While leaving for his Gwalior campaign in 1231, Iltutmish left his daughter Razia as in-charge of Delhi's administration.
According to historian Minhaj-i-Siraj, Iltutmish believed that his other sons were absorbed in pleasurable activities, and would be incapable of managing the state affairs after his death. Iltutmish had groomed his eldest son Nasiruddin Mahmud to be his successor, but this son died unexpectedly in 1229. Razia was the eldest daughter of Iltutmish, and probably his first-born child. Razia's mother – Turkan Khatun was a daughter of Qutb al-Din Aibak, and the chief wife of Iltutmish. Razia was born to the Delhi Sultan Shamsuddin Iltutmish, a Turkic slave ( mamluk) of his predecessor Qutb al-Din Aibak. The Sanskrit-language inscriptions of the Sultanate call her Jallaladina, while near-contemporary historian Minhaj calls her Sultan Raziyat al-Duniya wa'l Din bint al-Sultan. Razia's own coins call her Sultan Jalalat al-Duniya wal-Din or as al-Sultan al-Muazzam Raziyat al-Din bint al-Sultan. The term "Sultana", used by some modern writers, is a misnomer as it means "the king's wife" rather than "female ruler". Razia's name is also transliterated as Raḍiyya or Raziyya. She married one of the rebels – Ikhtiyaruddin Altunia – and attempted to regain the throne, but was defeated by her half-brother and successor Muizuddin Bahram in October that year, and was killed shortly after. She was deposed by a group of nobles in April 1240, after having ruled for less than four years. This, combined with her appointments of non-Turkic officers to important posts, led to their resentment against her. The Turkic nobles who supported her expected her to be a figurehead, but she increasingly asserted her power. Razia's ascension was challenged by a section of nobles, some of whom ultimately joined her, while the others were defeated. During a rebellion against Ruknuddin, Razia instigated the general public against Shah Turkan, and ascended the throne after Ruknuddin was deposed in 1236. Iltutmish was succeeded by Razia's half-brother Ruknuddin Firoz Shah, whose mother Shah Turkan planned to execute her. According to a possibly apocryphal legend, impressed by her performance during this period, Iltutmish nominated Razia as his heir apparent after returning to Delhi. She was the first female Muslim ruler of the subcontinent, and the only female Muslim ruler of Delhi.Ī daughter of Mamluk Sultan Shamsuddin Iltutmish, Razia administered Delhi during 1231–1232 when her father was busy in the Gwalior campaign. Sultan Raziyyat-Ud-Dunya Wa Ud-Din (died 15 October 1240, r. 1236–1240), popularly known as Razia Sultana, was a ruler of the Delhi Sultanate in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent.
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