The Rashīdī History 3.2
The Tarikh-i-Rashidi (Elias, Ross) 3.2
- Language
- English
3.2.1
Still, after making every allowance, it must be admitted that Mirza Haidar's book has its shortcomings, when viewed as a practical history. His flights of unmeaning rhetoric are, unfortunately, frequent, if scarcely so extravagant as those of most Persian writers. He constantly breaks out into verse, also, though he usually indulges in this form of ornament parenthetically—by way of declamation—and thus only interrupts the course of the narrative, while not marring its sense. His sentences, again, are often involved and his meaning not always apparent. This is more especially the case where he uses the oratio obliqua, and where he puts speeches into the mouths of his characters; but when he confines himself to the direct relation of an event, such as the siege of Yangi-Hisar or the battle of Kanauj, his descriptive power is excellent, and the picture he presents is all that can be desired. On the whole, it may be said that for an author who takes credit to himself (as the Mirza does in his prologue) for being a past master in the art of making verses and in the "epistolary style," his writing is not obscure as Asiatic writings go; and though rather tedious repetitions are found in some of the historical sections, this is a fault on the right side, and causes less embarrassment than when gaps occur in the narrative. These points relate more particularly to the author's style, but the chief imperfections in the work lie deeper.
3.2.2
Perhaps those most to be deplored, are the weakness of the chronology and the looseness with which numbers and measurements are used. The former is a serious blemish, but as it is most marked in the early parts of the history, where the faults can be, to some extent rectified, by references to Chinese and other annals, it is not of vital consequence. A great part of his information having reached him by means of verbal tradition, passed down through three or four generations, the dates, above all, would tend to suffer; while, generally, it may be supposed that Mirza Haidar had scarcely realised, as did Sir Walter Scott, that "tradition is as frequently an inventor of fiction, as a preserver of truth." The second defect is greatly to be regretted, as many interesting passages relating to military operations, the tribes, cities, ruins and curiosities are greatly diminished in value, from the want of accuracy in the figures recorded. The tendency, generally, is to exaggerate freely. A third, but less important deficiency, is the one partially alluded to above—i.e., the want of systematic arrangement into divisions, or sections, the absence of which is the cause of the frequent repetitions that occur, and the involution of one subject with another.
3.2.3
The scope and character of the Tarikh-i-Rashidi may be briefly summarised in much the same way as Dr. Charles Rieu, the learned Keeper of the Oriental Manuscripts at the British Museum, has described it in his official catalogue. It may be regarded as the history of that branch of the Moghul Khans who separated themselves, about the year 1321, from the main stem of the Chaghatai, which was then the ruling dynasty in Transoxiana; and it is the only history known to exist of this branch of the Moghuls. The original, or western line—that of Transoxiana—was at that time declining in power, and through internal dissensions and administrative decay, was rapidly approaching a final dissolution. The princes of the branch then thrown off, became masters of Moghulistan (or Jatah, as it was called at that period) and of all Eastern Turkistan, and continued as a ruling dynasty for more than two and a half centuries. The book is divided into two parts, called Daftar, the first of which is entirely historical, while the second contains reminiscences of the author's life and notices of Chaghatai, Uzbeg and other princes, with whom he was acquainted. The first Part, or history proper, was written in Kashmir in 1544 and 1545, and was completed about February, 1546, or five years after his installation as regent of that country. It includes, however, a later addition, in which 953 of the Hajra (4th March, 1546, to 21st February, 1547) is mentioned as the current year.
3.2.4
For the earlier periods it deals with, it is based on the traditions handed down to the author chiefly by his older relatives, combined with the statements of Sharaf-ud-Din, Yazdi in the prolegomena of the Zafar-Nama; and, for the later periods, on his personal recollections. It contains a record of two distinct and parallel dynasties: (1) that of the Khans of Moghulistan, beginning with Tughluk Timur, who reigned from 1347 to 1362, and whose father, Isan Bugha, was the first to separate from the main Chaghatai stem; and (2) of their vassals, the Dughlat Amirs of Eastern Turkistan, one of the earliest of whom, Amir Bulaji, the author's ancestor, had raised Tughluk Timur to the Khanship. In the second period, the family of the Khans divided into two branches, one of which, superseding the Amirs of Kashghar (or Eastern Turkistan), continued to rule over Moghulistan proper and Eastern Turkistan, with their capital at Kashghar, while the other became rulers of the provinces eastward of Aksu (known as Uighuristan), and had their seat of government usually at Turfan. The author concludes his account of each with a short sketch of their reigning representatives, at the time of writing.
