Shāhzāda Bārbak (, ), known by his
regnal title A regnal title is the title held by a monarch while in office. Monarchs can have various titles, including king or queen, prince or princess (Sovereign Prince of Monaco), emperor or empress (Emperor of Japan, Emperor of India), or even duke or grand ...
Ghiyāsuddīn Bārbak Shāh (, ), was an
Abyssinian man who became
Sultan of Bengal
The Bengal Sultanate (Middle Bengali: , Classical Persian: ) was a Post-classical history, late medieval sultanate based in the Bengal region in the eastern South Asia between the 14th and 16th century. It was the dominant power of the Ganges- ...
in 1487 and founded the Sultanate's
Habshi dynasty. He was born into slavery and, prior to become sultan, was commander of the palace guards of
Jalaluddin Fateh Shah's court.
Biography
During the reign of
Jalaluddin Fateh Shah of the
Bengali Muslim
Bengali Muslims (; ) 'Mussalman'' also used in this work./ref> are adherents of Islam who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. Comprising over 70% of the global Bengali population, they are the second-largest ...
Ilyas Shahi dynasty
The Ilyas Shahi dynasty (, ) was the first independent dynasty to set the foundations of the late medieval Sunni Muslim Sultanate of Bengal. Their rule extended from 1342 to 1487, though interrupted with interregna by their slaves as well as th ...
, some Abyssinian eunuch slaves ended up in important and influential positions in the royal court, many as ''paik''s (palace guards). Barbak was a eunuch and one of the increasingly powerful Abyssinian palace guards, eventually being promoted to commander of the palace guards. He led a rebellion against Sultan Fateh Shah and killed him.
Shahzada Barbak took power in 1487 and started what was to become a Habshi dynasty of rulers in Bengal. He assumed the title ''Sultan Shahzada''.
A few coins have been discovered bearing his name.
His reign was short-lived, as he murdered roughly in the same year as his coronation by
Saifuddin Firuz Shah
Malik Andil Habshi (), better known by his regnal title Saifuddin Firoze Shah (, ) was the second "Habshi" ruler of the Bengal Sultanate's Habshi dynasty. He was a former army commander of the Sultanate's Ilyas Shahi dynasty.
Biography
Andil was ...
, an Abyssinian eunuch who was loyal to the
Ilyas Shahi dynasty
The Ilyas Shahi dynasty (, ) was the first independent dynasty to set the foundations of the late medieval Sunni Muslim Sultanate of Bengal. Their rule extended from 1342 to 1487, though interrupted with interregna by their slaves as well as th ...
and was commander of the army.
See also
*
List of rulers of Bengal
This is a list of rulers of Bengal. For much of History of Bengal, its history, Bengal was split up into several independent kingdoms, completely unifying only several times. In Kingdoms of Ancient India, ancient times, Bengal consisted of the ...
*
History of Bengal
The history of Bengal is intertwined with the history of the broader Indian subcontinent and the surrounding regions of South Asia and Southeast Asia. It includes modern-day Bangladesh and the States and union territories of India, Indian stat ...
*
History of India
Anatomically modern humans first arrived on the Indian subcontinent between 73,000 and 55,000 years ago. The earliest known human remains in South Asia date to 30,000 years ago. Sedentism, Sedentariness began in South Asia around 7000 BCE; ...
References
Sultans of Bengal
1487 deaths
Year of birth unknown
15th-century Indian monarchs
Habshis of Bengal
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