The Bābur-nāma in English (Memoirs of Bābur)
ready, let them swarm up into the fort."
(_Jan. 7th_) At the first dawn of light (_farẓ waqt_) on Friday the 5th
of Muḥarram, orders were given that, when the battle-nagarets had
sounded, the army should advance, each man from his place to his
appointed post (_yīrlīk yīrdīn_) and should swarm up. The left and
centre advanced from their ground with mantelets in place all along
their lines, fixed their ladders, and swarmed up them. The whole left
hand of the centre, under Khalīfa, Shāh Ḥasan _Arghūn_ and Yūsuf's
Aḥmad, was ordered to reinforce the left wing. Dost Beg's men went
forward to the foot of the north-eastern tower of the fort, and busied
themselves in undermining and bringing it down. Ustād `Alī-qulī was
there also; he shot very well on that day with his matchlock, and he
twice fired off the _firingī_.[1363] Walī the Treasurer also brought
down a man with his matchlock. Malik `Alī _quṯnī_[1364] was first up a
ladder of all the men from the left hand of the centre, and there was
busy with fight and blow. At the post of the centre, Muḥ. `Alī
_Jang-jang_[1365] and his younger brother Nau-roz got up, each by a
different ladder, and made lance and sword to touch. Bābā the waiting
man (_yasāwal_), getting up by another ladder, occupied himself in
breaking down the fort-wall with his [Sidenote: Fol. 218.] axe. Most of
our braves went well forward, shooting off dense flights of arrows and
not letting the enemy put out a head; others made themselves desperately
busy in breaching and pulling down the fort, caring naught for the
enemy's fight and blow, giving no eye to his arrows and stones. By
breakfast-time Dost Beg's men had undermined and breached the
north-eastern tower, got in and put the foe to flight. The men of the
centre got in up the ladders by the same time, but those (_aūl_) others
were first (_awwal_?) in.[1366] By the favour and pleasure of the High
God, this strong and mighty fort was taken in two or three astronomical
hours! Matching the fort were the utter struggle and effort of our
braves; distinguish themselves they did, and won the name and fame of
heroes.
As the Bajaurīs were rebels and at enmity with the people of Islām, and
as, by reason of the heathenish and hostile customs prevailing in their
midst, the very name of Islām was rooted out from their tribe, they were
put to general massacre and their wives and children were made captive.
At a guess more than 3000 men went to their death; as the fight did not
reach to the eastern side of the fort, a few got away there.
The fort taken, we entered and inspected it. On the walls, in houses,
streets and alleys, the dead lay, in what numbers! Comers and goers to
and fro were passing over the bodies. [Sidenote: Fol. 218b.] Returning
from our inspection, we sat down in the Bajaur sulṯān's residence. The
country of Bajaur we bestowed on Khwāja Kalān,[1367] assigning a large
number of braves to reinforce him. At the Evening Prayer we went back to
camp.
(_b. Movements in Bajaur._)
(_Jan. 8th_) Marching at dawn (Muḥ. 6th), we dismounted by the
spring[1368] of Bābā Qarā in the dale of Bajaur. At Khwāja Kalān's
request the prisoners remaining were pardoned their offences, reunited
to their wives and children, and given leave to go, but several sulṯāns
and of the most stubborn were made to reach their doom of death. Some
heads of sulṯāns and of others were sent to Kābul with the news of
success; some also to Badakhshān, Qūndūz and Balkh with the
letters-of-victory.
Shāh Manṣūr _Yūsuf-zāī_,—he was with us as an envoy from his
tribe,—[1369] was an eye-witness of the victory and general massacre. We
allowed him to leave after putting a coat (_tūn_) on him and after
writing orders with threats to the Yūsuf-zāī.
(_Jan. 11th_) With mind easy about the important affairs of the Bajaur
fort, we marched, on Tuesday the 9th of Muḥarram, one _kuroh_ (2 m.)
down the dale of Bajaur and ordered that a tower of heads should be set
up on the rising-ground.
