A Forgotten Empire (Vijayanagar): A Contribution to the History of India c21.s3.t15.8

c21.s3.t15.8

Which King Chytarao, after he ascended the throne, gave himself over to vice and tyranny. He is a man of very little honesty, and on account of this the people and the captains are much discontented with his evil life and inclinations; for he has never done anything except those things that are desired by his two brothers-in-law,⁵ who are men very evilly disposed and great Jews. By reason of this the Ydalcão, learning of how little weight he was, determined to make war on him, believing that he would easily succeed since the King was not inclined to war; so he made his forces ready, and began to invade the King's territory, and arrived within a league of the city of Bisnaga. Chetarao was in the city with such great forces and power that he could easily have captured him if his heart had allowed him to take action, since the Ydallcão had with him only 12,000 foot and 30,000 horse; yet with this small force the Ydallcão entered Nagallapor a league from Bisnaga and razed it to the ground. The King never tried to go out against him, nor had he the stomach for a fight, and there were only small skirmishes by some captains, good horsemen. These spoke to the King, asking that His Highness would give them leave to attack, and saying that his own presence was unnecessary for so slight an affair; but the King was terrified, and by the advice of his brothers-in-law (of which they gave not a little) decided to send and make peace with the Ydallcão. The Ydallcão was very glad and made a peace with him which was to last for a hundred years, on condition that the King should give him ten *lakhs* of gold *pardaos*, each *lakh* being 100,000 *pardaos*, and further should yield up to him the city of Rachol which the King Crisnarao had taken from him, and which had a revenue with its lands of 150,000 *pardaos*, as well as jewels which could easily be valued at a *lakh*. The King accepted these terms, and the Ydallcão departed well pleased with this money; and after all was done the King sent to him a diamond stone weighing 130 *mangellinis*,¹ with fifteen other similar ones worth fully a *lakh*. This money he soon afterwards recovered and put in his treasury, exacting payments from his captains and people so ruthlessly that they say that in six months he had recovered and put the whole in his treasury.