Rukn-ud-din Firuz (), further transliterated as Rukn al-Din Firoz and also known as Firuz I (1211 – 19 November 1236), was the

Sultan of Delhi The Sultan of Delhi was the absolute monarch of the Delhi Sultanate which stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent during the period of medieval era, for 320 years (1206–1526).Badaun and

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

provinces of the Sultanate. He ascended the throne after the death of his father

Iltutmish Shams ud-Din Iltutmish (1192 – 30 April 1236) was the third of the Mamluk kings who ruled the former Ghurid territories in northern India. He was the first Muslim sovereign to rule from Delhi, and is thus considered the effective founder of ...

, a powerful

Mamluk Mamluk or Mamaluk (; (singular), , ''mamālīk'' (plural); translated as "one who is owned", meaning "slave") were non-Arab, ethnically diverse (mostly Turkic, Caucasian, Eastern and Southeastern European) enslaved mercenaries, slave-so ...

ruler who had established the Sultanate as the most powerful kingdom in northern India. However, he pursued pleasure, wine, women, and left his mother Shah Turkan in control of the administration. The misadministration led to rebellions against Ruknuddin and his mother, both of whom were arrested and imprisoned. The nobles and the army subsequently appointed his half-sister Razia on the throne.

Early life

Ruknuddin was born to the Delhi Sultan Iltutmish and his wife ''Khudawanda-i-Jahan'' Shah Turkan, who was a hand-maid of Turkic origin. As a prince, he was assigned the

iqta' An iqta () and occasionally iqtaʿa () was an Islamic practice of farming out tax revenues yielded by land granted temporarily to army officials in place of a regular wage; it became common in the Muslim empire of the Caliphate. Iqta has been defi ...

of Badaun in 1228. He administered Badaun with the support of Ainul Mulk Husain Ash'ari, a former minister of Iltutmish's rival Nasir ad-Din Qabacha. Iltutmish had groomed his eldest son Nasiruddin Mahmud to be his successor, but this son died unexpectedly in 1229. While leaving for his Gwalior campaign in 1231, Iltutmish left his daughter Razia as the in-charge of Delhi's administration. Razia handled the administration well, and when Iltutmish returned, he ordered preparation of a decree naming Razia as his

heir apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...

, despite opposition from the orthodox nobles. Iltutmish declared that his surviving sons were absorbed in pleasurable activities, and were incapable of managing the state affairs after his death. However, shortly before his death, Iltutmish appears to have agreed to appoint Ruknuddin - a son - as his successor. In 1233, he appointed Ruknuddin as the administrator of Lahore. During his last days, when he had become seriously ill, he recalled Ruknuddin from Lahore to Delhi, and Ruknuddin was unanimously accepted as his successor by the nobles.

Reign

After the death of his father Iltutmish, Ruknuddin ascended the throne in April–May 1236. Saifuddin Hasan Qarlugh, who assumed that the Delhi Sultanate would be weakened after Iltutmish's death, invaded India around this time. However, Saifuddin Aibak - a Turkic slave officer appointed as the governor of Uch by Iltutmish, defeated him and forced him to retreat. The historian Minhaj-i-Siraj praises Ruknuddin for three qualities: handsomeness, gentle temperament, and generous nature. According to Minhaj, Ruknuddin greatly enjoyed riding elephants, and greatly favoured

mahout A mahout is an elephant rider, trainer, or keeper. Mahouts were used since antiquity for both civilian and military use. Traditionally, mahouts came from ethnic groups with generations of elephant keeping experience, with a mahout retainin ...

s, who became important in his court. Minhaj narrates that Ruknuddin would scatter gold coins in

bazaar A bazaar or souk is a marketplace consisting of multiple small Market stall, stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East, the Balkans, Central Asia, North Africa and South Asia. They are traditionally located in vaulted or covered streets th ...

s, while riding intoxicated on an elephant. He used to spend a lot of money on musicians, clowns, and eunuchs. While spending his time and the state funds in pursuing pleasure, Ruknuddin left the control of administration to his mother Shah Turkan.

