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THE HISTORY OF
THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

ENTHRONEMENT OF OGEDEI

From a very old MS. of Rashid-ad-Din in the Bibliotheque Nationale

THE HISTORY

OF THE
WORLD-CONQUEROR

c Ala-ad-Din 'Ata-Malik
JUVAINI

Translated
from the text of

Mirza Muhammad
QAZVINI

ly
JOHN ANDREW BOYLE, Ph.D.

VOL. I

HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS

1958

(1958) by

MANCHESTER UNIVERSITY PRESS

Quotation from or reprinting of this work in the

United States of America is forbidden except by

written permission of the exclusive licensee,

HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS

UNESCO COLLECTION OF REPRESENTATIVE WORKS
PERSIAN SERIES

Published in accordance with an agreement between UNESCO and the

University of Tehran. In compliance with the regulations of UNESCO,

this translation has been revised by Professor V. Minorsky

Printed in Great Britain

THIS TRANSLATION
IS GRATEFULLY DEDICATED TO

MY WIFE,

MARGARET ELIZABETH

FOREWORD

WHETHER or not the Bible legend Is true that it was Man's
presumption in building the Tower of Babel which caused the
multiplicity of languages In the world, the punishment was very
severe ; and it falls with especial severity upon historians.
Anyone who wishes to trace the major events In history must
be himself an accomplished linguist or must put his reliance on
translations that are often inaccurate and out of date or on
Indirect references to works that have never been translated from
their original tongue. The rise and expansion of the Mongol
Empire are among the most important events of later medieval
history. There was barely a country in Europe or Asia that
was not In some way affected by the Mongol onslaught, and
many of them had their whole course changed by it. But the
historian who attempts to tell Its story is faced with essential
sources in a greater number of languages than any one human
being can be expected to know. Sooner or later he has to
depend upon translators, whose works will be useless to him
unless they are exact, intelligent and clear.

Of the writers who have left contemporary accounts of the
Mongols none is more Important than Juvaini. He knew
personally many of the chief actors in the dramatic stories that
he told. He enjoyed the confidence of the H-Khan Hiilegu,
the Mongol conqueror of Baghdad. He himself was intimately
connected with one of the most interesting episodes in the story,
the destruction of the headquarters of the Assassins at Alamut.
He was, moreover, a historian in the best Moslem tradition, a
man of wide interests and of literary accomplishment. But
hitherto his work in its entirety has only been accessible to Persian
scholars. A full and worthy translation of his history into
English is therefore a very welcome contribution to historiography.
I hope that it will be read not only by the specialist students of
the Mongol expansion and of the strange sect of the Assassins
but also by everyone who finds pleasure in reading history.

STEVEN RUNCIMAN
vii

CONTENTS

PAGE

FOREWORD, ly The Hon. Steven Runciman . vii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS xii

TRANSLATOR'S INTRODUCTION xv

NOTE ON TRANSLITERATION xxxvi

BIBLIOGRAPHY xxxix

ABBREVIATIONS xlv

PART ONE

DOXOLOGY 3

INTRODUCTION 4

I. Of the condition of the Mongols before the time of Chingiz-

Khan's rise to power 19

II. Of the laws which Chingiz-Khan framed and the yasas

which he promulgated after his rise to power . . .23

III. Chingiz-Khan's rise to power and the beginning of the
passing to him of the empires and kingdoms of the kings of

the world : a brief account thereof . . . .34

IV. Of the sons of Chingiz-Khan 40

V. Of the conquest of the land of the Uighur and the submission

of the i-qut 44

VI. Of the further history of the Uighur .... 48
VII. Of the origin of the idi~qut and the land of the Uighur accord-
ing to their own belief. 53

VIII. Of Kuchliig and Toq-Toghan . . . .61

IX. Of the martyred imam, * Ala-ad-Din Muhammad of Khotan

(God's mercy le upon him /) . . . . .70

X. Of the conquest of the regions of Almaligh, Qayaligh and

Fulad; together with an account of the rulers thereof . 74
XL Of the reason for the attack on the countries of the Sultan 77
XII. Of the advance of the world-conquering Khan against the

countries of the Sultan and the capture of Otrar . . 81
XIIL Of the advance of Ulush-Idi against Jand, and the conquest

of that region ........ 86

XIV. Of the capture of Fanakat and Khojend, and the story of

Temur Malik . . . . . . .91

XV. A short account of the conquest of Transoxiana . . 95

CONTENTS

PAGE

XVI. Of the capture of Bokhara 97

XVII. Of the rebellion of the Tarabi 109

XVIII. Of the conquest of Samarqand 115

XIX. Of the fate of Khorazm 123

XX. Of the departure of Chingiz-Khan to Nakhshab and Tirmiz 128
XXL Of Chingiz-Khan's crossing of the river at Tirmiz and the

taking of Balkh 130

XXII. Of Chingiz-Khan's turning to do battle with the Sultan 133

XXIII. Of the return of Chingiz-Khan 138

XXIV. Of the expedition of Torbei Toqshin in search of Sultan
Jalal-ad-Din 141

XXV. Of the expedition of Yeme and Siibetei in pursuit of Sultan

Muhammad 142

XXVI. A brief account of Toli's conquest of Khorasan . . 150

XXVII. Of Merv and the fate thereof 153

XXVIII. Of what befell at Nishapur . . . . . .169

XXIX. Of the accession of the World-Emperor Qa*an to the throne

of the Khanate and the power of World-Empire . .178
XXX. Of the campaign of the World-Emperor Qa'an against

Khitai and the conquest of that country . . .191

XXXI. Of the second quriltd 196

XXXII. Of the deeds and actions of Qa'an . . . .201

XXXIII. Of the houses and dwelling-places of Qa'an . . . 236

XXXIV. Of Toregene Khatun 239

XXXV. Of Fatima Khatun . 244

XXXVI. Of the accession of Giiyiik Khan to the throne of the Khanate 248

XXXVII. Of Princess Oghul-Ghaimish and her sons . .262

XXXVIII. Of Tushi and the accession of Batu in his stead . . 266

XXXIX. Of the conquest of Bulghar and the territory of the As and

the Rus 268

XL. Of the horsemen of the Keler and Bashghird , . 270

XLL OfChaghatai 271

PART TWO

I. Of the origin of the dynasty of the Sultans of Khorazm (May

God make bright their example /).,... 277
II. Of the accession of 'Ala-ad-Din Khorazm-Shah . .315
III. How the kingdom of the Sultans of Ghur passed into the

hands of Sultan Muhammad . , . . 327

CONTENTS

PAGE

IV. Of what befell Kharmil after the Sultan's return . .333
V. Of Kozli and his latter end . . . . .336

VI. Of the accession of Mazandaran and Kerman . .340
VII. Of the conquest of Transoxiana . . . . .341

VIII. Of the Sultan's returning a second time to wage war on the

gilr-khan ......... 349

IX. Of the conquest of Kruzkuh and Ghaznin . . .352
X. Of the Khans of Qara-Khitai, their rise to power and their

destruction . . . . . . . .354

[Contmuei in Vol. II

Frontispiece. Enthronement of Ogedei

Maps. Three maps illustrating this history will be found at the end
of this volume.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

WHILST recording the names of those who have helped me in
the preparation of this work I should like at the same time to
pay tribute to the memory of the late Professor H. H. Schaedcr,
who occupied, at the time of his recent death, the chair of
Oriental Philology and the History of Religion in the University
of Gottingen. It was in Professor Schaeder's Seminar in Berlin,
in the autumn of 1938, that I first became acquainted with the
Tarikh-i-Jaban-Gusha of Juvaini ; and it is a source of deep
regret to me that he did not live to see the translation of a work
to which I was introduced under his stimulating guidance
nearly twenty years ago.

A version of Part I was included in a Ph.D. thesis prepared
under the supervision of Professor Vladimir Minorsky, then
Professor (now Professor Emeritus) of Persian in the University
of London. I afterwards continued to work on the translation
with the encouragement of Professor Minorsky, who took an
active interest in its progress. I used to send my version to him
in instalments of a chapter or two at a time and he would check
it against the Persian original ; and down to the time when the
translation was actually in the press he was constantly answering
my queries on historical, geographical and linguistic problems.
It was he too who revised the final draft of the translation in
accordance with the requirements of Unesco. The initials
V* M. in the footnotes are far indeed from indicating the extent
of my indebtedness to Professor Minorsky. The idea of the
translation was his, and but for his help and inspiration it would
never have been completed.

The means of publication were provided by the United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization,
which I approached at the suggestion and with the support of
Professor A. J. Arberry, Sir Thomas Adams's Professor of
Arabic in the University of Cambridge. UNESCO, in
collaboration with the University of Tehran, has planned to

xii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

publish a series of translations from and into Persian; and with
the agreement of the Iranian authorities the Ta'rikb-i-Jaban-Gitfba
was chosen as the first book of Persian literature to be translated
into English in the UNESCO Collection of Representative
Works,

Throughout the preparation of this work I have drawn upon
the experience of specialists in many fields of study. In the
early stages I had the privilege of frequent consultations with
the eminent Iranian scholar, His Excellency Sayyid Hasan
Taqizadeh, then resident in Cambridge. In the final stages I
had the good fortune to enter into correspondence with Professor
F. W. Cleaves, Associate Professor of Far Eastern Languages
in Harvard University, who painstakingly answered my numerous
queries on Mongolian and Chinese problems and also provided
me with translations of passages from the Ytian sbih> the official
history of the Yuan or Mongol dynasty of China, a source still
for the most part accessible only to Sinologists. The annotation
of the History of the World-Conqueror has been much enriched
by these contributions from Professor Cleaves. Other scholars
whom I consulted include Dr. M. A. Azzam, Special Lecturer
in Arabic in the University of Manchester ; Professor A. F. L.
Beeston, Laudian Professor of Arabic in the University of
Oxford ; Sir Gerard Clauson, K.C.M.G., O.B.E., F.S.A. ;
Professor Willy Hartner, Professor of the History of the Natural
Sciences in the University of Frankfurt-am-Main ; Professor
W, B. Henning, Professor of Central Asian Studies in the
University of London; Dr. W. O. Howarth, formerly of the
Department of Botany in the University of Manchester ; Pro-
fessor E. S. Kennedy, Associate Professor of Mathematics in the
American University, Beirut ; Dr. J. D. Latham of the Univer-
sity Library, Manchester ; Professor Reuben Levy, Professor of
Persian in the University of Cambridge; Professor Bernard
Lewis, Professor of the History of the Near and Middle East in
the University of London ; Dr. M. M. Majdhub, Lecturer in
Arabic in the University of Khartoum ; the late Dr. A. A. A.
Meguid, formerly Special Lecturer in Arabic in the University
of Manchester; Professor O. Neugebauer, Professor of the

xiii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

History of Mathematics in Brown University, Providence,
Rhode Island ; Dr. D. J. Price, Consultant in the History of
Astronomy and Physics, U.S. National Museum, Smithsonian
Institution, Washington, B.C. ; and Lieut-Col. G. E. Wheeler,
C.I.E., C.B.E., M.A., Director of the Central Asian Research
Centre.

For the prolonged loan of many works essential for my researches
I am indebted to the India Office Library and the Libraries of
the Royal Asiatic Society, the School of Oriental and African
Studies and, in particular, the University of Manchester.

Mr. H. M. Barnes of the Literature Section of UNESCO
and my colleague Mr. C. F. Beckingham, Senior Lecturer in
Islamic History in the University of Manchester, read through
the manuscript of the translation and made a number of valuable
suggestions. Mr. Beckingham also helped me with the proof-
reading, as did likewise Mr. T. M. Johnstone, Lecturer in
Arabic in the School of Oriental and African Studies, whom

I had previously consulted upon certain quotations from the
Arabic poets.

The maps were planned with the collaboration and advice
of Mr. W. C. Brice of the Department of Geography in the
University of Manchester and were executed by Miss E. A.
Lowcock, Draughtswoman to that Department.

By the courtesy of the Bibliotheque Nationale, the Trustees of
the E. J. W. Gibb Memorial and Messrs. Luzac and Co. two
plates from the original Persian edition by the late Muhammad
Qazvini have been reproduced as frontispieces to Vols. I and

II respectively.

Mr. T. L. Jones, Secretary to the Manchester University
Press, was always ready with help and counsel throughout the
whole process of publication and the Printers, Messrs. Butler
and Tanner, surmounted with complete success the difficulties
of a text which presented many unfamiliar typographical
problems.

To all who have been of assistance in the production of this
book I offer my warmest thanks.

xiv

TRANSLATOR'S INTRODUCTION

I. THE AUTHOR

c ALA-AD-DIN c Ata-Malik Juvaini was bom, in all probability,
in the year 1226. This is the date given by the Syrian historian
Dhahabi 1 and it accords with Juvaini's own statement that when
he began to work on his history, i.e. during his residence in
Qara-Qorum between May, 1252, and September, 1253, he was
in his twenty-seventh year. As the name Juvaini implies his
family was connected with the district of Juvain in Khorasan.
This district, now known as Jaghatai, lies to the north-west of
Nishapur in a valley between the Harda and Jaghatai mountains.
The chief town was then Azadvar, a place which afterwards
declined in importance but is still to be found on large-scale
maps. Yaqut, the celebrated geographer, a contemporary of
Juvaini, describes Azadvar, which he had visited, as a prosperous
little town with mosques and a bazaar; outside the gates was a
great caravanserai for the accommodation of merchants. Here
it was that JuvainTs great-grandfather, Baha-ad-Din, had waited
upon the Khorazm-Shah Tekish when he passed through on
his way to do battle with Sultan Toghril, the last of the Seljuq
rulers of Persia. And here was the birthplace of the two famous
brothers, Shams-ad-Din, the vizier of the Il-Khans, and c Ala-
ad-Din, the historian of the Mongol invasion. 2

The family from which they sprang was one of the most
distinguished in Persia. Juvainis had held high office under
both the Seljuqs and the Khorazm-Shahs ; and they claimed
descent from Fadl, the son of ar-Rabi% who succeeded the
Barmecides in the service of Harun ar-Rashid and who, in turn,

1 Most of the information on Juvaini's life is derived from the History of the
World-Conqueror itself supplemented by the various sources gathered together by
Muhammad Qazvini in his introduction to the Persian text.

2 Hamdallah in the geographical part of his Nuzbat-al-Qulub (tr. le Strange,
169) mentions only Shams-ad-Din, but Daulatshah in his Memoirs of the Poets
(eel Browne, 105) refers to Azadvar as the birthplace of both brothers.

TRANSLATOR S INTRODUCTION

traced his pedigree back to a freedman of c Uthman s the third
Caliph. So often had they occupied the post of sabtihdivan or
Minister of Finance that the title had become a sort of family
surname; it was borne by Juvaini's brother Shams-ad-Din ?
who did in fact hold this office, though he was also Grand
Vizier both to Hiilegii and to his son and first successor Abaqa ;
and it was borne by Juvaini himself, who was actually governor
of Baghdad.

Of Juvaini's ancestors Muntajab-ad-Din Bad?, the maternal
uncle of his great-grandfather, the Baha-ad-Din already men-
tioned, was a secretary and favourite of Sultan Sanjar the Seljuq.
How he intervened to save the life of the poet Vatvat, who
had incurred Sanjar's displeasure by his verses, is related in the
pages of Juvaini. The author's grandfather, Shams-ad-Din
Muhammad, was in the service of the ill-fated Muhammad
Khorazm-Shah, whom he accompanied on his flight from
Balkh to Nishapur. At the end of his life the Khorazm-Shah
appointed him sahib-divan and he was confirmed in this office by
Muhammad's son, the reckless adventurer Jalal-ad-Din, whose
service he entered after Muhammad's death. He died before
Akhlat on the shores of Lake Van in what is now Eastern
Turkey, during his master's siege of that town, which lasted,
according to the historian Ibn-al-Athir, from the I2th of August,
1229, to the i8th of March, 1230. Nasawi, the secretary and
biographer of Jalal-ad-Din, was the executor of Shams-ad-Din's
will. In conformity with the dead man's wishes he caused his
remains to be transported to his native Juvain, while his property
was conveyed, through trustworthy intermediaries, to his heirs. 8

This latter circumstance shows that his son, Baha-ad-Din,
Juvaini's father, cannot have been with him at Akhlat, and in
fact we know nothing of Baha-ad-Din' s activities or whereabouts
until some two years after his father's death when we read of his
presence in Nishapur in Khorasan. He was then about 40
years of age. It seems likely that he had been living quietly on

3 See Nasawi tr.'Houdas, 324-5 (text, 195). Houdas translates Shams-ad-
Din Muhammad's title (sahilnKvcM), somewhat misleadingly, as * president du
divan *.

XVI

TRANSLATORS INTRODUCTION

the family estates In Juvain, at no great distance from Nishapur>
of which it was a dependency.

Khorasan, which had suffered terribly during the invasion,
was now In a state of titter chaos. The province was not yet
completely subdued and there was still sporadic resistance to the
Mongols. To add to the confusion, two adherents of Jalal-ad-
Din, then but recently dead, used to make raids on the Nishapur
area and kill the Mongol officials. In 1232-3 Chin-Temiir, the
newly appointed governor of Khorasan and Mazandaran, dis-
patched an officer called Kiil-Bolat with instructions to expel
or destroy these forces. On the news of his approach Baha-ad-
Din together with certain of the leading citizens of Nishapur
fled to Tus, where they sought and found sanctuary with one
Taj-ad-Din Farizani, who had seized a castle in the midst of
the ruined city. Meanwhile Kiil-Bolat, after driving off the
enemy, had learnt of the fugitives in Tus. He sent to Farizani
demanding their return, and Farizani, despite the assurances he
had given, at once surrendered them to Kiil-Bolat, * thinking, 9
says Juvaini, * that he would put them to death *. If such was
his expectation, he was disappointed. Kiil-Bolat received them
with every honour; and Baha-ad-Din was enrolled In the
service of the Mongols. Soon Chin-Temiir made him sahib-
divan and in 1235-6 he accompanied Korgiiz, an Uighur Turk
then deputy to Chin-Temiir, upon a mission to the Great Khan,
Ogedei, the son and first successor of Chingiz-Khan. Ogedei
received him very favourably: he gave him a paiza, Marco
Polo's * tablet of authority *, and a yarligh or firman confirming
his appointment as * whit-divan of the lands *.

The return of the mission coincided with the death of Chin-
Temiir and Korgiiz was summoned back to Mongolia to report
upon the situation. He was a clever and ambitious man, and
he determined to avail himself of this opportunity to advance
his own cause. * Fortune,* he said to JuvainFs father, with
whom he was evidently on intimate terms, * is like a bird. No
one knows on which branch it will alight. I will make the
endeavour and find out what exactly has been pre-ordained and
what is required by the revolution of the heavens/ So well did
B xvii

TRANSLATOR'S INTRODUCTION

he succeed that he returned from Qara-Qorum as the virtual
governor of these western, territories.

In 1239, he was again in Mongolia, answering certain charges
that had been laid against him ; and during his absence Baha-
ad-Din acted as his deputy. Again he returned in triumph and
Baha-ad-Din prepared a great feast to welcome him. In 1241,
having started on a third journey to Qara-Qorum he was met
en route with the news of the Great Khan's death and returned
to Khorasan. But having in the course of his journey antagonized
one of the officials of the House of Chaghatai, he was shortly
afterwards arrested and taken to Almaligh near Kulja in the
present day Sinkiang, the residence of Qara-Hiilegu, the grand-
son and successor of Chaghatai, at whose orders he was brutally
put to death.

Baha-ad-Din s position was unaffected by his patron s down-
fall. He was confirmed in his office by Korgiiz's successor,
the Emir Arghun, who now, by a decree of the Regent of the
Empire, Princess Toregene, Ogedei's widow, was appointed the
ruler over an area which extended from the Oxus to Fars and
included not only Khorasan and Mazandaran but also Georgia,
Armenia and part of Asia Minor and Upper Mesopotamia.
In the course of a tour of inspection Arghun had reached Tabriz
in Azerbaijan, when he received a summons to attend the
quriltai or assembly of the princes at which Giiyiik, the son of
Ogedei, was elected his successor as Great Khan (1246) ; and
during his absence JuvainTs father, the $abib-divan t acted as his
deputy over all these territories. When he returned, loaded with
honours by the new Khan, Baha-ad-Din advanced to meet him
as far as Amul in Mazandaran, where he prepared a splendid
banquet to welcome his return, just as he had done for his
predecessor Korgiiz on a similar occasion some seven years before.

Before Arghun could continue on his journey to Azerbaijan
he received news of intrigues against him in the Mongol capital ;
and he determined to return thither without delay. On this
journey he was accompanied not only by Baha-ad-Din but also,
at his express desire, by Juvaini himself, who at this time was
about twenty-two years of age. The party had reached Taks,

xviii

TRANSLATOR S INTRODUCTION

the present-day Jambul In Kazakhstan, when they were met with
the tidings of Giiyiik's death, and at the advice of the Mongol
general Eljigltei Arghun returned to Khorasan to organize the
provisioning of the armies under Eljigitef s command, In the
late summer of 1249 he again set out on the eastward journey
and finally reached the ordu of Princess Oghul-Ghalmish, in
whom, as the widow of Giiyiik, was vested the Regency of the
Empire. His case was duly examined, his enemies discomfited
and Arghun himself completely vindicated. On the homeward
journey the party (of which Juvaini was one) halted for a month
or two at the o?<Htt of Yesu, who now ruled over the apanage of
Chaghatai. It was here, near the present-day Kulja, only ten
years before that Korgiiz, Arghun's predecessor, had met his
untimely end. The party had arrived in Almaligh In the late
summer or early autumn of 1250 ; when they left it was winter
and the roads were blocked with snow, nevertheless they made
rapid progress and were soon back in Merv in Khorasan.

Arghun did not remain long in Persia. In August or
September, 1251, he again set out for the East in order to be
present at the great qmltai which had assembled to elect the new
Khan. On this journey too he was accompanied by Juvaini.
He had got no further than Talas when he received the news
that Mongke had already been elected. It was now mid-winter
and the great quantities of snow made travelling almost impos-
sible. Nevertheless he pressed on and finally reached Besh-
Baligh, the old Uighur capital, which corresponds to the modem
Jimsa, a little to the north-west of Guchen in Sinkiang. From
here Arghun sent on a message to inform the new Khan of his
approach, but the party did not reach the Mongol Court till
the 2nd May, 1252, i.e. nearly a year after Mongke's accession.

Arghun reported to the Khan on the economic situation of
the Western lands and as a result of the discussions that followed
Mongke instituted a number of reforms in the system of taxation.
These deliberations lasted so long that it was not until August
or September, 1253, that Arghun finally took his leave. 4 It was
during this lengthy stay in the Mongol capital that Juvaini was

4 See, however, ii, 598 and n. 155.

xix

TRANSLATOR'S INTRODUCTION

persuaded by friends to commence work on a history of the
Mongol conquests. When the party set out on the homeward
journey he was presented by Mongke with a yarligb and a paiza
confirming his father in the office of sahib-divan.

Baha-ad-Din was now in his sixtieth year and after some
twenty years in the Mongols' service it was his wish to retire into
private life, but this was not to be. The fiscal reforms were now
being put into practice, and Baha-ad-Din, together with a
Mongol called Naimatai, was sent to take over the governorship
of Persian Iraq, i.e. Central Persia, and Yezd. He had reached
the district of Isfahan when he was taken ill and died.

It is perhaps to administrators like Baha-ad-Din that Persia
owes her survival through so many troublous ages. Dynasties
might rise and fall but there were always officials to be found
who, by cooperating with the new regime, maintained a kind
of continuity in the government of the country and saved it from
falling into utter ruin and disintegration. The traditions of his
ancestors under the Khorazm-Shahs, under the Seljuqs before
them and perhaps under earlier dynasties also were upheld by
Baha-ad-Din in a period of transition and after his death were
carried on by his sons under a new dynasty, that of the Mongol
Il-Khans of Persia.

The founder of that dynasty, Prince Hiilegii, a younger brother
of the Great Khan, was now advancing westwards at the head
of an immense army, his first objective being the destruction of
the Isma c ilis or Assassins of Alamut. In Kish, to the south of
Samarqand, famous afterwards as the birthplace of Tamerlane,
he was met by Arghun in November, 1255. Arghun had again
been the victim of intrigues at Court and with Hulegu's encour-
agement he now set out for Qara-Qomm to defend himself
against his accusers. The administration of the Western lands
he entrusted, under Hulegii, to his son Kerei Malik, a certain
Emir Ahmad and Juvaini. From thence onward Juvaini was
to continue in the service of Hiilegii and his descendants until
his death.

An incident had already occurred which showed the esteem
in which he was held by the Mongol conqueror. A certain

TRANSLATOR S INTRODUCTION

Jamal-ad-Din, who was a party to the intrigue against Arghun,
had handed Hulegii a list of the officials whom he proposed to
accuse before the Great Khan. Hiilegu at once replied that these
were matters within Arghun's own competence. Then, coming
upon Juvaini's name in the list, he added : * If there is a charge
against him let it be stated in my presence so that the matter may
be investigated here and now and a decision given/ Whereupon
Jamal-ad-Din withdrew his accusation and retired in confusion.

The great army had now crossed the Oxus and was marching
through Khorasan, where they passed by the town of Khabushan
(the present-day Quchan), * which had lain derelict and in ruins
from the first incursion of the Mongol army until that year, its
buildings desolate and the qanats without water, and no walls
still standing save those of the Friday mosque '. * Having
observed the King's interest and pleasure in restoring ruins/
Juvaini drew his attention to the case of Khabushan. c He
listened to my words and issued a yarligb for the repairing of the
qanats, the erection of buildings, the establishment of a bazaar,
the alleviation of the people's lot and their re-assembly in the
town. All the expense of re-building he met from the treasury
so that no charge fell upon the people/

Finally, in the late autumn of 1256, the Mongols converged
from every side upon the Assassins' strongholds in Alamut, * the
Eagle's Nest *, to the north-east of Qazvin. Rukn-ad-Din, the
last feeble successor of the redoutable Hasan-i-Sabbah, had been
playing for time in the hope that the snows of winter would
come to his aid and render a siege impracticable ; but the weather
remained unseasonably mild and, in the middle of November,
he decided to surrender. For this purpose he asked for a yarligb
granting him safe-conduct and this was drawn up by Juvaini,
who must also have taken part in the actual negotiations. It
was Juvaini too who composed the fatb-nama or proclamation of
victory announcing the final defeat and extirpation of the
Assassins. He also tells how with Hiilegu's permission he
examined the famous library of Alamut, from which he selected
many * choice books ' whilst confiding to the flames those * which
related to their heresy and error and were neither founded on

xxi

TRANSLATOR S INTRODUCTION

tradition nor supported by reason *. Of these latter works, how-
ever, he fortunately preserved an autobiography of Hasan-i-
Sabbah, from which he quotes large extracts in the third volume
of his history.

With the destruction of Alamut accomplished Hulegii turned
to his second objective, the conquest of Baghdad and the over-
throw ofthe'Abbasid Caliphate. How Alau, * the Great Lord
of the Tartars/ captured the city of Baudac and starved the
Caliph to death in * a tower, all full of gold, silver and other
treasures ' may be read in the pages of Marco Polo. In point
of fact, the unfortunate Caliph was probably wrapped in a
carpet and beaten to death with clubs, such being the Mongols*
practice in the execution of their own princes. However, Marco
Polo's version of the preliminary interview between Htilegii and
the Caliph agrees very closely with the account given by the
famous Persian philosopher Nasir-ad-Din Tusi, who had been
in the service of the Assassins and who now accompanied
Hiilegii to Baghdad.

Juvaini too had accompanied the conqueror, and a year later,
in 1259, Hiilegii appointed him governor of all the territories
that had been directly held by the Caliphs, i.e. Baghdad itself,
Arab Iraq or Lower Mesopotamia and Khuzistan* Hiilegii
died in 1265 but under his son Abaqa Juvaini retained his
position though nominally deputy to the Mongol Sughunchaq.
For more than twenty years he continued to administer this great
province and during this time did much to improve the lot of
the peasantry. He caused a canal to be dug from Anbar on the
Euphrates to Kufa and the holy city of Najaf and founded 150
villages on its banks ; and it was said, with some exaggeration,
that he had restored the country to greater prosperity than it had
enjoyed under the Caliphs.

Neither Juvaini himself nor his brother Shams-ad-Din, who
united in his person the posts of Grand Vizier and sahib-divan,
was without his enemies, and during their long tenure of office
there were several attempts to encompass their ruin. However,
intrigues of this sort had left the brothers comparatively unscathed
until the latter years of Abaqa's reign when a certain Majd-al-

xxii

TRANSLATOR S INTRODUCTION

Mulk, originally a protege of the Juvainis, succeeded in gaining
the ear, first of Arghun, Abaqa's son, and then of Abaqa himself
and laid against Shams-ad-Din the usual charges of being in
league with the Mongols* most formidable enemies, the Mameluke
Sultans of Egypt, and of having embezzled large sums from the
Treasury. Shams-ad-Din succeeded in allaying the Il-Khan*s
suspicions, and finding him immune from attack Majd-al~Mulk
now turned his attention to his brother. He persuaded Abaqa
that Juvaini, during his governorship of Baghdad, had mis-
appropriated the enormous sum of 2,500,000 dinars and that
this money was buried in his house.

In October, 128 I, Abaqa was on a hunting expedition in
Upper Mesopotamia intending to proceed to his winter quarters
at Baghdad ; and Juvaini was sent on in advance to arrange for
accommodation and commissariat. No sooner was he out of
sight than Majd-al~Mulk repeated the old charge, and the II-
Khan at once dispatched certain of his emirs to follow Juvaini
and investigate the matter. They overtook him at Takrit and
informed him of Abaqa s orders. ' I realized ', says Juvaini,
* that the matter was serious, that the statements of prejudiced
persons had produced a deep impression on the King's mind,
and that the demand for these " residues " was merely an excuse
for obtaining the money they purposed to take from me, with
which money, as they vainly believed, the water-tanks In my
house were filled. To be brief, I accompanied the commis-
sioners from Takrit to Baghdad, where I handed over to them
everything that was in my house and treasury, gold and silver,
precious stones and plate, clothes and in short everything that I
had either inherited or acquired.' s He then gave a declaration
in writing that if thereafter so much as a dirbam was found In his
possession he should be held responsible and punished.

Learning of his predicament his brother Shams-ad-Din, who
was in attendance on the Il-Khan, at once hurried to Baghdad,
collected from his own and his children's houses all the gold and
silver plate on which he could lay his hands, borrowed what

5 E. G. Browne's translation. See the English introduction to Qazvini's text,
xxxix-xl.

xxiii

TRANSLATOR'S INTRODUCTION

valuables he could from persons of consequence and offered all
this wealth to Abaqa, who was now approaching Baghdad, in
the hope of propitiating him. It was all of no avail Juvaini
was held in confinement in his house while the Mongol officials
searched for the money he was supposed to have buried, torturing
his servants and digging up the graves of his children and kins-
men. Finding nothing they transferred Juvaini to the Qasr
Musanna to languish as a prisoner whilst they returned to report
to Abaqa. However, certain of the Mongol princes and
princesses, including Abaqa's favourite wife, intervened on
Juvaini's behalf, and finally, on the I7th of December, 1281,
the Il-Khan was persuaded to order his release.

This attempt having failed, Majd-al-Mulk now caused Juvaini
to be accused of maintaining a correspondence with the Mame-
lukes of Egypt, and in March, 1282, he set out from Baghdad
to Hamadan, in the company of the Il-Khan*s commissioners in
order to answer this charge before his accusers. On the ist of
April, the party having just crossed the pass of Asadabad near
Hamadan, they were met by certain of Abaqa's courtiers with
the good news that the Il-Khan, finally convinced of Juvaini's
innocence, had restored him to favour and released his agents
from custody. Upon reaching Hamadan, however, Juvaini
learnt that Abaqa had just died ; and in the changed circum-
stances it was decided to retain him in confinement. This con-
finement was not of long duration, for soon there came the news
that Tegiider, the brother of Abaqa, a convert to Islam and
known also by the Moslem name of Ahmad (he is the Acomat
Soldan of Marco Polo), had succeeded to the throne and that one
of his first acts had been to order Juvaini's release.

The new ruler was then in Armenia. Juvaini went to join
him there and afterwards accompanied him to the quriltai that
was held in the Ala-Taq pastures to the north-east of Lake Van,
near the headwaters of the Eastern Euphrates. Here the new
governors were appointed to their various provinces ; and
Juvaini received back his old governorship of Baghdad. Tegiider
was informed of the activities of Majd-al-Mulk and his associates
and ordered an investigation. Majd-al-Mulk was found guilty

xxiv

TRANSLATOR'S INTRODUCTION

and condemned to death but before the sentence could be carried
out he was seized and lynched by a party of Moslems and
Mongols who ' fell upon him, even wounding one another in
their struggle to reach him, tore and hacked him to pieces, and
even roasted and ate portions of his flesh. 9

This account of his own triumph and his enemy's discomfiture
concludes the second of two tracts in which Juvaini has described
the various intrigues against himself and his brother. His own
end was now near at hand. There was open hostility between
the new ruler and his nephew Arghun ; and because the Juvainis
stood high in his uncle's favour and also because he shared the
widespread belief that Shams-ad-Din had poisoned his father
Abaqa, Arghun was determined to bring about their ruin.
Going to Baghdad he revived the old charge of embezzlement
against Juvaini and began to arrest his agents and put them to
the torture. One of these men having recently died he caused
his body to be exhumed and flung upon the highway. Upon
receiving news of this barbarity Juvaini, according to one
account, was seized with a violent headache from which he
shortly afterwards died. According to Dhahabi, however, his
death was due to a fall from his horse. Whatever the cause, he
died in Mughan or Arran on the 5th of March, 1283, being
about fifty-seven years of age, and was buried in Tabriz. His
death would not in any case have been long delayed. In the
next year Arghun dethroned and succeeded his uncle; he
ordered the execution of Shams-ad-Din and his four sons and
soon the Juvaini family was all but extinguished.

II. HIS WORK

The History of the World-Conqueror was begun in Qara-Qorum
in 1252 or 1253 ; and Juvaini was still working on it in 1260,
when he had recently been appointed governor of Baghdad. In
that year or soon afterwards he must have renounced the idea of
continuing his history, for there are no references to events sub-
sequent to that date. Of the conditions under which much of

xxv

TRANSLATOR'S INTRODUCTION

his work was written we have Juvaini's own testimony. Com-
menting on the Mongol conquest of Khorasan he expresses him-
self in the following terms :

And though there were a man free from preoccupations who could devote
his whole life to study and research and his whole attention to the recording of
events, yet he could not in a long period of time acquit himself of the account
of one single district. How much more is this beyond the powers of the present writer,
who, despite his inclination thereto, has not a single moment for study save when,
in the course of distant journeys, he snatches an hour or two, when the caravan
halts, and writes down these histories ! (I, 118; i, 152).

These conditions have left their traces on the history. Dates
are sometimes omitted or incorrectly given, and the author
occasionally contradicts himself. Such faults are understandable
in an unrevised work ; they are even more so in a work which
there is evidence to show was never completed.

In one early MS. (B) there is a blank equivalent to 7 or 8
lines of the text at the chapter on Arghun (II, 262 ; ii, 525)
and a much longer blank (over a page) at the end of the chapter
on Mongke's ministers (III, 89). These blanks, as Muham-
mad Qazvini suggests, were probably left by the author for later
additions which were never made. There are also references to
non-existent chapters: to one on the capture of Herat (I, 118 ;
i, 151) in Vol. I and to at least five one on Chinqai, Carpinf s
* protonotary *, (III, 58; ii, 158), one on Eljigitei, the Mongol
commander who sent an embassy to Louis IX (III, 62; ii,
590), and one on each of the missions to Mongke (III, 82 ; ii,
602) in Vol. III. 1 Vol. Ill itself is evidence of incompletion.
In the original division of the text it formed the second volume
of the work. The text is still so divided in at least three MSS.
one of which (E) is based on a MS* contemporary with the
author ; and we have Juvaini's own testimony to this division
in his introduction to Vol. Ill, where in summarizing the
contents of * the previous volume * he enumerates the events
recorded in Vols. I and II of the text as found in most MSS.

1 In the translation the three volumes of the Persian text are referred to as parts
in order to avoid confusion with the two volumes into which the translation
itself is divided. Small roman numerals indicate the volumes of the translation.

xxvi

TRANSLATOR S INTRODUCTION

and in the printed edition. In such a division of the text the
second volume is much smaller than the first, but they might
well have been equal in size, if the five chapters referred to above
had actually been written and if Juvaini as one would have
expected had closed his work with an account of the culmina-
tion of Hiilegii's campaign against the West, the sack of Baghdad
and the extinction of the c Abbasid Caliphate, an event which
he survived by some twenty-seven years. * Perhaps ', as Qazvini
suggests, * the exacting duties of the governorship of Baghdad
. . . allowed him no leisure for the continuance of his great
history.' 2

His work, to quote Barthold, * has not yet been valued at its
deserts *, 3 and in the West at least Juvaini has been overshadowed
by the later Rashid-ad-Din, considerable parts of whose enormous
compilation, * a vast historical encyclopedia, such as no single
people, either in Asia or in Europe, possessed in the Middle
Ages 5 , 4 have long been available in European translations.
Rashid-ad-Din was able to draw upon Mongol sources inacces-
sible to Juvaini ; his account of the early life of Chingiz-Khan
is infinitely fuller and more detailed than the earlier historian's.
On the other hand Juvaini lived much nearer to the events he
describes, and much of his account of the invasion must be
based upon reports of eye-witnesses. For the history of Persia
between the invasion and the expedition of Hiilegii he could
rely upon his father's reminiscences and his own recollections;
and in the end, he became, as we have seen, himself a participant
in events. It is significant that Rashid-ad-Din, in dealing with
the history of this period, is usually content to follow his pre-
decessor almost word for word. Juvaini enjoyed the further
advantage of having twice visited Eastern Asia. Most of his
information regarding the Turks and Mongols must have been
gathered at the courts of the Mongol princes and in the course
of his journeys thither ; and the accuracy of his data may be
tested by comparison not only with Rashid-ad-Din but also with

2 See the English introduction to Vol. I of Qazvini's text, Ixiii-lxiv.

3 Barthold, Turkestan town to the Mongol Invasion, 40.

4 Ibidem, 46.

xxvii

TRANSLATOR'S INTRODUCTION

the works of Western travellers such as Carpini, Rubruck and
Marco Polo and with the Chinese and native Mongolian

sources.

The History of the World-Conqueror at once became the great
authority on the Mongol invasions and as such was freely utilized
by both contemporary and subsequent historians, Arab and
Persian, In Pococke's Latin translation of Barhebraeus (Oxford,
1663) parts of Juvaini became accessible, at second hand, to
Western scholars also. His work was not, however, directly
used in Europe until the 19th century with the appearance of
Baron d'Ohssons Histoire des Mongols depuis Tctinguis-Kban
jusqua Timour Bey ou Tamerlan (ist edition 1824, 2nd edition
1834-5), which still provides the best, and certainly the most
readable, survey of the whole Mongol period. D'Ohsson was
unfortunately obliged to work on an indifferent manuscript, the
only one then in the possession of the Bibliotheque Roy ale (now
the Bibliotheque Nationale), which afterwards acquired the
excellent MSS. on which Qazvini's text is based. Since
d'Ohsson, Barthold, in his Turkestan, is the only historian who
has made extensive use of Juvaini's work in the original, but
being concerned only with the events that culminated in the
actual invasion he does not touch upon the history of the Empire
under Chingiz-Khan s successors. In the English edition of his
work he was able to consult the first two volumes of Qazvini's
monumental edition of the Persian text ; but it was not until
the publication of Vol. Ill in 1937 that the whole of Juvaini
became accessible even to Orientalists. It is now presented, in
an English translation, to a wider circle of readers.

Much is inevitably lost in translation. Unlike the later
Rashid-ad-Din, whose language is plain and simple in the
extreme, Juvaini was a master of what was already the traditional
style of Persian prose literature. It is a style which disposes of
all the rhetorical devices known to the Euphuists. Word-plays
are indulged in, whenever possible, and these are not merely
puns as we understand them but what might be called visual
puns, which appeal to the eye only, two words being identical
in shape though perhaps entirely dissimilar in pronunciation.

xxviii

TRANSLATOR S INTRODUCTION

The text is interlarded with quotations from the Arabic and
Persian poets, with verses of the author's own composition and
with passages from the Koran ; and the chapters begin and end
or are interrupted in the middle with reflections on such subjects
as the vanity of human wishes or the inexorability of Fate.
However, Juvaini was a man of taste ; he had his rhetoric under
some measure of control and could, when the occasion demanded
it, tell his tale in the plainest and most straightforward language.
In this he differed from his admirer and continuator Vassaf,
who has been described as being * so ornate in style that one
cannot see the wood for the trees'. 5 'We could forgive the
author *, says E. G. Browne, * more readily if his work were less
valuable as an original authority on the period (1257-1328) of
which it treats, but in fact it is as important as it is unreadable, 5 6
In Juvaini, on the other hand, there is often a point concealed
even in what appears to be mere ornament. By quoting, for
example, from the Sbabnama or * Book of Kings *, the National
Epic, he was able to give vent to feelings which it would have
been impossible openly to avow.

III. HIS POINT OF VIEW

Ibn-al-Athir, in the preface to his account of the Mongol
invasion, of which he was a contemporary, remarks that for
years he had shrunk from mentioning that event as being too
horrible to record. It was, he protested, the greatest calamity
that had ever befallen mankind. 1 Juvaini, who was actually in
the Mongols' service, could hardly be expected to echo such
sentiments, and in fact he says much in his masters' praise and
even attempts to justify the invasion as the fulfilment of the
divine will. On the other hand, he was a devout and orthodox
Mohammedan, and his real feelings cannot have been materially
different from those of Ibn-al-Athir. Moreover, in Juvainfs

5 E. Denison Ross, The Persians, 128.

6 A Literary History of Persia, III, 68.

1 For a translation of the whole passage see Browne, A Literary History of Persia,

II, 427-8.

xxix

TRANSLATOR S INTRODUCTION

case, there were traditional ties with the house of the Khorazm-
Shahs his grandfather as we have seen, had accompanied
Muhammad on his flight from Balkh to Nishapur and had
ended his days in the service of Muhammad's son, Jalal-ad-Din
and he can hardly have looked back without regret upon the
extinction of that dynasty. In fact, Juvaini, though denied the
freedom of expression enjoyed by Ibn-al-Athir, is at no great
pains to conceal his preference of the Moslem past to the Mongol
present.

On the invasion itself he could of course express no opinion,
but the wholesale massacres to which so many of the captured
cities were subjected are always faithfully recorded together with
all the accompanying atrocities. It is Juvaini too who tells the
famous story of Chingiz-Khan in the mosque of Bokhara (I,
80-1 ; i, 103-4). Of the consequences of the invasion he speaks
at times with the utmost frankness. He twice refers to the con-
dition of hopeless desolation to which the conquerors had
reduced his homeland, the once flourishing province of Khorasan
(I, 75 and II, 269; i, 96-7, ii, 533). He also refers to the
disastrous effects upon the pursuit of learning and then launches
a bitter attack upon the new generation of officials, the product
of a great social upheaval (I, 4-5 ; i, 6-8). To one member
of this class, Sharaf-ad-Din of Khorazm, he devotes a whole
chapter (II, 262-82 ; ii, 525-46), in which he paints him in
the blackest of colours and assails him with the coarsest of abuse.
Sharaf-ad-Din, the son of a porter, had accompanied Chin-
Temiir from Khorazm to Khorasan at a time when * no reputable
scribe * was willing to undertake the journey because * it was
intended to lay waste a Moslem country *. He owed his advance-
ment to his knowledge of the Turkish language (II, 268 ; ii,
532). Another official received his appointment because he
could write Mongolian in the Uighur character, which, as
Juvaini sarcastically adds, * is in the present age, the essence of
learning and proficiency* (II, 260; ii, 523).

The Mongols themselves, if one disregards one or two oppro-

xxx

TRANSLATOR S INTRODUCTION

brious references, 2 are never openly attacked, but there is perhaps
an undertone of irony, and therefore of disapproval, in the various
allusions to their addiction to strong drink. Ogedei, for example,
is made to offer an apology for his inebriety. It was due, he
said, to * the onslaught of sorrow which arises from grievous
separation/ He therefore chose to be drunk in order to find
relief from that sorrow (III, 4 ; ii, 550). The c grievous separa-
tion ' he referred to was the loss of his brother Tolui, who, accord-
ing to Juvaini, had drunk himself to death (III, 4; ii, 549).
But the real state of Juvaini's feelings is most clearly revealed
in the attitude he adopts towards the defeated Khorazm-Shahs.
Muhammad is frequently criticized. His conquests are shown
to have paved the way for the Mongol invasion (I, 52 ; i, 70).
His campaigns against the Qara-Khitai, in particular, were
undertaken without regard to a warning that this people formed
* a great wall * between the Moslems and c fierce enemies ' and
ought therefore to be left in peace (II, 79 and 89 ; i, 347* 357).
Having removed every obstacle in the way of the Mongol
invasion he renders that invasion inevitable by commanding the
execution of Chingiz-Khan's ambassadors (I, 61 ; i, 79).
When the storm finally breaks, he is seized with panic and
decides to disperse his forces and seek safety in flight ; and his
son Jalal-ad-Din is made to deliver a speech in which he strongly
protests against the cowardice of such a policy and volunteers to
lead the armies in person against the invader (II, 127; ii, 397)-
Muhammad, in short, is blamed for having needlessly provoked
the Mongol invasion but also for having abjectly failed to repel
it. Juvaini's attitude, in fact, is that of the disappointed partisan ;
and only a partisan could write that Islam was heartbroken and
the very stones wept tears of blood because of Muhammad's

death (II, 117; &, 387)-

Towards Muhammad's son, Jalal-ad-Din, Juvaini's attitude
is one of unreserved admiration. He is presented everywhere as
a figure of great physical courage. In the clash with Jochi,

2 II, 133 (H, 403) ('Tartar devils') and 275 (539) ('strangers to religion');
III, 141 (ii, 640) (' their [the Isma tf ills'] Maulana ... has become the serf of
bastards').

xxxi

TRANSLATOR'S INTRODUCTION

before the outbreak of hostilities, he rescues his father who was
in danger of being taken prisoner, and Juvaini vents his feelings
in an apposite verse from the Sbabnama (I, 51-2; i, 69). As
he plunges into the Indus after the final charge against the
Mongols, the words of admiration are made to proceed from the
lips of Chingiz-Khan himself (I, 107; i, 134-5)- An d again
Juvaini quotes from the Sbahnama, comparing Jalal-ad-Din with
Rustam, the mythical hero of the Iranians. Such quotations
are not of course fortuitous ; by this device Juvaini is able to
identify the Khorazm-Shahs with Iran and the Mongols with
Turan, the hereditary foe. 3

But not every allusion is hostile. There are passages in which
Juvaini speaks of the Mongols in terms of high praise ; and
there is usually no reason for doubting his sincerity. It is clear,
for example, that he had a genuine admiration for the military
genius of Chingiz-Khan, of whom Alexander himself, he says,
would have been content to be a pupil (I, 16-17; i, 24). He
expatiates with enthusiasm on the efficiency of the Mongol army,
its powers of endurance and its excellent discipline ; and he
compares it in these respects with the forces of Islam, very much
to the latter's disadvantage (I, 21-3; i, 29-31). He praises
the Mongol princes for the spirit of harmony that prevailed
amongst them and here again contrasts their behaviour with that
of the Moslems (I, 30-2 and III, 68; i, 41-3, ii, 594). He
commends them also for their informality and avoidance of
ceremonial (I, 19 ; i, 26-7). Despite his strong Mohammedan
prejudices he speaks with apparent approval of their tolerance
in matters of religion (I, 18-19; i, 26). And finally he has
much to say of their protection and patronage of the Moslems.

Several of the anecdotes 4 in the chapter *On the deeds and
actions of Qa'an * are concerned with the kindness shown by

3 Cf. II, 136 and 139 (ii, 406, 409), where by this means Chingiz-Khan is
likened to Afrasiyab, and I, 73 (i, 95), where a quotation from the Shahnama
serves to illustrate Temiir Malik's boasting about his victories over the * Turanian
host'.

4 See I, 161, 163, 179, etc. (i, 204, 206, 223, etc.).

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TRANSLATOR'S INTRODUCTION

the jovial, good-natured Ogedel to Mohammedans in distress.
Of Ogedei's nephew, Mongke, during whose reign the History
of the World-Conqueror was written, it is stated that * of all the sects
and communities he most honoured and respected the people of
Islam, upon whom he bestowed the most alms and conferred
the greatest privileges * (III, 79). And Juvaini speaks of him
at times in terms hardly distinguishable from those applied to
Moslem rulers (I, 85 and 195 ; i, 109, 239). He even confers
upon him the exclusively Mohammedan title ofgbazi or * victor
against the infidel * with reference to his execution of a group of
Uighur nobles who had plotted, amongst other things, to mas-
sacre the Moslem population of Besh-Baligh (III, 61 ; ii s 589).
Mongke's mother, too, Princess Sorqoqtani, is praised not only
for her probity and administrative ability, but also for her
patronage of Islam : though a Christian she would bestow alms
upon Moslem divines and had provided a large sum for the
endowment of a madrasa or theological college in Bokhara
(III, 8-9; ii, 552-3).

It was not however sufficient to record the good qualities of
the Mongol invaders ; as an official in their service, Juvaini had
to justify the invasion itself. This he has done by representing
the Mongols as the instrument of the divine will.

He compares the invasion with the punishments visited on
earlier peoples for their disobedience to God and in support of
this analogy adduces a baditb or tradition of Mohammed to the
effect that the destruction of the Moslems was to be by the sword
(I, 12; i, 17). Another badltb refers to the horsemen whom
God will send to exact vengeance on the wicked ; and nothing
is easier than to identify these horsemen with the Mongols (I,
17 ; i, 24). And to drive the point home, the Conqueror him-
self, in a speech directed to the people of Bokhara, is made to
declare that he is the scourge of God (I, 81 ; i, 105).

This divine mission of the Mongols was particularly manifest
in their destruction of the foes of Islam. Thus it was God
who dispatched them against Kiichlug, the Naiman ruler of
c xxxiii

TRANSLATOR S INTRODUCTION

Qara-Khitai, who had crucified a Moslem divine upon the door
of his madrasa (I, 55 ; i, 73) ; and the people of Kashghar, when
the Mongols had expelled their persecutor and restored freedom
of worship, perceived * the existence of this people to be one of
the mercies of the Lord and one of the bounties of divine grace '
(I, 50; i, 67). God's purpose was also revealed in Hiilegu's
capture of the Isma'ili stronghold of Alamut, which Juvaini
compares with the conquest of Khaibar, i.e. the Prophet's
defeat and extermination of his Jewish adversaries at Khaibar
near Medina (III, 138; ii, 638).

But their mission was not merely negative ; their conquests
actually had the effect of extending the boundaries of Islam.
The transportation of craftsmen, saved by their skill from the
fate of their fellow townsmen, to new homes in Eastern Asia,
and the thronging of merchants to the new capital at Qara-
Qorum had introduced a Moslem population to regions to
which the True Faith had never penetrated (I, 9; i, 13-14).

Even the massacres were a blessing from God ; for by the
manner of their death the slaughtered millions achieved the
status and enjoyed the privileges of martyrs to the Faith (I, 10 ;
i, 15). And here at least we may question Juvaini's sincerity
and share the indignation expressed by d'Ohsson at arguments
* faits pour demontrer que c'est pour le bien des Musulmans
que les Mongols sont venus les egorger*.

How is one to reconcile these seeming contradictions on the
one hand, the candid recital of Mongol atrocities, the lament
for the extinction of learning, the thinly veiled criticism of
the conquerors and the open admiration of their vanquished
opponents; and on the other hand, the praise of Mongol
institutions and Mongol rulers and the justification of the invasion
as an act of divine grace ? The contradictions are, however,
apparent only. Juvaini's sympathies did indeed lie with the
defeated dynasty ; he had been brought up in the traditions of
the Perso- Arabian civilization which the Mongols had all but
destroyed; and in these circumstances he could scarcely be a

xxxiv

TRANSLATOR S INTRODUCTION

whole-hearted supporter of the new regime. But the old order
was dead and gone ; there was no hope of its resuscitation ; and
it was necessary to reach some kind of compromise. Without
therefore glossing over the darker side of the picture Juvaini says
whatever he truthfully can in the Mongols* favour. He extols
their military and social virtues and rightly attributes the Moslems*
defeat to the neglect of those virtues. He makes much of their
destruction of anti-Moslem forces such as the Buddhist Qara-
Khitayans and the heretic Isma'ilis. He stresses the favourable
attitude adopted by certain of the Mongols (and it is to be noted
that in this respect he speaks only of specific individuals) towards
the Mohammedan religion. And finally he endeavours to prove
that the Mongol invasion was foreshadowed in the traditions of
Mohammed and that it was in consequence a manifestation of
the divine will. These theological arguments may not always
carry conviction, but their object is clearly to reconcile the author
and his readers to the inevitable. In short, Juvaini is a Moslem
raised in the pre-Mongol tradition striving to adapt himself to
the new conditions but everywhere betraying the prejudices and
predilections of his upbringing.

XXXV

NOTE ON TRANSLITERATION, Etc.

IN a translation intended primarily for the general reader I have
simplified the spelling of Oriental words by dispensing with the
diacritical marks conventionally employed to indicate the precise
Persian or Arabic orthography. For the same reason I have
adopted such Anglicized forms as ' vizier \ ' cadi * and * emir *
in preference to wazlr (vazir), qddl (qazi) and amir. The Holy
Book of Islam is called the Koran rather than the Qur'an and
the Prophet to whom it was revealed Mohammed rather than
Muhammad, the form Muhammad being reserved for all other
bearers of the name.

On the other hand it is often desirable, in the interests of the
specialist, to indicate the exact spelling of words (and in par-
ticular names) in the Arabic character. In the case of Persian
and Arabic words this end has been achieved by spelling them
in the index in strict accordance with a system of transliteration
which is basically that approved by the Royal Asiatic Society,
The same system is employed in the case of words enclosed in
round brackets in the text of the translation ; it is also employed,
though with less rigid consistency, in the footnotes. In the text
itself, as has already been stated, the diacritical marks are omitted*
Also the spellings Khorazm, Khoja and Khaf have been
adopted in place of the more correct Khwarazm, Khwaja and
Khwaf.

Sometimes, as for example in discussing a corrupt spelling in
the Persian original, it is difficult to dispense with the use of the
Arabic script. As a substitute for that script I have resorted to
an alphabet of capital letters which differs from the system of
transliteration otherwise employed in that alif is always rendered
by A, waw by W and yS by Y ; that A denotes alif mamduda
only ; and that jf, C, X, 2, and P are equivalent toj, ch> kh,
zhj $h and gb respectively. The omission of diacritical points is
indicated in two ways. When the loss of the dot or dots makes
the Arabic letter identical with another letter of the same shape,

xxxvi

NOTE ON TRANSLITERATION

the Roman equivalent of that other letter Is written. Thus
QRDWAN represents a corruption of QZDWAN (Qizh-
duvan), the omission of the three dots over the zba making it
identical with ra. When however there is no undofted letter of
identical shape the corrupt spelling is Indicated by means of
italics, the letter in italics being either the Roman equivalent of
the letter that appears to be meant or else any letter of the required
shape chosen at random. An example or two will make this
use of Italics clear. In SYALAN (for SYALAN, I.e.
Siyalan) the two dots beneath the yd have been omitted and it
could equally well be read as any other letter of the same shape.
In KNHK (for KNf K, i.e. Kenchek) the dot over the nun has
been lost and there is a similar ambiguity. (The dot beneath the
jim here equivalent to chim has also been lost but this Is shown
by the use of H, i.e. the corresponding undotted letter.) A
more complicated example is YYQAQ. Here YY (or BB
etc.) Is actually a corruption of S, the first Q could equally well
be written F 9 the final Q is a corruption of N and the whole
is a corruption of &QAN, i.e. Shuqan !

