Summary
Jalaluddin Ahsan Khan (died 1340), initially Hasan Kaithali,[1] also known as Jalal al-Din Ahsan Shah,[2] was the first Sultan of Madurai Sultanate and father-in-law of the great traveller Ibn Battuta.
| Jalaluddin Ahsan Khan | |
|---|---|
| Sultan | |
| Founder of Ma'bar Sultanate | |
| Reign | 1335 – 1340 |
| Successor | Ala-ud-din Udauji Shah |
| Died | 1340 |
| Issue | Ibrahim |
| Religion | Islam |
Origin edit
His original name was Sayyid Hasan Kaithali or Kithli, the nisba 'Kaithali' distinguishing his origin from the village of Kaithal, Haryana in Northern India.[3]
Declaration of independence edit
In 1335, Jalaluddin Ahsan Khan, the Muslim Governor of Madurai, declared his independence and established the independent sultanate of Madurai.[4] As a response to his rebellion, the Sultan of Delhi punished the Sayyid and other Indian Muslim inhabitants of Kaithal out of spite for Ahsan Khan as he belonged to Kaithal.[5] He claimed the whole of the Delhi Sultanate province of Ma'bar which included a small part of the ancient Tamil country.[4] However, he scarcely had any authority beyond the realm of the Pandyas and the territory to the north of the river Kaveri was largely independent under the Cholas and the Hoysalas.[6]
Reign edit
Jalaluddin Ahsan Khan took over as the independent sultan of Madurai in 1335.[7] Ferishta, however, gives a date of 1341 for his assumption of the sultanate.[8] Ferishta refers to Ahsan Khan as Syed, Hasan and Husun.[8] Ahsan Khan was also the father-in-law of the Moorish traveller Ibn Battuta.[8] Immediately, Muhammad bin Tughluq sent an army to reassert his control over the region. But Ahsan Khan easily defeated this army.[8] Tughluq took his revenge by killing Ahsan Khan's son Ibrahim who was the purse-bearer of the Emperor. Ahsan Khan was killed in 1340 by one of his nobles after having ruled for a brief span of 5 years.
Notes edit
- ^ Qanungo (1960). Historical Essays.
- ^ Jalāl al-Dīn Aḥsan Shah at the Encyclopædia Britannica
- ^ Qanungo (1960). Historical Essays. p. 142.
Sayyid Hassan Kaithali...half a dozen Hasans, each distinguished from the other by an epithet indicative either of domicile or of birth
- ^ a b Aiyangar, Pg 155
- ^ Qanungo. Historical Essays. p. 38.
- ^ Aiyangar, Pg 156
- ^ Sen, Sailendra (2013). A Textbook of Medieval Indian History. Primus Books. p. 95. ISBN 978-9-38060-734-4.
- ^ a b c d Aiyangar, Pg 165
References edit
- Aiyangar, Sakkottai Krishnaswami (1921). South India and her Muhammadan Invaders. Oxford University.