imported>NicolasDenney09 at 19:15, 25 April 2026

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{{Short description|Indian campaign of Muhammad of Ghor (1202–1205)}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict = Ghurid conquest of Bengal
| place = [[Nabadwip]] and [[Varendra]]<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Sarkar|1943|p=8}}{{Break}}{{Harvard citation no brackets|Hasan|2007|p=10}}{{Break}}{{Harvard citation no brackets|Siddiq|2015|p=35}}</ref>
| partof = the [[Ghurid campaigns in India]]
| combatant1 = [[Ghurid Dynasty]]
| date = 1202–1205 <small>(disputed)</small>
| combatant2 = [[Sena Dynasty]]
| commander1 = [[Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khalji]]
| commander2 = [[Lakshmana Sena]]
| strength1 = 19 cavalry<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Mehta|1979|p=81}} "Muhammad Bakhtiyar ... suddenly appeared before the city of Nudia with only eighteen horsemen, the remainder of his army was left to follow."</ref><ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Sarkar|1943|p=4}} "When the sun was at the meridian these men, only nineteen in number, slackened the momentum of their ride before the city-gate, and assumed the placid demeanour of merchants."</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Randhawa |first=Mohinder Singh |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Wy_RAAAAMAAJ&q=bakhtiyar%20eighteen%20horsemen |title=A History of Agriculture in India: Eighth to Eighteenth century |date=1982 |publisher=Indian Council of Agricultural Research |language=en|page=21|quote=After the conquest of Bihar, Bakhtiyar turned his attention to Bengal, which was ruled by Lakshmansena. Leaving his army behind, with only eighteen horsemen, Bakhtiyar surprised Lakshamansena at his dinner}}</ref><ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Haig|1928|p=46}} "In 1202 Ikhtiyar-ud-din left Bihar with a large body of horse, and marched so rapidly on Nadiya that he arrived at the city with no more than eighteen companions."</ref>
| strength2 = Unknown
| casualties2 =
| result = Ghurid victory
| territory = Annexation of [[Lakhnauti]] by the [[Ghurid Dynasty]]{{Sfn|Hasan|2007|p=10}}
| status =
| casualties1 =
| image =
| caption =
}}

