The period covered in this chapter is often called the latter part of the ‘medieval period’ of Indian history. The term ‘medieval’ (i.e., ‘between two ages’) was originally applied to European history, roughly from the fall of the Roman Empire (5th century CE) to the Renaissance (14th–16th centuries CE). Since Europe’s and India’s histories are very different, applying the same term to both is not ideal, and historians do not always agree on which period it covers in India. For our purposes, ‘medieval’ simply means the period from the 11th to the 17th centuries.

A new era in India’s journey began in the early 11th century. Invasions from beyond the Hindu Kush mountains reshaped India’s political map. India had seen warfare in earlier periods, but the spate of invasions by people from outside the Indian subcontinent during this period was unprecedented. Many of these invaders were Central Asian — Turkic (peoples historically associated with a vast region stretching across Central Asia, Turkey, and Siberia) or Afghan. They were drawn to India not only for her reputed riches and for territorial ambitions, but also often to spread, by force if necessary, their own versions of their religion.

The Delhi Sultanate was formed after the defeat in 1192 of King Prithviraj Chauhan, who ruled over parts of northwestern India. This Sultanate saw the rule of five successive foreign dynasties of Turkic-Afghan origin:

While certain parts of northern India came under the Delhi Sultanate, neighbouring kingdoms — such as the Eastern Gangas in the east and the Hoysalas in the south — resisted its advance and emerged as thriving centres of art, culture, and administration. The city of Delhi assumed a bigger role in the political landscape of northern India.

The Sultanate period was marked by political instability combined with territorial expansion. This resulted in military campaigns that raided villages and cities, and plundered and destroyed temples and seats of learning. Successions were often violent: almost two sultans out of three seized power by eliminating their predecessor, so that a sultan’s average reign was hardly more than nine years!

At the turn of the 14th century, Ala-ud-din Khilji conducted military campaigns over large areas of north and central India, sacking and plundering many cities. At the same time, he also repelled several invasions by Mongol forces, who were trying to add India to the vast Mongol Empire (which covered most of Asia at the time).

His slave-general Malik Kafur expanded the Sultanate’s reach southward, conquering several kingdoms on the way; their plundered wealth helped finance the Sultanate’s enormous military apparatus. He also attacked a number of Hindu centres such as Srirangam, Madurai, Chidambaram, and possibly Rameswaram.

A few decades later, Muhammad bin Tughlaq ruled Delhi and expanded the Delhi Sultanate’s territories further. For the first time since the Mauryan Empire, most of the Subcontinent was now under one ruler. Although significant, it proved short-lived.

Muhammad bin Tughlaq had ambitious schemes, but they were often poorly executed:

• Shifting the Capital: He moved his capital from Delhi to Daulatabad (then ‘Devagiri’, near present-day Sambhaji Nagar), forcing people to travel over 1,000 km. A few years later, as his plan misfired, he shifted the capital back to Delhi — both transfers resulted in great loss of life.
• Token Currency: He introduced ‘token currency’ where cheap copper coins were declared to have the value of silver or gold coins. Although this was a progressive idea (most modern currency is actually ‘token’), at the time it created confusion in trade and encouraged counterfeiting, causing the economy to decline.

The sultans and their court elite lived in luxurious palaces. This wealth was largely derived from plunder, taxes on common people and conquered regions, and slave trade. Plunder affected trade networks and agricultural production. This period also witnessed numerous attacks on sacred or revered images in Buddhist, Jain and Hindu temples — motivated not just by plunder but also by iconoclasm.

Some of the sultans also imposed the jizya — a tax on non-Muslim subjects to grant them protection and exemption from military service. In practice, this discriminatory tax was a source of economic burden and public humiliation, and formed a financial and social incentive for subjects to convert to Islam.

At the end of the 14th century, Timur, a brutal Turkic-Mongol conqueror from Central Asia, invaded northwest India and launched a devastating attack on Delhi. As he wrote in his memoirs, his two-fold objective was to wage “war with the infidels and to gain something by plundering the wealth of the infidels.”

Large numbers were killed or enslaved, and the city was left in ruins. Timur soon withdrew from India with huge plunder, leaving chaos behind. In the aftermath, the Lodis emerged and established the last dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate. By then, however, its territory had shrunk considerably.

Throughout its rule, the Delhi Sultanate faced resistance from many quarters. It failed to subdue the Eastern Ganga kingdom of Kalinga, which included present-day Odisha and parts of Bengal and Andhra Pradesh.

One of its notable rulers in the mid-13th century, Narasimhadeva I (also spelt Narasingha Deva I), repelled multiple inroads of the Sultanate and defeated the Delhi Sultanate’s governor of Bengal. Partly to commemorate these victories, he built the famed Sūrya temple at Konark (present-day Odisha).

