The History of Mubārak Shāh 1: Reign of Sultan Firoz Shah.
Táríkh-i Mubárak Sháhí (extracts) 1
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Reign of Sultan Firoz Shah.
1.1
[In the year 753 H. (1352 A.D.), on the 3rd Jumada-l awwal, Prince Muhammad Khan was born in the capital (shahr). * * In this same year (the Sultan) founded the masjid-i jami' near the palace, and the college at the top of the hauz-i khass ; * * and Kiwamu-l Mulk Makbul, naib-wazir, became wazir of the State, and received the title of Khan-i Jahan. * * In the year 755 H. (1354 A.D.), the Sultan marched with an army against Lakhnauti, leaving Khan-i Jahan at the capital in charge of all affairs of State. * * When he reached Kurakhur, Adi Singh waited upon him, and offering a tribute of twenty lacs of tankas in cash and two elephants, was received into favour. On the 28th Rabi'u-l awwal, he arrived at the fort of Ikdála, and some hard fighting ensued. The Bengalis were defeated, and many were slain. Saha Deo, their leader, with several others, was killed. On the 29th of the month, the army marching from that place, encamped on the banks of the Ganges. Ilyás Hájí was shut up in the fort, and on the 5th Rabi'u-l ákhir, he marched out with his countless Bengali followers and forces. The Sultan marshalled his army, and as soon as Ilyás Hájí beheld it, he was dismayed and fled. The army (of the Sultan) made the attack; the canopy and forty elephants were captured, and innumerable horsemen and infantry became food for the sword. For two days after the Sultan remained encamped, and on the third he marched for Dehli. Some months afterwards he founded the great city Firozabad.
1.2
In the year 756 H. (1355 A.D.), the Sultan proceeded to Dibálpur, and conducted a stream (júi) from the river Satladar (Sutlej), for a distance of forty kos as far as Jhajjar. In the following year he brought the stream of Fírozábád from the mountains of Mandatí (sic) and Sirmor, and having thrown into it seven distinct streams, he conducted it to Hánsí. From thence he led it to Aráman, and there he built a strong fort, which he called Hisar Fírozah. Below the palace (kúshk), he dug an extensive tank, and filled it with the waters of that canal. He formed another canal from the Khakhar (Khagar), to the fort of Sarsutí, and from thence to Harbi-khir. There he built a fortified place which he called Firozabad. He brought another canal from the river Jumna, and threw it into the tank of that city, from whence he carried it on farther. In the month of Zi-l hijja, on the day of the 'I'd-i azha, in the year before named, a robe of honour and a diploma arrived from the Khalifa al Hakim bi amr-illah Abu al Fath Abu Bakr Abu al Rabi' Sulaiman, the Khalifa of Egypt, confirming on (the Sultan) the territories of Hindustan. * * *
1.3
In the year 759 H. (1358 A.D.) * * * an army of Mughals came into the neighbourhood of Dibalpur, and Malik Kabul, Lord of the Bedchamber (sar-parda-dar), was sent against them. Before his forces the Mughals retreated to their own country. * * At the end of this year, Taju-d din Betah, with several other amirs, came from Lakhnauti to Court as envoys, bringing with them presents and tribute, and they received a gracious reception. In the year 760 H. (1359 A.D.), the Sultan marched with a large army against Lakhnauti, leaving Khan-i Jahan in Dehli and Tatar Khan as Shikkdar at Multan, (to guard) the Ghazni frontier. When the Sultan reached Zafarabad, the rains came on, so he halted there. Here he was waited upon by Malik Shaikh-zada Bustami, who had left the country by royal command. He brought a robe of honour from the Khalifa, and the Sultan being graciously disposed towards him, granted him the title of 'Azam Khan. Saiyid Rasuldar, who had come with the envoys from Lakhnauti, was now sent back thither, and Sultan Sikandar again sent him to Court with five elephants and rich presents. But before he arrived, 'Alam Khan came to Court from Lakhnauti, and he was told (by the Sultan) that Sultan Sikandar was foolish and inexperienced, and had strayed from the path of rectitude. The Sultan at first had no desire to draw the sword against him; but as he had not discharged the duties of obedience, he must now understand that the Sultan was marching against him.
