The Nāṣirī Generations 237.7

237.7

At page 37 of Part I., he says the Muhammadan period of the history of Bengal may be “conveniently divided into five parts. I. The ‘Initial period,’ or reigns of the governors of Lakhnauti appointed by the Dihli sovereigns, from the conquest of Bengal by Muhammad Bakhtyar Khilji [i. e. Ikhtiyar-ud-Din, Muhammad, son of Bakht-yar-ud-Din, Mahmud, the Khalj] A.D. 1203 to 1338 A.D.” In Part III. of his Contributions page 134 [See also Appendix D, page xxiv.], he criticizes my statement respecting the year of the conquest of Bengal by the Khalj chief, and says it was conquered in 594 H., or A.D. 1198, whilst A. D. 1203, mentioned in the preceding paragraph, is equivalent to 600 H.— a difference of only six years! He also calls these rulers “governors,” and says they were “appointed by the Dihli sovereigns,” but this is erroneous. The Khalj rulers, from the " conquest ” to the acknowledgment of I-yal-timish’s suzerainty by Sultan Ghiyas-ud-Din. ‘Iwaz, in 622 H., were entirely independent of the Dihli rulers with the single exception of the mad-man, ’Ali-i-Mardan. Mr. Blochmann also commences his ‘Initial period’ [Part I., page 38] with “Tughril” in 631 H., but ‘Izz-ud-Din, Tughril-i-Tughan Khan, was the third feudatory of Lakhanawati after the downfall of the Khalj sovereigns. Mr. Blochmann’s List [condensed] is as follows : — “Saifuddin Aibak. Dies at Lakhnauti in 631 H. “Tughril, 631 H., to 5th Zi Qa’dah, 642 H.