The Muslim period in Bangla (present-day Bangladesh) lasted from 1204 to 1757. Islam entered Bengal through both Arab traders arriving by sea and Turkish conquerors arriving by land. Over this period, the Muslim rulers of Bengal belonged to three groups - the Turks, Afghans, and Mughals. Bengal experienced independent sultanates beginning in 1338 under Fakhruddin Mubarak Shah. The Mughals gradually took over Bengal from 1576 onward. Muslim society developed with mosques, madrasas, and khanqahs built. Ibn Battuta and Islam Khan were notable figures who visited and ruled over Bengal during this period. The Muslim rule
The Muslim period in Bangla (present-day Bangladesh) lasted from 1204 to 1757. Islam entered Bengal through both Arab traders arriving by sea and Turkish conquerors arriving by land. Over this period, the Muslim rulers of Bengal belonged to three groups - the Turks, Afghans, and Mughals. Bengal experienced independent sultanates beginning in 1338 under Fakhruddin Mubarak Shah. The Mughals gradually took over Bengal from 1576 onward. Muslim society developed with mosques, madrasas, and khanqahs built. Ibn Battuta and Islam Khan were notable figures who visited and ruled over Bengal during this period. The Muslim rule
The Muslim period in Bangla (present-day Bangladesh) lasted from 1204 to 1757. Islam entered Bengal through both Arab traders arriving by sea and Turkish conquerors arriving by land. Over this period, the Muslim rulers of Bengal belonged to three groups - the Turks, Afghans, and Mughals. Bengal experienced independent sultanates beginning in 1338 under Fakhruddin Mubarak Shah. The Mughals gradually took over Bengal from 1576 onward. Muslim society developed with mosques, madrasas, and khanqahs built. Ibn Battuta and Islam Khan were notable figures who visited and ruled over Bengal during this period. The Muslim rule
• Assistant Professor • General Education Establishment of Islam in Bangla • According to unconfirmed traditions, some Muslim sufi-saints came to Bengal even before the political conquest, but Islam actually entered in full force with the Turkish conquest towards the beginning of the 13th century. • Bangladesh is today a Muslim majority country; about 90% of her population belong to the Islamic faith. How was Islam established? • The Muslim rulers of Bengal belonged to three racial groups- the Turks, the Afghans and the Mughals. The last were originally linked with the Turks. • Islam entered Bengal both by land and water. By land the Turkish conquerors came with their religion, culture and concept of governance, while the Arab traders came through waterway. • But the Arabs probably did not affect the society as deeply as was done by the Turkish conquerors. • The Turks came with the avowed intention of establishing political power. • Ever since the establishment of the first Muslim kingdom in Bengal there was a continuous flow of Muslims into Bengal. • There came the soldiers, who were, in fact the backbone of political power; the religious learned people, the Sayyids, Ulama and the Mashayikhs to disseminate religion; the civil servants, experts in politics, finance and governance; the traders and businessmen, and also the artisans and craftsmen. • They all came in search of employment and /or better livelihood. • The Mongol destruction of the Baghdad Caliphate in the thirteenth century led to widespread displacement of Central Asian Muslims, who took refuge in the capitals of Delhi and LAKHNAUTI (the Maldah district of West Bengal, India). • They even spread to the remote places. Muslims coming from the cultural centres of central Asia were welcomed, they were known as aizza('respectable') and given suitable employment. Independent Bangla from 1338 • Bakhtyar's kingdom was only a nucleus and the Muslims took more than two hundred years to bring the whole of Bengal under their control. • In 1338 Bengal witnessed the beginning of an independent Sultanate under FAKHRUDDIN MUBARAK SHAH. • This was a period of overall development of the country both politically and culturally. But the most important development of this period was that the country for the first time received a name, ie. Bangalah. • Before this there was no geo-political unity of Bengal, no common name for the whole country. • Bengal was known by the names of its different units, Gauda, Radha, Vanga etc. • After Sultan Shamsuddin ILIYAS SHAH conquered all these three regions and united the whole of Bengal, the name Bangalah emerged and he earned for himself the title of Shah-i- Bangalah and Sultan-i-Bangalah. • The independent Sultanate saw the expansion of Muslim power which spread into every nook and corner of the country, up to KAMARUPA in the north, Tippara in the east and the sea in the south. • Chittagong was conquered by Fakhruddin Mubarak Shah (1338-1349), Faridpur was conquered by JALALUDDIN MUHAMMAD SHAH (1415- 1432) and renamed FATHABAD. • Fakhruddin Mubarak Shah ruled an independent kingdom in areas that lie within modern-day eastern and southeastern Bengal. • Khan Jahan brought the Khulna-Jessore area under the Muslim rule in the reign of NASIRUDDIN MAHMUD SHAH (1435-1459) and RUKNUDDIN BARBAK SHAH (1459-1474) conquered Bakerganj. Shamsuddin Ilyas Shah (reigned: 1342–1358) • Shamsuddin Ilyas