1.4
After the rainy season, the Sultan proceeded towards Lakhnauti, and on the way Prince Fath Khan received the insignia of royalty, such as elephants. A coin was struck in his name, and tutors were appointed for him. When the Sultan reached Pandwah, Sultan Sikandar shut himself up in Ikdala, where Sultan Shamsu-d din, his father, had before taken refuge. On the 16th Jumada-l awwal, 761 (5th May, 1360), the Sultan sat down against Ikdala, and passed some days in besieging it. The garrison perceived that they could not withstand the assailants, so they were compelled to capitulate, and seek for peace by sending elephants, treasure, and goods as tribute. On the 20th Jumada-l awwal, the Sultan marched from Ikdala on his return, and when he reached Pandwah, Sultan Sikandar sent him thirty-seven elephants and valuable offerings as tribute. By successive marches he reached Jaunpur, and the rains coming on he rested there. After the rains were over, in the month Zi-l hijja of the same year, he marched with his victorious array by way of Bihar to Jajnagar. Orders were issued that the baggage animals (lashkar-sutur), women, horses out of condition, and weak men should not proceed. Malik Kutbu-d din, brother of Zafar Khan the wazir, was left behind with the elephants and baggage at Karra. The Sultan then marched. When he reached Sikra, he attacked it, and the Rai took to flight. There Shakr Khatun, daughter of Rai Sadhan, with Adayah, was taken prisoner.
1.5
The Sultan placed her in the palace of his daughters. When he advanced farther, he left Malik 'Imadu-l Mulk one stage behind with the prisoners and baggage. At this place Ahmad Khan, who had come up from Lakhnauti, joined the Sultan in the hills of Ranthor, and was received with honour. The Sultan then proceeded to the city of Banarasi, which was the residence of the Rai. Having left the Mahanadi, the Rai had fled to Tilang. The Sultan pursued him for one day's march, but when he found that the Rai was far in advance, he returned. In this neighbourhood he hunted. Rai Bir Bhandeo sent some persons to sue for peace, that his people might not be killed. The Sultan, according to his wont, turned aside, and (the Rai) sent in thirty-three elephants and rich offerings as tribute. From thence the Sultan fell back and hunted in Padmavati and the elephant fields, where he killed two elephants. Afterwards he marched on to Karra, and from Karra he proceeded to Dehli, which he reached in Rajab, 762 H. (1361 A.D.), and entered as a conqueror.
1.6
Some time afterwards he heard that there was in the vicinity of Bardar a hill of earth, through the midst of which a large river flowed and fell into the Satladar (Sutlej). This river was called Sarsuti. On the hither side of the mountain there was a stream called Salimah. If the mountain of earth were cut through, the waters of the Sarsuti would fall into that stream; which would flow through Sihrind (Sirhind) and Mansurpur, and from thence to Sannam, keeping up a perpetual supply. The water was brought, but some time was occupied in cutting through the hill. Sirhind, to as far as within ten kos of Samana, was separated from the shikk of Samana, and given into the charge of Malik Ziau-l Mulk Shamsu-d din Aburja, to bring it into cultivation. A fortress was built there, which received the name of Firozpur.
