Sultanate of Bengal (Principia Moderni III Map Game)

The Sultanate of Bengal, also known as Bengalistan is a nation located at OTL South East Asia comprising of Orissa, West Bengal and Bangladesh. The Sultanate of Pandua became an independent nation in 1338 when Fakhruddin Mubarak Shah declared himself independent of the dying Delhi Sultanate. Within a few years after this in 1342, a local warlord, Shamsuddin Ilyas Shah proclaimed himself to be monarch of the Kingdom of Lakhnauti. He would go on to consolidate his rule by conquering other independent kingoms of Bengal until he ultimately declared himself to be the Sultan of Pandua in 1352. Since Shamsuddin's conquests, the Ilyas Shahi dynasty has ruled over Bengal since 1352, eventually becoming the Empire of Urdustan, still under the Illyas Shah dynasty in 1550. After uniting much of India, the Empire of Hindustan was proclaimed on 1740. However, by 1810, the Empire had been fractured by numerous revolts and assuredly collapsed. Soon after, in a coup d'etat; the Illyas Shahi dynasty was overthrown and replaced by the Ashrafi Shahi Dynasty which proclaimed the start of the Sultanate of Bengal.

Early India [1352 - 1453]
Following the collapse of the Delhi Sultanate, many Indian states popped up and with each Indian state keen on looking after it's own interests, the unity in India was seriously damaged. Two states, Pandua and Vijaynagar were exceptions who were keen on bringing back stability and unity to India therefore they worked together to establish a new and stable empire in India. During this time, the Timurid Empire ravaged through Central Asia and turned its monstrous sights upon India. In what seemed like a lightning war, the Timurids conquered one Indian state after another before reaching the gates of Delhi and capturing the city itself which then led to a major genocide of the Hindu population and complete destruction of the infrastructure of Delhi. This led the surviving states to sign the Treaty of Pandua in order to counter the Timurids and although initially considered an effective treaty that was successful in opposing Timurid influence, it eventually fell apart when the Timurids launched an invasion upon Vijaynagar and completely destroyed the state in what was known as the Rape of Vijaynagar. Eventually however, the Timurids suffered internal revolts and crumbled, forcing it to to abandon its previous Indian vassals who were subsequently accepted into the Treaty of Pandua. The successor state of the Timurids, the Persian Empire too sought to advance into India, but however were unable to do so as this time the Indian states acted much more effectively to oppose foreign powers

Rise of the Mughals & Suris [1453 - 1539]
Many attempts by Persians to acquire land in India had largely failed. However the Persians were not the only successors of the Timurids. In 1450s, the Mughal Empire was established. It was yet another Central Asian state that had set its sights upon India and was probably much more efficient in acquiring this goal than the Persians. Within a decade, the Mughals had set a foothold in India and soon the states Jaunpur and Bahamani had fallen into Mughal controls. Delhi had been established as the de facto capital of the Mughal Empire and states such as Gwalior, Marwar, Jaisalmar, Kathiawar were more or less integrated into the Mughal Empire. This eventually led to resistance by the Indian states led by Pandua who called for the respect and upholding of the Treaty of Pandua. In the subsequent Indian - Mughal War, the Mughals were completely defeated and were forced to grant independence to Bahamani and Jaunpur and to abandon Delhi after they signed the Treaty of Delhi although the Mughals never truly abandoned Delhi and it remained a part of the Mughal Empire. It was also agreed that the Indian League would be formed to end the threat that loomed over India, that is of a foreign state invading and exploiting India. 40-50 years later, the Mughals were accepted into the Indian League after the ascension of the Raja of Marwar to the position of Emperor of the Mughals but when the Mughals once again resorted to their imperialist tactics by attempting to vassalise Jaisalmer, Pandua demanded that the Mughals had to be punished. In the aftermath of the Second Indian - Mughal War, the Second Treaty of Delhi was signed in which the Mughal Empire was dissolved and the states of Multan, Sindh, Ladakh and Kangra were granted independence. The Suri Empire succeeded what was left of the Mughals and would establish control over Marwar and Delhi.

