The march of Busálut Jung, to take possession of the Souba of Sura, and his conquest of that Souba, by the aid of Hydur Alí Khan Bahadúr. Also, the transfer of the Sura to the hands of the prudent Hydur, in the same year, 1171 Hijri.— A. D. 1757.

AFTER the decease of Sulábut Jung, in the year 1166, H., Nizám Alí Khan, Assud Jung, collected a large force to attack the Mahrattas; and, at the time Ballajee Rao Nana, with all his forces and chiefs, had marched to reduce the province of Khandeish, finding the coast clear, he by long marches reached Poona, which he plundered and burned; he moreover destroyed all the temples, killing cows in them, and then returned. The Mahrattas, however, as soon as they heard this intelligence, followed Assud Jung by forced marches, and overtook and surrounded him at the town of Humnabad, where they gave him such a defeat that, in the twinkling of an eye, destruction fell on the whole of the force of the Moghuls, and, abandon­ing all his baggage, and artillery, Assud Jung sought refuge in the fort above mentioned, and was besieged there; his Ameers of old standing being some taken prisoners, but mostly slain. At length however, his affairs being remediless, Assud Jung entered into a negotiation with the Mahrattas, and by the advice of Pothail Das, his Dewaun, or minister, gave up a country producing a revenue of seventy Lakhs of Rupees; also two cities, the capitals of the Sultans of the Dukhun, viz. Burhanpoor and Bejapoor besides Ahmud Nuggur, Dowlutabad, and the Souba of Sura. He then returned to Golconda, and the whole of this territory remained in the hands of the Mahrattas at the time when their mighty army was defeated and destroyed by the Serabdalli,* near Gunjpoor, depending on Paniput Kurnal, and Ballajee Rao, from excessive grief at his great loss, died. Seizing the favourable opportunity thus offered, Meer Shureef Alí Khan, Busálut Jung, the governor of Adhooni, determined with his troops and artillery to reduce or recover the Souba of Sura; and, with the assistance of Morar Rao, the Chief of Gootti, and the Chief of Kurpa, he marched to Huskote, (called by Wilks Ooscottu), which is a fort and Purgana depending on Sura, garrisoned by a detachment of Poona Mahrattas, and immediately laid siege to it. Mokhund Sriput, who commanded there, was a brave man, and, having strengthened the works of the fort, he defended it so gallantly that Busálut Jung of himself, with his large force, was obliged to send to Hydur Alí Khan for assistance.

Hydur, who was then at Bangalore, occupied in the chastisement of Sami Koora, the refractory Poli­gar of little* Balapoor, and also in the regulation and improvement of his troops, seeing in this appli­cation an opportunity of extending his authority, immediately accepted it, and joined Busálut Jung, but, although the latter invited him to pay him a visit, and actually prepared to receive him, he declined, and sent word to him, that first, he must be informed what service he was expected to per­form, and that, having obediently executed his commands and obtained credit for the performance of them, he would then pay him a visit. Busálut Jung replied, by requesting him to attack and take the fort. Accordingly, on the next day, the expe­rienced Hydur proceeded round the fort, to recon­noitre and examine the nature of the ground. He then attacked the Town, which is to the eastward of the fort, and took it at the first assault; and, having raised his batteries there, gave orders to his artillery to fire at the walls of the fort as at a mark; and they soon drilled them as full of holes as a bird cage. At the time, however, when he commenced the fire of his artillery, he wrote to Busálut Jung, that he was about to fire at the fort, and recommended him to take care of himself; and his (Hydur’s) artillery men, agreeably to his orders, fired a few shot from heavy guns in the direction of the Moghul camp, which was about a fursung to the westward of the forts, merely to give them an example of what he could do. The Moghuls were not prepared for this, and fell into much confusion, and Busálut Jung, changed his ground of encampment to another beyond a tank, northward of the fort.

But, to return,— Hydur continued for two or three days firing, and battering the walls. On the fourth day, he sent a message to those in the fort, that he was a fortunate soldier, and if they cared at all for their lives, and fortunes, and wished still to enjoy them, that they must quit the fort, and they should then, without molestation from any one, proceed with their property where they liked,— that if not, he would storm the fort, and in that case the garrison with their wives and children should be put to the sword. The Killadár, however, after many diffi­culties and objections, having been at length assured and satisfied, thought it best to submit peaceably to the fortune of the Khodadad, and delivered up his fort to Hydur, who placed a gar­rison of his own in it, gave the Killadár his life and property, to gratify him provided carriage for his baggage as he required, and, with the consent and advice of Busálut Jung, sent him to Poona.