Mahmúd 'Alí Beg and Mahmúd Karím Beg, who had been sent by Nádir Sháh, arrived at Court, and had the honour of kissing the threshold of royalty. They brought with them one hundred elephants, and swords with golden handles, according to the custom of Hindústán, and gilt spears and other golden weapons which were foreign to Persia and not generally used there, as well as a letter full of expressions of friendship, and presented them before the enlightening eye of majesty. They were honoured by the gift of several precious robes of honour. After a few days, they said that Nádir Sháh had sent a verbal message to the effect, that in consequence of his wars in Túrán and Dághistán and Rúm, and the large army he kept up, and his having remitted three years' revenue to all the population of Írán, his treasury was empty, and if he (Muhammad Sháh) would send fifty or sixty lacs as a help to him, it would be an act of great friendship and brotherhood, and he had sent the elephants and the golden articles for the purpose of getting the money. As there was no mention whatever made in the letter about the money, Muhammad Sháh cleared the account by his answer, which was this: “When my brother the King of Kings was departing, he said to me, ‘Everything that comes written in a letter is right and proper, but verbal messages are never to be depended on.’ However, on account of the weakness of my kingdom, and the bad behaviour and evil doings of my rulers and rebellious zamíndárs, I get no revenues at all from my provinces, and my expenditure exceeds my income. This subject is not mentioned in your letter, and therefore a verbal answer is suited to a verbal message.” The China vessels, sandal-wood, aloe-wood, etc., which were written for in the letter, he sent with great care. Although he weighed out the money of his answer with words of circumspection, nevertheless, till the news of Nádir's death arrived, nobles, wazírs, the Emperor himself, and even beggars, were in an anxious state of mind.
Murder of Nawáb Bahádur. Battle between Nawáb Safdar Jang and the nobles of Ahmad Sháh. Destruction and plunder of the old city of Dehlí.
Jáwed Khán Nawáb Bahádur, the eunuch, was desirous of getting into his own hands, and without a partner, the whole direction of the Government of the country, with the assistance of Nawáb Kudsiya, mother of the Emperor. The Nawáb Safdar Jang Wazír-i 'azam also was desirous of doing the same thing for himself. So both these men became enemies to one another, and each waited for an opportunity of preventing the other from being a sharer in the Government. Nawáb Safdar Jang was the first to begin, and called into the city Súraj Mal Ját, openly on the pretence of consulting him about taking and setting in order the capital of the Empire, but secretly and really with the object, that if the Emperor's men and followers should begin to raise a disturbance, they both together might be able to extinguish the flame of opposition.
They sent a message to the Nawáb Bahádur to this effect, that without him they could not deliberate on the affairs of the Empire. So, on the 27th day of the month Shawwál, in the year 1165 A.H. (28th August, 1752 A.D.), he repaired to the house of the Wazíru-l Mulk, where they killed him in a private closet, and threw his body into the river. The followers of the wazír said that his death in this way was the reason why the slaughter and plunder was not so bad as it would otherwise have been; because, in the event of a battle and contest taking place, the royal fort, which was his dwelling-house, and the dwelling-houses of the citizens, would have been sacked, and very many men on both sides would have been killed.
After this event, Nawáb Kudsiya, who had been patron of Nawáb Bahádur, exhibited her displeasure. But the Wazír-i 'azam sent to say that in this matter he was not to blame, because the physician, Hakím Shákí Khán, had brought a verbal message from the Emperor to the effect that the best thing that could be done was to kill and get rid of Jáwed Khán. He had reprimanded the physician, and made Hakím Akmal Khán his physician in his room. During the month Jumáda-s sání, in the year 1166, there was a disagreement between the wazír and the Emperor, and the enemies of the wazír apprised the Emperor in many ways that it was Safdar Jang's intention to seat on the throne Buland-akhtar, younger brother of Muhammad Sháh, who was of the same sect with himself, viz. a Shí'a. The Emperor accordingly commanded that the wazír should be deposed from his office of commandant of artillery. This measure he did not approve of, and asked for leave to go towards Oudh, to put the country in order. The Emperor and the enemies of the wazír looked upon this as an unexpected piece of good fortune and a secret victory, so they forthwith sent him a khil'at and leave to depart. After delaying and lingering, he determined that it was not advisable to go to the province, and halted in the city, but the Emperor had laid this injunction on him, that he should go to his own province, viz. Oudh. When the quarrel between the parties became known, the Nawáb Wazír, from fear lest the Túrání chiefs, along with the Emperor and common people, should attack him, left the city with all his property and baggage, and halted for some days in or near the garden of Isma'íl Khán and the Tál-katora and Khizrábád. This delay and waiting was planned in order that Súraj Mal Ját might arrive. When he came, he urged the Emperor to send 'Imádu-l Mulk (Gházíu-d dín) and Intizámu-d daula to him, and to tell Nawáb Kudsiya to come out of the fort and take up her abode in the house of Ja'far Khán; because it was well known to Nawáb Safdar Jang that Intizámu-d daula had been the cause of the firing of muskets on the day of the 'Íd, and Nawáb Kudsiya, in consequence of the murder of Nawáb Bahádur, had become the enemy of his family. The cause of Safdar Jang's displeasure with 'Imádu-l Mulk Mír Bakhshí was this, that at the death of his father, Nawáb Gházíu-d dín Khán deceased, Safdar Jang had influenced the Emperor, and had freed from confiscation the house and land of 'Imádu-d Mulk, and had procured for him the office of Mír Bakhshí, notwithstanding his youth. Besides, he had adopted him as his son, and was his friend in all matters; but for all that he would not assist his patron. The short of the matter is that the Emperor sent this answer, “You obtained leave to go from this province and went; and now, for the sake of obtaining assistance from Súraj Mal Ját, you vex me in this way.”
At this crisis, the Ját men began to injure and plunder the old city. Ahmad Sháh sent for Nawáb Zú-l fikár, who for a long time had been out of office, and living in idleness at home. He had him conducted to his presence with all honour, with the intention, that if the wazír should rebel, he would appoint him to the office. The next day Nawáb Safdar Jang endeavoured to work upon the cupidity of the above-mentioned man, by holding out this hope to him, that if he would come over to him, he would confer upon him the office of Mír Bakhshí, from which 'Imádu-l Mulk had been deposed.
When all, small and great, were of opinion that Safdar Jang would be victorious, Zú-l fikár Jang asked the Emperor for leave of absence. On pretence of going to pay a visit to the tomb of the saint Sháh Mardán, he went and joined the wazír's army, and engaged in robbing and plundering the old city. Accordingly Ahmad Sháh Bahádur, acting upon the opinion of his mother and the nobles, bestowed the office of commandant of artillery upon Nawáb Samsámu-d daula, son of the late Khán-daurán; and the khil'at of the wazírship upon the Nawáb Intizámu-d daula, son of Kamru-d dín Khán the late wazír. Nawáb Safdar Jang, on hearing this, was struck with consternation, and took a young eunuch, who had beautiful features and a good figure, and was about thirteen years of age, who had been lately purchased by Nawáb Shujá'u-d daula, and calling him Akbar Sháh, placed him on the throne, and constituted himself Wazír. Zú-l fikár Jang he made Mír Bakhshí, and the other nobles he appointed to the different offices, both great and small.