and ultimately in capturing the throne of Delhi. The same year, he trapped Jalal-ud-din and murdered him at Manikapur when the latter had come to greet him for his success in conquering Devagiri.

In this mission, he was helped by his own brother Alma begs alias Ulugh Khan who duped the Sultan by his sweet words and assured him of the loyalty of Ala- ud-din. After murdering his uncle Sultan Jalal-ud-din, Ala-ud- din raised the royal umbrella over his head and proclaimed himself the Sultan on 19th July, 1296 at Kora Manikpur.

Occupation of Delhi:

After murdering Jalal-ud-din, Ala-ud-din was not entirely free from problems and difficulties. And in order to be the Sultan, he had to capture Delhi which was by then in the hands Rukn-ud- din Ibrahim, the second son of Jalal-ud-din. The Widow queen, Malak-i-Jahan, on getting the death news of her husband, immediately raised her second son Qadr Khan to the throne of Delhi under the title of Rukn-ud-din Ibrahim.

Secondly he was hated by the people as an ungrateful usurper as he had treacherously murdered the man who was his greatest benefactor and well-wisher.

Thirdly, the Jalali nobles who were the followers of the deceased Sultan were determined to take revenge of their master.

Fourthly the Hindu Kings had asserted their independence taking advantage of the situation.

Lastly there was a constant danger of Mongol raids of Delhi.

All these factors made him weak at that moment. He was disheartened and wanted to retire to Bengal. Just at that moment a faction of the Jalali nobles joined him. Ala-ud-din took this opportunity and proceeded towards Delhi without wasting time.

On the way he lavishly distributed gold and silver coins and won for him a number of followers. The task became easy for him. Ibrahim, who came out of Delhi to resist Ala-ud-din, was deserted by his own troops. He fled to Multan with his mother. Ala-ud-din captured Delhi without any resistance. He was crowned in the Red Palace of Balban on the 3rd October, 1296.

Soon after his accession, Ala-ud-din wanted to make his throne safe and secure. He lavishly distributed wealth among his subjects so that they soon forgot his cruel deed of murdering his uncle and benefactor, Jalal-ud-din. He offered important posts to his loyal nobles and allowed the Jalali nobles to enjoy their previous posts. He pursued Ibrahim and other claimants to the throne and put them to death one after another.

He also successfully repulsed two Mongol invasions in the year 1297 A.D and 1299 A.D and earned faith of the people. After making his position safe on the throne, he punished some Jalali nobles who had joined him for money.

His Ambition:

Ala-ud-din was very ambitious. He had a dream to conquer the world like Alexander the great and even thought of starting a new religion. He was so much encouraged by his success and conquests that he assumed the title of Sikandar-i-savi. He had it recited in the Khutba and super-scribed it on his coins. However, on the advice of his friend and city-kotwal, Ala-ul-mulk, he gave up these wild schemes and decided to establish an extensive and firm empire in India alone.