Spread of Islam in India during the Reign of Gouri (1175 - 1206 AD)


  • The real founder of the Muslim Empire in India was Shihad-ud-Din Muhammad Ghori or Muhammad of Ghur. It is true that Muhammad bin-Quasim was the first Muslim invader of India but he failed to carve out a Muslim empire in India on account of his premature death. Mahmud also failed to set a Muslim empire in India and the only permanent effect of his invasions was the annexation of Punjab. It was left to Muhammad Ghori to build up a Muslim Empire in India on a secure footing.
  • He was also a ruler of a small kingdom in Afghanistan. But he was interested in conquering northern India and adding it to his kingdom, and not merely in getting gold and jewellery like Mahmud.
  • His first invasion was directed against Multan in 1175 AD, which was successful. By1182, Sindh was also captured. Punjab was captured by 1186 AD.
  • Prithviraj Chauhan, who was the king of Delhi at that time, received contingents from other Rajput kings and defeated him in the First Battle of Tarain ( 1191).
  • But he defeated Prithviraj in the Second Battle of Tarain in 1192.
  • Captured Delhi and Ajmer and thus laid the foundation of Muslim Rule in India.
  • Also defeated Jaichandra ( Gahadval Rajput, ruler of Kannauj ) at the Battle of Chhandwar in 1194 AD.
  • Ikhtiyar-ud-din Muhammad bin Bakhtiyar Khalji, one of Ghori’s commanders, annexed Bihar and Bengal and destroyed Nalanda and Vikramshila University.
  • Died in 1206 AD, leaving Qutab-ud-Din Aibak the charge.

Sultan Shahāb-ud-Din Muhammad Ghori

Sultan Shahab-ud-Din Muhammad Ghori was a ruler of the Ghorid dynasty who reigned over a territory spanning present-day Afghanistan, Pakistan and northern India. Shahabuddin Ghori reconquered the city of Ghazna (in modern-day Afghanistan) in 1173, and assisted his brother Ghiyasuddin in his contest with Khwarezmid Empire for the lordship of Khorasan. Shahabuddin Ghori captured Multan and Uch in 1175 and annexed the Ghaznavid principality of Lahore in 1186. After the death of his brother Ghiyas-ud-Din in 1202, he became the successor of his empire and ruled until his assassination in 1206 near Jhelum (in modern-day Pakistan).

The Ghorid Empire

Ghor (now a province in central Afghanistan) lay on the western boundary of the Ghaznavid Empire, which, in the early 12th century, covered an area stretching from what is now central Afghanistan to the Punjab in what is now Pakistan, with capitals at Ghaznā and Lahore.

Beginning in the mid-12th century, Ghor expressed its independence from the Ghaznavid Empire. In 1149 the Ghaznavid ruler Bahram Shāh poisoned a local Ghurid leader, Quṭb ud-Din, who had taken refuge in the city of Ghazna after a family quarrel. In revenge, the Ghurid chief ʿAlaʾ-ud-Din Ḥusayn sacked and burned the city of Ghazna and put the city into fire for seven days and seven nights. It earned him the title of Jahansuz, meaning "the world burner". The Ghaznavids retook the city with Seljuk help, but lost it to Oghuz Turk freebooters. The Ghorids reconquered Ghaznā from the Oghuz Turks and in 1173, Shahabuddin Ghori became governor of the Ghazna province while his brother, Ghiyasuddin Ghori, became the Sultan of the Ghorid Empire.

Invasions of India

Shahabuddin Ghori first invaded India in 1175, capturing Multan and the fortress of Uch. He attacked Gujrat in 1179.

Battle of Gujarat or Kayadara, 1178

The battle of Gujarat or Kayadara (1178) was a defeat suffered by Muhammad Gori during his first campaign against a Hindu ruler in India. Muhammad's first campaign had been against the Muslim rulers of Multan in 1175 and had ended in victory. In 1178 he turned south, and led his army from Multan to Uch and then across the desert towards the Gujarat capital of Anhilwara (modern Patan).