The '''Ghurid conquest of Bengal,''' commonly known as '''Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khalji's conquest of Bengal''', in 1202/3 or 1204/5,{{Efn|The date is varied upon sources.{{Break}}'''1202 AD'''<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Bhattacharya|2020|p=38}} "After conquering south Bihar, in the dry season of 1201, Bakhtiyar led a commando raid from Bihar Sharif with a cavalry detachment towards the city of Nadia."</ref><ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Salma|2011|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=sxhAtCflwOMC&pg=PA53 53]}} "Meanwhile, Bakhtiyar Khilji, the sagacious general of [[Qutb ud-Din Aibak|Qutubuddin Aibak]], had conquered Bihar and Nadia (1202 CE), the capital of the Sena kings of Bengal, with incredible ease"</ref><ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Haig|1928|p=46}} "In 1202 Ikhtiyar-ud-din left Bihar with a large body of horse, and marched so rapidly on Nadiya that he arrived at the city with no more than eighteen companions."</ref>{{Break}}'''1203 AD'''<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Sarkar|1943|p=4}} "At any rate Muhammad Bakhtyar fairly completed his conquest of the Varendra tract with the historic city of Gaur before the year 599 A.H. [i.e. 1202–1203], and with a handsome portion of the spoils of Bengal he started by way of Bihar for the presence of [[Qutb ud-Din Aibak|Malik Qutbuddin]] who had almost about the same time (28 March, 1203) completed the conquest of [[Kalinjar Fort|Kalinjar Mahoba]] and [[Kalpi]]"</ref>{{Break}}'''1204 AD'''<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Khan|2013|pp=6, 18}} "Even so, there is considerable disagreement among historians concerning the exact date of Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khalji’s conquest of Bengal: some say it took place in 1201, others have suggested that it happened between 1202–1203, and yet others suggest that Bakhtiyar Khalji marched into Bengal in 1204 or 1205. According to the majority of the historians, the Muslim conquest of Bengal took place around 1203–1204 under Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khalji’s leadership. … Unfortunately, the chronicler [[Minhaj-i Siraj Juzjani|Minhaj al-Din Siraj]] did not provide any date for the conquest; as expected, historians have suggested various dates, although the majority of historians are of the view that Bengal was conquered in the year 1204."</ref><ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Eaton|1993|p=21}} "As a result, in 1204, when Muhammad Bakhtiyar's Turkish cavalry captured the western Sena city of Nudiya, it was to this eastern hinterland that King Lakshmana Sena and his retainers fled."</ref><ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Hasan|2007|p=10}} "When the Turks attacked in 1204, Lakshmansena, along with his courtiers and several [[Brahmin|Brahmans]], fled to the east, and Bakhtiyar established his kingdom of [[Gauḍa (city)|Lakhnwati]], which in the early thirteenth century consisted only of a small area in [[Varendra]]."</ref><ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Ahmed|2006|p=18}} "The victory of Muhammad Bakhti-yar Khaiji in 601A.H./1204A.D. is an epoch-making event both for the history of Islam and for Bengal."</ref>{{Break}}'''1205 AD'''<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Siddiq|2015|p=35}} "It was on 19 Ramaḍān 601 (10 May 1205) that Ikhtiyār al-Dīn Muḥammad Bakhtiyār, an adventurer from the Turkish Khaljī tribe of mountainous central Afghanistan (known as Khaljistān), defeated Lakhśmana Sena, a Hindu king of the powerful Sena dynasty of Bengal, with just a handful of soldiers and swept over almost the whole terrain of [[Rarh region|Rāra]] and Barindra in an amazingly short time"</ref><ref name="bdpediahistory" />}} was a military campaign of [[Ghurid dynasty]] led by [[Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khalji]] against the [[Sena dynasty]]. Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khalji emerged victorious in his campaign at the Sena capital, [[Nabadwip|Nabadwip.]]<ref name=":2" />{{Sfn|Sarkar|1943|p=7}}<ref name=":3" /> He established his kingdom at Lakhnauti which included a small part of Varendra.<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Hasan|2007|p=10}} "When the Turks attacked in 1204, Lakshmansena, along with his courtiers and several Brahmans, fled to the east, and Bakhtiyar established his kingdom of Lakhnawti, which in the early thirteenth century consisted only of a small area in [[Varendra]]"</ref> Following their defeat, [[Lakshmana Sena]], the eighty years old ruler of the Sena dynasty, retreated to the southeastern region of Bengal.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jr |first=Everett Jenkins |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xBIkCQAAQBAJ&q=lakshmana+sena+khalji |title=The Muslim Diaspora (Volume 1, 570-1500): A Comprehensive Chronology of the Spread of Islam in Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas |date=2015-05-07 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=978-1-4766-0888-4 |pages=194 |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last1=Syed |first1=Muzaffar Husain |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eACqCQAAQBAJ&dq=lakshman+sena+bakhtiyar&pg=PA275 |title=Concise History of Islam |last2=Akhtar |first2=Syed Saud |last3=Usmani |first3=B. D. |date=2011-09-14 |publisher=Vij Books India Pvt Ltd |isbn=978-93-82573-47-0 |pages=275 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="bdpediahistory">{{Cite Banglapedia|last=Ahmed|first=Helal Uddin|article=History|article-url=History}}</ref>

== Background ==
Bakhtiyar Khalji, after the successful annexation of [[Bihar]] to the Ghurid dynasty, learned about the Sena Dynasty and its illustrious ruler, Lakshmana Sena. Despite Sena's advanced age and reputation, Khalji was determined to extend his conquests further into Bengal. Upon hearing of Khalji's intent to invade Bengal, many [[Brahmins]] and traders decided to leave the Sena capital in search of safer locations. However, in a display of resilience, Lakshmana Sena chose to remain in Nadiya, ready to defend his realm.<ref name="a">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Chandra|2004|p=43}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Pandey |first=Bishnu Dayal |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7m1uAAAAMAAJ&q=lakshman+sena+bakhtiyar |title=Political History of Rajmahal |date=1994 |publisher=Capital Publishing House |isbn=978-81-85157-77-1 |pages=33 |language=en}}</ref>

