The Bābur-nāma in English (Memoirs of Bābur)

(Jan. 4th) Marching at dawn from that camp with the intention of attacking the fort of Bajaur,1354 we dismounted near it and sent a trusty man of the Dilazāk1355 Afghāns to advise its sult̤ān1356 and people to take up a position of service (qullūq) and surrender the fort. Not accepting this counsel, that stupid and ill-fated band sent back a wild answer, where-upon the army was ordered to make ready mantelets, ladders and other appliances for taking a fort. For this purpose a day’s (Jan. 5th) halt was made on that same ground.

(Jan. 6th) On Thursday the 4th of Muḥarram, orders were given that the army should put on mail, arm and get to horse;1357 that the left wing should move swiftly to the upper side of the fort, cross the water at the water-entry,1358 and dismount on the Fol. 217.north side of the fort; that the centre, not taking the way across the water, should dismount in the rough, up-and-down land to the north-west of the fort; and that the right should dismount to the west of the lower gate. While the begs of the left under Dost Beg were dismounting, after crossing the water, a hundred to a hundred and fifty men on foot came out of the fort, shooting arrows. The begs, shooting in their turn, advanced till they had forced those men back to the foot of the ramparts, Mullā ‘Abdu’l-malūk of Khwāst, like a madman,1359 going up right under them on his horse. There and then the fort would have been taken if the ladders and mantelets had been ready, and if it had not been so late in the day. Mullā Tirik-i-‘alī1360 and a servant of Tīngrī-bīrdī crossed swords with the enemy; each overcame his man, cut off and brought in his head; for this each was promised a reward.

As the Bajaurīs had never before seen matchlocks (tufang) they at first took no care about them, indeed they made fun when they heard the report and answered it by unseemly gestures. On that day1361 Ustād ‘Alī-qulī shot at and brought down five men with his matchlock; Walī the Treasurer, for his part, brought down two; other matchlockmen were also very active in firing and did well, shooting through shield, through cuirass, through kusarū,1362 and bringing down one man after another. Perhaps 7, 8, or 10 Bajaurīs had fallen to the matchlock-fire (ẓarb) before night. After that it so became that not a head could be put out because of the fire. The orderFol. 217b. was given, “It is night; let the army retire, and at dawn, if the appliances are ready, let them swarm up into the fort.”

(Jan. 7th) At the first dawn of light (farẓ waqt) on Friday the 5th of Muḥarram, orders were given that, when the battle-nagarets had sounded, the army should advance, each man from his place to his appointed post (yīrlīk yīrdīn) and should swarm up. The left and centre advanced from their ground with mantelets in place all along their lines, fixed their ladders, and swarmed up them. The whole left hand of the centre, under Khalīfa, Shāh Ḥasan Arghūn and Yūsuf’s Aḥmad, was ordered to reinforce the left wing. Dost Beg’s men went forward to the foot of the north-eastern tower of the fort, and busied themselves in undermining and bringing it down. Ustād ‘Alī-qulī was there also; he shot very well on that day with his matchlock, and he twice fired off the firingī.1363 Walī the Treasurer also brought down a man with his matchlock. Malik ‘Alī qut̤nī1364 was first up a ladder of all the men from the left hand of the centre, and there was busy with fight and blow. At the post of the centre, Muḥ. ‘Alī Jang-jang1365 and his younger brother Nau-roz got up, each by a different ladder, and made lance and sword to touch. Bābā the waiting man (yasāwal), getting up by another ladder, occupied himself in breaking down the fort-wall with his Fol. 218.axe. Most of our braves went well forward, shooting off dense flights of arrows and not letting the enemy put out a head; others made themselves desperately busy in breaching and pulling down the fort, caring naught for the enemy’s fight and blow, giving no eye to his arrows and stones.

By breakfast-time Dost Beg’s men had undermined and breached the north-eastern tower, got in and put the foe to flight. The men of the centre got in up the ladders by the same time, but those (aūl) others were first (awwal?) in.1366 By the favour and pleasure of the High God, this strong and mighty fort was taken in two or three astronomical hours! Matching the fort were the utter struggle and effort of our braves; distinguish themselves they did, and won the name and fame of heroes.

As the Bajaurīs were rebels and at enmity with the people of Islām, and as, by reason of the heathenish and hostile customs prevailing in their midst, the very name of Islām was rooted out from their tribe, they were put to general massacre and their wives and children were made captive. At a guess more than 3000 men went to their death; as the fight did not reach to the eastern side of the fort, a few got away there.

