Page 19 - SST Class 07

central Asia and in Muhammad Ghori
Afghanistan. Later, he Muhammad Ghori was an
annexed Punjab and ambitious leader. He was
made it a part of his the younger brother of the
kingdom. ruler of Gaur, Ghais-ud-

Between 1010 and 1025 Din who handed the
AD, Mahmud attacked responsibility to Ghori to
only the temple towns in rule over Ghazni in 1173
northern India. He had AD. But Ghori, being a
heard that there was very ambitious ruler, was
much gold and jewellery Mahmud Gaznavi not satisfied with only Muhammad Ghori
kept in the big temples in Ghazni and wanted to
India, so he destroyed the temples and took expand his empire to get hold of more power
away the gold and jewellery. One of these attacks and control and wanted to conquer India. He
which is frequently mentioned was the destruc- was well aware of India’s political, religious,
tion of the temple of Somnath in western India. social and military weaknesses and also the
Destroying temples had another advantage. He enormous wealth and gold that India had. He
could claim as he did, that he had obtained wanted to attain more power and more wealth.
religious merit by destroying images. He also had the desire to spread Islam in India

In 1030 AD, Mahmud died and the people of by conquering the Hindus of the country. Thus,
northern India felt relieved. for all these reasons, he carried out a number of
Effects of Mahmud’s Invasions invasions to take over India.
Important effects of Mahmud’s invasion were as Economic Organisation
under : The revenue was equal to the amount of money
1. Punjab became a part of the empire of an officer would normally receive as salary. The
Ghazni. officer did not at first have any right of ownership
over the land. He could only claim the revenue
2. Weakness of the Rajput’s was exposed.
from the land. By the time, we come to the
3. Mahmud’s conquests paved the way for the
medieval period many such officers had begun to
Muslim conquest of India.
claim that they owned the land as well. The
4. India’s enormous wealth was plundered and
system of paying salaries by grants. Revenue of
taken away to Ghazni.
land increased in the medieval period. Persons
5. The invasions gave a severe blow to the art who received such grants, that is, the grantees or
of India as several important temples were feudatories came to be called by various titles
destroyed by the invaders. (some of which such as Rai and Thakur contin-

6. Mahmud’s invasion played an important ued until recent times). The grantees were of
role in the spread of Islam in India. various kinds. Some were officers, others were
7. The frequent invasions further weakened local chiefs who had been defeated in battle, but
the political stability. were allowed to keep their land in the form of a
8. In every invasion, India lost thousands of grant. Another big group of grantees were
soldiers. Brahmins and learned men who were often

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