The King proscribes foreigners from his court, with a very few exceptions — he entertains thirty thousand cavalry, composed of the inhabitants of the Deccan — causes the accounts of govern­ment to be kept in the language of the Deccan. — History of the civil war in the government of Beejanuggur. — Accession of the minister Ramraj to the throne — his title is disputed by Ibrahim Adil Shah. — War ensues, which ends in favour of the Hindoos. — Ibrahim Adil Shah becomes jealous of his minister and general Assud Khan. — The kings of Ahmud-nuggur and Bidur unite against Ibrahim Adil Shah. — The King of Berar mediates a peace between the parties, and Ibrahim becomes reconciled to his minister. — Serious confe­deracy of the kings of Ahmudnuggur and Golconda, and the Raja of Beejanuggur, against Ibrahim Adil Shah. — The Prince Abdoolla flies to the Portuguese at Goa, and induces them to promise him aid to dethrone the King. — The Prince Abdoolla is taken, and suffers death. — War with the King of Ahmudnuggur, during which he dies. — War continued with his successor. — Death of Ibrahim Adil Shah.

IBRAHIM ADIL SHAH, on his accession to the throne, having rejected the names of the Imams from the Khootba, restored the exercise of the Soony rites, and commanded that no person should in future wear the scarlet cap of twelve points, which had been adopted by all the troops of his father, in imitation of the Persians. Instead of foreign troops he enlisted Deccanies in his service, and permitted only four hundred foreigners to remain in his body-guard. All the foreign officers, with the exception of Assud Khan Lary, Khoosh Geldy Agha, Roomy Khan, and Shoojat Khan Koord, were degraded, and Deccanies and Abyssinians were promoted in their stead. All the foreign troops which were thus dismissed entered into the service of different princes. Ramraj, the Hindoo Prince of Beejanuggur, entertained three thousand of them; and in order to reconcile them to the act of making obeisance to him, he caused a Koran to be placed before him when they came to pay their respects; which enabled them to do so without a breach of the ordinances of their religion.

Ibrahim Adil Shah, by this new regulation, created an army of thirty thousand cavalry com­posed of men who rode the King's horses. * The customs which prevailed in the reign of Ismael Adil Shah were wholly laid aside; and the public accounts, formerly kept in Persian, were now written in Hindvy, under the management of bramins, who soon acquired great influence in his government. Assud Khan was ordered to enlist Deccanies in his service, and to adopt the Soony faith. Out of a thousand foreigners, he discharged six hundred, but refused to change his persuasion, and both in his camp and on his own jageer he publicly exercised the Sheea ceremonies, an indulgence the King thought it prudent to allow. The year after his accession, the King led his army to Beejanuggur, on the requisition of the Ray; but before the particulars of the expedition are recited, it is necessary to relate the causes which led to it, and to give some account of the revolutions which had taken place at that court.

The government of Beejanuggur had remained in one family in uninterrupted succession for seven hundred years, when Shew Ray dying, he was suc­ceeded by his son a minor, who did not long survive him, and left the throne to a younger brother. Not long after, he died also, leaving an infant only three months old. Timraj, one of the principal ministers of the family, celebrated for his wisdom and experience, became sole regent, and was cheerfully obeyed by the no­bility and vassals of the kingdom for forty years. On the occasion of the young King's attaining the age of manhood, Timraj poisoned him, and put an infant of the family on the throne, in order to have a pretence for retaining the re­gency in his hands. Timraj at length dying, was succeeded in his office by his son Ramraj, who having married a daughter of Shew Ray, added by that alliance greatly to his influence and power. By degrees raising his own family to the highest rank, and destroying many of the ancient nobility, Ramraj aspired to reign in his own name, and intended totally to extirpate the race of Shew Ray. Many of the nobility, however, opposing this project, he complied with their wishes, and placing an infant boy of the female line on the throne, committed his person to the care of the child's uncle, one Bhoj Tirmul Ray, who being deemed almost an idiot, Ramraj considered he had little to apprehend from him. Ramraj, in the space of five or six years, cut off by treachery almost all those chiefs who formerly opposed his pre­tensions to the throne; and leaving the city of Beejanuggur in charge of a slave, whom he had raised to high rank, he marched with an army against some of the rays of the country of Mala­bar, who withheld their tribute. These princes he soon reduced, and deprived them of their fortresses; after which, having moved against a powerful zemindar to the south of Beejanuggur, he was detained for six months without making the smallest impression on him, though he had been engaged in several general actions.