The Hoysalas ruled parts of southern India (mostly present-day Karnataka) and fended off several attacks from the Delhi Sultanate, remaining the only independent kingdom in the south for a period. However, weakened by these attacks and internal conflicts, the Hoysala kingdom declined and in the mid-14th century was absorbed into the Vijayanagara Empire.

The Delhi Sultanate also faced rebellions. The Bahmani Sultanate rose in the mid-14th century and controlled much of the Deccan for a while. Powerful Sultanates also emerged in Gujarat, Bengal and other regions. Parts of Rajasthan also remained beyond the reach of the Delhi Sultanate; in the 15th century, it faced stiff resistance from Rana Kumbha, the ruler of the Mewar kingdom.

While the Delhi Sultanate grew politically more unstable, a new centre of power emerged in the south. In the 14th century, two brothers, Harihara and Bukka, who had initially served as governors under Muhammad bin Tughlaq, eventually rejected Delhi’s authority and established an independent kingdom that became the Vijayanagara Empire.

To the north of the Vijayanagara Empire, the Bahmani Sultanate was a major rival. It eventually fragmented into five independent states called the ‘Deccan Sultanates’:

• Bijapur
• Golconda
• Berar
• Ahmednagar
• Bidar

Each was ruled by former governors or tarafdars who declared autonomy. The Vijayanagara rulers battled with Bijapur and Golconda, as well as with the Gajapati rulers of Odisha in the east.

In the 16th century, the Vijayanagara Empire reached its peak under Krishnadevaraya, who expanded and secured the empire’s dominance over the Deccan. Under his rule, the empire achieved both military power and cultural renaissance:

• He patronised poets and scholars in Sanskrit, Telugu and Kannada.
• He composed an epic poem in Telugu, Āmuktamālyada, on the Tamil poet-saint Āṇḍāl; one section, a Rājanīti (‘royal policy’), expounded his ideas of good governance.
• He provided grants to many temples, including Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh and the Vitthala temple in Vijayanagara.
• Portuguese travellers were well treated as they came to sell horses, and the king did not want them selling to enemy kingdoms.
• Krishnadevaraya died of illness in 1529.

In 1565, the Deccan Sultanates formed a coalition and defeated the Vijayanagara forces led by Ramaraya (Krishnadevaraya’s son-in-law) at the Battle of Talikota. The city was sacked over several months; houses, shops, buildings, palaces and most of its temples were destroyed, and much of its civilian population was massacred. The empire was left in ruins.

After this, the empire got fragmented into smaller regions ruled by Nayakas (former military governors); the empire came to an end in the mid-17th century.

While the Delhi Sultanate weakened, Babur, a Turkic-Mongol ruler and military strategist, having been thrown out of Samarkand (modern-day Uzbekistan), turned his sights to India. A descendant of Timur, Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi at Panipat in 1526 (First Battle of Panipat). This battle relied heavily on gunpowder, field artillery, and matchlock guns, which had recently been introduced in warfare in India. That defeat ended the Delhi Sultanate and laid the foundation of the Mughal Empire.

After Babur’s death in 1530, his son Humayun struggled to hold the empire together. Taking advantage of this, Sher Shah Suri, a powerful Afghan leader, established the Sur Empire over large parts of north India and introduced many lasting reforms. However, Humayun soon reconquered the lost ground.

Before this, Himu (Hemu), a skilled military commander and chief minister under one of the last Suri rulers, captured Delhi and ruled it briefly under the royal name of Hemchandra Vikramaditya. He was injured at the Second Battle of Panipat against Babur’s grandson Akbar, captured, and beheaded. Akbar reclaimed Delhi for the Mughals.

Declared emperor at the age of 13 upon his father Humayun’s accidental death, Akbar set out to bring the entire Subcontinent under Mughal control; his reign was a blend of brutality and tolerance, shaped by ambition and strategy.

In early conquests, he showed no mercy at fort Chittor (Chittorgarh) in Rajasthan, which he besieged for more than five months. The Rajput soldiers inflicted heavy losses, but the fort was breached. Akbar ordered the massacre of some 30,000 civilians, and the surviving women and children were enslaved. Hundreds of Rajput women, led by their queens, committed jauhar.

As his empire grew, Akbar increasingly used political strategies to stabilise it:

• Entered into marriage alliances with princesses of neighbouring kingdoms
• Welcomed Rajput and regional leaders into his court
• Abolished the jizya tax
• Promoted the doctrine of sulh-i-kul — literally, ‘peace with all’ or tolerance of all faiths
• Appointed Hindu officials in high positions
• Despite being illiterate, he established a ‘house of translation’ at Fatehpur Sikri where Sanskrit texts were translated into Persian, including the Mahābhārata (Razmnama), the Rāmāyaṇa, the Bhagavad Gītā, and the Pañchatantra

His court historian and biographer Abul Fazl recorded him as stating: “Formerly I persecuted men into conformity with my faith and deemed it Islam. As I grew in knowledge, I was overwhelmed with shame. Not being a Muslim myself, it was inappropriate to force others to become such.”