1.7
When the Sultan saw that the excavation of the mountain was possible, he left the spot and went to Nagarkot, and after conquering it, he proceeded against Thatta. The Jam and Babiniya were in possession of Thatta. By dint of great exertion the place was invested, and fighting went on for some time, but such a scarcity of provender and grain arose in the Sultan's army, that many men died, so that of necessity, and after a great struggle, he was obliged to retreat into Gujarat. After the rainy season, he resolved again to march against Thatta. The fief (ikta') of Gujarat was placed under Zafar Khan, instead of Nizamu-l Mulk, who was dismissed and proceeded with his followers to the capital, where he afterwards became wazir of the State. On the Sultan's reappearing before Thatta, Jam and Babiniya made their submission and waited upon him. They were graciously received, but were carried off with all the chiefs of the country to Dehli. After having for a while shown obedience, the Sultan reinstated the Jam in the fief (ikta') of Thatta, and sent him there in state. In the year 772 H. (1370-1 A.D.), Khan-i Jahan died, and his eldest son Jaunan Shah attained the dignity of Khan-i Jahan. In 773 Zafar Khan died in Gujarat, and his eldest son succeeded him in the fief. In 776, on the 12th of the month of Safar, Prince Fath Khan died at Kanthur. The Sultan was greatly affected by his death, and his constitution received a manifest shock.
1.8
In 778 H. (1376-7 A.D.), Shams Damaghani offered forty lacs of tankas in excess of the revenue paid for Gujarat, 100 elephants, two hundred Arab horses, and four hundred slaves, children of Hindu chiefs (mukaddam bachagan), and Abyssinians annually. Malik Ziau-l Mulk Malik Shamsu-d din Aburja was deputy (of the governor) of Gujarat, and an offer was made to confirm it to him on his consenting to these enhanced terms. But he knew he could not pay them, and that Shams Damaghani had made an extravagant offer, so he refused to accept. Shams Damaghani then received a golden girdle and a silver palankin, and was appointed to Gujarat as deputy of Zafar Khan. When he arrived in Gujarat, wild dreams and fancies entered his brain, and he raised the standard of rebellion, for he found that he could not raise the increased revenue and tribute which he had undertaken to pay. At length the new amirs (amir-i sadah) of Gujarat, such as Malik Shaikhu-l Mulk Fakhru-d din, rebelled against Shams Damaghani in the year 778 H., and having slain him they cut off his head, and sent it to Court. His revolt was thus put down. During the prosperous reign of this good and gracious sovereign, his justice and equity had such an effect over every quarter of his territories, that no rebellion had ever broken out, and no one had been able to turn his feet from the path of obedience until the revolt of this Shams Damaghani, and he quickly received the punishment of his perfidy.
1.9
The frontiers (sarhadd) of the empire were secured by placing them under the charge of great and trusty amirs. Thus on the side of Hindustan, on the Bengal frontier, the fief (ikta') of Karra and Mahoba, and the shikk of Dalamau, were placed under the charge of Maliku-s Shark (Prince of the East) Mardan Daulat, who received the title of Nasiru-l Mulk. The fief (ikta') of Oudh and Sandila, and the shikk of Kol were placed under Malik Hisamu-l Mulk and Hisamu-d din Nawa. The fief of Jaunpur and Zafarabad was given to Malik Bahroz Sultani. The fief of Bihar to Malik Bir Afghan. These nobles showed no laxity in putting down the plots of the infidels, and in making their territories secure. Thus the Sultan had no anxiety about the safety of these parts of his dominions; but on the side of Khurasan there was no amir capable of withstanding the attacks of the Mughals. He was therefore compelled to summon Maliku-s Shark Nasiru-l Mulk from Karra and Mahoba, and to send him to Multan, in order to put down and punish the assaults of these accursed foes. The fiefs (ikta's) of this quarter were conferred upon him, and the fief of Hindustan, that is to say Karra and Mahoba, was also ordered to be confirmed to Maliku-s Shark Shamsu-d din Sulaiman, son of Malik Mardan Daulat. After the murder of Damaghani, the fief of Gujarat was granted to Malik Mufarrih Sultani, who received the title of Farhatu-l Mulk. * * *
1.10
In the year 781 H. (1379 A.D.), the Sultan made a progress towards Samana, and when he arrived there, Malik Kabul Kuran Khwan, amir of the privy council and chief of Samana, presented his tribute, and the Sultan showed him great favour. Passing from thence through Ambala and Shahabad, the Sultan entered the hills of Saharanpur, and after taking tribute from the Rais of Sirmor and the hills, he returned to his capital. Just at this time information came of the rebellion of Khargu, the Hindu chief (mukaddam) of Katehr. This Khargu had invited Saiyid Muhammad, who held the fief of Badaun, and his brother Saiyid 'Alau-d din, to a feast at his house, and had then basely murdered them. In 782 H. (1380 A.D.), the Sultan proceeded there to avenge this murder, and ravaged the district of Katehr. Khargu fled, and took refuge in the mountains of Kamaun, in the country of the Mahtas. The Sultan also attacked them. * * Every year he used to proceed to Katehr, ostensibly to hunt, and that country became so devastated that nothing but game lived there. In 784 H. (1382 A.D.), he built a fortress at Beoli, seven kos from Badaun, and called it Firozpur, but the people named it Akhirin-pur (the last town). The Sultan now grew old and feeble, for his age was nearly ninety years, and Khan-i Jahan, the wazir, exercised unbounded authority. All the affairs of the State were in his hands, and the maliks and amirs were entirely subservient to him.
