==Tamil in Sri Lanka (c.1300): "A Tamil-speaking kingdom is established on the Jaffna Peninsula of Sri Lanka. This marks the beginning of a gradual linguistic division of the island between Tamil in the north and east and Sinhalese to the south and west" (--Met).
	==More trouble from the Mongols-- In 1303 the Mongols actually besiege Delhi, and the sultan, 'Ala ud-Din Khilji, is forced to leave the city; but after two months the Mongols retire (because of the prayers of Hazrat Nizamuddin, some say). The sultan now takes energetic military measures. The Mongols invade in 1305 and again in 1306, but 'Ala- ud-Din's officers have such military success that they even take the offensive; after this there is a long respite from Mongol attacks.
	=='Ala ud-Din Khilji (r.1296-1316): This energetic ruler invades Devagiri in the Deccan, conquers Gujarat, captures the important fort of Chitor, makes major incursions into the south (with some help from southern allies); considers establishing a new religion or conquering the world, but is dissuaded; takes many authoritarian measures; experiments with price controls; presides over a brilliant cultural flowering. Discussion: *Ikram Ch. 5*; *India Nest*. (*Routes*)
	==More cities of Delhi: 'Ala ud-Din Khilji creates a layer of Delhi called "Siri" (*delhi gov*); then Ghiyasuddin Tughluq (r.1320-25) constructs "Tughluqabad" (*ANU*; *Berger*). After that comes the "Firozabad" (or Firoz Shah ka Kotlah) of Firoz Shah Tughluq (r.1351-88) (*archnet*). Discussion: *India Nest*. (*Routes*)
	==Daulatabad: Delhi in the Deccan? In 1327, Muhammad Shah Tughluq (r.1325-51) decides that since his kingdom now includes (nominally) most of India, he should govern from a more central location. So he orders the whole population of Delhi to trek down to Devagiri (which he renames Daulatabad) in the Deccan. Many poor people die on the way, but the cultural ferment produced in the new capital of Daulatabad plays a large role in the growth of what will later become Urdu. The project never quite works, though, and by 1335 he's obliged to give it up. Discussion: *Ikram Ch. 5*. Images: *Tokyo Univ.*; *Berger* (early among the "Ellora" ones). (*Routes*)
	==Muhammad Shah's bronze coin experiment (c.1330-32): Muhammad Shah Tughluq issues coins made not of silver or gold, but of bronze, and tries in vain to get them accepted in the marketplace. The resulting turmoil (and counterfeiting) almost wrecks the economy, and he has to abandon the attempt. He was too far ahead of his time.
	==Ibn Battuta visits (c.1333–47):  Ibn Battuta (1304–78), the famous traveler, adventurer, and chronicler from Tangier, spends time in India, serves as a qazi in Delhi--and even travels to China as an ambassador for Muhammad Shah Tughluq. Excerpts from his account of his Indian visit: *MSSU*.
	==The Bahmanids form a new kingdom in the Deccan  (c.1345-1528): Muhammad Shah Tughluq loses the southern parts of his never-very-secure realm. In the Deccan, one of his generals rebels, gives himself a fancy Persian name, and founds the Bahmanid kingdom (*wiki*), with its capital at Gulbarga (*U. Tokyo*). (In the early 1500's, this kingdom fragments into several smaller successors.) More background on the Bahmanids: *cloud band*. (*Routes*)
	==Vijayanagar dazzles visitors (c.1343-1565): In South India, Vijayanagar, another new state, also takes shape as the tide of the Delhi Sultanate recedes. Its capital is one of the richest cities in the world, with impressive palaces and enormous gateways. Both architecturally and culturally, Vijayanagar is built of a mixture of indigenous elements and Islamic influences. Its Hindu rulers refer to themselves as "sultans among kings," wear variations of Muslim court dress, and freely make (and break) military alliances with neighboring states on political, not religious, grounds. William Dalrymple (*Outlook* or *CU*) shows how radically V. S. Naipaul and others have misrepresented its history. Further discussion: Sanjay Subramanyam (*Outlook* or *CU*). More on its architecture: *art and archaeology*; *cloud band*. (*Routes*)
	==Jain painting reaches a high point (c.1350): "Jain painting reaches its greatest refinements in Gujarat and Rajasthan. Paintings typically illustrate sacred texts such as the Kalpasutras, and are characterized by their angular figures with protruding eyes" (--Met). Along with paintings, Jain bhandars, or manuscript storehouses, are invaluable refuges for many medieval texts that would otherwise have been lost. More paintings: *Schoyen*; *Met*. (*Routes*)
	==Lal Ded (c.1355?- ?): A Kashmiri poet-saint of the bhakti tradition, Lal Ded is traditionally placed in this century. She is said to renounce her marriage and family, and take as her husband the god Shiva alone. From then on she wanders naked on the roads like a madwoman, singing her songs of love and mystical devotion. Discussion: *kashmir herald*; *Jaishree Odin, Manushi 138*.
	==Sir John Mandeville (c.1366), in his fanciful but extremely popular "Travels," has a great deal to say about India and the vicinity, including "wherefore the emperor of Ind is clept (called) Prester John" (Chapter 32), and the story of the gold-digging ants (Chapter 33), and about the headless people and other Herodotus-like wonders (Chapter 22): *romanization*.
	==Muslims in Bengal: The Adina Mosque (1375) was a sign of cultural and political change coming to Bengal too, as Muslims began to arrive and settle there. See Chapter Three in Richard M. Eaton's *The Rise of Islam and the Bengal Frontier*.
	==Timur sacks Delhi, 1398: The Mongol ruler Timur, known as Tamerlane (for "Timur-i lang," Timur the Lame) (1336–1405), takes advantage of the fragmenting of the Delhi Sultanate to invade Delhi itself and sack the city, slaughtering much of the population. This terrible defeat basically finishes off the Delhi Sultanate, though weak rulers linger for some time, and then the Lodhis try to rebuild. More on Timur: *silk road* and the *Tarikh-i-Rashidi*. For the artistic side of Timur: *Met*