'Ala al-Din Husain Shah

(?-1519)

   Founder of the Saiyid dynasty of Bengal who came to the throne in 1493 and ruled until 1519. 'Ala al-Din Husain Shah captured the throne by removing from power an Abyssinian slave who had set himself up as the sultan after assassinating the last ruler of the Ilyas Shahi dynasty, Nasir al-Din Mahmud (1490-1491). He disbanded the paiks and Abyssinian slaves who were responsible for the continuing instability in the kingdom of Bengal during the 15th century. The old frontiers of Bengal were restored under 'Ala al-Din Husain, who shifted his capital to Ekdala. Taking advantage of the fall of the Sharqi kingdom of Jaunpur (1479), 'Ala al-Din extended his sway over parts of Bihar, which came to be sealed under the nonaggression agreement of 1495 concluded between him and the Lodi military authorities in Bihar. Under the peaceful and enlightened rule of Ala al-Din Husain Shah, there was a general flowering of the creative genius of medieval Bengal. The Bengali language made tremendous advances, and Hindus came to have a fairly liberal share in the administration and state patronage. For his liberality, 'Ala al-Din Husain Shah came to be called by Hindus an incarnation of Krishna. He is also credited with extending patronage to Chaitanya.