Succeeds his father on the throne — he affords an asylum to the princes and officers of the house of Lody, expelled from Dehly by the Moguls. — The King becomes cruel and tyran­nical — his death — his government usurped by his minister. — Sheer Shah conquers Bengal. — Hoomayoon attacks Sheer Shah, but is repulsed. — Sheer Shah ascends the throne of Dehly, and nominates Mahomed Khan Afghan to the govern­ment as his lieutenant. — Mahomed Khan assumes independ­ence, under the appellation of Bahadur Afghan.

ON the death of his father, Nuseeb (the eldest son of Alla-ood-Deen) succeeded to the throne. Instead of confining or putting to death his brothers, as is often the practice, this young prince, with a manly generosity, permitted them to retain their respective governments, and in­creased the comforts of their situations. When Babur Padshah slew Ibrahim, the son of Sikundur Lody, and ascended the throne of Dehly, many of the adherents of the Lody dynasty sought pro­tection at the court of Bengal, and, among others, the Prince Mahmood (brother of Ibrahim Lody the late king) also took refuge there. These refugees were hospitably received, and estates were allotted to each; and in the end the daughter of Ibrahim Lody became the wife of the King of Bengal. In the year 930, when Babur Padshah marched and conquered the province of Joonpoor, he in­tended also to have subdued the whole kingdom of Bengal. Anticipating the demand for sub­mission, Nuseeb sent an ambassador with mag­nificent presents to Babur which satisfied him, and induced him to return to Dehly; but when that monarch abdicated his throne in favour of his son Hoomayoon, the latter marched to conquer the kingdom of Bengal.

A. H. 939.
A. D. 1532. At this time, A. H. 939, Nuseeb sent an embassy with presents to Bahadur Shah of Guzerat, who gave audience to the envoy in the fort of Mando. Some years after­wards, this prince's disposition appears to have undergone a complete change; for departing from that mildness of manner and suavity of temper, which procured for him, in the first instance, the esteem of his subjects, he pursued a system the most sanguinary and cruel; but the Almighty did not long suffer him to tyrannise over his subjects,

A. H. 945.
A. D. 1538.

for he died in the year 945, after a reign of eighteen years. I was never able to ascertain whether he was mur­dered or died a natural death: be that as it may, after his death, Mahmood, one of his ministers, succeeded in usurping his throne.

About this period, Sheer Khan, who afterwards ascended the throne of Dehly, attacked and de­feated Mahmood in action, and eventually expelled him from Bengal; whence he fled to the court of Dehly, where representing his grievances, Hoo-mayoon Padshah marched with an army and took the kingdom of Bengal from Sheer Khan, whom he defeated in a general action. On this occasion, Hoomayoon caused the public prayers to be read in his name in the city of Gour, the name of which he changed to Jumalabad. Sheer Khan, rallying

A. H. 949.
A. D. 1542.

his defeated troops, in the year 949 succeeded in reconquering Gour. On his death, and after the accession of his brother Sulim Shah to the throne of Dehly, the province of Bengal was made over to Mahomed Khan Afghan, one of the officers of his court, on the death of whom his son declared his independ­ence, and proclaimed himself king, under the title of Bahadur.