Gujarat was ruled by the young Raja Bhimdev II, a member of the Solanki dynasty (one of several Chalukya dynasties), although the age of the Raja meant that the army was commanded by his mother Naikidevi. Muhammad's army had suffered greatly during the march across the desert, and Naikidevi inflicted a major defeat on him at the village of Kayadra (near to Mount Abu, about forty miles to the north-east of Anhilwara). The invading army suffered heavy casualties during the battle, and also in the retreat back across the desert to Multan.

Muhammad of Ghur never returned to Gujarat. An army led by Qutb al-din Aibek, his deputy in India, invaded in c.1195-97 and plundered the capital, but then returned to Delhi. Gujarat wasn't annexed by the Sultanate of Delhi until 1297.

He captured Lahore in 1181 and constructed the fortress of Sialkot. In 1191, he pushed further eastwards against the Hindu Rajput kingdoms, and his forces were defeated by the armies of Prithviraj Chauhan, the Hindu Rajput ruler of Delhi and Ajmer and his allies. A year later, in 1192, Ghori again fought the Hindu Rajputs, which resulted in victory.

First Battle of Tarain, 1191

In 1191 Muhammad captured Sirhind and Bhatinda (Punjab) Prithviraj’s northwestern frontier. Then Prithviraj and his vassal Govinda-raja of Delhi rushed to save the frontier and the both armies met at Tarain. The Rajput armies defeated the Muslim army. Meanwhile Muhammad Ghori got hurt and became faint. The Muslim army fled from fearing that their leader had died. But he was saved by one of his slaves. When he returned to Ghazni he vowed to avenge the defeat and started preparations.

Second Battle of Tarain, 1192

In 1192, Muhammad Ghori returned with a larger army and met again Prithwiraj’s army at Tarain. This time the force of Prithwiraj was also larger and it included many Rajput forces from Northern India. Muhammad Ghori delivered an ultimatum to prithwiraj Chauhan that either he changed his religion to Muslim or be prepared to be defeated.

Muhammad Ghori adopted a tactic and replied Prithwiraj with a letter indicating the acceptance of the truce. The Rajput army believed it and they started celebrating with their guards in a relaxed and casual mood. In the mean time Ghori’s army attacked Prithwiraj’s army in the very early hours of morning, as they were unprepared for the battle. However the Rajput army could raise a protection against Muslim army and they retreated. Muhammad’s army sent waves of mounted archers to attack the Rajput forces but had to set back as Prithwiraj’s elephant force advanced. At dusk Muhammad Ghori was able to achieve the victory . Prithwiraj was imprisoned and was taken to Ghazni. The second battle of Tarain is believed to be most decisive battle in the Indian History as it opened the path for conquerors of India. Muhammad and his successors were able to conquest over the Rajputs and established an Islamic Empire in India, the Sultanate of Delhi.

After defeating Prithvirj Chauhan, Ghori captured northern and central India without any difficulties.He appointed Aibak as his regional governor for northern India. Aibak sacked Ayodhya in 1193, followed by his conquest of Delhi. Aibak's protege Muhammad bin Bakhtiyar Khalji had been appointed as a general by Muhammad of Ghor in 1203, and in 1204 he helped defeat the army of Lakshman Sen of the Sena Dynasty,but Shahabuddin Ghori failed to conquer Bengal. In 1206, a rebellion rose in Punjab. Muḥammad Ghorī returned to India and crushed the rebels, but was assassinated at Jhelum (where he was buried) on his way back to Ghazna. After his death Qutb-ud-din Aibak became ruler of Delhi in 1206, establishing the Sultanate of Delhi, which marked the start of the Slave dynasty.

Prithviraj Chauhan
Sources:
Online sources:
http://defence.pk/threads/sultan-shahab-uddin-ghauri.315992/
http://competitionsexam.com/history-muhammad-ghori/