Razia Sultana
The death of Iltutmish was followed by years of political instability at Delhi. During this period, four descendants of Iltutmish were put on the throne and murdered. In the 1220s, Iltutmish had groomed his eldest son "Malikus Sa'id" [[Nasiruddin Mahmud (son of Iltutmish)|Nasiruddin Mahmud]] as his successor, but Nasiruddin died unexpectedly in 1229. While leaving for his Gwalior campaign in 1231, Iltutmish had left Delhi's administration to his daughter [[Razia Sultana|Razia]]. Her effective administration prompted him to declare her as his [[heir apparent]] in 1231, upon his return from Gwalior. However, shortly before his death, Iltutmish seems to have chosen his surviving eldest son [[Rukn ud din Firuz|Ruknuddin Firuz]] as his successor. When Iltutmish died, the nobles unanimously appointed Ruknuddin as the new king.