Delhi Sultanate

Timeline

1. 1206–1211Lahore–Delhi · DelhiQutb al-Din Aibak proclaimed himself sultan, establishing a military-political system centered on Turkic Mamluk officers, securing control of Punjab and the northern Ganges Plain between Lahore and Delhi, and inaugurating the era of Islamic rule in northern India.
2. 1211–1236Delhi · DelhiIltutmish consolidated Delhi as the capital, established the iqta (fief) system and a silver coinage, defeated challenges from Bengal and the Rajput states, extending the sultanate's territory from the Bay of Bengal to the Arabian Sea coastal corridor.
3. 1241–1250Delhi court · DelhiAfter Iltutmish's death, Sultan Razia briefly ruled; in the 1240s court nobles and the princes fiercely contested the throne, weakening sultanate authority, though Delhi remained the military-political center of northern India and frontier iqta lords grew more autonomous.
4. 1266–1287Delhi · DelhiGhiyas ud-Din Balban ruthlessly suppressed rebellions of nobles and princes, restored centralization and court etiquette, and strengthened defenses against the Mongol invasion threat, laying the foundation for the Delhi Sultanate's mid-period stability.