== The siege ==
Bakhtiyar, leading his forces from [[Bihar]], strategically positioned the majority of his army within a forest near the city of Nadia{{Efn|1=Nadiya, a city that is now identified
with the village of Naoda, a village several miles northeast of Rohanpur railway station in western [[Rajshahi District]] (and not to be confused with the city of [[Nadia district|Nadia]] in [[West Bengal]]){{Sfn|Eaton|1993|p=xxi}}{{Sfn|Hasan|2007|p=9}}{{Sfn|Siddiq|2015|p=29}}}} (in [[Rajshahi District|Rajshahi]]). It was said that he advanced so rapidly that only 18 horsemen from his army could keep up. Posing as horse traders, the small horde entered the city unchallenged and cautiously towards the palace. Upon reaching the palace, Bakhtiyar initiated an attack on the guards, causing a significant commotion. Then Lakshmana Sena was taking his mid day meal.<ref name=":1">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Sen|1999|p=289}}</ref><ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Majumdar|1971|pp=|p=235}}</ref> He took the emperor and his army by shock. Before Lakshmana Sena could react, Bakhtiyar entered the palace, killed some of the guards causing Lakshmana Sena to flee with his retainers to East Bengal leaving his wives and servants on the hand of Bakhtiyar's army.<ref name="Encyclopedia of the Peoples of Asia and Oceania">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pCiNqFj3MQsC |title=Encyclopedia of the Peoples of Asia and Oceania |date=2010 |publisher=Facts On File, Incorporated |isbn=9781438119137 |page=99 |language=en |type= |format=ebook |ref=Barbara A. West |access-date=14 March 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Mahajan|2007|p=72}} "Before the Raja could ascertain what had occurred Ikhtiyar-ud-din rushed into the palace and put a number of men before the sword. The Raja fled bare-footed by the back door of the palace and his whole treasure and all his wives, maid-servants attendants and women fell into the hands of the invader"</ref> As Bakhtiyar took the possession of the city, his men seized several horses and elephants along with enormous wealth. In the meantime, the main army had entered Bengal. However, Bakhtiyar didn't subjugate the whole of Bengal.<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Mahajan|2007|p=72}} "Lakshman Sena took shelter in Eastern Bengal where he continued to rule for some time. No attempt was made by Ikhtiyar-ud-din to conquer the whole of Bengal "</ref> He then moved on to [[Gauḍa (city)|Lakhnauti]], which he planned to make his capital.<ref name="a"/><ref name=":3">{{Cite book |last=Roy |first=Tirthankar |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mBBAqsMkqaAC |title=India in the World Economy: From Antiquity to the Present |date=2012-06-18 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-107-00910-3 |pages=45–46 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Irene |first=Salam |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RHmkHBTT_T0C |title=The Muslims of Manipur |date=2010 |publisher=Gyan Publishing House |isbn=978-81-7835-828-4 |pages=20 |language=en}}</ref>

== Aftermath ==
[[Bakhtiyar Khilji]] left Nadia in ruins and established his capital at [[Gauḍa (city)|Lakhnauti]].<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Majumdar|1971|p=235}}</ref> Lakshmana Sena continued to rule in Eastern Bengal approximately for three or four years after the raid on Nadia and died some time after 1205 A.D.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Majumdar|1971|p=235-236}}</ref> According to the historical work [[Tabaqat-i Nasiri]], Bang (Vanga or Eastern and Southern Bengal) was ruled by the descendants of Lakshmana Sena at least up to 1245 A.D. or 1260 A.D.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Majumdar|1971|pp=237-238}}</ref>

In the year 1204-5 (601 A.H.), Bakhtiyar Khalji struck a gold coin in the name of his overlord in Delhi, sultan [[Muhammad of Ghor]], with one side depicting a cavalryman charging at full gallop and holding a mace in hand. The coin bears the conquest of Gaur. In 1205, Bakhtiyar Khalji was killed by one of his nobles, [[Ali Mardan Khalji]].<ref name="a" /><ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Sengupta|2011|p=64}}</ref> During the reign of Ali Mardan Khalji, who declared his independence from Delhi Sultanate, silver coins were struck, commemorating the conquest of Bengal in Ramzan 600 A.H. (May 1204 A.D.)<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Eaton|1993|pp=32-35}}</ref>[[File:Delhi Sultanate Coin from Gaur, Bengal in the British Museum.jpg|thumb|Coin issued by Bakhtiyar Khalji reads "Gauda vijaye", "On the conquest of Gaur" inscribed in [[Sanskrit]].{{Sfn|Eaton|1993|pp=33-34}}]]

== Further reading==
The detailed account of this conquest or the expedition of [[Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khalji]] to Nadia is given in [[Tabaqat-i Nasiri]], a historical work, authored by Maulana [[Minhaj-i Siraj Juzjani|Minahj-ud-din Abu Umar-i-Usman]] who held various high offices under the Sultans of Delhi. In 639 [[Hijri year|A.H.]] (1243 A.D.) he was appointed chief [[Qadi|Qazi]] of the Delhi Sultanate and of the capital. Next year he proceeded to [[Gauḍa (city)|Lakhnauti]] and stayed for two years there to get the information about the history of Bengal narrated by him.<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Majumdar|1971|p=254}}</ref>