The same system is used to Indicate the Arabic spelling of
Turkish and Mongol words. This is done in the footnotes upon
their first occurrence in the text. The Perso-Arabic alphabet is
of course incapable of adequately reproducing all the Turkish
and Mongol vowel sounds although by the use of the hard and
soft consonants and of alif, wdw and yd as matres lectionis it can
give some approximate idea of the pronunciation. Following
such indications I have spelt all Turkish and Mongol words in
the text, the footnotes and the index as far as possible in accord-
ance with the phonetic laws of the two languages. No distinc-
tion is made however between Turkish a and e (<?), both being
represented by e. Similarly the distinction between / and I is
ignored in the text though it is always observed in the notes and
index, not only in the case of Turkish words but also in the
case of Mongol words when the Arabic spelling indicates that
the old pronunciation still survived.

In quoting Far Eastern sources I have spelt Mongol words
according to the system of the late Professor Pelliot, with sonfe

xxxvii

NOTE ON TRANSLITERATION

slight modifications, whilst for Chinese I have used the Wade-
Giles method of transcription.
The Armenian alphabet is transliterated as follows :

abjrdezesfzbilkbtskbdzgb cb

m y n sh o cb* p j t s v t r ts f w p* U d f.

Arabic phrases and passages in the original appear in the

translation in italics.

XXXVlll

BIBLIOGRAPHY

OF
WORKS QUOTED IN THE TRANSLATOR'S NOTES

ABBOTT, J., Sind : a re-interpretation of the Unhappy Valley Oxford, 1924.
'Abdallah b. Muhammad b. Kiya : W. Hinz, ed., Die Resald-ye Falakiyya des

'Abdollah fan Muhammad ibn Kiya al-Mazandarant, Wiesbaden, 1952.
ALLEN, W. E. D., A History of the Georgian People, London, 1932.
ARBERRY, A. J. See Omar Khayyam and Sa'di.
ATALAY, B. See Kashghari.

Baihaqi, Abul-Fazl: Ghani and Fayyaz, ed., Ta'rikb-i-Baibaqi, Tehran, 13247

1945-6.
Barhebraeus : E. A. Wallis Budge, ed. and tr., The Chronograpby of Gregory

AM 9 1 Faraj, the Hebrew Physician, commonly known as Ear Hehraeus, 2 vols.,

Oxford and London, 1932 ; A. Salihani, ed., Tankh mukhtasar ad-duwal,

Beirut, 1890.

BARTHOLD, W., Histoire des Turcs d'Asie Centrale, Paris, 1945.
Turkestan down to the Mongol Invasion, (GMS, New Series, V), London,

1928.

BENEDETTO, L. F. See Marco Polo.
BEREZIN, I. N. See Rashid-ad-Din.
Biruni : R. Ramsay Wright, ed. and tr., The Book of Instruction in the Elements

of the Art of Astrology ly Abu'l-Rayhan Muhammad tin Ahmad al-BMnt, London,

1934-

BLOCHET, E. See Rashid-ad-Din.
BOWEN, H., * The sar-gudhasht-i sayyidna, the " Tale of the Three School-fellows"

and the wasaya of the Nizam al-Mulk ', JRAS, 1931.

See also Juvaini and Muhammad Haidar.

Rubruck: W. W. Rockhill, tr., The Journey of William of Rubruck to the Eastern
Parts of the World , London, 1900 ; A. van den Wyngaert, ed. in Sinica
Fmndstana 1, Quaracchi, 1929.

Sa c di : A. J. Arberry, tr., Kings and Beggars, London, 1945 ; Muhammad e Ali

Furughi, ed., Biistan-i-Sa f dt f Tehran, 1316/1937-8.
SCHLEGEL, G., * Die chinesische Inschrift auf dem uighurischen Denkmal in

Kara Balgassun ', Mlmoires de k Sodltl fnno-ottffienne, Helsingfors, 1896.
Secret History of the Mongols : F. W. Cleaves, tr., The Secret History of the Mongols,

Volume I (Translation) , Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1957; E. Haenisch, tr.,

Die Geheime Gescbichte der Mongolen (2nd. ed.), JLeipzig, 1948 ; P. Pelliot,

ed. and tr., Histoire secrete des Mongols, Paris, 1949.
Shahnama, See Firdausi.
Sheng-wu ch f in-~ch$ng In : P. Pelliot and L. Hambis, ed. and tr., Histoire des cam-

pagnes de Gengis Khan, Leiden, 1951.
SMIRNOVA, O, I. See Rashid-ad-Din.
SPULER, B., Die Mongolen in Iran (2nd. ed.), Berlin, 1955.

Die Goldene Horde, Leipzig, 1943.

STARK, Freya, The Valleys of the Assassins and Other Persian Travels, London,

1934-

Tha r alibi : A. Eghbal, ed., Tatimmatul-'Yatimab, 2 vols., Tehran, 1934.
TURNER, Samuel, Siberia : a Record of Travel, Climbing and Exploration, London,
1908.

Vardan: Vardanay Vardapeti Hawak'umn Patmut'ean, Venice, 1862.
Vassaf : J. von Hammer-Purgstall, ed. and tr., GescUcbte Wassaf's, Vienna,
1856; Kfta^mustatab-i-VassSf (lithographed ed.) f Bombay, 12^9/1852-3.

xllv

BIBLIOGRAPHY

VERNADSKY, G., Ancient Russia, New Haven, 1943.

* Juwaini's Version of Chingis Khan's yasa \ Amides k Flnstitet Kondakov,

XI (1939).

The Mongols and Russia, New Haven, 1953.

O sostave velikoi yas'i Cbingis kbana, Brussels, 1939. (Contains a translation

by Professor Minorsky of Juvainfs chapter on the yasas of Chingiz-Khan.)
VLADIMIRTSOV, B., Gengis-Kban, Paris, 1948.
Le regime social des Mongols, Paris, 1948.

WALEY, A. See Li Chih-ch'ang.

WHINFIELD, E. H. See Omar Khayyam.

WITTFOGEL, K. A., and FENG, CHIA-SHENG, History of Chinese Society : Liao

($07-1125), Philadelphia, 1949.

WOLFF, O., Geschicbte der Mongolen oder Tataren, Breslau, 1872.
WOOD, J., A Personal Narrative of a Journey to the Sources of the Rsver Qxus, London,

1841.

WRIGHT, R. RAMSAY. See Biruni.
WYNGAERT, A. VAN DEN. See Carpini, Odoric and Rubmck.

YAQUT: F. Wiistenfeld, ed., MM* gam al luldan, 6 vols., Leipzig, 1866-72.
Yuan sbih : L. Hambis, ed. and tr., Le cbapitre CVI1 du Yuan cbe, Leiden, 1945 ;

Le cbapitre CVI1I du Yuan cbe f Leiden, 1954; E. A. Krause, tr., Cmgis

Han, Heidelberg, 1922. (The translations supplied by Professor Cleaves

are from the Po-na~pen edition of the text.)
YULE, SIR H., Cathay and tbe Way Tbftber (ed. Cordier), 4 vols., London,

1915-16.
See also Odoric and Polo.

ZAMBAUR, E. DE, Manuel de glntalogie et de cbtovologie pour rbfstoire de i'lslam,
2 vols., Hanover, 1927.

ABBREVIATIONS

BSOAS : Bulletin of tbe Scbool of Oriental and African Studies.
BSOS : Bulletin of the Scbool of Oriental Studies.

Campagnes : Histoire des campagnes de Gmgis Khan. See the Sbeng-wu cb f in-cbeng lu.
GMS: Gibb Memorial Series.
HJAS : Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies.
Horde d'Or : Notes sur rhistoire de la Horde d'Or. See Pelliot.
JA : Journal Asiatique.
JKAS : Journal of tbe Royal Asiatic Society.
M.Q. : Muhammad Qazvini.

SPAW: Sitzungslerichte der preussiscben Akademie der Wissenscbaften.
TP : Toung Pao.
V.M. : Vladimir Minorsky.

VOIAO: (Trudt) Vostocbnago Otdeleniya Imperatorskago Arkbeologlcheskago
Obsbchestva.

xlv

THE HISTORY OF
THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

[DOXOLOGY]

In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate.

Thanksgiving and praise unto Him Whom men worship,
Who is necessarily existent; unto Him before Whom men
prostrate themselves, Whose existence bestoweth the lights of
wisdom and munificence : He is the Maker, and the proof of
His oneness lieth in each of the atoms of created things ; He is
the Protector, and the purpose of the diversity of tongues and
qualities Is to give thanks for His strange and wonderful works ;
He is the Provider, and at His table, because of His divinity,
monotheist and atheist (mulhid) are as one ; He is the Creator,
and the known Inventions of His nature are but one tale of the
perfection of His power ; He is mighty, and In praise of His
countless blessings the melodious nightingale singeth a thousand
songs ; He is generous, and the plenteous rain of April Is but
one drop in the sea of His bounteousness ; He is the Pardoner,
and the zephyr of His favour hath been the source of the endurance
of every lover ; He is the Avenger, and the glittering sword of
the Tartar was the instrument of His severity; He is outward,
and the minds of the wise are astounded at the greatness of His
perfection ; He is inward, and the imagination and understand-
ing cannot attain to real knowledge of His glory; He is one,
and is sought alike by those that keep to the middle in the valleys
of true guidance and by those that travel hurriedly through the
wilderness of passion ; He is eternal, and is loved alike by the
lovers of truth and by idolatrous libertines

Infidelity and Islam walking this way, saying, ' He is alone,
He hath no companion.'

And may the blessing of His praise descend upon the flower
of the garden of creation, the light of the pupil of men of insight,
the seal of the prophets, Mohammed the Elect a blessing out
of which the scent of true devotion reacheth the nostrils of
the lovers of holiness and from whose fragrance the supreme
Pleroma, In agreement with them that dwell in the garden of
D 3

THE HISTORY OF

contentment^ scattereth the largesse [2] of benedictions upon his
pure and holy spirit !

And upon the chosen ones of his people and the followers of
his law his friends and household, who are stars in the heavens
of righteousness and stones cast at the demon of iniquity be
praise that is adorned with the jewel of purity and the gem of
truth and that shall endure for the length of days and nights !

[INTRODUCTION]

In the year 650/1252-3 Fate was kind to me, and Fortune
smiled, and there befell me the honour of kissing the threshold
of the Court of the World-Emperor, the Commander of the
Earth and the Age, the source of the blessings of peace and
security, the Khan of all Khans, Mengii x Qa'an may victory
and triumph over the foes of state and faith be fastened to his
banner and may his august shadow extend over all mankind !
and I beheld the effects of that justice whereby all creation hath
recovered and bloomed again, just as young plants and trees will
smile because of the weeping of the spring clouds ; wherein I
fulfilled the commandment of the Lord Look to the effects of
God's meny, bow He maketh the earth to live after its death! 2 The
eye of insight was ennobled by contemplation of that justice and
the ear of truth adorned with the cry of

O lovers, that ravisher of hearts hath appeared again.
Scatter your hearts, for that sweetheart hath appeared.

The tales of Nushirvan's 3 justice were hidden thereby and the
traditions of Faridun's 4 wisdom seemed effaced. The breezes

1 This, the Turkish form of the name, is also used by Carpini (Mengu) and
Rubruck (Mangu). Rashid-ad-Din always uses the native form, viz. Mongke.
This latter form occurs regularly in E (written MWNK KA) in place of the
Mengii (MNKW) of the text, which however in one place (I, 157) has Mongke
(written MWNKKA) and in another (I, 195) the hybrid form MWNKW.
Both mongke and mengu are adjectives meaning * eternal *.

2 Koran, xxx, 49.

3 Nushirvan, i.e. Khusrau I, the Sassanian ruler (531-578), is always repre-
sented in Persian literature as the personification of justice.

4 Faridun, actually a figure of Indo-Iranian mythology, appears in the National
Epic as the slayer of the tyrant Zahhak (Dahak) and the founder of a pre-
Achaemenid dynasty.

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

of the north wind of his comprehensive equity perfumed the
entire world and the sun of his royal favours illumined the whole
of mankind. The blast of his shining sword cast fire into the
harvest of the abject foe; the subjects and servants of his Court
raised the throne of his pavilion to the Pleiades ; opponents, for
fear of his rigour and fury, tasted the fatal potion ; and the hand
of his severity and majesty blinded the eye of sedition.

When in this manner and wise I had beheld the magnificent
and awful presence of him that bruiseth the lips and seareth the
brows of illustrious kings, some of my faithful friends and pure-
hearted brethren, the toil of travel to whose august presence was
as easy as resting at home, [3] suggested that in order to perpetuate
the excellent deeds and to immortalize the glorious actions of
the Lord of the Age, the youth of youthful fortune and aged
resolve, I should compose a history, and in order to preserve
the chronicles and annals of his reign I should compile a record
such as would abrogate the verses of the Caesars and erase the
traditions of the Chosroes. 5

Now it is not hidden from the eloquent and the wise, the
learned and the accomplished, that the bloom and lustre of the
face of literature and the brilliance and prosperity of scholars
is due to the patrons of that art and the protectors of that
craft

Would that I knew whether I should ever see a man as a

companion from whom fair praise was inseparable !
Then would I lament and he lament for what was in my heart

and his heart, each of us sure of his brother's lamenting,

But because of the fickleness of Fate, and the influence of the
reeling heavens, and the revolution of the vile wheel, and the
variance of the chameleon world, colleges of study have been
obliterated and seminaries of learning have vanished away ; and
the order of students has been trampled upon by events and
crushed underfoot by treacherous Fate and deceitful Destiny;
they have been seized by all the vicissitudes of toils and tribula-
tions; and being subjected to dispersion and destruction they

5 I.e. the Persian dynasty of the Sassanians (229-652), who overthrew the
Parthians and were themselves overthrown by the Arabs.

THE HISTORY OF

have been exposed to flashing swords ; and they have hidden
themselves behind the veil of the earth.

All learning must now be sought beneath the earth, because
all the learned are in the belly of the earth.

But in former days when the necklace of the empire of learning
and the claimants thereto were strung together on one string

When pleasure was fresh and youth propitious, and amongst
the vicissitudes of fortune men had no eye for thee

the most learned In the world and the most excellent amongst
the sons of Adam would direct their attention to the perpetuation
of fair remembrance and the keeping alive of noble customs.
For to the man of insight, who with the eye of reflection con-
sidereth the end and conclusion of affairs, it is well known and
fully established that the endurance of good fame is the occasion
of eternal life,

for memory of the hero is Us second life. 6

And when a hero encounters death, it seems that but for
eulogy he might never have been torn. 7

[4] Therefore It was that sublime poets and eloquent writers,
Arabic and Persian, would compile in verse and prose works
concerning the kings of the age and the worthies of the era and
would write books about them. But to-day the surface of the
earth in general and the land of Khorasan in particular (which
was the rising-place of felicities and charities, the location of
desirable things and good works, the fount of learned men, the
rendezvous of the accomplished, the spring-abode of the talented,
the meadow of the wise, the thoroughfare of the proficient and
the drinking-place of the ingenious the pearl-raining words of
the Prophet have a tradition on this subject : e Knowledge is a
tree which hath its root in Mecca and leareth its fruit in Khorasan ')
to-day, I say, the earth hath been divested of the adornment of
the presence of those clad in the gown of science and those
decked in the jewels of learning and letters ; and they only are

6 Mutanabbi (M.Q.).

7 Yazid al-Harlthl, a poet of the Hamasa. (M.Q.)

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

left of whom indeed it can be said : e But others have come in their
place after them who Imve made an end of prayer and have gone after
their own lusts.' 8

Those are departed under whose protection it was pleasant
to live, and I am left amongst a posterity like the skin
of a scatty man*

My father the sahib-divan Baha-ad-Din Muhammad b. Muham-
mad al-Juvaini may the lofty tree of excellence continue green in
Us resting-place and the eyes of virtue continue to gaze upon Urn !
hath a qasida on this subject of which the following are the first
two lines:

Have pity on me, the traces of right and truth have been

effaced and the foundation of nolle deeds is about to

collapse.
We have been plagued by successors who in their blindness

used combs for their heels and towels for

their combs.

They regard lying and deception as exhortation and admonish-
ment and all profligacy and slander bravery and courage.

And many people regarded it as a trade but I was restrained
therefrom by my religion and my office. 1

They consider the Uighur language and script to be the height
of knowledge and learning. Every market lounger in the garb
of iniquity has become an emir ; every hireling has become a
minister, every knave a vizier and every unfortunate a secretary ;

every n a mustaufi and every spendthrift [5] an inspector ;

every rogue a deputy treasurer and every boor a minister of
state ; every stableboy the lord of dignity and honour and every
carpet-spreader a person of consequence ; every cruel man a
competent man, every nobody a somebody, every churl a chief,
every traitor a mighty lord and every valet a learned scholar;
every camel-driver elegant from much riches and every porter in
easy circumstances by reason of Fortune's aid.

8 Koran, xix, 60. 9 Labld b. Rabfa al-AmM. (M.Q.)

10 Ba'ith b. Huraith, one of the poets of the Hamasa. (M.Q.)

11 The text has mustoljf, ' one who warms himself*; perhaps something like
* shivering wretch * is meant.

THE HISTORY OF

The pedigrees of people such as were handed down of yore
cannot be compared with the pedigrees that have grown
with the grass .^

The noble yielded themselves to chastisement and from sorrow

and grief gave up their breasts to lamentation.
The back of learning was utterly broken that day when these

ignorant ones leant their backs upon the cushion.

How much did we yearn to praise that age when we were engaged
in blaming this present age ! 13

They consider the breaking of wind and the boxing of ears to
proceed from the kindness of their nature, for ' God hath sealed
up their harts '/ 4 and they deem vituperation and sottishness to
be the consequences of a scatheless mind. In such an age,
which is the famine year of generosity and chivalry and the
market day of error and ignorance, the good are sorely tried and
the wicked and evil firmly established; in the performance of
noble deeds the virtuous are twisted in the snare of tribulation,
while the vicious and foolish attain the riches they desire ; the
free are beggars and the liberal outcasts ; the noble are portion-
less and the important of no account ; the ingenious are exposed
to danger, traditionists are the victims of calamities, the wise the
prisoners of shackles and the perfect overtaken by disaster ; the
mighty are subservient to the base by compulsion and the dis-
criminating are captive in the hands of the ignoble.

/ have seen the age which raises every base person and

lowers every person of noble qualities ;
Like the sea which drowneth every pearl and on which

carrion Jloateth ever;
Or like the scales which lower everything of just measure

and raise everything of light weight.

From this it may be known what labours the wise and the
talented must perform to ascend the highest and explore the
lowest scales. And in accordance with the saying ( People are
more like their age than their parents * t in the flower of my youth,

12 'Amr b. al-Hudhail al-'Abdi, one of the poets of the Hamasa. (M.Q.)

13 From a qasida by Abul-'Ala al-Ma'arri. (M.Q.)

14 Koran, xvi, no.

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

which should be the season for laying the foundations of virtues
and accomplishments, I complied with the words of cay con-
temporaries and coevals, who were the brethren of devils [6]
and before I was twenty years of age I was employed on the
work of the Divan, and in the management of affairs and the
transaction of business neglected the acquisition of knowledge
and heeded not the advice of my father (may God lengthen his
life and place a wall between him and misfortunes /), advice which
is the jewel of the unadorned and the exemplar of the wise :

My little son, strive to acquire knowledge, hasten to

gather the fruits of thy desires.
Hast thou not seen on the chessboard how a pawn, if it

bestirs itself in its journeyings, becomes a queen ?
Our illustrious ancestors have founded us lofty edifices

If we strengthen them not with our labours, of a surety
these edifices will collapse.

However

Well-wishers give advice but it is only the fortunate
who take it.

And now that discretion, which is the halter of the frenzy of
young men, hath made its appearance, and advancement of
years, which is the bridle of the impetuosity of youths, hath
gained the upper hand, and things have reached such a pitch
that

Seven have been joined unto twenty of my years and discretion
hath abstained from excess.

it is idle to regret and lament the waste of the days of study just as
it is profitless to bemoan and bewail the days of idleness.

Alas that the years should have passed so suddenly and
this life dear as my soul should have passed thirty !

What pleasure is there now ? And if there be pleasure, a
hundred goblets for a loaf when the wedding-feast is over!

Nevertheless, as I have several times visited Transoxiana 15

15 In Arabic Ma wara-an-nahr, lit. * what is beyond the river '. Transoxiana
corresponded more or less to the later Russian Turkestan (excluding, of course,
the territory west of the Oxus, the present-day Turkmenistan), i.e. the present-
day Uzbekistan and South Kazakhstan with parts of Tajikistan and Kirghizia.

THE HISTORY OF

and Turkestan 16 to the confines of Machin 17 [7] and farthest
China, which is the site of the throne of the kingdom and the
abode of the race of Chingiz-Khan's 18 posterity and the middle
bead of the necklace of their empire, and have observed certain
circumstances and have heard from certain creditable and trust-
worthy persons of bygone events ; and as I saw no escape from
complying with the suggestion of friends, which is a definite
command, I could not refuse and held it necessary to carry out
the behest of dear ones. I therefore reduced to writing all that
was confirmed and verified and called the whole of these narra-
tions Juv ami's History of the World-Conqueror.

The land was emptied, and I was a leader without

followers ;
And it was part of my misery that I was alone in

my leadership,^

It befitteth men of learning and beneficence may the evil eye
be far removed from the courtyard of their glory and may the
edifices of nobleness and sublimity be constructed with their
being ! that, by way of kindness, they cover the feebleness and
deficiency of my language and style with the train of forgiveness
and cancellation, since for ten years I have set my foot in foreign
lands and have eschewed study ; and the leaves of the sciences

16 By Turkestan, i.e. Turkistan, * the land of the Turks *, is meant the Turkish
and Mongol territories to the east of Transoxiana.

17 Machin, i.e. Southern China, called also Manzi, the Manji of Marco Polo.
18 CNGZ XAN. The title assumed by the Mongol chieftain Temiijin.

See below, p. 35. According to Ramstedt and Pelliot it means * Oceanic
Khan *, i.e. * Universal Ruler *, chingiz being a palatalized form of the Turkish
tmgiz (tangiz) * sea *. See Pelliot, Les Mongols et la Papauti [23]. Ibn-Battuta,
as Pelliot points out (loc. dt. f n. 9), actually uses the form Tengiz-Khan. The
normal spelling of the name in English (Genghis Khan) and French (Gengis-
Khan) appears to be due to the example set by Voltaire. See Gibbon, VII, 3,
n. 4. It is based ultimately on the spelling of the name in the Arabic script.
The Cyngis of Carpini and the Chingis of Rubruck represent the native Mongol
pronunciation, viz. Chinggis.

19 This, and not simply The History of the World-Conqueror, appears to be the
full title of the work. Otherwise it is difficult to understand why the author in the
fath-nama he composed on the capture of Alamut (see below, ii. 631) should
refer to f Juvamfs History of the World-Conqueror '.

20 From a poem in the Hamasa by an unknown author. (M.Q.)

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have become ' woven over by the spider * and the pictures thereof
erased from the page of the mind

Like the writing writ upon the surface of the water ;

and that they lay not the finger of criticism upon the false steps,
wherefrom no man remaineth exempt, f for every courser stumMeth 3 .

If thou perceivest irregularity in my style, my

calligraphy, my ability or my rhetoric,
Question not my understanding : verily my dance is

to the tune of the times.

And if in the regions of excess and deficiency I have trodden
the pathway of latitude, let them be pleased to consider the force
of the verse, ' And when they pass by frivolous sport they pass on
with dignity J ; 21 for the purpose of recounting these tales and
declaring and delineating the shape of events compriseth two
objects, viz. the achievement of spiritual and temporal advantage.
As for the spiritual advantage, if a keen-sighted man of pure
nature, who is fair and moderate, look not upon these matters
with the eye of rancour and envy, which occasioneth [8] and
causeth faults, and giveth rise to vices and defects, whereof the
origin is baseness of mind and meanness of nature ; and if he
gaze not with the regard of complaisance and loyalty, which
seeth misdemeanours in a fair light and holdeth sackcloth for
brocade

The eye of contentment is Hind to every defect, lut
the eye of anger giveth rise to faults ; aa

but if he consider these matters honestly and sincerely as one that
taketh the middle course ' for the lest of things is the middle
thereof

Provided I am content to hear the burden of love and
h saved therefrom, I gain nothing and lose nothing

and if he reflect upon these discourses and compositions, which
are announced in various styles [?] ; then the veil of doubt and

21 Koran, xxv, 72.

22 One of the lines by 'Abdallah b. Mu'awiya b. 'Abdallah b. Ja'far b. Abu-
Talib in which he reproaches his friend Husain b. 'Abdallah b. *Ubaidallah
b. Abbas. See the Kttab-d-Agharii, XI, 76. (M.Q.)

THE HISTORY OF

suspicion and the covering of mistrust and uncertainty will be
lifted from his sight, and it will not remain concealed and hidden
from his mind and heart that whatever of good or evil, of weal
or woe, appeareth in this world of growth and decay is dependent
upon the decree of a powerful Sage and hingeth upon the will
of an absolute Potentate, Whose deeds are the rule of wisdom
and the prerequisite of excellence and justice ; and when such
events occur as the devastation of countries and the scattering of
peoples through the adversity of the good and the triumph of
the evil there are wise saws rolled up inside them, God Almighty
bath said: f Haply ye love a thing though it le bad for you! 23 And
Master Sana'i 24 saith :

Take either hope or fear, the Sage hath created nothing

vain
In the world whatever is gone and whatever is to come and

whatever is must be so.

And Badi c of Hamadan 25 saith in one treatise : ' Oppose not
God in His mil and pie not with Him in multitude in His own land ;
"for the earth is God's ; to such of His servants as He pleaseth doth
He give it as a heritage "! 26

Whatever is secret is a sea into which no man has the know-
ledge or the wisdom to plunge : what people can fly over that
horizon or what understanding or imagination can pass through
that valley ?

Whence am I 2 whence the word of the secret of the kingdom ?

For none knotveth the Uftden save only Got.

[9] Thy soul is ignorant of this secret, for thee there
is no way through this curtain.

But whatever can be reached through reason or tradition and is
not remote from the imagination and understanding is limited

23 Koran, ii, 213.

24 The celebrated mystic poet who flourished in the first half of the twelfth
century.

25 I.e. Badi*-az~Zarnan (fiooy), an Arabic writer and the creator of a new
literary genre, the maqaw, a kind of picaresque tale in rhymed prose.

26 Koran, vii, 125.

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to two kinds : First, the manifestation of the miracle of the
Prophecy, and secondly, theology. And can there be a greater
miracle than that after six hundred odd years the fulfilment of
the tradition : ' The earth was allotted to me and I was shown the
East and the West thereof; and the kingdom of my people shall reach
what was allotted to me thereof should come to pass in the appear-
ance of a strange army ? for the abundance of the lights of the
sunbeams seems no more strange than dampness from water or
heat from fire, but every light that shineth because of the darkness
is exceeding marvellous and wonderful.

We did not die until through jugglery we saw
the dawn at midnight.

For this reason the Banner of Islam is raised higher and the
candle of the Faith lit brighter ; and the sun of the creed of
Mohammed casts its shadow over countries whose nostrils had
not been perfumed by the scent of Islam, whose ears had not
been charmed by the sound of the takbir and the azan and whose
soil had not been trodden save by the unclean feet of the wor-
shippers of al-Lat and al-'Uzza; 27 whereas to-day so many
believers in the one God have bent their steps thitherwards and
reached the farthest countries of the East, and settled, and made
their homes there, that their numbers are beyond calculation or
computation. Some are those who at the time of the conquest
of Transoxiana and Khorasan 28 were driven thither in the levy
as craftsmen and keepers of animals ; and many are those who
from the farthermost West, from the two Iraqs, 29 from Syria
and the other lands of Islam have wandered in the way of trade
and commerce, visiting every region and every city, acquiring
fame and seeing strange sights, and have cast away the staff of
travel in those regions and decided to abide there; and have
settled down, and built mansions and castles, and reared the

27 The names of two goddesses worshipped by the ancient Arabs.

28 Khorasan was then much larger than the present-day province of north-
eastern Persia. Of its four great cities of Balkh, Merv, Herat and Nishapur
(see below, p. 151) only the last is still in Persian territory. Merv (the modern
Man) is in Turkmenistan and Balkh and Herat in Afghanistan.

29 I.e. Arab Iraq or Lower Mesopotamia and Persian 'Iraq or Central Persia.

THE HISTORY OF

cells of Islam over against the houses of idols, and established
schools, where the learned teach and instruct and the acquirers
of learning profit thereby : it is as though the tradition : ' Seek
knowledge even in China 3 related to this age and to those who
live in this present era.

And as for the children of the polytheists, some have fallen
into the hands of the Moslems in the baseness of servitude and
have attained the dignity [10] of Islam, and others, when the
ray of the lights of true guidance had influenced the stony heart
of the quality of "They are like rocks or harder still V have acquired
the glory of the faith, as is the nature of the sunbeams, which
appear in the rocks and through which lustrous jewels are made
manifest. And because of the auspiciousness of the blessings
of the people of the faith, wherever the eye roameth, it seeth from
the multitude of believers in the One God a vast city and in the
midst of the darkness a bright light ; and it is believed by the
ascetic order amongst the idolaters (whom in their own language
they call toyiri) 31 that before the settlement of the Moslems and
the performance of the takUr and the iqamat (may God maintain
and perpetuate them /) the idols used to converse with them
f the Satans will indeed suggest to their votaries (to wrangle with you) ' 32
but because of the inauspiciousness of the coming of the
Moslems they have grown angry with them and will not say a
word ' God hath sealed up their mouths! And indeed so it must
be, for * truth is come and falsehood is vanished : verily, falsehood is
a thing that vanished) *. 83 Wherever the lights of the power of
truth shine forth the darkness of infidelity and iniquity is dis-
persed and destroyed like the mist which resisteth not the elevation
of the sun.

When the dawn of the power of truth begins to blow,

the divs begin to flee from every region.
Man conies to a place where in every moment without

difficulty the eye begins to see the beloved.

30 Koran, ii, 69.

31 I.e. Buddhist priests, the Tuini of Rubruck. The Turkish word toyfa is
a borrowing from the Chinese tao<j$tt f lit* * man of the Way '.

82 Koran, vi 121. 33 IM, xvii, 83.

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As for those who have attained to the degree of martyrdom,
which after the dignity of Prophecy is the most excellent and
perfect of degrees in the Court of Glory, by the flashing sabre
of ' the sword is the eraser of sins * they have been rendered heavy
of scale and light of weight from the burden of the loads and
the load of the burdens which they had acquired in a life of
security and ease f and repute not those slain in God's path to fa
dead ; nay they are alive with their Lord'.**

And the ttood which tbou didst cause to flow In thyself
was glorious, and the heart which tbou didst frighten
was thy panegyrist.

And as for the survivors of those endued with insight they have
received a warning and an admonishment.

[n] As for the temporal advantage, it is that whoever peruses
these discourses and traditions (which are free from the semblance
of boasting and the suspicion of lying, for what room is there
for untruth seeing that these tales are too clear and manifest for
mortal man to make a mistake regarding them ?

Perchance until the day of judgement these words
shall not grow old amongst the wise)

and discovers therein the parables of the strength and might of
the Mongol army and the agreement of Fate and Destiny with
whatever they set their hands to, such a man, I say, will take for
his pattern and exemplar the commandment of the Lord:
' And throw not yourselves with your own hands into win! 35 It is
the yasa and custom of the Mongols that whoever yields and
submits to them is safe and free from the terror and disgrace of
their severity. Moreover, they oppose no faith or religion how
can one speak of opposition ? rather they encourage them; the
proof of which assertion is the saying of Mohammed (upon
whom tte peace I) : ' Verily, God shall assert this religion through
a people that have no share of good fortune. 3 They have exempted
and dispensed the most learned of every religion from every kind

#., Hi, 163, 85 JWi, ii, 19*.

THE HISTORY OF

of occasional tax (*avarizat) and from the inconvenience of
contributions (mu 9 an); their pious foundations and bequests for
the public use and their husbandmen and ploughmen have also
been recognized as immune; and none may speak amiss of
them, particularly the imams of the faith of Mohammed, and
especially now in the reign of the Emperor Mengii Qa'an, when
there are several princes of the family (urugh) of Chingiz-Khan,
his children and grandchildren, in whom the dignity of Islam
hath been joined to worldly power ; and so many of their
followers and adherents, their horsemen and servants have been
decorated and adorned with the jewel of the glory of the faith
that their numbers are beyond calculation or computation. In
view of the foregoing it is necessary on the grounds of reason,
now that the Piebald Horse of the Days 36 is tame between the
thighs of their command, that men should comply with the
commandment of the Lord : f And if they lean to peace, lean thou
also to it ; ' 37 and should yield and submit ; and desist from
rebellion and fiowardness in accordance with the words of the
Lord of the Shari'at : ' Let the Turks be as long as they let you
be, for they are endued with terrible prowess ; ' and place their lives
and property in the stronghold of immunity and the asylum of
security ' for [12] God guideth whom He pleaseth into the straight
path/ 38

Since in every age and century men have been prevented by
the petulance of wealth, the pride of riches and the arrogance of
prosperity from carrying out the commandments of God (glorious
is His power and exalted His word !) and have been impelled and
instigated thereby to set their hands to sin f verily, man is insolent
because he seeth himself possessed of riches * 39 therefore for the
admonishment and chastisement of every people a punishment
hath been meted out fitting to their rebellion and in proportion
to their infidelity, and as a warning to those endued with insight
a calamity or castigation hath overtaken them in accordance
with their sins and misdemeanours. Thus, in the age of Noah
(upon whom be peace /) there was a general deluge ; in the age

36 I.e. the World. 37 Koran, viii, 63.

38 IUI, ii, 209. 39 Itii, xcvi, 6-7,

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of Thamud/ the punishment of the people of *Ad ; and in
the same way every nation hath undergone punishments such
as metamorphoses, plagues of noxious creatures and the like, as
hath been recorded in the Qisas^ 1 And when the time caoie
for the reign of the Seal of the Prophets (for whom let there be
offered up the most excellent of devout prayers!), he besought
the Lord of Majesty and Glory to grant that all the different
punishments and calamities which He had sent to every nation
on account of their disobedience might be remitted in the case
of his own nation and this honour hath been for his nation
the source of their other excellencies but not as regards the
punishment of the sword, concerning which his prayer attained
not the manifestation of acceptance and hit not the target of
admission. The learned Jarallah 42 in his commentary, the
Kashshaf, when he comes to the following verse in the sura of the
Cattle : ' Say : It is He who hath power to send on you a punishment
from above you' 43 quotes these words of the Prophet of God (God
Mess him and give him peace /) ; ' I asked God not to send upon
my nation a punishment from above them, or from beneath their feet.
And He granted it unto me. And I asked Him not to put their fane
amongst them, and He prevented me. And Gabriel told me that the
destruction of my nation would be by the sword. 3 And from the point
of view of reason it is necessary and essential that if the threat
of the sword, which is the immediate menace, were to remain
in abeyance and men were content with that which is promised
in the next world everything would be confused; the common
people, whose feet are bound with e What is restrained by
authority \ u would have their hands freed; the nobles would
remain in the corner of calamity and the nook of tribulation ;

40 This is apparently a mistake for Hud, the name of a prophet who was sent to
warn the Arabian people of 'Ad. (Koran, Ixxxyii, 63.) Thamud was the
name of another people to whom a prophet called Salih was sent. (Hid., 71.)

41 I.e. the Qfeaf-d-AntiyS or Tale* of the Prophets of Thalabi.

42 I.e. Zamakhshari, whose work, the Kashshaf, is one of the best known com-
mentaries on the Koran.

48 Koran, vi, 65.

44 A reference to the well known baliih : ( Those who are restrained by authority
are more than those who are restrained by the Koran.' (M.Q.)

THE HISTORY OF

and some of the advantages of 'And we have sent down iron,
wherein resideth dire evil, as well as advantage, to men ' 45 would be
rendered null and void, for without this instrument the gates of
justice [13] and equity, which have been opened and flung wide
by 'And we have sent down the book and the balance V 5 would be
bolted and barred and the order of men's affairs would of a
sudden be deranged. And from this it is clear, and the dark-
ness of doubt arises, that whatever was predestined in the begin-
ning of time is for the benefit of the servants of God (glorious
is His power and universal His dominion /). And when a period
of six hundred odd years had passed since the mission of His
Prophet to all creation an abundance of wealth and a superfluity
of desires were the cause of rebellion and estrangement: ' verily ,
God will not change His gifts to men, till they change what is in
themselves* 46 And it is stated without ambiguity in His
glorious Word : f And thy Lord was not one who would destroy the
cities when the inhabitants were righteous?*' 7 The whisperings of
Satan drove them far from the path of rectitude and the highway
of righteousness.

Infidelity came and religion was borne off by the

whispering of Satan ; love came and reason was borne

off by the coquetry of the beloved.
O thou who art Ignorant of the latter end, show justice :

can one spend one's life In a way more wretched than

this ?

f Except those who believe and do the things that are good and right ;
and few indeed are they ', 48

And how many crimes have "been committed ly fools and
the punishment has fallen on the innocent ! 49

To complain of fate is useless; whatever befalleth
us is our own doing.

It was the will of God (holy are His names /) that these people
should be roused from the slumber of neglect e Men are asleep,
and when they die they wake ' and recover from the drunkenness

45 Koran, Ivii, 25. 46 Hid,, xiii, 12.

* 7 Ibid., xi, 119. 48 JiE, xxxviii, 23.

49 Mutanabbi. (M.Q.)

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of ignorance and so be a warning to their posterity and children ;
and that the miracle of the faith of Mohammed should come to
pass as the culmination thereof, something of which has been
mentioned in the foregoing; and that He should prepare a
certain person, and make his nature the receptacle of all manner
of power, and daring, and ruthlessness, and vengeance, and then
by means of praiseworthy qualities and laudable properties bring
it into a position of equilibrium ; just as a skilful healer in
dispelling base diseases maketh use of scammony in his purgatives
and then seeth fit to apply correctives, so that the constitution
be not wholly turned aside from its original state and utterly
changed, and dispelleth the humours in accordance with
nature ; and the Greatest Physician is well aware of the tempera-
ments and constitutions of His servants and [14] understandeth
the use of drugs, which He administereth according to the time
and in agreement with nature. ' Verily, God knoweth end
understandeth/ 50

OF THE CONDITION OF THE MONGOLS
BEFORE THE TIME OF CHINGIZ-KHAN*S RISE TO POWER

WHEN the phoenix (huma) 1 of prosperity wishes to make the
roof of one man its abode, and the owl of misfortune to haunt
the threshold of another, though their stations be widely different,
the one in the zenith of good fortune and the other in the nadir
of abasement, yet neither scarcity of equipment nor feebleness of
condition prevents the fortunate man from attaining his goal

Whoever hath been prepared for Fortune, though he seek
her not, Fortune seeketh him

and neither abundance of gear nor excess of accoutrement can
save the unfortunate one from losing even that which he hath.

50 Koran, xxxv, 28.

1 The htma t a bird of good omen, is actually the Lammergeyer.

2 Ascribed by 'Aufi in his Jawamr-al-HMyat to a secretary in the service of
Malik-Shah called Muzaffar Khamaj. (M.Q.)

E 19

THE HISTORY OF

'Exertion unaided by fortune is illusive! Nor may the counsel of
man lay the hand of protection upon his brow ; but ' when be
pmperetk, be prospered, and when he faileth, he failetb \ For if
craft, and might, and wealth, and affluence could accomplish
aught, then would power and empire never have passed from
the houses of former kings to another ; but when the time of
the decline of their fortunes was arrived, neither craft, nor per-
severance nor counsel could aid them ; and neither the multitude
of their troops nor the strength of their resistance was of any
avail. And of this there is still clearer proof and plainer evidence
in the instance of the Mongol people, when one considers in
what circumstances and position they found themselves before
they beat the drum of the greatness of Chingiz-Khan and his
posterity, and how to-day the waters of prosperity flow in the
rivers of their desire and the army of affliction and sorrow has
fallen upon the stations and relays of opponents and insurgents,
which same were mighty Chosroes and illustrious kings ; and
in what manner Fate has shown herself kind to that people,
and how the world was stirred up by them, [15] prisoners
becoming princes and princes prisoners. 'And that was easy
unto God/ 3

Upon the bead of a slave a crown of honour that adorneth
him, and on the foot of a freeman a chain of shame that
dtsfigureth him.

The home of the Tartars, 4 and their origin and birthplace, is
an immense valley, whose area is a journey of seven or eight
months both in length and breadth. In the east it marches

8 Koran, iv, 34 and 167 ; and xxxiii, 19 and 20.

4 In Persian Tatar. This term in Juvaini (as the Arabic equivalent Tatar in
Ibn-al-Athir and Nasawi) always refers to the Mongols in general and never to
the original Tatar, a tribe to the south-east of the Mongols proper. This com-
prehensive use of the name Tatar was due to the importance assumed by that
people in the I2th century. See Vkdimirtsov, Gengis-Khan, ro-ii. In Europe
the word was associated with Tartarus or Tartara and Matthew of Paris (JRockhill,
xv) tells how * the countless army of the Tartars . . . poured forth like devils
from the Tartarus, so that they are rightly called Tartari or Tartarians, 'whilst
the Emperor Frederick II in a letter to Henry III of Engknd QUl, xk) expresses
the hope that * the Tartars will be driven finally down into their Tartarus/

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with the land of Khitai, 5 in the west with the country of the
Uighur, 6 in the north with the Qirqiz 7 and the river Selengei 8
and in the south with the Tangut 9 and the Tibetans.

Before the appearance of Chingiz-Khan they had no chief or
ruler. Each tribe or two tribes lived separately ; they were not
united with one another, and there was constant fighting and
hostility between them. Some of them regarded robbery and
violence, immorality and debauchery (foq va fujur) as deeds of
manliness and excellence. The Khan of Khitai used to demand
and seize goods from them. Their clothing was of the skins
of dogs and mice, and their food was the flesh of those animals
and other dead things ; their wine was mares' milk and their
dessert the fruit of a tree shaped like the pine, which they call
10 and besides which no other fruit-bearing tree will grow

5 Marco Polo's Cathay, i.e. Northern China.

6 At an earlier period the Uighur Turks had ruled in Mongolia itself but they
had then been expelled by the Kirghiz and had settled in the various oases to
the north of the Tarim. See Grousset, L* Empire des Steppes, 172-8.

7 I.e. the Kirghiz Turks, who at that time inhabited the region of the Upper
Yenisei.

8 SLNKAY. The Selenga.

9 The Tangut were a people of Tibetan origin who had founded a kingdom in
North- Western China. On their destruction by Chingiz-Khan see Grousset,
Le Congulrant du Monde, 233-6.

10 QSWQ, which I take to be identical with the qusuq of Kashghari. Kash-
ghari's Arabic equivalent is jillwz, which is translated by Brockelmann and
Atalay as * hazelnut ' : in actual fact, as was pointed out to me by Professor
Henning in a letter dated the I4th October, 1954, it is simply the Arabicized
form of the Persian chilghuza ' pignon ', * fruit of the edible pine '. The qusuq_
tree is referred to again in Chapter VII, p. 55, where it is described as * a tree
shaped like a pine whose leaves in winter resemble those of a cypress and whose
fruit is like a pignon (chilghuza) both in shape and taste '. It is in fact, as was
already suggested by Marquart, &uwayni*s Bericht utter die Bekehmng der Uighuren,
490, the Siberian Cedar (Pirns cembra). According to Loudon, Arboretum et
Fruttcetum Britannicum, IV, 2274 & se & tnere are tw varieties of this tree, sibirica,
* a lofty tree not found beyond the Lena ', and pygmaea, which covers rocky moun-
tains which are so barren that herbage of no kind will grow on them '. Dr. W. O.
Howarth, of the Department of Botany in the University of Manchester, to
whom I am indebted for the above reference, suggested in a letter dated the
17th February, 1954, that the second variety is simply a form of the first * dwarfed
by the conditions under which it grows *. As for the pignons, they are to-day
a favourite delicacy of the Russians. Turner, Siberia, 89-90, gives an amusing
account of the vast consumption of these nuts on the Trans-Siberian Railway

THE HISTORY OF

In that region : it grows [even] on some of the mountains,
where, on account of the excessive cold, there is nothing else
to be found. The sign of a great emir amongst them was that
his stirrups were of iron ; from which one can form a picture
of their other luxuries. And they continued in this indigence,
privation and misfortune until the banner of Chingiz-Khan's
fortune was raised and they issued forth from the straits of hard-
ship into the amplitude of well-being, from a prison into a
garden, from the desert of poverty into a palace of delight and
from abiding torment into reposeful pleasances ; their raiment
being of silk and brocade, their food and fruit ' The flesh of
birds of the kind which they shall desire, and fruits of the sort which
they shall choose V 1 and their drink ' (pure wine) sealed ; the seal
whereof shall fa musk *. 12 And so it has come to pass that the
present world is the paradise of that people ; for all the mer-
chandise that is brought from the West is borne unto them,
and that which is bound in the farthest East is untied in their
houses ; wallets and purses are filled from their treasuries, and
their everyday garments are studded with jewels and embroidered
with gold ; and in the markets of their residences gems and
fabrics have been so much cheapened [16] that were the former
taken back to the mine or quarry they would sell there for more
than double the price, while to take fabrics thither is as to bear
a present of carraway-seeds to Kerman or an offering of water
to Oman. 13 Moreover, everyone of them has laid out fields and
everywhere appointed husbandmen; their victuals, too, are
abundant, and their beverages flow like the River Oxus.

and goes on to say that they * are obtained in the northern parts of the Govern-
ments of Tomsk and Mariinsk, and in the mountainous localities of the Kuznetsk
districts, Tomsk being the principal market for their sale. From five to six
thousand tons are collected in a good season, the nuts being sold wholesale at
IQS. to 15*. a cwt. The harvest in the forest begins about the loth of August
and ends about the middle of September. The cones are obtained by climbing,
or by shaking the trees, while, in remote spots, huge trees, centuries old, are ruth-
lessly felled by greedy collectors. One family will gather as much as 10 cwt.
of nuts in one day during the season.' Turner is of course describing conditions
at the turn of the century.

11 Koran, Ivi, 21 and 20 (in that order).

12 Koran, Ixxxiii, 5 and 6. 13 I.e. coals to Newcastle.

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Through the splendour of the daily increasing fortune and
under the shadow of the august majesty of Chingiz-Khan and
his descendants the circumstances of the Mongols have risen
from such penury and indigence to such abundance and affluence.
And as for the other tribes their affairs also have been well
ordered and their destiny firmly established. And whoever
could not [previously] afford to make himself a cotton bed will
trade with them for fifty thousand or thirty thousand gold or
silver lalkb 14 at a time. Now the Misb is worth fifty misqals of
gold or silver, round about seventy-five mkni lB dinars, the
standard of which is two thirds.

May God Almighty grant his posterity, and in particular
Mengii Qa'an, who is a most wise and just monarch, countless
years in the pursuit of a prosperous life ; may He uphold his
clemency towards mankind !

OF THE LAWS WHICH CHINGIZ-KHAN FRAMED AND THE

YASAS WHICH HE PROMULGATED AFTER HIS RISE

TO POWER 1

GOD Almighty in wisdom and intelligence distinguished
Chingiz-Khan from all his coevals and in alertness of mind and
absoluteness of power exalted him above all the kings of the
world ; so that all that has been recorded touching the practice
of the mighty Chosroes of old and all that has been written
concerning the customs and usages of the Pharaohs and Caesars
was by Chingiz-Khan invented from the page of his own mind

14 An ingot of gold or silver. It is the iascot of Rubruck, which, as Pelliot has
shown, Horde $Or t 8, TP, 1930, 190-2, and 1936, 80, is a misreading of *ia$toc,
i.e. yastuq, the Turkish name for these ingots. yastuq, like the Persian falisb,
means literally 'cushion*. An iascot according to Rubruck (Rockhill, 156)
was ' a piece of silver weighing ten marks ' ; he does not seem to have known
of the gold lalish.

15 I.e. struck by some ruler called Rukn-ad-Din.

1 This chapter has been translated into Russian by Professor Minorsky. See
G. Vernadsky, O sostave velikoy yasi Cbtngfs- khana, Brussels, 1939- There is
also an English translation by Professor Vernadsky in. Amides de I'lnstifat Kondakov,
1939, xi, 37~45-

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without the toil of perusing records or the trouble of conforming
with tradition ; while all that pertains to the method of sub-
jugating countries and relates to the crushing of the power of
enemies and the raising of the station of followers was the product
of his own understanding and the compilation of his own intel-
lect. And indeed, Alexander, who was so addicted to the
devising of talismans and the solving of enigmas, had he lived
in the age of Chingiz-Khan, would have been his pupil in craft
and cunning, and of [17] all the talismans for the taking of
strongholds he would have found none better than blindly to
follow in his footsteps : whereof there can be no clearer proof
nor more certain evidence than that having such numerous and
powerful foes and such mighty and well-accoutred enemies,
whereof each was the faghfur 2 of the time and the Chosroes of
the age, he sallied forth, a single man, with few troops and no
accoutrement, and reduced and subjugated the lords of the
horizons from the East unto the West ; and whoever presumed
to oppose and resist him, that man, in enforcement of the yasas
and ordinances which he imposed, he utterly destroyed, together
with all his followers, children, partisans, armies, lands and
territories. There has been transmitted to us a tradition of the
traditions of God which says : < Those are my horsemen ; through
them shall I avenge me on those that rebelled against me' nor is there
a shadow of doubt but that these words are a reference to the
horsemen of Chingiz-Khan and to his people. And so it was
that when the world by reason of the variety of its creatures was
become a raging sea, and the kings and nobles of every country
by reason of the arrogance of pride and the insolence of vainglory
had reached the very zenith of ' Vainglory is my tunic, and pride my
cloak ', then did God, in accordance with the above-mentioned
promise, endow Chingiz-Khan with the strength of might and
the victory of dominion ' Verily f the might of the Lord is great
indeed '; 3 and when through pride of wealth, and power, and
station the greater part of the cities and countries of the world

2 The Facfur of Marco Polo, the Persian translation (lit. * son of God ') of
one of the titles of the Emperor of China.

3 Koran, Ixx, 12.

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encountered him with rebellion and hatred and refused to yield
allegiance (and especially the countries of Islam* from the
frontiers of Turkestan to uttermost Syria), then wherever there
was a king, or a ruler, or the governor of a city that offered him
resistance, him he annihilated together with his family and
followers, kinsmen and strangers ; so that where there had been
a hundred thousand people there remained, without exaggera-
tion, not a hundred souls alive ; as a proof of which statement
may be cited the fate of the various cities, whereof mention has
been made in the proper place.

In accordance and agreement with his own mind he established
a rule for every occasion and a regulation for every circumstance ;
while for every crime he fixed a penalty. And since the Tartar
peoples had no script of their own, he gave orders that Mongol
children should learn writing from the Uighur ; and that these
yasas and ordinances should be written down on rolls. These
rolls are called the Great Book of Yasas and are kept in the treasury
of the chief princes. Wherever a khan [18] ascends the throne,
or a great army is mobilized, or the princes assemble and begin
[to consult together] concerning affairs of state and the adminis-
tration thereof they produce these rolls and model their actions
thereon; and proceed with the disposition of armies or the des-
truction of provinces and cities in the manner therein prescribed.

At the time of the first beginnings of his dominion, when the
Mongol tribes were united to him, he abolished reprehensible
customs which had been practised by those peoples and had
enjoyed recognition amongst them ; and established such usages
as were praiseworthy from the point of view of reason. There
are many of these ordinances that are in conformity with the
Shari'at.

In the messages which he sent in all directions calling on the
peoples to yield him allegiance, he never had recourse to intimida-
tion or violent threats, as was the custom with the tyrant kings
of old, who used to menace their enemies with the size of their
territory and the magnitude of their equipment and supplies ;
the Mongols, on the contrary, as their uttermost warning, would
write thus : * If ye submit not, nor surrender, what know we

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thereof? The Ancient God, He knoweth/ 4 If one reflects
upon their signification, [one sees that] these are the words of
them that put their trust in God God Almighty hath said
f And for him tbatputteib his trust in Him God mil fa all-sufficient 3 5
so that of necessity such a one obtains whatever he has borne
in his heart and yearned after, and attains his every wish.

Being the adherent of no religion and the follower of no creed,
he eschewed bigotry, and the preference of one faith to another,
and the placing of some above others ; rather he honoured and
respected the learned and pious of every sect, recognizing such
conduct as the way to the Court of God. And as he viewed
the Moslems with the eye of respect, so also did he hold the
Christians and idolaters in high esteem. As for his children and
grandchildren, several of them have chosen a religion according
to their inclination, some adopting Islam, others embracing
Christianity, others selecting idolatry and others again cleaving
to the ancient canon of their fathers and forefathers and inclining
in no direction; but these are now a minority. But though
they have adopted some religion they still for the most part avoid
all show of fanaticism and do not swerve from the yasa of
Chingiz-Khan, namely, to consider all sects as one and not to
distinguish them from [19] one another.

It is one of their laudable customs that they have closed the
doors of ceremony, and preoccupation with titles, and excessive
aloofness and inaccessibility ; which things are customary with
the fortunate and the mighty. When one of them ascends the
throne of the Khanate, he receives one additional name, that of
Khan or Qa'an, than which nothing more is written [in official
documents] ; while the other sons 6 and his brothers are addressed

4 Cf. the ending of Giiyuk's letter to Innocent IV; va agav dtgar kunad \kuni f\
ma cbi damm khudai danad. * And if ye do otherwise, what know we ? God
knoweth.* (Pelliot, Les Mongols et k Papaute [i<5].) Cf. too the letter of Baichu
to the Pope : c . . . et si tu preceptum Dei stabile et illius qui faciem totius terre
continet non audieris illud nos nescimus Deus scit.* (Itift., [128]),

5 Koran, Ixv, 3.

6 Lc. prince*. For this use of the Persian pkar , lit. * son *, like the Turkish
ogbul and the Mongol kotetin, in the sense of* prince of the blood ' see M.Q., II,
ix, also Pelliot, op. dt. t [168],

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by the name they were given at birth, both in their presence and
in their absence ; and this applies both to commoners and to the
nobility. And likewise in directing their correspondence they
write only the simple name, making no difference between Sultan
and commoner ; and write only the gist of the matter in hand,
avoiding all superfluous titles and formulas.

He paid great attention to the chase and used to say that the
hunting of wild beasts was a proper occupation for the com-
manders of armies ; and that instruction and training therein was
incumbent on warriors and men-at-arms, [who should learn]
how the huntsmen come up with the quarry, how they hunt it,
in what manner they array themselves and after what fashion they
surround it according as the party is great or small. For when
the Mongols wish to go a-hunting, they first send out scouts to
ascertain what kinds of game are available and whether it is
scarce or abundant. And when they are not engaged in warfare,
they are ever eager for the chase and encourage their armies thus
to occupy themselves ; not for the sake of the game alone, but
also in order that they may become accustomed and inured to
hunting and familiarized with the handling of the bow and the
endurance of hardships. Whenever the Khan sets out on the
great hunt 7 (which takes place at the beginning of the winter
season), he issues orders that the troops stationed around his
headquarters and in the neighbourhood of the or&us shall make
preparations for the chase, mounting several men from each
company often in accordance with instructions and distributing
such equipment in the way of arms and other matters as are
suitable for the locality where it is desired to hunt. The right
wing, left wing and centre of the army are drawn up and entrusted
to the great emirs; and they set out together with the Royal
Ladies (khavatin) and the concubines, as well as provisions of
food and drink. For a month, or two, or three they form a

7 Rubruck speaks of these lattues : * When they want to chase wild animals,
they gather together in a great multitude and surround the district in which they
know the game to be, and gradually they come closer to each other till they have
shut up the game in among them as in an enclosure, and then they shoot them
with their arrows.* (Rockhill, 71.) Cf. also Friar Odoric's account of * the
Khan's great hunting matches ', Yule, Cathay and the Way Thither, II, 234-6.