The Secessionist League [1539 - 1550]
By 1540s, India had been struck with a sudden increase of communalism. Many Hindu states demanded the expulsion of Muslims from the India subcontinent. It was certainly a demand that could not be accepted because the Muslim states played a very important part in the Indian League. The Hindu state of Vijaynagar too considered the expulsion of Muslims as a decision that could not be made but the Hindus would not be deterred. On 1542, the Hindu states of Gwalior, Gondwana, Bastar, Khandesh, Mewar, Malwa and Gujarat announced their decision to secede from the Indian League which led to fears of a return of instability. Negotiations started to come to a settled, but the Hindus would settle to nothing less than expulsion of Muslims. Eventually, both sides prepared for an inevitable war but unlike the Hindu League, the India League, however, also had the support of European states as well as the Suri Empire. In the war that lasted from 1544 - 1550, India was ravaged but the Hindus were finally defeated. In the Third Treaty of Delhi, it was agreed that the Hindu states would have their lands divided amongst Indian League members and the European states that participated in the war would be granted enclaves in India. It is also important to note that during the war, the Suri Empire captured both Delhi and Marwar but due to the weak position of the Indian League and need to acquire help from the Suri, these annexations were not opposed.

Period of Stability [1550 - 1575]
The Period after the war against the Secessionist League was generally regarded as a Period of Stability. India flourished during this period with many European merchants arriving to purchase Indian cotton, spices, opium which was beneficial for the local Indians.

War Era [1575 - 1663]
The stability and peace came to a subsequent end after Vijaynagar nationalists dissolved the union that existed between it and Pandua (Which was generally referred to as Urdustan at this point). This led to the removal of Vijaynagar from the Indian League and an invasion by Urdustan and Bahamani who then conquered and divided the state after the Indian - Vijaynagar War. This followed a period where Urdustan participated in almost every single war in which it was called upon, from aiding the Damascan Sultanate against Turks to helping Romans against Egypt. The war-mongering policy badly damaged the reputation and economy of Urdustan and this policy was eventually put to an end when Urdustan faced a financial crisis. Peace lasted only for a few decades or so until another Indian state, Raigam attempted to subjugate the Tamil Kingdoms under its rule. In their attempt to do so, they received aid from Urdustan who by now no longer felt any threat from any neighbour. It was not until the mid 1630s that Tibet launched an invasion upon Punjab, Ladakh and Kangra that the Indian League saw action again. The Tibetan forces were completely defeated and Southern Tibet was occupied in the subsequent Invasion of Tibet. Following this war, major changes were brought forth by Urdustan in an attempt to completely secure India. In doing so, Urdustan vassalized Bahmani and Jaunpur. It also aided allies such as Raigam in establishing the Kingdom of Lanka and Punjab in its conquest of Ladakh. However, on 1651, Urdustan and the Suri Empire reached a compromise for general partition of India signed and launched an invasion upon the Sultanate of Punjab on 1657. destroying the state completely. As per the agreement, the Suri Empire occupied a Punjab and Ladakh but was to advance no further. Soon after, Urdustan generally avoided warfare and occasionally aided the Empire of Lanka in wars.

The Golden Age [1663 - 1780]
The Golden Age dawned upon the Empire of Urdustan after it had virtually united India, a dream that the people of Urdustan had been keen to accomplish since the advent of their Empire. After years of peace and prosperity, the Empire of Urdustan finally attacked the Sultanate of Dhundara on 1718 in an act of unprovoked aggression, generally considered by many as under orders from Spain. By then, Urdustan had indeed become a puppet of Hispania as the Spanish control over India grew stronger day by day. Regardless of that, Urdustan continued to become stronger and on 1740; the Empire of Hindustan was proclaimed to commemorate Urdustani conquest of Hindustan. It was indeed a new age for the people of Hindustan, and surely; it was bound to be one never seen before. For on 1748, in one of the least expected turn of events; the nation of Hindustan declared war upon Hispania along with many other European nations and within a span of a single year; the Spanish colonies of Burma, Dhundara and Philippines had fallen. Following the defeat of Spain, Hindustan was generally considered as a superpower state by much of the world and what would Hindustan do next would be the question of interest for everyone. For up until 1780, Hindustan dominated world politics but not even the most astute of world leaders could have predicted the demise of the crown jewel of the earth.

