6 – Ghazi Malik (? – 1325)
Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq, also known as Ghazi Malik, had a relatively brief reign as the Sultan of Delhi but he is famed for his numerous successes against the marauding Mongols. Very little is known about his early life other than the fact that he was apparently a man of humble origins. His mother was Hindu and his father was a Qaraunah Turk slave. There is no information about how Ghazi worked his way through the ranks but he eventually became the provincial governor of Dipalpur which was under the rule of the Khalji Dynasty in the early 14th century.
When the Khalji leader, Alauddin died in 1316, there was a struggle for power and his son lost out to Khusro Khan. However, Khan was overthrown by Ghazi in 1320 who became the new Sultan of Delhi. He founded the Tughlaq Dynasty which lasted until 1413 and annexed the territory of Telangana. In the early part of his reign, Ghazi tried to help the Khalji family by providing them with high ranking positions and marrying off their less coveted daughters.
Ghazi reformed the departments of justice and the police, and he even revamped the land revenue system to ensure farmers would benefit. He ensured his army was well trained and Ghazi was apparently excellent at ensuring his men retained their discipline. Once he established order in his kingdom, Ghazi began to fight. His first target was the ruler of Warangal who had refused to pay tribute. Ghazi defeated the Raja of Warangal and renamed the region Sultanpur.
His next step was to conquer Bengal and he took advantage of the fact that the region was in the midst of a civil war. Ghazi defeated the enemy in 1324 and on his way back to Delhi, he also conquered the region of Tirhut. By now, he was one of the most feared leaders in the subcontinent and was previously known for his decisive victory over the Mongols at the Battle of Amroha in 1305. He was beginning to look invincible and one wonders what would have happened had he lived longer. As it transpired, he died in a freak accident in February 1325. A huge ceremony was being planned to honor Ghazi but one day, a wooden shelter collapsed on top of him and killed him immediately. Some historians believe it was a conspiracy hatched by his son, Juna Khan, who became the new Sultan of Delhi.