Livro V - Commencement Of The History, Capítulo X

In the year A. H. 763, (A. D. 1362) I entered my twenty-seventh year, on which occasion the great and the little, the chiefs of the villages of the hordes and tribes of all Maveralnaher paid their respects to me, and humbly represented that they had no monarch who would redress their wrongs: for, in every district, and every town, there was some tyrant, who unjustly plundered them, and seized on the property of the Muselmāns; their patience was quite exhausted, and that they should certainly abandon the country, unless some Sovereign was placed on the throne, who would protect them. In consequence of this representation, I wrote a letter to Amyr Hussyn (his brother-in-law) who was then in possession of Badukhshān, asking him “if he had the courage to join me in clearing the country of Maveralnaher from all its petty tyrants, and in relieving the wretched servants of God from the hands of their brutal oppressors, that if he would do so, we might then divide the kingdom in a brotherly manner, and thereby gain great fame and celebrity.” He promised to do so, but immediately began to enter into treacherous schemes against me, wishing first to over-set me, and then to subdue the other petty Princes. Finding Amyr Hussyn thus bent upon my ruin, and that I had evident proofs of his treachery, I wrote a letter to Tugleck Timūr Khān, (Prince of the Jetes, and a descendant of Jengyz Khān, who was the absolute sovereign of Tartary) stating that “the country of Maveralnaher was now desolate, and only inhabited by kites and crows, but that if he would assist me, I would render it productive.”

[Sidenote: A. D. 1362.]

As soon as my letter reached the Khān, he drew out his forces and marched with an innumerable army towards Maveralnaher; and when he arrived on the bank of the (Sihūn) Khujend river, he sent me a letter, stating, “that he was encamped with his innumerable and valiant army on the banks of the Khujend, that I should join him, but in the mean time inform him what further measures were advisable.” At this time Bāyezyd Jelayr put on the girdle of loyalty, and advanced to pay his respects to his sovereign, but leaving the city of Samerkund under charge of a deputy: as soon as he was presented at Court, the keys of the city were demanded from him, and as he delayed giving them up, the Khān ordered that his head should be struck off; this was immediately carried into execution, and the head was sent to Samerkund. Hajy Berlās, who at first intended to oppose the Khān, was so terrified by the punishment of Bāyezyd, that he took to flight, and sought refuge in the city of Kesh, but sent orders to his horde and his dependants to leave the country. He now repented of his conduct to me, acknowledged his folly, and asked my forgiveness, and then went across the Jihūn.

At this time, Tugleck Timūr Khān detached a part of the army of Jetteh to pursue the horde of Hajy Berlās, and a great battle took place between the contending parties on the banks of the Jihūn: on this occasion, Chughām Berlās, who was one of the Omrahs of that tribe, highly distinguished himself, and so occupied the royal army as to enable the tribe with their cattle, to cross the river in safety, except himself, who while defending the rear guard, was cut down by some of the soldiers of Jetteh. In the mean time, Hajy Berlās crossed the river in safety, and marched the horde towards Khurasān; when he entered that country, he behaved unkindly to the inhabitants, and began to be guilty of oppression and injustice; he also exacted tribute from the wandering tribes of Sebzwār, on which account several skirmishes took place, and the villagers having by surprise seized Aydkū Behader, the brother of Hajy Berlās, put him to death; they also seized the Hajy and put an end to his existence. As I was at that period in possession of Khurasān, I assigned the district of Jaser for the support of the dependants and followers of the Hajy.

When the letter of Tugleck Timūr, desiring my immediate presence, reached me, it was also reported that Amyr Hamyd, who was the Khān’s (chief counsellor) had said to him; “in every town and district of Maveralnaher, there is a separate ruler, they have at least thirty thousand cavalry among them, to oppose whom, we have been obliged to make numerous detachments; it is, therefore, quite requisite that you should prevail on Amyr Timūr to join you, for if he should unite with these petty rulers, they will be too many for us; we must, therefore, hasten his arrival, and as he is a very sensible man, let us consult him on the best measures to be pursued.”

It was in consequence of this advice that the Khān wrote me a brotherlike letter, which induced me to make immediate preparations for joining him.

The determination that I made on the subject of visiting Tugleck Timūr, was this; I resolved to write letters to all the principal inhabitants, heads of villages, elders of the tribes and hordes of Maveralnaher, stating to them, “that whoever wished to save his life and property from being destroyed and plundered by the armies of Jetteh, should immediately repair to me; but those who declined this offer, ought to quit the country without loss of time.” In consequence of this invitation, the greater number of the chiefs and principal inhabitants came to me, bringing with them a number of curiosities and presents; as soon as they were all assembled, I proceeded with them and all my own soldiers and dependants, carrying various presents, and paid my respects to the (Khān) Emperor on the banks of the Khujend river: he received me most graciously, and when he saw the presents, his eyes were satiated; he then consulted me what was requisite to be done, I told him “that I had agreed for so many thousand _Durusts_, as the revenue of Maveralnaher, and that he had only to appoint collectors to realize the portion of each district, and to punish those who refused payment.”

