Medieval Indian History MCQs

Notes:
Muhammad Ghori is known to have adopted the seated goddess Lakshmi type of the coins of Gahadavalas/ Rajputs for circulation in the Gahadavala territories. He got stamped the figure of Goddess Lakshmi on his coins and had his name inscribed in Nagari Characters.

Notes:
Bundelkhand was known as Jejakabhukti, which roughly corresponds to the old Mahajanapadas of Chedi. The notable Kings among notable kings among the Chandels of Jejakabhukti were Dhanga, Ganda and Parmal. The legacy of the Chandelas of Jejakabhukti lies in their art and architecture, most notably for the temples at their original capital Khajuraho.

Notes:
Ashta Pradhan was a council of eight ministers that administered the Maratha empire. The council was formed in 1674 by founding Emperor Chhatrapati Shivaji.The term Ashta Pradhan literally translates to “the Prime Eight”, from the Sanskrit ashta (“eight”) and pradhan (“prime”). The body discharged the functions of a modern council of ministers; this is regarded as one of the first successful instances of ministerial delegation in India. The council is credited with having implemented good governance practices in the Maratha heartland, as well as for the success of the military campaigns against the Mughal Empire.

Notes:
Daulat Khan Lodi was the governor of Lahore during the reign of Ibrahim Lodi. He got information that Ibrahim may remove his Governorship, so he sent letter to Babur offering him help and allegiance in exchange for assistance against Ibrahim Lodi.

Notes:
Comparing to the other options, some sort of slavery was prevalent before Muslim conquests. The Purdah was a gift of Muslim invasions, and same applies to Child marries which came into practice to avoid the new danger of lifting Hindu girls by Muslims as an holy act of Jihad, Sati & Jauhar also got established as the wives of the invaded used to kill themselves before their husbands went on the last battle.
Slavery became more prevalent because it was a fashion and a status symbol among the Muslims at that time. As we read Aladdin had 84000 slaves and Firuz Tughlaq had 2 lakhs, all of them were maintained at the state cost.

Notes:
Qutub Shahi of Golconda was not an independent kingdom. The Qutub Shahi dynasty ruled Golconda from 1518, initially as a breakaway state from the Bahmani Sultanate. It lost independence after Aurangzeb’s Mughal conquest in 1687, becoming a Mughal suba. Later, as the Nizam’s state and under British paramountcy post-1858, it was a princely state until 1948.

Notes:
Allauddin Khilji is known for his ambitious expansionist policies as he sought to build an empire across India. His reign marked the beginning of a period of extensive military conquests. The “Sikandar-i-Sani” title pays homage to Alexander the Great (“Sikandar”) and reflects Allauddin Khilji’s aspirations towards comparable military success and empire-building.

Notes:
The Alai Minar is an incomplete monument that lies within the Qutb complex in South Delhi. Ala-ud-Din Khilji was an over ambitious Sultan of the Khilji dynasty and to commemorate his victory, he started constructing a huge Tower or Minar that would double the height of Qutub Minar in order to be remembered as the only Sultan who dared to create such a monumental masterpiece that was grander and more spectacular than the Qutub Minar of Qutb-ud-din Aibak of the Slave dynasty that ruled before him.

Notes:
In 1297 AD, Allauddin Khilji annexed Gujarat which was ruled by Rai Karan. He plundered Anhilwara and Somnath and married to Kamla Devi, the queen of Rai Karan.

Notes:
The fifth Sikh guru Arjun Dev laid the foundation of the Golden Temple (Harmandir Sahib) in Amritsar and compiled all of the past Gurus’ writings into one book , now the holy scripture: the Guru Granth Sahib. In 1606 AD, the Mughal emperor Jahangir ordered that he be tortured and sentenced to death after he refused to remove all Islamic and Hindu references from the Holy book, Guru Granth Sahib.