Saifuddin Aibak

Malik Saif ad-Dīn Aibak Yughantat (Bengali: মালিক সাইফুদ্দীন আইবক, Persian: سیف الدین آیبک) was a governor of Bengal (Lakhnauti) under the Mamluk dynasty of Delhi from 1232 to 1236. He was the first of the slave-officers to govern Bengal.[1]

Amir al-Majlis Malik
Saifuddin Aibak
Yughantat
Coinage of Malik Saif al-Din Aibak. Lakhnauti mudafat mint. Struck in the names Delhi sultan Shams al-Din Iltutmush and Abbasid caliph al-Mustansir, dated AH 628 (AD 1230-1).
Governor of Bihar
In office
-1232
MonarchIltutmish
Succeeded byTughral Tughan Khan
Governor of Bengal (Lakhnauti)
In office
1232-1236
Preceded byAlauddin Jani
Succeeded byAwor Khan Aibak (usurper), Tughral Tughan Khan
Personal details
RelativesQamaruddin Kiran Timur Khan (son-in-law)

Early life

Aibak was a Khitan of the Turco-Persian tradition. He was purchased as a slave by Iltutmish from the heirs of Ikhtiyar ad-Din Chust Qaba. Through his hard work and efforts, he managed to rise through the ranks, becoming the more powerful amongst the Maliks and titled Amir al-Majlis. He was given the iqta' of 28 wilayat in Sursuti by 1227.[2] He was later stationed in Bihar.

Governor of Bengal

After the dismissal of Alauddin Jani, the Sultan appointed Aibak to be the next governor of Bengal. During his governorship, Aibak took on an expedition to South Bengal with the intention of capturing elephants. His expedition was successful, capturing a number of elephants, and dispatching several of them to the Sultan. Iltutmish was pleased with Aibak and conferred him the title of "Yughantat".[3][4] Aibak married his daughter to Malik Qamaruddin Kiran Timur Khan.[5]

Death

It is said that he was assassinated or poisoned in April 1236 AD by a rebellious courtier named Awar Khan Aibak. Awar Khan was quickly defeated and Sultan Iltutmish commanded Tughral Tughan Khan, who had succeeded Saifuddin in Bihar, to succeed as governor of Bengal following Saifuddin's death.[6]

See also

References
  1. Kumar, Sunil (1994). When Slaves were Nobles: The Shamsi Bandagan in the Early Delhi Sultanate. University of Delhi.
  2. Minhaj Siraj (1864). W. Nassau Lees; Maulawi Khadim Hosain; Abd al-Hai (eds.). Tabaqat-i-Nasiri. Calcutta. pp. 238–248.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  3. ABM Shamsuddin Ahmed (2012). "Malik Saifuddin Aibak". In Sirajul Islam; Miah, Sajahan; Khanam, Mahfuza; Ahmed, Sabbir (eds.). Banglapedia: the National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Online ed.). Dhaka, Bangladesh: Banglapedia Trust, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. ISBN 984-32-0576-6. OCLC 52727562. OL 30677644M. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  4. Mandal, Sushila (1963). বাংলাদেশের ইতিহাস: মধ্যযুগ (in Bengali). Prakash Mandir.
  5. Shahnawaz, Fazeela (2014). Socio-Cultural Life of the Shamsi Nobles. Anamika Publishers.
  6. King Lists, Bengal (History Files)
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