Qutub-ud-din-Aibak Crowned - This Day in History | Testbook

A closer look at Qutub-ud-din-Aibak

• Born to Turkic parents in Central Asia, Qutub-ud-din-Aibak was sold as a slave to a local Qazi and brought up in Persia.
• He later served under Muhammad of Ghor (Muhammad Ghori), proving his worth and earning a military rank.
• After Ghori's victory in Delhi in 1193, he entrusted his Indian territories to Aibak and returned to Khorasan.
• Aibak expanded the territories between the Ganga and Yamuna rivers. His deputy Bakhtiyar Khilji took over Bihar and Bengal. Aibak also fought against Rajput rulers opposing the Muslim invasions.
• Following Ghori’s assassination in 1206, Aibak became the ruler of the Delhi Sultanate. He shifted his capital to Lahore, Pakistan, where he was crowned.
• Aibak was the first Muslim Sultanate ruler in northern India. His reign marked the beginning of the Slave Dynasty or the Mamluk Dynasty.
• Known as a generous ruler during peaceful times, he was bestowed with the title 'Lakhbaksh'. He built mosques in Delhi and other regions.
• Aibak is best remembered for initiating the construction of the Qutb Minar in Delhi, named after Sufi saint Khwaja Qutb-ud-din Bakhtiyar Kaki. The tower was completed by his successor and son-in-law Iltutmish. The 240 ft tall tower's construction began around 1192, with the base built over the ruins of Lal Kot, a fort by the Tomars.
• Aibak met with a fatal accident while playing polo in 1210, aged around 60. His son-in-law Shams ud-Din Iltutmish succeeded him.
• Aibak's tomb lies in Lahore.

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