1.11
If any one opposed him, he got him removed from the presence of the Sultan in any way he could. Some he killed, others he put in confinement. At length it came to this, that whatever Khan-i Jahan said the Sultan used to do. So the affairs of the kingdom fell into disorder, and every day some loss occurred. One day Khan-i Jahan represented to the Sultan that Prince Muhammad Khan had allied himself to certain nobles such as Darya Khan, son of Zafar Khan, amir of Gujarat, Malik Ya'kub Muhammad Haji, master of the horse [etc., etc.], and was on the point of raising a rebellion. As the Sultan had given over everything to the charge of the Khan, he, without thought or consideration, gave the order that they should be taken into custody. When the prince heard this, he did not come to the palace for several days, and although Khan-i Jahan sent for him, he made excuses. Then the Khan, upon the pretext of a balance of accounts, kept Darya Khan, son of Zafar Khan, amir of Mahoba, confined in his house. This alarmed the prince still more, and he made a statement of his position to his father. The Sultan gave orders for the dismissal of Khan-i Jahan, and for the release of Darya Khan. The prince having done this, Malik Ya'kub Beg, master of the horse, brought out all the royal horses, and Malik Kutbu-d din Faramurz, keeper of the elephants, brought out the elephants with their howdas and armour, and took them to the prince.
1.12
The slaves of Sultan Firoz, the amirs, and other people of the city, also joined the prince. In the month of Rajab, 789 (July, Aug., 1387 A.D.), being fully prepared, the prince proceeded late one night, with a large body of men, to the house of Khan-i Jahan. When the Khan heard of their approach, he took Darya Khan, son of Zafar Khan, out of prison and put him to death. Then he came out with a few chosen followers, and was attacked by the prince. Being defeated, he fled to his house, and received a wound as he was entering. Unable to make further resistance, he again left his house with a few followers and fled into Mewat, where he sought refuge with Koka Chauhan, at Mahari. The prince plundered Khan-i Jahan's house of all its gold and wealth, and arms, horses and effects; he then returned with his followers to the palace. Next he caused Malik Bihzad Fath Khan, [and several other adherents of] Khan-i Jahan, to be brought to the palace and to be beheaded. When these proceedings were reported to the Sultan, he gave over his authority to Prince Muhammad Khan, and the maliks and amirs and slaves of Sultan Firoz, and the people in general, rallied round the prince. The Sultan was old and feeble, so of necessity he gave over to the prince the reins of government, with all the horses and elephants, wealth and state. He conferred upon him the title Nasiru-d din Muhammad Shah, and then he retired to his house to serve his God.
