the Master oi the Horse was posted as the reserve. For the turning-party {tulghumd) at the point of the right wing,1 we fixed on Red Wall and Malik Oasim (brother) of Baba Qashqa, with their Mughuls ; for the turning-party at the point of the left wing, we arrayed Qara-quzl, Abu'l-muhammad the lanceplayer, Shaikh Jamal Sarin's Shaikh 'All, Mahndl(?) and Tlngri-blrdl Bashag/u (}) Mughul; these two parties, directly the enemy got near, were to turn his rear, one from the right, the other from the left.
When the dark mass of the enemy first came in sight, he seemed to incline towards our right ; 'Abdu'l-'azTz, who was the right-reserve, was sent therefore to reinforce the right. From the time that SI. Ibrahim's blackness first appeared, he moved swiftly, straight for us, without a check, until he saw the dark mass of our men, when his pulled up and, observing our formation and array,2 made as if asking, " To stand or not ? To advance or not ?" They could not stand ; nor could they make their former swift advance.
Our orders were for the turning-parties to wheel from right and left to the enemy's rear, to discharge arrows and to engage in the fight; and for the right and left (wings) to advance and join battle with him. The turning-parties wheeled round and began to rain arrows down. Mahdi Khwaja was the first of the left to engage ; he was faced by a troop having an elephant with it; his men's flights of arrows forced it to retire. To reinforce the left I sent Secretary Ahmadl and also Quj Beg's TardI Beg and Khalifa's Muhibb-i-'all. On the right also there was some stubborn fighting. Orders were given for Muhammadl Kukuldash, Shah Mansur Barlas, Yunas-i-'all and Abdu'1-lah to engage those facing them in front of the centre. From that same position Ustad Ali-qull made good discharge of firingl shots ; 3
1 A dispute for this right-hand post of honour is recorded on f. iooi, as also in accounts of Culloden.
2 tartib u yasal, which may include, as Erskine took it to do, the carts and mantelets ; of these however, Ibrahim can hardly have failed to hear before he rode out of camp.
3 f. 217^ and note ; Irvine's Army of the Indian Mughuls p. 133. Here Erskine notes (Alems. p. 306) " The size of these artillery at this time is very uncertain. The wot<\ firingi is now (1826 ad.) used in the Deccan for a swivel. At the present day, zarb-zan in common usat;e is a small species of swivel. Both words in Babur's time
Flickr
Stumbleupon
Scribd