Rebellions

Shah Turkan was originally reputed for charitable and religious donations, but her nature changed after she gained control of the administration. She mistreated ladies in Iltutmish's harem, and according to Minhaj, "destroyed" several of them. She and Ruknuddin ordered the blinding and killing of Qutubuddin, a young and popular son of Iltutmish, which triggered several rebellions: * In the

Awadh Awadh (), known in British Raj historical texts as Avadh or Oudh, is a historical region in northern India and southern Nepal, now constituting the North-central portion of Uttar Pradesh. It is roughly synonymous with the ancient Kosala Regio ...

region, Malik Ghiyasuddin Muhammad Shah - a son of Iltutmish - rebelled against Ruknuddin. He sacked several towns, and plundered the treasure of Lakhnauti, which was being transferred to Delhi. * Malik Izzuddin Muhammad Salari, who now held the

of Badaun, also rebelled. * Three other iqta-holding nobles collectively rebelled against Ruknuddin: Malik Izzuddin Kabir Khan Ayaz (

Multan Multan is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, fifth-most populous city in the Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab province of Pakistan. Located along the eastern bank of the Chenab River, it is the List of cities in Pakistan by populatio ...

), Malik Saifuddin Kuchi (

Hansi Hansi, is a city and municipal council in Hisar district in the Indian state of Haryana. It appears that at one time Hansi was larger, more prosperous and more important than Hisar. The town has several important buildings of archeological impor ...

), Malik Alauddin Jani (

). Ruknuddin sent an army against the rebels, but his wazir (prime minister) ''Nizamul Mulk'' Junaidi deserted the army at Kailugarhi, and fled to Koil (modern Aligarh), later joining Salari. The forces of Junaidi and Salari subsequently joined the forces of Kuchi and Jani.

Massacre of Tazik officers

The officers of Ruknuddin's father Iltutmish belonged to two major categories: the Turkic-origin slaves and the ''Tazik''-origin non-slaves. The Tazik officers included the prime minister Junaidi. After the rebellions against Ruknuddin, the Turkic officers, who formed the core of Ruknuddin's army, planned murders of many Tazik officers in the

Mansurpur Mansurpur is a village in Phillaur tehsil of Jalandhar District of Punjab State, India. It is located 4 km away from postal head office Bara Pind. The village is 6 km away from Goraya, 9 km from Phillaur, 39 km from Jalan ...

Tarain Taraori, or Tarori or Tarawari, as it is sometimes called in the local dialect, is a town ( Municipal committee) in Nilokheri Tehsil of Karnal district in the Indian state of Haryana. It is situated off NH-44, 14 km north of Karnal. The ...

region. Several important Tazik officers were killed as a result: * Tajul Mulk Mahmud, ''

dabir Dabir is a title and surname of Persian origin used in Iran and the Indian subcontinent. It is derived from the Persian word ''Dibīr'' (Middle Persian for "secretary/scribe"). Dibīr was the title of one of the four classes in the society of Sas ...

'' * the son of ''mushrif-i mamalik'' * Bahauddin Hasan Ash'ari * Karimuddin Zahid * Ziyal Mulk, the son of Junaidi * Nizamuddin Shafurqani * Khwaja Rashiduddin Malikani * Amir Fakhruddin, ''

'' * Bahram Shah, ''

dizdar Dizdar (; ) was the title given in the Ottoman Empire to a castle warden or fortress commander, appointed to manage troops and keep the fortress in its role as a defence point. The word is of Persian language, Persian origin, meaning gatekeeper ...

Imprisonment and death

Ruknuddin marched towards Kuhram to fight the rebels. Meanwhile, in Delhi, his half-sister Razia - whom his mother Shah Turkan had planned to execute - instigated the general public against Shah Turkan at a congregational prayer. A mob then attacked the royal palace and detained Shah Turkan. Several nobles and the army pledged allegiance to Razia, and placed her on the throne. Ruknuddin marched back to Delhi, but Razia sent a force to arrest him: he was imprisoned and probably executed on 19 November 1236, having ruled for 6 months and 28 days.

References

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ruknuddin Firuz Sultans of the Mamluk dynasty (Delhi) 13th-century murdered monarchs Indian Sunni Muslims 13th-century Indian monarchs Year of birth unknown 1236 deaths