Chronicles of the Great Maratha War by Firoz Khan, scribe and scholar of the court of Zaman Shah Durrani
One evening there was great merriment in the court of the Emperor in celebration of the ending of Id ul Fitir a great feast had been prepared. The tables were heaped with all manner of delicacies and exotic foods, the wine flowed freely and the Emperor’s guests drank deeply, the girls of the harem had been summoned and made to dance to the delight of the assorted men. The Emperor being in a generous mood distributed quantities of silver, gold, and jewels to his followers from his throne.
The throne itself had been newly crafted being carved of elaborate ebony and plated in gold with precious stones of great value much of which had been plundered from the Maratha and Mughals. On the throne itself seated in great finery with robes of silk and a diamond encrusted turban was Zaman Shah Durrani.
It was upon this evening that a fakir approached the palace guards and requested entry and audience with the Emperor. Zaman Shah being flushed with wine permitted this against the counsel of his courtiers who cautioned him about the possibility of assassination.
The fakir entering the presence of the Emperor failed to make the customary salaam instead he said aloud “What shame has befallen the court of Durrani that it has sunk to such depths?”
A dozen mean leapt to their feet swords drawn prepared to cut off the head of the insolent fakir. Zaman Shah raised his arm staying their hands “Who dares enter the adobe of Durrani and speak such to the Emperor? Explain yourself lest I have your tongue torn from your mouth insolent cur!”
“I come from Lahore, a city once during the reign of your father within the adobe of Dar-Al-Islam it is now held by the infidel who persecutes the pious and righteous Muslims within it. I have seen mosques vandalized and degraded, Muslim men killed with women raped in the streets while the children are converted to pagan religions or put to death in gruesome Hindoo rituals. And now when I enter the court of Zaman Shah Durrani expecting succor and aid, instead I find him engaging in un-Islamic debauchery.”
The words of the fakir pierced Zaman Shah as though an arrow. He immediately ordered the harem girls to be expelled from the room and stripped off his ornate turban. Lifting his cup of wine as though to toast the fakir he said “Your words have moved me o wise one. I swear that I shall avenge what has been done to my brothers in Lahore. I shall not sheathe my sword until I have put to death one hundred thousand infidel.” Saying so he poured the wine into the ground.
The next day the Emperor assembled his army and marched to give battle to the pagans of Punjab. With ferocity the army pounced on the Punjabi’s who were utterly routed and fled in terror across the Indus. Zaman Shah showed no mercy, upon reaching the Punjabi capital of Gurunjawala he put no less than three hundred thousand Hindoo’s to the sword without regard for age or sex. The city was thoroughly sacked with the temples and gurudwaras of the infidel being destroyed, their idols smashed, and the wealth and women of the city carried away.
When news of this terrible slaughter and the destruction of their holy buildings reached the Maratha they were driven into a great anger. They advanced resolutely and the two armies met near te city of Lahore. At first it appeared that Zaman Shah would recreate his grandfathers victory at Panipat. The Afghan cavalry smashed the faltering Punjabi and Maratha flank and prepared to sweep them from the battlefield.
Alas the treacherous Maratha brought forth artillery which drove the cavalry back. The battle went back and forth for many hours with terrible carnage on both sides. By the end both armies bloodied and exhausted retired to their respective sides of the Indus. The Maratha pagans marshaled their forces attempting to cross the Indus only to be immediately ambushed by Durrani forces and utterly massacred. Soldiers drowned by the hundreds in the river as they threw themselves in to escape the vengeful Durrani army. Much infidel blood was spilled into the Indus that day.
The Maratha being so repulsed limped back across the river and sent to treat for peace. There both sides agreed to withdraw to their respective territories.
The Emperor being mindful of the fact that his vow to slaughter a hundred thousand infidel had been fulfilled agreed.
“Praise be to God that what I vowed has been performed. I would not let a light word be recorded of me in the pages of time!”
One evening there was great merriment in the court of the Emperor in celebration of the ending of Id ul Fitir a great feast had been prepared. The tables were heaped with all manner of delicacies and exotic foods, the wine flowed freely and the Emperor’s guests drank deeply, the girls of the harem had been summoned and made to dance to the delight of the assorted men. The Emperor being in a generous mood distributed quantities of silver, gold, and jewels to his followers from his throne.
The throne itself had been newly crafted being carved of elaborate ebony and plated in gold with precious stones of great value much of which had been plundered from the Maratha and Mughals. On the throne itself seated in great finery with robes of silk and a diamond encrusted turban was Zaman Shah Durrani.
It was upon this evening that a fakir approached the palace guards and requested entry and audience with the Emperor. Zaman Shah being flushed with wine permitted this against the counsel of his courtiers who cautioned him about the possibility of assassination.
The fakir entering the presence of the Emperor failed to make the customary salaam instead he said aloud “What shame has befallen the court of Durrani that it has sunk to such depths?”
A dozen mean leapt to their feet swords drawn prepared to cut off the head of the insolent fakir. Zaman Shah raised his arm staying their hands “Who dares enter the adobe of Durrani and speak such to the Emperor? Explain yourself lest I have your tongue torn from your mouth insolent cur!”
“I come from Lahore, a city once during the reign of your father within the adobe of Dar-Al-Islam it is now held by the infidel who persecutes the pious and righteous Muslims within it. I have seen mosques vandalized and degraded, Muslim men killed with women raped in the streets while the children are converted to pagan religions or put to death in gruesome Hindoo rituals. And now when I enter the court of Zaman Shah Durrani expecting succor and aid, instead I find him engaging in un-Islamic debauchery.”
The words of the fakir pierced Zaman Shah as though an arrow. He immediately ordered the harem girls to be expelled from the room and stripped off his ornate turban. Lifting his cup of wine as though to toast the fakir he said “Your words have moved me o wise one. I swear that I shall avenge what has been done to my brothers in Lahore. I shall not sheathe my sword until I have put to death one hundred thousand infidel.” Saying so he poured the wine into the ground.
The next day the Emperor assembled his army and marched to give battle to the pagans of Punjab. With ferocity the army pounced on the Punjabi’s who were utterly routed and fled in terror across the Indus. Zaman Shah showed no mercy, upon reaching the Punjabi capital of Gurunjawala he put no less than three hundred thousand Hindoo’s to the sword without regard for age or sex. The city was thoroughly sacked with the temples and gurudwaras of the infidel being destroyed, their idols smashed, and the wealth and women of the city carried away.
When news of this terrible slaughter and the destruction of their holy buildings reached the Maratha they were driven into a great anger. They advanced resolutely and the two armies met near te city of Lahore. At first it appeared that Zaman Shah would recreate his grandfathers victory at Panipat. The Afghan cavalry smashed the faltering Punjabi and Maratha flank and prepared to sweep them from the battlefield.
Alas the treacherous Maratha brought forth artillery which drove the cavalry back. The battle went back and forth for many hours with terrible carnage on both sides. By the end both armies bloodied and exhausted retired to their respective sides of the Indus. The Maratha pagans marshaled their forces attempting to cross the Indus only to be immediately ambushed by Durrani forces and utterly massacred. Soldiers drowned by the hundreds in the river as they threw themselves in to escape the vengeful Durrani army. Much infidel blood was spilled into the Indus that day.
The Maratha being so repulsed limped back across the river and sent to treat for peace. There both sides agreed to withdraw to their respective territories.
The Emperor being mindful of the fact that his vow to slaughter a hundred thousand infidel had been fulfilled agreed.
“Praise be to God that what I vowed has been performed. I would not let a light word be recorded of me in the pages of time!”