3.2.5
The second Part, which has more than twice the extent of the first, and contains Mirza Haidar's record of his life and times, was the first in point of date. The author wrote it in 1541-42, and, as he states in the Prologue, with a view to preparing himself for the more arduous task of historical composition. It begins with his birth and concludes with an account of his second invasion of Kashmir, when, by a battle fought on the 2nd August, 1541, he became master of the country. This Part includes also some rules of conduct for kings, drawn up at the request of the author, by his spiritual guide, Maulana Muhammad Kazi, whose death, in 1515, is recorded in the preceding passage; while another moral treatise by a holy Shaikh, Shahab-ud-Din Mahmud, styled Khwaja Nura, is inserted in full.
3.2.6
The author is usually known as Mirza Haidar, and in this way he styles himself, though his full name and designation would be Mirza Muhammad Haidar, Dughlat, Kurkan. By some European writers, his usual appellation has been reversed, and he has become Haidar Mirza. In some parts of Asia the distinction would be a wide one; for when "Mirza" is placed before a name, it means merely "Mr." or "Esq.," and has about the same signification as the word "Khan," when used by Persians of the better class, and by Hindustani Musulmans of all classes, at the present day. When placed after a name, it is equivalent to "Prince," and is so used only by persons belonging to a reigning family. In the case of our author either would be suitable, seeing that he was a prince of the branch of Moghul Khans who were, at that time, rulers of the Kashghar province. But his grandfather, who had been one of these rulers, had borne the same names, and seems always to have been styled with the word Mirza at the end—Muhammad Haidar Mirza. It may be as well, therefore, to draw as clear a distinction as possible between him and his grandson. The latter tells us, too, that he was known to his associates by the style of Mirza Haidar, and as he himself uses it, the words may safely be placed in that order.
3.2.7
In recording his own descent, Mirza Haidar describes himself as the son of Muhammad Husain Kurkan, son of Muhammad Haidar Kurkan, son of Amir-i-Kabir Said Ali, son of Amir Ahmad, son of Khudaidad, son of Amir Bulaji. He was born in the year of the Hajra 905 (1499-1500 a.d.) at Tashkand, the capital of the province then known as Shash, where his father, Husain, had been made governor some six years before, by Mahmud, the titular Khan of Moghulistan and Kashghar. The others named in the pedigree were all Amirs of Kashghar, while the earliest of them, Bulaji of the Dughlat tribe, is remembered as being the first of the line to become a Musulman. It was on the side of his mother, Khub Nigar Khanim, that our author was related to the Emperor Baber. She was a daughter of Yunus, Khan of the Moghuls, and a younger sister of Kutlugh Nigar Khanim, the mother of Baber. Mirza Haidar began his life in the midst of strife and adventures. His father — a treacherous and intriguing man — had been convicted of a mischievous plot against Baber at Kabul, but had been pardoned on account of his blood relationship. Shortly afterwards he had fallen into the hands of Shahi Beg Khan (otherwise Shaibani Khan), the Uzbeg leader, and had incurred that chief's suspicion also ; but once more he was permitted to escape, and repaired to Herat, then the capital of Khorasan.
3.2.8
His intriguing nature, however, being thought by Shahi Beg to be dangerous even at a distance, he caused him to be put to death there, after a short time, by emissaries whom he sent for the purpose from Transoxiana. Muhammad Husain had taken with him into exile some members of his family, among whom was our author, then quite a child ; and it appears that after his father's murder, some of the retainers of the family, believing the son to be doomed to a similar fate, had carried him off to Bokhara, and had placed him in concealment there. In 1508, when about nine years of age, he was taken in charge by one of these faithful friends, called Maulana Muhammad (formerly his father's khalifa, or religious guide) who determined to save the child from the death that awaited him at the hands of the relentless Uzbegs, and contrived to escape with him from the city. After a difficult and exciting flight across the hill tracts of Khatlan and Kulab, in the course of which they several times narrowly escaped falling into the hands of hostile Uzbegs, they succeeded in crossing the Oxus into Badakhshan. Here one Khan Mirza, a cousin and dependent of Baber, was at the time the reigning chief, with his capital at Kila Zafar on the Kokcha. He received the fugitives with kindness, and they remained a year with him, when Baber sent to summon them to Kabul. On their arrival, Mirza Haidar was made a member of the Emperor's household, and seems to have been treated with much consideration.
3.2.9
Within a few months, however, Baber had to march northwards against the Uzbegs, whose main force was then at Hisar, and his young cousin accompanied the army. The next two years were stirring times, and Mirza Haidar, if not too young, must have learned much of warfare, as it was conducted in those days in Central Asia.