Shah was an independent ruler of Bengal, who became the sultan of the kingdom of Lakhnauti in 1342 and after conquering the kingdom of Sonargoan in 1352, he became the sole ruler of whole Bengal and thus he became the founder of a sultanate of the unified Bengal. • He founded the Ilyas Shahi dynasty which ruled Bengal for 73 years (1342–1415) and after a gap of 20 years (1415–1435) the dynasty again ruled Bengal for 52 years (1435–1487). • Ilyas Shah was succeeded by his son Sikandar Shah. The Mughals in Bangla • The Mughals took over this kingdom gradually from 1576 and onwards. • After the death of AURANGZEB, when Mughal power declined, Bengal like other provinces of the empire was ruled by the NAWABS more or less independently. This position continued up to the BATTLE OF PALASHI, 1757. • Mughal supremacy in Bengal lasted for several hundred years. Muslim Society • They built mosques, MADRASAHs and KHANQAHs for this purpose. • Mosques form an important feature of Muslim society and culture, because they afford opportunity to offer prayers, one of the fundamental pillars of the Islamic faith. • Mosques also served as maktabs to impart elementary religious education to the children. There were many madrasahs to impart elementary education, and also institutions of higher learning, particularly in the towns and cities. • In those days, as in the present day, a person had to pursue his study up to a certain level to become an Alim, and the subjects which he had to study were the Quran, Hadith, Tasawwaf, Mantiq, Kalam, and such other subjects, as also the Arabic and Persian languages. • The Ulama and Mashayikh enjoyed economic security so that they could engage themselves in the pursuit of knowledge and meditation. The Muslim rulers always encouraged Muslim Ulama, Sufis and other religious leaders, built religious institutions and thus helped the growth of a Muslim society in Bengal. Ibn Battuta • Over a period of thirty years, Battuta visited most of the known Islamic world as well as many non- Muslim lands. • His journeys included trips to North Africa, the Horn of Africa, West Africa,Southern Europe and Eastern Europe in the West, and to the Middle East, South Asia, Central Asia, Southeast Asia and China in the East, a distance surpassing threefold his near- contemporary Marco Polo. • Battuta is considered one of the greatest travellers of all time. • Ibn Battuta visited Bangla in 1344-46 during the reign of Fakhruddin Mubarak Shah (1338-1349). • He reached the port of Chittagong in modern- day Bangladesh intending to travel to Sylhet to meet Shah Jalal in 1345 CE. • Ibn Batuta noted that Shah Jalal was tall and lean, fair in complexion and lived by the mosque in a cave, where his only item of value was a goat he kept for milk, butter, and yogurt. • He observed that the companions of the Shah Jalal were foreign and known for their strength and bravery. He also mentions that many people would visit the Shah to seek guidance. Islam Khan • Shaikh Alauddin Chisti (1570 – 1613; known as Islam Khan Chisti) was a Mughal general and the Subahdar of Bengal. • He transferred the capital of Bengal to Dhaka and renamed it Jahangirnagar. • He was awarded the titular name of Islam Khan by Mughal emperor Jahangir. Shaista Khan, the Mughal governor of Bengal from 1664 to 1688 • Shaista Khan encouraged the construction of modern townships and public works in Dhaka, leading to a massive urban and economic expansion. • He was a patron of the arts and encouraged the construction of majestic monuments across the province, including mosques,mausoleums and palaces that represented the finest in Indo- Saracenic and Mughal architecture. • Khan greatly expanded Lalbagh Fort, Chowk Bazaar Mosque, Saat Masjid and Choto Katra. He also supervised the construction of the mausoleum for his daughter Bibi Pari. Now the mosque falls in Mohammadpur Thana region. A street, Saat Masjid Road, commemorates the name of the mosque. Pari Bibi's tomb inside Lalbagh Fort complex End of the Muslim Rule in Bengal
• The Battle of Plassey (Palashi) on 23 June 1757.
Siraj ud-Daulah (1733 – July 2, 1757) Siraj ud-Daulah (1756–1757)
• Siraj succeeded Alivardi Khan as the Nawab in
April 1756 at the age of 23, under the titles of Mansur-ul-Mulk (Victory of the Country). Mir Jafar (left) and his eldest son, Mir Miran (right). Results/Impacts of Muslim Rule in Bangla • Economic: huge exports like rice, chili or pepper, turmeric, ginger, sugar, molasses, cotton, muslin, minor imports like carpet, ornaments: gold, silver, marvelous stone, • Banking system developed during Mughal period. • Most of the people were solvent. • There was a popular proverb: “There were many doors to enter Bangla, but no way to go out.” Political • Sometimes independent (especially from 1338 -1538 ), sometimes province of Delhi • monarchy, no democracy • Administration was more or less very friendly and pro-people. Social • Society was very peaceful. All religious people lived in harmony. • Many Hindus were employed in the administration during Sultanate and Mughal periods. • Education was given importance. Besides Farsi or Arabic, local language ‘Bangla’ was also patronized. • During Mughal period Muharram started in Bangla. • Baul song, Gajal, etc became very popular. Thanks a lots.