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TNPSC medieval India history practice questions

By the PrepMatic team · Updated 9 Oct 2026 · 3 min read

Medieval India is the middle slice of the history and culture unit, which carries about 10 of the 75 General Studies questions in the Group 4 and Group 2 prelims papers. The questions are usually about rulers, battles and reforms, plus a Tamil Nadu connection through the Vijayanagara Empire and the Nayaks. The five questions below follow those lines. More on the whole subject is in TNPSC History and Indian National Movement.

What this topic covers

• The Delhi Sultanate: the five dynasties, their rulers and reforms.
• The Mughals: Babur to Aurangzeb, the administration and the land revenue system.
• Regional kingdoms: Vijayanagara and the Bahmani kingdom.
• Culture and religion: the Bhakti and Sufi movements, architecture, language and literature.

Sample questions

Question 1

The founder of the Delhi Sultanate (the Slave dynasty) was:

• A. Iltutmish
• B. Balban
• C. Qutb-ud-din Aibak
• D. Alauddin Khilji

Question 2

In the First Battle of Panipat (1526), Babur defeated:

• A. Rana Sanga
• B. Ibrahim Lodi
• C. Hemu
• D. Sher Shah

Question 3

Akbar's land revenue system was developed with the help of:

• A. Birbal
• B. Abul Fazl
• C. Man Singh
• D. Raja Todar Mal

Question 4

The Vijayanagara Empire was founded in 1336 by:

• A. Krishnadevaraya
• B. Deva Raya II
• C. Harihara and Bukka
• D. Rama Raya

Question 5

The silver coin called the rupiya was first issued by:

• A. Sher Shah Suri
• B. Akbar
• C. Alauddin Khilji
• D. Muhammad bin Tughluq

Answers and explanations

1. C. Qutb-ud-din Aibak, a former slave of Muhammad of Ghor, became the first Sultan of Delhi in 1206. Iltutmish, his son-in-law, consolidated the Sultanate after him.
2. B. Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi, the last Lodi Sultan, in 1526 and founded the Mughal Empire. Rana Sanga was defeated at the Battle of Khanwa in 1527, and Hemu was defeated at the Second Battle of Panipat in 1556.
3. D. Raja Todar Mal, Akbar's finance minister, devised the revenue settlement that measured the land and fixed the revenue by the crop and its price over ten years (the dahsala system).
4. C. The brothers Harihara and Bukka founded Vijayanagara on the Tungabhadra in 1336. Krishnadevaraya (1509 to 1529) was its greatest ruler.
5. A. Sher Shah Suri introduced a standardised silver coin, the rupiya, which gave India's present-day currency its name. Muhammad bin Tughluq is known for his token coins.

How to prepare medieval India

Divide the period into three blocks: the Delhi Sultanate (1206 to 1526), the Mughals (1526 to 1707 and the decline after) and the regional states, of which Vijayanagara matters most for Tamil Nadu candidates. For each block, make a ruler table like the one above, with one action per ruler. This is enough for most questions.

Revise the administrative terms in pairs, since TNPSC asks for the meaning: mansab (rank) and zabt (measurement), jagir and zamindar, iqta and khalisa. A page of twenty such terms gives dependable marks.

Link medieval history to culture. The Bhakti movement (Ramananda, Kabir, Chaitanya, Mirabai) had its South Indian roots in the Alvars and Nayanmars, which connect to Tamil Nadu history. Vijayanagara rule leads directly to the Nayaks of Madurai, Thanjavur and Gingee, covered in TNPSC Nayaks and Europeans practice.

Preceding period: TNPSC ancient India practice. Next: TNPSC modern India practice.

Take the full topic test on PrepMatic

A PrepMatic topic test of about 15 questions in 30 minutes lets you check medieval history without sitting a whole mock. Combine the topic test with a full-length mock that follows the Group 4 pattern every two or three weeks, so that you keep an eye on your overall General Studies accuracy.

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