Ibrahim Khan Lodi

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Ibrahim Shah Lodi (Template:Langx; 1480 – 21 April 1526) was the last Sultan of the Delhi Sultanate,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> who became Sultan in 1517 after the death of his father Sikandar Khan. He was the last ruler of the Lodi dynasty, reigning for nine years until 1526, when he was defeated and killed at the Battle of Panipat by Babur's invading army, giving way to the emergence of the Mughal Empire in India.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Biography

After Sikandar Lodi’s death in late 1517, his eldest son, Ibrahim Lodi, ascended the throne without opposition. Early in his reign, Ibrahim attempted a power‐sharing arrangement by installing his brother Jalal Khan as the autonomous governor of Jaunpur. But when Jalal began to assert his independence, Ibrahim—acting on the counsel of senior courtiers—reversed his decision. He summoned Jalal to Delhi; upon his refusal, Ibrahim secretly directed provincial governors and leading nobles to withhold recognition of Jalal’s authority, forcing him to abandon Jaunpur and fall back to his former stronghold at Kalpi.<ref name="MajumdarDelhiSultanate">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Eaton">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Jackson">Template:Cite book</ref>

Undeterred, Jalal secured the backing of the influential noble Azam Humayun Sarwani and quickly seized Awadh. Yet, when Ibrahim advanced with a large force, Azam defected, re-pledging his loyalty to the Sultan and compelling Jalal to withdraw toward Agra. There, Ibrahim’s general Malik Adam negotiated a temporary settlement: Jalal could keep Kalpi in return for renouncing any claim to independent rule. This truce proved short-lived.<ref name="MajumdarDelhiSultanate"/><ref name="Jackson"/>

Resolving to eliminate his brother once and for all, Ibrahim pursued Jalal across the region. Jalal fled first to Gwalior and then into Malwa, eventually seeking refuge with the Gonds. Betrayed by his hosts, he was captured en route to Hansi and quietly executed on Ibrahim’s orders.<ref name="MajumdarDelhiSultanate"/>

Seizing on Jalal’s revolt as a pretext, Ibrahim commissioned an expedition of 30,000 cavalry and 300 elephants—led by Azam Humayun Sarwani—to besiege Gwalior. After the fall of the fortress and the surrender of Vikramjit Tomar, Ibrahim dispatched another army against Rana Sanga of Mewar, only to suffer defeat, marking a significant blow to his military reputation.<ref name="MajumdarDelhiSultanate"/>

Jalal’s uprising also deepened Ibrahim’s mistrust of his own Afghan and Turkish nobles. He tightened court protocol to underscore his supremacy, arresting prominent figures such as Azam Humayun Sarwani and Mian Bhuwah. In retaliation, Islam Khan Sarwani—Azam’s son—rallied some 40,000 men with support from leading Lodi chiefs, demanding his father’s release. Ibrahim refused, even rebuffing an intercession by a respected saint, and crushed the rebellion in a bloody engagement that claimed around 10,000 lives and the death of Islam Khan.<ref name="MajumdarDelhiSultanate"/>

Rather than moderate his approach, Ibrahim became more draconian. He had Mian Bhuwah executed, and Azam Humayun died in captivity under mysterious circumstances. Mian Husain Farmuli was murdered at Chanderi by Ibrahim’s agents. Alarmed nobles in eastern provinces began fortifying their positions: on Darya Khan Lohani’s death, his son Bahar Khan proclaimed independence and had the khutba read in his name, joined by Nasir Khan Lohani, Fath Khan, and Sher Khan Sur (later Sher Shah).<ref name="MajumdarDelhiSultanate"/>

Meanwhile, Daulat Khan Lodi, governor of Punjab, secretly negotiated with Babur. After escaping Ibrahim’s summons and witnessing the Sultan’s harshness, Daulat Khan sent his son to Kabul to enlist Babur’s support. At the same time, Ibrahim’s uncle Alam Khan also sought Babur’s aid. In 1524, Babur seized Lahore, routed Ibrahim’s forces under Bahar Khan Lodi, and took control of the Punjab, though he refused to restore Daulat Khan to full power, prompting further realignments among Afghan leaders.<ref name="MajumdarDelhiSultanate"/>

Death

By early 1526, with his rivals fragmented, Babur launched a full-scale invasion of northern India. On 20 April 1526, at the First Battle of Panipat, Ibrahim Lodi’s larger army was decisively defeated by Babur’s innovative tactics and superior cavalry, leading to Ibrahim’s death on the field and the end of Lodi rule in Delhi.<ref name="Davis">Template:Cite book</ref> Sultan Ibrahim Khan Lodi was defeated and killed on 21 April 1526 at the First Battle of Panipat, fought near Panipat (present-day Haryana, India), against the invading forces of Babur. <ref name="britannica">“Ibrāhīm Lodī (died April 21, 1526, Panipat [India])” — Encyclopædia Britannica.”</ref> His death marked the end of the Lodi dynasty and of the independent Delhi Sultanate, paving the way for the establishment of the Mughal Empire in India. <ref name="itihasnama">“इब्राहिम लोदी … 21 अप्रैल 1526 ई. को … पानीपत का प्रथम युद्ध हुआ … इब्राहिम लोदी की पराजय हुई और वह युद्धस्थल में ही मारा गया।”, Itihasnama.</ref>

Tomb

Template:Main His tomb is often mistaken to be the Shisha Gumbad within Lodi Gardens, Delhi. Rather Ibrahim Khan Lodi's Tomb is actually situated near the tehsil office in Panipat, close to the Dargah of Sufi saint Bu Ali Shah Qalandar. It is a simple rectangular structure on a high platform approached by a flight of steps. In 1866, the British relocated the tomb during construction of the Grand Trunk Road and renovated it with an inscription highlighting Ibrahim Khan Lodi's death in the Battle of Panipat. He also built a Khwaja Khizr Tomb in Sonipat in 1522.<ref>Template:Usurped</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>"The tale of the missing Lodi tomb" The Hindu, 4 July 2005.</ref>

See also

References

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