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Secondary sourceArtifact1321

Tughlaqabad Fort

Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq · 1321

The fortified capital of Delhi built by Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq, in the city where Ibn Battuta later served as a judge for about eight years.

Tughlaqabad was part of the Delhi Sultanate capital where Ibn Battuta worked as a qadi for about eight years.

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Ruins of a stone fort on a dry, hazy hillside under a pale sky. Massive sloping stone walls with crenellated battlements stand on the left, and a long arched stone gallery with a flat roof runs across the right. Scrubby bushes and dry earth surround the site, with a distant city skyline on the horizon.
Tughlaqabad Fort, Delhi, built 1321.

About this source

What it is

Tughlaqabad Fort is a ruined fortress in Delhi, built in 1321 by Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq, founder of the Tughlaq dynasty, as the third historic city of Delhi. It was abandoned only a few years later, in 1327.

Why it matters

Ibn Battuta served as a qadi, or judge, in Delhi for about eight years under the Tughlaq dynasty, so this fort represents the court and city where he lived and worked far from home. Its construction, and its quick abandonment amid stories of conflict between the sultan and a Sufi saint, show the turbulence of the court Ibn Battuta served.

Look closer

  • What does the scale of the ruined walls suggest about the ambitions of the ruler who built it?
  • Why might a capital city be abandoned so soon after it was built?
  • What would Ibn Battuta have seen of this city during his time as a judge there?

This artifact is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Ibn Battuta on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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