Ramraj having expended the treasures of his mi­litary chest wrote to his deputy to send him a supply of money from Beejanuggur, in order to enable him to continue the war; but the deputy, on opening the vaults of the treasury, and perceiving the mag­nitude of its wealth, instantly resolved on rebellion against his patron, and set at liberty the young ray, having first induced Bhoj Tirmul Ray to embrace his interest. The deputy now assumed the office of minister, and began to levy troops. Several tribu­tary rays, who were offended with Ramraj's ad­ministration, hastened to Beejanuggur to rally round their lawful King, and in a short time thirty thousand horse, and vast hosts of foot, were assembled under his standard at the city. Bhoj Tirmul Ray, apprehending that the slave, now the minister, might repent of his rebellion and event­ually betray them to Ramraj, put his benefactor to death, and assumed the management of affairs at Beejanuggur.

Ramraj, on hearing of this revolt, concluded a hasty peace with his enemy, and returned towards Beejanuggur; but being deserted by several of his officers, who left him on the route to join their lawful sovereign, he thought it advisable at present to desist from war, and to rest content with his extensive jageer. A treaty was accordingly brought about between him and the young ray, by which Ramraj was suffered to remain in independent possession of his country. Quiet being now re­stored, the nobility, who had supported the revo­lution, left their sovereign under the care of his uncle Bhoj Tirmul Ray, and returned to their several districts. Not long after this event, the uncle, be­coming ambitious of reigning, strangled his nephew, and seized the throne of Beejanuggur, and being a member of the royal family the nobility preferred his authority to that of Ramraj; but in a short time, being unwilling to endure his tyranny and oppres­sion, they became disaffected towards him, and invited Ramraj to return, and assume the admi­nistration of affairs.

Bhoj Tirmul Ray, obtaining intelligence of their designs, despatched ambassadors with a sum of six lacks of hoons, * and many valuable presents, to Ibrahim Adil Shah of Beejapoor, soliciting him to march to his assistance, in return for which he pro­mised to acknowledge himself tributary, and to pay down a sum of three lacks of hoons for every day's march his army might make. Ibrahim Adil Shah, tempted by the greatness of the offer, and by the

A. H. 942.
A. D. 1535.

advice of Assud Khan, moved from his capital in the year 942, and arrived at Beejanuggur without opposition, when he was conducted into the city by Bhoj Tirmul Ray, who seated him on the royal musnud, and made rejoicings for seven days. Ramraj and the confederate nobles now sent letters to the Ray expressing contrition for their rebellion, and assur­ing him of their future firm allegiance. They re­presented in strong colours the evil consequences of introducing the Mussulmans into their country; that their temples and the idols would be defiled and destroyed, and that the children of all ranks of people, as in the times of the Bahmuny kings, would be carried away into captivity. Ramraj, more­over, swore never again to depart from his allegi­ance, if Bhoj Tirmul Ray would cause the retreat of the King of Beejapoor to his own dominions. Bhoj Tirmul Ray, thinking he had now no further use for his allies, requested the return of the Mahomedan army, and paid down fifty lacks of hoons, * the amount of the settled subsidy, besides making presents to a vast amount to the King, among which were twelve fine elephants and some beau­tiful horses.

Ibrahim Adil Shah had not yet recrossed the Krishna, when Ramraj and the confederates, who had bribed many of the troops in the city, broke their promises, and hastened towards Beeja-nuggur, resolving to put the Ray to death, on pre­tence of revenging the murder of his predecessor. Bhoj Tirmul Ray, finding he was betrayed, shut himself up in the palace, and becoming mad from despair, blinded all the royal elephants and horses, and cut off their tails, that they might be of no use to his enemy. All the diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and other precious stones and pearls, which had been collected in the course of many ages, he crushed to powder between heavy mill­stones, and scattered them on the ground. He then fixed a sword-blade into a pillar of his apart­ment, and ran his breast upon it with such force, that it pierced through and came out at his back; thus putting an end to his existence, just as the gates of the palace were opened to his enemies. Ramraj now became Ray of Beejanuggur without a rival.