SECTION II.—KĀBUL

910 AH.—June 14th 1504 to June 4th 1505 AD.—Bābur halts on an alp of Ḥiṣār—enters his 22nd (lunar) year—delays his march in hope of adherents—writes a second time of the stinginess of Khusrau Shāh to himself—recalls Sherīm̤ T̤aghāī Mughūl's earlier waverings in support—is joined by Khusrau Shāh's brother Bāqī Beg—they start for Kābul—Accretions of force—their families left in Fort Ajar (Kāhmard)—Jahāngīr marries a cousin—Bāqī advises his dismissal to Khurāsān—Bābur is loyal to his half-brother—Jahāngīr is seduced, later, by disloyal Begchīk chiefs—Ḥusain Bāī-qarā summons help against Shaibānī—Despair in Bābur's party at Ḥusain's plan of "defence, not attack"—Qaṃbar-i-`alī dismissed to please Bāqī—Khusrau makes abject submission to Bābur—Mīrzā Khān demands vengeance on him—Khusrau's submission having been on terms, he is let go free—Bābur resumes his march—first sees Canopus—is joined by tribesmen—Khusrau's brother Walī flees to the Aūzbegs and is executed—Risks run by the families now fetched from Kāhmard—Kābul surrendered to Bābur by Muqīm Arghūn—Muqīm's family protected—+Description of Kābul+ (pp. 199 to 277)—Muqīm leaves for Qandahār—Allotment of fiefs—Excess levy in grain—Foray on the Sulṯān Mas`ūdī Hazāra—Bābur's first move for Hindūstān—Khaibar traversed—Bīgrām visited—Bāqī Beg prevents crossing the Sind—and persuades for Kohāt—A plan for Bangash, Bannū and thence return to Kābul—Yār-i-ḥusain Daryā-khānī asks for permission to raise a force for Bābur, east of the Sind—Move to Thāl, Bannū, and the Dasht—return route varied without consulting Bābur—Pīr Kānū's tomb visited—through the Pawat-pass into Dūkī—horse-food fails—baggage left behind—men of all conditions walk to Ghaznī—spectacle of the Āb-istāda—mirage and birds—Jahāngīr is Bābur's host in Ghaznī—heavy floods—Kābul reached after a disastrous expedition of four months—Nāṣir's misconduct abetted by two Begchīk chiefs—he and they flee into Badakhshān—Khusrau Shāh's schemes fail in Herāt—imbroglio between him and Nāṣir—Shaibānī attempts Ḥiṣār but abandons the siege on his brother's death—Khusrau attempts Ḥiṣār and is there killed—his followers revolt against Bābur—his death quenches the fire of sedition 188-245

911 AH.—June 4th 1505 to May 24th 1506 AD.—Death of Bābur's mother—Bābur's illness stops a move for Qandahār—an earth-quake—campaign against and capture of Qalāt-i-ghilzāī—Bāqī Beg dismissed towards Hindūstān—murdered in the Khaibar—Turkmān Hazāra raided—Nijr-aū tribute collected—Jahāngīr misbehaves and runs away—Bābur summoned by Ḥusain Bāī-qarā against Shaibānī—Shaibānī takes Khwārizm and Chīn Ṣūfī is killed—Death and biography of Ḥusain Bāī-qarā (256 to 292)—his burial and joint-successors 246-293

