Alauddin Khalji (1242-4 January 1316) was Sultan of the Delhi Sultanate from 19 July 1296 to 4 January 1316, succeeding Jalaluddin Firuz Khalji and preceding Shihabuddin Omar. He wished to become the second Alexander the Great, and he worked towards this goal by defeating six Mongol invasions of India, conquering six Indian kingdoms, destroying several prominent Indian dynasties, and plundering central and southern India.
Biography[]
Alauddin Khalji was the son of Shihabuddin Mas'ud and the nephew and son-in-law of Jalaluddin Firuz Khalji. When Jalaluddin became Sultan of the Delhi Sultanate after deposing the Mamluks, Alauddin was made Master of Ceremonies, and he became governor of Kara in 1291 after crushing a revolt, and then became governor of Awadh in 1296 after a profitable raid on Bhilsa. In 1296, he raided Devagiri without permission from his uncle, and his uncle - fearing his nephew's ambition - headed to Kara and gave him the slave Malik Kafur as a gift. Alauddin then had his uncle Jalaluddin assassinated, and he seized power for himself. Khalji subjugated his uncle's sons in Multan and consolidated his power in Delhi, and he then proceeded to fend off Mongol invasions of India at Jaran-Manjur in 1297-98, Sivistan in 1298, Kili in 1299, Delhi in 1303, Amroha in 1305, and Ravi in 1306. His last victory against the Mongols enabled him to plunder the Mongol lands in Afghanistan. He also fought against the Indian kingdoms, raiding Gujarat in 1299 before annexing it in 1304. Alauddin conquered Ranthambore in 1301, Chittor in 1303 (during which he failed to obtain the beautiful queen Padmavati), Malwa in 1305, Siwana in 1308, and Jalore in 1311. These victories ended the Paramara, the Vaghela, two Chahamala branches, the Guhila of Rawal, and other Indian clans, and his slave-general Malik Kafur gained a considerable amount of wealth from Devagiri in 1308, Warangal in 1310, and Dwarasamudra in 1311. These victories forced kings Ramachandra of Devagiri, Prataparudra, and Veera Ballala III to become his tributaries. During the last years of his life, Alauddin fell ill, and he relied on Malik Kafur to handle the administration as regent. After Alauddin's death in 1316, Malik Kafur appointed Shihabuddin Omar as the new sultan, but Alauddin's older son Qutbuddin Mubarak Shah seized power shortly after.