(_Jan. 12th_) On Wednesday the 10th of Muḥarram, we rode out to visit
the Bajaur fort. There was a wine-party in Khwāja Kalān's house,[1370]
several goat-skins of wine having been brought down by Kāfirs
neighbouring on Bajaur. All wine and fruit [Sidenote: Fol. 219.] had in
Bajaur comes from adjacent parts of Kāfiristān.
(_Jan. 13th_) We spent the night there and after inspecting the towers
and ramparts of the fort early in the morning (Muḥ. 11th), I mounted and
went back to camp.
(_Jan. 14th_) Marching at dawn (Muḥ. 12th), we dismounted on the bank of
the Khwāja Khiẓr torrent.[1371]
(_Jan. 15th_) Marching thence, we dismounted (Muḥ. 13th) on the bank of
the Chandāwal torrent. Here all those inscribed in the Bajaur
reinforcement, were ordered to leave.
(_Jan. 16th_) On Sunday the 14th of Muḥarram, a standard was bestowed on
Khwāja Kalān and leave given him for Bajaur. A few days after I had let
him go, the following little verse having come into my head, it was
written down and sent to him:—[1372]
Not such the pact and bargain betwixt my friend and me,
At length the tooth of parting, unpacted grief for me!
Against caprice of Fortune, what weapons (_chāra_) arm the man?
At length by force of arms (_ba jaur_) my friend is snatched from me!
(_Jan. 19th_) On Wednesday the 17th of Muḥarram, Sl. `Alā'u'd-dīn of
Sawād, the rival (_mu`āriẓ_) of Sl. Wais of Sawād,[1373] came and waited
on me.
(_Jan. 20th_) On Thursday the 18th of the month, we hunted the hill
between Bajaur and Chandāwal.[1374] There the _būghū-marāl_[1375] have
become quite black, except for the tail which is of another colour;
lower down, in Hindūstān, they seem to become black all over.[1376]
Today a _sārīq-qūsh_[1377] was taken; that was black all over, its very
eyes being black! Today an eagle (_būrkūt_)[1378] took a deer (_kīyīk_).
Corn being somewhat scarce in the army, we went into the Kahrāj-valley,
and took some. [Sidenote: Fol. 219b.]
(_Jan. 21st_) On Friday (Muḥ. 19th) we marched for Sawād, with the
intention of attacking the Yūsuf-zāī Afghāns, and dismounted in
between[1379] the water of Panj-kūra and the united waters of Chandāwal
and Bajaur. Shāh Manṣūr _Yūsuf-zāī_ had brought a few well-flavoured and
quite intoxicating confections (_kamālī_); making one of them into
three, I ate one portion, Gadāī T̤aghāī another, `Abdu'l-lāh the
librarian another. It produced remarkable intoxication; so much so that
at the Evening Prayer when the begs gathered for counsel, I was not able
to go out. A strange thing it was! If in these days[1380] I ate the
whole of such a confection, I doubt if it would produce half as much
intoxication.
(_c. An impost laid on Kahrāj._)
(_Jan. 22nd_) Marching from that ground, (Muḥ. 20th), we dismounted over
against Kahrāj, at the mouth of the valleys of Kahrāj and
Peshgrām.[1381] Snow fell ankle-deep while we were on that ground; it
would seem to be rare for snow to fall thereabouts, for people were much
surprised. In agreement with Sl. Wais of Sawād there was laid on the
Kahrāj people an impost of 4000 ass-loads of rice for the use of the
army, and he himself was sent to collect it. Never before had those rude
mountaineers borne such a burden; they could not give (all) the grain
and were brought to ruin.
(_cc. Raid on Panj-kūra._)
(_Jan. 25th_) On Tuesday the 23rd of Muḥarram an army was [Sidenote:
Fol. 220.] sent under Hindū Beg to raid Panj-kūra. Panj-kūra lies more
than half-way up the mountain;[1382] to reach its villages a person must
go for nearly a _kuroh_ (2 m.) through a pass. The people had fled and
got away; our men brought a few beasts of sorts, and masses of corn from
their houses.
(_Jan. 26th_) Next day (Muḥ. 24th) Qūj Beg was put at the head of a
force and sent out to raid.
(_Jan. 27th_) On Thursday the 25th of the month, we dismounted at the
village of Māndīsh, in the trough of the Kahrāj-valley, for the purpose
of getting corn for the army.