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hunting ring and drive the game slowly and gradually before
them, taking care [20] lest any escape from the ring. And if,
unexpectedly, any game should break through, a minute inquiry
is made into the cause and reason, and the commanders of
thousands, hundreds and tens are clubbed therefor, and often
even put to death. And if (for example) a man does not keep
to the line (which they call nerge) but takes a step forwards or
backwards, severe punishment is dealt out to him and is never
remitted. For two or three months, by day and by night, they
drive the game in this manner, like a flock of sheep, and dispatch
messages to the Khan to inform him of the condition of the
quarry, its scarcity or plenty, whither it has come and from
whence it has been started. Finally, when the ring has been
contracted to a diameter of two or three parasangs, they bind
ropes together and cast felts over them ; while the troops come
to a halt all around the ring, standing shoulder to shoulder. The
ring is now filled with the cries and commotion of every manner
of game and the roaring and tumult of every kind of ferocious
beast ; all thinking that the appointed hour of ' And when the
mid leasts shall le gathered together * 8 is come ; lions becoming
familiar with wild asses, hyaenas friendly with foxes, wolves
intimate with hares. When the ring has been so much con-
tracted that the wild beasts are unable to stir, first the Khan rides
in together with some of his retinue ; then, after he has wearied
of the sport, they dismount upon high ground in the centre of
the mrge to watch the princes likewise entering the ring, and
after them, in due order, the noyans, the commanders and the
troops. Several days pass in this manner ; then, when nothing
is left of the game but a few wounded and emaciated stragglers,
old men and greybeards humbly approach the Khan, offer up
prayers for his well-being and intercede for the lives of the remain-
ing animals asking that they be suffered to depart to some place
nearer to grass and water. Thereupon they collect together all
the game that they have bagged; and if the enumeration of
every species of animal proves impracticable they count only the
beasts of prey and the wild asses.
8 Koran, Ixxxi, 5.

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[21] A friend has related how during the reign of Qa*an g
they were hunting one winter in this fashion and Qa*an, in order
to view the scene, had seated himself upon a hilltop ; whereupon
beasts of every kind set their faces towards his throne and from
the foot of the hill set up a wailing and lamentation like that of
petitioners for justice. Qa'an commanded that they should be
set free and the hand of injury withheld from them.

It was Qa'an that commanded that between the land of Khitai
and his winter quarters a wall should be built of wood and clay,
and gates set into it ; so that much game might enter it from a
great distance and they might hunt it after the manner described.
In the region of Almaligh 10 and Quyas u Chaghatai constructed
a hunting ground in the very same manner.

Now war with its killing, counting of the slain and sparing
of the survivors is after the same fashion, and indeed analogous
in every detail, because all that is left in the neighbourhood of the
battlefield are a few broken-down wretches.

With regard to the organization of their army, from the time
of Adam down to the present day, when the greater part of the
climes are at the disposition and command of the seed of Chingiz-
Khan, it can be read in no history and is recorded in no book
that any of the kings that were lords of the nations ever attained
an army like the army of the Tartars, so patient of hardship, so

9 I.e. Ogedei (Ogetei), the second son and first successor of Chingiz-Khan. See
my article, On the Titles Given injumm to Certain Mongolian Princes, 152, where
I suggest that Qa'an was the posthumous title of Ogedei.

10 Almaligh or Almali'q, the * Apple-Orchard *, was situated in Semirechye,
in the valley of the Ili, not far from the present-day Kulja. It was here, * in
the Vicariat of Cathay or Tartary, in the city of Armalec in the Middle Empire
of Tartary ', in 1339 or 1340 that the Franciscan martyrs met their end. See
Yule, op. cit., Ill, 31-2, also Wyngaert, 510-11.

11 Reading QYAS and QWYAS for the QNAS and QWNAS of the text.
There is also MS. authority for the spelling Quyash, but Kashghari distinguishes
between Quyas the township (jasdka) and guyasb * sun *. Quyas, according to
Kashghari, lay beyond Barskhan (I, 393) and two rivers, the Greater and the
Lesser Keiken, flowed from it to the Ili (III, 175). Pelliot, Horde d'Or, 185,
n. 2, suggests its possible identity with the Equius of Rubruck, e a goodly town
... in which were Saracens speaking Persian' (Rockhill, 139), in which
Barthold, Histoire des Turcs. 76, and Minorsky, Hudud, 277, see the Iki-Ogiiz
of Kashghari.

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grateful for comforts, so obedient to its commanders both in
prosperity and adversity ; and this not in hope of wages and
fiefs nor in expectation of income or promotion. This is, indeed,
the best way to [22] organize an army ; for lions, so long as they
are not hungry, will not hunt or attack any animal. There is a
Persian proverb : * An overfed dog catches no game \ and it has
also been said : c Starve thy dog that it may follow thee!

What army in the whole world can equal the Mongol army ?
In time of action, when attacking and assaulting, they are like
trained wild beasts out after game, and in the days of peace and
security they are like sheep, yielding milk, and wool, and many
other useful things. In misfortune and adversity they are free
from dissension and opposition. It is an army after the fashion
of a peasantry, being liable to all manner of contributions (mu'an)
and rendering without complaint whatever is enjoined upon it,
whether qupcburj 12 occasional taxes ('avarizat), the maintenance
(ikhrajat) of travellers or the upkeep of post stations (yam) 13 with
the provision of mounts (ulagh) 14 and food (*ulufat) therefor.
It is also a peasantry in the guise of an army, all of them, great
and small, noble and base, in time of battle becoming swordsmen,
archers and lancers and advancing in whatever manner the
occasion requires. Whenever the slaying of foes and the attack-
ing of rebels is purposed, they specify all that will be of service
for that business, from the various arms and implements down
to banners, needles, ropes, mounts and pack animals such as
donkeys and camels; and every man must provide his share
according to his ten or hundred. On the day of review, also,
they display their equipment, and if only a little be missing, those
responsible are severely punished. Even when they are actually
en gag e d in fighting, there is exacted from them as much of the
various taxes as is expedient, while any service which they used
to perform when present devolves upon their wives and those of

12 Originally equivalent to the Arabic mar&'i * pasturage levy' this term was
afterwards applied to irregular levies in general See Minorsky, Nastr al-Dm
Tusi on Finance, 783-4.

ls The iam of Rubruck, who however takes the word as meaning the officer
in charge of such a station, and the yank of Marco Polo.

14 In Turkish * post horse *.

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them that remain behind. Thus if work be afoot in which a
man has his share of forced labour (bigar), and if the man himself
be absent, his wife goes forth in person and performs that duty
in his stead.

The reviewing and mustering of the army 15 has been so
arranged that [23] they have abolished .the registry of inspection
(daftar-i-arz) and dismissed the officials and clerks. For they
have divided all the people into companies often, appointing
one of the ten to be the commander of the nine others; while
from among each ten commanders one has been given the tide
of* commander of the hundred ', all the hundred having been
placed under his command. And so it is with each thousand
men and so also with each ten thousand, over whom they have
appointed a commander whom they call * commander of the
tiimen *. 16 In accordance with this arrangement, if in an emer-
gency any man or thing be required, they apply to the com-
manders of tumen ; who in turn apply to the commanders of
thousands, and so on down to the commanders of tens. There
is a true equality in this ; each man toils as much as the next,
and no difference is made between them, no attention being paid
to wealth or power. If there is a sudden call for soldiers an
order is issued that so many thousand men must present them-
selves in such and such a place at such and such an hour of
that day or night. ' They shall not retard it (their appointed time)
an hour ; and thy shall not advance it' 17 And they arrive not a
twinkling of an eye before or after the appointed hour. Their
obedience and submissiveness is such that if there be a commander
of a hundred thousand between whom and the Khan there is a
distance of sunrise and sunset, and if he but commit some fault,
the Khan dispatches a single horseman to punish him after the
manner prescribed : if his head has been demanded, he cuts it
off, and if gold be required, he takes it from him.

How different it is with other kings who must speak cautiously
to their own slave, bought with their own money, as soon as
he has ten horses in his stable, to say nothing of when they place

15 Cf. Marco Polo's account, Benedetto, 86-7.
16 In Turkish 'ten thousand*. 17 Koran, vii, 32.

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an army under his command and he attains to wealth and
power; then they cannot displace him, and more often than
not he actually rises in rebellion and insurrection ! Whenever
these kings prepare to attack an enemy or are themselves attacked
by an enemy, months and years are required to equip an army
and it takes a brimful treasury to meet the expense of salaries
and allotments of land. When they draw their pay and allow-
ances the soldiers 5 numbers increase by hundreds and thousands,
but on the day of combat their ranks are everywhere vague and
uncertain, and none presents himself on the battle-field. 18 A
shepherd was once called to render an account of his office.
Said the accountant : * How many sheep remain ? ' * Where ? *
asked the shepherd. c In the register.' * That,* replied the
shepherd [24], * is why I asked : there are none in the flock/
This is a parable to be applied to their armies ; wherein each
commander, in order to increase the appropriation for his men's
pay, declares, * I have so and so many men,' and at the time of
inspection they impersonate one another in order to make up
their full strength.

Another yasa is that no man may depart to another unit than
the hundred, thousand or ten to which he has been assigned,
nor may he seek refuge elsewhere. And if this order be trans-
gressed the man who transferred is executed in the presence of
the troops, while he that received him is severely punished. For
this reason no man can give refuge to another ; if (for example)
the commander be a prince, he does not permit the meanest
person to take refuge in his company and so avoids a breach of
the yasa. Therefore no man can take liberties with his com-
mander or leader, nor can another commander entice him away.

18 Lit. : * . . . their ranks are hash from beginning to end, and none becomes
bariz on the battle-field/ hctshv and bariz were terms of accountancy, the former
referring to items in kind entered in the right-hand (i.e. the first) column of the
ledger whilst the latter referred to the final cash entries in the left-hand column.
The point seems to be that -the value of the hasbv entry, as opposed to the iartz,
was liable to fluctuation and perhaps to very considerable depreciation by the
time it was finally converted into cash and so became lariz. On these two terms
see 'Abdallah b. Muhammad b. Kiya, Die R.esala-ye Fakkiyya, 28, also Hinz,
Em orientalhches Hawlelsmtemehmen im 15. Jahrbundert, 315.

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Furthermore, when moonlike damsels are found In the army
they are gathered together and dispatched from the tens to the
hundreds, and each man makes a different choice op to the
commander of the tumen, who makes his choice also and takes
the maidens so chosen to the Khan or the princes. These too
make their selection, and upon those that are deemed worthy and
are fair to look upon they recite the words ' Keep them honour-
ably f 1 * and upon the other, c Put them away with kindness.' 19
And they cause them to attend on the Royal Ladies until such
time as it pleases them to bestow them on others or to He with
them themselves. 20

Again, when the extent of their territories became broad and
vast and important events fell out, it became essential to ascertain
the activities of their enemies, and it was also necessary to transport
goods from the West to the East and from the Far East to the
West. Therefore throughout the length and breadth of the land
they established yamSj and made arrangements for the upkeep and
expenses of each yam, assigning thereto a fixed number of men
and beasts as well as food, drink and other necessities. All this
they shared out amongst the tiimen, each two tumen having to
supply one yam. Thus, in accordance with the census, they so
distribute and exact the charge, that messengers need make no
long detour in order to obtain fresh mounts while at the same
time the peasantry [25] and the army are not placed in constant
inconvenience. Moreover strict orders were issued to the mes-
sengers with regard to the sparing of the mounts, etc., to recount
all of which would delay us too long. Every year the yam are
inspected, and whatever is missing or lost has to be replaced by
the peasantry. 21

Since all countries and peoples have come under their domina-
tion, they have established a census after their accustomed fashion

19 Koran, ii, 229.

20 For an account of the practice under Qubilai see Benedetto, 114-16. Cf.
also Carpini ed. Beazley, 121 : ' . . . yea, often times he [i.e. the Emperor]
makes a collection of virgines throughout all the Tartars dominions, and those
whom he meanes to keepe, he retaineth vnto himselfe, others he bestoweth vpon
his men.'

21 For an account of the working of this system in China see Benedetto, 152-7,

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and classified everyone into tens, hundreds and thousands ; and
required military service and the equipment of yams together with
the expenses entailed and the provision of fodder this in addition
to ordinary taxes ; and over and above all this they have fixed
the qupcbur charges also.

They have a custom that if an official or a peasant die, they do
not interfere with the estate he leaves, be it much or little, nor
may anyone else tamper with it. And if he have no heir, it is
given to his apprentice or his slave. On no account is the
property of a dead man admitted to the treasury, for they regard
such a procedure as inauspicious.

When Hiilegu 22 appointed me to [the governorship of]
Baghdad, the inheritance taxes were in force in all that region ;
I swept away that system and abolished the imposts that had
been levied in the countries of Tustar 23 and Bayat. 24

There are many other yasas, to record each of which would
delay us too long; we have therefore limited ourselves to the
mention of the above.

[in]

CHINGIZ-KHAN'S RISE TO POWER AND THE BEGINNING

OF THE PASSING TO HIM OF THE EMPIRES AND

KINGDOMS OF THE ICINGS OF THE WORLD :

A BRIEF * ACCOUNT THEREOF

THE tribes and clans of the Mongols are many ; but that which
to-day is most renowned for its nobility and greatness and has

22 HWLAKW. Juvaini's spelling perhaps indicates the Turkish pronun-
ciation of the name. The native pronunciation (Hiile'u) is represented by the
Aku of Marco Polo, the Hulawu or Holawu of the Armenian sources and the
HLAW of Juzjani.

23 I.e. Shustar in Khuzistan.

24 The westermost district of Khuzlstan (north of the Kerkha). (V.M.)

1 It is in fact a very brief summary with no mention of the vicissitudes of his
early life, his rivalry with Jamuqa or his campaigns against the Tatar, the Merkit
and the Naiman. For an account of his career previous to his invasion of the
West see the Secret History, Rashid-ad-Din tr. Srmrnova, Vladimirtsov, Gengis-
Khm, and Grousset, Le Conqutrant (tu Monde.

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precedence over the others is the tribe of the Qiyat, 2 of which
the forefathers [26] and ancestors of Chingiz-Khan were the

chieftains and from which they traced their descent.' --

Chingiz-Khan bore the name of Temiijin 3 until the time
when, in accordance with the decree of f ft Be/' and it fr/ 4 he
became master of all the kingdoms of the habitable world. In
those days Ong-Khan, 6 the ruler of the Kereit and the
*Saqiyat, e surpassed the other tribes in strength and dignity and
was stronger than they in gear and equipment and the number

2 Actually the Qlyat or Kiyat were a sub-division of the Mongol clan of the
Borjigin.

3 Reading TMWjYN with B and C for the TMRjYN of the text, which
would give Temiirjin. Both forms are possible but Temujin is the older and is
the form used in the Secret History, the Yuan shib and the Sbng-wu cb'in-cbcitg lu.
The name is derived from ttmur * iron * and means * blacksmith *. This accounts
for Rubruck's statement (Rockhill, 114 and 249) that Chingiz-Khan had
actually been a blacksmith. According to the Secret History, the Chinese sources
and Rashid-ad-Din he was so called after a Tatar chieftain Temujin~0ke whom
his father had brought in as a prisoner at the time of his birth.

4 Koran, ii, in.

6 The Unc of Rubruck and the Unc Kan of Marco Polo, who identified
him with Prester John. In fact Ong is the Mongol pronunciation of the Chinese
title wang c prince * conferred on him by the Chin in recognition of the part he
had played in one of their campaigns against the Tatar. See Grousset, of. dt. t
117-20. His real name was Toghril (To'oril in Mongol). On his early career
see the Secret History, 177, Grousset, op. r#., 116-17. His people, the Kereit,
perhaps of Turkish origin, were Nestorian Christians ; they lived along the
Orkhon and Tula between the Khangai and Kentei mountains.

6 The printed text has SAQYZ, i.e. Saq'iz, and M.Q. reproduces a note
by Blochet to the effect that Saq'iz is the equivalent of Naiman because saqtz
means * eight * in Turkish as does naiman in Mongol. There are, as PelHot
has pointed out (Campagnes, 220), two decisive objections to this theory. In
the first place the Turkish for * eight * is not safz but sekiz, and secondly Ong-
Khan, far from being the ruler of the Naiman, was the bitter enemy of that people
and was constantly at war with them. PelHot suggests that for the SAQYR
of the MSS. (which also occurs in Vassaf, Bombay ed., 558, the SAQYZ of
the text being an amendment due to the editor) we should read the form here
adopted, viz. S AQYT, corresponding to the SAQYAT, i.e. Saq'iyat, mentioned
by Rashid-ad-Din (Berezin, V, 95, and VII, 122 ; Khetagurov, 128) among
the Kereit tribes. The name is omitted in Berezin's text (VII, 122), perhaps
because it occurred in only one of his MSS. and is there followed by a blank.
In Khetagurov the tribes are listed in a different order, the Saqiyat (or Sakait
as he calls them) appearing after the Qonqiyat, not after the Jirgin as in Berezin,
and in place of the blank is the short sentence : ' They also are a tribe.'

F 35

THE HISTORY OF

of his men. And in those days the Mongol -tribes were not
united and did not obey one another. ^When Chingiz-Khan
rose from the grade of childhood to the degree of manhood, he
became in the onslaught Uke a roaring lion and in the melee
like a trenchant sword; in the subjugation of his foes his rigour
an3" severity had the taste of poison, and in the humbling of the
pride of each lord of fortune his harshness and ferocity did the
work of Fate. ^Upon every occasion, by reason of the nearness
of their confines and the proximity of their territories, he used to
visit Ong-Khan, and there was a feeling of friendship between
them. When Ong-Khan beheld his counsel and discernment,
his valour, splendour and majesty, he marvelled at his courage
and energy and did all that lay in his power to advance and
honour him. Day by day he raised his station and position,
until all affairs of state were dependent upon him and all Ong-
Khan's troops and followers controlled by his discipline and
justice. The sons and brothers of Ong-Khan and his courtiers
and favourites became envious of the rank and favour he enjoyed :
they accordingly cast the nets of guile across the passage provided
by opportunity and set the traps of treachery to effect the blacken-
ing of his name; in the ambushes of private audiences they put
out the story of his power and pre-eminence and repeated the
tale of the inclination of all hearts towards obedience and
allegiance to him. In the guise of well-wishers they kept these
stories fresh until Ong-Khan too became suspicious of him and
was doubtful as to what he should do ; and fear and dread
of his courage and intrepidity became implanted in his heart.
Since it was impossible to attack him and [27] break with him
openly, he thought to remove him by craft and guile and to
hinder by fraud and treachery God's secret design in fortifying
him. It was agreed, therefore, that at dawn, while eyes were
anointed with the collyrium of sleep and mankind was rendered
negligent by repose, Ong-Khan's men should make a night
attack upon Chingiz-Khan and his followers and thus free
themselves from their fears. They made every preparation for
the deed and were about to put their intention into action ; but
since his luck was vigilant and his fortune kind, two youths in

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

Ong-Khan's service, one of them named Kishlik 7 and the other
Bada, fled to Chingiz-Khan and informed him of the badness
of their faith and the uncleanness of their treachery. He at once
sent off his family and followers and had the tents moved away. 8
When at the appointed time, in the dawn, the enemy charged
down upon the tents they found them empty. Though the
accounts 9 differ here as to whether they then returned or whether
they at once took up the pursuit, the upshot of the matter was
that Ong-Khan set off in search of him with a large force of
men, while Chingiz-Khan had but a small force with him.
There is a spring [in that region] which they call Baljuna: 10
here they joined battle and fierce fighting ensued. 11 In the end
Chingiz-Khan with his small army routed Ong-Khan with his
great host and won much booty. This event occurred in the
year 599/I202-3, 12 and the names of all who took part therein 13
are recorded, whether base or noble, from princes down to slaves,
tent-pitchers, grooms, Turks, Taziks and Indians. As for those
two youths, he made them tarkhan, Tarkhan are those who are

7 The text has KLK, which, as M.Q. suggests, must be a corruption of KSLK
or KSLK. The name appears in Rashid-ad-Din as Qishliq (QYLYQ) and
in the Secret History as Kishliq. Qi'shliq was still in attendance on the con-
queror on his return journey from the campaign against the West. See Waley,
The Travels of an Alchemist, 118.

8 I.e. moved a short distance away, because it is clear from the context that they
did not take the tents with them.

9 An interesting reference to Juvaini's sources. Neither the Secret History nor
Rashid-ad-Din mentions the attack on Chingiz-Khan's deserted encampment.

10 It is not clear from the sources whether Baljuna is the name of a river or of
a lake. Pelliot, Campagnes, 45-7, discusses the problem of its identity at some
length and reaches the conclusion that it is to be sought somewhere along the
lower course of the Kerulen. See now, however, Hung, Three of Ch'iert Ta-
hsws Poems on Yuan History, 20-24, n. 4.

11 None of the other sources mention any fighting at Baljuna. This is prob-
ably a reference to the encounter at Qalqaljit-Elet, where Chingiz-Khan won
a ' vktoire a la Pyrrhus, qui fut peut-6tre une defaite * (Pelliot, op. dt. t 46). See
the Secret History, 170-1, Srnirnova, 124-6, Grousset, op. cit,, 157-6*0.

12 1203 according to the Yuan shih (Krause, 21).

13 I.e. all who were with Chingiz-Khan at Baljuna. See Smirnova, 126",
Grousset, op, at., 171-2. The story of those who * drank the water of the Baljuna
river* is not recorded in the Secret History, and doubts have been cast on its
authenticity, but see now Cleaves, The Historicity of the Baljuna Covenant.

THE HISTORY OF

exempt from compulsory contributions, and to whom the booty
taken on every campaign is surrendered : whenever they so wish
they may enter the royal presence without leave or permission.
He also gave them troops and slaves and of cattle, horses and
accoutrement more than could be counted or computed ; and
commanded that [28] whatever offence they might commit they
should not be called to account therefor; and that this order
should be observed with their posterity also down to the ninth
generation* To-day there are many people descended from these
two persons, and they are honoured and respected in every
country, and held in high esteem at the courts of kings. As
for the rest of those that took part in this battle, they all obtained
high rank, and the very tent-pitchers and camel-drivers attained
to great dignity; some became kings of the age, while others rose
to great offices of state and became famous throughout the world,

When Chingiz-Khan s s army had been reinforced, in order to
prevent Ong-Khan from rallying, he dispatched troops to pursue
him. Several times they joined battle, and on each occasion he
was victorious and Ong-Khan defeated. Finally all the latter's
family and retainers, even his wives and daughters, fell into
Chingiz-Khan's hand ; and he himself was slain.

And when Chingiz-Khan's cause prospered and the stars of
his fortune were in the ascendant, he dispatched envoys to the
other tribes also ; and all that came to tender submission, such
as the Oirat u and the Qonqurat, 15 were admitted to the number
of his commanders and followers and were regarded with the
eye of indulgence and favour; while as for the refractory and
rebellious, he struck the breath from their bodies with the whip
of calamity and the sword of annihilation ; until all the tribes

14 A forest tribe on the western shores of Lake Baikal.

15 QNQWEAT. The Qonqirat of Rashid-ad-Din and the Onggirat of
the Secret History. It was to this tribe, in the extreme east of Mongolia, that
Borte, Chingiz-Khan's first and chief wife, belonged. Juvainf s spelling of the
name is interesting. Pelliot remarks (Campagnes, 406-7) ; * La forme " Kun-
kurat", adoptee comme correcte par Howorth, I, 703, II, 14, et qui a passe* par
exemple dans Elias et Ross, The Tarikb~i-Ra$kicli, 16, n'est attestee nulle part
et ne repose sur rien.* In fact it goes back to the form used by Juvaini, which
form, in turn, is perhaps to be explained as an imagined derivation from the
Turkish Qonghur * chestnut-coloured ', * bay ', and at * horse '.

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

were of one colour and obedient to his command. Then he
established new laws and laid the foundation of justice; and
whichever of their customs were abominable, such as theft and
adultery, he abolished; something of which has been mentioned
in the previous chapter.

At this time there arose a man of whom I have heard from
trustworthy Mongols that during the severe cold that prevails in
those regions he used to walk naked through the desert and the
mountains and then to return and say : * God has spoken with
me and has said : " I have given all the face of the earth to
Temujin and his children and named him Chingiz-Kfaan.
Bid him administer justice in such and such a fashion/' * They
called this person Teb-Tengri, 18 and whatever he said [29]
Chingiz-Khan used implicitly to follow. Thus he too grew
strong ; and many followers having gathered around him, there
arose in him the desire for sovereignty. One day in the course
of a banquet, he engaged in altercation with one of the princes ; 17
and that prince, in the midst of the assembly, threw him so heavily
upon the ground that he never rose again.

In short, when these regions had been purged of rebels and all
the tribes had become as his army, he dispatched ambassadors
to Khitai, and afterwards went there in person, and slew Altun-
Khan, 18 the Emperor of Khitai, and subjugated the country.
And gradually he conquered other kingdoms also, as shall be
hereinafter separately mentioned.

- 16 Reading TB TNKRY for the BT TNKRY of the text. Teb-Tengri,
i.e. * Most Heavenly *, was actually a sort of title, the shaman's real name being
Kokchii. See Grousset, op. cti. 9 225-8.

17 According to the Secret History, 245, this was Chingiz-Khan's youngest
full brother, Temiige-Otchigin (the Otegin of Juvaini). He and Teb-Tengri
wrestled for a while in the Khan's presence and were then ordered outside. Temuge
had posted three men in the doorway ; they fell upon Teb-Tengri, dragged him
to one side and broke his backbone. See also Grousset, op. tit.> 229-32.

18 Le. the Chin Emperor, altun in Turkish, like cUn in Chinese, meaning
* gold ' : the Golden King of Marco Polo. Chin was the dynastic title adopted
by the leaders of the Jiirchen, a people of North Manchuria, who in 1123 expelled
the Khitan (Liao) Dynasty from Northern China. In fact no Chin Emperor
was put to death by Chingiz-Khan and the reference is perhaps to the suicide
of the last ruler of the dynasty in 1234 during the reign of Ogedei. See below,
p. 195 ; also Grousset, L'Empire Mongol, 292.

THE HISTORY OF

PV]

OF THE SONS OF GHINGIZ-KHAN

CHINGIZ-KHAN had muchj&sug* both male and female, ..by-hi$
WJKCS and concubines. \His eldest wife was Yesiinjin Beki. 1
Now according to the custom of the Mongols the rank of the
children of one father is in proportion to that of their mothers,
so that the child of an elder wife is accorded greater preference
and precedence. By this wife Chingiz-Khan had four sons who*
Jiad risked their lives in the execution of great affairs and glorious!
actions and were to the throne of the kingdom as its four pedestals
ind to the palace of the khanate as its four pillars. For each of
h^e^^CWn^-I^an had selected a special office. To Tushi, 2
tKe eldest, he assigned hunting and the chase, which is a great
sport with the Mongols and held in high esteem by them;
while to Chaghatai, 3 who came next to him, fell the administra-
tion of the yasa and the law, both the enforcement thereof and
the reprimanding and chastisement of those that contravened it.
Ogetei 4 he selected for [all that called for] understanding and
counsel and for the administration of the kingdom ; and Toli 5
he promoted to the command and organization of troops and
the equipment of armies. When the matter of Ong-Khan had
been disposed of [30] and the tribes of the Mongols had, some by

1 Actually her name was Borte. Perhaps Juvaini confused her with Hulegii's
wife Yesiinjin, the mother of his successor Abacja.

2 TWSY. So spelt by Juzjani also ; Nasawi has DWY. The Tossuc
or Tosuccan of Carpini. The pronunciation is uncertain and may be either
Toshi, Toshi or Tushi. It is apparently the Turkish form of the native Jochi,
Jochi or Jiichi. Pelliot, Horde d'Or> 10-27, discusses this name at considerable
length but reaches no definite conclusion as to the pronunciation or meaning.

3 JTTAY. In the Secret History he is called Cha'adai: the Chiaaday, etc.,
of Carpini.

4 AWKTAY. In the Secret History he is called Ogodei or Okodei. Pelliot,
Campagnes, 10, suggests that the name may be a derivative of "Oke, the second
element of Temujin-Oke, the name of the Tatar prisoner after whom Chingiz-
Khan was called. See above, p. 35, n. 3. Carpini has the form Occoday.

5 TWLY. The usual form of the name is Tolui. Juvaini's spelling is
interesting in view of the statement of Rashid-ad-Din that upon his death the
use of the^word toll * mirror * was declared taboo. See my article, On the Titles
Given in Jwaini to Certain Mongolian Princes, 147.

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

choice and some by compulsion, been reduced to his command
and rendered submissive and obedient to his orders, he divided
the tribes and peoples of the Mongols and the Naiman, 6 as well
as all the armies, between the aforesaid sons ; and to each of his
other younger sons and to his brothers and kinsmen he allotted
their share of the armies. And thereafter he was wont to urge
the strengthening of the edifice of concord and the consolidation
of the foundations of affection between sons and brothers ; and
used continually to sow the seed of harmony and concord in
the breasts of his sons and brothers and kinsfolk and to paint
in their hearts the picture of mutual aid and assistance. And by
means of parables he would fortify that edifice and reinforce
those foundations. One day 7 he called his sons together and
taking an arrow from his quiver he broke it in half. Then he
took two arrows and broke them also. And he continued to
add to the bundle until there were so many arrows that even
athletes were unable to break them. Then turning to his sons
he said : * So it is with you also. A frail arrow, when it is
multiplied and supported by its fellows, not even mighty war-
riors are able to break it but in impotence withdraw their hands
therefrom. As long, therefore, as you brothers support one
another and render stout assistance one to another, though your
enemies be men of great strength and might, yet shall they not
gain the victory over you. But if there be no leader among
you, to whose counsel the other brothers, and sons, and help-
meets, and companions submit themselves and to whose com-
mand they yield obedience, then your case will be like unto
that of the snake of many heads. One night, when it was
bitterly cold, the heads desired to creep into a hole in order to

6 An interesting distinction in view of Pelliot's theory that the Naiman, who
inhabited the region to the west of the Khangai, were in fact Mongolized Turks.
See Grousset, L' Empire Mongol, 30 ; also Hambis, La Haute- Asfe, 58 and 59.

7 This anecdote is briefly repeated below, ii. 593-4, and M.Q. there comments
that it is a very old story and is related in Tabari of the famous Umayyad general
Muhallab. It is in fact much older still being Aesop's fable of the husbandman
and his 'quarrelsome sons. There is no reason, however, for supposing that
Juvaini drew on other than Mongol sources, for the story is also to be found in
the Secret History, where it is related ( 19-20) not of Chingiz-Khan himself
but of his mythical ancestress, Alan Qo'a.

THE HISTORY OF

ward off the chill. But as each head entered the hole another
head would oppose it ; and in this way they all perished. But
another snake, which had but one head and a long tail, entered
the hole and found room for his tail and all his limbs and
members, which were preserved from the fury of the cold.' And
there were many such parables which he adduced in order to
confirm in their minds his words of counsel. They afterwards
always abided by this principle; and although authority and
empire are apparently vested in one man, namely him who is
nominated Khan, [31] yet in reality all the children, grand-
children and uncles have their share of power and property ; a
proof whereof is that the World-Emperor Mengii Qa'an in the
second quriltai apportioned and divided all his kingdoms among
his kinsfolk, sons and daughters, and brothers and sisters.

When during the reign of Chingiz-Khan the kingdom
became of vast extent he assigned to everyone his place of abode,
which they call yurt. Thus to Otegin Noyan, 8 his brother, and
to some of his grandchildren he apportioned territory in the
regions of Khitai. To his eldest son, Tushi, he gave the ter-
ritory stretching from the regions of QayaUgh 9 and Khorazm 10
to the remotest parts of Saqsin n and Bulghar 12 and as far in
that direction as the hoof of Tartar horse had penetrated.
Chaghatai received the territory extending from the land of the

8 I.e. Tcmiige-Otchigin. Qt-t\gm (in Mongol ot-Angin) from the Turkish ot
* re * and tlgm * lord*, i.e. * lord of the fire (hearth) ', was the title of the youngest
son as inheriting the Father's yurt. See Vladimirtsov, Le regime social de$
Mongols, 60.

9 Qayali'gh or Qayaliq, the Cailac of Rubruck, lay a little to the west of the
modern Kopal.

10 In Persian Khwarazm. The ancient Chorasmia and the later Khanate
of Khiva. The Khorazm Oasis is now divided between Uzbekistan (Khorezm
Oblast) and Turkmenistan (Tashauz Oblast).

11 Saqsm was a town and territory on the Volga. The position of the town
is discussed at length by Pelliot, Horde d'Or, 165-74. He agrees (loc. cit. t 169)
with Marquart that it was situated 40 days downstream from Bulghar, i.e. on
the lower reaches of the Volga.

12 Le. the territory of the Volga Bulghars, not here the actual town of Bulghar,
of which the ruins are situated near the village of Bolgarskoye, * in the Spassk
district, 115 Km. south of Kazan and at 7 Km. from the left bank of the Volga *.
(Minorsky, Hudud, 461.)

THE WORLD- CONQUEROR

Uighur to Samarqand and Bokhara, and his place of residence
was in Quyas in the neighbourhood of Almaligh. The capital
of Ogetei, the heir-apparent, during his father's reign was his
yurt in the region of the Emil 13 and the Qobaq ; 14 but when he
ascended the throne of the Khanate he removed it to their
original homeland, between Khitai and the land of the Uighur,
and gave that other fief to his own son Giiyiik : 15 an account of
his various dwelling places has been recorded separately. 16 Tolfs
territory, likewise, lay [32] adjacent thereto, and indeed this
spot is the middle of their empire like the centre of a circle.
What we have related is but an insignificant part of the story.
"The children and grandchildren of Chingiz-Khan are more than
ten thousand, each 1 of whom has his own position (maqam)t
yurt, army and- equipment. To record them all is impossible;
our purpose in relating this much was to show the harmony
which prevails among them as compared with what is related
concerning other kings, how brother falls upon brother and son
meditates the ruin of father till of necessity they are vanquished
and conquered and their authority is downfallen and overthrown.
God Almighty hath said : ( And dispute not lest yejecome faint-
hearted and your success go from, you! *?/ Whereas by mutuaTaM*
and assistance those khans of the children of Chingiz-Khan
that succeeded him on the throne have conquered the whole
world andjutterly annihilated their enemies, f Now the purpose
of these lakranH^Brstorie^ 'i^thlTTheimellfgent man may learn

13 AYMYL. Emil is the name of a river, south of Chuguchak, flowing
into the Ala Kul. It was also, in Mongol times, the name of a town (the Omyl
of Carpini) in the region of the Emil.

14 Reading QWBAQ with Pelliot (Us Mongols et la Papaute, [206]-[207J,
n. 2) for the QWNAQ of the text. Of Qobaq Pelliot, he. dt., says: *Dc
meme qu'Emil survit comme nom de la riviere Emil, Qobaq est encore aujourd'hui
le nom d'une riviere Qoboq (" Chobuq " des cartes allemandes) a 1'Est de 1'EiniL
C'est essentiellement la vallee de ces deux rivieres qui constituait Fapanage
propre de Gtiyuk.* % .

15 KYWK. The form Kiiyiik is perhaps preferable for Juvami m view of
the Cuyuc of Carpini and the Keuchan of Rubruck. Giiyiik is the native
Mongol form or at any rate the form used in the Secret History.

16 In Chapter XXXIIL

17 Koran, viii, 48.

THE HISTORY OF

without the pain of experience and be edified by the study of
these discourses.

[V]

OF THE CONQUEST OF THE LAND OF THE UIGHUR
AND THE SUBMISSION OF THE IDI-QUT

THE Uighur Turks call their ruler icti-qut, which means lord of
fortune. 1 At that time the idi-qut was a certain Barchuq. During
the spring when [the Emperor of] the Qara-Khitai 2 subjugated
Transoxiana and Turkestan, he too entered the noose of allegiance
and accepted the payment of tribute ; and the Emperor sent him
a sbahna 3 named Shaukem. 4 This Shaukem, once he was

1 Juvaini has evidently confused the first element of the name with Mi * lord ',
* owner *, which occurs for example in the compound name Ulush-Idi (see
Chapter XIII), i.e. ' Lord of the ulus '. Lord of Fortune would be * qut-idi. Actu-
ally ijf-qut (cf. the Idu'ut of the Secret History, 238), 'Holy Majesty*, is a title
which the Uighur took over from the earlier Basmil. See Barthold, Histoire
des Turn, 37.

2 Lit. the Black Khitai, the * Karakitai sive nigri Kitay * of Carpini (Wyngaert,
88). This name was given to a branch of the Khitan who migrated westward
after the overthrow of their dynasty by the Jiirchen (see above, p. 39, n. 18),
and founded an empire in Eastern Turkestan. On their history see below,
pp. 354-61; also Grousset, L'Empire des Steppes, 219-22, and Wittfbgel and
Feng, History of Chinese Society : Liao, 619-73.

3 The Arabo-Persian word sbahna is used by Juvaini as a synonym of the
Turkish lasaaq and the Mongol darugba or darttghachin (see below, p. 105, n. 24),
i.e. the representative of the conqueror in conquered territory responsible in
particular for the collection of tribute. The word is used in the same sense in
the Armenian chronicler Grigor (310 and 312).

4 AWKM. Shaukem is actually the Chinese title sbao-cbien ' junior super-
visor *. This and cbien-kuo * state supervisor *, apparently representing a higher
rank than sbao-cbien, were the Qara-Khitai terms corresponding to sbahna, basqaq,
etc. (see previous note). See Wittfbgel and Feng, op. cit. t 666. A somewhat
different account of the sbahna's end is given in a Chinese source, The Chronicle
of the Hsieb Family of Kao-ch'ang. When the sbao-cbien was surrounded he took
refuge in a tower, whereupon a certain Bilge, the instigator of this attack upon
the Qara-Khitai agent, followed him up the stairs, cut off his head and hurled
it to the ground. See Wittfogel and Feng, op. dt. t also Mostaert and Cleaves,
Trots documents mongols des Archives secrttes vaticanes, 488. According both to the
Chinese sources and to Rashid-ad-Din (Smirnova, 152) this event took place
in 1209.

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

firmly established In his office, began to behave with tyranny and
injustice, treating the idi-qut and his commanders with contumely
and rending the veil of their honour ; so that he became an
object of detestation both to the nobles and to the common
people. When Chingiz-Khan had made himself master of
Khitai and the fame and report of his victory had been noised
abroad, the idi-gut gave orders that Shaukem should be encom-
passed in a house in the town 5 which they call Qara-Khoja 6
and that the house should be pulled down upon his head. Then,
in order to announce his rebellion [33] against the Qara-Khitai
and his allegiance to the world-conquering Emperor Chingiz-
Khan, he dispatched to the latter Qut-Almish-Qaya, 7 e Umar
Oghul 8 and Tarbai. 9 Chingiz-Khan showed every honour to
these ambassadors but intimated that the idi-qut should make
haste to present himself in person. The latter obeyed this com-
mand with alacrity, and upon his arrival witnessed the fulfilment

5 Jib. This word normally means * village ' , but c below, p. 133, where
it is used to translate the Turkish laltgb ' town '.

6 QRA XWAjH. Qocho or Qara-Khoja, the Carachoco of Marco Polo,
known at an earlier period as Chinanch-Kath, * the Chinese town *, lay some
45 kilometres to the east of Turfan in what is now the Chinese province of Sin-
kiang. The ruins are still known as Idi'qut-Shehri, i.e. *the "id'i-qut's town*.
See Minorsky, Hudud, 271.

7 QTALMS QYA (reading QYA for the QTA of the text). Qut-Almish
means * he that has received fortune (majesty) * . qaya * rock *, as Pelliot has pointed
out, Horde d* Or, 70, n. i, often forms the second element of proper names,

8 I.e. Prince 'Umar. See above, p. 26, n. 6. To judge by his name he
must have been a Mohammedan.

9 TARE AY. The Darbai of the Secret History, 238, where he is accom-
panied by At-Kiraq (or Al-Buiruq). In Rashid-ad-Din (Berezin, XV, 15-16,
Smirnova, 152) he also appears as Darbai (spelt DRBAY, which both Berezin
and Smirnova read as Durbai) and is accompanied by one Alp-Uniik (?)
or Alp~t)tiik (?), perhaps identical with the Al-Buiruq of the Secret History.
Here however Darbai and his companion are represented as the envoys, not
of the ifa-qut, but of Chingiz-Khan himself. As the result of their embassy
the idi-qut sends his own ambassadors to the Khan, and their names are given
as Bugiish-Ish Aighuchi" (Smirnova has Bargush instead of Bugiish) and Alghin-
Temiir. Elsewhere, in his chapter on the Uighur (Berezin, VII, 164, Kheta-
gurov, 148) Rashid-ad-Din gives the same names as Juvaini for the idi-qttfs
ambassadors, but Tarbai is corrupted to Tatari (TATARY) in Berezin's text
and Tatar in Khetagurov's translation and the latter has changed Qut-Almish-
Qaya into Kalmish-Kata.

THE HISTORY OF

of all the promises that had been made to him and returned
from thence loaded with honours, When the army set out
against Kiichliig, 10 the idi-qut received orders to present himself
with warriors from the Uighur country. In obedience to this
command he joined Chingiz-Khan with three hundred men
and rendered him assistance. When he returned from that
campaign, he was allowed to have a retinue of his tribe, family
and servants. Finally, when Chingiz-Khan set out in person
against the lands of Sultan Muhammad he was again com-
manded to mount horse with his army. When the princes
Chaghatai and Ogetei proceeded to their posts to lay siege to
Otrar, 11 he too accompanied them. After the capture of Otrar,
Torbei, 12 Yasa'ur 13 and Ghadaq 14 led an army to Vakhsh 15
and that region ; and he too was sent with them. And when
the royal standards reached the original encampment and
Chingiz-Khan marched against the Tangut, he also, in fulfil-

10 KWCLK. For the career of Kiichliig the Naiman see below, Chapter
VIII.

11 The ruins of Otrar, the earlier Farab, are situated on the right bank of the
Syr Darya near the mouth of the Aris. It was here, on the eastern frontier of
Muhammad Khorazm-Shah's empire, that Chingiz-Khan's envoys were mur-
dered (see below, pp. 79-80) ; and it was here, in 1405, that Tamerlane died
whilst on his way to attack China.

12 TRBAY, for which D has TWRTAY, i.e. TWRBAY. This person,
as is suggested by M.Q. in his index, is probably identical with the Torbei
Toqshin who was sent across the Indus in pursuit of Sultan Jalal-ad-Din. See
below, Chapter XXIV.

13 Reading YS'WR with E, I, 92, for the YSTWR of the text.
14 FDAQ. Barthold, Turkestan, 417, has confused this person with the

Alaq who led the expedition against Banakat. See my article, 1m and Mam
in the Secret History of the Mongols, 409, n. 33, where feftiggest his possible identity
with Qadaq Ba'atur of the Jirgin (Secret History, 170 and 185). In the corre-
sponding passage in Rashid-ad-Din, Berezin's text (VII, 164), like B and E,
has *LAF, which he translates as * pro visions for the campaign*. The same
corrupt form occurs in all Khetagurov's MSS. : he reads 'allaf and translates
' provider of fodder for the [army] animals *. On the other hand, V. A. Zhukov-
sky, who translated the passage for Radloff, had recognized that 'LAF must
represent a proper name. See Khetagurov, 148, n. 6. Barhebraeus has the
form TLAQ.

is Tk e Vakhsh is a right-bank affluent of the Oxus or Amu Darya, in what
is now Tajikistan. Vakhsh was also the name of a district on the banks of
the Vakhsh.

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

merit of orders, set out from Besh-Baligh 16 with his army In
order to join him.

In recognition of these praiseworthy services Chingiz-Khan
distinguished him with extraordinary attentions and favours;
and betrothed one of his own daughters to him. Owing to the
death of Chingiz-Khan this daughter remained behind ; and
he returned to Besh-Baligh. When Qa'an ascended the throne,
in fulfilment of his father's command he bestowed Alton [34]
Beki 17 upon him ; but he had not yet arrived at Court when
she died. After some time Qa'an betrothed Alajin Beki 18 to
him, but before she was delivered up to him the i&i-gut was no
more. His son Kesmes 19 then presented himself at Court,

16 Lit. * Five Towns* from the Turkish lesb * five' and hdtgb or rather kJfy
*town*. Besh-Baligh was situated in the present-day Sinkiang, slightly to the
north-west of Guchen.

17 Le. Princess Akun. The Al-Altun of the Secret History ( 238). Rashid-
ad-Din calls her Altan Beki (Khetagurov, 149) and El- Aid or Il-Alti (Smimova,
in the table facing 73). In the Yuan sbib she is referred to in the biography of
the td'f-qut Barchuq, Chapter 122 (ts'e 38), 114-5^ (2vs), as Yeh-li An-tun
(El-Aldun) and in the table of imperial princesses, Chapter 109 (tie 36), ir4-3v
as Yeh-li K'o-tun (El-Qadun), in which latter case, as Hambis has suggested,
Le chapitre CV1II, 133, qadun (i.e. qatun princess*) was probably substituted
by the editor for altun. Professor F. W. Cleaves, of Harvard University, to
whom I am indebted for these references to the Yuan sbib> remarks in a letter
dated the 2nd August, 1955, that in neither passage is there any indication that
the princess was not actually married to Barchuq. Her betrothal or marriage
to the Uighur ruler was known to Rubruck : * These lugurs used to inhabit
the cities which first obeyed Chingis chan, who therefore gave his daughter
to their king/ (Rockhill, 149.) This statement, which has the authority bath
of Juvaini and of the Far Eastern sources, has been disputed by Rubruck's editors.
* Friar William would seem to have been misinformed on this point, for I can
find no record of Chingis having given one of his daughters in marriage to an
Uighur prince.' (Rockhill, loc. dt,, n. i.) *Filia Chingis in uxorem data
est Regi Merkitarum, non autem Uigurorum, d'Ohsson, Hlstohe fas Mongols,
I, 419.' (Wyngaert, 233, n. 2.)

18 Le. Princess Alajin. The text has ALAjY in 1. 2 and ALAJYN In
1. 4. The name appears to be the feminine form of ala * mottled *. Perhaps
this lady was the daughter of Ogedei : she is nowhere mentioned as the daughter
of Chingiz-Khan. The Yuan sbth, so Professor Cleaves informs me in the letter
referred to in the previous note, says nothing of her marriage to the 'iti-qut in place
of the deceased Altun Beki.

19 Reading KSMAS, which C has for the KSMAYN of the text in i. 4.
The meaning of the name would appear to be * he that does not cut '.

THE HISTORY OF

became idi-qvt and married Alajin Beki. After a short space
the idi-qut Kesmes likewise passed away ; and at the command
of Queen Toregene 20 his brother Salindi 21 took his place and
was called idi-qut He was firmly established on the throne and
held in high esteem ; f and the giver of success is God \

[VI]

OF THE FURTHER HISTORY OF THE UIGHUR

ALTHOUGH this chapter ought to be placed after that on the
accession of Mengii Qa'an, nevertheless as the general arrange-
ment of this history favoured its insertion in this place it seemed
appropriate to observe this order.

When the empire of the universe had been settled upon the
World-Emperor Mengii Qa'an, there arose dissension because
of the treachery which certain people were meditating. 1 These
persons dispatched to the idi-qut* a certain Bala Bitikchi, 3 an
Uighur and an idolater, and one of the ministers of the kingdom
('like leing ever attracted mto like'). Bala Bitikchi tempted the
idi-qut with many promises and with countless inducements ; he
suggested among other things that the Uighur should slay all
the Moslems in Besh-Baligh and its environs, pillaging their
property and leading their children captive ; and that they should
fit out an army of fifty thousand men to render assistance in
case of need. Of the Uighur nobles that were privy [35] to
this conspiracy were Bilge Quti, 4 Bolmish-Buqa, 5 Saqun 6 and

20 The widow of Ogedei and the Regent of the Empire. See below, Chapter
XXXIV.
21 SALNDY.

1 On the conspiracy against Mongke see below.

2 Apparently Salindi. See above.

3 I.e. Bala the titikcU (litigcbi), the Scribe.

4 Reading BYLKAQTY for the BYLKAFTY of the text. Cf. the title
of Bilge Qut conferred upon the Bilge who slew the shao-cbien of the Qara-
Khitai. See Mostaert and Cleaves, Trots documents mongols des Archives secrttes
vaticanes, 488, also above, p. 44, n. 4. Professor Cleaves informs me in a
letter dated the 6th February, 1956, that the Chinese transcription of the title
(Pi-li-chia-hu-ti) may equally well represent Bilge QutL For the use of quti,

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Idkech, 7 It was agreed that they should spring from ambush in
the precincts of the mosque upon a Friday when the congregation
were engaged in prayer, and blacken the face of their lives and
discomfit the army of Islam.

They will quench the glory that was kindled ly God ; ffxy
mil lessen the grace that was given ly

In order to carry out this plan and accomplish this intention,
under the pretext that he was going to Ghaimish, Khoja and
Naqu, 8 the idi-qut pitched his camp upon the plain; and the
troops of the Uighur were assembled. Now one of the slaves
of Bilge Quti, Tegmish 9 by name, had been eavesdropping one
night and had overheard their plans and schemes. He concealed
what he had heard until a week later, when being involved in
an altercation with one of the Moslems in the market-place, he
exclaimed : * Do your worst now, for you have but three days
left to live.' Now at that time the Emir Saif~ad-Din, a trusted
minister of the Court and a man of lofty position and high rank,
was in Besh-Baligh ; and the Moslems informed him of these
words. He sent for Tegmish and questioned him concerning
the riddle which he had spoken in the midst of the altercation.
Tegmish for his part disclosed the real state of affairs and the
plot and design of those malcontents. Now during these two
days news had arrived of the accession of the World-Emperor ;
and the change in the affairs of the conspirators became manifest.
The idi-qut, thus constrained by circumstances, abandoned that
idea and set out on the journey to Court. Saif-ad-Din sent a

lit. ' his fortune ', in the sense of * His Highness ' or * His Majesty * see Radloffi
Uigurische Sprachdenkmaler, 146.

5 Reading BWLMYS BWQA for the TWKMYS BWQA of the text.
A has BWLMYS, D BWLMS and E BWLMYS for the first element of
the name. For Bulrmsh or Bolmlsh as a personal name see RadlofF, op. at.

6 S AQWN. Apparently identical with the Saghun of Kashghari (I, 403),
a title given to the chief men of the Qarluq Turks.

7 AYDKAj. The spelling is uncertain: E has ANDKAj.

8 I.e. Princess Oghul-Ghaimish, the widow of Giiyiik and the Regent of the
Empire (on whom see below, Chapter XXXVII) and her two sons.

9 TKMY. Perhaps from the same root as Tekish or Tegish, the name of
Muhammad Khorazm-Shah's father. Cf. Pelliot-Hambis, Campagnes f 91.

THE HISTORY OF

messenger to fetch him back; and when he and his followers
returned and came into the presence of Saif-ad-Din, they were
confronted with Tegmish, who withdrew nothing from his
statement, but recounted the exact time and place of the meeting
and the names of those that took part in it They were overcome
with fear and consternation [36] and bereft of wit and reason.
There being no other course open to them they denied the matter
and disclaimed all knowledge of it. After much clamour and
wrangling on the part of the idi-gut and his accomplices they
gave written declarations in attestation of their innocence, as did
Tegmish in support of his own statement. Written undertakings
were also taken from the other Uighur of note to the effect that
should any one of them have had knowledge of this matter and
concealed it, and should any intrigue be disclosed and revealed,
he too should be reckoned in the number of the culprits and his
life and property should be forfeit. Hereupon Tegmish arose
and said : * It would seem that this affair cannot be decided in
Besh-Baligh. Let us go to the Court of the World-Emperor,
in order that it may be thoroughly discussed and investigated in
the great yarghu. 9 10

Tegmish, accordingly, was sent in advance with the messenger
to report this affair at Court. He was ordered to halt and wait
for the Mi-qut and his followers. He halted for a while but the
idi-qut did not appear. Tegmish then conducted Bala Bitikchi
to the yarghu. When he denied the charge, he was, in accordance
with their custom, stripped stark naked and beaten with drum-
sticks until at last he declared the truth of the matter concerning
their conspiracy against the World-Emperor Mengii Qa'an, just
as it had been declared by Tegmish. He was then dismissed
but detained; and Tegmish was sent back with the envoy
Mengii-Bolad n in order to fetch the idi-gut. When the latter
heard of the messenger's approach, before their arrival he set off

10 In Turkish * court of criminal investigation '.

11 The text has MNKFWLAD and B MNKWFWLAD, but I have
preferred the reading MNKWBWLAD based on the MNKWBWLAZ and
MNKBWLAT of C and D respectively, II, 247-50. toM or Mat is the
Turkish form of the Persian fulal or fuUd * steel *.

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for Court by a different road. After Tegmish had been lording
it in Besh-Baligh, where [37] each of the Uighur (who were in
fear of their lives) pHed him with bribes and rendered him all
manner of services, he too returned in the footsteps of the idi-quL

Mengeser 12 Noyan then began the inquiry. As the idi-qut
denied the charge recourse was had to torture and questioning.
They so twisted his hands that he fell upon his face in exhaustion.
A wooden press was then fastened on his forehead. The jailer
loosened the press and in punishment for this action received
seventeen stout blows upon the posterior (mouze*-i-izar). The
idi-gut still persisted in his denial and would make no confession.
They then confronted him with Bolmish-Buqa, 13 who said:
* Nought will avail thee but the truth/ But persisting in his
former error he would not confess the words that had passed
between them. Bala Bitikchi was then brought in. In the face
of the idi-qut he recounted all that had been said from beginning
to end. The idi-qut, in great astonishment, asked, ' Art thou
Bala ? * 14 And as his name was Bala, he answered, * Yes/
Then the idi-gut also confessed, whereupon his bonds were
loosened and he was removed some distance away. Bilge-Quti
too, after enduring all manner of questioning, spoke the truth
and avowed his guilt. The two or three others that remained
were questioned separately; and after sipping the unpalatable
cup of the roughness of Tartar rods they vomited forth and
declared what was hidden in their breasts. Thereafter they were
all brought into the presence of one another and without the
imposition of bonds and chains were questioned as to the making
of their league and covenant of conspiracy and conjuration.
' They said, "Is not this it in truth ? " They said, cc Aye> ly our
Lord." He said, ff Taste then the punishment for that ye would not
believe!"

When confessions had been obtained from them all [38] and

12 MNKSAR. On Mengeser see below, ii, 578-81; also PelUot-Hambis,
op. cit.j 368-9.

13 Here the text has TKM for the first element of the name, A BKM,
D BWKM and E BKMY.

14 There is a word-play involved, since lala in Arabic means * calamity*.

15 Koran, xlvi, 33.

G SI

THE HISTORY OF

had been submitted to the firm judgement of the Monarch of
the Face of the Earth, he gave orders that the idi-qut and his
accomplices should be sent back to Besh-Baligh together with
the messengers. And on a Friday, the day on which they had
thought to attack the true believers, the common people, both
rnonotheists and idolaters, were brought out on to the plain and
the command of the mighty World-Emperor was put into
execution. Ogiinch, 16 the brother of the ili-qut, with his own
hand severed his head; and his two accomplices Bilge Quti
and Idkech were sawn in half. And thus was this country
cleansed of the mark of the guile of these wicked infidels and of
the impurity of their religion. ' And the uttermost part of that
impious people was cut off. All praise h to God, the Lord of the
Worlds I J 17 The faithful were exalted and the idolaters down-
trodden by the grace of God Almighty.

The truth shineth forth and the swords are bared : beware
of the lions of the thicket, leware ! 1B

Now Bala Bitikchi was one of the officers of Ghaimish. At
the time of the trial of the conspirators and their punishment for
their evil intent, previous to the divulgement of this secret plot
he had been held in confinement and had despaired of his life.
He was now taken out on to the plain with some others and
stripped naked in preparation for his execution. But Beki 19
being ill and her illness having grown worse, as an almsgiving
for her long life those who had that day been condemned to
death all received their pardon. And so he escaped from under
the sword.

