Towards the end of the 12th century, Mohammed Ghori, the ruler of Ghor, a small principality in Afghanistan, attacked and laid the foundation of the Muslim rule in India.
In 1175, he invaded Multan and captured it. He then marched towards Gujurat but Raja Bhimadeva gave him a crushing defeat. Later, he conquered Punjab and Sindh. Mohammed Ghori then marched against Prithviraj Chauhan, the ruler of Delhi and Ajmir. A fierce battle was fought on the battlefield of Tarain. Prithviraj defeated Ghori.
Ghori never forgot his defeat and the next year, he once marched against Prithviraj Chauhan at the invitation of Jaichand of Kanauj. Once again, the two armies met at the historic battlefield of Tarain. Prithviraj was defeated and slain treacherously. Thus, Delhi passed into the the hands of the Muslims.
Jaichand of Kanauj, too, was not spared and was killed by the Muslim. After this Ghori returned to Ghor. But he had to come back, as there were rebellions in his Indian territories and some of his governors asserted their independence. He came to suppress the revolt of the Khokans but was slain by them in A.D. 1206. As he had no son, his Indian territories wereplaced under the charge of Governors. Soon the governors asserted independence. Four of his governors, Yaldoz in Afghanistan, Qubacha in Punjab, Mohammed Bhakhtiyar in Bengal and Aibak in Delhi struggled for power. Out of these, Aibak emerged victrious.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
Mohammed Ghori is regarded as the real founder of the Muslim rule in India. While Mahmud raided India only for his wealth, Ghori came to India with the purpose of establishing a permanent empire. It was with this aim that he appointed his generals to look after his conquered territories.