Jamal-ud-Din Yaqut

Jamal ud-Din Yaqut (also Yakut; died 1240) was an African Siddi slave-turned-nobleman who was a close confidant of Razia Sultana, the first and only female monarch of the Delhi Sultanate in India.

Razia Sultana's patronage made him an influential member of the court, provoking racial antagonism amongst the nobles and clergy, who were both primarily Turkic and already resentful of the rule of a female monarchy.

[2] Yaqut rose in the ranks of the Delhi court, and found favour with the first female monarch of the Mamluk dynasty, Razia Sultana.

Contemporary historians were also conflicted in their assessment — many including Ibn Battuta record that their relationship was illicit and too intimate in public, but others assert that Yaqut was just a close advisor and friend.

[3] A particular incident that provoked the rumors was when Yaqut was observed sliding his arms under the queen's armpits to hoist her onto a horse, which was seen as a flagrant act of intimacy.