912 AH.—May 24th 1506 to May 13th 1507 AD.—Bābur, without news of Ḥusain Bāī-qarā's death, obeys his summons and leaves Kābul—Jahāngīr flees from Bābur's route—Nāṣir defeats Shaibānī's men in Badakhshān—Bābur, while in Kāhmard, hears of Ḥusain's death—continues his march with anxious thought for the Tīmūrid dynasty—Jahāngīr waits on him and accompanies him to Herāt—Co-alition of Khurāsān Mīrzās against Shaibānī—their meeting with Bābur—etiquette of Bābur's reception—an entertainment to him—of the Chīngīz-tūrā—Bābur claims the ceremonial observance due to his military achievements—entertainments and Bābur's obedience to Muḥammadan Law against wine—his reflections on the Mīrzās—difficulties of winter-plans (300, 307)—he sees the sights of Herī—visits the Begīms—the ceremonies observed—tells of his hitherto abstention from wine and of his present inclination to drink it—Qasīm Beg's interference with those pressing Bābur to break the Law—Bābur's poor carving—engages Ma`ṣūma in marriage—leaves for Kābul—certain retainers stay behind—a perilous journey through snow to a wrong pass out of the Herīrud valley—arrival of the party in Yakaaūlāng—joy in their safety and comfort—Shibr-tū traversed into Ghūr-bunḍ—Turkmān Hazāra raided—News reaches Bābur of conspiracy in Kābul to put Mīrzā Khān in his place—Bābur concerts plans with the loyal Kābul garrison—moves on through snow and in terrible cold—attacks and defeats the rebels—narrowly escaped death—attributes his safety to prayer—-deals mercifully, from family considerations, with the rebel chiefs—reflects on their behaviour to him who has protected them—asserts that his only aim is to write the truth—letters-of-victory sent out—Muḥ. Ḥusain Dūghlāt and Mīrzā Khān banished—Spring excursion to Koh-dāman—Nāṣir, driven from Badakhshān, takes refuge with Bābur 294-322

913 AH.—May 13th 1507 to May 2nd 1508 AD.—Raid on the Ghiljī Afghāns—separation of the Fifth (Khams)—wild-ass, hunting—Shaibānī moves against Khurāsān—Irresolution of the Tīmūrid Mīrzās—Infatuation of Ẕū'n-nūn Arghūn—Shaibānī takes Herī—his doings there—Defeat and death of two Bāī-qarās—The Arghūns in Qandahār make overtures to Bābur—he starts to join them against Shaibānī—meets Ma`ṣūma in Ghaznī on her way to Kābul—spares Hindūstān traders—meets Jahāngīr's widow and infant-son coming from Herāt—The Arghūn chiefs provoke attack on Qandahār—Bābur's army—organization and terminology—wins the battle of Qandahār and enters the fort—its spoils—Nāṣir put in command—Bābur returns to Kābul rich in goods and fame—marries Ma`ṣūma—Shaibānī lays siege to Qandahār—Alarm in Kābul at his approach—Mīrzā Khān and Shāh Begīm betake themselves to Badakhshān—Bābur sets out for Hindūstān leaving `Abdu'r-razzāq in Kābul—Afghān highwaymen—A raid for food—Māhchuchak's marriage—Hindūstān plan abandoned—Nūr-gal and Kūnār visited—News of Shaibānī's withdrawal from Qandahār—Bābur returns to Kābul—gives Ghaznī to Nāṣir—assumes the title of Pādshāh—Birth of Humāyūn, feast and chronogram 323-344

914 AH.—May 2nd 1508 to April 21st 1509 AD.—Raid on the Mahmand Afghāns—Seditious offenders reprieved—Khusrau Shāh's former retainers march off from Kābul—`Abdu'r-razzāq comes from his district to near Kābul—not known to have joined the rebels—earlier hints to Bābur of this "incredible" rebellion—later warnings of an immediate rising 345-346

+Translator's Note.+—914 to 925 AH.—1508 to 1519 AD.—Date of composition of preceding narrative—Loss of matter here seems partly or wholly due to Bābur's death—Sources helping to fill the Gap—Events of the remainder of 914 AH.—The mutiny swiftly quelled—Bābur's five-fold victory over hostile champions—Sa`īd Chaghatāī takes refuge with him in a quiet Kābul—Shaibānī's murders of Chaghatāī and Dūghlāt chiefs 347-366

915 AH.—April 21st 1509 to April 11th 1510 AD.—Beginning of hostilities between Ismā`īl Ṣafawī and Shaibānī—Ḥaidar Dūghlāt takes refuge with Bābur.