== Notes ==
{{Notelist}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Bibliography ==
{{refbegin}}
* {{Cite book |last=Sarkar |first=Jadunath |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DiUKAQAAIAAJ |title=The History of Bengal |publisher=University of Dacca |year=1943 |volume=II |language=en}}
* {{Cite book |last=Majumdar |first=Ramesh Chandra |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FqosAAAAMAAJ |title=History of Ancient Bengal |publisher=G.Bharadwaj |year=1971 |isbn= |pages= |language=en}}
* {{Cite book |last=Eaton |first=Richard M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O6QwDwAAQBAJ |title=The Rise of Islam and the Bengal Frontier, 1204-1760 |publisher=University of California Press |year=1993 |isbn=978-0-520-20507-9}}
* {{Cite book |last=Mahajan |first=V.D. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nMWSQuf4oSIC |title=History of Medieval India |publisher=S. Chand Publishing |year=2007 |isbn=978-81-219-0364-6 |language=en}}
*{{Cite book |last=Hasan |first=Perween |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iQNQAAAAMAAJ |title=Sultans and Mosques: The Early Muslim Architecture of Bangladesh |publisher=Bloomsbury Academic |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-84511-381-0 |language=en}}
* {{Cite book |last=Siddiq |first=Mohammad Yusuf |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4wQBCwAAQBAJ |title=Epigraphy and Islamic Culture: Inscriptions of the Early Muslim Rulers of Bengal (1205-1494) |date= |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-317-58745-3 |language=en}}
* {{Cite book |last=Bhattacharya |first=Sabyasachi |url=https://books.google.com/books/about/A_Comprehensive_History_of_Modern_Bengal.html?id=Z3GxzQEACAAJ&source=kp_book_description |title=A Comprehensive History of Modern Bengal, 1700-1950 |date=2020 |publisher=Asiatic Society |isbn=978-93-89901-95-5 |language=en}}
* {{Cite book |last=Sen |first=Sailendra Nath |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Wk4_ICH_g1EC |title=Ancient Indian History and Civilization |publisher=New Age International |year=1999 |isbn=978-81-224-1198-0}}
* {{Cite book |last=Sengupta |first=Nitish |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kVSh_TyJ0YoC&pg=PA64 |title=Land Of Two Rivers : A History of Bengal from the Mahabharata to Mujib |publisher=Penguin Books India |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-14-341678-4 |publication-date=2011}}
* {{Cite book |last=Chandra |first=Satish |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=L5eFzeyjBTQC&pg=PA43 |title=Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals-Delhi Sultanat (1206-1526) - Part One |date=2004 |publisher=Har-Anand Publications |isbn=978-81-241-1064-5 |language=en}}
* {{Cite book |last=Salma |first=Ahmed Farooqui |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sxhAtCflwOMC |title=A Comprehensive History of Medieval India : Twelfth to the Mid-eighteenth Century |publisher=Pearson Education India |year=2011 |isbn=978-81-317-3202-1}}
* {{Cite book |last=Mehta |first=Jaswant Lal |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iUk5k5AN54sC |title=Advanced Study in the History of Medieval India |date=1979 |publisher=Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd |isbn=978-81-207-0617-0 |language=en}}
* {{Cite book |last=Haig |first=W. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QXhZ38Y4ugAC |title=The Cambridge History of India: Turks and Afghans, edited by W. Haig |date=1928 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |volume=III |language=en}}
* {{Cite book |last=Khan |first=Muhammad Mojlum |author-link=Muhammad Mojlum Khan |url=https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Muslim_Heritage_of_Bengal.html?id=pp7ikgEACAAJ |title=The Muslim Heritage of Bengal: The Lives, Thoughts and Achievements of Great Muslim Scholars, Writers and Reformers of Bangladesh and West Bengal |date=2013 |publisher=Kube Publishing Limited |isbn=978-1-84774-052-6 |language=en}}
* {{Cite book |last=Ahmed |first=Abu Sayeed M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xm5zOgAACAAJ |title=Mosque Architecture in Bangladesh |date=2006 |publisher=UNESCO Dhaka |isbn=978-984-32-3469-8 |language=en}}
{{Refend}}

[[Category:Sena dynasty]]
[[Category:Battles involving the Indian kingdoms]]
[[Category:Battles involving the Ghurid dynasty]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1202]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1203]]
[[Category:1202 in Asia]]
[[Category:13th century in India]]

Ghurid conquest of Bengal - Revision history

imported>NicolasDenney09 at 19:15, 25 April 2026