Mohurrum,
A. H. 866.
September,
A. D. 1461.

afterwards returned to Mando. In the month of Mohurrum, A. H. 866, having heard that a prince under age had suc­ceeded to the throne of the Deccan, under the title of Sooltan Nizam Shah Bahmuny, and that the officers of the state refused to pay him proper respect, Sooltan Mahmood, at the insti­gation of Nizam-ool-Moolk Ghoory, marched for the purpose of subduing the Deccan. Having crossed the Nurbudda, he received information that Moobarik Khan of Aseer was dead, and that his son, Adil Khan, who had succeeded him, had commenced his reign by putting to death Syud Kumal and Syud Sooltan, two of the most respectable and holy persons of the age, and plun­dered their houses of all their property. This in­formation was confirmed by the arrival of their other brother, Syud Julal, who on his knees en­treated the interference of the King of Malwa. Sooltan Mahmood, in consequence, marched direct to Aseer, whence Adil Khan addressed a humble petition, accompanied by an offering, which was delivered by one of the descendants of the venerable Sheikh Musaood Gunj Shukr. Sooltan Mahmood considering that even if he proceeded to attack Aseer he might not be able to effect its re­duction, which would reflect disgrace instead of honour upon his arms, made a merit of be­coming reconciled to Adil Khan Farooky. He therefore accepted his offering, and forgave him, on the plea of his sincere repentance. From Aseer Sooltan Mahmood marched to Elichpoor, and eventually to Balapoor, where his scouts brought him intelligence that the ministers of the young King of the Deccan had distributed two crore of tunkas among the officers and soldiers, and that the Deccan army, besides cavalry and infantry, was accompanied by one hundred and fifty elephants. Sooltan Mahmood, nevertheless, moved directly towards the Deccanies, till within three coss of Bidur, when an action was fought. Khwaja Jehan Toork, entitled Musheer-ool-Moolk, took the command of the Deccan army; and having placed the young king, who was only eight years of age, on an elephant with the white canopy over his head, brought him into the field. Mullik Nizam-ool-Moolk commanded the left wing, and Khwaja Mahmood Gawan, entitled Mullik-oot-Toojar, the right wing. When the armies closed, the latter officer charged the left wing of the Malwa forces, and succeeded in break­ing it. On this occasion, both Mahabut Khan, the governor of Chundery, and Zuheer-ool-Moolk, one of the Malwa ministers, were killed, and the right wing giving way shortly after, the Malwa troops fled and were pursued by the enemy for the distance of sixteen or eighteen miles. Sooltan Mahmood no sooner perceived the probability of a defeat than he retired with a party from the field, and waited his opportunity to regain the battle; so that having allowed the Deccanies to be fully engaged in plunder, he suddenly appeared, and charging full on their rear with two thousand cavalry, gave them a complete overthrow. In this dilemma, Khwaja Jehan Toork, who commanded the centre of the army, and had not been engaged, surrounding the young King with a body of troops, carried him off in safety to the fort of Bidur. The face of affairs being thus reversed, Sooltan Mahmood in a few days re-assembled his forces, and invested the capital of the Deccan. Mullik-oot-Toojar also collected a large force, and marched to raise the siege. The season being excessively hot, and the Malwa army so far from its own re­sources, Sooltan Mahmood commenced his retreat. During the march, he was greatly harassed by Mullik-oot-Toojar, an annoyance which did not cease till his arrival at Mando. On the following year, having resolved, if possible, to wrest the go­vernment of the Deccan out of the hands of the minister, he again marched to the south. For this purpose he ordered the army to assemble at the town of Nalcha, where receiving advices from Siraj-ool-Moolk of Kehrla that Nizam-ool-Moolk, a Deccan officer, with a large force, was on his march to attack that place, the King of Malwa moved in that direction. On the road he learned that the fort having been invested, the governor, who was always in a state of intoxication, had per­mitted his son to sally with an inadequate force and engage the Deccanies; that he had in con­sequence been defeated, and that the besiegers pursuing the garrison within the walls, the place had fallen into the hands of Nizam-ool-Moolk; but that he, having exercised excessive tyranny towards the inhabitants, had been put to death by a party of Rajpoot infantry. * The instant Sooltan Mah-mood heard of these events, he ordered Mukbool Khan with four thousand cavalry to proceed to Kehrla, marching himself to take revenge on the Deccanies towards Dowlutabad. On the road he was overtaken by ambassadors from Surgooja and from Jajnuggur, with presents consisting of five hundred and thirty elephants.† * Having bestowed honorary dresses on the envoys, he dismissed them to their respective courts, and himself arrived at the town of Khuleefabad, where a messenger met him, conveying a dress from the Ameer-ool-Mo-minin Moosteid Billa Yoosoof, the son of Mahomed Abassy, the Caliph of Egypt, as a token of his friendship and respect, also a letter styling him Defender of the Faithful. Sooltan Mahmood, in re­turn, presented the bearer with several fine horses and other valuable articles. On reaching the Dowlutabad frontier, news arrived that the King of Guzerat was on full march in his rear, in order to assist the King of the Deccan; on which Sooltan Mahmood taking the route of Malconda * on his return home, plundered that district, and marching through Gondwara arrived at Mando.