A man named Ghiyas-ud-din Tughlaq was recognized as the founder of the Tughlaq dynasty. The death of Ala-ud-din and the fall of the Khilji dynasty caused chaos all around and Ghiyas-ud-din was appointed by the nobles as the Sultan.
It was when the Sultanate was facing a crisis that Ghiyas-ud-din took charge. Though being old he was strong enough as the Sultan.
Once Ghiyas-ud-din became the Sultan he started taking into account the administration. Since all State's finances and the state treasury had been drained away by the Sultans of Ala-ud-din measures to control expenditure were implemented. He believed in the concept of the military power being the main power of the country. It was in 1325 that Ghiyas-ud-din died. Muhammed bin Tughlaq, Ghiyas-ud-din's son succeeded him after his death.
There was no significant opposition when Muhammed bin Tughlaq ascended the throne of
Delhi. Generally he found to be a confusing character which the historians and scriptures fail to describe. Often it is said he was a genius but some say that he was a lunatic. Also he is considered very intelligent and visionary as well. Though it is believed that Muhammed bin Tughlaq possessed great knowledge in various subjects it is said that he had just two drawbacks which led to his fall later: practical judgment and common sense. He was an ill-tempered man and so would hardly consider any advice or suggestion which led to the downfall of the empire. The empire attempted to expand but badly damaged itself. He did a blunder by rising the taxes above 50% of that at the time of Ala-ud-din and so due to this the people faced a tough time. The revenue administration was organized by him in a new manner. Due to such a rise in the taxes some farmers even left their lands and wanted to leave.
The next thing he tried was reforms under his new monetary policies. The coinage system was edited by him completely which led to the creation of many new denominations of the existing coins, made of gold and silver.
The situation became even more drastic when he introduced the copper coins. He wasn't seen taking any essential precautionary measures. Since he had no security and developed army there was no conquest and efforts for the expansion of the empire and no security from foreign attacks.
He even shifted his capital from Delhi to Daultabad which proved to be his biggest mistake. The capital was changed and a new amazing city was created and even the connection between Delhi and Daultabad was provided. This dynasty has caused the major damages to the state of Delhi and after his death there were no successors left and gradually the Sultanate started to decline.
Last Updated on: February 17, 2022
