CLASS - VII Subject- Social Science Topic: CH 3: Delhi Sultans

NCERT Q/A

Q1. According to the ‘circle of Justice’, why was it important for military commanders to
keep the interests of peasantry in mind?
Ans: Agriculture was the backbone of the entire kingdom. It was a major source of revenue
(income) for the king. King used to pay the salary of soldiers from the revenue collected from
peasants.
Hence, military commanders kept the interests of peasantry in mind to keep peasants happy and
prosperous.

Q2. What is meant by the internal and external frontiers of the sultanate?
OR
Describe the expansion of the Delhi Sultanate from garrison town to an empire.
Ans:
Campaigns along the ‘internal frontier’ of the Sultanate
1) The internal frontier means the hinterland of the garrison towns.
2) During these campaigns, forests were cleared in the Ganga-Yamuna doab and hunter-gatherers
and pastoralists expelled from their habitat.
3) These lands were given to peasants and agriculture was encouraged.
4) New fortresses and towns were established to protect trade routes and promote regional trade.
Expansion along the ‘external frontier’ of the Sultanate
1) The external frontier means the areas beyond the hinterland of the garrison towns.
2) Military expeditions into southern India started during the reign of Alauddin Khalji and
culminated with Muhammad Tughlaq.
3) In their campaigns, Sultanate armies defeated rival armies and cities. They captured elephants,
horses and slaves and carried away precious metals.

Q3. What were the steps taken to ensure that muqtis performed their duties? Why do you
think they may have wanted to defy the order of the sultans?
Ans: 1) Accountants were appointed to check that the amount of revenue collected by the muqtis.
2) Care was taken that the muqtis collected only the taxes prescribed by the state and kept the
required number of soldiers.
The muqtis may have wanted to defy the order of sultans because:
1) Their office was not hereditary.
2) Their job was transferable. They were assigned iqtas for short period of time.

Q4. Give an account of administrative reforms introduced by Alauddin Khalji and

Muhammad Tughlaq.
Ans:
Alauddin Khalji
1) He raised a large standing army to defend the sultanate from Mongol attacks.
2) He constructed a new garrison town named Siri for his soldiers.
 3) Taxes were imposed on lands between Ganga and Yamuna at 50% of peasant’s produce
to feed the soldiers.
4) Soldiers were paid salaries in cash rather than iqtas.
5) He controlled the prices of goods in Delhi and ensured efficient supplies of goods in the
market. This benefitted the soldiers and common people.
Muhammad Tughlaq
1) He raised a large standing army to plan an attack on Transoxiana.
2) The residents of the old city of Delhi-i-Kuhna were shifted to Daulatabad in the south and
soldiers were garrisoned there.
3) To meet the expense of maintaining a large number of soldiers, he levied additional taxes.
This coincided with famine in the area.
4) Soldiers were paid cash salaries.
5) Instead of controlling prices, he used a token currency made out of cheap metals, not gold
and silver.

Q5. What was the impact of the Mongol invasions on the Delhi Sultanate?
Ans.
Mongol attacks on the Delhi Sultanate increased during the reign of Alauddin Khalji and in the
early years of Muhammad Tughluq’s rule.
1. This forced the two rulers to raise large standing armies against the Mongols.
2. Alauddin constructed a new garrison town named Siri for his soldiers while Muhammad
Tughluq emptied oldest of the city Dehli-i-Kuhna of its residents and the soldiers were
garrisoned there.
3. In order to feed the soldiers, large taxes were imposed on farmers.
4. Soldiers were paid salaries in cash rather than iqtas.

Q5. Do you think the authors of tawarikh would provide information about the lives of
ordinary men and women?
OR
Who were the authors of tawarikh? Write in brief about them.
Ans: The authors of tawarikh were learned men. They were secretaries, administrators, poets,
courtiers who both recounted events and advised rulers on governance.
1) The authors of tawarikh lived in cities (mainly Delhi) and hardly ever in villages. They
were mostly unaware of the life of common people.
2) They often wrote their histories for sultans in the hope of rich rewards. They had nothing
to do with ordinary men and women.
3) They advised rulers on the need to preserve an ideal social order based on birthright and
gender distinctions.