16 AWKNj. Professor Cleaves informs me in the letter quoted above that
in the biography of the Jit-gut Barchuq in the Yuan shih, Chapter 122 (ts'e 38),
^4-513, it is stated that when Barchuq died (2v8), he was succeeded by his
second son Yii-ku-lun-ch'ih (Ugiiriinchi), who is obviously JuvainFs Ogiinch.
There is no mention in the biography of an elder son (or, according to Juvaini,
two elder sons, Kesmes and Salindi).

17 Koran, vi, 45.

18 The opening line of a qasida by Abu-Tammam in praise of the 'Abbasid
Caliph Mu*tasim. (M.Q.)

19 Le. Sorqoqtani Beki, the widow of Tolui and the mother of Mongke,
Qubilai and Hiilegii, on whom see below, pp, 108-9, n. 31.

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Ob ! bow often did the feU grout narrow to tb
and it was yet possible to escape from amongst tbe lances I

In this case too, because clemency had been previously ordered,
his blood remained unshed; but his wives and children, his
servants and cattle, all his animate and inanimate possessions,
were seized and distributed. It is the custom of the Mongols in
the case of a criminal who is worthy of death [39] but whose
life has been spared to send him into the wars ; arguing that if
he is fated to be killed he will be killed in the fighting. Or else
they send him on an embassy to foreign peoples who they are
not entirely certain will send him back : or again they send him
to hot countries whose climate is unhealthy. And thus, on
account of the heat of the climate of Egypt and Syria they dis-
patched Bala Bitikchi upon an embassy to those parts.

Since Saqun was not deeply involved in the conspiracy and
as he had connections with the Court of Bate, he escaped with
a hundred and ten stout blows upon the posterior.

As for Tegmish, who had drawn attention to the conspiracy,
he received tokens of favour and benevolence; and God
Almighty bestowed upon him the nobility of Islam.

After the dust of this sedition had settled Ogiinch arose and
went to Court. He was given his brother's office and the title
ofidi-qut.

These events took place in the year 650/1252-3.

[VII]

OF THE ORIGIN OF THEIDI-QUT AND THE LAND OF THE UIGHUR
ACCORDING TO THEIR OWN BELIEF 1

AFTER writing their history we have recorded something of
what is found in their books regarding their beliefs and religion ;
which we offer as matter for astonishment and not as truth and
certainty.

1 This chapter has been translated into French by d'Ohsson, I, 429-35* anc ^
German by Salemann in Radloff, Das Kutaktv Bilik, Theil I, xU-xlix.

THE HISTORY OF

It is the opinion of the Uighur that the beginning of their
generation and increase was on the banks of the river Orqon, 2
whose source flows from a mountain which they call Qara-
Qorum ; 3 the town that was built by Qa'an In the present age
is also called after that mountain. Thirty rivers have their
sources in It; upon each river there dwelt a different people;
the Uighur forming two groups upon the Orqon. When their
number Increased, after the manner [40] of other peoples they
appointed a chief from their midst and yielded him obedience.
And so they continued for five hundred years until the appear-
ance of Buqu Khan. 4 Now it is said that Buqu Khan was
Afiasiyab ; 5 and there are ruins of a well, and also a great stone,
on. the hillside near Qara-Qorum, and this well is said to be
that of Bizhan. 6

There are also the ruins of a town and a palace on the banks
of this river, of which the name is Ordu-Baligh 7 though it is
now called Ma*u-Baligh. 8 Outside the ruins of the palace,
opposite the gate, there lie stones engraved with inscriptions,
which we have seen ourselves. During the reign of Qa'an these
stones were raised up, and a well was discovered, and in the
well a great stone tablet with an inscription engraved upon it. 9

2 ARQWN, i.e. the Orkhon.

3 Lit. * Bkck Rock * from the Turkish qara * black ' and qprum * rock *.

4 Marquart, Quwayni's Beridt tiler die Bekehrung tier Uigburen, 486-7, sees in
Buqu an historical figure, the Khan mentioned on the Qara-Balghasun inscrip-
tion (see below, pp. 54-5, n. 9) under whom Manichaeism was introduced
amongst the Uighur, On the other hand, Pelliot, Notes* sur le ' Turkestan'
de M. BartMd, 22, regards Buqu as Juvaini's spelling of Biigu, * le nom du premier
roi plus ou moins legendaire des Ouigours*.

5 Afiasiyab is a figure in the National Epic, in which he appears as the ruler
of Turan and the hereditary foe of the Iranians. He and lis followers, who
may originally have represented Iranian tribes hostile to the teachings of Zoroaster,
had by the time the Epic received its final form in the Sbabnama of Firdausi been
identified with a more recent enemy, the Turks.

6 Bizhan, an Iranian hero, was imprisoned by Aftasiyab in a well.

7 Or Qara-Balghasun, the old Uighur capital.

8 I.e. * Bad Town * from the Mongol ma'u ' bad * and the Turkish lal'igh or
lalfy * town *.

This is perhaps the famous trilingual inscription (in Chinese, Turkish and
Soghdian) in praise of the Uighur ruler Ai tengride qut bulrrush alp bilge.
See Grousset, L* Empire des Ste$$t$, 174; also, for translations of the Chinese

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The order was given that everyone should present himself in
order to decipher the writing ; but no one was able to read it*
Then people were brought from Khitai who are called . . . : l
it was their writing that was engraved on the stone [and this is
what was written:]

In that age two of the rivers of Qara-Qoram, one called the
Tughla n and the other the Selenge, flowed together in a place
called Qamlanchu ; 12 and close together between these two rivers
there stood two trees ; the one they call pj^/ 3 which is a tree
shaped like a pine (nSzb), whose leaves in winter resemble those of
a cypress and whose fruit is like a pignon (cbilgbiiza) both in shape
and taste ; the other they call toz. Between the two trees there
arose a great mound, and a light 15 descended on it from the
sky; and day by day the mound grew greater. On seeing this
strange sight, the Uighur tribes were filled with astonishment ;
and respectfully and humbly they approached the mound : they
heard sweet and pleasant sounds like singing. And every night
a light shone to a distance of thirty paces around that mound,

text, RadlofT, Die altturkischen Inscbriftm far Mongolel, 286-91, and Schlegel,
Die chmesische Inschnft auf km uigburischm Denkmd in Kara Balgvsun. That
inscription, however, while it refers at some length to the conversion of the Uighur
to Manichaeism by missionaries brought from China, makes no reference what-
soever (as was already pointed out by Marquart, op. tit, 497) to the miraculous
birth of Buqu or to his various conquests. May it perhaps be that the Qara-
Balghasun inscription is rather to be identified with * the stones engraved with
inscriptions ' mentioned immediately before ? For a description of the monu-
ment as discovered by the Russians (the actual stele was broken into six pieces)
see RadlofF, op. cti.> 283.

10 There is a blank in all MSS. except C, which has QAMAAN, and
J and K (not utilized by M.Q. for this part of his edition), which have QAMAN,
i.e. gams or shamans (see below, p. 59, n. 23) ; but this can hardly be right.

11 TWTLA V The Tula.

12 QMLANjW. Marquart, Utcr das Volkstm der Komanen, 59-60, regards
Qamlanchu as an entirely mythical locality. He points out that there is in fact
no confluence of the Tula and the Selenga, the former being a tributary of the
Orkhon. Kashghari, III, 242, knows Qamlanchu only as 'the name of a
small town near Ikt-Ogiiz'.

13 Le. the Siberian Cedar, See above, p. 21, n. 10).

14 Le. the Birch, reading TWZ with E for the TWR of the text.

15 * Der wunderbare Lichtstrom, welcher auf den Baum fallt, wodurch dieser
befruchtet wird und fiinf Anschwellungen bekommt, ist edit mankhaisch.*
(Marquart, Quwayni's Bericht, 490.)

THE HISTORY OF

until just as with pregnant women at the time of their delivery,
a door opened and inside there were five separate tent-like cells
[41] in each of which sat a man-child : opposite the mouth of
each child hung a tube which furnished milk as required ;
while above the tent was extended a net of silver. The chiefs
of the tribe came to view this marvel and in reverence bowed
the knee of fealty. When the wind blew upon the children they
gathered strength and began to move about. At length they
came forth from the cells and were confided to nurses, while the
people performed all the ceremonies of service and honour. As
soon as they were weaned and were able to speak they inquired
concerning their parents, and the people pointed to those two
trees. They approached the trees and made such obeisance as
dutiful children make to their parents ; they also showed respect
and honour to the ground in which the trees grew. The trees
then broke into speech and said : * Good children, adorned with
the noblest virtues, have ever trodden this path, observing their
duty to their parents. May your lives be long, and your names
endure for ever T 16 All the tribes of that region came to view
the children and showed them the honours due to the sons of
kings ; and as they left they gave each boy a name : the eldest
they called Sonqur Tegin, the second Qotur Tegin, the third
Tukel Tegin, the fourth Or Tegin and the fifth Buqu Tegin. 17
After considering these strange matters the people agreed that
they must make one of the children their leader and their king;
for they were, they said, sent by God Almighty. They found
Buqu Khan to be superior to the other children in beauty of
features and strength of mind and judgement ; moreover he knew
all the tongues and writings of the different peoples. Therefore

16 Cf. Rashid-ad~Din*s reference to Biigii Khan (see above, p. 54, n. 4),
who ' was a great ruler in ancient times, held in high esteem by the Uighur
and many [other] tribes, who relate of him that he was born of a tree *. (Kheta-
gufov, 139.) The legend was known to Marco Polo ; ' They [i.e. the Uighur]
say that the king, who first ruled them, was not of human origin, but was born
of one of those swellings that the sap produces on the bark of trees, and that
we call esca! (Benedetto, 73.) For the Chinese version as given in the Yiian
sbib (which is remarkably close to Juvaini) see Bretschneider, I, 247.

17 In Old Turkish ttgin or tigin means 'lord* or 'prince*. In the case of
Tukel I read TWKAL with D for the TWKAK of the text. '

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

all were of one accord that he should be made Khan ; and so
they gathered together, held a feast and placed him on the throne
of the Khanate. Thereafter he spread out the carpet of justice
and rolled up the scroll of oppression ; and his retainers and
domestics and followers and servants were many. God Almighty
sent him three ravens (zagb) 18 that knew all tongues ; [42] and
wherever he had a matter on hand thither the ravens would go
to act as spies and bring back news.

Some rime later, when he lay asleep one night in his house,
the form of a maiden came down through the smoke-hole and
awakened him ; but in his fear he feigned to be still asleep. On
the second night she came again ; and on the third night, follow-
ing the advice of his vizier, he departed with the riiaiden to a
mountain which they call Aq-Tagh, 19 where they conversed
together until the break of dawn. And for a space of seven
years, six months and twenty-two days he resorted thither every
night, and they spoke with each other. Upon the last night,
when the maiden bade him farewell, she said to him : * From
East to West shall be thy domain. Be diligent and zealous in
this work, and care for the people/

Hereupon he assembled armies and dispatched three hundred
thousand picked men under Sonqur Tegin against the Mongols
and the Qirqiz ; a hundred thousand men, similarly equipped,
under Qotur Tegin against the Tangut ; and the like number of
men under Tukel Tegin against the Tibetans ; while he himself
with three hundred thousand men marched against the Khitayans,
leaving his other brother behind in his stead. Each returned in
triumph from the place to which he had been sent, and with so
much booty as was beyond measure or computation; and they
brought many people from all sides to their home on the Orqon

18 The Persian word is vague : it is applied to-day to the Magpie and the
Jackdaw.

19 Lit. 'the White Mountain' from the Turkish aq * white* and Uq or %i
* mountain*. Perhaps identical with the Ektag ( Aq-Tagh) of Menander
Protector, i.e. the T'ien Shan, in * a certain hollow ' in which mountain range
Zemarchus, the ambassador of Justin II, was received in audience by Istemi,
the ruler of the Western T'u-chiieh (552-75). See Yule, Cathay and the Way
Thither, I, 209, Grousset, L f Empire its Steppes, 129.

THE HISTORY OF

and built the town of Ordu-Baligh ; and the whole of the East
came under their sway.

Then Buqu Khan beheld in a dream an aged man, 20 clothed
in white and holding a white staff; who handed him a jasper
stone shaped like a pine-cone, saying : * If thou canst keep this
stone, then shall the four corners of the world be under the
shadow of the banner of thy command/ His vizier also [43]
dreamt a similar dream. In the morning they began to prepare
his army ; and he set out for the regions of the West. When
he had come to the boundary of Turkestan he beheld a pleasant
plain with abundance of grass and water. He himself settled
here and founded the town of Balasaqun, which is now called
Quz-Baligh ; 21 and sent out his armies in all directions. In the
space of twelve years they had conquered all the climes, leaving
nowhere a single rebel or insurgent. And when they had come
to a place where they saw men with animal limbs they knew that
beyond this there was no inhabitable land ; and they returned
home bearing with them the kings of the different countries
whom they presented to Buqu Khan in that place. He received
each of them with the honour befitting his station; except the

20 So in the text, which follows E and reads sbakhst pir ra. All the other
MSS. used by M.Q. except A have sbakhst bazar ra or shakbsf bazar e some 1000
persons *. A, which is corrupt, seems also to have bazar ra, which is likewise
the reading of J and K, the two Bodleian manuscripts, which were not consulted
by M.Q. for this part of his edition. J also has 'asaba * staves ' for the *asa * staff*
of the text. The verbs relating to the apparently plural subject are in the singular
except in two MSS. (C and D), which have the plural forms. The whole
passage ought then perhaps to be translated as follows : ' Then Buqu beheld in
a dream some 1000 persons, clothed in white and holding white staves, etc.,
etc.* This is how it was understood by Salemann and Marquart except that
Salemann's text has 'isabdha * turbans * instead of'asaba so that the 1000 men are
described as * wearing white turbans ' and not as * holding white staves *. On
this passage Marquart, op. cit., 486, comments : * Jene 1000 Manner sind augen-
scheinlich Mankhaer, wie schon ihre Kleidung . , . erweist . . ,'

21 The precise position of Balasaqun (BLASAQWN) or Balasaghun is not
known : it lay somewhere in the valley of the Chu. See Barthold, Histoire
fa lures, 64-5, As for the name Quz-Baligh (I read QZ BALYF for the
QR BALYF of the text) it should be noted that according to Kashghari Bala-
saghun was also known as Quz-Ulush (I, 6*2, ulusb being synonymous with
baity 'town') or Quz-Ordu (I, 124). [According to Smirnova, 182, n. 3, the
ruins of Balasaghun are situated 24 kilometres to the south-west of Tokmak].

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

king of India, whom, because of his hideous appearance, he
would not admit to his presence. He sent them all back to their
kingdoms and fixed a tribute upon each. Then, as there was
no longer any obstacle in his path, he decided to return from
thence ; and so came back to his former place of abode,

The reason for the idolatry 22 of the Uighur is that in those
days they knew the science of magic, the experts in which art
they called qam? z Now there are still to this day among the
Mongols people that are overcome with ubna^ and speak vain
things, and claim that they are possessed by devils who inform
them of all things. We have questioned certain people regarding
these qam, and they say : * We have heard that devils descend
into their tents by the smoke-hole and hold converse with them.
And it is possible that evil spirits are intimate with some of them
and have intercourse with them. Their powers are at their
strongest just after they have satisfied their natural lust in an
unnatural way (az manfaz-i-Uraz)? In a word, these people we
have mentioned are called qam ; and when the Mongols had
no knowledge or science, they had from ancient times yielded
obedience to the words of these qam ; and even now their princes
[44] still believe in their words and prayers, and if they engage
upon some business they will conclude nothing until these
astrologers have given their consent. 25 And in a similar manner
they heal their sick.

Now the religion of Khitai was idolatry. Buqu dispatched a
messenger to the Khan [of that country] and summoned the
toyins 26 to him. When they arrived he confronted the two
parties so that they might choose the religion of whichever party

22 but-parasti. Here used in the sense of Buddhism : but * idol ' is derived
from Buddha. See Marquart, op. cit., 489.

28 qm is a Turkish word. It is confused by Rubruck with khan or qa'an :
* All soothsayers are called cbam, and so all their princes are called cham, because
their government of the people depends on divination." (Rockhill, 108.)

24 In Arabic * the craving of the pathic*.

25 C the statement of Rubruck : * They [the diviners] predict lucky and
unlucky days for the undertaking of all affairs ; and so it is that they never assemble
an army nor begin a war without their assent and long since (the Moal) would
have gone back to Hungary, but the diviners will not allow it.* (Rockhill, 240.)

26 See above, p. 14, n. 31.

THE HISTORY OF

defeated the other. The toyins call a reading from their [holy]
book nom. 27 Now the nom contains their theological specula-
tions and consists of idle stories and traditions; but excellent
homilies are likewise to be found in it such as are consonant
with the law and faith of every prophet, urging men to avoid
injury and oppression and the like, to return good for evil and
to refrain from the injuring of animals, etc. Their dogmas and
doctrines are manifold; the most typical is that of reincarnation.
They say that the people of to-day existed several thousand years
ago : the souls of those that wrought good deeds and engaged
in worship attained a degree in accordance with their actions,
such as that of king, or prince, or peasant, or beggar ; while
the souls of those that had engaged in debauchery (foq), libertinism
(fujur)j murder, slander and injury to their fellow-creatures
descended into vermin, beasts of prey and other animals ; and
so they are punished for their deeds. But then ignorance is
[everywhere] in the ascendant : * they say that which they do not'

When they had read certain noms, the qam were completely
dumbfounded. For this reason the Uighur adopted idolatry as
their religion, and most of the other tribes followed their example,,
And there are none more bigoted than the idolaters of the East,
and none more hostile to Islam.

As for Buqu Khan he lived happily until the time when he
passed away. [45] And these lies which we have recorded are
but few out of many and but a hundredth of what might have
been related. Our purpose in recording them was to expose the
ignorance and folly of this people.

A friend has told us that he read in a book how there was a
man, who made a hollow in the space between the two trees,
and placed his own children in it, and lighted candles in the
middle of it. Then he brought people to see this wonder, and
worshipped it, and commanded them to do likewise. And so
he deceived them until he had dug up the ground and fetched
out the children.

27 The Buddhist dbarma. See Marquart, Ice. at. nom is the Greek i
which passed through Soghdian into the Uighur and Mongol languages : to-day
it is the ordinary Mongol word for * book *.

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After Buqu's death he was succeeded by one of his sons.

The tribes and peoples of the Uighur, when they listened to
the neighing of horses, the screaming of camels* the barking
and howling of dogs and beasts of prey, the lowing of cattle,
the bleating of sheep, the twittering of birds and the whimpering
of children, in all this heard the cry of e kocb, kocb I * 28 and would
move on from their halting-place. And wherever they halted
the cry of f kocb, kocb ! * would reach their ears. Finally they
came to the plain where they afterwards built Besh-Baligh, and
here that cry was silenced ; and here they settled down and built
five quarters and called them Besh-BaHgh : m they gradually
became one long and wide space. And from that time their
posterity have been princes, and they call their prince idi-qut.
And that family tree, which is an accursed tree, 30 is fastened
upon the wall in their houses.

[VIII]

[46] OF KUCHLUG AND TOQ-TOGHAN 1

WHEN Chingiz-Khan had defeated Ong-Khan, the tatter's
son * succeeded in escaping together with some others that had

28 I.e. * move, move ! *

29 Besh-Baligh meaning literally * Five Towns *. See above, p. 47, n. 16.

30 Cf. e the cursed tree of the Koran * (Koran, xvii, 62), i.e. the tree az-Zaqqum.
' It is a tree which cometh up from the bottom of hell; Its fruit is as it were the
heads of Satans ; and lo I the damned shall surely eat of \t t and Jill their bellies with
it! (Ibid., xxxvii, 62-4.)

1 TWQ IT AN (E has TWQ IT AN, II, 101). The name itself is unques-
tionably to be identified with that of the Merkit chieftain, the Toqto'a Beki of
the Secret History and the Toqta of Rashid-ad-Din. Pelliot, Horde d'Or, 67-71,
discusses its etymology and concludes that like Toqtamlsh, the name of the
antagonist of Tamerlane, it is derived from the Mongol-Turkish verb toqta-,
toqto-, to stop ', * to be fixed *. However the form of the name as it occurs
in Juvaini seems to have been modified by Turkish speakers to give it an entirely
different meaning : " the falcon that has eaten its fill ', from toq * satiated * and
toghan * falcon '. Pelliot himself, loc. tit, 68, refers to the analogous names of
Toq-Buqa and Toq-Temur as being of frequent occurrence in the Yuan shih.
As to the identity of the person called by this name Juvaini has confused Toqto'a
Beki with one of his sons (Qodu or Qul-Toghan) ; and in the present chapter
Toq-Toghan stands sometimes for the father and sometimes for the son.

2 Juvaini's mistake is pointed out by M.Q. Kiichlug was the son, not of

THE HISTORY OF

a large following. He struck the road for Besh-Baligh, and from
thence he came to Kucha, where he wandered in the mountains
without food or sustenance, while those of his tribe that had
accompanied him were scattered far and wide, 3 Now some say
that a detachment of the gur-khans 4 soldiers took him prisoner
and bore him to their master; but according to one report he
went of his own free will 5 In any case, he remained for some
time in the gur-khans service.

Ong-Khan, the ruler of the Kereit, but of Tai-Buqa or Tayang-Khan, the
ruler of the Naiman. After his father's death in battle (in 1204) he had fled
to his uncle Buiruq and upon the latter's death had made common cause with
Toqto'a of the Merkit In 1208 (or 1205 according to the Secret History) they
suffered a crushing defeat on the upper reaches of the Irtish. Toqto'a was killed
and Kuchliig fled to the giir-kban. See the Secret History, 198, Krause, 28-9,
Smirnova, 151-2, 180 and 254.

3 These details are not in Rashid~ad-Din, who simply states (Smimova, 186)
that Kuchliig proceeded from Besh-Baligh to Kucha.

^giir-khan was the title of the ruler of the Qara-Khitai. The spelling ktir-kban
is perhaps preferable for Juvaini. Cf. the Coirchan of Rubruck (Wyngaert,
205). gur-khan occurs in the Secret History also as the title assumed by the Mongol
Anti-Caesar Jamuqa ( 141) and Giir-Khan was the name of the uncle of
Ong-Khan who deposed him for murdering his brothers ( 66-7). The mean-
ing of the title according to Juvaini (II, 86; i, 354) is * khan of khans '. In
the Secret History gilr is always translated by the Chinese fu * universal '. See
Pelliot-Hambis, Campagnes, 248. On the other hand, Barthold, Histoire des
Turcs, 97 n. i., sees in the first element of the title the Old Turkish fair or fail
kur, according to Kashghari, means 'brave', 'heroic*, kiil which is given
by Gabain only as a proper name (Kiil Tigin, Kiil Chor), means * glorieux '
according to Pelliot, Neuf notes sur des questions d'Asie Centmle, 210. The gur-
kbcm or kur-kkm was then the Universal, the Heroic or the Glorious Khan.

5 An interesting reference to sources. JRashid~ad-Din (Smirnova, 180) gives
the following account of Kiichliig's first meeting with the glir-khatt ; * They say
that when Kushlug reached the ordu of the jw-itof he called one of his followers
by his own name and pretending himself to be a groom sat at the entrance at
the time when they went to the^r4k/i. Giirbesii [the jWBwfr wife] came
out, caught sight of Kushlug and said: "Why have you not brought him in-
side ? " They brought him in, and die gur-kbans emirs were offended. Gtirbesii
was the gtir-khan's eldest wife; she had a daughter called Qunqu, who fell
in love with Kushlug. Three days later she was given in marriage to him.
She was so masterful that she would not allow the loghty to be put on her. She
declared that instead of a loghteq she would wear a nikse like the women of KhitaL*
In Qunqu Professor Cleaves (I quote a letter dated the aist October, 1955)
sees the Chinese title humg-lou 'empress*. He suggests that nikse (for which
the B.M. MS, Or. 7628, 5000, has MYLSH, i.e. milsethe passage is absent

62,

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

When the Sultan 6 began his revolt against the and

the other princes to the east commenced to rebel, and to seek
the protection of Chingiz-Khan, and to find in his favour
security from the gur-kbans evil; then said Kiichliig to the
giir-khan : * My people are many ; they are scattered throughout
the region of the Emil, in Qayaligh and in Besh-Baligh ; and
everyone is molesting them. [47] If I receive permission, I
will collect them together and with the help of this people will
assist and support the giir-kban. I shall not deviate from the
path he prescribes and as far as in me lies I shall not twist my
neck from the fulfilment of whatever he commands. 9 By such
deceitful blandishments he cast the giir-khm into the well of
vainglory. And when the latter had presented him with
numerous gifts and bestowed upon him the title of KScblSf-
Kban } he leapt forth like an arrow from a strong bow. And
when the report of his rise was noised abroad, all those in the
army of Qara-Khitai that had some connection with him, set
out to join him; and so he penetrated to the region of the Emil
and Qayaligh. Toq-Toghan, who was also 7 a chief of the
Mekrit and had fled before the fame of Chingiz-Khan's onslaught
had likewise allied himself with Kiichliig. And from all sides
his tribesmen assembled around him. And he assaulted divers
places and plundered them, striking one after another ; and so
he obtained a numerous army and his retinue and army was
multiplied and reinforced. Then, turning upon the gur-kbw,
he ravaged and plundered his territory, now attacking and now
retreating. And hearing of the Sultan's conquests he sent a
succession of ambassadors to him urging him to attack the

from Berezin's text) may be a Chin or Jiirchen word. On the headgear known
as a boghtaq or loghtagh see below, p. 262, n. 2,

6 I.e. Sultan Muhammad Khorazm-Shah.

'Implying that Kiichliig, already falsely described as a Kereit, was also a
Merkit ! The Merkit (Mekrit is a less usual spelling of the name) were a forest
tribe and inhabited the region of the Lower Selenga, along the southern shores
of Lake Baikal. On the identity of Toq-Toghan see above, p. <Si, n. i. It
seems likely that in this instance Toqto'a Beki himself is meant and that the
reference is really to his and Ktichlug's earlier collaboration upon the Irtish. See
above, p. 6r, n. 2. There is no evidence in the other sources of any alliance between
Kiichliig and the Merkit after the former had established himself in Semirechye.

THE HISTORY OF

gur-kban from the west while he himself attacked him from the
east ; so that between them they might make an end of him.
If the Sultan was the first to conquer and destroy, all the giir-kban's
kingdom to Almaligh and Kashghar should be surrendered to
him ; while if Kuchliig took the lead and bore off Qara-Khitai,
then all the territory to the river of Fanakat 8 should be his.
Being thus agreed and having formed a compact on these terms,
they sent their armies [48] against Qara-Khitai from either side.
Kiichliig won the lead ; the troops of the gur-kban, who were
some distance away, were routed and he plundered the gur~kbans
treasures in Ozkend 9 and passed from thence to Balasaqun.
Here the gtir-kban was encamped; they joined battle near
* Chinuch 10 and Kiichliig was defeated and the greater part of
his army taken prisoner. He returned to his own country and
set about reorganizing his forces. Then, hearing that the gw~
kban had returned from his war with the Sultan and had com-
mitted excesses against the population, whilst his army had
dispersed to their homes ; Kiichliig fell upon him like lightning
from a cloud, and taking him by surprise made him prisoner
and seized his kingdom and his army. He took one of their
maidens to wife. Now the Naiman are for the most part
Christian ; but this maiden persuaded him to turn idolater like
herself and to abjure his Christianity. 11

8 Fanakat (or Banakat) lay on the right bank of the Syr Darya near the mouth
of the Angren (Ahangaran), but by * the river of Fanakat ' the Syr Darya itself
is probably meant.

9 Presumably the Ozkend on the Syr Darya between Suqnaq and Jand (see
below, p. 87) is meant here, but in any case not the Ozkend in Farghana (now
Uzkend in Kirghizia).

10 The text has HYYNWH. The spelling is quite uncertain but the second
element of the name is probably the Turkish uch * edge *, * border *. The phrase
translated by * near * (far kanar-f) usually means ' on the banks of, so that
*Chinuch could be a river, but it can also mean * on the border of 1 , in which
case *Chinuch might be a region or a mountain-range.

11 According to the passage from Rashid-ad-Din quoted above, p. 62, n. 5,
it was Qunqu, the daughter o(thegur~kban and Gurbesii, who converted Kiichliig
to Buddhism. Elsewhere Rashid-ad-Din attributes his conversion to a wife
described as 'a girl of the . . . people, most of whom are . . .', the first blank
occurring both in Berezin's text (XV, 60) and in Smirnova (182), while the
relative clause is not in Smirnova.

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

With Ay Mol-like face thou bast made me thy worshipper,
and bast charmed me who didst formerly raise up troubles
for me,

'Tis no wonder that the fae of leaven consumctb my liver
seeing that be deserved the fae who worshipped an Idol

When he was firmly established in the kingdom of Qara-
Khitai he went several times to war against Ozar Khan 12 of
Almaligh. Finally he took him by surprise in his hunting
grounds and put him to death.

The rulers of Kashghar and Khotan had previously risen in
rebellion and the son of the Khan of Kashghar had been held
prisoner by the gtir-khan. Kiichliig released him from custody
and sent him back to Kashghar ; but the nobles of that place
plotted against him and slew him at the gates before he could set
foot in the town. Thereupon Kiichlilg, at every harvest time,
would send his troops to devour their crops and consume them
with fire. When for three or four years [49] they had been
prevented from gathering in their corn, and a great dearth had
made its appearance, and the populace were distressed with
famine; they then submitted to his command. He betook
himself thither with his army ; and in every house in which
there was a householder he quartered one of his soldiers, so that
they were all assembled in one place and under one roof with
the inhabitants. And oppression, and injustice, and cruelty, and
depravity were made manifest ; and the pagan idolaters accom-
plished whatever was their will and in their power, and none
was able to prevent them.

From here Kiichliig proceeded to Khotan, and seized that
country ; whereupon he compelled the inhabitants to abjure the
religion of Mohammed, giving them the choice between two
alternatives, either to adopt the Christian or idolatrous creed or
to don the garb of the Khitayans. And since it was impossible
to go over to another religion, by reason of hard necessity they
clad themselves in the dress of the Khitayans. God Almighty bath
said : ' But who shall fa a forced partaker, if it he without wilfulness,

12 On Ozar (AWZAR) see below, p. 75. According to Jamal al-Qarshi
his name was Buzar, See Barthold, Turkestan, 401, Pelliot, Horde d'Or, 185.

THE HISTORY OF

ant not in transgression verily, thy Lord is indulgent, merciful! 13
The muezzins* call to prayer and the worship of monotheist and
believer were broken off; and the schools were closed and
destroyed. One day, in Khotan, he drove the great imams out
on to the plain and began to discuss religion with them. One
of their number, the imam ff Ala-ad-Din Muhammad of Khotan,
ventured to dispute with him : After undergoing torture he was
crucified upon the door of his college, as will be hereinafter
described. 14 Thus was the Moslem cause brought to a sorry
pass, nay rather it was entirely wiped out, and endless oppression
and wickedness were extended over all the slaves of the Divinity;
who sent up prayers that were blessed with fulfilment, saying:

O Lord, when Pharaoh became proud and haughty, king

rendered insolent ly what he possessed,
Thou wert kind, Who art the Kind, the Knowing, and didst

plunge him in the sea until he perished.
How then is it with this man who is not shown to me treading

another path than that which he hath ever trodden,
Secure from the vicissitudes of Fortune, though Heat/en may

work its will upon all?
Art Thou not aUe to seize him ? Seize him then, and the

kingdom shall have been freed. 15

It was as though the arrow of prayer hit the target of answer
and acceptance ; for when Chingiz-Khan set out to attack the
countries of the Sultan [50] he despatched a group ofnoyans 16 to
remove the corruption of Kiichlug and lance the abscess of his
sedition. Kiichliig was at that time in Kashghar. The people
of Kashghar relate as follows : * When they arrived they had
not yet joined battle, when he turned his back and set his face
towards flight, and fled away. And each group of Mongols,
arriving one after another, sought nothing of us save Kiichliig,

13 Koran, vi, 146.

14 In Chapter IX.

16 From a poem by Ahmad b. Abu-Bakr Katib in which he satirizes Abu-
'Abdallah al-Jaihani the Samanid. (M.Q.)

16 According to the Secret History ( 202 and 237) and Rashid-ad-Din
(Smirnova, 183, Khetagurov, 194) it was the famous general Jebe (Yeme in
Juvaini) who was sent in pursuit of Kiichliig.

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

and permitted the recitation of the takUr and the azm, and caused
a herald to proclaim in the town that each should abide by his
own religion and follow his own creed. Then we knew the
existence of this people to be one of the mercies of the Lord and
one of the bounties of divine grace/

And when Klichliig fled, all his soldiers that sojourned in
Moslem houses in that town, were annihilated in one moment,
like quicksilver upon the ground. And the Mongol army set
out in pursuit of Kuchlug ; and wherever he halted, they would
come up to him ; and so they chased him like a mad dog until
he came to the borders of Badakhshan and entered the valley
which is called Darra-yi-*Dirazi. 17 When he drew near to
*Sarigh-Chopan, 18 he mistook the road (as it was right that

17 Reading DRAZY for the WRARNY of the text (for which D has
WRAZY), i.e. the Valley of *DirazL See the following note.

18 Reading^SRl CWPAN for the SRX JWYAN of the text (for which
E has SRX CWPAN) in accordance with the version of this passage In Mirza
Haidar (Eiias-Ross, 292), which has Sarigh Chupan (SRYF CWPAN) and
for the WRARNY of the text (see the preceding note) Darazukhan. Mirza
Haidar refers elsewhere (op. dt., 353-4) to Sarigh Chupan (SARYF CWPAN)
and adds that * the people of Badakhshan call the frontier [between Badakhshan
and Wakhan] Dardzukbdn. The Kashghari call it Sdrigh Cbupdnf On
Darazukhan Elias comments (op. dL, 354, n. i) : * I expect that the term in-
tended is Darazi-i-Wakbdn or Dardz-Wakban, and that it points to the long narrow
valley of the upper Panjah, sometimes known in modern days as Sarigb Chupan
or Sarbad.* Juvainfs Darra-yi-*DirazI and *Sarigh-Chopan do not however
seem to be identical and the latter may have been some point along the former,
conceivably the district of Sarhadd. The valley of the Upper Panja (i.e. the
Sarhadd river or Ab-i-Vakhan) is one of the two alternative routes for Marco
Polo's journey to Kashghar from the West. See Yule, Tbe Book of Ser Marco
Polo } I, 175, also Cordier, Ser Marco Polo : Notes and Addenda, 38 and 39. The
other, more northerly route lay along the valley of the Pamir River which rises
in Lake Victoria, long regarded after its discovery by Wood as the source of
the Oxus; and it is also possible that Kuchlug in his flight from Kashghar,
may have followed this route. According to the Secret History ( 237) he was
captured in Sariq-Qol (the text has Sariq-Qun, * Yellow Cliff*, but see Pelliot,
Notes sur le ef Turkestan " de M. Barthold, 55). The same name occurs in Rashid-
ad-Din (Smirnova, 179 and 183) and has usually been identified with the Sarikol
range in Western Kashgharia. It should be noted however that Rashid-ad-Din
agrees with Juvaini that Kuchlug was captured and killed on * the frontier of
Badakhshan * (Khetagurov, 194, Smirnova, 179 and 183) and that the * valley
(darra) which is called Sariq-Qol * is therefore presumably located further west
than the Sarikol. In view of these considerations Smirnova has suggested

H 67

THE HISTORY OF

he should do) and entered a valley which had no egress. Some
Badakhshani huntsmen were hunting in the neighbouring moun-
tains. They caught sight of Kuchliig and his men and turned
towards them ; while the Mongols came up from the other side.
As the valley was of a rugged nature and the going was difficult,
the Mongols came to an agreement with the hunters. * These
men/ they said, * are Kiichliig and his followers, who have
escaped from our grasp. If you capture Kiichliig and deliver
him up to us, we shall ask nothing more of you/ These men
accordingly surrounded Kiichliig and his followers, took him
prisoner and handed him over to the Mongols; who cut off
his head and bore it away with them. The people of Badakhshan
received endless booty in jewels and money, and so returned
home.

And be it remarked that whoever molests the faith and law
of Mohammed never triumphs, while whoever fosters it, even
though it be not his own religion, advances day by day in
prosperity and consideration. [51]

If God lights a candle, whoever blows at It only
burns his beard.

And God Almighty hath said : f How many generations have we
destroyed before them ? We had settled them on the earth as we have
not settled you, and we sent down the very heavens upon them in copious
rains, and we made the rivers to fow heneath their feet : yet we
destroyed them in their sins, and raised up other generations to succeed
them! 19

Thus the region of Kashghar and Khotan up to an area which
was under the command of the Sultan became subject to the
world-conquering Emperor Chingiz-Khan.

(179-80, n. 7) that the reference may perhaps be to the region around the Sangh-
Kol (or Sar-i Kol), the * Yellow Lake *, i.e. Lake Victoria, called also by the
Russians Zor Kul; and this suggestion finds support in the fact that Wood's
Kirghiz informants called the valley of the Pamir * the durah [i.e. darrd] of Sir-i-
kol *. See Wood, A Personal Narrative of a Journey to the Source of the Oxus, 332.
It would appear therefore that Kiichlug's flight westward like Polo's journey
eastward lay along the one or the other of these two possible routes.
19 Koran, vi, 6.

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As for Toq-Toghan 20 he had seceded from Kiichliig doting
the latter's ascendancy and had gone to the region of Qam-
Kemchik. 21 In the trail of his flight Chingiz-Khan dispatched
his eldest son Tushi with a large army in order to destroy him :
he cleansed away his evil and left no trace of him.

As they returned they were followed by the Sultan; and
though they refrained from giving battle, the Sultan could not
withhold himself but set his face towards the wilderness of error
and hallucination. As he was not rebuffed by admonishments
they prepared for action. Both sides attacked, and the right
wing of both armies routed its opponents. The rest of the
Mongol army was emboldened by this success; they attacked
the centre where the Sultan was stationed in person ; [52] and
he was nearly taken prisoner, when Jalal-ad-Din repelled the
attackers and bore him out of that strait,

What Is finer than a furious male lion, his loins
girded before his father ? 22

And the battle continued all that day, and the fighting lasted
till the evening prayer, when by the disappearance of the greater
luminary the face of the world became as black as the face of
evildoers and the back of the earth as dark as the belly of a well.

Last night, at the time when the shadow of the earth

lay in ambush for the steed of light,
I beheld the whole of the inhabitable globe in bkckness

like a miserable hovel
Thou mightest truly have said that it was a black pavilion

raising its head unto the highest heaven.

Thereupon they sheathed the sword of combat, and each army
rested in its own quarters. The Mongol army then withdrew. 23

20 Here Qodu or Qul-Toghan is meant and not Toqto'a Beki (see above,
p. 6r, n. i) but the reference is probably to the flight of the MerMt after the
battle on the Irtish.

21 Reading QM KMfiK for the QM KBfiK of the text. Qam-Kemchik
or rather Kem-Kemchik was the territory between the Kern, i.e. the Upper
Yenisei, and its tributary the Kemchik.

22 Sbahwma ed. Vullers, 1632, i. 2408.

23 For a fuller account of the battle see below.

THE HISTORY OF

And when they came to Chingiz-Khan, and he had assayed
their bravery and learnt of the extent and size of the Sultan's
army, and knew also that there remained no intermediary screen
that had not been removed nor any enemy that could offer
resistance, he mobilized his armies and advanced against the
Sultan.

As for the Sultan, during the time that he cleansed the world
of dreadful foes, he might have been called Chingiz-Khan's
vanguard (yezek) that swept away everything in front of him.
For though he did not achieve the complete destruction of the
gur-khan, yet he loosened the foundations of his power and was
the first to attack him; as it was he also that destroyed other
khans and princes. But everything has its limit, and every
beginning its end, whose delay or postponement is inconceivable.
' The pen bath dried up with respect to what already is!

[IX]

OF THE MARTYRED IMAM,

'ALA-AD-DIN MUHAMMAD OF KHOTAN
(GOD'S MERCY BE UPON HIM !)

AFTER Kiichliig had conquered Kashghar and Khotan and had
abandoned the law of Christianity [53] for the habit of idolatry,
he charged the inhabitants of these parts to forsake their pure
Hanafite faith for unclean heathendom, and to turn from the
rays of the light of Guidance to the wilderness of infidelity and
darkness, and from allegiance to a merciful King to subservience
to an accursed Devil. And as this door would not give way,
he kicked it with his foot; and by force they were compelled
to don the garb and headdress of Error : the sound of worship
and the iqamat was abolished and prayers and takbirs were hushed.

After truth hath been made manifest, do they hope to
undo itj truth that is louni with a knot of which there is no undoing ?

Meanwhile, in his strength, and ruthlessness, and fury, and
tyranny he wished to convince by proof and evidence the
Mohammedan imams- and the Christian monks,

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And when thou bopest for the mpossiUf, tbou dost

but build upon a crumbling slops. 1

A proclamation was made In the town, and his command was
communicated that all that wore the garb of science and piety
should present themselves upon the plain. More than three
thousand illustrious imams assembled there, and turning towards
them he said : * In all this crowd what man Is there who will
dispute with me concerning affairs of religion and state, and
will not give in to me, and fears neither wrath nor punish-
ment ? * For in his corrupt mind he was convinced that none
of those present would dare to refute his words and disprove
his argument ; and even though anyone should make a begin-
ning, yet for fear of his violence he would restrain himself and
not attract to himself the fire of calamity nor be f like [the sheep]
that fag up its death with its own hoof 3 ; but would certify his
lies and confirm his falsehoods.

But from that multitude there arose the Heaven-aided shaikh, the
imam in very deed, * Ala-ad-Din Muhammad of Khotan (may
God illuminate his tomb and increase Us reward /) ; who ap-
proached Kiichliig, seated himself, girded the belt of truth
about the loins of veracity and began to dispute about religion.
As his voice rose and the martyred imam adduced decisive proofs,
knowing that Kuchliig's presence and existence was but
nonentity ; truth prevailed over falsehood and the wise over the
ignorant, and the beatified imam confuted the accursed Kiichliig,
' For the truth speaketh clearly, lut the false doth stutter.' Con-
sternation, [54] bewilderment and shame overpowered the deeds
and words of that wicked man ; the fire of wrath arose from
the absence of courage ; so that his tongue was severed and his
speech enchained. Foul ravings, unfit to be uttered regarding
the Holy Prophet, poured from his lips, and in this strain he
delivered a whole discourse. The truth-speaking imam, con-
vinced that e if the covering were uncovered, I should not le more
certain * and urged on by religious fervour was unable to tolerate
or ignore his puerilities and absurdities ; but exclaimed, c Dust

1 From a poem by the well-known poet Abul-Hasan 'AU b. Muhammad
at-Tihami, an elegy on his son.

THE HISTORY OF

be In thy mouth, thou enemy of the faith, thou accursed
Kuchliig ! '

When these hard words reached the ears of that prideful
Guebre, that lewd unbeliever, that unclean wretch, he gave
command that 'Ata-ad-Din should be seized and forced to
abjure Islam and embrace unbelief and infidelity. ' Away, away
with bis predictions ! * 2

The alighting'place of the divine light will not become
the home of a devil.

For several days he was kept naked and fettered, hungry and
thirsty, and worldly food and sustenance was withheld from
him, although he was a guest at the table of ' I shall pass the night
with my Lord, who will feed me and give me to drink 3 And this
imam of Mohammed was like Salih 3 among the people of
Thamud, as overcome with grief as was Jacob and tried with
the tortures of Jirjis. 4 The prophet (peace he upon Urn I) hath
said : 'Affliction is enjoined upon the prophets, and then the saints, and
then the most excellent, and then the next most excellent.' He was
as patient as Job, and struggled like Joseph in the well of their
prison. For the true lover, when in the sweetness of love he
tastes the sting of suffering, accounts it a fresh gain and a bound-
less felicity, and says : * All that comes from thee is sweet, be it
cure or be it hurt/ And if poison from the hand of his beloved
reaches the palate of the lover's soul, in conformity with the
verse,

One may eat poison from the hand of a silver-breasted
mistress.

from the sweetness of his taste he discovers the sweetness of honey
and sugar in the bitterness of colocynth and aloes and says :

If I were givtn poison to drink by the hand of my Moved,
from her hand poison would le an agreeable drink

And when a luminous heart receives its light from the niche of
the divine lamp, every moment [55] it has greater confidence in

2 Koran, xxiii, 38. 3 See above, p. 17, n. 40.

4 Jirjis is St. George of England, who besides being a Christian saint has also
become a Mohammedan prophet.

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faith, even though it be racked and tormented with the pains
of torture.

Dost thou seek union with thy beloved? Then court affliction;

for thorn and rose may both be together.
Forsake thyself that thou mayst come to the street of thy

beloved; for such affairs may be fraught with danger.

Finally, after they had tried every wile that lies in the nature
of that misguided people promises, threats, inveiglements,
intimidation and chastisement and his outer form had not
deviated from that which his inner essence was bound up with
and composed o namely, inquiry, faith, confirmation and
certainty; they crucified him upon the door of his school which
he had built in Khotan, and he delivered up his soul to God,
chanting the creed of His oneness and instructing his fellow-
creatures that faith cannot be destroyed by the punishments of
the dust-heap of this transient world, nor can it ever be imprisoned
in the fire of hell ! that it is a complete fraud and a notorious
fault to exchange the permanent for the evanescent, and for the
dung-hill verdure of this present world, which is but the sport
and plaything of children, to barter away the comforts and
pleasures of the world to come. God Almighty hath said:
' Life in this world is but a play and a pastime ; and letter surely for
men of godly fear will fa the future mansions ! Will ye not then
comprehend? 3 5

And so he passed from the prison of the world to the paradise
of the hereafter, and flew from the lowest alighting-place to the
highest abode.

Friend hath gone to friend, lover to lover what in
all the world is more beautiful than this ?

If a man place his arm around the neck of his purpose,
this may be a shield against the blows of calamities.

And when this event had fallen out, God Almighty, in order
to remove the evilness of Kiichliig, in a short space dispatched
the Mongol army against him; and already in this world he

5 Koran, vi, 32.

THE HISTORY OF

tasted the punishment of his foul and wicked deeds and his ill-
omened life ; and in the hereafter the torment of hellfire. Ill k
Us rest!

And Heresy hath learnt, since the True Guidance hath
conquered, that the Hanafite faith cannot te destroyed.

God Almighty hath said : ( But they that treat them unjustly shall
find out what a lot awaiteth them.' 6

[X]

OF THE CONQUEST OF THE REGIONS OF

ALMALIGH, QAYALIGH AND FULAD J 1
TOGETHER WITH AN ACCOUNT OF THE RULERS THEREOF

DURING the reign of the gur-khan the ruler of this area was one
Arslan-Khan 2 of Qayaligh, who was assisted in the government
thereof by the shahna of the gtir-khan. When the giir-kban's
fortunes began to decline and neighbouring princes were breath-
ing the fire of rebellion, the Sultan of Khotan also revolted
against him. The giir-khan led his army against him and at
the same time sought aid from Arslan-Khan. This he did
with the motive of putting him to death ; so that if he too
should rebel like the other chieftains, he might rid himself of
him once and for all ; while if he yielded obedience but treated
the Moslems gently and showed no energy in the campaign
against Khotan, on this pretext also he might withdraw his neck
from the noose of life. Arslan-Khan obeyed his command and
hastened to present himself before him. But one ofthegiir-khans

6 Koran, xxvi, 228.

1 Fulad or Pulad (it is the Persian word for ' steel ') was situated, according to
Bretschneider, II, 42, * not very far from lake Sairam, perhaps in the fertile valley
of the river Bore td f which discharges itself into the Ebinor '. It is the Bolat of
Rubruck, where the * Teuton skves of Buri ' were * digging for gold and manu-
facturing arms*- (Rockhttl, 137.)

2 Like Ozar of Almaligh the ruler of Qayaligh was a Qarluq Turk. On
the Qarluq, who had formerly occupied territory farther to the West, in the
Chu basin, see Minorsky, Hududj 286-97.

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commanders, Shamur Tayangu 3 by name, who had long been
on terms of friendship and intimacy with him, informed him
of the gtir-kbans intention, and added : * If he makes some
attempt against thee, thy house and thy children will also be
extirpated. The best course for the welfare of thy children will
be for thee to drink poison and so to escape from the affliction
of an ill-omened life and an iniquitous ruler. I will then be thy
instrument and will establish thy son in thy place.* Having
no other refuge or asylum, with his own hand he sipped a fatal
potion and gave up the ghost. Shamur, as he had promised,
obtained his son's appointment in his place, and the giir-'kban
dismissed him with honour, sending a sbabna to accompany
him. Such was the state of affairs for some time, until the fame
of Chingiz-Khan [57] and his rise to power was diffused abroad.
Thereupon, the giir-kban's agent having become tyrannous and
cruel in his treatment of the people, he was slain by Arslan-
Khan's son, who then made his way to the Court of Chingiz-
Khan, where he was received with marks of special condescension
and favour.

And in Almaligh there was one of the Qarluq of Quyas, a
man of great valour, whose name was Ozar 4 and who used to
steal the peoples' horses from the herds and to commit other
criminal actions, such as highway robbery etc. He was joined
by all the ruffians of that region and so became very powerful.
He then used to enter the villages, and if in any place the people
refused to yield him obedience he would seize that place by
war and violence. And so he continued until he took Almaligh,
which is the chief town of that region, and subjugated the whole
country; as he also captured Fulad. On several occasions
Kiichlug marched against him, and was defeated every time;
whereupon he sent a messenger to Chingiz-Khan to report on
Kiichlug and to announce his own enrolment amongst the
servants and liegemen of the world-conquering Emperor. He
was encouraged with expressions of favour and attention ; and
at Chingiz-Khan's command he became allied in marriage to

8 MWR TYANKW. tayangu in Old Turkish meant * chamberlain *.
4 See above, p. 65, n. 12.

THE HISTORY OF

Tushi. When the foundations of his servitude had been
strengthened, in obedience to the orders of Chingiz-Khan he
proceeded to Court in person, and was kindly received there.
As he departed, having been distinguished with all manner of
honours, Chingiz-Khan bade him refrain from the chase lest he
should unexpectedly become the prey of other huntsmen ; and
as a substitute for game he presented him with a thousand head
of sheep. Nevertheless, when he returned to Almaligh, he again
devoted himself to hunting, being unable to withhold himself
from that sport ; until one day, being taken unawares, he was
trapped in his hunting-grounds by the troops of Ktichliig, who
bound him in chains and bore him off with them to the gates
of Almaligh. The people of Almaligh closed their gates and
joined battle with them. But in the meanwhile they had
suddenly received news of the arrival of the Mongol army ; and
they turned back from the gates of Almaligh and slew their
prisoner upon the road.

Ozar, although rash and foolhardy, was a pious, God-fearing
man and gazed with the glance of reverence upon ascetics. One
day a person in the garb of the Sufis approached him saying, * I
am come upon an embassy to thee from the Court of Power
[58] and Glory; and my message is thus, that our treasures are
become somewhat depleted. Now therefore let Ozar give aid
by means of a loan and not hold it lawful to refuse/ Ozar
arose and made obeisance to the Sufi, while tears rained down
from his eyes. Then he ordered one of his servants to bring a
balish of gold, which he presented to the Sufi, saying : * Make
thy excuses to the Master after thou hast communicated to Him
my duty/ Whereupon the Sufi took the gold and departed.

After Ozar's death his son Siqnaq Tegin obtained the royal
good will: his father's office was bestowed upon him, and he
was given one of Tushfs daughters to wife.

As for Arslan-Khan, 5 he was sent back to Qayaligh and he

5 As M.Q. points out, this must be, not the Arslan-Khan who had poisoned
himself, but his son. He concludes that Arslan-Khan must have been rather
an hereditary title than a name. The Secret History, 235, gives a somewhat
different version of Chingiz-Khan's rektions with the rulers of Qayaligh. It

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too received a royal maiden in marriage. And when Chingiz-
Khan marched against the Sultan's empire, he joined him with
his men and rendered him great assistance. One of Arskn-
Khan's children is still alive. Mengii Qa'an gave him the fief
of Ozkend 6 and because of the claims of his father to their
gratitude he held him in high honour.

Siqnaq Tegin, too, was honoured by Chingiz-Khan and was
confirmed in the governorship of Almaligh. On the homeward
journey he passed away. He was succeeded by his son in the
year 651/1253-4.

[XI]

OF THE REASON FOR THE ATTACK ON THE
COUNTRIES OF THE SULTAN

IN the latter part of his reign he had brought about complete
peace and quiet, and security and tranquillity, and had achieved
the extreme of prosperity and well-being; the roads were secure
and disturbances allayed: so that wherever profit or gain was
displayed, in the uttermost West or the farthermost East, thither
merchants would bend their steps. And since the Mongols
were not settled in any town [59] and there was no concourse of
merchants and travellers to them, articles of dress were a great
rarity amongst them and the advantages of trading with them
well known. For this reason three persons, Ahmad of Khojend, 1
the son of the Emir Husain and Ahmad Balchikh, 2 decided
to journey together to the countries of the East, and having
assembled an immeasurable quantity of merchandise gold-
embroidered fabrics, cottons, zanfanicbi 3 and whatever else they

was not until his general Qubilai had marched against the Qarluq that Arslan-
Khan came to do homage. He was then however favourably received and
promised one of the Khan's daughters in marriage.
6 Apparently 0:zkend on the Syr Darya. See above, p. 64, n. 9.

1 Now Leninabad in Tajikistan.

2 The spelling is uncertain. The text has BALHYH.

3 The name of a cloth manufactured in the village of Zandana (or Zandan,
according to Barthold, Turkestan, 113), some fourteen miles north of Bokhara.

THE HISTORY OF

thought suitable they set their faces to the road. By that time
most of the Mongol tribes had been defeated by Chingiz-Khan,
their habitations demolished and the whole region purged of
rebels. He had then posted guards (whom they call qaraqchis)
upon the highways and issued a yasa that whatever merchants
arrived in his territory should be granted safe conduct, while
whatever merchandise was worthy of the Khan's acceptance
should be sent to him together with the owner. When this
group of merchants arrived on the frontier, the qaraqchis were
pleased with Balchikh's fabrics and other wares and accordingly
dispatched him to the Khan. Having opened out and displayed
his merchandise, Balchikh demanded three lalish of gold for
pieces of fabric each of which he had bought for ten or twenty
dinars at most. Chingiz-Khan was enraged at his boastful talk
and exclaimed : * Does this fellow think that fabrics have never
been brought to us before ? * And he gave orders that Balchikh
should be shown the fabrics from the stores of former khans that
were deposited in his treasury; and that his wares should be
listed (Jar qalam avarUa) and then distributed as plunder, and his
person detained. Then he sent for his companions and had
their merchandise brought to him in its entirety. Although
[60] the Mongols importunately inquired as to the value of their
wares the merchants refused to fix a price but said : * We have
brought these fabrics for the Khan.* These words were accepted
and approved, and Chingiz-Khan commanded that for each
piece of gold-embroidered fabric they should be paid a lalisb
of gold and for every two pieces of cotton or zandanichi a balish
of silver. Their companion Ahmad was also called back and
his wares purchased at the same prices ; and honour and favour
were shown to all three.

For in those days the Mongols regarded the Moslems with the
eye of respect, and for their dignity and comfort would erect
them clean tents of white felt ; but to-day on account of their
calumny one of another and other defects in their morals they
have rendered themselves thus abject and ragged.

