Iwaz Khalji

He was member of the Ghilji tribe,[4][5][6][7] a tribe of Turko-Afghan origin that settled in Afghanistan.[8][9][10] He was born into a Muslim family in Garmsir, and his father's name was Husayn Khalji. During his early life, Iwaz Khalji transported goods with his donkey. On one occasion, he provided food and drink to a group of dervishes who later prayed for him and instructed him to enter South Asia.

Iwaz Khalji became a deputy during Bakhtiyar Khalji's advances towards Bihar and Bengal, and in recognition of his contribution, was made the Jagirdar of Kangori in North Bengal.[11]

During the infighting of Bengal's Khaljis, the Delhi sultan Qutb al-Din Aibak sent an army led by Qaimaz Rumi, the Governor of Awadh, to dethrone Muhammad Shiran Khalji, the governor of Bengal. The army passed through Kangori where they were welcomed by Iwaz. Upon the army's victory, Rumi appointed Iwaz as the next Governor of Bengal in 1208. Iwaz governed Bengal for two years until Ali Mardan Khalji returned to Bengal in 1210, in which he freely gave up his governorship of Bengal to the latter.[12][13]

Ali Mardan proved to be an unpopular governor among the population, however. In response, the nobles of Bengal led a conspiracy against Ali Mardan and executed him, thus reinstating Iwaz as the Governor of Bengal in 1212. During this second term, Iwaz made major developments to Bengal and later established himself as independent of the Delhi Sultanate. He undid Ali Mardan's exiles of nobles by inviting them back to Bengal. He transferred the capital from Devkot to Lakhnauti (Gaur), which he newly rebuilt and completely fortified in all four directions (with three lofty ramparts and making use of the river to the west of the city).[14] Opposite of his new capital, Iwaz established a fort-town named Basankot. Not disregarding the former major cities like Devkot, he constructed embankments interlinking these areas together. He also became the first to develop a powerful navy and flotilla for Bengal and built several dykes with arched bridges after analysing the vastness of the Bengal delta and its vulnerability to floods.[11]

To strengthen his independent authority in Bengal, Khalji showed his connection with the former Ghurid dynasty as opposed Delhi's sultan Iltutmish who belonged to the Mamluk dynasty. He had the Friday khutbahs read in his own name and also invoked the name of the Commander of the Faithful (Abbasid caliph Al-Nasir of Baghdad) in his coins, to enhance his position in the eyes of the locals and equate his status with that of the Delhi's sultan.

Khalji had appointed his son and heir, Ali Sher Khalji, as the governor of Birbhum and northwestern Bengal.[15] In 1221, a khanqah was constructed by Ibn Muhammad of Maragheh for the Muslim preacher Makhdum Shah in Birbhum, during the governorship of Ali Sher.[16][17] This contains the earliest known stone inscription mentioning a Muslim ruler in Bengal.[18] Thus, Khalji became an early patron of Islamic education in Bengal by establishing mosques and giving pension to the ulama (Islamic scholars and teachers). He arranged for the arrival of Muslim preachers from Central Asia, such as Jalaluddin bin Jamaluddin Ghaznavi, to come to Bengal and give lectures in his court.[19][4]

The Teliagarhi Pass near where Khalji's forces battled the Delhi Sultanate army.

After establishing peace in Bengal and developing the region, Iwaz Khalji turned his attention towards the expansion of his kingdom towards the south and the east. 13th-century Persian historian Minhaj-i Siraj Juzjani has asserted that Iwaz conquered Lakhnur, a conquest which enabled Iwaz to gain treasures and capture many elephants. After taking control of the region, he appointed his own amirs to govern there.

Khalji carried out invasions into Vanga, Tirhut and Utkala; making them his tributary states. Jajnagar, Kamarupa, Tirhut and Vanga all sent tributes to him.[20]

• List of rulers of Bengal
• History of Bengal
• History of Bangladesh
• History of India