Extra Questions
Q1. Who was Raziyya? Why Raziyya was considered unique in the history of Delhi
Sultanate?
Ans: Raziyya was Sultan Iltutmish’s daughter. She was the first woman Sultan of Delhi. She was
more able and qualified than her brothers.

Q2. Who were muqtis or iqtadars? What was the duty of the muqtis?
Ans: The military commanders were appointed as governors of territories of varying sizes. Those
lands were called iqtas and their holder was called muqti or iqtadar.
The duty of the muqtis was to:
i. lead military campaigns and maintain law and order in their iqtas.
ii. In exchange for their military services, the muqtis collected the revenues of their
assignments as salary. They paid their soldiers from these revenues.

Q4. ‘Alauddin’s administrative measures were quite successful compared to Muhammad

Tughlaq.’ Give reasons.
Ans. Alauddin’s administrative measures were quite successful and chroniclers praised its reign
for:
1) Its cheap prices and efficient supplies of goods in the market.
2) He successfully withstood the threat of Mongol invasions.
Muhammad Tughluq’s administrative measures were a failure.
1) The shifting of the residents of the old city to the new capital of Daulatabad in South was
resented.
2) To meet the expenses of maintaining a large number of soldiers, he levied additional
taxes which increased the burden on peasantry. This coincided with famine in Ganga
Yamuna belt and led to widespread rebellion.
3) Token currency had to be recalled. People did not trust this currency. They saved their
gold and silver coins and paid all their taxes to the state with the token currency.
4) His campaign into Kashmir was a disaster. He then gave up his plans to invade
Transoxiana and disbanded his large army.

Q5. What is a ‘Mosque’?

Ans: 1) A mosque is called a masjid in Arabic, literally a place where a Muslim prostrates in
reverence to Allah.
2) In a congregational mosque, Muslims read their prayers (namaz) together.
3) Members of the congregation choose the most respected, learned male as their leader (imam)
for the rituals of the prayer.
4) He also delivers the sermon (Khutba) during the Friday prayer.
5) During prayer, Muslims stand facing Mecca to the west. This is called qibla.

Q6. What were the coins minted in Delhi called?

Ans: Dehliwal

Q7. Name the five dynasties that together made the Delhi Sultanate.
Ans: Slave Dynasty (Early Turkish rulers), Khalji Dynasty, Tughlaq Dynasty, Sayyid Dynasty,
Lodi Dynasty were the dynasties which together made up Delhi Sultanate and ruled from 1206-1526.

Q8. What was the language of administration of Delhi Sultans?

Ans: Persian was the language of administration of Delhi Sultans.

Q9. Mention the sources of information about the Delhi Sultans.

Ans: Inscriptions, coins, architecture, tawarikh (written histories of the rulers) are some of the
sources of the information to study about the period of rule by Delhi Sultans.

Q10. Name the queen of the Kakatiya Dynasty who changed her name on her inscriptions
and pretended she was a man.
Ans: Queen Rudrama Devi

Q11. Name the three types of taxes collected by Alauddin Khalji .

Ans: Tax on cultivation called Kharaj amounting to about 50% of the peasant’s produce, taxes on
cattle and taxes on houses.

Q12. Under the reign of which Delhi sultan was Begumpuri mosque built?
Ans: Muhammad Tughlaq

Q13. Which Indian ruling dynasty defeated the Tomara Rajputs?

Ans. Chahamanas (later known as Chauhans) defeated the Tomara Rajputs and occupied Delhi.

Q14. Under whose leadership Mongols invaded Transoxiana in Iran in 1219?

Ans: Genghis Khan

Q15. Who were known as Bandagan?

Ans: The special slaves purchased for military service by the sultans were called Bandagan in Persian.
They were carefully trained to handle some of the political offices in the kingdom.

Q16. Define the following:

1) Birthright- Privileges claimed on account of birth.
2) Gender Distinctions- Social differences between men and women which are sometimes used
to argue that men are superior to women.
3) Hinterland-The lands adjacent to a port or city that supply it with goods or services.
4) Garrison Town- A fortified settlement with soldiers.
5) Client- A person who is under the protection of some other person.