He approved of my advice, and after he had taken possession of the throne of Maveralnaher, he again consulted me, on the best mode of preserving his authority: I said to him, “sovereignty is like a tent, the poles of which should be justice, the ropes equity, and the pins philanthropy, in order that it may stand firm (against the blasts of adversity);” he was much pleased with this metaphor, and I continued, “you must secure the soldiers of this country in the bonds of kindness, that if they survive the war, you may find them act like men, and if killed, they may die in your service;” I further said, “the _good_ of Maveralnaher are very good, and the _bad_ are very bad; do you reward the good with goodness, and leave the bad alone, ‘for evil shall overtake the wicked.’”

At this time, intelligence was brought, that the Amyr Hussyn had collected a very large army in Badukhshān; on hearing this, the Khān was ashamed of his former conduct to me, asked my pardon, and gave me the entire command of all the country, and all the hordes of Maveralnaher, with the city of Subz, and the Samerghānat, as far as the city of Balkh; he also left me in full possession of all my hereditary rights over my own tribe of Berlās, and other clans.

As it was now certain that Amyr Hussyn was resolved to oppose Tugleck Timūr, and had boldly advanced as far as the river Vahesh for that purpose, the Khān became thoughtful, and asked my advice. I said to him, “the state of the case is this, as in addition to the forces of Badukhshān, Amyr Hussyn has been joined by the rulers of Khutelān and Bakelān, he therefore feels bold enough to contend with you, the best plan is this, send the commission of Governor of the fortress of Shadmān and of the district of Khutelān to Ky Khuseru, the chief who commands the first line of Amyr Hussyn.” The Khān approved of this advice, sent off the commission by a trusty messenger, and then marched towards the enemy. When he reached the _Iron Gate_, and had pitched his camp, the advance guard of Amyr Hussyn came in sight; the Khān immediately ordered his advance under Beg Chuck, to oppose the enemy; but when the two _Heravuls_ met, Ky Khuseru deserted with all his followers, and joined the imperialists.

When Amyr Hussyn saw the state of his first line, he attempted to draw out the remainder of his army, but his right and left wings being panic struck, took to flight; thus Tugleck Timūr gained an easy victory, and the army of Jetteh plundered all the hordes and tribes of those districts, whilst Amyr Hussyn retreated towards Samerkund. The mind of the Khān being thus at ease with regard to Amyr Hussyn, he returned to Samerkund, and having entered the city, put to death Myan Kūly Selduz; and being now in possession of the whole kingdom of Maveralnaher, all the chiefs of cities, and the heads of all the nomade tribes were obliged to submit to his authority, whilst the rebellious, and all the petty tyrants who reckoned themselves as _Sultāns_, were annihilated; a few of them, who had not been guilty of any gross impropriety, were taken into favour, and ordered to join my army.

[Sidenote: A. D. 1363.]

When the country of Maveralnaher was thus cleared of all the petty tyrants, I returned thanks to God that what I had wished to do, was thus effected by his decree, and all my adversaries punished.

At this time I deliberated with myself how I should induce Tugleck Timūr to quit the country, and leave me in possession of it. I therefore suggested to him that Khurasān would now be an easy conquest, that in fact he had only to send his army across the river Amū, (Jihūn) and that he would meet with no opposition. He approved much of my advice, and agreed to leave me in charge of Maveralnaher, whilst he should proceed to the conquest of Khurasān.

About this period, news was brought that in consequence of the Divine decree, the chiefs of the Desht Kipchāk had rebelled, and had raised Beishky Aghlān, another descendant of Jengyz to the Khānship. On this occasion the Khān again consulted me; I said to him, “if you set out immediately, and proceed to the Desht before the rebels have gained strength, you may quell them easily, and preserve your authority over all the country, but if you procrastinate, you will be overwhelmed in misfortunes and calamities:” as he approved of my advice, he was lavish in his praises of my merit, and gave me the entire management of Maveralnaher, but appointed his son Alyas Khuajē the nominal governor.

When I objected to this proceeding, he shewed me the agreement between our ancestors Kajūly Behader, and Kubel Khān. In consequence of which, I accepted the office of (Sepah Salar) Commander in Chief, and he gave orders to all the officers of Jetteh, to be obedient to my authority; after which, he set out to quell the mutiny of the troops in the Desht Kipchāk.