916 AH.—April 11th 1510 to March 31st 1511 AD.—Ismā`īl defeats the Aūzbegs near Merv—Shaibānī is killed—20,000 Mughūls he had migrated to Khurāsān, return to near Qūndūz—Mīrzā Khān invites Bābur to join him against the Aūzbegs—Bābur goes to Qūndūz—The 20,000 Mughūls proffer allegiance to their hereditary Khān Sa`īd—they propose to set Bābur aside—Sa`īd's worthy rejection of the proposal—Bābur makes Sa`īd The Khān of the Mughūls and sends him and his Mughūls into Farghāna—significance of Bābur's words, "I made him Khān"—Bābur's first attempt on Ḥiṣār where were Ḥamza and Mahdī Aūzbeg—beginning of his disastrous intercourse with Ismā`īl Ṣafawī—Ismā`īl sends Khān-zāda Begīm back to him—with thanks for the courtesy, Bābur asks help against the Aūzbeg—it is promised under dangerous conditions.

917 AH.—March 31st 1511 to March 19th 1512 AD.—Bābur's second attempt on Ḥiṣār—wins the Battle of Pul-i-sangīn—puts Ḥamza and Mahdī to death—his Persian reinforcement and its perilous cost—The Aūzbegs are swept across the Zar-afshān—The Persians are dismissed from Bukhārā—Bābur occupies Samarkand after a nine-year's absence—he gives Kābul to Nāṣir—his difficult position in relation to the Shī`a Ismā`īl—Ismā`īl sends Najm S̤ānī to bring him to order.

918 AH.—March 19th 1512 to March 9th 1513 AD.—The Aūzbegs return to the attack—`Ubaid's vow—his defeat of Bābur at Kūl-i-malik—Bābur flees from Samarkand to Ḥiṣār—his pursuers retire—Najm S̤ānī from Balkh gives him rendezvous at Tīrmīẕ—the two move for Bukhārā—Najm perpetrates the massacre of Qarshī—Bābur is helpless to prevent it—Najm crosses the Zar-afshān to a disadvantageous position—is defeated and slain—Bābur, his reserve, does not fight—his abstention made a reproach at the Persian Court against his son Humāyūn (1544 AD.?)—his arrow-sped message to the Aūzbeg camp—in Ḥiṣār, he is attacked suddenly by Mughūls—he escapes to Qūndūz—the retributive misfortunes of Ḥiṣār—Ḥaidar on Mughūls—Ayūb Begchīk's death-bed repentance for his treachery to Bābur—Ḥaidar returns to his kinsfolk in Kāshghar.

919 AH.—March 9th 1513 to Feb. 26th 1514 AD.—Bābur may have spent the year in Khishm—Ismā`īl takes Balkh from the Aūzbegs—surmised bearing of the capture on his later action.

920 AH.—Feb. 26th 1514 to Feb. 15th 1515 AD.—Ḥaidar's account of Bābur's misery, patience and courtesy this year in Qūndūz—Bābur returns to Kābul—his daughter Gulrang is born in Khwāst—he is welcomed by Nāṣir who goes back to Ghaznī.

921 AH.—Feb. 15th 1515 to Feb. 5th 1516 AD.—Death of Nāṣir—Riot in Ghaznī led by Sherīm T̤aghāī Mughūl—quiet restored—many rebels flee to Kāshghar—Sherīm refused harbourage by Sa`īd Khān and seeks Bābur's protection—Ḥaidar's comment on Bābur's benevolence.

922 AH.—Feb. 5th 1516 to Jan. 24th 1517 AD.—A quiet year in Kābul apparently—Birth of `Askarī.

923 AH.—Jan. 24th 1517 to Jan. 13th 1518 AD.—Bābur visits Balkh—Khwānd-amīr's account of the affairs of Muhammad-i-zamān Mīrza Bāī-qarā—Bābur pursues the Mīrzā—has him brought to Kābul—gives him his daughter Ma`ṣūma in marriage—An expedition to Qandahār returns fruitless, on account of his illness—Shāh Beg's views on Bābur's persistent attempts on Qandahār—Shāh Beg's imprisonment and release by his slave Saṃbal's means.

924 AH.—Jan. 13th 1518 to Jan. 3rd 1519 AD.—Shāh Beg's son Ḥasan flees to Bābur—stays two years—date of his return to his father—Bābur begins a campaign in Bajaur against Ḥaidar-i-`alī Bajaurī—takes two forts.