At the time of these merchants* return Chingiz-Khan ordered
his sons* noyans and commanders to equip, each of them, two

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or three persons from their dependents and give them capital
of a balisb of gold or silver, that they might proceed with this
party to the Sultan's territory, engage in commerce there and so
acquire strange and precious wares. They obeyed his command,
each dispatching two or three people from his retinue, so that
in this way four hundred and fifty Moslems were assembled.
Then Chingiz-Khan sent the following message to the Sultan :
* Merchants from your country have come among us, and we
have sent them back in the manner that you shall hear. And
we have likewise dispatched to your country in their company
a group of merchants in order that they may acquire the wondrous
wares of those regions ; and that henceforth the abscess of evil
thoughts may be lanced by the improvement of relations and
agreement between us, and the pus of sedition and rebellion
removed/

When the party arrived at Otrar, the governor of that town
was one Inalchuq, 4 who was a kinsman of the Sultan's mother,
Terken Khatun, 5 and had received the title of Ghayir-Khan. 6
Now amongst the merchants was an Indian who had been
acquainted with the governor in former times. He now addressed
the latter simply as Inalchuq ; and [61] being rendered proud
by reason of the power and might of his own Khan he did not
stand aloof from him nor have regard to his own interests. On
this account Ghayir-Khan became annoyed and embarrassed;
at the same time he conceived a desire for their property. He
therefore placed them under arrest, and sent a messenger to the
Sultan in Iraq to inform him about them. Without pausing
to think the Sultan sanctioned the shedding of their blood and
deemed the seizure of their goods to be lawful, not knowing

* The text has AYNAL JQ, B AYNAL JWQ and E AYNAL CWQ.
It is the diminutive form of the Turkish word ml. * On remarquera que 'inalftq
signifie * prince * en jaghatai (a peu pres comme ml) et pourrait done etre en
soi un titre aussi Hen qu'un nom/ (Pelliot, Notes sur k " Turkestan " de M.
BartMd, 52-3.)

5 I.e. Princess Terken (or Tergen, spelt TRKAN). On this Turkish name
or title see Pelliot-Hambis, CampagneSj 89-91.

6 I.e. * the Mighty Khan ', gbtytr or rather gayir being the Turkmen (Turcoman)
equivalent of the Eastern qadtr.

THE HISTORY OF

that his own life would become unlawful, nay a crime, and
that the bird of his prosperity would be lopped of feather and
wing.

He whose soul hath understanding looketh to the capital
of deeds.

Ghayir-Khan in executing his command deprived these men of
their lives and possessions, nay rather he desolated and laid waste
a whole world and rendered a whole creation without home,
property or leaders. For every drop of their blood there flowed
a whole Oxus ; in retribution for every hair on their heads it
seemed that a hundred thousand heads rolled in the dust at every
crossroad; and in exchange for every dinar a thousand qintars
were exacted.

Our property was plunder, and our hopes in vain ; our affairs

in a state of anarchy, and our counsels hut the advice of

one another.
And they drove away our leasts of burden and led off our

chargers beneath loads that crushed their saddles,
Loads of furniture, clothing, money and goods ; what had

been acquired by purchase and stored up in treasuries.
To this hath Fate condemned some of her people ; the

calamities of some appear a feast to others.

Before this order arrived one of the merchants devised a
stratagem and escaped from the straits of prison. Having
acquainted himself with the state of affairs and ascertained the
position of his friends, he set his face to the road, made his
way to the Khan and informed him of what had befallen his
companions. These tidings had such an effect upon the Khan's
mind that the control of repose and tranquillity was removed,
and the whirlwind of anger cast dust into the eyes of patience
and clemency while the fire of wrath flared up with such a
flame that it drove the water from his eyes and could be quenched
only by the shedding of blood. [62] In this fever Chingiz-
Khan went up alone to the summit of a hill, bared his head,
turned his face towards the earth and for three days and nights
offered up prayer, saying : * I was not the author of this trouble ;

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grant me strength to exact vengeance/ Thereupon he descended
from the hill, meditating action and making ready for war.
And since Kiichliig and Toq-Toghan, the fugitives from his
army, lay across his path, he first sent an army to deal with their
mischief and sedition, as has been previously mentioned. He
then dispatched envoys to the Sultan to remind him of the
treachery which he had needlessly occasioned and to advise him
of his intention to march against him; so that he might prepare
for war and equip himself with thrusting and striking weapons.
Now it is a fully established fact that whoever sows a dry root
never reaps any harvest therefrom, while whoever plants the
sapling of opposition by common consent gathers the fruit
thereof namely repentance and regret. And so the beatified
Sultan because of the harshness of his disposition and the violence
of his custom and nature was involved in grave danger ; and
in the end his posterity had to taste the bile of punishment
therefor and his successors to suffer the bitterness of adversity.

If thou doest evil, thou dost punish thyself; the eye

of Fate is not asleep.
Bizhan's picture is still painted on the walls of palaces ;

he is in the prison of Afiasiyab.

[XII]

OF THE ADVANCE OF THE WORLD-CONQUERING KHAN

AGAINST THE COUNTRIES OF THE SULTAN

AND THE CAPTURE OF OTRAR

WHEN the dust of the seditions of Kiichliig and Toq-Toghan
had settled and the thought of them had been dismissed from
his mind, he equipped and instructed his sons, the great emirs,
the noyans and the thousands, hundreds and tens, disposed the
two wings and the vanguard, proclaimed a new yasa, and in
the year 615/1218-19 commenced the march

[63] With youthful Turkish warriors whose onslaught left the
thunder neither sound nor fame ;

THE HISTORY OF

Had they passed hurriedly by the bouse of Qarun, 1 by
nightfall for very indigence he would not have had
the wherewithal of a meal 2

They were archers who by the shooting of an arrow would
bring down a hawk from the hollow of the ether, and on dark
nights with a thrust of their spear-heads would cast out a fish
from the bottom of the sea; who thought the day of battle the
marriage-night and considered the pricks of lances the kisses of
fair maidens.

But first he dispatched a party of envoys to the Sultan to warn
him of his resolve to march against him and exact vengeance
for the slaying of the merchants. For ' be that warnetb hath an
excuse \

When he came to the region of Qayaligh, from amongst he
princes of that country Arslan-Khan 3 (who had previously
accepted submission and servitude and had guarded himself
against the severity of his punishment by humility and contempt
of self and riches, and had then been distinguished with favour)
set out from thence with his own men in the Khan's retinue.
And from Besh-Baligh there joined him the idi-qut with his
followers, and from Almaligh Siqnaq Tegin with men that
were veteran warriors ; and by these the number of his troops
was multiplied.

First of all they came to the town of Otrar

With awesomeness such that the lightning dared not step
forward nor the thunder preach aloud.

[64] They pitched his tent (bargah) in front of the citadel.
Now the Sultan had given Ghayir-Khan fifty thousand men
from his auxiliary (limnl) army and had sent Qaracha Khass-
Hajib, to his aid with another ten thousand : moreover, the
citadel, the outworks (fail), and the town wall had been well

1 Qarun, the Korah of the Old Testament, was proverbial for his great riches.

2 From a famous qasida by Abu-Ishaq Ibrahim b. Muhammad al~Ghazzi
in praise of the Turks. (M.Q.)

3 According to Juzjani (Raverty, 1004, 1023-6 and 1054-5) he afterwards
collaborated with Tolan Cherbi in the capture of two forts in what is now
Northern Afghanistan.

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

strengthened, and a great quantity of instruments of war collected
together. Ghayir-Khan for his part, having made everything
ready for battle within the town, posted infantry and cavalry
at the gates and himself mounted the wall ; where looking forth
he bit the back of his hand in amazement at the unexpected
sight. For he perceived that the plain had become a tossing sea
of countless hosts and splendid troops, while the air was full of
clamour and uproar from the neighing of armoured horses and
the roaring of mail-clad lions.

The air became blue, the earth ebony; the sea boiled

with the noise of the drums.
With his finger he pointed to the army on the plain, a

host to which there was no end. 4

The army formed several circles around the citadel ; and when
all the troops were assembled there, Chingiz-Khan dispatched
each of the leaders in a different direction. His eldest son 5 he
sent to Jand 6 and Barjligh-Kent 7 with several tiimen of brave
and active soldiers ; while a number of his commanders were
sent to Khojend and Fanakat. He himself proceeded against
Bokhara, leaving Ogetei and Chaghatai in command of the
army that was charged with the investment of Otrar.

As cavalry could be used on every side, the garrison kept up
a continuous battle and resisted for a space of five months.
Finally, when the position of the people of Otrar had become
desperate, Qaracha questioned Ghayir about surrendering and

*Shabnama ed. Vullers, 473, 11. 633 and 642. For K-juskSl fay* ' & c sea
boiled ' Vullers has ti-junM bamm * the plain was set in motion \

5 Le. Tushi (Jochi). See Chapter XIII for a detailed account of this expedi-
tion down the Syr Darya, which is passed over in complete 1 silence by the con-
temporary Moslem historians, Ibn-al-Athir, Juzjani and NasawL See Barthold,
Turkestan, 39. The Chinese sources, the Sbfagwu c^ln-Ahg h (Haenisch, Die
letzten Feldzuge Cin^ts Han's und seln Tod, 527) and the Yuan sbib (ffi# v 530,
Krause, 37) state simply that Jochi attacked Yang-chi-kan (Yangi-Kent), Pa-erh-
chen (Barchin) and other towns.

6 The ruins of Jand are situated not far from Kzyl Orda (the former Perovsk)
on the right bank of the Syr Darya.

7 B ARJLYT KNT. The Barchin of Carpini and the Parch'in (the Venice
edition has the corrupt form Kharch'in) of Kirakos. It lay somewhere between
Jand and Sughnaq.

i 8?

THE HISTORY OF

delivering up the town to the Mongols. But Ghayir knew that
he was the cause of these troubles and could not expect his life
to be spared by the Mongols ; and [65] he knew of no loop-
hole through which he might escape. Accordingly, he con-
tinued to struggle with all his might, knowing conciliation to
be inexpedient, and would not countenance surrender. * If/ he
said, * we are unfaithful to our master (meaning the Sultan),
how shall we excuse our treachery, and under what pretext shall
we escape from the reproaches of the Moslems ? * Qaracha, for
his part, did not persist in his argument, but waited until

When the sun became invisible to the world and the
dark night drew its skirt over the day. 8

he sallied forth with the greater part of his army from the Sufi-
Khana Gate. The Tartar army entered by the same gate during
the night and took Qaracha prisoner. When

The darkness of the East was dispersed by a perpendicular
line from the radiant morning,

they bore him to the princes together with some of his officers.
The princes saw fit to examine them closely in every manner.
Finally, they declared : * Thou hast been unfaithful to thy own
master in spite of his claims on thee on account of past favours.
Therefore neither can we expect fidelity of thee/ They caused
him and all his companions to attain the degree of martyrdom ; 9
while all the guilty and innocent of Otrar, both wearers of the
veil and those that donned kulah and turban, were driven forth
from the town like a flock of sheep, and the Mongols looted
whatever goods and wares there were to be found.
As for Ghayir, together with twenty thousand brave men and

8 Shahnama ed. Vullers, 474, 1. 653.

9 This was typical of the Mongols' attitude in such cases. Thus Kokochii,
the groom of Ong-Khan's son, Senggiim, was executed by Chingiz-Khan for
having left his master to perish in the desert. (Secret History, 188.) So too
the betrayers of the Conqueror's great rival, Jamuqa, were beheaded for their
pains, (ttid., 200.) On the other hand, Naya'a of the Ba'arin, who had
persuaded his father and brother to release a captured Tayichi'ut chieftain, a
bitter enemy of Chingiz-Khan, was actually rewarded for his conduct. (Itid.,
M9.)

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lion-like warriors he took refuge in the citadel ; and in accord-
ance with the verses

The taste of death in a despicable cause is like
the taste of death in a gnat cause

We are all destined to die, young and old; no one
remaineth in this world for ever.

they set their hearts upon death and having bid themselves fare-
well sallied forth fifty at a time and spitted their bodies upon
spears and swords.

The lances are clamouring on our side and on theirs,
the clamour of hungry crocodiles. 11

And as long as one of them had breath in his body they con-
tinued to fight; and for this reason many from the Mongol
army were slain. And so the battle went on for a whole month
[66] until only Ghayir and two others were left, and still he
continued to do battle and would not turn tail and flee. The
Mongol army entered the citadel and confined him to the roof;
but together with his two companions he still would not sur-
render. And as the soldiers had been ordered to take him
prisoner and not to slay him in battle, in obeying this order they
might not kill him. Meanwhile his companions had attained
the degree of martyrdom and he had no arms left. Maidens
then handed him bricks from the wall of the palace ; and when
these too were exhausted the Mongols closed in on him. And
after he had tried many wiles, and made many attacks, and
felled many men, he was led into the snare of captivity and was
firmly bound and placed in heavy chains. The citadel and the
walls were levelled with the street and the Mongols departed.
And those of the common people and artisans that had escaped
the sword they bore away with them, either to serve in the levy
(hashar) or to practise their trade. And when Chingiz-Khan
had come from Bokhara to Samarqand they proceeded thither

10 From a qasida by Mutanabbi. (M.Q.)

11 Muthallam b. Riyah al-Murri, a poet of the Hamasa. (M.Q.)

THE HISTORY OF

also. As for Ghayir, they caused him in the Kok-Sarai 12 to
drink the cup of annihilation and don the garb of eternity.

Such is the way of high Leaven ; in the one hand
it holds a crown, in the other a noose. 13

[XIII]

OF THE ADVANCE OF ULUSH-IDI l AGAINST JAND,
AND THE CONQUEST OF THAT REGION

THE world-obeyed command of the world-conqueror Chingiz-
Khan had been issued to the effect [67] that he should free that
region from the hands of enemies and that he should be accom-
panied by emirs representing each of the sons and kinsmen, just
as he too had delegated emirs and troops to represent him in the
other armies. In the month of ... he put this intention into
action and hastened off with a band of warriors like unto Fate,
whom no guile can prevent, or to Death, whom no weapon can
repel.
First of all, upon approaching the town of Suqnaq, 2 which lies

12 Apparently a suburb of Samarqand surrounding a palace of this name
(which was afterwards given to a palace built for Tamerlane). See Barthold,
Turkestan, 412, also below.

13 Sbabtutm ed. Vullers, 512, 1. 1234,

1 ALS AYDY (for which B and D have ALWS AYDY), the Ulus-Idi
of Rashid-ad-Din, 'the lord of the uks', i.e. Tushi (Jochi). See my article,
On the Titles Given in Juvaini to Certain Mongolian Princes, 148-52, where I sug-
gest that this tide, like Ulugh-Noyan in the case of Tolui, was bestowed upon
Jochi after his death to avoid the mention of his real name. Not realizing that
Ulus-Idi and Jochi were one and the same person, Rashid-ad-Din (Smirnova,
199-201) has represented the former as a general in joint command with the
latter; and Ulus-Idi has been identified by Berezin (XV, 171) with the J$-jut 9
the ruler of the Uighur, and by Barthold (Turkestan, 416, n. r) with Jedei Noyan
of the Manqut tribe. On the ulus or * peuple-patrimoine ' as distinct from the
apanage of land, the ywt or mwtuq, see Vladimirtsov, Le regime social des Mon&ols,
124 et $eq$..

2 SQNAQ. The ruins of Sughnaq or Si'qnaq, known as Sunak-Kurgan,
lie some six or seven miles north of the post station of Tumen-Aryk in Kazakhstan.
See Barthold, Turkestan, 179.

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on the banks of the river near Jand, he sent on Hasan Hajjl 3
In advance as his envoy. This Hasan Hajji, In his capacity of
merchant, had long been attached to the service of the world-
conquering Emperor and was enrolled In the tanks of his
followers. After delivering his message, by virtue of his acquaint-
ance and kinship with the Inhabitants he was to give them advice
and call upon them to submit so that their lives and property
might go unscathed. Having entered Suqnaq he communicated
his message but before he came to the advice, the rogues, rascals
and ruffians (shaman va aubash va mnud) of the town raised an
uproar, and shouting 'Allah akbar ! * did him to death ; holding
their action for one of holy war and desiring a great reward for
the slaying of this Moslem; whereas, in reality, that assault was
the cause of the opening of their jugular vein and that violence
was the reason for the death of all that multitude. f When the
appointed time is at hand, the camel hovers around the water^hoh!

When Ulush-Idi received tidings of this, he turned his
standards against Suqnaq, and, enflamed with the fire of anger,
he ordered his troops to fight in relays from morn till night.
For seven days they proceeded as he had commanded and took
the town by storm, closing the door of forgiveness and mercy
and in avenging one single individual expunging from the
record of life almost every trace of their existence.

The government of that place was entrusted to the son of the
murdered Hasan Hajji that he might gather together the survivors
that still remained in odd corners ; and advancing from thence
the Mongols took Ozkend 4 and Barjligh-Kant, where since [68]
the people made no great resistance there was no general slaughter.
They next proceeded against Ashnas, 5 the garrison of which
town consisted mainly of rogues and ruffians (mnud va aubash),

3 Hasan Hajji, as was already suggested by Barthold, op. at,, 414, is probably
to be identified with Asan, the Mohammedan trader whom the Mongols encoun-
tered at Baljuna. (Secret History, 182.)

4 See above, p. 64 and n. 9. The precise position of Ozkend is not known :
it may Jiave been situated in the Kara-Tau mountains. See Barthold, op. cit., X79-

5 ANAS. The ruins of Ashnas (known as Asanas) are situated on the
left bank of the Syr Darya, 17 miles from the river and 20 from the post station
of Ber-Kazan. See Barthold, op. dt., 179, n. 4.

THE HISTORY OF

who fought very bravely so that the greater part of them were
martyred.

When news of these events arrived in Jand, Qutlugh-Khan,
the commander-in-chief, together with a large army which the
Sultan had assigned to the defence of that district, complied
with the proverb ' He that escapeth with his head hath gained thereby ':
he rose up like a man, 6 turned his back in the night-time, set his
face to the road, and crossing the river made across the desert
towards Khorazm. When the Mongols received tidings of his
departure and of the evacuation of Jand by his forces, they sent
Chin-Temur 7 upon an embassy to the inhabitants. He used
conciliatory language but warned them against showing hostility.
Since there was no absolute leader or governor in Jand, each
man spoke according to what in his eyes seemed right or
expedient. The common people raised an uproar and attempted
to give Chin-Temur like Hasan 8 an unpalatable potion.
Chin-Temur, perceiving their intentions, in a speech fraught
with shrewdness, ingenuity, kindness and conciliation allayed
their passions by recalling the affair of Suqnaq and the fate of
those who had murdered Hasan Hajji; and he concluded a
treaty with them saying that he would not allow the foreign army
to interfere with Jand. The inhabitants were pleased with the
advice and the agreement and did him no injury. Returning
to Ulush-Idi he recounted his experiences, the attempt on his
life and its aversion by flattery and soft words, and described
also the weakness and impotence of the people and the divergence
of their views and passions. Although the Mongol army had

6 The expression must be used ironically.

7 JNTMWR. The name is Turkish and means * True Iron * from chin
* true * and femur * iron *. Cf. the name Edgii-Temur ' Good Iron *, as also
the compounds with Mad * steel ', Kiil-Bolat (* Glorious Steel ') and Mengii-
Bolad ('Eternal Steel'). Rashid-ad-Din states in one place (Khetagurov, 141)
that he belonged to the Ongiit tribe; elsewhere (Blochet, 37) he reproduces
Juvaini's statement (II, 218; ii, 482) that he was a Qara-Khitayan. Barthold,
op. dt. } 415, n. i, suggests that he was probably indebted to the Qara-Khitai
for his education or else may have been a Qara-Khitayan living amongst the
Ongtit. For his further history see below.

8 I.e. both like Hasan Hajji and like Hasan, the son of *Ali, who was poisoned
by one of his wives.

8*.

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intended [69] to rest at Qara-Qum 9 and not to attack Jaad 9
for this reason they turned their bridles thitherward and directed
their attention towards the capture of that town. On the 4th of
Safar, 616 [2ist of April, 1219] they halted in front of Jand;
and the army busied themselves with filling the moat and setting
up battering rams, catapults and scaling-ladders upon it. The
inhabitants of the town, apart from closing the gates and seating
themselves on the walls and embattlements like spectators at a
festival, made no preparations for battle. And since the greater
part of the citizens had never had any experience of warfare,
they marvelled at the Mongols* activities, saying, c How is it
possible to mount the walls of a fortress ? * However, when the
bridges had been built and the Mongols laid their scaling-ladders
against the citadel, they too were moved to action and began to
set a catapult in motion ; but a heavy stone in falling to earth
smashed the iron ring of the very catapult by which it had been
propelled. 10 Thereupon the Mongols scaled the wall from all
sides and threw open the gates. No one was hurt on either side.
The Mongols afterwards brought the inhabitants out of the town,
and since they had withdrawn their feet from battle they laid
the hand of mercy upon their heads and spared their Eves ;
though a small number of the chief men, who had been insolent
to Chin-Temiir, were put to death. For nine days and nights

9 The text has QRAQRWM, i.e. Qara-Qorum, but in II, 101 (ii, 37),
where it is described as * the place of residence of the Qanqli"*, M.Q, has adopted
the reading of G, viz. QRAQM, and identified it with the Kara Kom desert
to the north-east of the Sea of Aral (not to be confused with the other Kara Kum
between Khiva and Merv).

10 Cf. a similar episode during the siege of Mexico in 1521. A soldier who
had served in the Italian wars undertook to construct * a sort of catapult, a machine
for discharging stones of great size, which might take the place of the regular
battery-train in demolishing the buildings . . .

* . . . At length the work was finished; and the besieged, who with silent
awe had beheld from the neighbouring azoteas the progress of the mysterious
engine which was to lay the remainder of their capital in ruins, now looked with
terror for its operation. The machinery was set in motion ; and the rocky frag-
ment was discharged with a tremendous force from the catapult. But, instead
of taking the direction of the Aztec buildings, it rose high and perpendicularly
into the air, and, descending whence it sprung, broke the ill-omened machine
into splinters !' (Prescott, History of the Conquest of Mexico, Book VI, ch. vii.)

THE HISTORY OF

they kept the inhabitants upon the plain, while they looted the
town. They then appointed C AH Khoja to the government and
administration of Jand and entrusted the welfare of that district
to his care. This 'AH Khoja was a native of Qizhduvan u
near Bokhara and had entered the service of the Mongols long
before their rise to power. He became firmly established in this
office and came to be held in high repute ; and until the Decree
of Death for his dismissal went forth from the Palace of Fate,
he continued to occupy that post.

To the town of Kent 12 there proceeded a commander with one
tiimen of troops. He captured the town [70] and left a sbahna there.

As for Ulush-Idi he proceeded to Qara-Qum.

A band of Turcoman nomads, 13 some ten thousand in
number, were commanded to march against Khorazm with
Tainal 14 Noyan at their head. After a few days* march their
unlucky ascendant caused and instigated them to slay the Mongol
whom Tainal had set over them in his stead and to break into
rebellion. Tainal, who was marching in advance, returned to
quench the flame of their disorder and sedition and slew the
greater part of them, though some escaped by a hair's breadth
and together with another army reached Merv and Amuya, 15

11 Reading Q2DWAN for the QRDWAN of the text The present-day
Gizhduvan in Uzbekistan.

12 I.e. Yangi'-Kent (as in the corresponding passage in Rashid-ad-Din, Smir-
nova, 200), in Turkish * New Town * : the lankint of CarpinL Its ruins,
now known as Jankent, lie * to the south of the Syr-Darya, about three miles
from the former Khivan fortress of Jan Qal e a, fifteen miles from Kazalinsk '.
(Barthold, op. tit, 415-16.)

13 The Turcomans (in Persian Turkman, in Turkish Turkmen) are the earlier
Ghuzz. Both the Seljuqs and the later Ottomans belonged to this branch of
the Turkish family. The name according to Deny means something like * Turk
pur sang*. See Minorsky, HuM, 311.

14 TAYNAL. This Tainal Noyan is probably the same as the T'enal
Nuin of Grigor, 303. See Cleaves, The Mongolian Names and Terms, 430. It
is however also possible to read BAYNAL and identify him with the Benal
who accompanied Ghormaghun into Albania and Georgia (Grigor, 296).
See Cleaves, op. at,, 415-16.

15 Amiiya, more commonly known as Amul (not to be confused with the
Amul in Mazandaran) was situated on the left bank of the Oxus about 120 miles
to the north-east of Merv. See le Strange, Lanis of the Eastern Caliphate, 403-4.
It is the modern Charjui in Turkmenistan,

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where their numbers were greatly increased, as shall be recorded
in the proper place, God willing.

[XIV]

OF THE CAPTURE OF FANAKAT AND KHOJEND
AND THE STORY OF TEMUR MALIK 1

ALAQ NOYAN, Sogetii and Taqai 2 with an army of five
thousand men were dispatched to Fanakat The commander
of this place was Iletgii 3 Malik. With an army of Qanqli 4 he
fought a pitched battle for three days, and the Mongols made no
progress until on the fourth day

When the sun cast his lasso to the heights, and
Fate rose to high heaven

their opponents begged for quarter and came forth to make
surrender. Soldiers and burghers (arlab) were placed in separate
groups ; whereupon the former were executed to a man, some
by the sword and others by a shower of arrows, while the latter

1 His name means simply * Temiir the malik ', not * le Roi de fer * as it is trans-
lated by Grousset, L' Empire Mongol, 233.

3 All three generals are mentioned in the list of commanders of a thousand
in 202 of the Secret History. Alaq (ALAQ) was the brother of Naya'a of
the Ba'arin (on whom see above, p. 84, n. 9; also Khetagurov, 187). Sogetii
(SKTW), the Siiyiketii Cherbi of the Secret History (on the spelling see PelHot-
Hambis, Campagnes, 256), belonged to the Qongqotan ( 120). According to
Rashid-ad-Din (Khetagurov, 168) he was the brother of Kokchii or Teb-
Tengri, the shaman (see above, p. 39). This is however inconsistent with
the facts as given in the Secret History (be. citl), according to which Siiyiketii
attached himself to Chingiz-Khan on the morning after the latter's breach with
Jamuqa, whereas it was not till some time later, after there had been actual hos-
tilities between the two rivals, that Monglik, the father of Teb-Tengri, came with
his seven sons to declare his allegiance ( 130). As for Taqai (TQAY), he
had like Siiyiketii joined Chingiz-Khan immediately after the break with Jamuqa
( 120) : he belonged to the Suldiis tribe. On the spelling of his name see
Pelliot-Hambis, op. at., 255.

8 AYLTKW.

4 The Qanqli Turks (the Cangitae of Carpini and the Cangle of Rtibruck)
were closely associated with the Qipchaq or Comans.

THE HISTORY OF

were drafted into hundreds and tens. The craftsmen, artisans
and keepers of hunting animals (a$hak-i-javarih) [71] were assigned
[to appropriate employment]; and the young men amongst
those remaining were pressed into the levy (hashar).

The Mongols then advanced on Khojend. When they arrived
before the town, the citizens took refuge in the citadel and found
salvation from the calamities of Fate. The commander of the
citadel was Temiir Malik, of whom it might be said that had
Rustam 5 lived in his age he would have been fit only to be his
groom. In the middle of the river, where the stream divides into
two arms, he had fortified a tall stronghold and had entered it
with a thousand fighting men and famous warriors. When the
Mongol army arrived they found it impossible to capture the
place immediately since it could be reached neither by bowshot
nor by mangonel. They therefore drove the young men of
Khojend thither in a forced levy (hasbar) and also fetched rein-
forcements from Otrar, Bokhara, Samarqand and the other
towns and villages, so that fifty thousand levies and twenty
thousand Mongols were assembled in that place. These were
all formed into detachments of tens and hundreds. Over every
ten detachments often of the Taziks there was set a Mongol
officer : on foot they had to carry stones a distance of three
parasangs, and the Mongols, on horseback, dropped these stones
into the river. Now Temiir Malik had built twelve covered-in
barges, the damp felt of the covering being smeared with clay
kneaded with vinegar, while eye-holes had been left [to shoot
from]. Every day at dawn he would dispatch six of these barges
in either direction, and they would engage in fierce conflicts,
being unaffected by arrows. As for the fire, naphtha and stones
which the Mongols threw in the water he used to get rid of it
all ; and by night he used to make surprise attacks on them.
They tried to put a stop to this harrassing, but to no avail,
though both arrows and mangonels were employed. When the
situation had become difficult and the moment had come to win
fame or merit shame, at the time when the loaf-like disk of the

5 The chief hero of the Sbahwma, familiar to English readers from the Sobral
and Kustam of Matthew Arnold.

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sun became food in the belly of the earth and the world from
darkness was Uke a wretched hovel, he embarked his luggage,
goods and kit on seventy boats, which he had prepared for the
day of escape, while he himself and a group of his men mounted
a barge, held up torches and sped along over the water like a
flash of lightning, so that one might have said [72] :

A lightning Jlasb has plunged into the darkness pulling
down the curtain of night, a fash like the brandishing
of a polished sword.

The army moved along the banks of the river, and wherever
they appeared in force there he proceeded in the barge and
repelled them with arrows which, like Destiny, did not miss
their mark. And so he drove the boats on until he came to
Fanakat. Here the Mongols had drawn a chain across the river
in order to impede the boats. He stuck it one blow and passed
through, the armies attacking hitn from either side until he came
to the district of Jand and Barjligh. When news of him reached
the ears of Ulush-Idi, he stationed troops in Jand, on either side
of the river, constructed a bridge of boats and held ballistas in
readiness. Temiir Malik received tidings of the army awaiting
him: and when he drew near to Barjligh-Kent, he turned to
the desert, leaving the water, and fled like fire upon swift horses.
The Mongol army followed close at his heels; and so they
continued, whilst he for his part would send on his baggage in
advance and remain behind to do battle, wielding his sword
like a man. And when the baggage had been removed some
distance he would follow on. After he had fought in this
manner for several days, most of his men had been killed or
wounded ; and the Mongols, who grew daily stronger, took his
baggage away from him. He was left with only a handful of
followers, but still resisted, though to no avail. When the few
that still accompanied him had been slain and he had no weapon
left save three arrows, one broken and without a point, he was
pursued by three Mongols. Shooting the pointless arrow he
blinded one Mongol in the eye; upon which he said to the
two others : * I have two arrows left. I begrudge using them

THE HISTORY OF

when they are only enough for you two. It is in your best
interest to retire and so save your lives/ The Mongols accord-
ingly withdrew ; and he reached Khorazm and again prepared
for battle. With a group of men he proceeded to the town of
Kent, slew the Mongol sbatma and retreated. When [73] he
considered it inadvisable to remain any longer in Khorazm,
he set out after the Sultan, whom he joined on the road to
Shahristana. And for a time, while the Sultan was moving to
and fro, he gave proof of his abilities ; but after a while he
departed for Syria in the garb and character of a Sufi.

After some years, when these troubles had subsided and the
wounds of Time had been healed, the love of home and country
were the cause of his return, nay he was urged thereto by heavenly
decree. Arriving in Farghana he lived for several years in the
town of Osh, 6 in the places of pilgrimage ; and being advised
of the present state of affairs he used constantly to visit Khojend.
There he met with his son, to whom, by the good will of the
Court of Batu, had been granted (soyurghamisbt) his father's
goods and possessions. Temur approached him and said:
* If you sawst thine own father, wouldst thou know him again ? '
The son replied : * I was but a suckling when I was parted
from him; I should not recognize him. But there is a slave
here who would know him.* And he sent for the slave, who,
seeing the marks on Temiir's body, certified that it was indeed
he. His story was noised abroad, and some other persons, with
whom deposits had been made, would not accept him but
denied his identity. On this account he conceived the idea of
going to Qa'an and being viewed with the eye of his condescen-
sion and mercy. Upon the road he met with Qadaqan, 7 who
ordered him to be put in bonds; and all manner of words
having passed between them Qadaqan questioned him concern-
ing his fighting with the Mongol army.

6 Reading AWS for the ARS of the text. Osh, on the upper reaches of the
Syr Darya, now lies within the Soviet Republic of Kirghizia.

7 QDQAN. According to Rashid-ad-Din (Blochet, 13), who calls him
Qadan, as does also the Yuan sUh (see Hambis, Le chapitre CVII, 71), he was
he sixth son of Ogedei and was brought up in the ordtt of his uncle Chaghatai.

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

Sea and mountain have seen how I dealt with the

illustrious heroes of the Turanian host.
The stars bear witness thereto : by my valour is

the whole world beneath my feet. 8

The Mongol whom he had struck with the broken arrow,,
now recognised him; and Qadaqan having questioned him
more closely, in replying he neglected the ceremonies of respect
that are incumbent on those that speak in the presence of royalty.
In his anger Qadaqan let fly an arrow, which was the reply
to all the arrows which he had discharged on that former
occasion. [74]

He writhed in agony and then heaved a sigh; he
ceased to think of good or ill. 9

The wound proving fatal he was removed from this transient
dust-heap to the Abode of Eternity, and escaped from the
wilderness of

There is no refuge from death ani no escape therefrom.

O world, strange are thy deeds, it is thou that
breakest and thou too that mendest. 10

[XV]

A SHORT ACCOUNT OF THE CONQUEST OF TRANSOXIANA

TRANSOXIANA comprises many countries, regions, districts and
townships, but the kernel and cream thereof are Bokhara and
Samarqand. In the Mujam-al-Buldan 1 it is stated on the
authority of Huzaifa b. al-Yaman of Merv that the Apostle of
God (God be gracious to him and gmnt him peace!) said: ' There
shall fa conquered a city in Kborasan beyond a river which is called
the Oxus ; which city is named Bokhara. It is encompassed with

8 Sbabnama ed. Vullers, 488, 11. 502-3. See also the Introduction, pp. xxix
and xxxii.

9 Ife*4 503, 1. 1155. 10 IW., 489, L 9^4.

1 The work of the celebrated Arab geographer, Yaqut, a contemporary of
Juvaini.

THE HISTORY OF

God's mercy and surrounded by His angels ; its people are Heaven-
aided ; and whoso shall sleep upon a bed therein shall he like him that
draweth his sword in the way of God. And beyond it lieth a city which
is called Samarkand, wherein is a fountain of the fountains of Paradise,
and a tomb of the tombs of the prophets, and a garden of the gardens
of Paradise ; its dead, upon the Resurrection Day, shall be assembled
with the martyrs. And beyond this city there lieth holy ground, which
is called Qatavan, 2 wherefrom there shall be sent seventy thousand
martyrs, each of whom shall intercede for seventy of his family and
kinsfolk! We shall give a particular account of the fate of these
two cities ; and as for the authenticity of this tradition, it is
confirmed by the fact that the affairs of this world are relative
and that f some evil is lighter than other ' ; or, as has been said :

Under all circumstances gratitude best befitteth the
slave [of God], for much evil is worse than
[simple] evil.

Chingiz-Khan came to these countries in person. The tide
of calamity was surging up from the Tartar army, but he had
not yet soothed his breast with vengeance nor caused a river of
blood to flow, [75] as had been inscribed by the pen of Destiny
in the roll of Fate. When, therefore, he took Bokhara and
Samarqand, he contented himself with slaughtering and looting
once only, and did not go to the extreme of a general massacre.
As for the adjoining territories that were subject to these towns
or bordered on them, since for the most part they tendered sub-
mission, the hand of molestation was to some extent withheld
from them. And afterwards, the Mongols pacified the sur-
vivors and proceeded with work of reconstruction, so that at the
present time, i.e. in 658/1259-60, the prosperity and well-being
of these districts have in some cases attained their original level
and in others have closely approached it. It is otherwise with
Khorasan and Iraq, which countries are afflicted with a hectic
fever and a chronic ague : every town and every village has

2 The reference is to the disastrous defeat of Sultan Sanjar the Seljuq by the
Qara-Khitai in 1141 on the Qatavan steppe to the east of Samarqand. See
Barthold, Turkestan, $26. It was the news of this victory over the Moslems
that gave rise in Europe to the legend of Prester John.

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

been several times subjected to pillage and massacre and has
suffered this confusion for years, so that even though there be
generation and increase until the Resurrection the population
will not attain to a tenth part of what it was before. The
history thereof may be ascertained from the records of ruins and
midden-heaps declaring how Fate has painted her deeds upon
palace walls.

In accordance with the general expectation the reins of those
countries were placed in the competent hands of the Great
Minister Yalavach and his dutiful son the Emir Mas'ud Beg. 3
By their unerring judgement they repaired the ravages thereof
and struck the face of opponents with the saying, e The &mggist
may not repair what time hath ravaged*; and Yalavach abolished
compulsory service (muan) in the levies (hashar) and the dxng 4
as also the burdens and superfluities of occasional imposts
(*avarizat). And the truth of this statement is to be seen in the
records of freshness and prosperity (the glittering East of their
justice and mercy), which are plainly written on the pages of
those countries and are clearly visible in the affairs of the inhabit-
ants thereof.

[XVI]

OF THE CAPTURE OF BOKHARA

IN the Eastern countries it is the cupola of Islam and is in those
regions like unto the City of Peace. 1 Its environs are adorned
with the brightness of the light of doctors and jurists and its

3 Mahmud Yalavach was afterwards appointed by Ogedei to the governorship
of Khitai, i.e. Northern China, and his son Mas'ud to that of Uighuria, Khotan,
Kashghar and Transoxiana. See Rashid-ad-Din ed. Blochet, 85-6. (M.Q.)
Barthold, op. at., 396", n. 3, suggests the identity of Mahmud Yalavach with
Mahmud the Khorazmian, who according to Nasawi was one of the leaders
of Chingiz-Khan's embassy to Sultan Muhammad. The Secret History also
( 263) refers to Mahmud Yalavach and his son as Khorazmians (Qurumsht).

4 The Turco-Mongol word &tng 'soldier*, 'army* (it forms the second
element of janissary, in Ottoman Turkish -you dm, ''the new army') is used
by Juvaini in the sense of irregular forces collaborating with the Mongols.

1 I.e. Baghdad.

THE HISTORY OF

surroundings embellished with the rarest of high attainments.
[76] Since ancient times it has in every age been the place of
assembly of the great savants of every religion. Now the deriva-
tion of Bokhara is from ttukhar, which in the language of the
Magians signifies centre of learning. This word closely resembles
a word in the language of the Uighur and Khitayan idolaters,
who call their places of worship, which are idol-temples, lukbar.*
But at the time of its foundation the name of the town was
Bumijkath. 3

Chingiz-Khan, having completed the organization and equip-
ment of his armies, arrived in the countries of the Sultan ; and
dispatching his elder sons and the noyans in every direction at
the head of large forces, he himself advanced first upon Bokhara,
being accompanied by Toll alone of his elder sons and by a
host of fearless Turks that knew not clean from unclean, and
considered the bowl of war to be a basin of rich soup and held
a mouthful of the sword to be a beaker of wine.

He proceeded along the road to Zarnuq, 4 and in the morning
when the king of the planets raised his banner on the eastern
horizon, he arrived unexpectedly before the town. When the
inhabitants thereof who were unaware of the fraudulent designs
of Destiny, beheld the surrounding countryside choked with
horsemen and the air black as night with the dust of cavalry,
fright and panic overcame them, and fear and dread prevailed.
They betook themselves to the citadel and closed the gates,
thinking, * This is perhaps a single detachment of a great army
and a single wave from a raging sea/ It was their intention to
resist and to approach calamity on their own feet, but they were
aided by divine grace so that they stood firm and breathed not
opposition. At this juncture, the World-Emperor, in accord-

2 Le. the Buddhist vibam or monastery.

3 The old Soghdkn name Bumich-Kath, lit. 'land town', i.e. 'capital'.
See Marquart, Wehrot und Aung, i62n.

4 Zarnuq * is mentioned in the description of Timur's last march from Samar-
qand through the Jiknuta defile to Utrar [Otrar], as the last station before the
bank of the Syr-Darya '. (Barthold, Turkestan, 407.) It is also mentioned
(in the spelling Zufnukh) as the first stage after Otrar on the return journey of
the King of Little Armenia from the Court of Mongke. (Kirakos, 215.)

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ance with his constant practice, dispatched Danishmand Hajib
upon an embassy to them, to announce the arrival of his forces
and to advise them to stand out of the way of a dreadful deluge.
Some of the inhabitants, who were in the category of ' r Satan
gotten mastery over them', 5 were minded to do him harm and
mischief; whereupon he raised a shout, saying : * I am such-
and-such a person, a Moslem and the son of a Moslem. Seeking
God's pleasure I am come on an embassy to you, at the inflexible
command of Chingiz-Khan, to draw you out of the whirpool
of destruction and the trough of blood. [77] It is Chingiz-
Khan himself who has come with many thousands of warriors.
The battle has reached thus far. If you are incited to resist in
any way, in an hour's time your citadel will be level ground and
the plain a sea of blood. But if you will listen to advice and
exhortation with the ear of intelligence and consideration and
become submissive and obedient to his command, your lives
and property will remain in the stronghold of security. 9 When
the people, both nobles and commoners, had heard his words,
which bore the brand of veracity, they did not refuse to accept
his advice, knowing for certain that the flood might not be
stemmed by their obstructing his passage nor might the quaking
of the mountains and the earth be quietened and allayed by the
pressure of their feet. And so they held it proper to choose peace
and advantageous to accept advice. But by way of caution and
security they obtained from him a covenant that if, after the
people had gone forth to meet the Khan and obeyed his com-
mand, any harm should befall any one of them, the retribution
thereof should be on his head. Thus were the people's minds
set at ease, and they withdrew their feet from the thought of
transgression and turned their faces towards the path of advantage.
The chief men of Zarnuq sent forward a delegation bearing
presents. When these came to the place where the Emperor's
cavalry had halted, he asked about their leaders and notables
and was wroth with them for their dilatoriness in remaining
behind. He dispatched a messenger to summon them to his
presence. Because of the great awe in which the Emperor was

6 Koran, Iviii, 20.

K 99

THE HISTORY OF

held a tremor of horror appeared on the limbs of these people like
the quaking of the members of a mountain. They at once
proceeded to his presence; and when they arrived he treated
them with mercy and clemency and spared their lives, so that
they were once more of good heart. An order was then issued
that everyone in Zarnuq be he who he might both such as
donned kukb and turban and such as wore kerchief and veil,
should go out of the town on to the plain. The citadel was
turned into level ground ; and after a counting of heads they made
a levy of the youths and young men for the attack on Bokhara,
while the rest of the people were suffered to return home. They
gave the place the name of Qutlugh-Baligh. 6 A guide, one of
the Turcomans of that region, [78] who had a perfect knowledge
of the roads and highways, led them on by a little frequented
road ; which road has ever since been called the Khans Road.
(In the year 649/1251-2, when journeying to the Court of
Mengii Qa'an in the company of the Emir Arghun we passed
along this very road.)

Tayir Bahadur 7 was proceeding in advance of the main
forces. When he and his men drew near to the town of Nur 8
they passed through some gardens. During the night they felled
the trees and fashioned ladders out of them. Then holding the
ladders in front of their horses they advanced very slowly ; and
the watcher on the walls thought that they were a caravan of
merchants, until in this manner they arrived at the gates of the
citadel of Nur; when the day of that people was darkened and
their eyes dimmed.

It is the story of Zarqa of Yamama. 9 She had built a lofty
castle, and her keenness of sight was such that if an enemy
attempted to attack her she would descry his army at a distance
of several stages and would prepare and make ready to repel
him and drive him off. And so her enemies achieved nought

6 I.e. *the Fortunate Town*.

7 The Dayir of the Secret History ( 202) and Rashid-ad-Din. According
to the latter (Khetagurov, 168, Smirnova, 275) he belonged to the Qonqotan.

8 Now Nurata in Uzbekistan.

9 I.e. the Blue-Eyed Woman of Yamama. See Nicholson, A Literary History
of the Arabs, 25.

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but frustration and there remained no stratagem which
not tried. [Finally one of them] commanded that should
be cut down with their branches and that each horseman should
hold a tree in front of him. Thereupon Zarqa exclaimed:
* I see a strange sight : the likeness of a forest is moving towards
us/ Her people said : * The keenness of thy sight hath suffered
some hurt, else how should trees move ? ? They neglected to
watch or take precautions; and on the third day their foes
arrived, and overcame them, and took Zarqa prisoner,, and
slew her.

To be brief, the people of Nur closed their gates ; and Tayir
Bahadur sent an envoy to announce the arrival of the World-
Conquering Emperor and to induce them to submit and cease
resistance. The feelings of the inhabitants were conflicting,
because they did not believe that the World-Conquering
Emperor Chingiz-Khan had .arrived in person, and on the other
hand they were apprehensive about the Sultan. They were
therefore uncertain what course to take, some being in favour
of submission and surrender while others were for resistance or
were afraid [to take any action]. Finally, after much coining
and going of ambassadors it was agreed that the people of Nur
should prepare an offering of food and send it to the Lord of
the Age together with an envoy, and so declare their submission
and seek refuge in servitude and obedience. [79] Tayir Bahadur
gave his consent and was satisfied with only a small offering.
He then went his own way ; and the people of Nur dispatched
an envoy in the manner that had been agreed upon. After the
envoys [sic] had been honoured with the Emperor's acceptance
of their offering, he commanded that they should surrender the
town to Siibetei, 10 who was approaching Nur with the vanguard.
When Siibetei arrived they complied with this command and

10 SBTAY. The great Mongol general, who together with Jebe (Yeme)
swept across Northern Persia in pursuit of Sultan Muhammad, crossed the
Caucasus and, after defeating the Russians on the Kalka, returned to Chingiz-
Khan by way of the Qipchaq Steppe. See below, Chapter XXV ; also Grous-
set, L'Empire Mongol, 257-61 and 515-21, Le Conqiilmnt du Monde, 340-6. In
the Secret History his name is spelt Sube'etei; he belonged to the Uriangqat
tribe (ilil., 120, Khetagurov, 159).

IOI

THE HISTORY OF

delivered up the town. Hereupon an agreement was reached
that the people of Nur should be content with the deliverance
of the community from danger and the retention of what was
absolutely necessary for their livelihood and the pursuit of
husbandry and agriculture, such as sheep and cows; and that
they should go out on to the plain leaving their houses exactly
as they were so that they might be looted by the army. They
executed this order, and the army entered the town and bore
off whatever they found there. The Mongols abided by this
agreement and did no harm to any of them. The people of
Nur then selected sixty men and dispatched them, together with
Il-Khoja, the son of the Emir of Nur, to Dabus 11 to render
assistance to the Mongols. When Chingiz-Khan arrived, they
went forth to meet him bearing suitable [presents] in the way
of tuzgbtt I2 and offerings of food (nuzl). Chingiz-Khan dis-
tinguished them with royal favour and asked them what fixed
taxes (mdl-i-q&mn) the Sultan drew from Nur. They replied
that these amounted to 1500 dinars ; and he commanded them
to pay this sum in cash and they should suffer no further incon-
venience. Half of this amount was produced from the women's
ear-rings, and they gave security for the rest and [finally] paid
it to the Mongols. And so were the people of Nur delivered
from the humiliation of Tartar bondage and slavery, and Nur
regained its splendour 13 and prosperity.

And from thence Chingiz-Khan proceeded to Bokhara, and
in the beginning of Muharram, 617 [March, I22o], 14 he
encamped before the gates of the citadel.

And then they pitched the king's pavilion on the
plain in front of the stronghold. 15

11 Dabus or Dabuslya ky on the highroad between Bokhara and Samarqand.
The name is preserved in the ruins of Qal'a-yi-Dabus somewhat to the east of
Ziaddin. See Barthold, op. dt., 97.

12 Reading TZIW for the TRTW of the text. The Turkish tuz$u, like
its Arabic equivalent nuzl, means *food offered to the passing traveller*. The
word occurs in Grigor (300) in the form tzgbu. See also Cleaves, The Mongolian
Names, 442. 13 Lit. * light * (nur) : a pun on the name.

14 In February according to Ibn-al-Athir and Juzjani. See Barthold, op.
dt-> 400- 15 Sbabttama ed. Vullers, 474, 1. 651.

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[80] And his troops were more numerous than ants or locusts,
being in their multitude beyond estimation or computation,
Detachment after detachment arrived, each like a billowing sea,,
and encamped round about the town. At sunrise twenty
thousand men from the Sultan's auxiliary (Uruni) army issued
forth from the citadel together with most of the inhabitants ;
being commanded by Kok-Khan 1@ and other officers such as
Khamid-Bur, 17 Sevinch-Khan 18 and KcshK-Khan." Kok-
Khan was said to be a Mongol and to have ied from Chingiz-
Khan and joined the Sultan (the proof of which
rest with their author) ; as a consequence of which his affairs
had greatly prospered. When these forces reached the banks of
the Oxus, the patrols and advance parties of the Mongol army
fell upon them and left no trace of them.

When it is impossible to /lee from destruction in any
manner, then patience is the lest and wisest course.***

On the following day when from the reflection of the sun
the plain seemed to be a tray filled with blood, the people of
Bokhara opened their gates and closed the door of strife and
battle. The imams and notables came on a deputation to Chingiz-
Khan, who entered to inspect the town and the citadel He
rode into the Friday mosque and pulled up before the ma^suta,
whereupon his son Toli dismounted and ascended the pulpit,
Chingiz-Khan asked those present whether this was the palace

16 C has KWR XAN, i.e. Giir-Khan, and it has been suggested by Barthold,
Histoire ties Turcs, 119-20, that this was no other than Chingiz-Khan's old rival
Jamuqa, who as the head of a confederation opposed to his former friend received
the title ofgur-khan. See Grousset, Le Consultant du Mon$e> 132. On the other
hand, according to the native sources he had been executed by Chinglz-Khan
many years before the campaign against the West. See Grousset, op. tit, 206-10.

17 XMYD BWR. Perhaps Harold-Pur. He was a Qara-Khitayan and
the brother of Baraq Hajib, the first of the Qutlugh-Khans of Kerman. See
below, ii, ^76.

18 SWNJ XAN.

19 KLY XAN. His full name was Ikhtiyar-ad-Din Keshli or Kiishlii;
he was the Grand Equerry (amir-akhur) of the Khorazm-Shah. See Nasawi tr.
Houdas, 62 and 80, and Rashid-ad-Din (Smirnova, 191 and 205) ; also Barthold,
Turkestan, 409.

20 From a aasida by Abu-Firas al-Hamdani. (M.Q.)

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THE HISTORY OF

of the Sultan ; they replied that It was the house of God. Then
he too got down from his horse, and mounting two or three
steps of the pulpit he exclaimed : * The countryside is empty of
fodder; fill our horses* bellies/ Whereupon they opened all
the magazines In the town and began carrying off the grain.
And they brought the cases In which the Korans were kept out
Into the courtyard of the mosque, where they cast the Korans
right and left and turned the cases Into mangers for their horses.
After which they circulated cups of wine and sent for the
singing-girls of the town to sing and dance for them ; while
the Mongols raised their voices to the tunes of their own songs.
[81] Meanwhile, the imams, shaikhs, say y ids, doctors and scholars
of the age kept watch over their horses in the stable under the
supervision of the equerries, and executed their commands.
After an hour or two Chingiz-Khan arose to return to his camp,
and as the multitude that had been gathered there moved away
the leaves of the Koran were trampled in the dirt beneath their
own feet and their horses* hoofs. In that moment, the Emir
Imam Jalal-ad-Din 'All b. al-Hasan Zaidi, 21 who was the chief
and leader of the sayyids of Transoxiana and was famous for his
piety and asceticism, turned to the learned imam Rukn-ad-Din
Imamzada, who was one of the most excellent savants in the
world may God render pleasant the resting-places of them loth
and said : ' Maulana, what state is this ?

That which I see do I see it in wakefulness or in sleep, O Lord ? * 22

Maulana Imamzada answered : * Be silent : it is the wind of
God's omnipotence that bloweth, and we have no power to
speak/

When Chingiz-Khan left the town he went to the festival
musalla and mounted the pulpit ; and, the people having been
assembled, he asked which were the wealthy amongst them.
Two hundred and eighty persons were designated (a hundred
and ninety of them being natives of the town and the rest strangers,

21 So according to C, D and E. The text has RNDY. Barthold, op. tit.,
410, reads Zandl with B (ZNDY).

22 Anvari. Quoted also below, ii, 639.

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viz. ninety merchants from various places and led

him. He then began a speech, in which, describing the

resistance and treachery of the Sultan (of which more
enough has been said already) he addressed them as follows;
* O people, know that you have committed great sins, and that
the great ones among you have committed these sins. If you
ask me what proof I have for these words, I say it is because 1
am the punishment of God. If you had not committed great
sins, God would not have sent a punishment like me upon
you/ When he had finished speaking in this strain, he con-
tinued his discourse with words of admonition, saying, * There
is no need to declare your property that is on the face of the
earth ; [82] tell me of that which is in the belly of the earth.*
Then he asked them who were their men of authority ; and
each man indicated his own people. To each of them he assigned
a Mongol or Turk 23 as lasqaq 24 in order that the soldiers might
not molest them, and, although not subjecting them to disgrace
or humiliation, they began to exact money from these men;
and when they delivered it up they did not torment them by
excessive punishment or demanding what was beyond their
power to pay. And every day, at the rising of the greater
luminary, the guards would bring a party of notables to the
audience-hall of the World-Emperor.

Chingiz-Khan had given orders for the Sultan's troops to be
driven out of the interior of the town and the citadel. As it
was impossible to accomplish this purpose by employing the

23 Reading TRKY with C and E for the YZKY (i.e. yaute *a patrol 9 )
of the text.

24 The Turkish equivalent of the Arabo-Persian sbahna (see above, p. 44,
n. 3) and the Mongol darugba or darugbachi(n)* On the identity in meaning
of the Turkish and Mongol terms see Pelliot, Horde I' Or, 72-3, n. I. Both
are derived from roots (Turkish las- and Mongol daw-) meaning * to press "
but not in the sense of one who * presses ', i.e. oppresses, the people but of one
who * affixes * a seal. The Turkish term was used by the Russian chroniclers
(see Vernadsky, The Mongols and Russia, 220) and also by Carpini : * Bastacos
[*bascacos] sive prefectos suos ponunt in terra illorum quos redire permittunt,
quibus oportet ut ad nutum tarn duces quam alii debeant obedire. Et si homines
alicuius civitatis vel terre non faciunt quod voluntisti bastaki [*bascaki] opponunt
eis quod sint Tartaris infideles . . / (Wyngaert, 86.)

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THE HISTORY OF

townspeople and as these troops, being in fear of their lives, were
fighting,, and doing battle, and making night attacks as much as
was possible, he now gave orders for all the quarters of the town
to be set on fire; and since the houses were built entirely of
wood, within several days the greater part of the town had been
consumed, with the exception of the Friday mosque and some
of the palaces, which were built with baked bricks. Then the
people of Bokhara were driven against the citadel. And on
either side the furnace of battle was heated. On the outside,
mangonels were erected, bows bent and stones and arrows dis-
charged ; and on the Inside, ballistas and pots of naphtha were
set in motion. It was like a red-hot furnace fed from without
by hard sticks thrust into the recesses, while from the belly of
the furnace sparks shoot into the air. For days they fought in
this manner; the garrison made sallies against the besiegers, an4
Kok-Khan in particular, who in bravery would have borne the
palm from male lions, engaged in many battles : in each attack
he overthrew several persons and alone repelled a great army.
But finally they were reduced to the last extremity; resistance
was no longer in their power; and they stood excused before
God and man. The moat had been filled with animate and
inanimate and raised up with levies and Bokharians ; the out-
works (fasti) had been captured [83] and fire hurled into the
citadel; and their khans, leaders and notables, who were the
chief men of the age and the favourites of the Sultan and who
in their glory would set their feet on the head of Heaven, now
became the captives of abasement and were drowned in the sea
of annihilation.

Fate phyeth with mmUni the game of the sticks with

the Ml
Or the game of the wind Mowing (know thou !) a handful

of millet.
Fate is a hmter, and man is wujht but a Iark. u

Of the Qanqli no male was spared who stood higher than the
butt of a whip and more than thirty thousand were counted

25 By the Cadi Abul-Fadl Ahmad b. Muhammad ar-Rashidi al-Laukari.
Quoted in the Tatimmat-al-Yatfma, (M.Q.) See EghbaTs ed., II, 77.

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WORLD-CONQUEROR

amongst the slain ; whilst their small children, the of

their nobles and their womenfolk, slender as the
reduced to slavery.

