Note 43 — The Tenth New Year’s Festival after my auspicious Accession.

They reached the camp of that ill-starred one, and he from excessive pride determined to fight with the victorious troops. Having collected those rebels who were with him and ʿĀdil K͟hān’s army and that of Qut̤bu-l-mulk together, and preparing their artillery, he started to meet the royal troops until a space of not more than 5 or 6 kos remained between. On Sunday, the 25th Bahman, the armies of light and darkness approached each other and the scouts became visible. Three watches of day had passed when cannon and rocket firing began. In the end Dārāb K͟hān, who was in command of the vanguard, with other leaders and zealous men such as Rāja Bīr Singh Deo, Rāy Chand, ʿAlī K͟hān the Tatar, Jahāngīr Qulī Beg Turkmān, and other lions of the forest of bravery, drew their swords and charged the vanguard of the enemy. Performing the dues of manliness and bravery, they scattered this army like the Banātu-n-naʿs͟h (‘Daughters of the Bier,’ i.e. the Great Bear); and not stopping there they attacked the enemy’s centre. Turning on the army opposed to them, such a hand-to-hand struggle took place that the onlookers remained bewildered. For nearly two gharis this combat went on. Heaps of the dead lay there, and the ill-starred ʿAmbar, unable to offer further opposition, turned his face to flight. If darkness43 and gloom had not come on at the cry of those black-fortuned ones, not one of them would have found the road to the valley of safety. The crocodiles of the river of conflict followed the fugitives for 2 or 3 kos. When horses and men could move no more and the defeated were scattered, they drew rein and returned to their places. The whole of the enemy’s artillery, with 300 laden camels that carried rockets, war elephants, Arab and Persian horses, weapons and armour beyond reckoning, fell into the hands of the servants of the State, and there was no counting the slain and the fallen. A great many of the leaders fell alive into their hands. The next day the victorious troops, marching from the place of victory, proceeded to Karkī, which was the nest of those owlish ones, and seeing no trace of them they encamped there, and obtained news that they during that night and day had fallen miserably in different places. For some days the victorious army, delayed at Karkī, levelled with the dark earth the buildings and houses of the enemy, and burnt that populous place. In consequence of the occurrence of certain events, to describe which in detail would take too long here, they returned from that place and descended by the Rohan Khanḍa Pass. In reward for this service I ordered increases to be made in the mansabs of a number who had shown zeal and bravery.