When did the Bidar Sultanate exist?

The Bidar Sultanate existed 1489–1619. On this map it is drawn 1492–1618.

How large was the Bidar Sultanate?

At its greatest extent drawn on this map, the Bidar Sultanate covered about 64,000 km². That is the largest area the border data gives it across the years it is drawn, not necessarily its greatest extent in history.

South Asia · Sultanates and the south

Bidar Sultanate

Sultanate · 1489–1619

Founded in 1492 by Qasim Barid I, a Sunni Turk who entered Bahmani service under Muhammad Shah III, rose from sar-naubat to kotwal of Bidar (rewarded for aiding the Deccanis in the massacre of "foreigners" at Bidar) and finally became mir-jumla (prime minister). Under Mahmood Shah Bahmani II (r. 1482–1518) he was de facto ruler of the dying Bahmani state.

See it on the map → Wikipedia ↗

Type: Sultanate
Existed: 1489–1619
Shown on the map: 1492–1618
Heartland: central Deccan (northeastern Karnataka), centered on Bidar
Peak area: c. 64,000 km²
Region: South Asia

Origins and founding

Capitals and territory

Bidar, the former Bahmani capital, remained the capital throughout. Territory corresponded roughly to one of the five Bahmani provinces — the smallest of the Deccan sultanates, squeezed between Ahmadnagar, Bijapur and Golconda.

Major rulers and key events

Amir Barid I (1504–1542) reduced four successive Bahmani sultans to puppets; when the last Bahmani, Kalimullah, fled in 1527, Amir became practically independent but never assumed a royal title. His son Ali Barid Shah I (1542–1580) was the first to take the title "Shah" and joined the Deccan coalition that defeated Vijayanagara at Talikota in January 1565. After 1580 a churn of short reigns followed — Ibrahim (1580–1587), Qasim II (1587–1591), the infant Ali Barid II, Amir Barid II (1591–1601), Mirza Ali Barid (1601–1609) — ending with Amir Barid Shah III (1609–1619), who fought the Mughals in 1616 alongside Malik Ambar.

Government, economy and culture

Sunni monarchy with Persian as official language and Deccani Urdu in common use; currency included the mohur. The Barid Shahis added considerably to Bidar Fort and built the splendid Barid Shahi tombs, employing Hindu architects and engineers, which produced an amalgam of Hindu and Islamic features. Bidar was also celebrated for its bidriware tradition and coloured-tile calligraphy.

Decline and end

In 1619 Ibrahim Adil Shah II of Bijapur defeated Amir Barid III and annexed Bidar; the sultan and his sons were taken to Bijapur and kept "under surveillance."

Legacy and significance

The Barid Shahi tombs and Bidar Fort survive as major monuments of Deccani architecture, and the dynasty illustrates how ministerial families inherited the fragments of the Bahmani state.

Common questions

What was the Bidar Sultanate?: Founded in 1492 by Qasim Barid I, a Sunni Turk who entered Bahmani service under Muhammad Shah III, rose from sar-naubat to kotwal of Bidar (rewarded for aiding the Deccanis in the massacre of "foreigners" at Bidar) and finally became mir-jumla (prime minister). Under Mahmood Shah Bahmani II (r. 1482–1518) he was de facto ruler of the dying Bahmani state.
When did the Bidar Sultanate exist?: The Bidar Sultanate existed 1489–1619. On this map it is drawn 1492–1618.
How large was the Bidar Sultanate?: At its greatest extent drawn on this map, the Bidar Sultanate covered about 64,000 km². That is the largest area the border data gives it across the years it is drawn, not necessarily its greatest extent in history.
Where was the Bidar Sultanate?: Bidar, the former Bahmani capital, remained the capital throughout. Territory corresponded roughly to one of the five Bahmani provinces — the smallest of the Deccan sultanates, squeezed between Ahmadnagar, Bijapur and Golconda.
Who ruled the Bidar Sultanate?: Amir Barid I (1504–1542) reduced four successive Bahmani sultans to puppets; when the last Bahmani, Kalimullah, fled in 1527, Amir became practically independent but never assumed a royal title. His son Ali Barid Shah I (1542–1580) was the first to take the title "Shah" and joined the Deccan coalition that defeated Vijayanagara at Talikota in January 1565.
How did the Bidar Sultanate end?: In 1619 Ibrahim Adil Shah II of Bijapur defeated Amir Barid III and annexed Bidar; the sultan and his sons were taken to Bijapur and kept "under surveillance."
How was the Bidar Sultanate governed?: Sunni monarchy with Persian as official language and Deccani Urdu in common use; currency included the mohur. The Barid Shahis added considerably to Bidar Fort and built the splendid Barid Shahi tombs, employing Hindu architects and engineers, which produced an amalgam of Hindu and Islamic features.
Why does the Bidar Sultanate still matter?: The Barid Shahi tombs and Bidar Fort survive as major monuments of Deccani architecture, and the dynasty illustrates how ministerial families inherited the fragments of the Bahmani state.

Sources

Every source below was consulted while writing this entry.

Wikipedia: Bidar Sultanate en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bidar_Sultanate

This entry was written from the sources above and last updated 10 September 2026.

This entry was researched and drafted with AI from the sources above, and has not been reviewed by a historian. How entries are made

Text available under CC BY-SA 4.0: reuse it with a credit to The World Through Time and a link to this page. Passages drawing on the Wikipedia articles listed above are also licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 by their contributors.

Border geometry for the map itself comes from Cliopatria v0.12 (Seshat Global History Databank, CC-BY-4.0).

See the Bidar Sultanate in its world

Open the atlas at 1555 and every neighbour, rival and successor is on screen with it — then drag the slider and watch what happens next.

Open the map at 1555 →