As Alyas Khuajē had no talents for government, the troops of Jetteh soon began to exercise cruelty and injustice over the inhabitants of Maveralnaher, murdering and plundering the towns-people and farmers; I therefore lost no time in reporting these circumstances to the Khān, and complained to him of the malconduct of his soldiers: in reply to this, he wrote an imperial edict, “that I should exercise my authority as Commander in Chief; that I should put his son under any restraint I liked; that any of the Jetteh officers who were disobedient to me, I should severely punish, and that every person guilty of injustice should be compelled to make retribution in proportion to his offence.” Finding myself thus absolute ruler of all the country of Maveralnaher, as well as of the nomade hordes and tribes, I forbade Alyas Khuajē, or any of his officers from exercising authority over the natives: on this account, the sinews of their enmity were excited against me, and anger converted their hearts into blood; they therefore commenced practising every kind of cruelty and injustice, and carried their tyranny to such a degree, that they carried off four hundred virgins from the city of Samerkund; they also made captives of seventy of the descendants of Muhammed, belonging to Termuz, and converted them into slaves to wait on them.

In consequence of these proceedings, the principal inhabitants of Maveralnaher surrounded me, and said, “is it to be borne by Muselmāns that these Jetes should carry off four hundred of their daughters from Samerkund, and make slaves of them; but if this is not sufficiently disgraceful, how much worse is it to permit them to seize the descendants of the Prophet, (on whom and on his descendants be grace), young men who are firm in their belief, that ‘there is no God but God, and that Muhammed is the messenger of God,’ without any fault; shall we who daily repeat his holy creed, and hope to be received through his intercession into Paradise, and shall we suffer these scoundrel Jetes to take them away without making any exertion for their delivery?”

On hearing these words, my Muselmān honour was roused, and I first sent a message to Beg Chuck, who commanded the Jete troops, that he must immediately return all the Syeds, and the children of all the Muselmāns, that had been taken away. As this message had no effect, I spoke to Alyas Khuajē on the subject; but as the Jetes would not pay any attention to his orders, I put them to the proof, by mounting my cavalry, and liberating the seventy Syeds.

In consequence of this pious act, I dreamt that night that I saw the Prophet, who said to me, “in reward for this assistance that you have given to my descendants, the Almighty God will cause seventy of your descendants to occupy the throne of sovereignty.” I wrote this circumstance to my _Peer_, who sent me the following answer; “that if the gracious God bestowed on the posterity of Subuctageen such a reward for his compassion to a deer, you who have assisted the descendants of the Prophet, how much greater will be your reward even to the extent of seventy of your descendants:” I was much rejoiced by this answer to my letter, and I daily added to my respect and esteem for the posterity of the Prophet, and I always illuminated my assemblies by the presence of these illustrious personages. For my _Peer_ said, “in whatever horde or town there are not any Syeds, and in whatever palace the learned have not free entrance, there exists neither blessings, goodness, piety nor chastity.”

As I had exerted myself in repelling the injustice and cruelty of the Jetes, their chiefs bound round them the girdles of fraud and deceit, and they wrote to Tugleck Timūr Khān, “that Timūr had raised the standard of rebellion, and had taken possession of the whole province of Maveralnaher, and intends to put your son Alyas Kuajē to death.” When the letters of the chiefs, especially that of Beg Chuck, who considered himself the Commander in Chief of the Jetteh forces, reached the Khān, he believed their falsehoods to be truth; he issued an edict for my being put to death; this was the third edict he had issued for my murder.

On receipt of this order, the Jete chiefs consulted together, and laid snares for my destruction; I was quite aware of their intentions, but pretended ignorance, for I could place no reliance on the inhabitants of Maveralnaher, to aid me against my foes; I therefore resolved to consult my _Peer_, and wrote to him on the subject; he replied, in conformity with the holy tradition of Muhammed, “Flee when its not safe to remain:” I then consulted the Korān, and this verse opened, “the sun returns to its resting place, such is the Divine decree of the Omniscient and Omnipotent.”

I therefore left Samerkund, and repaired to the mountain of Salan, where I remained eight days; at the end of that time, I received a hint from (the Saint) Amyr Kelāl, that I should go towards the country of Khuarizm.

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Footnote 55:

Hajy Berlās was his uncle.

Footnote 56:

A gold coin.

Footnote 57:

It has been before stated, that _kund_ signifies a town, Samer was one of the ancient heroes of Persia. It is the Maracanda of the Greeks, and is situated in Lat. 39,37 N. Longitude 64,9 E. See Edinburgh Gazetteer.

Footnote 58:

See printed copy in the Institutes, page 25.