Social and Political Life in the Vijayanagara Empire (A.D. 1346 – A.D. 1646) v1.c9.s5.93

v1.c9.s5.93

It is this particular point in the history of Vijayanagara that has been ignored by most of the writers on south Indian history. The contemporary witness who supplies us with a most interesting detail about the great battle of Rākshasa-Taṅgaḍi is Caesar Frederick, who visited the capital in A.D. 1567. This shrewd traveller thus observes: "The Citie of Bezeneger was sacked in the yeere 1565 by foure Kings of the Moores, which were of great power and might. . . . And yet these foure Kings were not able to overcome this Citie and the King of Bezeneger, but by treason. This King of Bezeneger was a Gentile, and had, amongst all other of his Captaines, two which were notable, and they were Moores: and these two Captaines had either of them in charge threescore and ten or fourscore thousand men. These two Captaines being of one Religion with the foure Kings which were Moores, wrought meanes with them to betray their owne King into their hands. The King of Bezeneger esteemed not the force of the foure Kings his enemies, but went out of his Citie to wage battell with them in the fields; and when the Armies were joyned, the battell lasted but a while, not the space of foure houres, because the two traiterous Captaines, in the chiefest of the fight, with their companies turned their faces against their King, and made such disorder in his Armie, that as astonished they set themselves to flight".⁴ It was only when the tide of battle turned through the treachery of two Muhammadan captains, —one of whom 'Ain-ul-Mulk, according to Heras, "seems to have come from a family of traitors",⁵ —that "Rama Raya then attempted to make his escape on foot" only to be seized by an elephant before he was taken to the presence of Husain Nizam Shah.⁶ Husain Nizam Shah beheaded the venerable prisoner with his own hand, exclaiming: 'Now I am avenged on thee! Let God do what he will to me'." This seemingly lengthy digression into the details of the action which shattered the magnificence of Vijayanagara explains the alleged desertion by the Hindu leader and the commandant of the troops.