When the town and the citadel had been purged of
and the walls and outworks levelled with the dost, all the
inhabitants of the town, men and women* ugly and
were driven out on to the field of the mwalla. Chingiz-Khan
spared their lives ; but the youths and full-grown men that were
fit for such service were pressed into a levy (hasbar) for the attack
on Samarqand and Dabusiya. Chingiz-Khan then proceeded
against Samarqand ; and the people of Bokhara, because of the
desolation, were scattered* -like the constellation of the Bear and
departed into the villages, while the site of the town became like
' a level plain '

Now one man had escaped from Bokhara after its capture
and had come to Khorasan. He was questioned about the fate
of that city and replied : * They came, they sapped, they burnt,
they slew, they plundered and they departed/ Men of under-
standing who heard this description were all agreed that in the
Persian language there could be nothing more concise than this
speech. And indeed all that has been written in this chapter
is summed up and epitomized in these two or three words.

After the capture of Samarqand Chingiz-Khan appointed
Tausha Basqaq 27 [84] to the command and governorship of
the district of Bokhara. He proceeded thither and the town
made some little progress towards prosperity. Finally, when, by
the order of the World-Emperor, the latter-day Hatim, 28 Qa'an,
the keys of government were placed in the solicitous hands of
the Minister Yalavach, those scattered and dispersed in nooks
and crannies were by the magnet of his justice and clemency
attracted back to their former homes, and from all parts of the
world people turned their faces thitherward ; for because of his

26 Koran, xx, 106.

27 I.e. Tausha the Iwqaq. Tne text nas TWA, which might also be read
Tusha or Tosha, but cf. below, I, 87, the variant spelling TMA, i.e. apparently
Tamsha.

28 Le. Hatim of Tayyf, a pre-Iskmic Arab famous for his generosity and
hospitality. See Nicholson, op. dt, 85-7.

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THE HISTORY OF

solicitude the prosperity of the town was on the increase, nay it
reached its highest pitch and its territory became the home of
the great and noble and the place of assembly of patrician and
plebeian.

Suddenly in the year 636/1238-9 a sieve-maker of Tarab in
the district of Bokhara rose up in rebellion in the dress of the
people of rags, 29 and the common people rallied to his standard;
and finally things came to such a pass that orders were given for
the execution of all the inhabitants of Bokhara. But the Minister
Yalavach, like a good prayer, averted their evil fate and by his
mercy and solicitude repelled from them this sudden calamity.
And that territory regained its splendour and prosperity and the
affairs thereof recovered their lustre. And day by day the bounty
of God's favour, by dint of which mercy and compassion every-
where form the carpet of justice and munificence, shines forth
like the sun in the mercy of Mahmud and the pearl of that sea,
namely Mas'ud. 30 And to-day no town in the countries of
Islam will bear comparison with Bokhara in the thronging of
its creatures, the multitude of movable and immovable wealth,
the concourse of savants, the flourishing of science and the
students thereof and the establishment of pious endowments.
Two edifices of lofty porch and firm foundation that were built
in this place at this period are the Madrasa-yi-Khani built by
Sorqotani 21 [85] and the Madrasa-yi-Mas'udiya, in each of

29 I.e. the Sufis.

30 Le. Mahmud Yalavach and his son Mas'ud. See above, p. 97, n. 3.

31 The Sorqaqtani of the Secret History, Sorqoqtani of Rashid-ad-Din and
Seroctan (*Soroctan) of Carpini. She was the younger daughter of Ja-Gamhu,
the brother of Ong-Khan, the ruler of the Kereit. After the final defeat of that
people Chingiz-Khan gave her in marriage to his youngest son, Tolui, and
she became die mother of Mongke, Qubilai, Hulegii and Arigh Boke. The
name of this princess is discussed at length by Pelliot in his article, Le vrd nom
de Serotan; see also Cmpagnes, 66-7 and 133. It is the feminine form of a
name which appears as Sorqatu in the Secret History and Sorqoqtu in Rashid-ad-
Din and is an adjective in -to from a word sorqaq> sorqoq or sorqan ' birthmark *.
The meaning of Sorqaqtani, etc., is therefore * she that has a birthmark '. As
lor the form of die name in Juvaini, the text has everywhere (except in one in-
stance) SRQWYTY, but there is MS. authority for a form SRQWTNY,
which is also the reading of Barhebraeus in both his Syriac and his Arabic
history. I see in this form, viz. Sorqotani, the feminine of a form Sorqotu corre-

108

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which every day a thousand students are In

studies, while the professors are the greatest of the age

and the wonders of their day. And indeed two
with their lofty pillars and trim courts at once adorn and
Bokhara, nay they are an ornament and delight to all Islam,

Under these circumstances the people of Bokhara
regained some comfort as well as relief from subventions and
similar burdens. May God Almighty adorn the surface of the
earth with the continuance of the Just King's being and with
the splendour of Islam and the Hanafite faith !

[XVII]

OF THE REBELLION OF THE TARABI l

IN the year 636/1238-9 there was a conjunction of the two
malefic planets 2 in the house of Cancer, and the astrologers had
calculated that an insurrection would break out and that perhaps
a heretic would arise.

Three parasangs from Bokhara there lies a village called Tarab,
in which there dwelt a man named Mahmud, a sieve-maker, of
whom it was said that in stupidity and ignorance he had not his
equal. This man began to sham and counterfeit piety and
saintliness and claimed to have powers of magic (pan-dan), Lc.
he asserted that jinns held converse with him and informed him
of what was hidden.

For in Transoxiana and Turkestan many persons, especially
women, claim to have magical powers ; and when anyone has
a pain or falls ill, they visit him, summon the exorcist (pan-
kbwan), perform dances and similar nonsense and in this manner
convince the ignorant and the vulgar.

spending to the Sorqatu of the Secret History. On the other hand, in one place
(H, 219) the text has SRQWQYTY, i.e. SRQWQTNY, the Soiqoqtani of
Rashid-ad-Din, and it may be that the normal SRQWYTY is also a cor-
ruption of this form.

1 This chapter is the subject of an article by A. Yakubovsky (Vosstiwyt
v 123%) in Tw& Instit. Vostokovel, XVII, 1936. (V.M.)

2 I.e. Saturn and Mars.

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THE HISTORY OF

Mahmud's sister used to Instruct him in all the absurdities of
the magicians (pan-damn) [86] which he would at once spread
abroad. Now what can the vulgar do but follow their ignor-
ance ? And in fact the common people turned towards him,
and wherever there was a paralytic or one afflicted In any way
they would bring him to Mahmud. It chanced that one or
two of the persons that were brought to him in this way were
found [afterwards] to bear signs of health ; whereupon most of
the people turned towards him, both the nobility and the
commonalty, 'save them that shall come to God with a sound
hart '. 3

In Bokhara I heard from several respectable and creditable
persons how In their actual presence he had blown a medicine
prepared from dogs* excrement into the eyes of one or two blind
persons, and how they had recovered their sight. I replied:
c The seeing were blind, or else this was a miracle of Jesus, the
son of Mary, and no one else. As God Almighty hath said :
ff Thou didst heal the ttind and the leper" 4 As for me, if I should
see such things with my own eyes, I should concern myself with
the treatment of my eyesight/

Now in Bokhara there was a learned man, renowned for his
virtue and descent, whose laqab was Shams-ad-DIn Mahbubi.
This man, by reason of his prejudice against the imams of
Bokhara, aggravated the disease of that madman and joined the
band of his followers, telling that ignoramus how his father had
recorded and written in a book that from Tarab of Bokhara
there should arise a mighty lord, who should conquer the world ;
and had Indicated the signs thereof, which were manifest on
Mahmud.

By this deception the ignorant, foolish man became even more
puffed up with pride ; and since these words agreed with the
calculation of the astrologers, his followers increased in number,
the whole town and region turned towards him, and confusion
and unrest became apparent. The emirs and tasqaqs that were
present in Bokhara consulted with one another as to the means
of quenching the flame of the turmoil and dispatched a messenger
3 Koran, xxvi, 89. 4 Jfe? v v, no.

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to Khojend to the Minister Yalavach, to acquaint the

situation. Meanwhile, under the of

a blessing, they went to Tarab and besought Mahmud to
to Bokhara that the city also might be adorned with his presence.
It had been arranged that when he reached Sar-i-Pel 5 near
Vazidan he should be suddenly assailed with a shower of
arrows. When they set out from Tarab, he observed signs of
displeasure in their attitude ; and when they drew near to Sari-
Pul, [87] he turned to Tamsha, 6 who was the senior and

said : * Desist from thy evil intent, else I will command that
without the intervention of human hand thy world-comprehend-
ing eye be wrenched out/ When the Mongols heard these
words, they said : * It is certain that no one has advised him of
our intention ; perhaps everything he says is true.* They were
afraid, and did him no harm ; and so he came to Bokhara and
alighted at the palace of Sanjar-Malik.

The emirs, grandees and chief men surpassed themselves in
showing him honours and attentions, while all the time they
sought an opportunity to slay him; but the common people
were in the majority and that quarter of the town where he was
lodged and the neighbouring bazaar were so filled with people
that there was not even room for a cat to pass. The thronging
of the people soon passed all bounds ; and as they refused to
depart without his blessing and there were no ways of entry lei
and it was equally impossible for him to come out, he went up
on the roof of the palace and rained down spittle upon them.
Every person on whom there fell a sprinkling departed to his
home smiling and contented.

One of the followers of his error then informed him of those
people's 7 intention; and all at once he stole out of a doorway
and mounted one of the horses that were fastened there. The
onlookers, being strangers, did not know who he was and paid
no attention to him. In one gallop he reached the hill of Abu-

5 Vazidan has not been identified. Sar-i-Pul, * the Bridgehead ', is the older
Khushufaghn. The ruins of the fortress of this name are situated 4 miles from
Katta-Kurgan. See Barthold, Turkestan, 126-7.

6 TMA. Called Tausha above, p. 107. 7 I.e. the Mongols'.

Ill

THE HISTORY OF

Hafs ; and In one moment a crowd of people were gathered
around him. After some rime [the Mongols] sought that foolish
man and could not find him. Horsemen galloped in all direc-
tions in search of him, until all at once they discovered him at
the top of the aforesaid hill. They returned and reported his
whereabouts. The common people raised up a shout, saying :
* With one stroke of his wings the Master (Khoja) has flown to
Abu-Hafs/ And at once the reins of choice felt from the hands
of great and small, and the greater part of the people turned their
faces towards the open country and Abu-Hafs, and gathered
around Mahmud.

At the time of the evening prayer he rose up, and turning
towards the people spoke as follows : * O men of God, why do
you linger and wait ? The world must be purged of the infidel.
Let each of you equip himself as best he can, with weapon or
tool, staff or club, and set to work.*

Upon this all men in Bokhara turned towards him; and
that day being Friday he re-entered the town, alighted at the
palace of Rabf Malik and sent for the sadrs, grandees and notables
of the town. [88] He superseded the chief of the sadrs, nay of
the age, Burhan-ad~Din, the seed of the house of Burhan and
the last of the race of Sadr-Jahan, 8 because he had no defect in
reason or virtue ; and in his stead he appointed Shams Mahbubi
to the office ofsadr. And he insulted most of the grandees and
notables and besmirched their honour ; some of them he slew
but others succeeded in escaping.

Thereupon he sought the favour of the vulgar and dissolute
(*avamm va wntid) by speaking as follows : * My army is partly
visible, consisting of men, and partly invisible, consisting of the
heavenly hosts, which fly in the air, and of the tribe of the jinns,

8 On this * dynasty of hereditary raises of the town . . . which from the
name of its founder was entitled * f the house of Burhan*'/ see Barthold, op. dt.,
326 and 353-4* * The office of rals, head of a town and its neighbourhood,
was not infrequently hereditary from father to son ... The ra'Is was the chief
person in the town and the representative of its interests ; through him the sovereign
made known his will to the inhabitants. It is very probable that, at any rate
at first, they were nominated from amongst the members of important local
families.* (Itii, 234.)

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which walk on the earth. And now 1 will to

also. Look at the heaven and the earth that you see the
proof of my claim/ The initiated amongst his followers
to look, and he would say : * Behold ! in such-and-such a
place they fly in green raiment, and in the same place they also
fly in garments of white/ The vulgar (*av$mm) agreed wich all
he said ; and whenever anyone said, * I see nothing, 9 his eyes
were opened with the cudgel.

He also kept saying : c God Almighty will send us .arms
from the invisible*; and at this juncture a merchant arrived
from Shiraz bringing four kbawars of swords. After that the
people no longer entertained any doubt as to victory ; and that
Friday the khutla was read in Mahmud's name as Sultan of
Bokhara.

When the prayers were concluded he sent to the houses of
the great to fetch tents, ywts, carpets and rugs. And the people
formed themselves into large bands, and the rogues and ruffians
(runSd va at&asb) entered the houses of the wealthy and set their
hands to pillage and plunder. When night fell, the Sultan
suddenly retired to the company of peri-like maidens and heart-
ravishing damsels and engaged in pleasant dalliance with them.
In the morning he performed the ceremonial purification in a
tank of water, in accordance with the verse :

When she left me she wasbeJ me, as though we W hen
applying ourselves to ivbat was

By way of seeking favour and a blessing the people divided this
water into portions of a maund and a daramsang and made them
into potions for the sick. As for the property they had obtained,
Mahmud bestowed it on this man and that and shared it out
(fajnqa) amongst his troops and associates.

[89] When his sister saw his pre-occupation with women
and riches, she seceded from his faction, saying : * His cause,
which came into being through me, has changed for the
worse/

Meanwhile the emirs and sadrs, who had read the verse of

9 Mutanabbi. (M.Q.)

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THE HISTORY OF

* Flight \ assembled in Karminiya, 10 and calling together the
Mongols that were stationed in that area, they fitted out an army
of such troops as could be mustered from every side and advanced
on Bokhara. Mahmud, too, made preparations for battle and
marched to encounter the Mongol army with a band of market
loungers clad only in shirt and izar. Both sides put themselves
in battle-array, the Tarabi and Mahbubi standing in their ranks
without weapon or breast-plate* Now it had been spread
abroad among the people that whoever moved a hand against
Mahmud would become paralysed (kbwbk) ; consequently this
army too were somewhat slow in stretching their hands to sword
and bow. Nevertheless, one of their number let fly an arrow,
which struck him in a vital part, while another of them shot
Mahbubi also ; but no one was aware of this either of his own
people or of their other opponents. At this juncture a strong
wind arose and the dust was stirred up to such an extent that
they could not see one another. The enemy thought that this
was one of the Tarabf s miracles ; and they withdrew their
hands from battle and set their faces towards flight, with the
Tarabfs army at their heels. The people of the country districts
issuing forth from their villages fell upon the fugitives with
spades and axes ; and whenever they came upon one of their
number, especially if he was a tax-gatherer or landowner, they
seized him and battered in his head with their axes. They
followed the Mongols as far as Karminiya, and nearly ten
thousand were slain.

When the followers of the Tarabi returned from the pursuit,
they could not find him and said: * The Master has retired
into the unseen ; until he re-appears his two brothers Muhammad
and < Ali, shall be his vicegerents/

These two ignorant men proceeded after the manner of the
Tarabi ; the vulgar and the rabble (*wamm va aubiish) became
their followers and at once, the reins being loosened, set their
hands to plunder and rapine. At the end of one week Ildiz n
Noyan and Chigin 12 Qorchi arrived with a large army of

10 Now Kcrmke. "AYLDZ. 12 KYN. Apparently

the Mongol form of tight * lord ' as in ot-chigm. See above, p. 42, n. 8,

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Mongols. [90] Again these foolish persons advanced
men into the open country and drew op in battle-array com-
pletely unarmoured. At the first discharge of arrows both
misguided fellows were killed, and about twenty thousand others
were also slain on this occasion.

The next day, after the swordsmen of dawn had cloven the
skull of night, the people of Bokhara, both men and women,
were driven out Into the open ; and the Mongols sharpened the
tooth of revenge and opened the jaws of greed, saying : * Again
we will strike a blow, and satisfy our appetite, and turn these
people Into fuel for the fire of calamity, and carry off their property
and their children.*

It was only the divine grace and favour that through the agency
of Mahmud's 13 mercy rendered the end of this disturbance as
praiseworthy as his name 14 and the ascendant of the town once
more auspicious. 15 When he arrived he checked and prohibited
their massacring and looting, saying : * Because of the wickedness
of a few how can you slay so many thousands ? And how
can you destroy a city which we have so long endeavoured to
restore to its prosperity because of a few ignorant people ? * After
much importunity, exertion and insistence he agreed that the
matter should be referred to Qa*an and that whatever order he
might give should be put into execution. Afterwards he dis-
patched messengers to the Emperor and exerted great efforts, so
that the latter passed over the fault which had no possibility of
forgiveness and spared their lives. And because of that endeavour
he earned praise and thanks.

[XVIII]

OF THE CONQUEST OF SAMARQAND

IT was the greatest of the countries of the Sultan's empire In
width of territory, the most pleasant of his lands in fertility of

13 Le. Mahmud Yalavach's.

14 Mahmud means * praiseworthy '.

15 mof'uJ. A pun on Mas'ud, the name of Mahmud's son.

THE HISTORY OF

soil and, by common consent, the most delectable of the paradises
of this world among the four Edens.

If it is said that a ^aralise is to h seen in this
world, then the paradise of ibis world is Samarkand.

O tbon who comparest the land of Balkh therewith, are
cohcynib and candy equal to one mother? 1

Its air inclines to mildness, its water is embraced in the favour
of the North wind and its earth by the force of its exhilaration

has acquired the property of the fire of wine. 2

[91] A country whose stones are jewels, whose soil is
musk and whose ram water is strong wine. 3

When the Sultan withdrew from the conflict, the control of
firmness having slipped from his hands and the attraction of
constancy having been replaced by that of flight, while perplexity
and doubt had taken abode in his nature ; he deputed the pro-
tection of most of his lands and territories to his generals (qwvid)
and allies (ansar). Thus to Samarqand he has assigned a
hundred and ten thousand men, of whom sixty thousand were
Turks, with their khans, who were the Sultan's 61ite and such
that had Isfandiyar 4 of the brazen body felt the prick of their
arrows and the thrust of their lances, he would have had no
resource but [to acknowledge] his weakness and [beg for]
quarter. The rest of the army consisted of fifty thousand Taziks, 5

1 Attributed by Yaqut under Samarqand-- to Busti, i.e. apparently Abul-
Fath Busti (M.Q.)

2 The word for * fire * does not occur in A and is not required by the sense.
It is introduced in accordance with the figure known as tw&sttb (see below,
p. 117, n. 7): three of the elements having been mentioned the fourth must
somehow be mentioned too.

s From a qasida by Abu-Sa'id ar-Rustami in praise of Sahib b. ' Abbad :
the poet is praising Isfahan. (M.Q.)

4 Isfandiyar, a celebrated hero of the National Epic. The son of Gushtasp,
the patron of Zoroaster, he is ordered by his father to make war on Rustam,
who had refused to accept the new religion ; and the skying of Isfandiyar is
the last geste of the aged hero, who soon after meets his own end through the
treachery of a brother.

5 Tazik or Tajik was the term applied by the Turks to the Iranians. Cf.
the modern Tajikistan. Actually taztk or tazi is a Persian word and was applied
by the Persians themselves to the Arabs : hence Ta-shik f the Chinese name for
the Arabs.

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picked men each of whom was in himself the Rustam

of the age and the cream of the armies; together with twenty
elephants of perfect shape and <V-like appearance,

Who twisted columns mi pkyel with

Ani won coats of mml that exhibited colours,*

to be a protection (f&rzin-kand) 7 to the king*s horse and foot
upon the field of battle, that they might not avert their faces
from attack and assault. Moreover, the numbers of the towns-
people themselves were such as to be beyond computation. And
In addition to all this, the citadel had been greatly strengthened,
several lines of outworks (ftfil) had been drawn around it, the
walls had been raised to the Pleiades and the moat sunk through
the dry earth to the water beneath.

When Chingiz-Khan arrived at Otrar the news had been
spread abroad of the strengthening of the walls and the citadel
of Samarqand and the great size of its garrison ; and everyone
was of the opinion that it would be a matter of years before the
town could be taken, to say nothing of the citadel Following
the path of circumspection he held it expedient to purge the
surrounding country before proceeding against the town. First
of all, he advanced against Bokhara [92], and when his mind
had been set at rest by the capture of that city, he concerned
himself with the question of Samarqand. Turning his reins in
that direction he drove before him a great levy raised in Bokhara ;
and whenever the villages on his path submitted, he in no way
molested them ; but wherever they offered resistance, as in Sar-
i-Pul and Dabusiya, he left troops to besiege them, while he
himself made no halt until he reached Samarqand. When
his sons had disposed of the affair of Otrar, they too arrived
with a levy raised in that town ; they chose the Kok-Sarai for

e From a qastta by Badf-az-Zaman of Hamadan in praise of Sultan Mahmud
ofGhazna. (M.Q.)

7 Lit. ' a check to the king by the queen at chess *. The whole passage is
an example of the figure called tanasul : the mention of 'ftl * elephant ' in chess
* bishop *, involves the introduction of the other chessmen ; ask * horse ' or * knight *,
jnyafa * foot-soldier * or * pawn *, shah * king *, farzin (in farzin-banf) * queen *
and nOA ' cheek ', ' face ' or ' castle ', ' rook '.

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THE HISTORY OF

Chingiz-Khan's encampment. The other troops also, as they
arrived, encamped round about the town.

For a day or two Chingiz-Khan circled the town in person
in order to inspect the walls, the outworks and the gates ; and
during this period he exempted his men from fighting. At the
same time he dispatched Yeme and Siibetei, who were two of
the great noyans and enjoyed his special trust, in pursuit of the
Sultan together with thirty thousand men ; and sent Ghadaq
Noyan and Yasa*ur 8 to Vakhsh and Talaqan.

Finally, on the third day, when the flare of the sun's flame
had risen from the darkness of the pitchy night's smoke and
the nocturnal blackness had retired to the seclusion of a corner,
so many men, both Mongols and levies, were assembled together
that their numbers exceeded those of the sand of the desert or
drops of rain. They stationed themselves in a circle round about
the town; and Alp~Er 10 Khan, Shaikh Khan, Bala Khan
and some other khans made a sally into the open, drew up
opposite the army of the world-subduing Emperor and dis-
charged their arrows. Many horse and foot were slain on either
side. That day the Sultan's Turks engaged in constant skirmishes
with the Mongols for the light of the candle flares up a little
before going out killing some of the Mongol army, [93]
capturing others and carrying them into the town, while a
thousand of their own number likewise fell.

Finally,

When for the benefit of the earth the fee of heaven
was hidden by the earth's smoke,

everyone retired to his quarters. But as soon as the deceitful
shield-bearer again struck his sword upon the cloud of night,

8 See above, p. 46 and n. 13.

9 This Talaqan (or Tayaqan, c the Taican of Marco Polo), now the town
and district of TaHfchan in the Afghan province of Badakhshan, is not to be
confused with the Talaqan destroyed by Chingiz-Khan (see below, p. 132),
which lay between Balkh and Marv-ar-Rud. There was also a district called
Talaqan near Qazvin.

10 ALBAR. Lit. * Brave Man * from the Turkish alp * brave * and er * man '

(<">).

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Chingiz-Khan mounted in person and his In

a circle round about the town. inside and the

troops assembled and made ready for ; and they

up the girth of combat and hostility until the of

prayer. From the discharge of mangonels and bows, arrows and
stones were set in flight; and the Mongol army took up a
position at the very gates and so prevented the Sultan's troops
from issuing forth on to the field of battle. And when the path
of combat was closed to them, and the two parties had become
entangled on the chess-board of war and the valiant knights
were no longer able to manoeuvre their horses upon the plain,
they threw in their elephants ; but the Mongols did not turn
tail, on the contrary with their King-checking arrows they
liberated those that were held in check by the elephants and
broke up the ranks of the infantry. When the elephants had
received wounds and were of no more use than the foot-soldiers
of chess, they turned back trampling many people underneath
their feet. 11 At length, when the Emperor of Khotan 12 had
let down the veil over his face, they closed the gates.

The people of Samarqand had been rendered apprehensive
by this day's fighting, and their passions and opinions were
divergent: some were desirous of submission and surrender,
while others feared for their lives ; some, by heavenly decree,
were restrained from making peace, while others, because of the
aura diffused by Chingiz-Khan, were prevented from doing
battle. Finally, on the next day

When the shining sun spread its glory, and the black
raven of the firmament shed its feathers, 13

the Mongol troops being bold and fearless and the people of
Samarqand irresolute in mind and counsel, the latter put the

11 Another example oftanasub (see above, p. 117, n. 7). The * queen ' (farztk)
does not appear in the translation but is found in the original in farzw-knd
' King-checking ', whilst the * king * (rfwi), also absent from the translation,
appears in sbab-savaran * valiant knights * : the * horses ' and ' elephants ' are of
course the * knights " and * bishops " and the * rook * is contained in the phrase

w-tqftand (* did not turn tail *).

12 I.e. the Sun. 13 Sbabnama ed. Vullers, 497, L 1049.

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THE HISTORY OF

idea of war out of their heads and ceased to resist. The cadi
and the sbaikb-al-Islam together with a number of wearers of the
turban hastened to approach Chingiz-Khan : they were fortified
and encouraged by the breakfast of his promises [94] and with
his permission re-entered the town.

At the time of prayer they opened the gate of the musalla and
closed the door of resistance, The Mongols then entered and
that day busied themselves with the destruction of the town and
its outworks. The inhabitants drew their feet beneath the skirt
of security, and the Mongols in no way molested them. When
the day had clad itself in the black garb of the heathen Khitayans,
they lit torches and continued their work until the walls had
been levelled with the streets and there was everywhere free
passage for horse and foot.

On the third day, when the unkind, black-hearted juggler of
the blue countenance held up the hard, brazen mirror before his
face, the greater part of the Mongols entered the town, and the
men and women in groups of a hundred were driven out into
the open in the charge of Mongol soldiers ; only the cadi and
the sbaikh~al-I$fam together with such as had some connection
with them and stood under their protection were exempted from
leaving the town. More than fifty thousand people were counted
who remained under such protection. The Mongols then caused
a proclamation to be made that if anyone sought safety in the
corner of concealment his blood should be forfeit. The Mongols
and the [other] troops busied themselves with pillaging; and
many people who had hidden in cellars and cavities were
[discovered and] slain.

The mahouts brought their elephants to Chingiz-Khan and
demanded elephant fodder. He asked them what the elephants
lived on before they fell into captivity. They replied : * The
grass of the plains. 9 Whereupon he ordered the elephants to be
set free to forage for themselves. They were accordingly released
and finally perished [of hunger].

When the king of the heavens had sunk beneath the ball of the
earth, the Mongols departed from the town, and the garrison of
the citadel, their hearts cut in two with fear and terror, could

120

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

neither stand and resist nor turn and flee. Alp Khan/ 4 how-
ever, made a show of valour and intrepidity :
the citadel with a thousand desperate men he fought his
through the centre of the Mongol army and joined up with the
Sultan. The next morning, when the heralds of the Lord of
the planets rose up striking their swords, the Mongol army
completely encircled the citadel, and discharging arrows and
projectiles from either side they devastated the walls and out-
works and laid waste the Juy-I-Arziz, 1S [95] During the space
between the two prayers they took the gates and entered the citadel.
A thousand brave and valiant men withdrew to the cathedral
mosque and commenced a fierce battle using both naphtha and
quarrels. The army of Chingiz-Khan likewise employed pots
of naphtha ; and the Friday mosque and all that were In It
were burnt with the fire of this world and washed with the water
of the Hereafter. Then all in the citadel were brought out into
the open, where the Turks were separated from the Taziks and
all divided into groups often and a hundred* They shaved
the front of the Turks* heads In the Mongol fashion in order to
tranquillize them and allay their fears ; but when the sun had
reached the west, the day of their life drew to Its close, and that
night every male Qanqli was drowned In the ocean of destruction
and consumed by the fire of perdition. There were more than
thirty thousand Qanqli and Turks, commanded by Barishmas m
Khan, Taghai 17 Khan, Sarsigh 18 Khan and Ulagh " Khan,
together with some twenty of the Sultan's chief emirs, whose
names are recorded in the yarligb which Chingiz-Khan wrote to
Rukn-ad-Din Kart ; 20 In which yarligb full mention is made of

14 Le. Alp-Er Khan. See above, p. 118.

15 On this famous * leaden watercourse " see Barthold, Turkestan, 85, 89 and
413.

16 BR5MAS. hmhmas in Turkish means * he that does not make peace *.

17 IT AY. 6g&rf, ie. * maternal uncle'.

18 SRSYT. saritgb means * hard *, * rough '.

19 AWLAT, For ulagb 'post horse* see above, p. 30 and n. 14.

20 The progenitor of the Kart dynasty of Herat. See Lane-Poole, The Moham-
madan Dynasties, 252. An interesting reference to a written source: it would
appear that Juvaini had examined this document in person,

121

.THE HISTORY OF

all the leaders of armies and countries whom he crushed and
destroyed.

When the town and the citadel equalled each other in ruin
and desolation and many an emir* and soldier, and townsman
had taken a sip at the cup of destruction, on the next day, when
the eagle which is the heavenly Jainshid 21 had raised its head
above the mountain-tops of the earth and the fiery countenance
of the sun was lit tip upon the round tray of the sky, the people
who had escaped from beneath the sword were numbered;
thirty thousand of them were chosen for their craftmanship, and
these Chingiz-Khan distributed amongst his sons and kinsmen,
while the like number were selected from the youthful and valiant
to form a levy. With regard to the remainder, who obtained
permission to return into the town, [96], as a thanksgiving
because they had not shared the fate of the others nor attained
the degree of martyrdom but had remained in the ranks of the
living, he imposed [a ransom of] two hundred thousand dinars
on these suppliants and deputed the collection of this sum to
Siqat-al-Mulk and 'Amid Buzurg, who belonged to the chief
officials of SamarqancL He then appointed several persons to
be sbabnas of the town and took some of the levies with him to
Khorasan, while the others he sent to Khorazm with his sons.
And afterwards, several times in succession levies were raised in
Samarqand and few only were exempted therefrom; and for
this reason complete ruin overran the country.

This event occurred in Rabi* I, 6i8. 22

Where are there men of insight to gaze with the eye of reflection
and consideration upon the movements of deceitful Destiny and
the trickery and cruelty of the vainly revolving wheel ; until

21 A famous king of ancient Iran, overthrown and skin by the usurper Zahhak
(Dahak). So Jainshid is represented in the National Epic; by the early Arab
historians he was sometimes identified with Solomon. He is in fact a figure
of Indo-Iranian mythology, the Yima of the Avesta and the Yama of the Vedas.
In the present passage of course the name is simply a personification of the sun.

22 A mistake for 617, i.e. May-June, 1220. According to Juzjani (Raverty,
980) Samarqand fell on the loth of Muharram, i.e. the I9th of March, a date
more consistent with Juvaini's subsequent statement (see below, pp. 128-9) that
after the capture of Samarqand Chingiz-Khan spent the tyring of that year near
the town.

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

they realize that its zephyr is not equal to its simoom, nor its
gain commensurate with its loss ; that its wine but a
hour, but the headache therefrom for ever ; that its profit is but
wind, and its treasure pain ?

O heart, lament not, for this world Is only metaphorical ;
O soul, grieve not, for this abode is only transient.

[XIX]

OF THE FATE OF KHORAZM *

THIS is the name of the region ; its original name was Jurjaniya,
while the inhabitants call it Urganch. Before the vicissitudes
of fortune it stood in the category of f Goodly is the country 9 and
gracious is the Lord ! ' 2 It was the site of the throne of the Sultans
of the world and the dwelling-place of the celebrities of mankind ;
its corners supported the shoulders of the great men of the age,
and its environs were receptacles for the raredes of the rime ; its
mansions were resplendent with every kind of lofty idea, and its
regions and districts were so many rose-gardens through the
presence of men [97] of quality, great shaikhs being assembled
in one place with the Sultans of the age.

All that thou wshest is therein, spiritual and temporal
such was the state of that country.

Khorazm to me is the best of lands may Its tain-giving

clouds never be ttown away /
Happy is that mans face which is greeted hy the shining

faces of its striplings I 3

When Chingiz-Khan had completed the conquest of Samar-
qand, all the countries of Transoxiana were subdued and his
opponents crushed in the mills of calamity, while on the other

1 Khorazm (Khwarazm) is applied here (as often) not to the region but to
its capital, Gurganj or Urganch, which lay on the site of the present-day Kuhna-
Urganch (Kunya-Urgench), i.e. * Old Urganch '.

2 Koran, xxxiv, 14.

3 Attributed by Yaqut, under Khorazm, to Muhammad b. 'Unain ad-
Dimishqi. (M.Q.)

123

THE HISTORY OF

side the districts of Jand and Bagligh~Kent were secured ; so
that Khorazm was left in the middle like a tent whose ropes
have been cut. Since he wished to pursue the Sultan in person
and to purge the countries of Khorasan of his adversaries, he
dispatched his elder sons, Chaghatai and Ogetei, against
Khorazm together with an army as endless as the happenings
of Time and such that the mountains and deserts were filled
with its numbers. He commanded Tushi also to send levies
from Jand as a reinforcement. 4 The princes proceeded by way
of Bokhara, sending on ahead as vanguard an army which
moved like evil destiny and flew like lightning.

At that time Khorazm was deserted by [both] the Sultans,
but Khuinar Tegin, one of the leaders of the army and a kinsman
of Terken Khatun, was still present ; and certain of the chief
emirs had likewise remained behind, viz. Moghol Hajib, 5 Er-
Buqa Pahlavan, the sipabsalar 'AH Durughini 6 and a number
of others of the same sort, to enumerate whose names were
prolixity without utility. [98] Besides these there were so many
of the notables of the town and the learned of the age as could
be neither counted nor computed ; while the number of the
inhabitants exceeded that of grains of sand or pebbles. And
since in all that great multitude and assembly of mankind no
leader had been appointed to whom they might refer upon the
occurrence of untoward events and for the administration of
affairs of state and the business of the commonweal, and by
whose agency they might resist the violence of Fate ; Khumar,
by reason of his relationship to the royal house, was with one
voice elected Sultan and made a Namuz king. 7

And they were heedless of the disorder and unrest prevailing

4 It would appear from Jovaini's narrative that, contrary to the testimony of
all the other authorities, both Moslem and Far Eastern, Jochi did not take part
in person in the siege of Gurganj.

5 See below, p. 158, n. 17.

6 In Nasawi (tr. Houdas, 94) he is called Kuh-i-Durughan (' Mountain of
Lies *) * a cause de F&iormite de ses mensonges *.

7 Le, ling for a day. It would appear that the ceremonies of the great national
festival oCNattruz, or New Year's Day, at the vernal equinox, must at one time
have included the election of a kind of * May King '.

124

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

in the world and of Fate's assault and of her

great and small; until suddenly they beheld a small of

horsemen like a puff of smoke, who arrived the of

the town and busied themselves with driving off cattle,
some short-sighted persons became exultant thinking that they
had come in so small a party out of bravado and that they had
ventured on such insolence by way of sport. They did not
realize that this would be followed by calamities, that after the
mountain-top of these calamities would come other mountain-
tops, and thereafter torments. A whole world of people, both
horse and foot, rushed thoughtlessly out of the gates upon that
small troop. The Mongols, like wild game, now started, now
cast a glance behind them and ran. Finally when they came
to the Bagh-i-Khurram, which lies a parasang distant from the
town, they caused Tartar horsemen and men of might and dread
and prowess and war to spring forth from the ambush of the
wall. They cut off the road before and behind and fell briskly
upon them like wolves upon a flock without a shepherd. They
dispatched flying arrows against that people and wielding sword
and lance they drove them before them : by nightfall they had
felled to the dust nearly a hundred thousand souls of fighting
men. And in the same fever and excitement, with shouts and
cries they cast themselves after them into the city by the Qabilan
Gate [99] and advanced like fire to a place called Tanura.

As the sun began to set the strange army withdrew by way
of caution ; but on the next day when the Turkish swordsman
raised his head from the ambush of the horizon, the fearless
swordsmen and intrepid Turks spurred on their mounts and set
their faces towards the town. A certain Faridun Ghuri, who
was one of the Sultan's chief generals, awaited them at the gate
with five hundred men and preparing to resist deprived those
accursed ones ( ? rujum) of the power to attack. And to the end
of that day they continued to struggle and fight.

Chaghatai and Ogetei then arrived with an army like a flood
in its onrush and like blasts of wind in the succession of its
ranks. They made a promenade around the town and sent
ambassadors to call on the inhabitants to submit and surrender,

125

THE HISTORY OF

The whole army then encompassed the town as the circle
encompasses the centre and encamped around it in the guise of
Fate. They busied themselves with the preparation of instru-
ments of war such as wood, mangonels and missiles therefor.
And since there were no stones in the neighbourhood of Khorazm
they manufactured these missiles from the wood of mulberry
trees. As is their custom, they daily pHed the inhabitants of
the town with promises and threats, inducements and menaces ;
and occasionally they discharged a few arrows at one another,

Finally, when the preparations for battle had been completed
and the necessary instruments finished, when, moreover, the
reinforcements had arrived from Jand etc., they at once set their
faces towards war and combat from every side of the town, and
raising a yell like thunder and lightning they rained down mis-
siles and arrows like hailstones. They commanded rubbish to
be collected and stuffed into the moat ; and then the levies were
moved forward in a circle (bi-jifg) to demolish the foot of the
outworks and cast earth into the eyes of the heavens.

When the counterfeit Sultan and leader of the army, Khumar,
drunk 8 with the wine of adversity, [100] ( God Almighty hath
said: f As thou livest, O Mohammed, they were bewildered in the
drunkenness of their lust') 9 beheld the slaughter which they wrought,
for fear of abasement his heart was cut in two, and the signs of
the Tartar army's victory agreed with his secret surmise ; cunning
was removed from his nature, and with the appearance of Destiny
the face of counsel and deliberation was hidden from him. He
descended from the gate, and on this account even greater con-
fusion and disorder prevailed among the people.

The Tartar army planted a standard on the top of the wall,
and warriors climbed up and caused the earth to ring with their
shouts, cries, yells and uproar. The inhabitants opposed them
in all the streets and quarters of the town : in every lane they
engaged in battle and in every cul-de-sac they resisted stoutly.

8 There is a word-pky on Khumar's name, which is actually Turkish but
seems to be derived from the same Arabic root as Itbamr * wine * : in fact, khumr
in Arabic means 'drunken headache*.

9 Koran, xv, 72.

126

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

The Mongols meanwhile were fire to

quarters with pots of naphtha and sewing the to

another with arrows and mangonels. And when the cloak of
the sun*s light was being wrapped in the tyranny of
darkness, they began to return to their encampment* In the
morning the people of the town for a while applied themselves
to battle in the same manner and bared the claw of conflict
with swords arrow and banner* By now the greater part of the
town was destroyed ; the houses with their goods and treasures
were but mounds of earth; and the Mongols, despaired of
benefiting from the stores of their wealth. They therefore agreed
among themselves to abandon the use of fire and rather to with-
hold from the people the water of the Oxus, across which a
bridge had been built inside the town. Three thousand men
from the Mongol army put themselves in readiness and struck
at the centre of the bridge ; but the inhabitants entrapped them
there, so that not one was able to return.

On this account the townspeople became more energetic in
their action and more stubborn in their resistance. On the
outside also, the weapons of war became more furious, the
sea of battle more raging and the winds of confusion more
tumultuous, on earth and in the heavens. Quarter by quarter,
house by house, the Mongols took the town, destroying the
buildings and slaughtering the inhabitants, until finally the whole
town was in their hands. Then they drove the people out into
the open ; those that were artisans or craftsmen, of whom there
were more than a hundred thousand, were separated from the
rest; [101] the children and the young women were reduced
to slavery and borne offinto captivity ; and the men that remained
were divided among the army, and to each fighting man fell the
execution of twenty-four persons. God Almighty bath said:
e So we made them a tale, and scattered them with an utter scattering.
Truly, herein are signs to everyone that is patient, grateful! 10 The
army then busied themselves with plunder and rapine and
destroyed what remained of the quarters and houses.

Khorazm, which was the centre of battling men and the

10 Ztet, xxxiv, 18.

127

THE HISTORY OF

venue of banqueting women, on whose threshold Fate laid her
head and which the pho-enix of Fortune made Its nest, became
the abode of the jackal and the haunt of owl and kite; pleasure
was far removed from its houses and its castles were reduced to
desolation ; so withered were its gardens that one would think
that the words We changed them tbdr gardens into two gardens * n
had been revealed concerning their condition. Upon its parks
and pleasances the pen of e all that is transient departetb* has written
these verses:

How many k>rsemen have dismounted about us, mixing wine

with limpid water ;
Then in the middle of the morning Fate snatched them away

for mch is Fate, time and

To be brief, when the Mongols had ended the battle of
Khorazm and had done with leading captive, plundering,
slaughter and bloodshed, such of the inhabitants as were artisans
were divided up and sent to the countries of the East. To-day
there are many places in those parts that are cultivated and
peopled by the inhabitants of Khorazm.

The princes Chaghatai and Ogetei returned by way of Kalif, 13
which they joined with Khorazm in two days.

As for the fighting and killing, in spite of the proverb ' Do
as was done before ' I have heard of such a quantity of slain that I did
not believe the report and so have not recorded it. ' O God, preserve
us from all the ills of this world and the torments of the world to come!

[XX]

OF THE DEPARTURE OF CHINGIZ-KHAN TO
NAKHSHAB * AND TIRMIZ 2

WHEN Samarqand had been taken and he had dispatched his
sons Chaghatai and Ogetei against Khorazm, [102] he passed

11 Koran, xxxiv, 15. Two gardens ', to complete the quotation, ' of litter fruit
and tamarisk and some few jujule trees f

12 Verses by f Adi b. Zaid al-lbadi, quoted In a long story in the Ktok-al Agban ,

13 Reading KALYF with Barthold, Turkestan, 437, n. 3, for the KASF
of the text. On Kalif, a town on the Oxus (which still exists), see Barthold,
op. tit., 80.

128

WORLD-CONQUEROR

the spring of that year Samarkand and

thence to the meadows of Nakhshab.

When the summer had come to an end and the
fattened and the soldiers rested, he set out for Tirmiz. Upon
arriving there he sent forward messengers to call upon the people
to surrender and submit, and to destroy the fortress and citadel,
But the Inhabitants, encouraged by the strength of the fortress,
half of whose walls were raised up In the middle of the Oxus,
and rendered proud by the multitude of their troops, gear and
equipment, would not accept submission but sallied forth to do
battle. Mangonels were set up on either side, and they rested
neither day nor night from strife and warfare until upon the
eleventh day the Mongols took the place by storm. All the
people, both men and women, were driven out on to the plain
and divided proportionately among the soldiers in accordance
with their usual custom; then they were all slain, none being

When the Mongols had finished the slaughter they caught
sight of a woman who said to them : * Spare my life and I will
give you a great pearl which I have/ But when they sought
the pearl she said : * I have swallowed it* Whereupon they
iripped open her belly and found several pearls. On this account
Chingiz-Khan commanded that they should rip open the bellies
of all the slain.

"When they had done with looting and slaying he departed
to the region of Kangurt 3 and Shuman, 4 where he passed the
winter. That region also he purged with slaying, and attacking,
and sapping, and burning ; and sent armies into the whole of
Badakhshan and all that country, and conquered and subjugated

1 Now Karshi in Uzbekistan,

2 The ruins of the medieval city lie near the modern town of the same name
(Termez) on the right bank of the Oxus, which here forms the boundary between
Uzbekistan and Afghanistan,

3 KNKRT. Kangurt lies to the west of Baljuan on the old Hisar-Kukb
road in Tajikistan. (V.M.)

4 Reading MAN for the SMAN of the text. I take this to be identical
with the town and district of Shuman. Minorsky, Htdud> 353, suggests that
the town may have stood on the site of the later Dushambe, now Stalinabad,
the capital of Tajikistan,

129

THE HISTORY OF

the peoples, some by kindness, but most by severity ; so that in
all that region there was left no trace of his opponents. And
when the season of winter drew to a close he made ready to
cross the river.
All this occurred in the year 617/1220-21.'

[XXI]

[103] OF CHINGIZ-KHAN'S CROSSING OF THE

RIVER AT TIRMIZ
AND THE TAKING OF BALKH

BALKH, by reason of the multitude of its produce and its manifold
kinds of revenue, was superior to other regions ; its territory was
more spacious than that of other countries ; and in former time
it was in the Eastern lands as Mecca in the West. As Firdausi
says:

He departed unto fair Balkli to that nau-ttalwr which

at that time the worshippers of God
Held in as much honour as the Arabs now hold Mecca. 1

Chingiz-Khan crossed the river and advanced on Balkh.
The chief men of the town came forward professing submission
and servitude and bearing all manner of tuzgbu and presents.
Whereupon, because a census had to be taken, he gave orders
that all the people of Balkh should be brought on to the plain
and numbered. But as Jalal-ad-Din was still casting confusion
and disorder into those regions and riding his horse on to the
field of rebellion and contumacy, the Mongols could place no
confidence in their professions of submission, especially in the
case of Khorasan. And since the sea of the annihilation of
lands and peoples was raging and the tempest of calamity had
not come to an end, there was no possible wile whereby they
might ward off disaster; and since Destiny held them captive,

1 Sbahnama ed. Vullers, 1496, 11. 15-1 6. By the nau-tabar or * new vibara *
is meant the great Buddhist temple near Balkh, on which see Barthold, Turkes-
ton, 77*

130

THE

surrender availed them not, could on

and abasement ; [104] while to was a

an irremediable pain. Therefore Chingiz-Khan

that the population of Balkh, small and great, and

boch men and women, should be driven out on to the plain

and divided tip according to the usual custom into hundreds

and thousands to be put to the sword; and that not a trace

should be left of fresh or dry* For a long time the wild beasts

feasted on their flesh* and lions consorted without contention.

with wolves, and vultures ate without quarrelling from the same

table with eagles.

Eat and rend, O hyaena, @nd rtjme in dx jksb of &
man who bad no me to help Mm this fay?

And they cast fire into the garden of the city and devoted their
whole attention to the destruction of the outworks and walls,
and mansions and palaces. God Almighty bath said : * Thre is
no city which we will not destroy before the day of Resurrection or
chastise it with a grievous chastisement. This is written in the Book! s

" """When Chingiz-Khan returned from Peshawar and arrived

at Balkh, he found a number of fugitives who had remained
hidden in nooks and crannies and come out again [after the
Mongols* departure]. He commanded them all to be killed and
fulfilled upon them the verse, ' Twice will we chastise them! 4
And wherever a wall was left standing, the Mongols pulled it
down and for a second time wiped out all traces of culture from
that region.

And their mansions shall weep for them, which were once

accustomed to glory.
We began ty gazing on them with admiration and ended ly

gazing on them in astonishment 5

After Chingiz-Khan had thus disposed of Balkh, he dis-
patched his son Toli with a large army to conquer the countries

2 From Nabigha Ja'di. (M.Q.) s Koran, xvii, <5o.

4 ltef v ix, 102.

5 Attributed by Tha'aEbl in the Tatmmat-al-Yatim to Abu-Bakr 'Abdalkh b.
Muhammad b. Ja'far al-A$H, who flourished under the later Samanlds. (M.Q.)
See EghbaTs ei, I, 95.
M

THE HISTORY OF

of Khorasan* whilst he himself turned against Talaqan. 6 The
citadel of that place was called Nusrat-Kuh and apart from its
own strength was crammed full of warriors prepared to earn a
glorious name. Though he dispatched messengers and envoys
and called on them to tender submission, they would not give
in but were inclined for nothing but strife and battle. The
Mongols drew a circle about the citadel [105] and set many
catapults in motion ; they bestirred themselves untiringly nor did
the garrison rest from their exertions : both sides fought fiercely
and Inflicted many wounds on their opponents. The garrison
of Talaqan continued to resist in this manner until after Toli
had subjugated Khorasan and returned from thence with large
forces ; when the size of the Mongol army was greatly increased
and they took Talaqan by storm, leaving no living creature
therein and destroying fortress and citadel, walls, palaces and
houses.

Of a sudden there came tidings that Jalal-ad-Din had gained
a great victory and vanquished Tekechiik 7 and the army under
his command. Chingiz-Khan hastened to meet him. The
road lay through Gurzivan, 8 and on account of the resistance
offered by the inhabitants of that place he tarried there a month
until he took it and forced down the throats of its people that
same draught of slaughter, rapine and destruction which other
like peoples had tasted.

/ Starting from thence the Mongols came to Bamiyan, the
inhabitants of which place issued forth in hostility and resistance,
and on both sides hands were laid to arrows and catapults. Sud-
denly, by the thumb of Fate, who was the destroyer of all that
people, a quarrel, which gave no respite, was discharged from
the town and hit a son of Chaghatai, 9 the favourite grandchild

e See above, p. 118, n. 9.

7 TKjWK. Spelt also TKJK (1, 106, and II, 136) and TKAjK (II, 197).
It is a Turkish word and means * little he-goat '. See Houtsma, Glossar, 68,
where it is spelt TKAjWK.

8 Barthold, op. dt, 443, n. 4, suggests that the place in question was probably
the fortress of Rang in Gurzivan (Raverty, 1003). There is still a district of
Afghanistan called Dumb and Gurziwan.

9 He is called MATYKAN (I, 228; i, 273), i.e. apparently Metiken, Rashid-

132

WORLD-CONQUEROR

of Chinglz-Khan* The Mongols made the to

capture the town, and when It was taken Chingiz-Khan

orders that every living creature, from mankind down to the
brute beasts* should be killed ; that no prisoner should be ;

that not even the child in its mother's womb should be ;

and that henceforth no living creature should dwell therein. He
gave it the name of Ma*u~BaEgh, which means in Persian Bad
Twn. w And to this very day no living creature has taken up
abode therein*
-This event fell out in the year 6x8/1221-22.

[XXII]

[l06] OF CHINGIZ-KHAN'S TURNING TO DO BATTLE
WITH THE SULTAN

FROM Talaqan Chingiz-Khan dispatched Tekechiik and a
group of commanders to put an end to Jalal-ad-Din. But the
Sultan had been strengthened by the advent of Ighraq l and
other warriors from every side; and he utterly defeated the
army which had been detailed to destroy him 9 because of the
paucity of its numbers and the lack of reinforcements. When
tidings of this defeat were brought to Chingiz-Khan, he con-
sidered day as night, and in his haste reckoned night as day,
and travelled two stages at a time, so that it was impossible
to cook food.

When he reached Ghazna he received tidings that Jalal-ad-
Din had departed from thence a fortnight since with the object
of crossing the Indus. He appointed Mama Yalavach to be

ad-Din (Blochet, 161) calls him MWATWKAN (? Mo'etuken). The name,
which does not occur in the Mongol and Chinese sources, is discussed by PelKot,
Horde d'Or, 86-7.

10 See above, p. 45, n. 5.

1 Saif-ad-Din Ighraq was a Khalaj Turk, the leader of a large force of Khalaj
and Turcomans gathered together at Peshawar. (See below, ii, 462.) He had
joined forces with Jalal-ad-Din and taken part in the Battle of Parvan, which
is here alluded to. For a fuller account of the battle see below, ii, 406-7. On the
Khalaj, the ancestors alike of the Khalji Sultans of Delhi and the Ghilzai Afghans
of Qandahar, see Minorsky, The Turkish Dialect of the Kb&kj, 426-34.

133

THE HISTORY OF

of Ghazna, whilst he himself pursued Jalal-ad~Din like
the wind which drives the clouds* until he came up with him
on the banks of the Indus, 2 The Mongol army cut off the
Sultan's front and rear and encompassed him on every side;
they stood behind one another in several rings in the shape of a
bow and made the Indus like a bowstring. Chingiz-Khan
commanded his men to exceed themselves in battle and to
endeavour to take the Sultan alive. Meanwhile Chaghatai and
Ogetei also had arrived from Khorazm. The Sultan, for his
part, seeing that the day of action was arrived and the time of
battle, set his face to combat with the few men that were still
left to him. He hastened from right to left and from the left
charged upon the Mongol centre. He attacked again and again,
but the Mongol armies advanced little by little leaving him less
space to manoeuvre and less room to do battle; but still he
continued to fight like an angry lion.

[107] Whithersoever he spurred on his charger, he mingled
dust with blood. 3

Since Chingiz-Khan had ordered them to take him prisoner,
the army were sparing with their lances and arrows wishing to
execute Chingiz-Khan's command. But Jalal-ad-Din was too
quick for them and withdrew. He was brought a fresh horse,
and mounting it he attacked them again and returned from the
charge at the gallop.

Like the lightning he struck upon the water and like
the wind he departed.

When the Mongols saw him cast himself in the river they
were about to plunge in after him. But Chingiz-Khan pre-
vented them. From excess of astonishment he put his hand to
his mouth and kept saying to his sons, * Such a son must a
father have/

When Isfandiyar gazed behind him, he descried him on the
dry knd on the far side of the stream.

2 On the site of the Battle of the Indus see Barthold, Tvrketfatt, 445-6. It
was probably fought at Dinkot, near the modern Kalabagh,

3 Sbahttama ed. Vullers, 1556, 1. 1074.

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

He said : * Gall not this a man he is a raging

elephant endued with pomp and splendour/
So he spoke and gazed thitherwards where Rustam

his way.*

To be brief, aM of Jalal-ad~Din*s army that were not drowned
In the river were slain by the sword. His wives and children
were brought before Chingiz-Khan, and as for those were
male, down to very sucklings, the breast of death was put to
the mouth of their Eves and they were given to nurse to Ibn-
Daya, 5 that is, they were thrown to the carrion crows.

It Is bard for us that Urn-Day a continues to
that to wUcb the tear-ducts art jomei.

Since the riches and wealth which the Sultan had with him
consisted chiefly of gold and silver coin he had given orders that
day for all of it to be cast in the river. The Mongols sent in
divers to bring up what they could out of the water.

This event, which was one of the wonders of Destiny, fell
out in Rajab of the year 618 [August September, I22i] $
[108] And there is a proverb which says, 'Live in Rajab and
tbou sbalt see wonders!

Chingiz-Khan proceeded along the banks of the river 7 but
sent Ogetei back to Ghazna, the people of which made voluntary
submission. Ogetei ordered them all to be led out into the open
country, where such as were artisans were set on one side while
the rest of their number were put to death and the town too was
destroyed. He left Qutuqu 8 Noyan in charge of the captives

4 For the first two lines see Sbahmma ed. Vullers, 1693, II. 3575-6. The third
line is not in Vullers.

5 I.e. the Crow. The word-play with daya * nurse * is lost in the translation.

6 According to Nasawi on Wednesday die 24th November. See Barthold,
of. at,, 445.

7 Upstream according to Rashid-ad-Din (Smirnova, 225) and the Sbeng-m
dfin-cbfyg lu (Haenisch, Die letzten Feldztige Ginggs Han's imd sein Tod, 529),
whilst he sent Ogedei downstream.

8 QTQW. This was Shigi-Qutuqu, the Mongol commander at Parvan.
He had been discovered as a young child in the deserted encampment of the
Tatar after the defeat of that people by Chingiz-Khan and Ong-Khan as allies
of the Chin. (Secret History, 135.) He was adopted by Chingiz-Khan'$

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THE HISTORY OF

and craftsmen, who were to pass the winter in that place, whilst
he himself returned by way of the Garmsir of Herat. 9

Chingiz-Khan, meanwhile* had arrived at Karman and
Sanquran, 10 Here he received tidings that Jalal-ad-Din had
recrossed the Indus and buried his dead. He left Chaghatai in
Karman, and Chaghatai not finding him [where he expected]
still continued the pursuit. During that winter he took up
quarters In the neighbourhood of Buya Katur, which is a town
of Ashtaqar. 11 The ruler of that place, Salar Ahmad, 12 bound
the girdle of submission about his loins and did all in his power
to provide the army with victuals.

mother, Ho'eliin, (SM.) or by his wife Borte according to Rashid-ad-Din (Kheta-
gurov, 107, Smirnova, 174)* At the great quriltd at the sources of the Onon
in 1206 he was given the function of grand judge. See the Secret History, 203,
Grousset, L f Empire Mongol, 183.

