Reference
The Delhi Sultanate: A Political and Military History
A scholarly history of the Sultanate and its wars with the Mongols.
Tughlaq Dynasty
Dynasty
Level 3
Dynastic phase
1320 – 1414
Largest extent of the Sultanate; Muhammad bin Tughlaq's experiments.
- Capital
- Delhi
- Region
- North
- Duration
- 94 years
- Main period
- Delhi Sultanate & Regional Kingdoms
- Part of
- Delhi Sultanate
At a glance
Move along the chart to read any year; click a ruler or event to open the map there.
Rulers
- Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq Sultan1320 – 1325Built Tughlaqabad.
- Muhammad bin Tughlaq Sultan1325 – 1351Moved the capital to Daulatabad; token currency.
- Firuz Shah Tughlaq Sultan1351 – 1388Canals and new towns.
- Nasiruddin Mahmud Shah Sultan1394 – 1412Reigned during Timur's sack of Delhi.
Selected rulers; gaps in the list are not gaps in the dynasty.
Key events
| Year | Event | Place |
|---|---|---|
| 1320 | Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq founds the Tughlaq dynasty | Delhi |
| 1323 | Fall of the Kakatiyas Warangal was annexed and the Kakatiya dynasty ended. |
Warangal |
| 1327 | Capital shifted to Daulatabad Muhammad bin Tughlaq's transfer of capital. The move caused great hardship and was reversed within a few years. |
Daulatabad |
| c. 1329 | Muhammad bin Tughlaq issues token currency Brass and copper coins were to pass at the value of silver. Widespread forgery forced the coins to be withdrawn. |
Delhi |
| 1334 | Ibn Battuta arrives in Delhi | Delhi |
| 1351 | Firuz Shah Tughlaq becomes sultan | Delhi |
| 1398 | Timur sacks Delhi Delhi was devastated and the Tughlaq sultanate never recovered. |
Delhi |
Personalities
Ziauddin Barani
c. 1285 – c. 1357
Historian who wrote the Tarikh-i-Firoz Shahi
Ibn Battuta
c. 1304 – c. 1369
Moroccan traveller who served as qadi of Delhi under Muhammad bin Tughlaq
📚 Recommended reading on the Tughlaq Dynasty
Textbook
History of Medieval India
The go-to single volume on the Sultanate, Mughals and regional kingdoms.
Reference
Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals (2 vols)
The detailed two-volume treatment for readers who want more than the single-volume textbook.
Textbook
Our Pasts I, II & III (Classes 6–8)
The simplest possible start: short, illustrated and the base of countless exam questions.
We may earn a small commission from qualifying purchases, at no extra cost to you. See all recommended books →
📄 Research papers
Paper🏛 Library access
Inscribing the Other, Inscribing the Self: Hindu-Muslim Identities in Pre-Colonial India
Uses Andhra inscriptions to show how identities were described in the Kakatiya and Sultanate era.
Paper🏛 Library access
Temple Desecration and Indo-Muslim States
A documented, case-by-case study of temple destruction and its political context, 1192–1760.
Paper🏛 Library access
🇮🇳 Indian scholarship
The Pursuit of Persian: Language in Mughal Politics
How Persian became the language of Mughal government and of Hindu and Muslim elites alike.
Contemporaries
Powers that coexisted with the Tughlaq Dynasty for a significant part of its history. The bar shows when, within its own span.
Sultanate of the Maldives ★
Islands · c. 1153 – 1968
Overlap: 94 years
Malla Dynasty of Nepal ★
Himalaya · 1201 – 1769
Overlap: 94 years
Delhi Sultanate ★
North · 1206 – 1526
Overlap: 94 years
Ahom Kingdom ★
Northeast · 1228 – 1826
Overlap: 94 years
Mewar (Sisodia) ★
West · 1326 – 1949
Overlap: 88 years
Vijayanagara Empire ★
South · 1336 – 1646
Overlap: 78 years
Bahmani Sultanate ★
Deccan · 1347 – 1527
Overlap: 67 years
Soomra Dynasty
Northwest · c. 1026 – 1351
Overlap: 31 years
Eastern Ganga Dynasty
East · c. 1078 – 1434
Overlap: 94 years
Khasa Malla Kingdom
Himalaya · c. 1100 – c. 1400
Overlap: 80 years
Zamorins of Calicut
South · c. 1124 – 1766
Overlap: 94 years
Kachwahas of Amber (Jaipur)
West · c. 1128 – 1949
Overlap: 94 years
Pandya Empire (Second Empire)
South · c. 1190 – 1345
Overlap: 25 years
Jaffna Kingdom
Sri Lanka · c. 1215 – 1619
Overlap: 94 years
Marwar (Rathore)
West · c. 1226 – 1949
Overlap: 94 years
Madurai Sultanate
South · 1335 – 1378
Overlap: 43 years
Kashmir Sultanate
North · 1339 – 1586
Overlap: 75 years
Samma Dynasty
Northwest · 1351 – 1524
Overlap: 63 years
Bengal Sultanate
East · 1352 – 1576
Overlap: 62 years
Timurid Empire (Herat)
Northwest · 1370 – 1507
Overlap: 44 years