His long reign lasted almost 50 years (1556–1605). Non-Muslims were kept in a minority in the higher echelons of the administration — the total percentage rarely exceeded one-third of the total, and was often much less. Even among Muslim officials, those of foreign origin were generally favoured over those of Indian origin.

Akbar’s son Jahangir shared his father’s love for art and architecture and tried to expand the empire into the Deccan. His son Shah Jahan is best remembered as the builder of the Taj Mahal at Agra, one of the great architectural marvels of the world. This period formed the peak of an immense flowering of art and architecture, including Humayun’s Tomb in Delhi and the Red Forts in Delhi and Agra. Other classical arts, music, remarkable works of calligraphy and miniature painting also flourished.

Shah Jahan fell ill in 1657. He wished the throne to go to his eldest son Dara Shikoh, but his younger brother Aurangzeb defeated him in a series of battles, eventually executed him, and presented his severed head to their father. Aurangzeb also had one brother executed, drove another into exile, and imprisoned his father Shah Jahan in the Agra Fort, where he remained until his death. Aurangzeb crowned himself emperor in 1658 and named himself ‘Alamgir’ (‘conqueror of the world’); he ruled for almost 49 years.

Aurangzeb conducted many military campaigns, conquering parts of the South in particular. Under his reign, the Mughal Empire reached its greatest territorial expansion, though constantly faced with significant rebellions. Aurangzeb had to spend the last 25 years of his life fighting wars in the Deccan. Maintaining large armies depleted the empire’s treasury and is often considered a key factor in the rapid decline of Mughal power after his death in 1707.

Aurangzeb, a Sunni Muslim, was deeply religious and led an austere life. He gradually banned practices he regarded as un-Islamic, such as music and dance in his court, and:

• Reimposed the jizya tax on non-Muslims (abolished by Akbar)
• Imposed a pilgrimage tax on Hindus travelling to their sacred places
• In 1669, ordered governors of all provinces “to demolish schools and temples of the infidels and put down their teachings and religious practices”
• Temples at Banaras (Varanasi), Mathura, Somnath, among many others, were destroyed, as well as Jain temples and Sikh gurudwaras
• Also persecuted Muslims of other sects including Sufis, and Zoroastrians

Over the centuries, many peasant communities rebelled against harsh exploitation. In the 17th century, the Jat peasantry (present-day western UP, Haryana, and eastern Rajasthan) killed an oppressive Mughal officer. In a subsequent battle, 20,000 men confronted the Mughal army, but their leader was killed and the rebellion suppressed.

Many tribal groups — the Bhils, the Gonds, the Santhals, the Kochs — also fought back against attempts to annex their territory or impose taxes. Those inhabiting forested, hilly, or remote regions managed to maintain some degree of independence.

Rani Durgavati is remembered as a valiant queen of the Garha kingdom (a Gond kingdom in central India). She ruled wisely and made her kingdom prosperous, maintaining an army of 20,000 soldiers and 1,000 elephants. When a general sent by Akbar attacked her kingdom in 1564, despite being outnumbered and outmatched in weaponry, she led her troops and fought bravely. Wounded, she took her own life on the battlefield to avoid capture. She was only 40. Her sacrifice became a symbol of regional pride and resistance.

The Rajputs were often battling invading forces. After the Khiljis’ conquest, two major clans emerged in the Mewar and Marwar regions. Among the valorous rulers, we met Rana Kumbha earlier. Rana Sanga (early 16th century) unified several Rajput clans, won many battles against sultans, but ultimately met defeat against Babur at the Battle of Khanwa.

Although he inherited a wounded kingdom, Mewar’s ruler Maharana Pratap refused to accept Mughal suzerainty and became the face of Rajput resistance. A confrontation took place at the Haldighati pass in the Aravallis in 1576. Although the Mughal army had the upper hand, Maharana Pratap escaped and pursued years of guerrilla warfare against the Mughals from the Aravalli hills.

While some Rajput states eventually allied with the Mughals through diplomacy and marriage alliances, Mewar did not accept Mughal dominance. During Aurangzeb’s reign, Durga Das Rathore of Marwar fought to protect the independence of Jodhpur. Mughal authority thus remained limited in Rajasthan.

In the 13th century, the Ahom ethnic group migrated from present-day Myanmar to the Brahmaputra Valley and formed the Ahom kingdom there. During both the Sultanate and the Mughal periods, the Ahom rulers offered stiff resistance to attempts at expansion into the Northeast.

