The Memoirs of Bābur 932.6.7

932.6.7

From the time of the revered Prophet down till now[1703] three men from that side[1704] have conquered and ruled Hindūstān. Sl. Maḥmūd _Ghāzī_[1705] was the first, who and whose descendants sat long on the seat of government in Hindūstān. Sl. Shihābu'd-dīn [Sidenote: Fol. 269b.] of Ghūr was the second,[1706] whose slaves and dependants royally shepherded[1707] this realm for many years. I am the third. But my task was not like the task of those other rulers. For why? Because Sl. Maḥmūd, when he conquered Hindūstān, had the throne of Khurāsān subject to his rule, vassal and obedient to him were the sulṯāns of Khwārizm and the Marches (_Dāru'l-marz_), and under his hand was the ruler of Samarkand. Though his army may not have numbered 2 _laks_, what question is there that it[1708] was one. Then again, rājas were his opponents; all Hindūstān was not under one supreme head (_pādshāh_), but each rāja ruled independently in his own country. Sl. Shihābu'd-dīn again,—though he himself had no rule in Khurāsān, his elder brother Ghiyās̱u'd-dīn had it. The _T̤abaqāt-i-nāṣirī_[1709] brings it forward that he once led into Hindūstān an army of 120,000 men and horse in mail.[1710] His opponents also were rāīs and rājas; one man did not hold all Hindūstān.