Tarikh-I Firoz Shahi: An English Translation

Tarikh-i Firoz Shahi is the finest specimen of Indo-Persian historiography produced during the Sultanate period in India. Written by Zia ud Din Barani during the reign of Sultan Firoz Shah Tughlaq, it was completed in 1357 CE and was dedicated to the reigning monarch. Primarily a history of the sultans of Delhi, it begins with the reign of Sultan Ghiyas ud Din Balban and concludes in the sixth year of Firoz Shah Tughlaq’s rule. It covers Balban’s dynasty, the Khaljis and the Tughlaqs. Information regarding Balban’s dynasty was supplied to Barani by his father, grandfather and others who held important offices in the regime. From the period of Sultan Jalal ud Din Khalji, the account is based on Barani’s personal observations. Unlike other histories of the period, Tarikh-i Firoz Shahi is not confined to an account of wars and the accession of rulers. In this regard it is a welcome departure, for it takes into account the socio-economic conditions of the time and, thereby, provides a realistic portrait of society as it existed in the period under discussion.