(c. Varia.)
Mahdī Khwāja arrived bringing Fatḥ Khān Sarwānī from Humāyūn’s presence, they having parted from him in Dilmāū. I looked with favour on Fatḥ Khān, gave him the parganas that had been his father ‘Az̤am-humāyūn’s, and other lands also, one pargana given being worth a krūr and 60 laks.[1964]
In Hindūstān they give permanent titles [muqarrarī khit̤āblār] to highly-favoured amīrs, one such being ‘Az̤am-humāyūn (August Might), one Khān-i-jahān (Khan-of-the-world), anotherFol. 303. Khān-i-khānān (Khān-of-khāns). Fatḥ Khān’s father’s title was ‘Az̤am-humāyūn but I set this aside because on account of Humāyūn it was not seemly for any person to bear it, and I gave Fatḥ Khān Sarwānī the title of Khān-i-jahān.
(November 14th) On Wednesday the 8th of Ṣafar[1965] awnings were set up (in the Chār-bāgh) at the edge of the large tank beyond the tamarind-trees, and an entertainment was prepared there. We invited Fatḥ Khān Sarwānī to a wine-party, gave him wine, bestowed on him a turban and head-to-foot of my own wearing, uplifted his head with kindness and favour[1966] and allowed him to go to his own districts. It was arranged for his son Maḥmūd to remain always in waiting.
(d. Various military matters.)
(November 30th) On Wednesday the 24th of Muḥarram[1967] Muḥammad ‘Alī (son of Mihtar) Ḥaidar the stirrup-holder was sent (to Humāyūn) with this injunction, “As—thanks be to God!—the rebels have fled, do you, as soon as this messenger arrives, appoint a few suitable begs to Jūnpūr, and come quickly to us yourself, for Rānā Sangā the Pagan is conveniently close; let us think first of him!”
After (Humāyūn’s) army had gone to the East, we appointed, to make a plundering excursion into the Bīāna neighbourhood, Tardī Beg (brother) of Qūj Beg with his elder brother Sher-afgan, Muḥammad Khalīl the master-gelder (akhta-begī) with his brethren and the gelders (akhtachīlār),[1968] Rustam Turkmān with his brethren, and also, of the Hindūstānī people, Daud Sarwānī. Fol. 303b.If they, by promise and persuasion, could make the Bīāna garrison look towards us, they were to do so; if not, they were to weaken the enemy by raid and plunder.
In the fort of Tahangar[1969] was ‘Ālam Khān the elder brother of that same Niz̤ām Khān of Bīāna. People of his had come again and again to set forth his obedience and well-wishing; he now took it on himself to say, “If the Pādshāh appoint an army, it will be my part by promise and persuasion to bring in the quiver-weavers of Bīāna and to effect the capture of that fort.” This being so, the following orders were given to the braves of Tardī Beg’s expedition, “As ‘Ālam Khān, a local man, has taken it on himself to serve and submit in this manner, act you with him and in the way he approves in this matter of Bīāna.” Swordsmen though some Hindūstānīs may be, most of them are ignorant and unskilled in military move and stand (yūrūsh u tūrūsh), in soldierly counsel and procedure. When our expedition joined ‘Ālam Khān, he paid no attention to what any-one else said, did not consider whether his action was good or bad, but went close up to Bīāna, taking our men with him. Our expedition numbered from 250 to 300 Turks with somewhat over 2000 Hindūstānīs and local people, while Niz̤ām Khān of Bīāna’s Afghāns and sipāhīs[1970] were an army of over 4000 horse and of Fol. 304.foot-men themselves again, more than 10,000. Niz̤ām Khān looked his opponents over, sallied suddenly out and, his massed horse charging down, put our expeditionary force to flight. His men unhorsed his elder brother ‘Ālam Khān, took 5 or 6 others prisoner and contrived to capture part of the baggage. As we had already made encouraging promises to Niz̤ām Khān, we now, spite of this last impropriety, pardoned all earlier and this later fault, and sent him royal letters. As he heard of Rānā Sangā’s rapid advance, he had no resource but to call on Sayyid Rafī‘[1971] for mediation, surrender the fort to our men, and come in with Sayyid Rafī‘, when he was exalted to the felicity of an interview.[1972] I bestowed on him a pargana in Mīān-dū-āb worth 20 laks.[1973] Dost, Lord-of-the-gate was sent for a time to Bīāna, but a few days later it was bestowed on Madhī Khwāja with a fixed allowance of 70 laks,[1974] and he was given leave to go there.
Tātār Khān Sārang-khānī, who was in Gūālīār, had been sending constantly to assure us of his obedience and good-wishes. After the pagan took Kandār and was close to Bīāna, Dharmankat, one of the Gūālīār rājas, and another pagan styled Khān-i-jahān, went into the Gūālīār neighbourhood and, coveting the fort, began to stir trouble and tumult. Tātār Khān, thus placed in difficulty, was for surrendering Gūālīār (to us). Most of our begs, household and best braves being away with (Humāyūn’s) army or on various raids, we joined to Raḥīm-dādFol. 304b. a few Bhīra men and Lāhorīs with Hastachī[1975] tūnqit̤ār and his brethren. We assigned parganas in Gūālīār itself to all those mentioned above. Mullā Apāq and Shaikh Gurān (G’hurān) went also with them, they to return after Raḥīm-dād was established in Gūālīār. By the time they were near Gūālīār however, Tātār Khān’s views had changed, and he did not invite them into the fort. Meantime Shaikh Muḥammad Ghaus̤ (Helper), a darwīsh-like man, not only very learned but with a large following of students and disciples, sent from inside the fort to say to Raḥīm-dād, “Get yourselves into the fort somehow, for the views of this person (Tātār Khān) have changed, and he has evil in his mind.” Hearing this, Raḥīm-dād sent to say to Tātār Khān, “There is danger from the Pagan to those outside; let me bring a few men into the fort and let the rest stay outside.” Under insistence, Tātār Khān agreed to this, and Raḥīm-dād went in with rather few men. Said he, “Let our people stay near this Gate,” posted them near the Hātī-pul (Elephant-gate) and through that Gate during that same night brought in the whole of his troop. Next day, Tātār Khān, reduced to helplessness, willy-nilly, made over the fort, and set out to come and wait on me in Āgra. A subsistence allowance of 20 laks was assigned to him on Bīānwān pargana.[1976]
Fol. 305.Muḥammad Zaitūn also took the only course open to him by surrendering Dūlpūr and coming to wait on me. A pargana worth a few laks was bestowed on him. Dūlpūr was made a royal domain (khālṣa) with Abū’l-fatḥ Turkmān[1977] as its military-collector (shiqdār).