1.13
In all the chief mosques throughout the dominions the khutba was repeated in the names of the two sovereigns, and in the month of Sha'ban of the same year Muhammad Khan took his seat upon the throne in the palace of Jahan-numa. The titles and offices, fiefs, and allowances, pensions and gifts, and whatsoever had been enjoyed by any one during the late reign, were confirmed. Malik Ya'kub, master of the horse, was made Sikandar Khan, and received the fief of Gujarat. * * He was then sent with an army to Mahari against Khan-i Jahan. When this force reached Mahari, the accursed Koka seized Khan-i Jahan and sent him prisoner to Sikandar Khan, who killed him, and carried his head to Court. Sikandar Khan then departed to his fief of Gujarat, and the prince devoted himself to the duties of government. In the month of Zi-l ka'da of the same year, he went to the mountains of Sirmor, and there spent two months in hunting the rhinoceros and elk. While thus engaged, information was brought to him of the death of Sikandar Khan, whom Malik Mufarrih, amir of Kambay, and the new amirs of Gujarat, had risen against and slain. The retinue that had marched with him from Court, some of them wounded and some of them despoiled, returned home with Saiyid Sálár. When Prince Muhammad Khán heard this intelligence, he became thoughtful and anxious, and returned to his capital. But he was young and inexperienced, and he gave himself up to pleasure.
1.14
For five months longer the old rules and arrangements kept the affairs of the kingdom in order, but at length great irregularities arose. The slaves of the late Government of Fíroz Sháh, of whom there were about a lac in Dehlí and Fírozábád, stirred up by the opposition shown by Malik Samáu-d dín and Malik Kamálu-d dín, abandoned the prince, and joined themselves to the late sovereign; hence arose contention and strife. When the prince became aware of the facts, he sent Malik Zahíru-d dín Loharí to parley with the insurgents, who had assembled in the maidán; but they pelted him with bricks and stones, and after wounding him they made a display of their force and rejected all propositions for peace. Zahíru-d dín returned wounded to the prince, who was ready for action. He proceeded with all his force of horse and foot, and elephants, to the maidán against the rebels; and when he attacked them, they fled to the palace and sought refuge with the old Sultán. Fighting went on for two days, and on the third the prince was prepared to renew the struggle, when the insurgents brought out the old Sultán from the palace. The soldiers and elephant-drivers, directly they saw the face of their Sultán, deserted the side of the prince and joined themselves to their old master. Finding that he could no longer maintain the struggle, the prince turned and fled with a small band of followers to the mountains of Sirmor. The insurgents plundered his house, and those of his adherents.
1.15
That day tranquillity was restored, and the people were satisfied. The Sultán then appointed Prince Tughlik Sháh, his grandson, son of Fath Khán, to be his heir, and delivered over all the affairs of Government to him. Amír Husain Ahmad Ikbál, son-in-law of the Sultán, who had separated from the party of the prince, was made prisoner, and the prince had him beheaded before the entrance of the palace. Orders were also sent to the new amirs of Samana directing them to seize 'Ali Khan, the amir, and bring him to Court. When he was brought in, the prince sent him away to Bihar, and granted the fief of Samana to Malik Sultan Shah.
1.16
On the 18th Ramazan, 790 H. (26th September, 1388 A.D.), Sultan Firoz died, worn out with weakness. Veracious historians and truthful chroniclers of venerable age have recorded that since the days of Nasiru-d din, son of Shamsu-d din Altamsh, who was a second Naushirwan, there has been no king in Dehli so just and merciful, so kind and religious, or such a builder. His justice won for him the hearts of his subjects. If any poor traveller, by the visitation of God, fell in the road and died, the feudal chiefs, the officers, and the mukaddams having called together the kazis and all Musulmans, they examined the body, and drew up a report under the seal of the kazi, certifying that no mark of a wound was discernible upon the body, and after that they buried it. Thus by inquiries of the kazis, all the injunctions of the law were fulfilled, and it was in no way possible that during the reign of this Sovereign, any strong man could tyrannize over the weak. God Almighty took this gentle, beneficent, and just king to his everlasting rest, after a reign of thirty-seven years and nine months.