A Forgotten Empire (Vijayanagar): A Contribution to the History of India c14.43

c14.43

The first act of the new monarch, after "impressing the minds of his people with affection to his government"—probably, that is, after an interval of a few months—was to strengthen his army in order to take revenge for the invasions of the Râya; and having made all preparations he advanced to the attack. Deva Râya's generals collected their troops, sent for aid to Warangal, and marched to the Tungabhadrâ where they encamped. From this it appears that they had retired from the Doâb after their successful raid. The Sultan arrived on the north bank of the river opposite the Hindu camp, and *laagered*, if we may use the term now in fashion. Firishtah says that he "surrounded his camp with carriages (carts and waggons), after the usage of Room (Turkey in Europe), to prevent the enemy's foot from making night-attacks. Here he halted for forty days." We are now, therefore, probably in the dry season at the beginning of the year A.D. 1423, for if the river had been in flood there would have been no fear of the enemy's crossing it. In the early months of the Christian year that river is usually shallow in the open country east of the Hindu capital and away from the hills that surround it, having only thin streams running in its rocky bed. Indeed, Firishtah himself tells us that the river was at that time fordable.