The fort taken, we entered and inspected it. On the walls, in houses, streets and alleys, the dead lay, in what numbers! Comers and goers to and fro were passing over the bodies. Fol. 218b.Returning from our inspection, we sat down in the Bajaur sult̤ān’s residence. The country of Bajaur we bestowed on Khwāja Kalān,1367 assigning a large number of braves to reinforce him. At the Evening Prayer we went back to camp.

(Jan. 8th) Marching at dawn (Muḥ. 6th), we dismounted by the spring1368 of Bābā Qarā in the dale of Bajaur. At Khwāja Kalān’s request the prisoners remaining were pardoned their offences, reunited to their wives and children, and given leave to go, but several sult̤āns and of the most stubborn were made to reach their doom of death. Some heads of sult̤āns and of others were sent to Kābul with the news of success; some also to Badakhshān, Qūndūz and Balkh with the letters-of-victory.

Shāh Manṣūr Yūsuf-zāī,—he was with us as an envoy from his tribe,—1369 was an eye-witness of the victory and general massacre. We allowed him to leave after putting a coat (tūn) on him and after writing orders with threats to the Yūsuf-zāī.

(Jan. 12th) On Wednesday the 10th of Muḥarram, we rode out to visit the Bajaur fort. There was a wine-party in Khwāja Kalān’s house,1370 several goat-skins of wine having been brought down by Kāfirs neighbouring on Bajaur. All wine and fruit Fol. 219.had in Bajaur comes from adjacent parts of Kāfiristān.

(Jan. 16th) On Sunday the 14th of Muḥarram, a standard was bestowed on Khwāja Kalān and leave given him for Bajaur. A few days after I had let him go, the following little verse having come into my head, it was written down and sent to him:—1372

(Jan. 20th) On Thursday the 18th of the month, we hunted the hill between Bajaur and Chandāwal.1374 There the būghū-marāl1375 have become quite black, except for the tail which is of another colour; lower down, in Hindūstān, they seem to become black all over.1376 Today a sārīq-qūsh1377 was taken; that was black all over, its very eyes being black! Today an eagle (būrkūt)1378 took a deer (kīyīk).

(Jan. 21st) On Friday (Muḥ. 19th) we marched for Sawād, with the intention of attacking the Yūsuf-zāī Afghāns, and dismounted in between1379 the water of Panj-kūra and the united waters of Chandāwal and Bajaur. Shāh Manṣūr Yūsuf-zāī had brought a few well-flavoured and quite intoxicating confections (kamālī); making one of them into three, I ate one portion, Gadāī T̤aghāī another, ‘Abdu’l-lāh the librarian another. It produced remarkable intoxication; so much so that at the Evening Prayer when the begs gathered for counsel, I was not able to go out. A strange thing it was! If in these days1380 I ate the whole of such a confection, I doubt if it would produce half as much intoxication.

(Jan. 22nd) Marching from that ground, (Muḥ. 20th), we dismounted over against Kahrāj, at the mouth of the valleys of Kahrāj and Peshgrām.1381 Snow fell ankle-deep while we were on that ground; it would seem to be rare for snow to fall thereabouts, for people were much surprised. In agreement with Sl. Wais of Sawād there was laid on the Kahrāj people an impost of 4000 ass-loads of rice for the use of the army, and he himself was sent to collect it. Never before had those rude mountaineers borne such a burden; they could not give (all) the grain and were brought to ruin.

(Jan. 25th) On Tuesday the 23rd of Muḥarram an army was Fol. 220.sent under Hindū Beg to raid Panj-kūra. Panj-kūra lies more than half-way up the mountain;1382 to reach its villages a person must go for nearly a kuroh (2 m.) through a pass. The people had fled and got away; our men brought a few beasts of sorts, and masses of corn from their houses.

(Jan. 28th) Several children born of Humāyūn’s mother had not lived. Hind-āl was not yet born.1383 While we were in those parts, came a letter from Māhīm in which she wrote, “Whether it be a boy, whether it be a girl, is my luck and chance; give it to me; I will declare it my child and will take charge of it.” On Friday the 26th of the month, we being still on that ground, Yūsuf-i-‘alī the stirrup-holder was sent off to Kābul with letters1384 bestowing Hind-āl, not yet born, on Māhīm.

While we were still on that same ground in the Māndīsh-country, I had a platform made with stones (tāsh bīla) on a height in the middle of the valley, so large that it held the tents of the advance-camp. All the household and soldiers carried the stones for it, one by one like ants.