Shihab al-Din's victory over the king of Hind and the taking of Ajmer (588 AH)
وقعة شهاب الدين بملك الهند وأخذ أجمير
1192 CE · 588 AH
588 (1192): brooding since his 583 defeat — 'I have not slept with my wife nor changed my white clothes since that kafir beat me' — Shihab al-Din al-Ghuri marched for Hind, drew the pursuing king four stages deep, then loosed seventy thousand horse on a night encirclement; at dawn, while the Indians kept to their bedding custom, the host struck from every side; the king stood on his elephant till taken, was dragged by the beard before Shihab al-Din, exchanged the famous words — 'I had a golden fetter for you' / 'we give you no rank worth a fetter' — saw Ajmer iqta'd to the mamluk Qutb al-Din Aybak, and was killed 1.
At a glance
- Era
- The Crusades, Ayyubids and Mamluks
- Region
- South Asia
- Review
- Draft Completeness 1/5 · Help complete it
In time
Overview
In 588 AH Shihab al-Din al-Ghuri set out from Ghazni seeking the king of India, Prithviraj, who had defeated him in 583 AH. The battle ended with the capture of the king of India and the taking of Ajmer. 2
The battle
Ibn al-Athir relates that Shihab al-Din marched until he passed the site of the first battle, then turned back four stages when the king of India gathered his armies. The enemy caught up with him near Mirandah. Shihab al-Din sent out seventy thousand men, who went round at night until they were behind the enemy camp. When dawn rose, the Muslims charged from every side. 2
Afterwards
The king of India was captured, and the Muslims took wealth and fourteen elephants. Shihab al-Din marched to Ajmer and took it and what was near it, and granted it as an iqta' to his mamluk Qutb al-Din Aybak, and returned to Ghazni. Ibn al-Athir says that the king of India was killed. 2
Connections
- Had participant
- Shihab al-Din al-Ghuri· Prithviraj, king of Hind· قطب الدين أيبك
People and things also explored
Prithviraj, king of Hind· Shihab al-Din al-Ghuri· قتل شهاب الدين الغوري· Ghiyath al-Din Muhammad ibn Sam· قطب الدين أيبك
Sources
- al-Kamil fi'l-Tarikh of Ibn al-Athir, p. 221-222
- al-Kamil fi'l-Tarikh of Ibn al-Athir, p.221-222
Cite this page
islam.museum contributors. “Shihab al-Din's victory over the king of Hind and the taking of Ajmer (588 AH)”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/battle-tarain-588/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Accessed 2026-10-17.