Fall of the Empire [1780 - 1808]
By 1780, Hindu sectarianism in Vijaynagar was on the rise. It was generally considered to be a prime threat to the Empire for if Vijaynagar seceded, and a large number of troops were ordered to attack the Hindu revolters in Vijaynagar. What followed next was a scene that drew parallels to the Timurid Rape of Vijaynagar for within a span of two years, Vijaynagar had been layed to dust by Hindustani troops.The nation had been destroyed in the war fought between the Hindu guerrillas and the Hindustani forces, and the latter often resorted to destroying and burning cities in attempts to drive off guerrillas which certainly antagonized the general populace. The Hindu revolts soon started to spread off to other parts of the Empire as well and when it became obvious that Hindustan was unable to maintain control over Vijaynagar, Sriranga I of the Aravidu Dynasty declared the Vijaynagara Rajya and announced independence from Hindustan. Given how weak the auithority of Pandua had become, the ruler of Bahmani, Ibrahim Adil Shah announced his declaration of war upon Vijaynagara but having witnessed the failure of Hindustan to maintain control over their lands, he declared independence as well; proclaiming the Sultanate of Deccan. Soon after, chaos ensued throughout the whole Empire with rebels attacking palaces and ransacking banks. Chatrapati Shivaji and Ahmad Shah II of the Sultanate of Gujarat and Jaunpur respectively were quick to declare their independence as well, as they had naturally assumed that the fall of Hindustan had begun. By 1785; conservative Buddhist nobles from the Konbaung dynasty proclaimed the start of the Burmese Empire; quickly breaking off Hindustan with little to no resistance faced. However what truly shook the foundations of Pandua was when Nepali Gurkhas announced the start of the Gurkha Rajya on 1786 and within two years, the Gurkha forces had completely shattered the Hindustani military. On 1788, Nepal was firmly established as an independent state. By then, there was nothing that could be done. Within a span of 8 years, the greatest Empire to have ever existed had collapsed. Many members of the Illyas Shahi Dynasty quickly fled to the Empire of Lanka, seeking asylum. Sultan Jehanzeb III however chose to remain at Pandua in his attempts to restore order and stability, which largely failed. By the time of Sultan Jehanzeb IIIs death in 1808, the authority of Pandua was largely restricted to the outskirts of the city and nobles had sprung up throughout the Empire, claiming their own Sultanates.

Rebirth of the Empire [1808 - Incumbent]
After the death of Sultan Jehangir III, Pandua was captured in 1808 by a prince from Jaunpur, Mahmud Shah. He was quick to execute the Crown Prince as well as many nobles in Pandua as he sought to fulfil the power vacuum himself. He proclaimed the start of a new era under Sultanate of Bengal and he was to be the Sultan of the Bengali people. Well aware that Pandua was merely a shell of its former self and the city alone had no authority, he started a major campaign against the rebels throughout Bengal and within a span of two years, he had managed to completely unite Bengal. Meanwhile, he constructed the city of Calcutta and declared it as the new Capital of Bengal, replacing Pandua to vanquish any remaining authority of the Ilyas Shahi Dynasty. Under his rule, Bengal was reestablished as the strongest state in India although he was yet to unify India for that was to be the destiny of Bengal.

Slavery Laws

 * Any citizen, between the castes of farmer and Sultan, may buy, sell, trade, and own slaves.
 * Slaves are declared to be the lowest caste of the Bengali Sultanate.
 * A slave is not less than a free man, but is equal to him, with the same eternity in store for him, and shall be considered as such, despite the slave status that a slave that he must piously resign to until death or emancipation.
 * While the freeing of slaves is not outright recommended, the Qur'an states that it is the righteous man who will be rewarded in the afterlife, called a Companion of the Right, for emancipating slaves.
 * Slaves of foreign tongue and foreign religion can automatically be emancipated upon their conversion to Islam and their tongues to Urdu.
 * If a slave is not freed by his master, then he has the ability to buy his freedom at a price set by his master.
 * Freeing slaves is to be considered as a way to expiate sins.
 * A former slave shall not be restricted in future status just because of his former status as a slave because of his already spiritual status being that of a free man from the onset.

Agriculture in India
[[File:CropsofIndia.png|thumb|center|450px|The Crops of India in the Urdustani Empire.

Dark Green is Rice; Reddish-brown is Wheat; Dirty green is Potato; Orange is Millet; Dirty yellow is Sorghum;]]