9 Garmsjr[-i-]Hmt. The text should probably be emended to read GarmsJr
m Harat * the Garmsir and Herat *. Rashid-ad-Din (Smirnova, 225) says simply
that Ogedei returned * by way of the Garmsir * (as does also D), and Smirnova,
loc. dt. t n. 2, takes Garmsir to be the region of that name along the middle course
of the Helmand still known as Garmsel. In fact the Mongols had already
followed this route on a previous occasion. From Talaqan Chingiz-Khan had
sent a Mongol army * by way of the Garmsir * to attack Amin Mafik at Ghazna.
Amin MaHk drove this force back as far as Bust (the modern Qal'a-yi-Bist)
and Teginabad (perhaps Qandahar), i.e. to this very region ; and the Mongols
then retreated in the direction of Herat and Khorasan. See below, ii, 461-2.
According to Rashid-ad-Din (loc. dt, 3 c also the Sheng-wu cb'in-cheng lu, loc.
dt, and Bretschneider, I, 293) Ogedei, after destroying Ghazna, sought his
fathers permission to advance against Sistan. However, because of the heat,
Chingiz-Khan ordered him to turn back and said that he would send other forces
instead. According to Juzjani (Raverty, 1047) Ogedei fixed his winter quarters
at Pul-i-Ahangaran, i.e. the modern QalVyi-Ahangaran on the upper Herirud.

10 Reading SNQWRAK for the SYQWRAN of the text. The modern
Kurram Agency. Raverty (498-911) identifies Sanquran with the dura (valley)
of the Shaluzan (Shaluzan in the Imperial Gazetteer of India, which has Kirman
for the Karman of Raverty). Shaluzan and Karman, besides being the names
of two tributaries of the Kurram, are also the names of two villages in the wide
open valley of the Upper Kurram.

11 Neither Buya Katur (BWYH KTWR) nor Ashtaqar (ATQAR),
has been identified. According to Juzjani (Raverty, 1043-5) Chingk-Khan
advanced from the Indus to besiege Ighraq (c below, p. 137) in a fortress which
Raverty calls Glban, captured it and * other forts of the Koh-payah [hill-skirts] '
and then for three months encamped * in the Glbarl territory and the Koh-payah *.
Raverty, 1043, n. i., locates the fortress of Gibarl in Bajaur in the Dir, Swat
and Chitral Agency, On the other hand it is also possible to read Gin instead

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

On account of the insalubrity of the the

of the soldiers fell sick and the strength of the
There were many prisoners with them in that place,
had also captured Indian slaves in that region, [109] so that in
each house there were ten to twenty prisoners. All of
were employed in preparing food by scouring rice, etc., and the
climate agreed with their constitution. Chingiz-Khan gave
orders that every slave in every house should scour four hundred
maunds of rice. They accomplished this task with great speed
within the space of one week ; upon which Chingtz-Khan
commanded that all the prisoners in the army should be killed.
The unhappy wretches had no idea of their fate ; one night,
just before dawn, not a trace was left of the prisoners, and the
Indians. 13

All the neighbouring peoples sent envoys and tendered their
submission. Chingiz-Khan dispatched an ambassador to Rana 14
also; who at first accepted submission but did not remain
constant. Chingiz-Khan sent an army which seized and slew
him. He also sent an army to beleaguer Ighraq in the strong-
hold which he had fortified.

When the army had recovered its health Chingiz-Khan con-
ceived the idea of returning home by a route through India to
the land of the Tangut. 13 He advanced several stages, but as

of Giban and identify it with the fortress in which Mas'ud the Ghaznavid
(103040) was imprisoned and put to death and which was situated close to
the Indus, in the neighbourhood of Peshawar. See Raverty, lo. d, also 1074^,

12 Salar Ahmad is also unidentified. See Raverty, ic>74n.

13 Barthold, Turkestan, 454, is inclined to discredit the details of this story
(which, as he points out, was afterwards rekted of Tamerlane) especially as
Juzjani, * who was not in the habit of concealing the cruel actions of the Mon-
gols, says not a word of this action, of which he could not have been ignorant *.

14 Juvaini has taken the North Indian tide rana as a proper name. This was
probably the successor of Nasawi's Rana *Shatra (ZANH TRH in Houdas"
text and Zana-Chatra in his translation, 142), * le seigneur du Djebel El-Djoudi V
skin in battle by Sultan Jalat-ad-Din ($, 143). Juzjani (Raverty, 815) speaks
of a kter Rana of the * Jud hills ' (i.e. the Salt Range) against whom an expedition
was sent in 644/1246-7 to punish him for having acted as guide to the Mongols
in the previous year.

15 By way of Bengal, Assam and the Himakyas according to Juzjani (Raverty,
1046 and 1081).

157

THE HISTORY OF

there was no road, he turned back, 16 and came to Peshawar, 17

and returned by the road by which he had come.

[XXIII]

OF THE RETURN OF CHINGIZ-KHAN

WHEN the tidings of the coming of spring had reached every
quarter of the inhabitable world, verdure leapt up like the hearts
of the sorrowful, and at the dawning of day nightingales mourned
and lamented upon the branches of the trees in unison with
turtles and ring doves ; in memory of the striplings who every
year in gardens and pleasances had poured out wine and driven
away care upon the petals of flowers and blossoms, the clouds
rained tears from their eyes and said, * It is rain*; [no] the
rosebud, filled with longing for wanton glances, from sadness
filled its cup with blood and made believe that it was a smile ;
the rose, filled with regret for the violet-cheeked rose-faced ones,
tore its garment and said, * I have bloomed '; the lily, in the
garb of the sorrowful, donned blue and claimed that it was
heaven-coloured ; the trim cypress, in recollection of the graceful
cypress-shaped ones, bent its back to the heavy sigh which it
heaved at every dawn and called this * stateliness '; in harmony
with the cypress the willow from grief laid its head upon the

16 Rashid-ad-Din (Smirnova, 225) is more explicit. Rugged mountains,
dense forests, an unhealthy climate and bad drinking water these and the report
that the Tangut had risen in revolt were the reasons for his turning back. Accord-
ing to Juzjani (Raverty, 1045-6 and 1081-4) ^ e had from his encampment
in the Gfbarl (or Girl) area dispatched envoys to H-Tutmish in Delhi seeking
permission to return through India ; and he was still in that encampment, bum-
ing and examining the shoulder-blades of sheep (for an account of this form of
divination see Rockhill, 187-8), when the news arrived of the Tangut's rebellion.
According to the Yuan shib he had actually penetrated into Eastern India when
the appearance of a fabulous animal, a kind of unicorn, caused him to retrace
his steps. See Krause, 39, Haenisch, op. tit, 531, Bretschneider, 1, 289, d'Ohsson,
I, 318, n. i.

17 The text has here Farshavat and elsewhere Parshavar, at that time the normal
spelling of the name (the older Purushapura, 'the town of Purusha '). The
form Peshavar (our Peshawar) was introduced by the Mogul Emperor Akbar.

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

dark earth and from anguish at its fate its

head, saying, I am thcfarmsb of the meadow*; the wine
made a gurgle in its throat ; and the lute and the
embraced with melody.

Look, at the dawn of day, that thou mayst hear the

Pahkvl song of the nightingale :
It laments the death of Isfandiyar, of whom there is no

memorial but lamentation.

None has opened his lips in mirthful laughter this year;

the world has not rested from strife for one moment

this year.
Who has shown me a face tinged with rose-blood this year J

In such times as these what time has there been for

roses this year 2

Chingiz-Khan decided to return from Peshawar to his original
home; and the reason for his haste to return was that the
Khitayans and the Tangut, profiting by his absence, had grown
restive and wavered between submission and insurrection.

By way of the mountains of Bamiyan he rejoined his heavy
baggage which he had left in the region of Baghlan* 1 He passed
the summer in that pasture land and when the season of
autumn was come he again took to the road and crossed the
Oxus.

After crossing the river he sent back Torbei Toqshin 2 in
pursuit of the Sultan.

That winter he abode in the region of Samarqand, whence he
sent a messenger to summon his eldest son Tushi, bidding him
set out from the Plain of the Qifchaq 3 [m] driving the game
in front of him (which for the most part was wild asses).

1 Perhaps Baghlan and not Parvan is meant by the * plain of Baruan * of the
Secret History ( 257 and 258), the river Pa-lu-wan of the Yuan sbtb (Krause,
38, Haenisch, Die ktzten Fcllziige Cinggis Han's mdsem Tod, 531) and the SMng-
wu clfin-cheng lu (Haenisch, op. at, 529) and * the plain which the Mongols call
Parvan' of Kashid-ad-Din (Smirnova, 225).

2 See below, Chapter XXIV.

8 Dasbt-i-QJfcbaq for the more usual Dasbt-i-Qipchafr the name given to the
vast steppes stretching from the Dniester to the Irtish : it was afterwards applied
to the territory of the Golden Horde.

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THE HISTORY OF

Chaghatai and Ogetei, for their part, went to Qara-Kol 4 to
amuse themselves with the hunting of the swan ; every week,
as a sample of their hunting, they would send Chingiz-Khan
fifty camel-loads of swans.

Finally, when no game was left, and the winter had drawn to
its close, and the world was become a rosebud with the signs
of spring, and the earth had donned a robe of flowers and
blossoms; Chingiz-Khan determined to depart and remove;
the princes gathered around their father by the river of Fanakat, 5
and held a quriltai, after which they proceeded from thence until
they came to Qulan-Bashi, 6 where Tushi came up from the
other side and joined his father.

Among the presents which he brought were a thousand grey
horses. In accordance with his father's command he had driven
herds of wild asses from the Plain of the Qifchaq like so many
sheep. It was said that the hoofs of the wild asses had become
worn out on the journey and that they had been shod with
horseshoes. When they came to a place called Utuqa, 7 Chingiz-
Khan, his sons and the soldiers mounted horse to disport them-
selves, and the wild asses were driven before them. They gave
chase, but from excess of weariness the wild asses had become
such that they could be taken by hand. When they had grown
tired of the chase and none but lean animals remained, each
branded those he had taken with his own brand and let them
go free.

To be brief, they passed the summer in Qulan-Bashi; and
hither were brought a number of Uighur nobles whom they
executed for a crime they had committed. Then Chingiz-Khan

4 Now the name of a town (Karakul) in Uzbekistan, Qara-Kol, lit. * the
Black Lake *, was originally the name of the swampy region in which the Zaraf-
shan finally loses itself. According to Barthold, Turkestan, 118, 'there was a
vast quantity offish and birds here*.

5 See above, p. 64, n, 8.

6 Reading QLAN BAY for the QLAN TAY of the text. The pass
between the basins of the Aris and the Talas on the way from Chimkent to Aulie
Ata (Jambul), well known for its cold climate. See Prince Masalsky, Turkestim-
skii fad, 757. (V.M.) Qulan-Bashi means * Wild Ass's Head %

7 AWTWQA* Unidentified.

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departed from thence and in the springtime at his

[112] [XXIV]

OF THE EXPEDITION OF TORBEI TOQSHIN IN SEARCH OF
SULTAN JALAL-AD-DIN I

WHEN Chaghatal returned without having found the Sultan*
Chmgiz-Khan deputed Torbci Toqshin, together with two
tumen of Mongol troops, to cross the Indus in his pursuit.

Torbei Toqshin advanced to the region of *Nandana, 2 a
province of India which had previously been held by Qamar-
ad-Din Karmani 3 but of which one of the Sultan's commanders
had now made himself master.

Torbei Toqshin took the fortress of *Nandana 2 and wrought

1 Tliis chapter has already appeared in print in my article, Iru and Mm in
the Secret History of the Mongok, As to the name Torbei Toqshin the text has
everywhere TRBAY TQSY or TWRBAY TQY but in II, 144, E and G
have TWQYN for the second element It is the Turkish form of Dorbei
Doqshin, * Dorbei the Brutal *, the name of a Dorbet commander who had
distinguished himself in an expedition against the forest people of the Qori-
Tumat in 1217. See the Secret History, 240, and Rashid-ad-Din (Smimova,
178 and 255-6) ; also the above-mentioned article, 405-6 and 410.

2 The text has in both cases BYH, but for the name of the fortress B has NNDH
and J, i.e. the Bodleian MS. Fraser 154 (I am indebted to Professor A. F. L.
Beeston, formerly Keeper of Oriental Books, and to the Printer to the University
of Oxford for a photograph of the passage) YNDH, both of which forms most
be regarded as corruptions of an original NNDNH (i.e. Nandana), which actu-
ally occurs in Juzjani (Raverty, 534). In the case of the district also BYH is
doubtless to be regarded as a corruption of NNDNH, as is also the first element
of Nasawi's DBDBH WSAQWN (text, 86, it appears in Houdas* translation,
144, as Debdeba-Ousaqoun). It was here that Qubacha heard the news of
Jalal-ad-Din's battle with the Rana of the Jud hills. On Nandana see the
long footnote in Raverty (534-9), also the Impend Gazetteer of India, Vol. XVIII,
349, where it is described as a * place of historical interest in the Pind Dadan
Khan tahsil of Jhelum District, Punjab, situated 32 43' N. and 73 17' E.,
14 miles west of Chao Saidan Shah, in a remarkable dip in the outer Salt Range.
Of the fort, two bastions of large, well-cut sandstone blocks still remain,"

3 Smirnova, 224, n. 3, identifies Qamar-ad-Din KaimanI with Qamar-ad-
Din Tamar Khan QMn, the future governor of Bengal (1244-6). However,
according to Juzjani (Raverty, 743) this latter person, a Qipchaq Turk purchased

141

THE HISTORY OF

great slaughter. Then he turned against Multan. There were
no stones In Multan, so he ordered levies to be driven from thence
to build rafis of wood : these were loaded with catapult missiles
and launched upon the river. When he arrived before Multan
the mangonels were set in motion; a large part of the wall was
demolished and the town was on the point of surrendering.
However, the great heat of the climate prevented his remaining
longer; so having plundered and massacred throughout the
province of Multan and Lahore he returned from thence and
recrossed the Indus; and arriving in Ghazna followed in the
wake of Chingiz-Khan. 4

[XXV]

OF THE EXPEDITION OF YEME 1 AND SUBETEI
IN PURSUIT OF SULTAN MUHAMMAD

WHEN Chingiz-Khan arrived before Samarqand and threw a
ring around the city he received intelligence [113] that the Sultan

by H-Tutm!sh held no fief till the reign of Razlya (1236-9), when he became
feudatory of Kanauj. In fact the Qamar-ad-Din in question is none other
than Qubacha, the ruler of Sind and the former slave of the Ghurid Sultan
Shihab-ad-Din. According to Nasawi (see above, n. 2) he was in the Nan-
dana area at the time of Jalal-ad-Din*s battle with the Rana of the Jud hills.
See also below, ii, 414-16. I follow Raverty (53611) in calling him Karmani,
i.e. of Karman, the present-day Kurram Agency, rather than Kirmani, i.e. of
Kerman; and in fact he may well have had some connection with Karman,
which his father-in-law Yulduz held as a fief. See Raverty, 498-500.

4 For a somewhat different version of this expedition see below, ii, 41 3 . Accord-
ing to the Secret History ( 257 and 264), the SMng*wu cb*in~cheng lu (Haenisch,
Die ktzten FeUzuge Cinggis Han's und sein Tod, 529) and the Yuan sbib (jbid. } 531,
Krause, 38) it was led not by Dorbei but by Bala of the Jakyir; according
to Rashid-ad-Din (Smirnova, 224) it was led by Dorbei and Bala jointly.

1 YMH. This is apparently the Turkish form of the name Jebe ; it is found
in Nasawi and Juzjani also. The famous general belonged to the Besiit, who
were vassals of the Tayichi'ut, and his name, according to the Secret History
( 147), was originally Jirqo'adaL He had fought under Jamuqa at the Battle
of Koyiten (1201), in the course of which an arrow, discharged from his bow,
had wounded Chingiz-Khan's horse, * a chestnut with a white muzzle '. After
the final defeat of the Tayichi*ut Jirqo'adai presented himself before the

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had crossed the river at Tirmiz and had the

part of his army and the chiefs of his household through-

out the villages and countryside ; that few left

him ; and that he had crossed the river in a of terror
bewilderment.

He exclaimed : * It is necessary to make an end of him and be
well rid of him before men gather around him and nobles, join
him from every side.*

So he chose from the chief of his commanders Yerae and
Siibetei to pursue the Sultan; and from the troops that were
with him he selected proportionately 2 thirty thousand men,, each
of whom was to a thousand men of the Sultan's army as a wolf
to a flock of sheep or a red-hot coal to a dry cane-brake.

Conqueror. Questioned about the shot he freely admitted his responsibility
but promised, if his life was spared, to serve his new master faithfully and well
Chingiz-Khan was pleased with his frankness, gave him the name of Jcbc,
which means 'weapon* or perhaps * arrow* (see PelHot-Hambis, Cmpagtcs,
155-6), to commemorate his action and admitted him amongst his followers.
Rashid-ad-Din (Khetagurov, 194), gives a somewhat different version of his
first entry into Chingiz-Khan's service. After the defeat of his people Jebe
had gone into hiding. He is discovered by Chingiz-Khan in the course of
a lattue. Borji, the early fiiend and close companion of the Conqueror (the
Bo'orchu of the Secret History) gives chase on his leader's horse (the same * chest-
nut with the white muzzle*) letting fly an arrow which misses its mark. Jebe
shoots back, hits and kills the horse and so makes his escape. Ultimately, how-
ever, he is obliged to surrender. Kneeling before the Conqueror he confesses
to the crime of having killed his horse but undertakes, if the crime is pardoned,
to provide the Khan with * many such horses *. Because he is a brave man
(labafar) he is not only forgiven but made a commander often. When, having
risen to the command of a tumcn, he is sent in pursuit of the Naiman Kuchlug,
he remembers his promise and returns from that campaign bringing with him,
as a present for his master, a thousand chestnut horses with white muzzles !
See also Grousset, L? Empire Mongol, 116-17. It is stated by Wolff, Gtscti&tt
der Mongolen oder Tataren, no, and repeated by Howorth, I, 97, that Jebe did
not long survive the great expedition across the Caucasus and round the Caspian.
Wolff does not quote his authority for this statement, but the fact seems likely
enough, for unlike his comrade Siibetei, who was sail to distinguish himself
in China and in Hungary, Jebe now vanishes from history; nor has he, like
Siibetei, been accorded the honour of a biography in the Yuan sbih. See Pelliot-
Harnbis, loc. dt, also Pelliot, Horde d'Or, 133, n. 3.

2 Cf. below, p. 15 1 : * And from all the armies that accompanied him Chingiz-
Khan detached men from all his sons in proportionate number, and from each
ten he designated one to accompany TolL*

THE HISTORY OF

They forded the river at Panjab ; 3 and pursuing and seeking
him like a flood descending from hill to valley they hastened in
the manner of smoke.

First they came to Balkh. The notables of the town sent a
deputation to meet them and brought them tuzgbu and offerings
of food. The Mongols, in consequence, did them no harm and
gave them a sbabna. Then taking a guide from amongst them,
they sent forward Taisi 4 by way of vanguard.

When they came to Zava, 5 they asked for provisions (*ulufa) ;
but the people of the town closed their gates and paid no attention
to their words, refusing to give them anything. Since the
Mongols were in a hurry they did not stop but rode on. And
when the people of Zava saw the banners being borne away
and beheld the backs of the Mongols, in their lightheadedness
they turned their hands within their fortresses to the beating of
drums and tabors and opened their mouths in abuse and vitupera-
tion. The Mongols, perceiving their contemptuous behaviour
and hearing their voices, turned back and made a strenuous
assault upon all three fortresses, laying their scaling-ladders
against the walls. On the third day, at the time when the goblet
of the horizon was filled to the brim with the blood of the dawn-
red, they scaled the walls and left not alive whomsoever they
saw ; and being unable to stay they burnt and broke whatever
was too heavy to carry.

And this was the first pawn that Fate set down upon the chess-
board of Oppression, and the first trick that appeared from under
the thimble of the thimble-rigging Heavens. [114] It was as
though this fighting and slaying were the clue to the calamities
of Fate and the disasters of cruel Destiny. From the sound
thereof an earthquake shook Khorasan, and from hearing of that
event, whereof they had never heard the like, the people were
seized with terror.

3 Panjab or Mela was a * well-known crossing place ' near the mouth of the
Vakhsh. (Barthold, Turkestan, 72.)

4 TAYS Y. tarn ' prince * is an Uighur borrowing from the Chinese (t'at-fsu
'crown prince '). See Gabain, also Pelliot-Hambis, op, dt.> 94.

5 The modern Turbat-i-Haidari in Eastern Khorasan.

144

WORLD-CONQUEROR

At the beginning of Rabi* I, 617 1220], and

Siibetei arrived before Nishapur and dispatched an to

Mujir-al-Mulk Kafi Rukhkhi,* Farid~ad-Din and Ziya-al-
Mulk Zozaoi, 7 who were the ministers and sadrs of Khorasan,
calling opon them to submit and surrender and demanding
provisions ( *ulufa) and offerings of food (twzl). They dispatched
three persons from the mass of the people to Yeme bearing
offerings and presents and making outward profession of sub-
mission. Yeme admonished them saying that they should
eschew opposition and hostility and whenever a Mongol or a
Mongol envoy arrived they should welcome him and not rely
upon the stoutness of their walls and the multitude of their
people ; so that their houses and property might go unscathed.
And by way of a token they gave the envoys an 8 in

the Uighur script and a copy of a yarligb of Chingiz-Khao 9
whereof the gist was as follows: * Let the emirs and great ones
and the numerous common people know this that ... all the
face of the earth from the going up of the sun to his going down
I have given it unto thee. Whosoever, therefore, shall submit,
mercy shall be shown unto him and unto his wives and
children and household; but whosoever shall not submit,
shall perish together with all his wives and children and
kinsmen.*

The Mongols indited documents after this manner and
encouraged the people of the town with promises. Then they
left Nishapur, Yeme making for Juvain 9 and Siibetei proceeding
to Tus 10 by way of Jam. 11 Wherever the people came forward
to tender submission, [115] they were spared; but those that
offered resistance were utterly destroyed.

6 I.e. of Rukhkh, another name for the district of Zava. 7 I.e. of Zuzan.

8 On this f vermilion seal s attached by the Mongols to their documents see
Pelliot, Notes sur U " Turkestan" de M. W. BanboU, 35-6.

9 To the north-west of Nishapur. This district, the home of Juvaini, is now
called Jaghatai.

10 The name Tus was applied both to the whole district and to the town of
Tabaran, of which the roins are situated a few miles to the north of Meshed*

11 Now Turbat-i-Shaikh Jam, to the east of Turbat-i-Haidari on the Afghan
border.

145

THE HISTORY OF

The eastern villages of Tus, viz. Nuqan and all that quarter
(tuV) n tendered submission and so were at once saved ; and
from thence they dispatched an envoy to the town Itself; and
since the inhabitants did not answer to their Hking they carried
slaughter to excess both In the town and in the neighbouring
villages.

When Siibetei came to Radkan, the greenness of the meadows
and the copiousness of the springs so pleased him that he did
that people no harm and left a sbabna there* When he came to
Khabushan, 13 on account of the lack of attention shown by that
people, the Mongols wrought great slaughter. From thence he
came to Isfarayin; 14 and in Isfarayin and Adkan 15 also the
Mongols carried out a great massacre.

By way of Juvain Yeme then turned his reins towards
Mazandaran, while Siibetei hastened on by way of Qumish. 16

Yeme slew many people In Mazandaran, especially in Amul,
where he ordered a general massacre. He also left troops to
beleaguer the fortresses in which the Sultan's harem had taken
refuge ; and the siege continued until they were captured. 17

Meanwhile Siibetei had arrived before Damghan. The
notables of the town sought refuge in Girdkuh, 18 but a band
of ruffians (mnud) remained behind refusing to surrender; and
Issuing forth at night they fought at the gates of the town, and
some few were slain on either side.

From Damghan the Mongols proceeded to Samnan, and here

12 The name of Nuqan (or Nauqan), which was at one time the chief town
of the district of Tus, is still preserved in Naughan, the name of a quarter of
Meshed. By * all that quarter ' is perhaps meant all that part of the ' Quarter
of Nishapur*, Khorasan being divided into the four Quarters of Nishapur,
Merv, Herat and BalJkh. See le Strange, Lmis of th Eastern Calipbatt, 382.
It is more likely however that the reference is to one of the four * quarters * or
* territories ' into which Nishapur itself was divided. See below p. 297* & 5-

1S The modem Quchan.

14 The ruins of Isfarayin are now known as Shahr-i-Bilqls. See Smirnova,
120, n. 3.

15 ADKAN or AYKAN. Unidentified.

16 Kumish, Qumish or Qumis was a small province to the south of the eastern
extremity of the Elburz range.

17 For a fuller account of the siege see below, ii, 467.

18 A castle in the mountains near Damghan, a stronghold of the Assassins.

146

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

they slew many people, as in Khuvar of Ray also. 1 ' And

when they came to Ray/ the cacli [together with

persons] came forward and tendered submission. Then,

that the Sultan had departed in the direction of Hamadan, Yeme

hastened from Ray in his pursuit, while Silbetei proceeded

towards Qazvin and that region.

When Yeme came to Hamadan, 'Ala-ad-Daula 21 of Hama-
dan tendered submission, sent presents of mounts and clothing
and offerings of food,, victims and drink and accepted a
sbabna.

When the Sultan had been put to flight, Yeme turned back
and came once more to Hamadan. And when news reached
him that a considerable portion of the Sultan's army had
assembled at Sujas, 22 [116] headed by Beg-Tegin Silahdar and
Kiich-Bugha Khan, 23 he advanced against them and utterly
destroyed them.

The Mongols then plundered and massacred throughout the
greater part of Iraq 24 and departed from thence to Ardabil,
which they took by siege slaughtering the inhabitants and
pillaging their possessions.

When the season of winter arrived, they departed to Mughan 2S
and passed the winter there; and that year the roads were
blocked up with the great quantities of snow.

19 Khuvar of Ray (so called to distinguish it from another Khuvar in Pars)
lay between Samnan and Ray ; the name is perpetuated in the Plain of Khar.

20 The ruins of the famous city of Ray, the Rhages of the Ancients, lie a few
miles to the south of Tehran.

21 His name is given by Nasawi (tr. Houdas, 121) as 'Ala-ad-Daula ash-
Sharif al-'Alawi.

22 Sujas was a small town, a few miles to the west of Sultaniya.

23 Presumably identical with the Kiich-Bugha Khan who, according to
Nasawi (tr. Houdas, 118) was sent by Sultan Jalal-ad-Din's brother Rukn-ad-
Din against Jamal-ad-Din Ai-Aba and who was afterwards (jbtt. t 229) Hlled
in the battle between Jalal-ad-Din and the Mongols near Isfahan.

24 I.e. Persian Iraq. See above, p. 13, n. 29.

25 The Moghan Steppe, south of the Aras on the western coast of the Caspian,
now lies for the most part within the Soviet Socialist Republic of Azerbaijan.
It was presumably from this base that the Mongols launched their first attack on
the Georgians, on whom they inflicted a crushing defeat near Tiflis in February,
1 22 1. See Grousset, op. at, 258 and 516-17.

N 147

THE HISTORY OF

Jamal-ad-Din Al~Aba u and some others again began to stir
up sedition and unrest in Iraq and started a revolt. They slew
the sbabtui who had been placed over Hamadan, and seizing
*Ala-ad-Daula because of his having tendered submission they
imprisoned him in the Castle of Girit. 27

When spring came Yeme arrived in Iraq to avenge the slaying
of the sbabna. Jamal-ad-Din Ai-Aba came to offer submission,
but it availed him nothing, and he was executed together with
a number of others.

The Mongols then left Iraq and subjugated Tabriz, Maragha
and Nakhchivan 28 massacring the people in all these countries.
The atakeg Khamush 28 came forward to tender submission and
was given a letter and an d-tamgba.

From thence they went to Arran, 30 and took Bailaqan, 31 and

26 AYBH, for which C has AY ABH. The first element of this Turkish
name is at * moon ', and I take the second to be aba * bear * ; it could however
be apa, a vague word meaning among other things * ancestor *. On the use
of this latter word as a title see Hamilton, Les Ottigbwrs d I'epoque des Cinq Dynasties,
96-7 and 146. According to Nasawi (tr. Houdas, 1 17 and 120) his full name
was Jamal-ad-Din Muhammad b. Ai-Aba. (Houdas' text has ABY instead
of AY and Houdas, by a natural mistake, has converted his name into Ibn
Abou Abeh.) It would seem therefore that Ai-Aba was actually his father's
name and perhaps Juvaini's text should be read Jamal-aJ-Dtn-i-Ai-Aba, i.e.
Jamal-ad-Din, son of Ai-Aba.

27 Qal'a-yi-Gmt. This castle is mentioned by Cherikov, a Russian member
of the commission for the delimitation of the Ottoman-Persian frontier in 1848-52,
as lying to the south of the present-day Khurramabad in Northern Luristan.
See Minorsky, Luristan, in the Encyclopedia of Islam, also M.Q., III, 471-2.

28 The province of Nakhchivan, immediately to the north of the Aras, is
now the Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic of Nakhichevan within Azer-
baijan, from which it is physically separated by the Republic of Armenia.

29 The son of the ataltg Oz-Beg and a deaf-mute hence, his name, khamiisb
in Persian meaning * silent ', See Nasawi tr. Houdas, 215-16. Nasawi says
not a word of his submission to the Mongols ; according to Rashid-ad-Din
(Smirnova, 227) it was Oz-Beg himself who bought them off.

30 The province of Arran, the classical Albania, ky within the great triangle
of land formed by the junction of the Kur and the Aras, of which the greater
portion now forms part of the Soviet Socialist Republic of Azerbaijan, the
remainder belonging to the Republic of Armenia.

31 Bailaqan was at that time the chief town of Arran : its ruins, known
as MH-i-Bailaqan (Miller), lie to the south-east of Shusha. See Minorsky,

d 1 ; 398.

148

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

went on by of Shirvan. 31 Then to

and none remembered that any army had

or gone to war by this route, but they had to a m

and so passed through.

The army of Tushi were stationed on the Plain of the Qifchaq
and that region ; they linked up with them and departed
thence to rejoin Chingiz-Khan. S4

From the telling of this tale their might and prowess become
manifest, nay the power of And He is the His

servants*** is verified and confirmed; for that from an army
there should go forth a detachment and smite so many kingdoms
and kings and sultans, having on all sides such foes and
adversaries as no created being might resist or oppose, this can
mean nought but the end of one empire and the beginning of
another. 36

32 Before entering Shirvan the Mongols had again invaded Georgia and
inflicted a second defeat on the Georgians. See Rashid-ad-Din tr. Smirnova, 228,
tr. Khetagurov, 194-5, Grousset, op. dt, 259 and 517. The province of Shirvan,
which lay to the north of the Kur along the Caspian, now forms part of Soviet
Azerbaijan. According to Rashid-ad-Din (Smirnova, loc. at), the Mongols
had on their way to Darband sacked the chief town of the province, Shamakha,
carried out a general massacre and borne olf great numbers of prisoners.

33 This * stratagem * was, according to Rashid-ad-Din (Smirnova, 228-9),
to invite the ruler of Shirvan, the Shirvan-Shah, to send a delegation to conclude
peace. Of the ten notables whom he dispatched for this purpose one unfortunate
man was put to death, and the remainder were then threatened with the same
fate unless they guided the Mongols through the pass ! Elsewhere (Khetagurov,
195) Rashid-ad-Din says that the people of Darband presented tozght to the
Mongols and tendered submission.

34 Juvaini says nothing of the Mongols* encounter with a coalition of Caucasians
and Qipchaq upon their descending into the steppes ; nor does he mention their
defeat of the Russians on the Kalka. See Grousset, op. dt. t 259-60 and 517-21.

35 Koran, vi, 18.

36 * They had trampled on the nations which opposed their passage, pene-
trated through the gates of Derbend, traversed the Volga and the desert and
accomplished the circuit of the Caspian Sea, by an expedition which had never
been attempted and has never been repeated/ (Gibbon, VII, 10.)

149

THE HISTORY OF

[XXVI]

[lI7] A BRIEF ACCOUNT OF TOLI*S

CONQUEST OF KHORASAN

WHEN Sultan Mohammad passed through Khorasan Yeme and
Siibetei pursued him in great haste with the speed of fire ; they
were In fact a whirlwind, and the greater part of Khorasan lay
across the path of their armies, and there were few districts
through which a detachment of their forces did not pass. And
as they advanced, wherever a province lay in their path, they
dispatched an envoy to the people announcing the arrival of
Chlngiz-Khan and warning them not to resort to war and
frowardness nor refuse to accept submission, and plying them
with threats and menaces. And whenever the people elected to
submit, they gave them a sbabna with an al-tam$a as a token,
and departed. But wherever the people refused to submit and
surrender and the place was readily assailable and easily attacked,
they showed no mercy but took the town and slew the inhabitants.
When they passed by, the people busied themselves with
strengthening their forts and citadels and laying in a stock of
provisions; but after some time they became slack, and the
rumours concerning the Mongol armies having somewhat died
down, they fancied that perhaps that host was a flood which
had rolled by, or a whirlwind which had raised a dust-storm
from the face of the earth, or the fire of lightning which had
flashed and gone out.

When Chingiz-Khan crossed the river and turned in person
to the pursuit of the Sultan, he deputed his son Ulugh-Noyan 1
to invade Khorasan; Ulugh-Noyan, who in his severity was
like a flashing sword with the potency of fire, whereof the wind
turned into dust whomsoever it overtook, while in his horseman-
ship he was the lightning-flash which leaps out from the veil of
clouds, and renders the place where it falls like unto ashes, and

1 1.e. Toli (Tolui). See my article, On the Titks Given in Juvaini to Certain
Mongolian Princes , 146-8, where I suggest that this title (or the purely Mongol
equivalent Yeke-Noyan, both meaning * the Great Noyan ') was conferred upon
Tolui posthumously to avoid the mention of his real name.

150

THE

no or trace, and not to or

from all the armies that accompanied Chingiz-Khan

detached men from all his sons in and

from each ten he designated one to accompany ToH ;
that if the wind of war in any way comes into fire

falls into their being, [118] the fetters of restraint are
from the hands of their choice, and though the vast ocean be
their enemy they throst it down into the bowels of the dark earth.

When Toli went forth, he set commanders over flank

and himself proceeded in the centre, sending forward the van-
guard to reconnoitre. He proceeded by way of Maruchoq,, 2
Bagh and Baghshor. 3

Now Khorasan was divided into four cities: Balkh, Merv s
Herat and Nishapur. 4 Chingiz-Khan destroyed Balkh in per-
son, as has been separately mentioned ; and with respect to the
three .other cities, inasmuch as other events fell out in those
countries both before and after the arrival of the Mongols, their
several fates shall be related [hereafter] in detail 5 As for the
rest of that region, he dispatched armies to the right and the
left and to the East and the West and subjugated it all, including
Abivard, 6 Nisa, 7 Yazir, 8 Tus, Jajarm, Juvain, Baihaq/ Khaf, 1

2 Marachuq (the more usual spelling is Maruchaq), In Turkish * little Merv *,
on the Murghab, now lies just inside Afghan territory on the frontier with Turk-
menistan.

8 Bagh and Baghshur are two names of the same place. Its ruins lie near
the station of QaTa-yi-Mor on the Tianscaspian Railway. See Minority*
HwUMj 327. 4 See above, p. 13, n. 28.

" 5 Whole chapters (XXVII and XXVUI) are devoted to Merv and Nishapur,
but there is no detailed account of the capture of Herat. See the Introduction,
p. xxvi.

6 Abivard, also known as Bavard, * lay near the present villages of Abivard,
at 8 Km. west of the Qahqa [Kaakha] station of the Transcaspian railway *.
(Minorsky, op. dt. f 326.)

7 Nisa (or Nasa) was situated near the village of Bagir (Baghir) to the west
of Ashkabad in Turkmenistan. (IUd.}

8 Barthold, K istorii omfaniya Turkestam, 41 : ' About half way between
Ashkabad and Qizil Arvat lie the ruins of the town of Durun. There stood
here, in pre-Mongol times, the stronghold (kreposf) of Taq, which, not later
than the beginning of the thirteenth century, received the name of Yazir from the
Turkmen tribe which settled there. See Tumansky, Zap. V.O., IX, 301.* (V.M.)

9 Baihaq was the name of the Sabzavar district. 10 Spelt in Persian Khwaf.

THE HISTORY OF

Sanjan, 11 Sarakhs and Zurabad : 12 and by way of Herat they
came to the country of Sijistan, 13 massacring, plundering and
ravaging. With one stroke a world which billowed with
fertility was laid desolate, and the regions thereof became a desert,
and the greater part of the living dead, and their skin and bones
crumbling dust ; and the mighty were humbled and immersed
in the calamities of perdition. And though there were a man
free from preoccupations, who could devote his whole life to
study and research and his whole attention to the recording of
events, yet he could not in a long period of time acquit himself
of the account of one single district nor commit the same to
writing. How much more is this beyond the powers of the
present writer who, despite his inclinations thereto, has not a
single moment for study, save when in the course of distant
journeyings he snatches a hour or so when the caravan halts
and writes down these histories !

To be brief, then, in two or three months Toli subjugated
cities with such populations that every borough thereof is a city,
and from the surging [119] of creatures every one of them is an
ocean; and whole regions were rendered like the palm of the
hand and the mighty ones that rebelled were crushed in the
fist of calamities. The last of all to suffer was Herat, 14 and
when he had joined her to her sisters he returned to wait upon
his father. Talaqan had not yet been taken when he joined
him; and with his help that too was conquered. And
Khorazm, Jand and all that region were subjugated within two
months. Now from the time when Adam descended until this
present day no king has ever made such conquests nor has the
like been recorded in any book. 15

11 Apparently identical with Sangan (Sangun) between Turbat-i-Haidari and
Khaf.

12 Zurabad appears to be identical with Ziirabad or Zuhrabad, to the south-
west of Meshed near the frontier with Turkmenistan and Afghanistan.

13 The Arabic name of Sistan (Seistan), the region in Eastern Persia and
Western Afghanistan.

14 See above, p. 151, n. 5. Juzjani (Raverty, 1038) states that the Mongols
took the town after a siege lasting eight months and massacred the entire population.

15 In the margin of B someone has written in this pkce : KSstid tit niz w-
nivisbta U&, ' Would that thou too hadst not recorded it ! ' (M.Q.)

WORLD-CONQUEROR

[XXVII]
OF MERV AND FATE THEREOF

MERV was the residence of Sultan Saojar and the rendezvous
of great and small. In extent of territory it excelled among the
lands of Khorasan, and the bird of peace and security flew over
its confines. The number of its chief men rivalled the drops of
April rain, and its earth contended with the heavens ; its
from the greatness of their riches, breathed the breath of equality
with the monatchs and emirs of the age and set down the foot
of parity with the mighty and haughty ones of the world.

A fair knd and a merciful lord, <tni a soil whse day

bleeds ambergris;
Anl when a man prepares to depart $xrefrom, fy its t/ery

name it forbids him to depart. 1

When Sultan Muhammad (God illuminate his example /)
had deposed Mujir-al-Mulk Sharaf-ad-Din Muzaffar from the
governorship and vizierate on account of an offence committed
by his uncle and had entrusted that office to the son of Najib-
ad-Din Qissa-Dar, 2 known as Baha-al-Mulk Mujir-al-Molk
remained in attendance on the Sultan until the time when
he fled from Tirmiz ; [120] when Kush-Tegin Pahlavan 3
approached the courtiers resident at Mcrv in order to sound their
views and brought tidings of confusion and dispersion and the
advent of a strange army. And thereafter came messages from

1 Attributed by Tha'alibi in the Yatimat-ai'-Dabr to Abu-'Ali as-Saji The
name Merv in the Arabic character MRW may also be read ma-ran *go
not*. (M.Q.)

2 According to Nasawi (tr. Houdas, 168) Najib-ad-Din Qissa-Dar had been
* vizier of Jand*. As qtssa-ddr he was *le fbnctionnaire charge de recevoir les
requetes, petitions et reclamations. A la fin de la semaine il reunissait tout
son dossier ; il le portrait le jeudi soir a la salle de reception, et quand le sultan
avait fini de Fexaminer, il le remportait avec les solutions donnees/ Nasawi
calls him asb-Sbabraz&ri, i.e. of Shehrizur in Kurdistan, and his son Baha-al-
Mulk HajjL

8 The Kiich-Tegin Pahkvan of Nasawi (tr. Houdas, 115), according to
whom (ttrid.j 229) he afterwards took part in the battle between Sultan Jalal-
ad-Din and the Mongols near Isfahan. On this battle see below, ii, 436-7. Msh
is simply a dialectical variant of the Turkish Mcb * strength ', * might '.

153

THE HISTORY OF

the Sultan adorned with signature and tqgbra and annotated with
folly and impotence, whereof the contents and purport was that
the levies, soldiers and officials should take refuge in the fortress
of Margha and that the dihqans and all that could not remove
themselves should remain where they were and should, whenever
a Tartar army arrived, go forth with ceremony to meet them and
preserve their lives and property by accepting a shahna and obeying
their orders.

Now, when the King, who is, as it were, the heart, becomes
weak in his limbs, how shall there remain strength in the
members of the body ? And so timidity prevailed over events
and fear over men, and bewilderment and uncertainty over-
whelmed them.

Baha-al-Mulk together with a great number of the nobles and
military made every preparation; but when he reached the
fortress he judged it inexpedient to remain there and set out for
the castle of Taq-i-Yazir 4 together with some others. Others
again departed to various places according to their fancy, while
those whose reins had been seized by Destiny returned to Merv.

As his deputy Baha-al-Mulk had left behind a man of the
people who was the nayk. This man was inclined to surrender,
and the $haikh-al-I$lam Shams-ad-Din Harisi favoured his idea
but the cadi and the chief of the sayyids strayed from the path of
rectitude and stood aloof. When it was confirmed that the army
of Yeme and Siibetei had reached Maruchuq, they sent an envoy
with tokens of submission and friendship.

At this juncture, a Turcoman, who had been the leader and
guide of the Sultan and whose name was Buqa, sprang up
from a corner and, a number of Turcomans having gathered
around him, [121] threw himself unexpectedly into the city,
where a number of people that were opposed to submission and
obedience to the Tartar army made common cause with him.
The naqib removed the veil of government from his face, and the
Turcomans of all that region joined up with Buqa. A number
of the inhabitants of Jand, 5 who had fled from the levy and had
turned towards Merv attracted by the abundance of its wealth,
4 I.e. Yazir. See above, p. 151, n. 8. 5 See above, pp. 90-1.

154

WORLD-CONQUEROR

arrived at this time and sought with him; and so he

acquired a large following.

Meanwhile, the Sultan having found his rest on the of

Abaskun, Mujir-al-Melk, now riding a donkey, now
on foot, turned his reins and passed by the castle of Su'luk. 7
Here the Emir Shams-ad-Din C AH greeted him with honour and
reverence ; and from thence he came to Merv, where he
in the Garden of Mahiabad at the Sarmajan Gate. Some of
the officers of Merv, who were his liegemen, came to him
individually; but Buqa would not admit him into the town
being apprehensive of pressure from the common people. How-
ever, when a few individuals had gathered around him, they
suddenly, in the middle of the day, covered their armour 8 with
their cloaks and threw themselves into the town* The Mervian
levies at once girded their loins in his service, and Buqa came
to him alone and was pardoned. The Turcomans and Jandians
in the town, though numbering more than seventy thousand, also
submitted to him. He thought himself in consequence superior
to the rank of vizier, and his fancy kept the dream of Sultanship
ever in his brain; for his mother had been a favourite in the
harem of the Sultan whom the latter had given to his father and
who, at the time she was delivered up to him, was already with
child. In short, when the report of his success was noised
through Khorasan, the lower classes (otAasb) [everywhere]
turned towards him, and in the core of his heart the delusion
became implanted that the heavens could not revolve without
his leave nor the winds move through the plains of the air.

At this time the people of Sarakhs had accepted a Tartar
sbabna and submitted ; and the sbaikb-al-Islam, who still had a
leaning towards the Tartars, wrote whisperings to the cadi of

6 sukun : a word-play with Abutem, which Is here apparently not the port
of that name but the Caspian Sea itself. Cf. below, ii, 385, where Muhammad
is said to take refuge on * one of the islands of the Sea of Abaskun'. See also
Minorsky, Hudud, 386.

7 According to Hamdallah (tr. le Strange, 148) the * strongly fortified castle
of Su'luk ' ky to the north of the town of Isfarayin.

8 pusbisbba, which would normally mean * clothes", but cf. the use
in the sense of* armour* in Minorsky, A Civil an& Military Review; 164.

155

HISTORY OF

Sarakhs,. who his kinsman* [122] Mujir-al-Mulk had been
informed of this of but said nothing : until one

in the midst of a sermon from the pulpit in the cathedral
mosque, there slipped from the tongue of the shaikh-d-Iskm the
words : * May the life-veins of the Mongols* enemies be severed ! *
Those present in the assembly were much exercised by these
words ; and he himself was silenced, confused and bewildered,
and said : * Such words passed my lips without my volition and
my thought and intention was the contrary of what I said/ But
when the moment is ripe* a prayer comes to the lips in accordance
with the requirement of the time. God Almighty kith said, f The
is concerning which ye enquire! 9

These words also reached the ear of Mujir-al-Mulk and con-
firmed his suspicion; but he was related to the man, and he
bore the name of shaikh-til- Mm and was in himself a learned
man ; and so Mujir-al-Mulk was unwilling to touch him with-
out the evidence of proof such as all the world might see and
none might deny or refute. Finally, a letter in his own hand-
writing which he had written to the cadi of Sarakhs was retrieved
from the messenger in the middle of his journey ; and when
Mujir-al-Mulk read this letter he had him summoned and
questioned him. He denied all the rumours and hints about
his having dispatched the message. Mujir-al-Mulk then handed
him the letter, which was Hke that of Mutalammis, 10 saying,
"* Riad what tbou hast written.* "^ As for the sbaikb-al-Islam,
when his eye fell on the writing, he became disturbed and
confused. Mujir-al-Mulk ordered him to be taken away, and
the officers (s&bangSn) laid hold of him and poured the fire of
calamity over him; they cut him to pieces with their knives,
took him by the log and dragged him face downwards to the
market place. Verily, the result of hypocrisy and guile is
grievous and the consequence of treachery and betrayal disastrous.

And on account of the submission of Sarakhs Mujir-

* Koran, xii, 41.

10 I.e. it contained the bearer's death sentence. For the story of Mutalammis
(i.e. Jarir) see the Kifalhd-Aglmi ed. Bdinnow, XXI, 193. (V.M.)

11 Koran, xvii, 15, where the meaning is : ' Read thy book.*

continually sent troops and the of

the town.

Meanwhile Baha-al-Mulk had fled from the of Tag-

i-Yazir and taken refuge in Mazandaran. Here he approached
the Mongols and the levy, informed them of the position in
Merv and offered to go thither and reduce the town and to
furnish eery year from eery house a linen garment for the
treasury. [123] His words met with their full approval and
they dispatched him to Merv together with seven Mongols.

Being unaware of the developments in Merv and ignorant of
the jugglings of Fate, he arrived full of greed and avidity in
Shahristana* 1 * where he received tidings of the taking of the
town by Mujir-al-Mulk. He sent forward an officer to announce
[his arrival] and wrote a letter to Mujlr-al-Mulk whereof the
contents were as follows : * If there were formerly differences
between us and apprehension about the holding of office, all
that is now over and there is no protection against the might of
the Mongol army save in service and the acceptance of allegiance.
Seven thousand Mongols together with ten thousand levies are
approaching Merv, and I am allied with them; and they have
in one moment razed Nisa and Bavard 1S to the ground. And
now, being moved by compassion and desiring concord between
us, I have sent forward runners to inform you hereof, so that
you may refrain from persistence in strife and not cast yourselves
into the whirlpool of destruction and the oven of perdition/

Mujir-al-Mulk and the grandees and notables were divided
in their opinions and distracted in their minds. The more
responsible together with Mujir-al-Mulk himself wished to dis-
perse and abandon the town; but they reflected that to rely
upon the word of an interested party was remote from prudence
and wisdom. They therefore took Baha-al-MulFs messengers
aside, one by one, and interrogated them about the size of the
army. When they discovered the truth of the matter, they slew
them and dispatched two thousand five hundred from the

12 Or Shahristan. It lay 3 miles north of Nisa. See Barthold, Turkestan, 153,
n. 16.

13 Or Ablvard. See above, p. 151, n. 6.

157

of the Turks to fight their forces. When

and the of their dispositions they

in the of and Baha-al-Mulk's officers

The bound Baha-al-Mulk and bore him

with as far as Tus, they put him to death.

Mojir-al-Molk's army proceeded as far as Sarakhs; and

the cadi Shams-ad-Din, at the time of Yeme Noyan's

arrival, had gone out to meet him with tuzgbu [124] and had

over Sarakhs to the Mongols, becoming matik and

governor of the town and receiving a wooden paiza 14 from

Chingiz-Khan, they seized him and delivered him up to the

son of Pahlavan Abu-Bak Divana, who slew him in vengeance

for his father.

The rumours about the Mongols having by this time somewhat
died down, Mujir-al-Mulk and the notables of Merv concerned
themselves with pleasures and amusements and gave themselves
completely over to the excessive drinking of wine. At this
juncture Ikhtiyar-ad-Din, the mlik of Amuya, arrived with
tidings that the Tartar army was besieging QdVyi-Kalat and
QaTa-yi-Nau u and that a detachment of them had come to
Amuya and were at his heels. Mujir-al-Mulk made Ikhtiyar-
ad-Din welcome ; he joined the other Turcomans and took up
his abode among them.

A Mongol army of eight hundred men now attacked the
town; but Shaikh Khan 16 and Oghul Hajib 17 arriving from

14 PAYZH. The Chinese j?W tzX. On these 'tablets of authority', as
Marco Polo calls them, see Benedetto, 112-13. See also Yule's note, The Soak
&f Sif Mm& P&k, I, 351-4, for plates representing two silver paizas found in
Russian territory. Fob speaks only of gold and silver tablets: wooden paizas
were givm to minor officiak See Vernadsky, The Mongols ml Russia, 125-6
and 128.

15 QalVyi-Kalit most be the famous stronghold afterwards known as Kalat-i-
Nadirl, for a description of which see Curzon, Perm and tk Persian Question, I,
126-40. QalVyi-Nau, 'the New Castle*, has not been identified. (V.M.).

16 He had been one of the defenders of Samarqand. See above, p. 118.

17 He is referred to above, p. 124, as Moghol Hajib. See Barthold, op. tit,
433, n. 2. He appears to be identical with the Oghul Hajib of Nasawi (tr.
Houdas, 19) on whom the title of Inanch-Khan had been conferred. In the
chapter specially devoted to this general (*W V 111-17) he is called Badr-ad-Din
Inanch-Khan. He had been designated by Jakl-ad-Din to take part in the

I 5 8

Khorazm two fell the rear of

the Mongols, overcame and left the

on the field. Some, less ied

were pursued by the Sellings Turks and Turcomans^
captured sixty of them and after parading the

quarters of the town and the market places put to-

Shaikh Khan and Oghul Hajib in

Dastajird. 18

As for Ikhtiyar-ad-Din, the Turcomans
leader ; and forming a compact among
away from Mujir-al-Mulk and began to stir up such tumult and
confusion that the face of the earth was made as black as the
hearts of hypocrites, and strove to take possession of the town,
Mujir-al-Mulk received tidings of their intention to a

night attack and took counter measures. Being thus unable to
achieve a victory and their position having become insecure,
they retired to the bank of the river and set their hands to plunder-
ing ; they would come up to the gates of the town* pillage the
villages and seize whatever they set their eyes on.

It was at this juncture that Chingiz-Khan [125] dispatched
Toll to conquer the countries of Khorasan with men of action
and lions of battle ; and raising levies from the subject territories
which lay across their path such as Abivard, Sarakhs, etc., they
assembled an army of seven thousand men. Drawing near to
Merv they sent four hundred horsemen across the ford by way
of vanguard. These came by night to the bank where the Tur-
comans were encamped and watched their activities. Twelve
thousand Turcoman horsemen were assembled there and used
at every dawn to go to the gates in order to attack the town.

defence of Bokhara, and after the fall of the town had fled westward, first to the
region of Nisa and Abivard, then to Sabzavar and finally to Jurjan on the eastern
shores of the Caspian, where he inflicted a defeat upon the Mongols. There
is no mention of his passing through Gurganj ; and yet elsewhere (tr. Houdas,
96) Nasawi, like Juvaini (ii, 401), speaks of his presence there at the time of
Jalal-ad-Din's arrival from the West and even of his warning the Sultan of
a plot against his person.

18 Perhaps the Dastagird mentioned by Hamdallah (tr. le Strange, 169) as
lying on the road from Marv-ar-Rud to Balkh.

159

HISTORY OF

Upon a jt~bkck night face was washed with pitch,

when neither Mars was visible, nor Saturn, nor Mercury. 18

the Mongols laid an ambush In their pathway and waited in
silence. The Turcomans were unable to recognize one another
[in the dark] and as they arrived in small groups the Mongols
cast them into the water and on to the wind of annihilation.
Having thus broken their strength the Mongols came like the
wind to their encampment and left the trace of the wolf upon
the herd. And thus the Turcomans, whose numbers exceeded
seventy thousand, were defeated by a mere handful of men.
Most of them flung themselves into the water and were drowned,
while the remainder took to flight. For since the Mongols were
aided by Fortune and assisted by Fate, none was able to contend
with them and he whose time was not yet come fled away casting
down his arms.

The Mongols proceeded in this manner rill nightfall and col-
lected on the plain a herd of sixty thousand cattle (including
sheep) which the Turcomans had driven from the gates, as well
as other possessions, the amount of which was beyond com-
putation. On the next day, which was the first of Muharram,
618 [25th of February, 1221], and the last of the lives of most
of the inhabitants of Merv, Toli, that furious lion, arrived with
an army like unto a dark night and a raging sea and in [126]
multitude exceeding the sands of the desert, * all warriors of
great renown*.

He advanced in person to the Gate of Victory together with
some five hundred horse and rode right round the town ; and
for six days they inspected the outworks, walls, moat and minaret
[sic] m and reached the conclusion that the townspeople's sup-
plies would suffice to defend them and that the walls were a
stout bastion that would withstand their attack.

On the seventh day,

When the shining sun sought to cast his glittering lasso
from the lofty citadel,

19 Skibmna ed. Vullers, 1065, 1. i.

20 momm : perhaps the turrets on the wall are meant.

1 60

THE

the the

Gate, They joined two

the and attacking. ToH dismounted in person-
He uttered a roar like a furious elephant, his
shield above his head and showed his hand il

and advanced upon them. And the Mongols attacked in his
company driving them back into the town. Others
from another gate but the Mongols stationed repelled the

attack. And so the townspeople were nowhere able to achieve
any result and could not even pot their heads out of the gates.
Finally the world donned garments of mourning, and the
Mongols took up positions in several rings around the fortifica-
tions and kept watch throughout the night, so that none had
any means of egress.

Mujir-al-Mulk saw no way out save surrender and submission.
In the morning, therefore, when the sun had raised the black
veil from his moonlike face, he dispatched Jamal-ad-Din, one
of the chief imams of Merv, as his ambassador and sued for
quarter. Being reassured by fair words and promises, he got
together presents from the quadrupeds in the town horses,
camels and mules and went to Toll [in person]. ToH ques-
tioned him about the town and asked for details regarding the
wealthy and notable. Mujir-al-Mulk gave him a list of two
hundred persons, and Toll ordered them to be brought into his
presence. Of the questioning of these persons one might have
said that e the Earth quaked with her quaking y 22 and of the digging
up of their buried possessions, both money and goods, that * tbe
Earth cast forth her burdens '. 23

The Mongols now entered the town and drove all the
inhabitants, nobles and commoners, out on to the plain. For
four days and nights the people continued to come out of the
town; the Mongols detained them all, separating the women
from the men. [127] Alas ! how many peri-like ones did they
drag from the bosoms of their husbands ! How many sisters

21 Shabaama ed. Vullers, 476, L 700. 2a Koran, xlix, i.

., xllx, 2.

