The Administration of the Sultanate of Dehli c9.30

c9.30

Almost equal in importance and rank was the amīr ḥājib who was also styled bārbek.¹ European authorities generally call him ‘the chief chamberlain’—a term which does not exactly connote the functions and duties of this office.² The bārbek was the master of ceremonies at the court; it was his duty to marshal the nobles and the officials in accordance with the precedence of their rank and to safeguard the dignity of all royal functions. His assistants—the ḥājibs—stood between the sovereign and his subjects and nobody could enter the royal presence without being introduced by them.³ They conveyed messages from their royal master to suppliants and officials.⁴ All petitions were presented to the sultan through the amīr ḥājib or his subordinates.⁵ “The affairs of all grades of men were managed through the bestowal of his indulgent attention.”⁶ His post, therefore, commanded great prestige, and was generally reserved for princes of royal blood or the sultan's most trusted nobles.⁷ Even the nā’ib bārbek, whose duty was to assist the superior officer, was often a near relation or a friend of the sultan.⁸ It was one of his special duties to make arrangements for the more important celebrations.⁹ Sometimes a nā’ib bārbek was associated with some other noble to act as the sultan's deputy in his absence from the capital.¹⁰ The monarch had practically always a few ḥājibs in attendance, and one or two of these waited on him when he was alone or even closeted with his nobles in consultation. Probably these selected ḥājibs were styled *khāṣ ḥājib*.¹ Some leading ḥājibs were given special titles, such as *sayyid-u'l-ḥujjāb* or *sharaf-u'l-ḥujjāb*.² The ḥājibs were mostly trained soldiers and were often entrusted with the command of military expeditions.³ When the sultan in person took the field, the ḥājibs acted as his *aides-de-camp*.⁴ One of the ḥājibs was assigned the duty of making inventories of all presents received by the monarch and was called *ḥājib-i-faṣl*.⁵ The leading ḥājibs were often invited by the monarch to attend councils of war and their advice carried weight.⁶ Except those who were on the lower rungs of the service, they were important officials of state and were by no means merely courtiers or household officers.⁷ It is not surprising, therefore, that some *amīr ḥājibs* seized the regency under weak monarchs.⁸