The Jaunpur Sultanate

Jaunpur Sultanate

Origin and Rise of the Sultanate:

The Sharqi dynasty controlled the Muslim Persianate state of Jaunpur Sultanate in northern India from 1394 until 1479. As the Tughlaq dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate was falling apart, Khwajah-i-Jahan Malik Sarwar, a eunuch slave and erstwhile wazir of Sultan Nasiruddin Muhammad Shah IV Tughluq, created it in 1394. The Sultanate, which had its capital in Jaunpur, had jurisdiction over Awadh and a sizable portion of the Ganges-Yamuna Doab. Sultan Ibrahim Shah oversaw it at its pinnacle and made significant contributions to the advancement of Islamic education in the Sultanate. The army of Afghan ruler Bahlul Lodi, Sultan of the Lodi dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate, defeated Sultan Hussain Khan in 1479, putting an abrupt end to independent Jaunpur and its reabsorption into the Delhi Sultanate.

The rulers of the Jaunpur Sultanate:

       i.            Malik Sarwar:

Malik Sarwar was given the honorific Khwajah-i-Jahan in 1389. Sultan Nasir-ud-Din Mahmud Shah Tughluq (1394–1413) gave him the title Malik-us-Sharq and made him governor of Jaunpur in 1394. He swiftly recognized himself as a sovereign and adopted the name Atabak-i-Azam. He put an end to the uprisings in Kannauj, Koil, and Etawah. Additionally, he was able to subdue South Bihar, Awadh, Dalmau, Kara, and Bahraich. In recognition of his power, the Rai of Jajnagar and the king of Lakhnauti sent him many elephants.

  ii.            Mubarak Shah:

After Malik Sarwar passed away, his adoptive son Malik Qaranfal replaced him. Mubarak Shah reigned for three years and produced coins bearing his name. Mubarak Shah read the Khutba on his own after coming to power in 1399 and issued coins in his name. Mallu Iqbal made unsuccessful attempts to retake Jaunpur when he was in power. After he died in 1402, his younger brother Ibrahim took over as king and adopted the name Shams-ud-Din Ibrahim Shah.

  iii.            Ibrahim Shah:

The Jaunpur Sultanate reached its pinnacle under the reign of Shams ud-din Ibrahim Sha, Mubarak Shah's younger brother. His reign reached as far east as Bihar and as far west as Kanauj; at one time, he nearly advanced on Delhi. He posed a danger to the Bengal Sultanate led by Raja Ganesha while operating under the auspices of the Muslim holy figure Nur Qutb Alam.

Ibrahim Shah supported Islamic education and founded several universities for it. His reign saw the publication of several academic works on Islamic theology and jurisprudence, such as the Hashiah-i-Hindi, the Bahar-ul-Mawwaj, and the Fatwa-i-Ibrahim Shahi. He built several monuments in the Sharqi, a brand-new regional architectural style. Sultan Nasiruddin Mahmud Shah II Tughluq sought sanctuary at Jaunpur during his reign to free himself from Mallu Iqbal's rule. But he didn't behave himself with Sultan Mahmud Shah. His interactions with the Sultan deteriorated as a result, and Mahmud Shah took control of Kanauj. He made an unsuccessful attempt to reclaim Kanauj in 1407. He also failed in his endeavor to capture Bengal. After his passing, his oldest son Mahmud Shah took over as ruler.

   iv.            Mahmud Shah:

Chunar was successfully taken over by Mahmud Shah, although Kalpi eluded his grasp. He ran operations targeting Bengal and Odisha as well. The renowned Kapilendra Deva Gajapati ruled Odisha at that time. The Jaunpur Sultanate was soundly overthrown by the armies of Odia. He attempted to conquer Delhi in 1452, but Bahlul Lodi stopped him. Later, he invaded Etawah to seize Delhi once more. Finally, he consented to a contract that recognized Bahlul Lodi's authority over Shamsabad. However, the soldiers of Jaunpur resisted Bahlul when he attempted to seize Shamsabad. When Mahmud Shah passed away at this point, his son Bhikhan replaced him and took on the name Muhammad Shah.

     v.            Muhammad Shah:

When Muhammad Shah came to power in 1457, he accepted Bahlul Lodi's claim to Shamshabad and made peace with him. He started a fight with his nobility. His other brother Hussain rebelled in 1458 and declared himself the sultan of Jaunpur under the name Hussain Shah following his brother Hasan was put death on his command. Hussain's soldiers quickly executed Muhammed Shah at Kannauj.

   vi.            Hussain Shah:

In 1458, Bahlul Lodi and the previous king Hussain Shah agreed to a four-year peace deal. Later, in 1478, a very big army arrived at the shores of the Yamuna to conquer Delhi. Hussain Shah rejected Sultan Bahlul Lodi's offer to keep just Delhi and rule it as a subordinate of Hussain Shah to secure peace.

The exodus of Jaunpur's Sultan Hussain Sharki in 1479 Sultan Bahlul overcame him by crossing the Yamuna as a consequence. Bahlul Lodi once more beat Hussain Shah after he consented to a truce but again conquered Etawah and headed against Delhi with a massive force. Again, he was successful in establishing harmony. He returned to the Yamuna River's banks in March 1479. He abandoned the Parganas of Kampil, Patiali, Shamsabad, Suket, Koil, Marhara, and Jalesar to the invading army of the Delhi Sultan and was once more routed by Bahlul Lodi. He was ultimately beaten on the banks of the Rahab after suffering repeated losses in the conflicts of Senha, Rapri, and Raigaon Khaga. As a result, Bahlul Lodi assigned Mubarak Khan to Jaunpur. Hussain Shah reassembled his men, drove Mubarak Khan from Jaunpur, and captured the city once again before Bahlul forced him out once more. He hurried away to Bengal, where Sultan Alauddin Husain Shah gave him sanctuary and allowed him to live out his last days. Barbak Shah Lodi, Bahlul Lodi's eldest surviving son, was crowned king of Jaunpur in 1486. Muhammad Jaunpuri, who claimed to be the Mahdi among all Muslims, first emerged under Hussain Shah's dominion, and Hussain Shah had been a fan of his.

Art and Architecture by Sharqis:

The Sharqi dynasty's biggest and most durable accomplishment was architecture. In this regard, the Sharqis “stands supreme in the period before the Mughal Empire.” According to Lane-Pool, who wrote about the Atala Masjid after it was finished in 1408, “its characteristic feature, a lofty inner gateway of simple grandeur, recalling the propylon of Egyptian temples, supplied the place of a minaret and concealed from the quadrangle the too dominating outline of the great dome which covered the house of prayer.”

 The beautiful ashlar masonry of its simple buttressed façade, the elegant and rich, but incredibly complicated floral design around its doorways and prayer niche, its geometrical ornament, the elegant two-storeyed colonnades, five aisles deep, encircling the roomy square, and the smaller domes and gateways.