Fathullah Imad-ul-mulk ( fa, , ruled 1490–1504) was the founder of the Imad Shahi Dynasty and the

Berar Sultanate Berar Sultanate, also called as Imad Shahi Sultanate was one of the Deccan sultanates, which was founded by an Indian Muslim. It was established in 1490 following the disintegration of the Bahmani Sultanate. History Background The origin of th ...

. Originally a Hindu captive from

Vijayanagara Vijayanagara () was the capital city of the historic Vijayanagara Empire. Located on the banks of the Tungabhadra River, it spread over a large area and included the modern era Group of Monuments at Hampi site in Vijayanagara district, Bellary ...

, Fathullah was brought up a Muslim and rose to command the army of Berar under the

Bahmani Sultanate The Bahmani Sultanate, or Deccan, was a Persianate Sunni Muslim Indian Kingdom located in the Deccan region. It was the first independent Muslim kingdom of the Deccan,

. In 1490, he declared himself Sultan of Berar, which he ruled until his death in 1504. He was succeeded by his son Aladdin Imad Shah.

History

Fathullah was born a

Kanarese Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native sp ...

Hindu of the

Brahmin Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru ...

caste, but was captured as a boy by Bahmani forces on an expedition against the

Vijayanagara empire The Vijayanagara Empire, also called the Karnata Kingdom, was a Hinduism, Hindu empire based in the region of South India, which consisted the modern states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Goa and some parts of Telangana an ...

and brought up as a Muslim. He served the Bahmani Sultans in

Bidar Bidar (/ biːd̪ər/) is a city in the north-eastern part of Karnataka state in India. It is the headquarters of Bidar district, which borders Maharashtra and Telangana. It is a rapidly urbanising city in the wider ''Bidar Metropolitan area ...

. Through the influence of

Mahmud Gavan Mahmud Gawan (1411 – 1481) was a Persian prime minister in the Bahmani Sultanate of Deccan. ''Khwaja Mahmud Gilani'', from the village of ''Gawan'' in Persia, was well-versed in Islamic theology, Persian language and Mathematics and was a poe ...

, he achieved the rank of officer in command of the forces (''Sarlaskar'') of Berar and received the title ''Imad-ul-mulk''. He was stationed at the fort of

Gawilghur Gawilghur (also, Gavalgadh, Gawilgarh or Gawilgad, Pronunciation: �aːʋilɡəɖ was a well-fortified mountain stronghold of the Maratha Empire north of the Deccan Plateau, in the vicinity of Melghat Tiger Reserve, Amravati District, Mahara ...

, but extended his influence over the entire East Berar, becoming de facto ruler of the region. Shortly after

Malik Ahmad Nizam Shah I Malik Ahmed Nizam Shah ( fa, ) was the founder of the Nizam Shahi dynasty and the Ahmadnagar Sultanate. Ahmed was the son of the Nizam ul-Mulk Malik Hasan Bahri, a Hindu Brahmin from Beejanuggar (or Bijanagar) originally named Timapa who conve ...

declared independence for the

Ahmadnagar Sultanate The Ahmadnagar Sultanate was a late medieval Indian Muslim kingdom located in the northwestern Deccan, between the sultanates of Gujarat and Bijapur. Malik Ahmed, the Bahmani governor of Junnar after defeating the Bahmani army led by general Ja ...

in 1490, Fathullah Imad-ul-mulk declared himself ''Sultan of Berar''. He set up his capital in

Achalpur Achalpur, formerly known as Ellichpur and Illychpur, is a city and a municipal council in Amravati District in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the second most populous city in Amravati District after Amravati and seventh most populous ...

and proceeded to annex Mahur to his new kingdom. He also fortified

Gavilgad Gawilghur (also, Gavalgadh, Gawilgarh or Gawilgad, Pronunciation: �aːʋilɡəɖ was a well-fortified mountain stronghold of the Maratha Empire north of the Deccan Plateau, in the vicinity of Melghat Tiger Reserve, Amravati District, Mahar ...

and

Narnala Narnala Fort or Narnala Killa Sarkar, also known as Shahnoor Fort, is a hill fortress in the Satpura Range of Vidarbh, Maharashtra, India, named after the Rajput Solanki Chaulukya Ruler, Raja Narnal Singh, also known as Narnal Singh Swami. ...

. He was succeeded by his eldest son Aladdin Imad Shah.

References

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Bibliography

* * * * {{s-end Berar Deccan sultanates Imad Shahi dynasty 15th-century Indian Muslims Sultans 15th-century Indian monarchs Year of birth missing 1504 deaths