High Middle Ages · South Asia · Politics
1208
Iltutmish consolidates power in Delhi
1208
The Turkish slave-general Iltutmish seized the nascent sultanate from Qutb-ud-din Aibak's incompetent heir and began transforming a military occupation into a functioning state. He organized the iqta land-revenue system, struck coins bearing his own name, fortified the northwestern frontier against rival Turkish warlords, and made Delhi the undisputed capital of Muslim India for the next three centuries.