Their unique paik system called on every able-bodied man to provide service to the state through labour or military duty in exchange for land rights. This allowed the rulers to create public infrastructure and maintain a large standing force without a permanent army.

Over time, the Ahoms assimilated the local culture, promoted agriculture, encouraged diverse faiths, and contributed to the rich traditions of Assam.

In the 17th century, the Ahoms used their knowledge of the terrain — dense forests, hills and rivers — and persistent guerrilla tactics to repulse Mughal attacks. Notably, in the Battle of Saraighat (1671), fought on the Brahmaputra River near present-day Guwahati, the Ahom military commander Lachit Borphukan and his 10,000 men defeated a Mughal force of 30,000 soldiers. Ultimately, the Ahoms preserved their independence.

In 15th century Punjab, Guru Nanak spread the message of equality, compassion, and the oneness of God (Ik Onkār); his followers came to be known as Sikhs. Although Sikhism began purely as a spiritual movement, the later Sikh Gurus had to respond to growing intolerance and persecution under some Mughal rulers.

The Delhi Sultanate introduced a political system centred on the sultan, who possessed absolute authority as the political and military head. Duties included “defending the territories of Islam against possible aggression,” “collecting fees and taxes,” and “keeping in touch with public affairs.”

Aiming at greater control and efficiency, Akbar reorganised his administrative machinery:

Such ministers were assigned to each of the empire’s twelve provinces (subahs), which were further subdivided, with effective checks and balances. At the village level, traditional structures of self-governance continued more or less undisturbed.

Akbar also instituted the mansabdari system (described in detail by Abul Fazl in his Ain-i-Akbari). Mansabdars (officers) according to their mansab (rank) were expected to maintain a precise number of elephants, horses, camels as well as troops for the state. This made it possible to assemble an army at short notice without a permanent centralised army. Mansabdars were generally paid by being assigned land (jagirs) and were therefore also known as jagirdars. Regular inspections ensured compliance.

Todar Mal, Akbar’s finance minister, introduced an efficient revenue system. He made detailed surveys for crop yields and prices and determined prices for each crop on that basis. He also initiated a systematic survey of the land in the entire empire, which boosted revenue collection and strengthened the state apparatus.

Despite shifting political powers between the 13th and 17th centuries, India witnessed vibrant economic activity, thanks to its agrarian foundations, thriving artisanal industries, community-based and temple-based economies, and extensive trade networks. Building on decentralised economic and social systems — such as śhreṇis (guilds), jātis (professionally defined communities), and systems for credit — the Subcontinent remained one of the wealthiest regions in the world.

The Sultanate period saw progress in infrastructural works, especially roads in north India, bridges, a few canals, and other irrigation works, apart from the creation of new cities — all of which expanded considerably during the Mughal period. Coins in several metals and denominations were introduced as currency. The Mughals used a rupaya of silver and a dam of copper.

Agriculture was the mainstay of the Indian economy. Rulers relied on agrarian revenue, typically extracting land revenue at one-fifth of the produce, though some sultans raised it as high as one-half. The expansion of irrigation systems increased agricultural productivity, allowing for the production of multiple crops:

• Food crops: Rice, wheat, barley, pulses, sugarcane, spices
• Non-food items: Cotton (fed thriving textile production), silk, wool, dyes, timber, jute

The peasantry suffered several severe famines in this period, with relief depending upon the particular ruler’s benevolence.

Apart from textiles, craftspeople made weapons, utensils, ornaments, and jewellery. Ship-building, essential to river and overseas trade, developed considerably. Indian goods were exported through coastal and riverside towns such as Calicut, Mangalore, Surat, Masulipatnam (Machilipatnam), and Hooghly. India imported much less than it exported; imports included silk, horses, metals, and luxury goods. Merchants from Arabia, Persia, and Central Asia settled in Indian ports.

Many temples were more than centres for worship, learning, social interaction or performing arts. They also:

• Created ecosystems with bustling markets
• Ruling classes donated land and wealth (dāna) to temple deities, held in trust by temple managers
• Developed community infrastructure — irrigation systems, tanks, pilgrim accommodations (dharmaśhālās and chhatrams)
• Provided merchants with credit
• Funded internal as well as maritime trade

While early periods saw prosperity, the late 1600s witnessed economic stress. Peasants were often left with a small share of their produce after taxes and payments to intermediary parties, causing many to lose their land and become bonded labourers. India was still a land of abundance, as testified by many Arab and European travellers, but the wealth was largely concentrated in the hands of rulers, courtiers, high officials and the merchant class. Frequent warfare caused forced displacement of population.

At the level of common people, there were instances of clashes, especially over sacred sites that had been desecrated or destroyed under rulers’ sanction. But by and large, people of different faiths and communities lived peacefully side by side, economically dependent on each other.