Khalji dynasty

The Khalji or Khilji dynasty was a Turco-Afghan dynasty that ruled the Delhi Sultanate for three decades between 1290 and 1320. It was the second dynasty to rule the Delhi Sultanate which covered large swaths of the Indian subcontinent. It was founded by Jalal ud din Firuz Khalji.

The Khalji dynasty was of Turko-Afghan origin whose ancestors, the Khalaj usually referred to as Turks, are said to be the remnants of the Hephthalites, There are several theories regarding the origins of the Hephthalites, with the Iranian and Altaic theories being the main ones. The most prominent theory at present seems to be that the Hephthalites were of Turkic origin, and later adopted the Bactrian language. and migrated from Central Asia, into the southern and eastern regions of modern-day Afghanistan as early as 660 CE, where they ruled the region of Kabul as the Buddhist Turk Shahis. According to R.S. Chaurasia, the Khaljis were a Turkic tribe but having been long domiciled in Afghanistan, had adopted some Afghan habits and customs. They were treated as Afghans in Delhi Court. They were regarded as barbarians. The Turkic nobles had opposed the ascent of Jalal-ud-din to the throne of Delhi after the Khalji Revolution.

According to The New Cambridge History of Islam in the thirteenth century the Khalji were regarded as a separate people distinct from the Turks. The so-called “Khalji revolution” was the transfer of power from a Turkish ruling elite to a non-Turkish one. André Wink however, states that Khaljis were a Turkicized group and remnants of early Indo-European nomads such as Kushans, Hephthalites, and Sakas who later merged with the Afghans. Also, stating that "at that time they were not perceived as Turks or Mongols. Contemporary historians clearly distinguish the Khaljis from the Turks" The Khalaj are, according to Doerfer, perhaps of Sogdians who were Turkicized. These Khalaj were later Afghanized and are believed to be the ancestors of Ghilji Pashtuns.

According to C. E. Bosworth, the Ghilzai, who make up the majority of the Pashtuns in Afghanistan, are the modern result of the Khalaj assimilation into the Pashtuns. Between the 10th and 13th centuries, some sources refer to the Khalaj people as of Turkic, but some others do not. Minorsky argues that the early history of the Khalaj tribe is obscure and adds that the identity of the name Khalaj is still to be proved. Mahmud al-Kashgari (11th century) does not include the Khalaj among the Oghuz Turkic tribes, but includes them among the Oghuz-Turkman (where Turkman meant "Like the Turks") tribes. Kashgari felt the Khalaj did not belong to the original stock of Turkish tribes but had associated with them and therefore, in language and dress, often appeared "like Turks". Muhammad ibn Najib Bakran's Jahan-nama explicitly describes them as Turkic, although he notes that their complexion had become darker (compared to the Turks) and their language had undergone enough alterations to become a distinct dialect. However, the Jahan-nama describes them as "tribe of Turks" going through a language shift, speaking the Khalaj dialect, which was summarized by V. Minorsky.

Khaljis were vassals of the Mamluk dynasty of Delhi and served the Sultan of Delhi, Ghiyas ud din Balban, as a minor part of the Muslim nobility. The last major Turkic ruler, Balban, in his struggle to maintain power over his insubordinate Turkish officers, destroyed the power of the Forty. However this indirectly damaged the Turkish integrity of the nobility, which had opposed the power of the non-Turks. This left them vulnerable to the Khalji faction, which took power through a series of assassinations. One by one the Mamluk officers were murdered, and the last ruler of the Turkic Mamluk dynasty - the 17-year old Muiz ud din Qaiqabad - was killed in the Kailu-gheri Palace during the coup known as the Khalji Revolution by Jalal ud din Firuz Khalji.

Jalaluddin Firuz Khalji, who was around 70 years old at the time of his ascension, was known as a mild-mannered, humble and kind monarch to the general public.

Jalaluddin succeeded in overcoming the opposition of the Turkish nobles and ascended the throne of Delhi in January 1290. Jalal-ud-din was not universally accepted: during his six-year reign (1290–96), Balban's nephew revolted due to his assumption of power and the subsequent sidelining of nobility and commanders serving the Mamluk dynasty. Jalal-ud-din suppressed the revolt and executed some commanders, then led an unsuccessful expedition against Ranthambhor. Jalal-ud-din used an Afghan enclave in the suburb of Delhi, Kilokhri, as his de facto capital.

He also repelled several Mongol attacks on India and was successful in destroying a Mongol force on the banks of the Sind River in central India with the help of his nephew Juna Khan.