Social and Political Life in the Vijayanagara Empire (A.D. 1346 – A.D. 1646) v1.c15.s5: Section 5. A Review of Troops
Social and Political Life in the Vijayanagara Empire (A.D. 1346 – A.D. 1646) v1.c15.s5
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Section 5. A Review of Troops
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One notable feature of the military organization of the Hindu Government was the annual review. This was held at the end of the great Mahānavami festival. Paes writes thus: "When these days of festival are past, the king holds a review of all his forces, and the review is thus arranged. The king commands to pitch his tent of Mecca velvet a full league from the city, at a place already fixed for that purpose; and in this tent they place the idol in honour of which all these festivals are celebrated. From this tent to the king's palace the captains range themselves with their troops and array, each one in his place according to his rank in the king's household. Thus the soldiers stand in line; but it does not appear to you to be only one line but in some places two or three, one behind the other. Where there was a lake it was surrounded with troops, and where the road was narrow they were drawn up on the plain; and so on the slope of the hills and eminences, in such a way that you could see neither plain nor hill that was not entirely covered with troops. Those on foot stood in front of those on horses, and the elephants behind the horses; in this array was each captain with his troops. The captains who had their stations inside the city, since the soldiers could not be drawn up to the flat roofs of the houses put up scaffoldings across the mouths of the streets to hold the troops, in such a way that all were full, both outside and in. . . The king leaves his palace riding on the horse of which I have already told you, clothed in the many rich white cloths, I have mentioned, with two umbrellas of state all gilded and covered with crimson velvet, and with the jewels and adornments which they keep for the purpose of wearing at such times: he who ever wears such jewels can understand the sort of things so great a lord would wear. Then to see the grandeur of the nobles and men of rank, I cannot possibly describe it all, nor should I be believed if I tried to do so; then to see the horses and the armour that they wear, you would see them so covered with metal plates that I have no words to express what I saw, and some hid from me the slight of others; and to try and tell of all I saw is hopeless, for I went along with my head so often turned from one side to the other that I was almost falling backwards off my horse with my senses lost. The cost of it all is not so much to be wondered at, as there is so much money in the land and the chiefs are so wealthy.
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"There went in front of the king many elephants with their coverings and ornaments, as I have said; the king had before him some twenty horses fully caparisoned and saddled, with embroideries of gold and precious stones, that showed off well the grandeur and state of their lord. Close to the king went a cage such as is seen at Lisbon on the day of the Corpo de Dios festival, and it was gilded and very large; it seemed to me to be made of copper or silver; it was carried by sixteen men, eight on each side, besides others who took their turns, and in it is carried the idol of which I have already spoken. Thus accompanied the king passed along gazing at his soldiers, who gave great shouts and cries and struck their shields; the horses neighed, the elephants screamed, so that it seemed as if the city would be overturned, the hills and valleys and all the ground trembled with the discharges of arms and muskets; and to see the bombs and fire-missiles over the plains, this was indeed wonderful. Truly it seemed as if the whole world were collected there.
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"In this way it went on till the king arrived at the place where the tent was that I have already mentioned, and he entered this and performed his usual ceremonies and prayers. You must not think that when the king passed the troops moved from their positions, on the contrary they stood motionless in their places till the king returned. As soon as the king had finished his ceremonies he again took horse and returned to the city in the same way he had come, the troops never wearying of their shouting; as soon as he passed by them they began to march. Then to see those who were on the hills and slopes, and the descent of them with their shouts and beating of shields and shaking of arrows and bows that were without count. Truly, I was so carried out with myself that it seemed as if what I saw was a vision, and that I was in a dream. Then the troops began to march to their tents and pavilions in the plains, which were great in number; and all the captains accompanied the king as far as the palace, and thence departed to rest themselves from their labour”.¹
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¹ Sewell, For. Emp., pp. 275-9.
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The grand military pageant in the reign of Kṛṣṇa Dēva Rāya the Great, as described by Paes, seems to have struck the foreign travellers with its orderliness and magnificence. One does not find a similar picture of the Emperor Achyuta from the pen of Nuniz; “And after these nine days are finished the Rao rides out and goes to hold a review of the troops of his captains, and he goes a length of two leagues between the armed men. At the end he dismounts and takes a bow in his hand and shoots three arrows, namely one for the Yadallcão (Ādil Shāh), and another for the King of Catamuloco (Qutb Shāh of Golkonda), and yet another for the Portuguese; it was his custom to make war on the kingdom lying in the direction where the arrow reached furthest. After this is done the King returns home, and on that day he fasts and with him all the people of the land. . .”² Now, we know that the Vijayanagara monarchs did not allow their discretion to be directed by their bows and arrows. Paes, who was also an eye-witness of the review, does not mention this incident. But the fiction of the arrow must have been circulated among the foreigners, for Barbosa speaks of it but on an altogether different occasion. We shall presently cite his evidence. For the present, we may note that the observations of Nuniz relating to the arrows savour more of superstition rather than of personal observation.
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² Ibid., pp. 378-9.