Life and Conditions of the People of Hindustan (1200–1550 A.D.) c7.s4.t1.1

c7.s4.t1.1

A. Public appearance and behaviour.—We have already said something about the Sultan and the distinctions and honours of the nobility. The rest of the people were guided by the behaviour and manners of the higher classes. The adage, that gravity and appearance maketh a man, was widely popular. It was commonly believed that the inaccessibility of a monarch was his most useful asset. People honoured him because they could view him only from a respectable distance.⁵ We have already said that when noblemen went out they were conveyed in rich palanquins and were usually preceded by chargers with costly trappings and were surrounded by a crowd of retainers, composed of horsemen, footmen, horn-blowers, torch-bearers, musicians, and servants. In special cases, the nobles had the further right of having drums beaten in their procession when they were moving about outside the capital city.¹