Q1. What time span does the “medieval period” in Indian history generally cover?
Answer: Roughly the 11th to 17th centuries, marked by frequent invasions, shifting borders, and cultural blending.
Q2. When did the Delhi Sultanate begin, and with whose defeat?
Answer: In 1192, after Prithviraj Chauhan’s defeat.
Q3. Name the five dynasties of the Delhi Sultanate.
Answer: Mamluks (Slave), Khiljis, Tughlaqs, Sayyids, Lodis.
Q4. Which regions notably resisted the Sultanate’s expansion in the south and east?
Answer: The Hoysalas in the south and the Eastern Ganga kingdom in the east.
Q5. What trend shows political instability among the Sultans?
Answer: About two-thirds rose to power by killing predecessors, with average reigns around nine years.
Q6. Which Sultan repelled repeated Mongol invasions?
Answer: Ala-ud-din Khilji.
Q7. Who led Khilji’s southern raids and what did they fund?
Answer: Malik Kafur; the plunder funded a large army.
Q8. Name two failed policies of Muhammad bin Tughlaq.
Answer: Shifting the capital to Daulatabad and introducing token copper currency.
Q9. Who invaded Delhi in the late 14th century, and what was the impact?
Answer: Timur; mass killings, enslavement, and heavy plunder devastated Delhi.
Q10. Who built the Konark Sun Temple and why?
Answer: Narasimhadeva I of the Eastern Ganga to commemorate victories over the Sultanate.
Q11. Which Rajput ruler built Kumbhalgarh Fort?
Answer: Rana Kumbha of Mewar.
Q12. Who founded the Vijayanagara Empire and in which century?
Answer: Harihara and Bukka in the 14th century.
Q13. Which state was Vijayanagara’s principal northern rival?
Answer: The Bahmani Sultanate (later split into five Deccan Sultanates).
Q14. Name the five Deccan Sultanates formed from Bahmani disintegration.
Answer: Bijapur, Golconda, Berar, Ahmednagar, Bidar.
Q15. Who was Vijayanagara’s most famous ruler and one of his literary works?
Answer: Krishnadevaraya; he wrote the Telugu epic Āmuktamālyada.
Q16. Which battle led to Vijayanagara’s downfall and when?
Answer: The Battle of Talikota in 1565.
Q17. Who founded the Mughal Empire and after which battle?
Answer: Babur, after the First Battle of Panipat (1526).
Q18. What new military technologies did Babur use in India?
Answer: Gunpowder, field artillery, and matchlock guns.
Q19. Which Afghan ruler displaced Humayun and what was his empire called?
Answer: Sher Shah Suri; the Sur Empire.
Q20. Who was Himu and which battle led to his defeat?
Answer: A Suri commander who briefly ruled Delhi; defeated by Akbar at the Second Battle of Panipat.
Q21. Which Rajput fort’s fall saw jauhar during Akbar’s reign?
Answer: Chittorgarh Fort.
Q22. Name two of Akbar’s policies that promoted stability.
Answer: Abolishing jizya and promoting sulh-i-kul (peace with all).
Q23. Which Mughal emperor built the Taj Mahal and Red Forts?
Answer: Shah Jahan.
Q24. Under whom did the Mughal Empire reach its greatest territorial extent?
Answer: Aurangzeb.
Q25. Name two religious policies associated with Aurangzeb.
Answer: Reimposing jizya and ordering temple demolitions.
Q26. Which Gond queen resisted the Mughals and how did her life end?
Answer: Rani Durgavati; she chose death in battle in 1564 to avoid capture.
Q27. Name two Rajput leaders known for resisting the Mughals.
Answer: Rana Sanga and Maharana Pratap.
Q28. Who led the Ahoms to victory at Saraighat and against whom?
Answer: Lachit Borphukan; he defeated a larger Mughal force in 1671.
Q29. Which Sikh Gurus mark the turn to armed resistance and identity formation?
Answer: Guru Hargobind (militarization) and Guru Gobind Singh (Khalsa, 1699).
Q30. What were two key administrative systems under the Sultans and Mughals?
Answer: The iqta system (Sultanate tax grants) and Akbar’s mansabdari-jagirdari framework with Todar Mal’s revenue reforms.