Who was Sikandar Lodi
Sikandar Lodi was the twenty-eighth of the Delhi Sultanate and the second ruler of the Lodi Dynasty.
Sikandar Lodi Information
| Born | 17 July 1458 |
| Dynasty | Lodi Dynasty |
| Government | Sultanate |
| Capital | Agra |
| Religion | Islam |
| Historical era | Medieval |
| Reign | 1489 to 1517 |
| Currency | Bahloli |
| Died | 1517 |
| Successor | Ibrahim Lodi |
| Tomb | Lodhi gardens, in Delhi, India |
Early life
Sikander Lodi was the son of Bahlul Lodi and his childhood name was Nizam Khan. He was born to a Hindu woman named Bibi Ambha.
Sikandar Lodi history
Bahlul Lodi had two sons Nizam khan and Babark khan and Bahlul died on 12 June 1489, but he had declared Nizam Khan as his successor before his death, so on July 16 of 1489, Nizam Khan as Sikandar Lodi ascended the throne of Delhi.
Although Lodi Dynasty had 3 rulers, but the most important ruler among them was Sikandar and he covered more area than the two other rulers of the Lodi Dynasty.
In the year 1504 or 1505, Sikandar established a city called Agra and declared Agra as his capital.
According to Indian history, he was the greatest ruler of the Lodi Dynasty.
Religious Policy
He was a Muslim but he respected other religions because his mother was a Hindu, and Ulamas was happy with him.
Empire expansion
Sikandar had badly defeated a ruler named Hussain Shah Sharki in the battle near Agra and took Bihar under his control. This was his great victory because Hussein Shah Sharki had a bigger army than him and was smart.
He annexed Tirhuj into his empire by defeating the Rajput ruler, and at the same time, he annexed large kingdoms like Narwar, Chanderi, Nagaur, Mandarel, and North Dhaulpur.
During his reign, his elder brother Babark Khan started revolting, therefore the number of rebels had also increased, so troubled by this Sikandar attacked Jaunpur and subjugated his elder brother, and then after that, he finished all the opponents.
Work
He was successful in keeping the Afghan nobles in his possession.
Sikandar made madrasas a government institution and free education was imparted there.
He had removed the Chungi tax from the grains.
He built many such centers during his reign where food was served to the poor for free.
Sikandar Lodi’s economic policy
During his reign, he gave special attention to agriculture and trade to improve the economic situation.
He introduced a scale to measure the land which was called Gaz-e-Sikandari and the scale was used till the Mughal period.
He had removed the tax on many items, due to which the rate of inflation was reduced.
During his reign, he assigned the post to those people who were qualified for that post.
Literature and architecture
Sikandar Lodi knew the Persian language and was an educated ruler. He also wrote several poems in the Persian language by the surname of “Gulrukhi“.
He called famous scholars Sheikh Azemullah and Sheikh Abdullah to Delhi to give higher-level education to Muslims.
In the reign of Sikandar Lodi, the person named Mian Bhuva translated Indian Ayurveda in Persian and it was known as “Tibbt-e-Sikandari” or “Farhang-e-Sikandari“.
He composed “Lajjat-e-Sikandarshahi“, the first Persian treatise based on music, and he also built the tomb of his father Bahlul Lodi.
During the reign of Sikandar Lodi, a person named Mia Bhuah built the “Mosque of Moth” in Delhi in the year 1505, which is one of the best specimens of the Lodi dynasty.
Death
On November 21 of the year 1517, Sikandar Lodi died due to a throat ailment.
The famous quote of sikandar was that “The king has no close relative”.
After his death, his public was very sad because he cared for the poor. He wanted to win Gwalior before his death but could not win but Gwalior was won by his son Ibrahim Lodi.
Sikandar Lodi tomb
His tomb is located in New Delhi, and It’s a specimen of Indo-Islamic art.
The tomb of Sikandar Lodi was built by his son Ibrahim Lodi in the year 1517.
Different foreign languages are written on the walls of the Sikandar tomb.
Sikandar Lodi was the second and most important ruler of the Lodi dynasty. He ruled from the years 1489 to 1517 and his capital was Agra.
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