Important Facts For Prelims
Malcha Mahal
- 28 Apr 2022
- 3 min read
Why in News?
The Delhi government is about to renovate the 14th century monument Malcha Mahal.
What is Malcha Mahal?
- It was built in 1325 by the then Sultan Firoz Shah Tughlaq and was, for a long time, used as a hunting lodge.
- It later became the residence of the descendants of the Nawab of Awadh.
- It is said that it came to be known as ‘Wilayat Mahal’ after Begum Wilayat Mahal of Awadh, who claimed that she was a member of the royal family of Oudh. She was given the palace by the government in 1985.
- When she died by suicide in 1993, it came into the ownership of her daughter Sakina Mahal, and son Prince Ali Raza (Cyrus), who died in 2017, his sister passed away some years before that.
Who was Feroz Shah Tughlaq?
- He was born in 1309 and ascended the throne of Delhi after the demise of his cousin Muhammad-bin-Tughlaq.
- He was the third ruler of the Tughlaq dynasty that ruled over Delhi from 1320 to 1412 AD. Tughlaq was in power from 1351 to 1388 AD.
- He was the one who started the imposition of Jaziya.
- Jaziya' or 'Jizya' implies a per capita yearly taxation historically levied in the form of financial charge on permanent non-Muslim subjects of a state governed by Islamic law to fund public expenditures of the state.
- He provided the principle of inheritance to the armed forces where the officers were permitted to rest and send their children to the army in their place. However, they were not paid in real money but by land.
- The British called him the ‘father of the irrigation department’ because of the many gardens and canals that he built.
What are the Key Points of Tughlaq Dynasty?
- The Tughlaqs were a Muslim family of Turkic origin. The dynasty reached its zenith point between AD 1330 and 1335 when Muhammad Bin Tughlaq led military campaign.
- Its rule was marked by torture, cruelty and rebellions, resulting in the rapid disintegration of the dynasty's territorial reach after 1335 AD.
- The Tughlaq's provided three competent rulers – Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq (AD 1320-1325), Muhammad-bin- Tughluq (AD 1325-1351) and Firuz Shah Tughluq (1351 to 1388 AD).
- Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq was the founder of the dynasty.
