High Middle Ages · South Asia · War
1201
Ghurid Sultan Muhammad raids Bengal
1201
The Ghurid general Bakhtiyar Khalji launched a cavalry raid into Bengal and reportedly captured Nadia with only eighteen horsemen by disguising himself as a trader. The monasteries of Nalanda and Vikramashila were burned during his campaign, ending India's great Buddhist learning centers. Palm-leaf manuscripts accumulated over seven centuries of scholarship were consumed in fires that smoldered for months.
In context
Also in 1201 (3 other events on record)
- Fourth Crusade mustering begins at Venice · Europe · Religion
- Sultanate of Ifat emerges in the Horn of Africa · Africa · Politics
- Amalric II consolidates Crusader Cyprus · Middle East · Politics
Before and after in South Asia
Before and after in War
Era
High Middle Ages (1000–1300), one of 1,306 events from that era on Saeculum.