Women who Ruled

Razia Sultana- رضیہ سلطان

Razia Sultana or Razia al-Din was born to the Sultan of Delhi, Shamsuddin Iltutmish, a Mamluk (a Turkic slave) of his predecessor, Qutb al-Din Aibak. Her mother was, Turkan Khatun (alias, Qutub Begum), a daughter of Qutb al-Din Aibak and a chief wife of Sultan Iltutmish. Razia was the eldest daughter and likely first-born child of Iltutmish. The term, Sultana often used by contemporary sources is a misnomer as it means "the king's wife" rather than "female ruler".

Iltutmish had groomed his son, Nairuddin Mahmud to be his successor, but Nasiruddin died unexpectedly in 1229. According to the historian, Minhaj i Siraj, Iltutmish saw his other sons as incapable of ruling the Delhi Sultanate, as they were "too absorbed in frivolous activity". During his campaign in Gwalior, in 1231, Iltutmish left his daughter, Razia, in charge of the administration of Delhi. She preformed her duties so well, that upon returning, Iltutmish declared her as his successor and ordered a declaration be drawn up, proclaiming her as heir apparent. When he was questioned by the nobles of his court, on the basis he had surviving sons, he quipped that Razia was more capable, than any of his remaining sons.

However, after Iltutmish died, the court nobles declared Iltutmish's son, Ruknuddin Firuz, as the new sultan. It appears that towards the end of his life Iltutmish, had finally caved and agreed to appoint a male successor. This is suggested by the fact, after falling gravely ill, Iltutmish summoned Ruknuddin from Lahore to Delhi. There are also some who say, Iltutmish never actually appointed Razia as his successor, it was just hearsay propagated by Razia's supporters after her ascension. 

Ruknuddin proved to be a less than capable ruler and left the administration of the state to his mother, Shah Turkan. The duo's blinding and subsequent execution of Iltutmish's well-loved son, Qutubuddin and Shah Turkan's tyranny, led to the rebellion of several nobles, even the prime minister, Nizamul Mulk Junaidi, joined the rebels. The situation deteriorated even further when the Mamluk (Turkic) soldiers close to Ruknuddin planned the killing of the sultan's Tazik (non-Turkic) soldiers, which led to the murder of several important Tazik officers including the prime minister's son, Ziyaul Mulk and Taj Mulk Mahmud, who had drawn up a decree declaring Razia as the heir apparent. While Ruknuddin rode to Kuhram to confront the rebels, Shah Turkan plotted to have Razia executed, in Delhi. During a congregational prayer, Razia aroused the general public against Shah Turkan, a mob than stormed the palace and took Shah Turkan hostage. The army and several nobles, pledged allegiance to Razia and placed her on the throne, making her the first female Muslim ruler, in South Asia. Ruknuddin marched back to Delhi, but Razia sent a counterforce to arrest him, he was imprisoned and most likely executed on November 19, 1236, after less than a year on the throne.

Razia's ascension to the throne was unique not only because she was a woman, but because overwhelming public support, was a main driving force behind her appointment. According to the 14th century text, Futuh-us-Salatin, she wanted the people to depose her if she failed to meet their expectations. From the beginning, Razia faced stiff opposition from the ruling Turkic nobility, as she had ascended to the throne not with the the nobility's support but rather the general populace's. She also wanted to equalize the power of the Turkic nobility by creating a new class of non-Turkic nobles, which led to further opposition. Nizamul Mulk Muhammad Junaidi, a Tazik (non-Turkic) officer who'd held the position of prime minister since Iltutmish's time, refused to accept her ascension. He was joined by four Turkic nobles from Badaun, Multan, Hansi & Lahore, who had also rebelled against Razia's predeccesor, Ruknuddin. 

After she had been surrounded on four sides, Razia enlisted the help of, Malik Nusratuddin Taisi, whom she had appointed as governor of Awadh. However, shortly after crossing the Ganges on his way to Delhi, Taisi was captured by rebel forces from Hansi and died in captivity. Razia than led a force out of the fortified walls of Delhi to confront the rebels, setting up camp on the banks of the Yamuna River. After some inconclusive battles, two of the rebel leaders, Muhammad Salari and Izzuddin Kabir Khan Ayaz decided to side with Razia. They met in secret, plotting to arrest other rebel leaders including the prime minister, Junaidi. However, news of the arrest leaked and Junaidi and his followers and they escaped, pursued by Razia's forces. Two of the rebel leaders, Saifuddin Kuchi (who captured Taisi) and his brother Fakhruddin were captured, imprisoned and later, executed. Junaidi fled into the Sirmaur hills (in modern day state of Himachal Pradesh) and died there. The last rebel leader, Alauddin Jani was killed in the village of Nakawan and his head was brought back to Delhi.