Medieval Indian History Questions (MCQs) for UPSC, SSC & States PCS Examinations - Set 1

ANSWER: Morocco

Explanation:
Ibn Batuta was a Moroccan and Berber explorer. He is known for his extensive travels, accounts of which were published in the Rihla.

ANSWER: Horses

Explanation:
Kings of Vijayanagar, imported Arabian horses on a large scale, in order to improve the breed of cavalry horses in their own districts. Thus, the single biggest item of import to the Vijayanagar empire was Horses.

ANSWER: Gulbadan Begum

Explanation:
Gulbadan Begum (1523-1603) was a Perso-Turkic Princess, the daughter of Emperor Babur. She is most known as the author of Humayun Nama, the account of the life of her brother, Humayun.

ANSWER: Mongolia

Explanation:
Mansabdar implies the generic term for the military-kind grading of all royal functionaries of the Mughal Empire. The Mansabdari system introduced by Akbar was borrowed from the system followed in Mongolia.

ANSWER: Akbar

Explanation:
Akbar declared or issued Mahzarnama to take all the religious matters into his own hands. This made him supreme in the religious matters. He issued Mahzarnama to curb the dominance of Ulema. It was written by Faizi in 1579.

ANSWER: Mohammad Ghori

Explanation:
The worst defeat of Mohammad Ghori in India was inflicted by the Solankis in the Battle of Kayadara near Mount Abu. Raja Bhimdev II was a young men and real regent was his mother Naikidevi. Naikidevi inflicted such a major defeat to Muhammad Ghori that th

ANSWER: Iitutmish

Explanation:
Iitutmish , the Sultan of Delhi, was contemporary of Mongol leader Chengiz Khan. In 1221 A.D., there was a danger of expected attack of Chengiz khan on Delhi.

ANSWER: Alauddin Khilji

Explanation:
Alauddin Khilji sent two of his general brothers Ulugh Khan and Nusrat Khan to invade Gujarat. Gujarat was invaded and the temples of Somnath and Rudra Mahalaya were sacked.

ANSWER: Rana Kumbha

Explanation:
Rana Kumbha was killed by his son Udai Singh I in 1468. However, Uday Singh died or murdered in 1473 and was succeeded by his brother Raimal. Raimal was later succeeded by his son Sangram Singh or Rana Sanga. Thus, Rana Sanga was grandson of Rana Kumbha.

ANSWER: Persian

Explanation:
Abul Fazal was the author of Akbarnama which is written in Persian. It is the official history of Akbar’s reign in 3 volumes. This book gives the history of Akbar’s forefathers from Timur to Humayun and Akbar’s reign till 1602.

ANSWER: Jai Singh I

Explanation:
The Treaty of Purandar was signed on June 11, 1665, between the Rajput ruler Jai Singh I, who was commander of the Mughal Empire, and Maratha Shivaji. Shivaji was forced to sign the agreement after Jai Singh besieged Purandar fort.

ANSWER: Shiva Temples of Ellora

Explanation:
Krishna I is known for completing the establishment of Rastrakuta supremacy over the dominions of Chalukyas. Last Badami Chalukya Kirtivarman II though defeated by Dantidurga, but remained in power till 757 AD when he was destroyed by Krishna I. This is mentioned in the copper plate grant of Govinda III. Krishna I is best known for execution of the most marvelous architectural work in India i.e. Kailas Temple at Ellora. Kailas Temple is the most extensive and most opulent example of rock cut architecture in India.

ANSWER: Darashikoh

Explanation:
Majma-ul-Bahrain is a book on comparative religion authored by Dara Shukoh. It was devoted to a revelation of the mystical and pluralistic affinities between sufi and vendanta.

ANSWER: Pulkesin I

Explanation:
Pulakesin I, the chalukya king, performed Ashwamedha Yajna (horse sacrifice ceremony) to access power. Pulakesin I was the first ruler of chalukya dunasty.

ANSWER: Bhimdev

Explanation:
After the attack of Mahmud of Ghazani, Bhimdev reconstructed the Somnath Temple.In 1024, the Somnath temple was constructed by Mularaja which was devastated by the famous Afghan ruler, Mahmud of Ghazni, who invaded the pantheon beyond the Thar Desert.

ANSWER: Iqta System

Explanation:
In Iqta System, the land of the empire was divided into several large and small tracts called Iqta and assigned these Iqtas to his soldiers, officers and nobles. In the beginning, an Iqta was based upon salary. Later, under Firoz Shah Tughlaq it became hereditary.

ANSWER: Shershah

Explanation:
Pathan Sultan Sher Shah Suri (1540 – 1545) measured and classified the land in terms of the produce and introduced Kabuliyat and Patta as instruments of settlement. During Akbar’s time, Todarmal made some reforms to that system and the whole empire was divided into Suba, Sarkar, Pargana and Mahal.

ANSWER: Slavery

Explanation:
Comparing to the other options, some sort of slavery was prevalent before Muslim conquests. The Purdah was a gift of Muslim invasions, and same applies to Child marries which came into practice to avoid the new danger of lifting Hindu girls by Muslims as an holy act of Jihad, Sati & Jauhar also got established as the wives of the invaded used to kill themselves before their husbands went on the last battle.
Slavery became more prevalent because it was a fashion and a status symbol among the Muslims at that time. As we read Aladdin had 84000 slaves and Firuz Tughlaq had 2 lakhs, all of them were maintained at the state cost.

ANSWER: Gold

Explanation:
The Kakatiya issued coins in metals like Gold, Silver, Copper and lead.
1: The Gold coins were known as Gadyanam or Mada
2: The Silver coins were known as “Rukalu” (10 Rukalu= 1 Mada)
The Kakatiya coins were engraved in Nandinagari script, which is sister of Devnagari script.

ANSWER: Varaha

Explanation:
Inscriptions tells that “Varaha”, a gold coin with an approximate weight of 3.4 grams ( 52 grains), was made the basic monetary unit in the Vijayanagar empire. These coins were issued by Tirumala Raya, the first Crowned King from the Aravidu Dynasty