Qutb al-Din Aibak

Quṭb u-Dīn Aibak
Founder of Mamluk Dynasty in Delhi
1st Sultan of the Delhi Sultanate
Reign	25 June 1206 – 1210/1211[1]
Coronation	25 June 1206[citation needed]
Predecessor	Muhammad of Ghor
Successor	Aram Shah
Born	1150[citation needed] Turkestan
Died	1210 (aged 60) Delhi, Delhi Sultanate
Dynasty	Mamluk Dynasty
Religion	Islam

Quṭb al-Dīn Aibak^[2] also spelt Quṭb ud-Dīn Aibak or Qutub ud-Din Aybak (Persian: قُطْبُ ٱلْدِّين أَيْبَك), (1150–1210), was the founder of the Mamluk dynasty and the first sultan of the Delhi Sultanate.

Contents

• 
  1 History
  
  
  
  • 
    1.1 Works
    
  
  
  • 
    1.2 Death and successor
    
  
  
  
  


• 
  2 References
  

History

Death of the slave king, Kutbuddin Aibak of Delhi, A.D. 1210

Tomb of Qutb al-Din Aibak in Anarkali Bazaar

Quṭb al-Din Aibak was born to Turkic parents in Turkistan. In his childhood, Aibak was sold as a slave and raised at Nishapur, Persia, where he was purchased by the local Qazi.^[1] After the death of his master, he was sold by his master's son and eventually became a slave of Muhammad of Ghor who made him the Amir-i-Akhur, the Master of Slave.^[1]

Eventually, Aibak was appointed to military command and became an able general of Muhammad of Ghor. In 1193 and after conquering Delhi,^[1] his master returned to Khorāsān and left the consolidation of the Ghūrid conquests in northwest India to him. With his headquarters at Delhi, Aibak subjugated areas between the Ganges (Ganga) and Yamuna (Jamuna) rivers. He then turned his attention to the Rajputs who were still resisting Ghūrid domination. In 1195–1203, he mounted campaigns against their strongholds, while Ghuri's other lieutenant Muhammad bin Bakhtiyar Khalji conquered Bihar and Bengal.

When Muhammad of Ghor was assassinated in 1206, Aibak was his logical successor. He was still technically a slave, but he quickly obtained manumission. He married the daughter of Taj al-Din Yildiz of Ghazna, one of the other principal claimants to succeed Muhammad of Ghor, and, by other judiciously arranged marriages, consolidated his rule.^{[citation needed]}He could only rule for 4 years.

Works

Qutb Minar

He rebuilt the Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque in Delhi over the jain and Hindu temple and the Adhai Din Ka Jhonpra in Ajmer. He started the construction of Qutb Minar over a Hindu temple (Still the signs and remains of Hindu temple are visible) in memory of sufi saint Qutbuddin Bakhtiar Kaki,^[1] which was completed by his successor, Iltutmish after Aibak's death.

Surviving inscriptions describe Aibak as Malik ("King"), and the Quṭb Mīnār in Delhi still stands to commemorate his victories.

Qutb-ud-din Aibak defeated the Gahadavala king Jayachandra in 1194.

Death and successor

Aibak died of injuries received during an accidental fall from a horse while playing polo in 1210 AD. He was buried in Lahore near Anarkali Bazaar. His successor, Shams ud-Din Iltutmish (r. 1211–36),^[1] basing his power on the conquests of Aibak, was able to establish the independence of the Delhi Sultanate under the Mamluk dynasty.^[2]

References

1. 
   ^ ^abcdef Kutb al-Din Aybek, P. Jackson, The Encyclopaedia of Islam, Vol. V, ed. C.E. Bosworth, E. van Donzel, B. Lewis, and C. Pellat, (Brill, 1986), 546.
   


2. 
   ^ ^ab Encyclopædia Britannica
   

Grave of Sultan Qutb ud-Din Aybak

Preceded by	Mamluk Dynasty (Delhi) (1206–1290) 1210	Succeeded by Aram Shah
Preceded by	Sultan of Delhi 1210	Succeeded by Aram Shah

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mausoleum of Qutb-ud-din Aibak.

Authority control	GND: 122834100 VIAF: 305235007 WorldCat Identities (via VIAF): 305235007

Wikiquote has quotations related to: Qutb al-Din Aibak

This page is only for reference, If you need detailed information, please check here