NCERT Solutions for Class 8th Social Science Chapter 2 Reshaping India's Political Map
Updated on 2026-09-19
About this chapter
The chapter calls this the latter part of the ‘medieval period’ — a European term the book uses only loosely, for the 11th to 17th centuries, warning that historians do not agree on which period it covers in India. The Delhi Sultanate (from 1206) saw five successive dynasties of Turkic–Afghan origin — Mamluks, Khiljis, Tughlaqs, Sayyids, Lodis. Almost two sultans out of three seized power by eliminating their predecessor, so the average reign was hardly more than nine years . Resistance came from many quarters: the Eastern Gangas under Narasimhadeva I, the Hoysalas , the Musunuri Nayakas , Rana Kumbha and Maharana Pratap of Mewar, Rani Durgavati , the Jat peasantry, tribal groups, the Ahoms and the Sikhs . In the south, Vijayanagara (from 1336) peaked under Krishnadevaraya , then lost the
- Theme: Tapestry of the Past
- Rise and Fall of the Delhi Sultanate
- Resistance to the Delhi Sultanate
- The Vijayanagara Empire
- Krishnadevaraya
- The Mughals
- Akbar
- Aurangzeb
- The Ahoms
- The Rise of the Sikhs
Quick revision
| Term | What it means | Where it shows up in this chapter | Page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sultanate | A territory ruled by a ‘Sultan’ — a title that some Muslim rulers adopted | The Delhi Sultanate, formed after the defeat of Prithviraj Chauhan in 1192 | Page 25 |
| Turkic | Peoples, languages and cultures historically associated with a region stretching across Central Asia to Turkey and Siberia | Many of the invaders of this period were Central Asian — Turkic or Afghan | Page 23 |
| Token currency | Cheap copper coins declared to have the value of silver or gold coins | Muhammad bin Tughlaq's scheme; it encouraged counterfeiting and the economy declined | Page 27 |
| Iconoclasm | The rejection or destruction of icons or religious images considered idolatrous | Attacks on images in Buddhist, Jain and Hindu temples | Page 28 |
| Infidel | Someone who does not share the faith of a given religion | Timur's stated aim: “war with the infidels and to gain something by plundering” | Page 28 |
| Jizya | A tax on non-Muslim subjects to grant them protection and exemption from military service | Imposed by some sultans; abolished by Akbar; reimposed by Aurangzeb | Pages 28, 38, 43 |
| Rana | A title often used for Rajput kings | Rana Kumbha of Mewar, builder of Kumbhalgarh; Rana Sanga | Page 30 |
| Jauhar | Rajput women entering mass fires to avoid being captured and enslaved | Hundreds of women at Chittorgarh when Akbar breached the fort | Page 38 |
| Sulh-i-kul | Literally ‘peace with all’ — tolerance of all faiths | The doctrine Akbar promoted along with abolishing the jizya | Page 38 |
| Guerrilla warfare | Small groups with knowledge of the terrain carrying out surprise attacks and ambushes to defeat bigger armies | Maharana Pratap in the Aravallis; the Ahoms in Assam | Page 47 |
| Paik system | Every able-bodied man gave the state labour or military duty in exchange for land rights | How the Ahom rulers kept a large force without a permanent army | Page 48 |
| Iqta | Territories assigned to nobles (iqtadars) to collect taxes for the Sultan's treasury; the posts were not hereditary | The Sultanate's main instrument for paying for its army | Page 53 |
| Mansabdari | Officers (mansabdars) kept a set number of elephants, horses, camels and troops according to their mansab (rank) | Akbar's system, recorded by Abul Fazl in the Ain-i-Akbari; mansabdars were paid in jagirs | Page 54 |
| Hundi | A written instruction to make payment to an individual, which could be carried across political borders | Let merchants move money without carrying currency — a precursor to modern banking | Page 57 |
Exercises
- Theme: Tapestry of the Past — The Big Questions Page 21
- Rise and Fall of the Delhi Sultanate — LET'S EXPLORE Page 26
- Rise and Fall of the Delhi Sultanate — LET'S EXPLORE Page 26
- Rise and Fall of the Delhi Sultanate — THINK ABOUT IT Page 28
- Resistance to the Delhi Sultanate — THINK ABOUT IT Page 29
- Resistance to the Delhi Sultanate — LET'S EXPLORE Page 31
- The Vijayanagara Empire — THINK ABOUT IT Page 32
- Krishnadevaraya — LET'S EXPLORE Page 35
- The Mughals — THINK ABOUT IT Page 37
- Akbar — THINK ABOUT IT Page 40
- Akbar — LET'S EXPLORE Page 41
- Aurangzeb — THINK ABOUT IT Page 43
- Aurangzeb — LET'S EXPLORE Page 45
- The Ahoms — LET'S EXPLORE Page 48
- The Ahoms — LET'S EXPLORE Page 49
- The Rise of the Sikhs — DON'T MISS OUT Page 51
- The Rise of the Sikhs — THINK ABOUT IT Page 52
- End of chapter — Questions and activities Page 59