Muhammad Bin Tughlaq and the Capital Change

Muhammad Bin Tughlaq, a prominent ruler of the Delhi Sultanate, is known for several ambitious and often controversial administrative experiments. One of his most famous decisions was changing the capital city.

Originally, the capital of the Delhi Sultanate was Delhi. However, Muhammad Bin Tughlaq decided to shift the capital to a new location. His reasons for this move are debated by historians but often cited include:

• To have a capital more centrally located within his vast empire, which by then included large parts of the Deccan.
• To better control the southern regions of his empire.
• To make the capital less vulnerable to attacks from the northwest frontier.

The city chosen for the new capital was Devagiri, located in the Deccan region. Muhammad Bin Tughlaq renamed Devagiri as Daulatabad (City of Wealth). He ordered a large portion of the population of Delhi, including officials, scholars, and common people, to migrate to Daulatabad.

The move was fraught with difficulties and caused immense hardship for the people forced to relocate. The long distance, harsh journey, and lack of adequate arrangements led to suffering and loss of life. After a few years, recognizing the impracticality of ruling the northern territories effectively from Daulatabad and facing other challenges, Muhammad Bin Tughlaq eventually decided to move the capital back to Delhi.

This experiment of shifting the capital from Delhi to Daulatabad is considered one of Muhammad Bin Tughlaq's major failed projects.

Therefore, Muhammad Bin Tughlaq changed his capital from Delhi to Daulatabad.