(_d. Māhīm's adoption of Dil-dār's unborn child._)
(_Jan. 28th_) Several children born of Humāyūn's mother had not lived.
Hind-āl was not yet born.[1383] While we were in those parts, came a
letter from Māhīm in which she wrote, "Whether it be a boy, whether it
be a girl, is my luck and chance; give it to me; I will declare it my
child and will take charge of it." On Friday the 26th of the month, we
being still on that ground, Yūsuf-i-`alī the stirrup-holder was sent off
to Kābul with letters[1384] bestowing Hind-āl, not yet born, on Māhīm.
(_dd. Construction of a stone platform._)
While we were still on that same ground in the Māndīsh-country, I had a
platform made with stones (_tāsh bīla_) on a height in the middle of the
valley, so large that it held the tents of the advance-camp. All the
household and soldiers carried the stones for it, one by one like ants.
(_e. Bābur's marriage with his Afghān wife, Bībī Mubāraka._)
In order to conciliate the Yūsuf-zāī horde, I had asked for a daughter
of one of my well-wishers, Malik Sulaimān Shāh's son Malik Shāh Manṣūr,
at the time he came to me as envoy [Sidenote: Fol. 220b.] from the
Yūsuf-zāī Afghāns.[1385]
While we were on this ground news came that his daughter[1386] was on
her way with the Yūsuf-zāī tribute. At the Evening Prayer there was a
wine-party to which Sl. `Alā'u'd-dīn (of Sawād) was invited and at which
he was given a seat and special dress of honour (_khilcat-i-khāṣa_).
(_Jan. 30th_) On Sunday the 28th, we marched from that valley. Shāh
Manṣūr's younger brother T̤āūs (Handsome) Khān brought the
above-mentioned daughter of his brother to our ground after we had
dismounted.
(_f. Repopulation of the fort of Bajaur._)
For the convenience of having the Bī-sūt people in Bajaur-fort,[1387]
Yūsuf'i-`alī the taster was sent from this camp to get them on the march
and take them to that fort. Also, written orders were despatched to
Kābul that the army there left should join us.
(_Feb. 4th_) On Friday the 3rd of the month of Ṣafar, we dismounted at
the confluence of the waters of Bajaur and Panj-kūra.
(_Feb. 6th_) On Sunday the 5th of the month, we went from that ground to
Bajaur where there was a drinking-party in Khwāja Kalān's house.
(_g. Expedition against the Afghān clans._)
(_Feb. 8th_) On Tuesday the 7th of the month the begs and the Dilazāk
Afghān headmen were summoned, and, after consultation, matters were left
at this:—"The year is at its end,[1388] only a few days of the Fish are
left; the plainsmen have carried in all their corn; if we went now into
Sawād, the army would [Sidenote: Fol. 221.] dwindle through getting no
corn. The thing to do is to march along the Aṃbahar and Pānī-mānī road,
cross the Sawād-water above Hash-nagar, and surprise the Yūsuf-zāī and
Muḥammadī Afghāns who are located in the plain over against the
Yūsuf-zāī _sangur_ of Māhūrā. Another year, coming earlier in the
harvest-time, the Afghāns of this place must be our first thought." So
the matter was left.
(_Feb. 9th_) Next day, Wednesday, we bestowed horses and robes on Sl.
Wais and Sl. `Alā'u'u-dīn of Sawād, gave them leave to go, marched off
ourselves and dismounted over against Bajaur.
(_Feb. 10th_) We marched next day, leaving Shāh Manṣūr's daughter in
Bajaur-fort until the return of the army. We dismounted after passing
Khwāja Khiẓr, and from that camp leave was given to Khwāja Kalān; and
the heavy baggage, the worn-out horses and superfluous effects of the
army were started off into Lamghān by the Kūnār road.
(_Feb. 11th_) Next morning Khwāja Mīr-i-mīrān was put in charge of the
camel baggage-train and started off by the Qūrghā-tū and Darwāza road,
through the Qarā-kūpa-pass. Riding light for the raid, we ourselves
crossed the Ambahar-pass, and yet another great pass, and dismounted at