[+End of Translator's Note.+]

925 AH.—Jan. 3rd to Dec. 23rd 1519 AD.—Bābur takes the Fort of Bajaur—massacres its people as false to Islām—Khwāja Kalān made its Commandant—an excessive impost in grain—a raid for corn—Māhīm's adoption of Dil-dār's unborn child—Bābur marries Bībī Mubārika—Repopulation of the Fort of Bajaur—Expedition against Afghān tribesmen—Destruction of the tomb of a heretic qalandar—Bābur first crosses the Sind—his long-cherished desire for Hindūstān—the ford of the Sind—the Koh-i-jūd (Salt-range)—his regard for Bhīra, Khūsh-āb, Chīn-ab and Chīnīūt as earlier possessions of the Turk, now therefore his own—the Kalda-kahār lake and subsequent location on it of the Bāgh-i-ṣafā—Assurance of safety sent to Bhīra as a Turk possession—History of Bhīra etc. as Turk possessions—Author's Note on Tātār Khān Yūsuf-khail—envoys sent to Balūchīs in Bhīra—heavy floods in camp—Offenders against Bhīra people punished—Agreed tribute collected—Envoy sent to ask from Ibrāhīm Lūdī the lands once dependent on the Turk—Daulat Khān arrests and keeps the envoy who goes back later to Bābur re infectâ—news of Hind-āl's birth and cause of his name—description of a drinking-party—Tātār Khān Kakar compels Minūchihr Khān Turk, going to wait on Bābur, to become his son-in-law—Account of the Kakars—excursions and drinking-parties—Bhīra appointments—action taken against Hātī Khān Kakar—Description and capture of Parhāla—Bābur sees the saṃbal plant—a tiger killed—Gūr-khattrī visited—Loss of a clever hawk—Khaibar traversed—mid-day halt in the Bāgh-i-wafā—Qarā-tū garden visited—News of Shāh Beg's capture of Kāhān—Bābur's boys carried out in haste to meet him—wine-parties—Death and biography of Dost Beg—Arrival of Sulṯānīm Bāī-qarā and ceremonies observed on meeting her—A long-imprisoned traitor released—Excursion to Koh-dāman—Hindū Beg abandons Bhīra—Bābur has (intermittent) fever—Visitors from Khwāst—Yūsuf-zāī chiefs wait on Bābur—Khalīfa's son sends a wedding-gift—Bābur's amusement when illness keeps him from an entertainment—treatment of his illness—A Thursday reading of theology (see Add. Note p. 401)—Swimming—Envoy from Mīrzā Khān—Tribesmen allowed to leave Kābul for wider grazing-grounds—Bābur sends his first Dīwān to Pūlād Aūzbeg in Samarkand—Arrivals and departures—Punitive expedition against the `Abdu'r-rahman Afghāns—punishment threatened and inflicted (p. 405) on defaulters in help to an out-matched man—Description of the Rustam-maidān—return to Kābul—Excursion to Koh-dāman—snake incident—Tramontane begs warned for service—fish-drugging—Bābur's non-pressure to drink, on an abstainer—wine-party—misadventure on a raft—toothpicks gathered—A new retainer—Bābur shaves his head—Hind-āl's guardian appointed—Aūzbeg raiders defeated in Badakhshān—Various arrivals—Yūsuf-zāī campaign—Bābur dislocates his wrist—Varia—Dilah-zāk chiefs wait on him—Plan to store corn in Hash-nagar—Incidents of the road—Khaibar traversed—Bārā urged on Bābur as a place for corn—Kābul river forded at Bārā—little corn found and the Hash-nagar plan foiled—Plan to store Pashāwar Fort—return to `Alī-masjid—News of an invasion of Badakhshān hurries Bābur back through the Khaibar—The Khiẓr-khail Afghāns punished—Bābur first writes since dislocating his wrist—The beauty and fruits of the Bāgh-i-wafā—incidents of the return march to Kābul—Excursion to the Koh-dāman—beauty of its harvest crops and autumnal trees—a line offensive to Khalīfa (see Add. Note p. 416)—Humāyūn makes a good shot—Beauty of the harvest near Istālīf and in the Bāgh-i-pādshāhī—Return to Kābul—Bābur receives a white falcon in gift—pays a visit of consolation to an ashamed drinker—Arrivals various—he finishes copying `Alī-sher's four Dīwāns—An order to exclude from future parties those who become drunk—Bābur starts for Lāmghān 367-419

