Medieval Indian History MCQs

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Nalayira Divya Prabandham is a collection of 4,000 Tamil verses sung vy 12 Alvar saints and compiled by Nathamuni during the 9th – 10th centuries. They are in praise of Narayana (Vishnu) and his many forms, sung by Alvars at sacred shrines called Divya Desams.  Nalayira Divya Prabandham was described as the Tamil Veda, claimed the text was as important as the four Vedas.

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Fathullah Imad-ul-mulk was the founder of the Berar Sultanate. He was also the founder of the Imad Shahi Dynasty. He ruled from 1490–1504.
Berar was one of the Deccan Sultanates. It was established in 1490 after the disintegration of the Bahmani Sultanate.

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Changes in the economy were also the result of the rise of certain new castes and the decline of some of the old castes. For example, the constant transfer of land and land revenues made by the princes to the priests, temples and officials led to the rise and growth of the scribes or the Kayastha caste, which undermined the monopoly of the Brahmins as writers and scribes. Similarly, the decline of commerce and industry led to the decline in the position of the Vaishyas. The process of growth and multiplication of castes was another distinctive feature of social life at that time.

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The chieftains were often forced to submit after a defeat in war and were forced to accept the supremacy of the conqueror by paying tribute. Said chiefs became known as Samantas, Ranaks or Rauttas, who, in addition to paying annual tributes and mandatory military aid, also had to personally pay homage to the victorious lord. However, as soon as the chief became independent from the overlord he rejected such titles and instead adopted others such as Maharajadhiraja and Maharaja.

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The Delhi Sultanate collected 5 kinds of tax. Ushr was a property tax applied to Muslim farmers. It was 10 percent of the production on lands irrigated with natural resources and 5 percent on lands that had artificial irrigation systems.

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Although Sultan-us-Shar was succeeded by his adopted son Malik Mubarak Qaranfal (1399-1401), it was his younger brother, Ibrahim Shah Sharqi (1401-40), who made Jaunpur a powerful kingdom.

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After Taimur’s departure from India, Dilawar proclaimed himself the independent ruler of Malwa with his capital at Dhar.

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On Abdullah’s death (1672) the question of sucession arose since the king had no male issue in Golcunda sultanate, and the throne passed to his son-in-law, Abul Hasan, surnamed Tana Shah.

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In the 13th century, Emperor Muhammed-Bin-Tughlaq introduced leather as a form of currency on a mass scale in India; he was inspired by the paper money that had been used in China. As the Sultan of Delhi, he ruled over northern parts of the Indian subcontinent and the Deccan. After he moved his capital to Daulatabad, in 1329, Tughlaq introduced representative or token money. These were coins of copper and brass that could be exchanged for fixed amounts of gold and silver from the Delhi Sultanate.

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Iltutmish built the Hauz-i-Sultani, a large reservoir outside Delhi. The reservoir was excavated in 1230 and is still located in Mehrauli, South Delhi. The reservoir is also known as Hauz-i-Shamsi, which means “sunny water tank”.
Iltutmish was the first Muslim ruler of Delhi and founded the Delhi Sultanate. He ruled from 1211–1236. He built the reservoir to provide water for his subjects. Rulers often built reservoirs for the use of ordinary people.