Reference
The Delhi Sultanate: A Political and Military History
A scholarly history of the Sultanate and its wars with the Mongols.
Mamluk (Slave) Dynasty
Dynasty
Level 3
Dynastic phase
1206 – 1290
Qutbuddin Aibak, Iltutmish, Razia and Balban.
- Capital
- Delhi
- Region
- North
- Duration
- 84 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
- Qutbuddin Aibak Sultan1206 – 1210Began the Qutb Minar.
- Aram Shah Sultan1210 – 1211
- Iltutmish Sultan1211 – 1236Consolidated the Sultanate; silver tanka.
- Razia Sultana Sultan1236 – 1240The only woman to rule the Delhi Sultanate.
- Nasiruddin Mahmud Sultan1246 – 1266
- Ghiyasuddin Balban Sultan1266 – 1287Theory of kingship; broke the 'Forty'.
Selected rulers; gaps in the list are not gaps in the dynasty.
Key events
| Year | Event | Place |
|---|---|---|
| 1206 | Delhi Sultanate founded Qutbuddin Aibak becomes independent after Muhammad of Ghor's death. |
Delhi / Lahore |
| 1211 | Iltutmish becomes sultan | Delhi |
| 1229 | Iltutmish receives caliphal investiture | Delhi |
| 1236 | Razia Sultana ascends the throne | Delhi |
| 1240 | Razia Sultana deposed and killed Power passed to the Turkish nobles known as the 'Forty'. |
Kaithal |
| 1266 | Balban becomes sultan | Delhi |
Sites & monuments
Qutb Minar
Capital / fort · c. 1199
Personalities
📚 Recommended reading on the Mamluk (Slave) 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.
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📄 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 Mamluk (Slave) Dynasty for a significant part of its history. The bar shows when, within its own span.
Chola Empire ★
South · c. 848 CE – 1279
Overlap: 73 years
Polonnaruwa Kingdom ★
Sri Lanka · c. 1070 – 1232
Overlap: 26 years
Sultanate of the Maldives ★
Islands · c. 1153 – 1968
Overlap: 84 years
Malla Dynasty of Nepal ★
Himalaya · 1201 – 1769
Overlap: 84 years
Delhi Sultanate ★
North · 1206 – 1526
Overlap: 84 years
Ahom Kingdom ★
Northeast · 1228 – 1826
Overlap: 62 years
Guhilas of Medapata
West · c. 728 CE – 1303
Overlap: 84 years
Paramara Dynasty
Central · c. 800 CE – 1305
Overlap: 84 years
Chandela Dynasty
Central · c. 831 CE – 1315
Overlap: 84 years
Chaulukyas (Solankis) of Gujarat
West · c. 940 CE – 1244
Overlap: 38 years
Hoysala Empire
South · c. 1026 – 1343
Overlap: 84 years
Soomra Dynasty
Northwest · c. 1026 – 1351
Overlap: 84 years
Sena Dynasty
East · c. 1070 – 1230
Overlap: 24 years
Eastern Ganga Dynasty
East · c. 1078 – 1434
Overlap: 84 years
Khasa Malla Kingdom
Himalaya · c. 1100 – c. 1400
Overlap: 84 years
Zamorins of Calicut
South · c. 1124 – 1766
Overlap: 84 years
Kachwahas of Amber (Jaipur)
West · c. 1128 – 1949
Overlap: 84 years
Kakatiya Dynasty
Deccan · c. 1163 – 1323
Overlap: 84 years
Seuna (Yadava) Dynasty
Deccan · c. 1187 – 1317
Overlap: 84 years
Pandya Empire (Second Empire)
South · c. 1190 – 1345
Overlap: 84 years
Jaffna Kingdom
Sri Lanka · c. 1215 – 1619
Overlap: 75 years
Marwar (Rathore)
West · c. 1226 – 1949
Overlap: 64 years