926 AH.—Dec. 23rd 1519 to Dec. 12th 1520 AD.—Excursion to Koh-dāman and Kohistān—incidents of the road—Bābur shoots with an easy bow, for the first time after the dislocation of his wrist—Nijr-aū tribute fixed—Excursions in Lāmghān—Kāfir head-men bring goat-skins of wine—Halt in the Bāgh-i-wafā—its oranges, beauty and charm—Bābur records his wish and intention to return to obedience in his 40th year and his consequent excess in wine as the end approached—composes an air—visits Nūr-valley—relieves Kwāja Kalān in Bajaur—teaches a talisman to stop rain—his opinion of the ill-taste and disgusting intoxication of beer—his reason for summoning Khwāja Kalān, and trenchant words to Shāh Hasan relieving him—an old beggar loaded with gifts—the raft strikes a rock—Description of the Kīndīr spring—Fish taken from fish-ponds—Hunting—Accident to a tooth—Fishing with a net—A murderer made over to the avengers of blood—A Qoran chapter read and start made for Kābul—(here the diary breaks off) 420-425

+Translator's Note.+—926 to 932 AH.—1520 to 1525 AD.—Bābur's activities in the Gap—missing matter less interesting than that lost in the previous one—its distinctive mark is biographical—Dramatis personæ—Sources of information 426-444

926 AH.—Dec. 23rd 1519 to Dec. 12th 1520 AD.—Bābur's five expeditions into Hindūstān—this year's cut short by menace from Qandahār—Shāh Beg's position—particulars of his menace not ascertained—+Description of Qandahār-fort+—Bābur's various sieges—this year's raised because of pestilence within the walls—Shāh Beg pushes out into Sind.

927 AH.—Dec. 12th 1520 to Dec. 1st 1521 AD.—Two accounts of this year's siege of Qandahār—(i) that of the Ḥabību's-siyar—(ii) that of the Tārīkh-i-sind—concerning the dates involved—Mīrzā Khān's death.

928 AH.—Dec. 1st 1521 to Nov. 20th 1522 AD.—Bābur and Māhīm visit Humāyūn in Badakhshān—Expedition to Qandahār—of the duel between Bābur and Shāh Beg—the Chihil-zīna monument of victory—Death of Shāh Beg and its date—Bābur's literary work down to this year.

929 AH.—Nov. 20th 1522 to Nov. 10th 1523 AD.—Hindūstān affairs—Daulat Khān Lūdī, Ibrāhīm Lūdī and Bābur—Dilawār (son of Daulat Khān) goes to Kābul and asks help against Ibrāhīm—Bābur prays for a sign of victory—prepares for the expedition—`Ālam Khān Lūdī (apparently in this year) goes to Kābul and asks Bābur's help against his nephew Ibrāhīm—Birth of Gul-badan.

930 AH.—Nov. 10th 1523 to Oct. 27th 1524 AD.—Bābur's fourth expedition into Hindūstān—differs from earlier ones by its concert with malcontents in the country—Bābur defeats Bihār Khān Lūdī near Lāhor—Lāhor occupied—Dībalpūr stormed, plundered and its people massacred—Bābur moves onward from Sihrind but returns on news of Daulat Khān's doings—there may have been also news of Aūzbeg threat to Balkh—The Panj-āb garrison—Death of Ismā`īl Ṣafawī and of Shāh Beg—Bābur turns for Kābul—plants bananas in the Bāgh-i-wafā.

931 AH.—Oct. 29th 1524 to Oct. 18th 1525 AD.—Daulat Khān's large resources—he defeats `Ālam Khān at Dībalpūr—`Ālam Khān flees to Kābul and again asks help—Bābur's conditions of reinforcement—`Ālam Khān's subsequent proceedings detailed s.a. 932 AH.—Bābur promises to follow him speedily—is summoned to Balkh by its Aūzbeg menace—his arrival raises the siege—he returns to Kābul in time for his start to Hindūstān in 932 426-444

[+End of Translator's Note.+]