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Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq was a provincial governor of the Khaljis, who saw an opportunity to seize power amidst the chaos and lack of central authority after the death of
Mubarak Khan. He quickly restored stability and embarked upon a campaign of expansion, advancing into the Deccan and Bengal. He built a new capital outside Delhi called
Tughluqabad. His reign, however, was cut short after just 5 years, when he was buried in a roof collapse. Whether this was truly an accident or a covert assassination by his
son is not entirely clear.
That son, Ulugh Khan, ascended the throne in 1325 and took the name Muhammad bin Tughluq. He was perhaps the most remarkable of all the Delhi sultans. He turned
his attention towards the south, moving his capital to Devagiri (changing its name to Daulatabadexpnded) and greatly expanding the sultanate deep into peninsular India when
he defeated the Hoysalas. However, he had lost much of this territory by the end of his reign as the Vijayanagar empire emerged in 1336. Within his empire, he attempted many
reforms, among which was an attempt to issue a fiat currency ... copper coins that were meant to circulate at the value of silver tankas. However, this experiment was
abandoned after a few years as there was a flood of counterfeits on the market.
Muhammad was succeeded by his cousin Firuz, who expanded the sultanate into Orissa and Sind. He was also an able administartor, who constructed many public works
during his long reign of 37 years. After his death, however, the sultanate fell into disarray as various factions vied for power, setting the stage for the invasion of Timur (Tamerlaine),
who slaughtered countless people in his ruthless expedition of looting and plunder.
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Ghiyath al-din Tughluq (1320-25) |
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Ghiyath al-din Tughluq (1320-25), Billon 4-gani
Weight: 3.19 gm., Diameter: 15-17 mm., Die axis: 10 o'clock
Legend: al-sultan al-ghazi ghiyath al-dunya wa'l din /
Legend: abu'l muzaffar tughluq shah al-sultan, AH date 723 (= 1323 CE) |
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Ghiyath al-din Tughluq (1320-25), Billon 4-gani
Weight: 3.35 gm., Diameter: 15 mm., Die axis: 9 o'clock
Legend: al-sultan al-ghazi ghiyath al-dunya wa'l din /
Legend: abu'l muzaffar tughluq shah al-sultan, AH date 724 (= 1323-24 CE) |
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Ghiyath al-din Tughluq (1320-25), Billon 4-gani (posthumous)
Weight: 3.15 gm., Diameter: 15 mm., Die axis: 1 o'clock
Legend: al-sultan al-ghazi ghiyath al-dunya wa'l din /
Legend: abu'l muzaffar tughluq shah al-sultan, AH date 726 (= 1325-26 CE) |
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This coin was struck after Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq's death.
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Muhammad III bin Tughluq (1325-1351) |
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Muhammad III bin Tughluq (1325-1351), Gold tanka
Weight: 10.87 gm., Diameter: 22 mm., Die axis: 9 o'clock
Legend, in the name of the Abassid Caliph al-Mustakfi /
Legend, including mint name Delhi |
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Muhammad III bin Tughluq (1325-1351), Copper tanka
Weight: 9.33 gm., Diameter: 22 mm., Die axis: 10 o'clock
Legend /
Legend, including mint name Tughluqpur 'urf Tirhut in margin |
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This is an example of Muhammad binTughluq's fiat money ... a copper coin struck to look like a silver tanka and meant to
have the same value. The coins were struck only during the years AH 730-732 (1329-1332 CE), after which the experiment was abandoned.
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Firuz Shah Tughluq (1351-88) |
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Firuz Shah Tughluq (1351-88) Silver tanka, Hadrat Dehli
Weight: 8.88 gm., Diameter: 17 mm., Die axis: 10 o'clock
Legend /
Legend |
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Fath Khan (1358) |
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Fath Khan (1358) Billon tanka
Weight: 8.95 gm., Diameter: 19-20 mm., Die axis: 3 o'clock
Legend: fathkhan firuz shah jall allah zillalahu jalalahu /
Legend: fi zaman al-imam amir al-mu'minin abi'l fath al-mu'tasid billah khulidat khilafatuhu |
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Fath Khan was Firuz Shah's son. He was appointed governor of the eastern province of the sultanate, which later became
the sultanate of Jaunpur, and struck coins in his own name. He apparently had two mints: iqlim al-sharq, probably Jaunpur, and Patna.
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Muhammad bin Firuz (1390-93) |
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Muhammad bin Firuz (1390-93) gold tanka
Weight: 10.98 gm., Diameter: 22 mm., Die axis: 2 o'clock
Legend: al-sultan al-azam muhammad shah firuz shah sultani khulidat mamlakatuhu /
Legend: fi zaman al-imam amir al-mu'minin khulidat khilafatuhu,
with AH date 793 (= 1390-91 CE) below
Reference: Goron-Goenka D583 |
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Muhammad bin Firuz (Muhammad Tughlaq IV) had a brief reign of just over 2 years in the waning days of the Tughluq period.
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