161

HISTORY OF

did they separate from their brothers ! How many parents were
distraught at the ravishment of their virgin daughters !

The Mongols ordered that, apart from four hundred artisans
whom they specified and selected from amongst the men and
some children, girls and boys, whom they bore off into captivity,
the whole population, including the women and children,
should be killed, and no one, whether woman or man, be spared.
The people of Merv were then distributed among the soldiers
and levies* and, in short, to each man was allotted the execution
of three or four hundred persons. The people (aAak) of Sarakhs
in avenging their cadi exceeded [the ferocity of] such as had no
knowledge of Islam or religion and passed all bounds in the
abasement and humiliation [of their fellow Moslems], So many
had been Hied by nightfall that the mountains became hillocks, 24
and the plain was soaked with the blood of the mighty.

We Ixiue grown oU In a lanl In whose expanses one treads
on nought htf &t cheeks of maidens md the Ireasts of

striplings.

Then, at Toll's command, the outworks were destroyed, the
citadel levelled with the ground and the maqsma of the mosque
belonging to the sect of the greatest imam Abu-Hanifa 25 (God
bam mercy on Mm I) set on fire. One might have said that
this was in vengeance for what befell in the time of the righteous
rale of Shams-ad-Din Mas'ud of Herat, the vizier of the kingdom
of Sultan Tekish ; 28 who caused a Friday mosque to be built
for the followers of the imam Shafi V 7 which fanatics set fire to
by night.

When the Mongols had finished plundering and leading

a4 I.e. the mountains seemed no more than hillocks when surrounded by the
huge piles of dead. For MhM * mountains * M.Q. suggests the reading gwb8
* ditches * ; but the emendation seems unnecessary.

25 Abe-HanSa an-Nu*man was the founder of the Hanifi sect, one of the four
orthodox sects of the Sunnis.

26 On Sultan Tekish, the father of Muhammad Khorazm-Shah, see below,
pp. 289-315-

27 Muhammad b. Idris ash-Shafi% was the founder of the Shafi'i sect of Sunni
Islam.

I62

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

captive and massacring, Ziya-ad-Din "Ali one of the

of Merv, who had been spared by of his

received orders to enter the town and be of

those that reassembled out of nooks and crannies* The

also left Barmas m as

When the army departed, [128] those that had
in holes and cavities came out again, and there
together some five thousand persons. A party of
belonging to the rearguard then arrived and wished to have
share of slaughter. They commanded therefore that each person
should bring a skirtful of grain out on to the plain for the
Mongols ; and in this way they cast into the well of annihilation
most of those that had previously escaped. Then they proceeded
along the road to Nishapur and slew all they found of those
who had turned back from the plain and fled from the Mongols
when halfway out to meet them. In this manner many persons
lost their lives, and hereafter Taisi, who had turned back from
Yeme Noyan's army, arrived in Merv; he too laid balm on
their wounds, 29 and all that the Mongols found there were drawn
out of the noose of life and caused to drink the draught of
annihilation.

By God f we live in violent times : ff m sm them m

drem m sbcM k terrified.
The people are in such an evil plight that be fite Jw

died deserves to rejwce?

Now the sayyid Izz-ad-Din Nassaba was one of the great
sayyitk and renowned for his piety and virtue. He now together
with some other persons passed thirteen days and nights in
counting the people slain within the town. Taking into
account only those that were plain to see and leaving aside those
that had been killed in holes and cavities and in the villages
and deserts, they arrived at a figure of more than one million

28 Here BRMAS hot elsewhere B ARMAS : apparently * he that does not go \

29 Note Juvaini's irony.

* Attributed by Tha'alibi in the Yatimat-ad-Dabr to Abid-Hasan Muhammad
b. Muhammad known as Ibn-Lankak al-Basii (M.Q.)

THE HISTORY OF

three hundred thousand. *Izz~ad~Din quoted a quatrain of

f UmaM-Khayyam which was of the occasion:

The form of a cup in which It has been moulded together

the drunkard does not hold It lawful to shatter.
So many lovely heads and feet by his art
Who has joined them In love and who has broken them in hate*

The Emir Ziya-ad-Din and Barmas both remained in Merv
until news arrived that Shams-ad-Din the son of Pahlavan Abu-
Divana had started a rising in Sarakhs. The Emir Ziya-
ad-Din set out with a few men to suppress the rebellion ; and
Barmas, after taking out of the town the artisans, etc., who were
to proceed to Bokhara, [129] encamped outside. Hereupon a
number of persons* the measure of whose lives was filled and
their fortune revosed, thought that the Adma had received tidings
about the Sultan and was preparing to flee. They at once beat
a drum and rose in revolt, on the last day of Ramazan, 618
[7th of November, 1221], Barmas came to the gate of the
town and sent some men to summon the notables. No one
showed his face or treated him with any respect ; and in revenge
he slew numbers of people whom he found at the gate of the
town. Then he departed together with those that had accom-
panied him; among whom was Khoja Muhazzib-ad-Din
Dashtabadi, who followed him as far as Bokhara. In Bokhara
the sbahia died, and there the people from Merv remained.

When Ziya-ad-Din returned he entered the town under the
pretext of making preparations for his departure and distributed
the plunder he had taken amongst the people. He also sent the
son of Baha-al-Mulk to them as a hostage saying that he was his
own son. He himself did not show his face but rose in rebellion
with them and repaired the walls and the citadel ; a number of
people rallying around him. At this juncture a party of Mongol
soldiers arrived. He judged it expedient to treat them well and
kept them with him for some rime.

When Kiish-Tegin Pahlavan arrived from the Sultan s retinue
together with large forces and began to invest the town, some of
the common people revolted and went over to him. Ziya-ad-

31 One of the earliest quotations from Khayyam.

164

THE WGRLD-CO'NQBEEOE

Din f realizing that his affairs could not a

conflict of interests, set out for the of

with the party of Mongols that were in attendance on ; aed
Kiish-Tegin entered the town, where he to lay

foundations, repair the fortifications, improve agriculture and
mend the dam. Some of the people of the town dispatched a
secret letter to Ziya-ad-Din urging him to return to the town.
When he came back and halted at the gates [130] one of his
followers entered the town and told some person of his arrival,
The news at once reached the ears of Kiish-Tegin and Zip-
ad-Din*s enemies. Kiish-Tegin dispatched a party of men and
had him seized. Then he demanded his money of him. Ziya-
ad-Din said that he had given it to prostitutes. Kiish-Tegin
asked who they were. * They are/ he said, * persons of quality
and men of trust who to-day are drawn up before you just as
formerly they were drawn up before me; but when the time
came for action they deserted me and set the brand of treason
upon their foreheads.' When he realized that Ziya-ad-Din had
no money and there was nothing to be got from him, Kiish-
Tegin deemed his death to be his own life and considered his
destruction the survival of the realm.

After the death of Ziya-ad-Din he turned with an untroubled
mind to his building and agricultural schemes and worked at
the construction of a dam for the river, whereas the water of
Destiny had burst the dam of his life and confined the water of
his existence 32 in the wells of perdition.

While thus negligent [of events] he received tidings of the
arrival of Qaracha Noyan in Sarakhs. 33 He retreated by night
by way of Sangbast 34 together with a thousand picked (mufmd)

S2 More literally, his * water of life ', ak-i~hayat, i.e. * immortality *. The mean-
ing of this figurative language seems to be simply that Kiish-Tegin was about
to experience a reversal of fortune and not that his death was at hand. In fact
he survived to take part in the Battle of Isfahan. See above, p. 153, n. 3.

33 The approach of the Mongols, according to Nasawi, was due to his having
marched on Bokhara and killed the Mongol sbahui. See Nasawi tr. Houdas,
115, also Barthold, op, dt> 448 and n, 5.

84 The text has swg~pwbt * tortoise * 1 Sangbast is a village some 20 rules
to the sooth-east of Meshed. See Barthold, op. at., 449, n. 9.

165

HISTORY OF

horsemen. Qaracha went in his pursuit and overtook him at
slaying the greater part of his force ; while his deputies
remained in charge of the government of Merv. 25

Three or four days afterwards some two hundred horsemen,
who were going to join Qutuqu Noyan, M arrived at Merv.
Half of them continued their journey in order to carry out their
orders, while the other half laid siege to the town and hurriedly
to the generals Torfaci S7 and Qaban 3S in
NaJkhshab reporting the gathering together of people at Merv ;
[131] for at that rime strangers from aH parts, attracted by the
abundance of its wealth, had risen from their comers and
turned their faces towards Merv; and the townspeople also
out of patriotism were casting themselves into that well of
stench.

Within five days Torbdl arrived at the gates with five thousand
men and accompanied by Humayun Sipahsalar, who had
received the tide of Aq-MaEL They took the town within
an hour ; and putting camel halters on believers they led them
off in strings of ten and twenty and cast them into a trough
of blood* In this manner they martyred a hundred thousand
persons ; after which they distributed the various quarters among
the troops and destroyed the greater part of the houses, palaces,
mosques and shrines.

The generals then returned to their post together with the
Mongol army, leaving Aq-Malik behind with a small force for
the purpose of laying hands on any persons that might have
exercised prudence and escaped from the beak of the sword-

3S Kush-Tegin himsel according to Nasawi, fled first to Sabzavar and then
to Juxjan, where he joined forces with Oghul-Hajib Inanch-Khan* See Nasawi
tr. Hondas, 115, also Barthold, be. dL

38 Le. Shigi-Qutiiqu. See above, p. 135 and n. 8.

87 TRBAY. E has TWRTAY, i.e. apparendy TWRBAY. As was
already suggested by Barthold, kc, at., n. i, this general is probably identical
with the Torbei Toqshin who had been sent across the Indus in pursuit of
Sultan Jalal-ad-Din.

88 Reading QBAN with E in place of the QBAE. of the text. Cf. the
Qaban who accompanied the Emir Arghun on a mission to China (ii, 506)*
Qaban was also the name of a great grandson of Chaghatai, the Ciban of Marco
Polo, See Hambis, If cbapitre CFII, 92.

166

crow 3t by In a corner. put

practice the impious forms of When no

remained untried a person from Nakhshab
them played the muezzin and gave the call to ; all

that came out of the holes in which they

and crammed into the Shihabi college, down

from the roof. In this manner many more
For forty-one days Aq-Malik continued this work
returned whence he had come And in the town

remained not four persons alive.

When there was no army left in Merv and its surroundings, all
those that had remained in the villages or departed into the
deserts turned their faces towards the town. And the son of an
emir, a man called Arslan, again assumed the emirate of Merv f
and the common people (*at/amm) rallied to his side.

When news of what had happened at Merv reached Nisa f a
Turcoman 40 in that place collected an army of his tribesmen
and came to Merv. The townspeople went over to him and
so ten thousand people were gathered around him and he was
emir for the space of six months, during which time he constantly
sent forces to Marv-ar-Rud, Panj-Dih 41 and Talaqan to strike
by stealth at the Mongols* baggage and carry off their cattle and
horses.

At the same time, desiring to take Nisa/ 2 the Turcoman pro-
ceeded thither with the greater part of his force [132] and laid
siege to the town, the governor of which was Nusrat 43 He
continued the siege until Pahlavan, 44 coming from the direction

** ghirifa-i-sbamstir : a pun, since gbttrak in Arabic means both *crow* and
'edge (of a cutting weapon)*.

40 His name, according to Nasawi (tr. Houdas, 165), was Taj-ad-Din
'Umar b. Mas'ud, and he had also made himself master of Khurqan and
Abivard.

41 Marv-ar-Rud is the modern Bala Murghab in Afghanistan. Panj-Dih
(Panjdeh) is further down the Murghab in Turkmenistan.

42 There is a pun involved since msa (mw*) in Arabic means * women *.

43 His full name was Nusrat-ad-Din Hamza b. Muhammad b. Hamza b.
'Umax b. Hamza. See Nasawi tr. Houdas, Uc. cU, t also 173-9.

44 Apparently Shams-ad-Din, the son of Pahlavan Abu-Bakr Divana, See
above, pp. 158 and 164.

167

THE HISTORY OF

of Yazir, suddenly fell upon him, and he took to flight. 45 Half-
way back (Jar miyin-i-rSb) he was attacked and slain by the
governor of the castle.

Meanwhile Qaracha Noyan had come from Talaqan to attack
the Turcoman and had suddenly appeared before Merv. He
again put salt on the burn, slaying all that he found and causing
their grain to be devoured. And in his trail came Qutuqe
Noyan with a hundred thousand men and began to torture and
torment the inhabitants. And the Khalaj of Ghazna and the
Afghans, who had been pressed into the levy, set their hands
to such tortures as no man has ever seen the Eke* Some they
laid on fire and some they killed with other torments, sparing
not a single creature. In this manner they passed forty days and
then departed ; and in the town and the villages there remained
not a hundred souls alive and not enough food even for these
enfeebled few. And in addition to all these calamities, a person
called Shah together with a small band of ruffians searched all
the holes and cavities, and whenever they found an emaciated
person they slew him* Some few such wretches escaped and
were scattered throughout the country ; and except for ten or a
dozen Indians who had been resident in the town for ten years
past there was no one left in the town.

O nights of Royal Merv when we were all ttnited ! God give

tbee to drink of the cloud of spring rains !
We snatched Ate from the vldsskttdes and uncertainties

of Fate whilst the eye of Intention was anointed with

the cdlymm of sleep.
Now the vicissitudes of Fate have awakened and renewed their

intention* md have scattered them Mke ram w every

45 E has a blank after the word for * casdc * (qal'a), which Barthold, loc. cit,
takes to be the citadel of Nisa. It would appear however that the Turcoman
was some distance from Nisa at the time of the attack

4e These Hues are quoted, under Merv, in the Mu'jam-al-Bttldan, where the
third line has, instead of sayyarahum as in the text, sayyarana f i.e. * scattered us
like rain'. (M.Q.)

168

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

[133] [XXVIII]

OF WHAT BEFELL AT NISHAPUR

IF the earth may be compared to the heavens, then the
are like its stars and Nishapur, amongst these stars* is like the
Fair Venus of the skies. And if it be likened onto a human
being, then Nishapur by reason of its choice and
qualities is like the pupil of the eye.

Ami at m mii

Semi Ait Nishtpur Is tbc Ac

is in the ? *

Hail to the town of Nishapur ! For if chore be a paradise
on the lace of the earth it is this ; and if it be not a
paradise, then there is no paradise at alL

Sultan Muhammad left Balkh for Nishapur, and the terror of
the Last Day was apparent on the pages of his condition and
fear and dread were manifest in his speech. And although by
the influence of the heavens upon the centre of the earth things
fall out such that if the picture thereof were imagined for one
moment in the thoughts of the mountains their members would
be shaken and their joints loosened for all eternity

There have befallen me calamities such that M they
befall the days they muU facom m$t$ 2

yet to all this there were added hidden and imaginary fears in
the likeness of dreams and the semblance of omens, so that
weakness and neglect gained complete mastery over his being and
his cogitative and imaginative faculties were rendered incapable
of inventing, contriving and employing devices.

One night in [134] his sleep the Sultan had seen luminous
persons, their faces scratched, their hair disordered and dishevelled,
clad in black robes like mourners ; who smote their heads and

1 Lit what the man is in the man, i.e. the man of the eye, in Arabic wm~d~m,
* the pupil of the eye '. The verses are by Abul-Hasan Muhammad b. * Isa
al-Karaji and are quoted by Tha'alibi in the Tatimmt d-Yatim. (M.Q.)
See EghbaFs ed., n, 68.

2 Attributed to Fatima, the daughter of the Prophet. (M,Q.)

169

lamentation. He them who they were and they

replied, * We arc Islam/ And similar things were constantly

revealed to him.

At this time, whilst going to visit the Shrine of Tus, a he
two cats, one white and one black, fighting on the
threshold. He determined to take an augury of his own fate
and that of his enemy from the fight of these two cats. He stopped
to watch; and when his enemy's cat was victorious and his
own cat defeated, he heaved a sigh and departed.

Ntjbt spreal kr tent* uxrt tbou roused ty a mum

upon m Effpthn willow?
It Is jtoff that the tern naming from tby eyes sbould

mi k iml;

F&T m the of Ae iwwi then was exile, and in

fix Eff^m willow *k distance tlwt heps one just
wt of reach. 41

And by reason of the victory of the hosts of cares and griefs
the night of his youth had drawn near to the dawn of age, and
from the gbaliy* 5 there had welled up a fountain of camphor, 6
and from the heat of the bowels and the agitation of the bile
fluid there had broken out upon the skin of his members the
pustules of scabies like bubbles in boiling water.

My father has related as follows : * In the midst of his flight,
whilst proceeding from Balkh, the Sultan halted one day upon
a hilltop to take his rest. For a time he gazed down on his
beard, marvelling at the tricks of Destiny. Then turning to thy
grandfather Shams~ad~Din Sahib-ad-Divan he heaved a sigh
and said, ** If old age and adversity join forces and attack, and
youth, prosperity and health disperse and flee, how shall this
pain, be cured, which is the dregs of the cup of Fate ? and by
whom shall this knot be unravelled which was tied by the
revolving heavens ? ** f

To be brief, having in this manner arrived before Nishapur,

ifcs the modern Meshed.
4 Probably by Abush-Shls al-KhuzTL The first line is introduced into one
of his ^asHas by Manuchihri and attributed to this poet. (M.Q.)

^gbalfya was a perfume composed of music, ambergris, etc., and U&& in colour,
ft I.e. his hair had turned white.

170

on the of the nth of Safar f 617 [i8th of April, 1220], he

the town, where from the of fear had

him he constantly frightened the people the Tartar and
bemoaned the destruction of the fortresses which he had
in the days of his prosperity, imagining that conceit

assist him in rime of trouble. He urged the people to
and depart* saying: * Since multitude of assemblies cannot avert
or repel the Mongol army; since, indeed, when that people
reach this place, which is the most iEustrious of lands [135] and
the abode of the stirs of the kingdom, they will spare no living
creature but will put them all to the sword of annihilation and
your wives and children will fall into the abasement of captivity ;
flight will then be of no avail, whereas if you disperse now it is
possible that most of the people, or at least some of you, may be
saved/

But since to quit their homes is. to mankind because of their
love of country as the departure of the soul from the body and
in the Glorious Koran exile is likened unto grievous punishment,
in that passage where He Who is the most truthful speaker saith:
f And were it not that God had decreed their exile 3 surely in this world
would He have chastised them V and since Destiny had laid hold
of their skirts, nay had thrust her neck out of her collar to them
' and He is closer to us than our neck-vein 3 ; B they would not
consent to disperse. And when the Sultan realized and perceived
that the acceptance of advice had no place in their hearts, he
commanded that although strength of arm would be of no avail
nor the stoutness of fortifications be to any purpose, they should
nevertheless hold it necessary to repair and rebuild the walls.
The people accordingly set to work. And during these few-
days reports about the Mongols had died down and the Sultan
thought that they would be in no hurry to cross the river. He
recovered his peace of mind and dispatched Jalal-ad-Din to
Balkh ; but when the latter had travelled one stage there came
tidings that Yeme and Siibetei had forded the river and were
close at hand. Jalal-ad-Din returned ; and the Sultan, in order

7 Koran, lix, 3.

8 C Koran, i, 15 : * * . . and we are closer to him than his neck-vdb.

171

THE HISTORY OF

not to the people, mounted horse under the pretext of

hunting and set his face to the road leaving the greater
part of his retinue behind.

Mi there left hr Ox fwn of

F&r b*& may At iqs p*st

4OT fife 1

He left Fakhr-al-Mulk Nizam~ad-Din Abul-Ma'aK Katib
Jami and Ziya-al-Mulk 'Ariz Zuzani together with Mujir-al-
Mulk Kafi 'Umar Rukhkhi to administer the affairs of Nishapu
in common.

When the Sultan departed, Sharaf-ad-Din, the Emir of the
Assembly (amif-i-mgli$) who was a courtier and a trusted
minister of the Sultan and had been appointed malik of Nishapur,
was proceeding from Khorazm to take up residence in the town
and take over the governorship. [136] When he had arrived
within two stages of Nishapur, he suddenly died. The news of
his death was concealed for fear his servants might plunder the
treasury and his own personal property. Mujir-al-Mulk went
forth as though to greet him and brought his servants into the
town. They did not wish to remain and departed in the wake
of Sultan Muhammad.

The next day, which was the nth of Rabi e I, 617 [*4th of
May, 1220], the vanguard of Yeme and Subetei Noyan under
Taisi approached the gates of the town. They sent forward
fourteen horsemen, who drove off several herds of camels, and
also got news of Sharaf-ad-Din's retinue. A few horsemen
galloped in their pursuit and overtook them three parasangs from
the town. They were about a thousand horse: the Mongols
slew them all. They made close inquiries of all they found
regarding the Sultan, inflicting torture on their victims and
forcing diem to take an oath. They then called on the people
of the town to surrender, and Mujir-al-Mulk answered as
follows : * I govern this town on behalf of the Sultan and am
an old man and a cleric. You are pursuing the Sultan : if you
defeat him, the kingdom will be yours and I too shall be your

17*

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

servant.* They gave provisions to the
departed.

Day by day fresh armies arrived, received provisions and
their way. Finally, on the first of Rabi c II [6th of June] Ycme
Noyan arrived in person. He summoned the
the cadi and the vizier ; and they sent under their names
persons from amongst the middle class to make arrangements
about the provision of food (*ulufa) and the rendering of other
small services. Yeme gave them a letter in the Uighur script and
charged them to give provisions to all that came and to destroy
their walls. He then departed ; and wherever the people sub-
mitted the Mongols deposited baggage and left a

When for some time the passing of Mongol armies had been
less frequent and false rumours were current on men's tongues
that the Sultan had been victorious in Iraq, the demon of
temptation laid an egg in the brains of mankind.

On several occasions the sbahna whom the Mongols had left
at Tus sent messages to Shadyakh 9 saying that they should sur-
render [137] and not be deceived by idle words. He received
rude answers from Nishapur.

In the meanwhile the levies of Tus under their leader, one
Siraj-ad-Din, a man from whom sense was a thousand parasangs
distant, slew the sbabm and sent his head to Nishapur, not
realizing that with that one head they had severed the heads of
a great multitude and aroused from its sleep a great evil. In
accordance with the proverb, c Evil makes the &&g to wbine, 3 the
sayyid Abu-Turab, who had been set over the artisans of Tus,
proceeded to Ustuva 10 unbeknown to the citizens (arkab) and
bullies (fattdnan) of Tus and told Qush-Temiir (who had been
left with three hundred horsemen in charge of the animals) of
the murder of the sbabna and the consequent disorders. Qush-
Temiir sent a man to report the position to the noyans and himself
left Ustuva for Tus with his three hundred horse. He surprised
Siraj-ad-Din, who with three thousand men had seated himself
in the court of command at Tus, slew the greater part of them

9 Shadyakh was a suburb of Nishapur.

10 Ustuva, the classical 'AaTavrjvij, was the district of Quchan.

173

THE HISTORY OF

and until the arrival of the main army occupied himself with
destroying the fortresses of Tus.

When Toghachax Kiiregen (who was the son-in-law n of
Chingiz-Khan) arrived with the great emirs and ten thousand
men as Toll's vanguard and rode up to the gates of Nishapur in
the middle of Ramazan [November], the people of the town
conducted themselves with furious courage, and since their
numbers were great and those of the Mongols less, they made
frequent sallies and engaged in battle. And being weary of life
they wrestled with lions and despite the crocodiles they embarked
in boats only to be torn to pieces. Until the third day they
fought fiercely from the Tower of Qara-Qush [138] and dis-
charged quarrels and arrows from the walls and ramparts. By

11 In fact kfagm (KWRKAN) itself means * son-in-kw '. On the various
forms of the word see Mostaert and Cleaves, Trots documents mongols Its ArcUvts
vvticam, 474. This same tide was afterwards borne by Tamerlane (Tlmur
Guxakan) as the husband of a Chingizid princess. That Toghachar (TFAjAR)
was a son-in-kw of Chingiz-Khan is confirmed by Nasawi (tr. Houdas, 87).
(Houdas calls him Tifdjar, his text having TFjAR for an original TQjAR,
ie Toqachar, or TFjAR, i.e. Toghachar.) Juzjani too speaks of the death
of a son-in-kw of Chingiz-Khan before Nishapur, though without mentioning
his name. See Raverty, 992. Barthold, Turkestan, 423-4, identifies Toghachar
with the Toquchar (or Toqochar) of the Secret History ( 257) and Rashid-ad-
Din (Smimova, 220), who was dispatched, in the wake of Jebe and Subetei,
in pursuit of Sultan Muhammad, and who then, disobeying the injunction
not to molest the territory of Malik Khan, was either relieved of his command
(according to the former authority) or killed in an encounter with the moun-
taineers of Ghur (according to the ktter). Neither authority, however, refers
to him as a son-in-kw of Chingiz-Khan. He belonged to the Qonqirat tribe
and was called Dalan-Turqaqtu (Khetagurov, 163) or Dakn-Turqaq (Smirnova,
163) Toqochar ; and if he is identical with the Toqochar who, together with
Aiajen (Arachan), was entrusted during the reign of Ogedei with the adminis-
tration of the yms or post-stations (Secret History* 280), he is clearly a different
person from the Togjiachar who fell before Nishapur. Toghachar is conceivably
identical with Kiiregen Kuregcn, a son of the ruler of the Qonqirat and the hus-
band of Chintz-Khan's fourth daughter, Tiimelun. See Rashid-ad-Din tr.
Smirnova, 70* Rashid-ad-Din seems to have been struck by the strangeness
of the name, foe he comments: * Although kiiregen means "son-in-kw", yet
such was his name/ May it perhaps be that, in accordance with the Mongol
custom, Toghachar's name had become taboo with his death and that he was
referred to thereafter as Kuregen, * the Son-in-Law * ? See my article, On the
Titks Given m Jmmm to Certm Mongolian Princes, where I suggest that Ulugh-
Noyan (Tolui), Ulush-Idi Qochi) and Qa*an (Ogedei) are instances of this

174

THE

an evil chance which was to be the of all that an

arrow was let fly Toghachar fell the

having made an end of him without his

The Mongol army retired in the course of the day and two
prisoners escaped and came to the town with of his

Whereupon the people thought that they had a

deed, not realizing that after a time be sbatt its '. w

When the army withdrew, Borkei 1 * Noyau, who was
Toghachar's second-in-command, divided It Into two parts* He
himself proceeded to Sabzavar, which he took after
fighting, ordering a general massacre, so that seventy thousand
corpses were counted that were buried. The other half of the
army went to Tus to assist Qush-Temiir and took the remainder
of the fortresses which Qush-Temur's .army had been unable to

practice. The confusion arising from the use of so vague a tide as Kikegm
might account for the absence of any reference, in Rashid-ad-Din and the Far
Eastern sources, to Toghacbar's violent end before Nishapur and even to his
very existence, if in fact he is a different person from Toqochar. It would account
also for Rashid-ad-Din*s uncertainty as to the identity of Tiimdun*s husband.
He states elsewhere (Berezin, VTI, 200-1) that Cfaingiz-Klhan gave her in mar-
riage to Shinggii (NKKW) Kuregen, the son of a Qpnqiiat emir called Afche
(reading ALJW with two MSS. and Khetagurov for the ANJW of the text)
or Darke (DARKH) Noyan, and sent them into the Tomat country (to the
west of Lake Baikal), where their descendants were still resident in Rashid-ad-
Din's day ; and yet he adds a Me further on (M, 203) that Tumeliin's husband
was a Qpnqirat called Dayirkei (DAYRKAY) Kiiregen, apparently identical
with Shinggii's father Darke. See also Khetagurov, 162 and 164. Alchu or
Dayirkei (Darke) would appear to be identical with the Alchi Giiregen of
the Secret History, 202, appointed by Chingk-Khan to the command of
3,000 Onggirat. >

12 Cf. Koran, xxxviii, 88 : * ... and after a time sbtll ye surety kmm Its messtf.

13 Reading BWRKAY for the NWRKAY of the text. Barthold, op. dt,
424 and n. 2, identifies him with Borke (BWRKH) of the Jalayir, who, accord-
ing to Rashid-ad-Din, accompanied Jebe and Subetei on their great expedition
but died * on that side of the river ', i.e. apparently to the east of the Oxus (Berezin,
VII, 52) elsewhere (ibid., 278) it is stated simply that he died * on the way*.
In Khetagurov's translation his name is spelt in the first instance (97) Burke
but in the second (194) Nurke, Ihave adopted the spelling Borke (i), but in feet
the vocalization of the name is quite uncertain : it is not attested in the Far Eastern
sources. See Pelliot, Horde ffOr, 48, n. i. According to Nasawi (tr. Houdas,
87-9) Borke (called Yerka by Houdas, his text having YRKA for BRKA)
had been sent into Khorasan together with Toghachar, and they were in joint
command of the operations which led to the capture of Nisa.

175

THE HISTORY OF

capture. And although the people of Nuqan and Qar 14
offered fierce resistance and wrought countless deeds of valour,
in the end the Mongols took Qar and slew all its inhabitants.
As for Nuqan and Sabzavar they were taken on the 28th [of
Ramazan : 26th of November, 1220] and the people massacred.

Meanwhile, the people of Nishapur were engaged in open
revolt ; and wherever a detachment of Mongols appeared, thither
would send bravos to seize them.

That winter prices rose very high in Nishapur and the people
were prohibited to leave the town, and for this reason most of
them were in great distress.

When the spring of 618/1221-2 came round and Toli had
finished with Merv, he set out for Nishapur, none knowing of
his approach. He collected and dispatched so large an army
that in the region of Tus they seized all the villages with one
blow and reunited with their companions aU that had escaped
the sword. He also sent a large army in advance to Shadyakh
with the mangonels and [other] weapons [139], and although
Nishapur is in a stony region they loaded stones at a distance
of several stages and brought them with them. These they piled
up in heaps like a harvest, and not the tenth part of them were
used.

The people of Nishapur saw that the matter was serious and
that these were not the same men they had seen before ; and
although they had three thousand crossbows in action on the
wall and had set up three hundred mangonels and ballistas and
laid in a correspondent quantity of missiles and naphtha, their
feet were loosened and they lost heart. They saw no hope [of
salvation] save in sending the chief cadi Rukn-ad-Din 'AH b.
Ibrahim al-Mughisi to Toli. When 15 he reached him he
asked for quarter for the people of Nishapur, and agreed to pay
tribute. It was of no avail nor was he himself allowed to return.

At dawn on Wednesday the I2th of Safar [yth of April, 1221]

14 Qar, Unidentified. Perhaps we should read *Faz or *Fazh, Le. Bazh,
the native pkce of Firdausl (V.M.)

15 Reading dwn with B. The text has BDRNA, which does not seem to
make sense. C has fafar raft ta * he went to the gate and so . . .'

176

THE

the cup of the morning of and

iercely until midday prayers on the Friday, by which the
moat had been filled in several places and a in the

wall And because the fighting was fiercer at the Gate of the
Camel-Drivers and in the Tower of Qara-Qush and
more warriors engaged in these parts, the Mongols raised
standard on the wall of Khusrati-Kushk and going op fought
with the men on the rampart ; while a force from the Gate of
the Camel-Driven also ascended the fortifications. And all that
day until nightfall they continued to mount the walk and to
push the people down from the top.

By the Saturday night all the walls and fortifications were
covered with Mongols ; and on that day Toll himself had
arrived within three parasangs of Changarak" The Mongols
now descended from the walls and began to slay and plunder ;
and the townspeople fought back, dispersed amongst the palaces
and mansions. The Mongols looked for Mujir-al-Mulk and
dragged him out of a tunnel. In order that he might the sooner
be drawn out of the noose of life, he spoke harsh words to them ;
and they finally put him to a disgraceful death. [140] They
then drove all the survivors, men and women, out on to the
plain ; and in order to avenge Toghachar it was commanded
that the town should be laid waste in such a manner that the
site could be ploughed upon; and that in the exaction of
vengeance not even cats and dogs should be left alive. 17

A daughter 18 of Chingiz-Khan, who was the chief wife of
Toghachar, now entered the town with her escort, and they
slew all the survivors save only four hundred persons who were
selected for their craitsmanship and carried off to Turkestan,
where the descendants of some of them are to be found to this day.

16 Reading (SNKRK for the HNKRK of the text. Unidentified. (V.M.)

17 Cf. Nasawi tr. Houdas, 92 : * Sur 1'ordre des Tatars, des prisonnien en
egaJJserent Ic sol avec des pelles ; k surface en devint si lisse qu'on n*y trouvait
frhfs Hi une motte, ni line pierre en sorte que les cavaliers n'ayant pas a craindre
d'y voir trebucher leurs montures y installment un jeu de mail. La plupart
des habitants perirent sous terre, car ils s'&aient refagies dans des sooterrains
et sous des gaieties aeusees dans le sol, avec Fespoir d'echapper au danger/

18 Perhaps his fourth daughter, Tumelun. See above, p. 174, n. II.

177

They severed the of the slain from their bodies and

them up In piles, keeping those of the men separate from

of the women and children. After which* when Toii

decided to proceed to Herat, he left an emir with four hundred

Taziks to dispatch in the wake of the dead all the survivors that

found.

Flics and wolves feasted on the breasts of sadrs ; eagles on
mountain tops regaled themselves with the flesh of delicate
women ; vultures banqueted on the throats, of houris.

The knl bob died for loss of tbm that bwc left U :
if if as tbeujb thy JW hm its soul.

Abodes and dwelling places were levelled with the dust;
palaces, which in loftiness had vied with Saturn in their abase-
ment, professed humility like the earth; mansions were far
removed from pleasure and prosperity; castles after all their
haughtiness fell at the feet of abjection ; rose gardens became
furnaces ; and the rows of the lands became { a level plain 1 * \

Aye, cd&miiks \wt enskvel it, ml Us Mils b&ve
hcme Uwlj thing? mustomd to hteetittg.

my oefb f its d&es mwl is Uke damp mandal in
md its s&H like pounded musk

[XXIX]

[141] OF THE ACCESSION OF THE WORLD-EMPEROR
QA'AN TO THE THRONE OF THE KHANATE AND

THE POWER OF WORLD-EMPIRE

AFTER God Almighty holy are His names and great His
tte$mg$ in accordance with the words : ' With somewhat of
fear and hinger^ and loss of wealth^ and lives > and fruits will we prove
you ' * had tried His servants upon the touchstone of calamity
and melted them in the crucible of tribulation

I am in the fire of trial when thou causest clay to drip ;
I am on the stone of testing when thou assayest gold

19 Koran, lv io<5. 1 JW ii, 50.

I 7 8

THE

and when in proportion to the of

had each of them borne the of and in

ance with the evilness of their actions and the of

ways had drunk the brimful cop of * the of evil

its like *; it being ordained that every eeot its

and every beginning its end

Wlm $ Is its fall is mjt

and [Mohammed] (upon whom te !) said: c One of

hd luck shall not overcome two pieces of good * ; it became
necessary in accordance with both reason and tradition that the
treasures of the mercy of God -great is His glory ! should again
be opened up and the ease and comfort of His servants again
provided for ; and that all the different manifestations of His
limitless charity and clemency should pursue and outstrip all
the various distresses of His punishment in accordance with
the text of ' My mercy bath outstripped my wrath * ; for * the first
attaineth to the last*.

When I come to an adverse period of my Hfc, when my

body has to bear the burdens of camels,
I do not despair, for the mercy of the Pore Creator reaches

everyone of His creatures though it be only a single atom.

Gradually and regularly the traces of this clemency became
apparent and the signs and marks thereof evident and manifest*
And the prefacing of these remarks and the laying of these
foundations announces the tale of the transfer of empire to the
Lords of the World Ogetei Qa'an and Mengii Qa*an. I shall
begin by describing in due order the accession of Qa*an, expres-
sing myself with conciseness and brevity so that those that honour
this book with their perusal may not reproach the author of these
lines with garrulity [142] but may understand the purpose of
this narration and learn in what manner Qa'an administered
affairs and protected the commonweal; how he reduced the
other climes, which were hesitating between hope and despair,
to obedience and submission, some by threats and some by fair
words, and brought them under his control and command ; and
how after his death Mengii Qa'an shored up the building of
p 179

justice Its and and strengthened the founda-

tions May God Almighty grant the success of truth

he alighted at the quarter of kingship Qa*an bore the
name of Ogetei. And Chlnglz-Khan from the deeds ^ he per-
formed and the words he uttered was wont to deduce his fitness
for the throne and [to rule over] kings and armies, and in his
shutting and opening and loosing and binding used daily to
find the signs of valour and prowess In dealing with the affairs of
the State and the defence thereof against the hand of foes. And
by suggestion and allusion he used to paint the picture of this
Idea In the hearts of his other sons ' like the picture on the stone ',
and gradually sowed the seed of this advice in their innermost

minds.

When Chinglz-Khan returned from the lands of the West to
his old encampment in the East, he carried out his intention to
proceed against the Tangut 2 And after the whole region had
been purged of the evllness of his enemies and they had all been
conquered and subjugated, he was overcome by an incurable
disease arising from the insalubrity of the climate. 3 He called
to him his sons Chaghatai, Ogetel, Ulugh-Noyan, Kolgen, 4
Jiirchetei s and Orchan, and addressed them as follows : 7 * The

2 For a detailed account of this last campaign against the Tangut sec Grousset,
L'Empirt Mm&l, 268-77.

3 For the various Far Eastern accounts of Chingiz-Khan f s death see Haenisch,
Dk letztm FeUzuge Cmggs Han's ml mn Tod. The Secret History ( 265) speaks
of a fill from his horse during the winter of 1226-7, which may have been a
contributory factor ; but the only source that mentions the direct cause of his
death is the kte (1601) Alton Tobcti* according to which he died of a fever con-
tracted in the Tangut town of Dormegei This fever, Haenisch suggests,
op, dt> 548, may have been typhus, which is also compatible with Juvainfs
reference to ' an incurable disease arising from the insalubrity of the climate*.

4 KLKAN. His mother was Princess Qulan, the daughter of Dayir-Usiin,
the ruler of the Uhaz-Merkit. (Smirnova, 71.) He was killed in Russia
before Kolomna on the Oka. (Blochet, 46, also Minorsky, Caucasica HI, 226

and 229.)

5 JWRjTAY, According to Rashid-ad-Din (Smimova, 72) Jikchetei or
Jurchedei, c the man of the Jurchen ', * the Manchurian *, was the son of a Naiman
concubine. See also below, n. 7.

6 1 see in this name the second element of the Qodon-Orchan of Rashid-ad-Din

THE

of my [143] Is than can be by

ment, and, of a truth* one of you the and

the power of the State and up that has

received so strong a foundation.

Jl is fa him, If me &, tb*t m k

ad &sfa bm it Is m tht Ms

For if all my sons wish each of them to become Khan, and be

the ruler, and not be subservient to one will it not be

like the fable of the snake with one head and the
many heads (whereof mention has been made at the taginning
of this book)?'*
When he had finished speaking these words and admonitions,

(Khetagurov, 117, Smimova, 89), the Qodun-Orchang or Qoton-Orchaiig of
the Secret History, on whom see PelEot-Hambis, Cmpqncs, 147 and 236. The
form of the name in Rashid-ad-Din is Orchaqan (AWRjQAN). For the
use of such diminutive forms c the Ch'awrman and Ch'awrmaghan of Grigot
(see Cleaves, Tbc Mongolian Nmes, 419, also below, p. 190, ti. 31) and Jtivaiai's
Qadaqan (see above, p. 94* n- 7) and Sibaqan (see below, p. 114, EL 15) beside
the normal Qadan and Siban. Orchaqan, according to Rashidkui-Din
(Smimova, 72), was the son of a Tatar concubine. He is not mentioned in
the Far Eastern sources. See Hambis, Le CVII, 52. See also tk

following note,

7 According to Rashid-ad-Din (Smirnova, 231-2) this interview took place
in the spring of 1227, whilst the war against the Tangut was still in progress,
in a place called Onqon-Dalan-Quduq, and of ChingLz-Khan's sons only
Cgedei and Tolui were present, the Conqueror specifically referring in his
address to the absence of Chaghatai The presence, according to Juvaini, of
Jurchetei and Orchan is particularly interesting. Rashid-ad-Din states categoric-
ally in one place (Smirnova, 72) that the former died * the earliest of all the
sons ' and that the latter * also died in childhood *. Elsewhere (M. f 169) he
describes the Jurchetei who took part in the campaign of 1213 in North China
as 'the youngest son* of Chingiz-Khan. In fact, as Pelliot has suggested in
his article, Sur un passage du Cbeng~wov b'wg-tcbtng lou, 919, this was probably
a different person of the same name, viz. Jiirchedei of the Uru*ut, who is several
times mentioned in the Secret History and is the subject of a biography in the
Yuan sMb. Nevertheless Pelliot himself, op. dt, 923, identifies Jiirchetei with
the Pi-yin described in the Meng-Ta pd4u as the eldest son of Chingiz-Khan
Hied in battle when the Mongols attacked Si-ching, ie. Ta-t'ung in Shansi,
in 1213 or 1214.

8 Bashama b. Hazn an-Nahshali. (M.Q.)

9 See above, pp. 41-2,

181

are the of thai and their jw, the aforesaid

sons down and said;

*0ro: is Ac king, and we art his thralls; we bow

our to thy command and counsel,* 10

Chingiz-Khan then spoke as follows : * If it is your wish to
pass your lives in case and luxury and to enjoy the fruits of
sovereignty and wealth, my advice, as I have lately given you
to understand* is that Ogetei should ascend the throne of the
Khanate in my place because he stands out amongst you for the
excellency of his firm counsel and the superiority of his per-
spicacious understanding; and that the government of the army
and the people and the defence of the frontiers of the Empire
should be executed by his auspicious advice and good counsel
I therefore make him my heir and place the keys of the Empire
in the hand of his valour and ability. What is your advice, my
sons, concerning this thought and what is your thought concern-
ing this advice ? *

They again laid the knee of courtesy upon the ground of
fealty and submission and answered with the tongue of obedience,
saying : * Who hath the power to oppose the word of Chingiz-
Khan and who the ability to reject it ?

Heaven opens its eye and Fate lends her ear to every
commandment which thy counsel decrees.

[144] Our welfare and that of our followers is dependent upon
that wherewith the counsel of Chingiz-Khan is bound up, and
the success of our affairs is entrusted to his direction/

If, then/ said CKngiz-Khan, * your will be in agreement
with your words and your tongues in accordance with your
hearts, you must make a confirmatory statement in writing that
after my death you will recognize Ogetei as Khan, and regard
his command as the soul in the body, and suffer no change or
alteration of what has been decided to-day in my presence, nor
deviate from my decree/

10 Sbftbmma ed. Vulkrs, 1639, 1. 2352.

THE

All Ogctei's his a

In
Chingiz-Khan's It

to from he he on the 4th of

Ramazan, 624 [i8th of August, 1227]."

The princes then all set out for their of

Intending In the new year to hold the which In the

Mongol tongue Is called qttriltai. They all to

and made preparations for this

As soon as the chfllness of the air and the violence of the cold
had abated and the earth was cheered and gladdened by the
blowing of the gentle zephyr

The zephyr has adorned this worldly abode with green;

the world has become a pattern of the Hereafter.
The zephyr, by performing the miracle of restoring the

earth to life, has stolen all the glory of the miracles

of Jesus

the aforementioned sons and their kinsmen sent a reky of
messengers to spread the tidings of the death of Chingiz-Khan
throughout the world and to proclaim that In order that no harm
might come to the Kingdom, it was necessary to hold an
assembly and decide the question of the Khanate. Upon this
each man left his ordu and set out for the quriltaL From the lands
of the Qifchaq 12 came the sons of Tushi, Hordu, 18 Bam, 14

11 On the 2jth of August according to the Ymn M- (Kraose, 40), baling
Men IE on the i8tL

12 The Qipchaq Turks, known to the Russians as Polovtsi and to Byzantium
and the West as Comans, had dominated the steppes of Southern Russia for a
period of nearly zoo years at the time of the Mongol invasions. See Mtnorsky,
HttfiA?, 315-17, Barthold, Hhtoire fas Twcs, 88-91, Grousset, L' 'Empire <ks Steppes,
241-2. Juvaini's Qifchaq, like the earlier Khifchakh, appears to be an Arabi-
eized form of the name, but e the Khuch'akh and Khiwch'akh of Kirakos
and the Khwch'agh (i.e. Khwch'agh) of Vardan.

13 HRDW. The Orda (AWRDH) of Rashid-ad-Din and the Hordu or
Ordu of Carpini. Pelliot, Horde <?'Or, 29-30, advocates the spelling Ordii
Orda, Hordu or Ordu, the eldest son of Jochi, was the founder of the Khanate
known as the White Horde In what is now Kazakhstan. See Grousset, <?>, df.,
469-70, Lane-Poole, The Motmrnadm Dynasties, 226-9.

14 On Batu see below, Chapter XXXVHI.

IS3

HISTORY OF

Sibaqan, 15 Tangut," Bcrke, 17 1S and [145] Togha-

Tcmiir; 11 from Quyas, Chaghatai; from the Emil and the
Qobaq, Ogetei ; from the East, their uncle Otegin, Bcigiitei w
Noyan, Elchitci ai Noyan, * Yckii and * Yesungei ; 22 and from
the other parts, the emirs and that were stationed on every

side. As for Ulugh-Noyan and his younger brothers, they
were already in the of Chingiz-Khan.

All the above-mentioned persons gathered together in the
region of the Keliiren ; 2S and when the world had begun to
smile because of the alighting of the Sun at the house of Aries
and the air to weep through the eyes of the rain-clouds

"Reading SYBQAN for the gYBQAN of the text. Sibaqan, a form of
which PdBot, of. at., 44, is inclined to doubt the very existence, would appear
to be the diminutive of the normal Siban, which also occurs in Juvaini (I, 205,
where the text has YBAN). Cf. the Siban or Syban of Carpini and the
Stican of Rubruck. The later pronunciation of the name was Shiban, which
was converted into Shaiban because of an imaginary connection with the Arab
tribe of that name. In fact Siban may be a Christian name : PeUiot, op. at,
46-7, suggests that it is the Turkish form of Stephen. From the line of this
prince there sprang, besides occasional rulers of the Golden Horde, the Tsars
of Tiumen and the Uzbeg Khans of Bokhara and Khiva. See Lane-Poole,
0f. at., 239-40, Grousset, of. at, 556-68.

i TNKWT. The Tangqut (TANKQWT) of Rashid-ad-Din (Blochet,
120).

17 BRKH. The Berca of Carpini and Barca of Marco Polo. A convert
to Mam, Berlce, as ruler of the Golden Horde, was the bitter enemy of the H-Khans
of Persia and the ally of their most formidable adversary, the Mameluke Sultan
of Egypt, See Grousset, op. dt. f 474-8, Spuler, Die GoUene Horde, 33-52.

18 BRKjAR. Perhaps * little Berke '. See PelEot, op. dt, 51-2.

lf TTATYMUR. The Tuatemur, Thuatamur, etc., of Carpini,f or which
Wyngaerfs text has Chucenur. He was the ancestor of the Khans of Kazan
and die Crimea. See Lane-Poole, op. at,, 233-5, Grousset, op. dt., 549-56.

^BYLKTAY. He was Oiingiz-Khan's half-brother.

ai AYLCTAY. He was tk son of Chingiz-Khan's brother Qachi'un.
Other foms of the name are HJigidei (Ynm stnb) and Alchidai (Secret History).
See Hainbis, op. dt. 3 29-30.

M Reading YKW W YSNKAY for the YKWB WRKAY of the text
Of the corresponding passage of the Secret History ( 269), where mention is
made of* the princes of the left hand [i.e. the East] with Otchigin Noyan, Yeku
and Yesiingge at their head *. Yekii and Yesiingge were the sons of Chingiz-
Khan's brother Jochi-Qasar.

23 KLRAN. The Kerulen. See PeUiot, op. at, 121, n. r. The election
took pkce, according to the Secret History, be. at,, in the district of Kode'e-AraL

184

THE

Jta wife fe mil ietf dr

of ifi 7 i toM tff & f

when, moreover, the herbs and flowers had in the

meadows and for wonder thereat the ringdoves in of

and mead had sung a hundred songs in a thousand in

unison with the nightingales

Now we must drink sweet-tasting wine, x the of

mask is rising from the stream;
[146] The air is filed with clamour and the eardh

hapf>f is he that lias a menrf heart to s *

all the princes, noyau* and emirs together with so large an
army that the plain was filled therewith and the desert straitened
with their multitude

When it plunged into the sea, Its format part M mt
If we to its hindmost part enough water in the sett I
satisfy & single drinker.

And If it made for land, its vanguard Ml not luvt t Us
rearguard enough space on lani for a single hrsemm

first of all feasted and revelled for three days and nights in
succession filled with joy and delight, the impurities of deceit
and envy remote from their secret thoughts

They gathered the jlower of 'deceit mi drew mar to the

tree of union whose fruit mas ripening
In a spot where they gave to drink abundance of pkaswre,

and greatness of desire, and gowfaess of Ufs

and after some days they spoke of the affairs of the realm and
the testament of Chingiz-Khan and read over again and again
the written statements made by his sons that the Khanate should
be settled on Ogetei. This counsel they adopted, and all the
princes with an unanimity unmingled with evil or strife said to
Ogetei : * In accordance with the command of Chingiz-Khan
it behoves thee with divine assistance to set thy foot upon the
hand of kingship in order that all the mighty ones may with one
accord gird the loins of their lives with the girdle of submission

M Shabwma ed. VuHers, 1630, 11. 2372-3. For the juibar * stream* of the
text (which Mohl also has) Vullers has Mhsar * mountains *.

185

and and ears to obeying thy

command/

Ogctcl replied as follows ; * Although Chingiz-Khan*s com-
was to this effect, yet are my elder brothers and uncles,
who arc more worthy than I to accomplish this task* and more-
over, in accordance with the Mongol custom, it is the youngest
son from the eldest house that is the heir of his father, and Ulugh-
Noyan is the youngest son of the eldest ordu and was ever in
attendance on Chlngiz-Khan day and night, morning and
evening, and has seen, and heard, and learnt all his yasas and
customs. Seeing that all these are alive and here present, how
may I succeed to the Khanate ? *

[147] All that day till nightfall they debated together with
gaiety and friendly emulation. And in like manner for full
forty days they donned each day new clothes of different colour 25
and quaffed cups of wine, at the same rime discussing the affairs
of the kingdom. And every day Ogetei in a different way and
in a style at once subtle and correct expressed these same senti-
ments. When the forty days had come to an end, on the
morning of the forty-first

When dawn with augury of good fortune raised a world-
illuminating banner,

And the eyebrow of Abyssinia was puckered into a frown,
and the Chinese mirror arose from China

25 Cf. Carpini's account of the election of Guyiik : * On the first day they
[the Tartars] were all dressed in white purple; on the second day, and then
it was that Coyuc came to the tent, they were dressed in red (purple) ; on the
third day they were all in blue purpk, and on the fourth day in the finest balda-
kins.* (Rockhfll, 19.) According to Khara-Davan the wearing of white on
the first day symbolized the participation of Jochi's tdus in the election of the
Khan, See Vernadsky, The Mmg&Is mi RMSSM, 138-9. It should be noted
however that the colours appear in a different order in the account of Carpinf s
mission based on a statement made by his companion, Benedict the Pole, who
' told us orally that he and the other friar saw there about five thousand great
and mighty men, who on the first day of the election of the king all appeared
dressed in baldakin ; but neither on that day nor on the next, when they appeared
in white samites, did they reach an agreement. But on the third day, when
they wore red samites, they came to an agreement and made the election '. (Rock-
Mi, 37-8.)

186

THE

the of all the

having resolved, all the princes of one up to

Ogetei and said : * This Chingiz-Khan has to

of all his sons and and has to thy

the binding and loosing, the tying and How

then may we suffer any change or alteration of his or

allow any transformation or violation thereof ? To-day,
according to the astrologers and is a day a

favourable and auspicious time, thou must with the aid of God
bdy is His be established upon the throne of
sovereignty and adorn the world with justice and beneficence/
Finally, after much importunity on their part and much
refusing on the part of Ogetei, he obeyed the command of his
father and followed the advice of his brothers and uncles. In
accordance with their ancient custom they removed their hats
and slung their belts across their backs ; and it being the year
626/1228-9 M Chaghatai took his right hand and Otegin Ms
left and by the resolution of aged counsel and the support of
youthful fortune established him upon the throne. Ulugh-
Noyan took a cup, and all present in and outside the Court
thrice knelt down and uttered prayers, saying, * May the kingdom
prosper by his being Khan ! *

[148] And if pcb &dom the hmty effaces, tbe Bonify ef

&y j&ct is an adornment fa fcark.
And tkw wUest Jngwice to lie most excellent tffrqMHces
*f Am do lut touch them where, &b whre u Ay fife? ?

And they named him Qa'an, and in accordance with the usual
custom all the princes, in service and obeisance to Qa'an, knelt
three times to the sun outside the ordu ; then re-entering they

26 Actually in 1229, though it would appear from Juvaini's narrative that
the election took pkce in the spring of the year immediately following Chingiz-
Khan's death, Le. in 1228. This is explicitly stated in the Secret History, accord-
ing to which (loc. eft) Ogedei was elected in the Year of the Rat, i.e. 1228. How-
ever, according to Rashid-ad-Din, nearly two years ekpsed before the holding
of the election (Blochet, 15) and it was then held in the Year of the Ox, i.e.
1229 (ibid., 16-17). During 1228, according to the Yuan sUb (Krause, 41),
Tolui was Regent of the Empire.

187

HISTORY OF

an assembly of mirth and sport and cleared the plains of
merriment of the thorns of sorrow.

The world-ruling Emperor seated himself upon the ladder of
vigilant fortune, Heaven-assisted and powerful, and the princes,
Orion4ike, girded the zone of service about the loins of affection
before the sun of the heavens of greatness and power; while on
the left were the ladies, each of them richly endowed with fairness
and beauty, in their exquisite freshness and brightness resembling
flowers and in their sweetness and purity Hke unto the verdure
of spring.

Her face, which is like a rose garden, is the spring of

the world of the soul;

Her mail-like tresses arc the lasso of the neck of patience ;
Her bow-shaped eyebrows are the crescent of the face of the

sky;
Ha ajnbei^sis-scatteriBg ringlets are the elegance of the

cheek of beauty.

All that beheld that assembly with its abundance of houris
and striplings and its profusion of wine and milk exclaimed in
excess of astonishment :

By this thou shalt know how the highest paradise will be.

The eyes of Time were brightened by the presence of Qa'an and
the world by his influence became without hatred or anger.

The realm hath a freslMaced market because the world

hath a ruler like thee.
The wind is heavy because of his resolve, the earth is

light because of his clemency.

The trees of peace and security after withering away were again
filed with sap ; and the cheek of Hope after being scratched by
despair and hopelessness again recovered its lustre. The days
from rest and quiet acquired the pleasantness of nights, and the
nights from the geniality and brilliance of the fire of wine became
like broad day.

[149] Qa'an then ordered that they should open the deposits
of the treasuries collected during so many years from the countries
of the East and the West for the behoof of Chingiz-Khan, the

188

THE

total of which could not be the of

ledgers. He closed the mouths of the
of their advice and allotted his portion to of his

and soldiers, his troops and kinsfolk, noble and base f
liege* master and slave* to each in accordance with his preten-
sions; and left in his treasuries for the morrow much
nor little, neither great nor small

Fw the U&n mt for & lay,

At mt foot for tf yaw, 87

And when he had done with feasting and bestowing and
presents, in accordance with the custom of r Verity me ow

fathers with a religion \ 2B he commanded that for three days in
succession they should prepare victuals for the spirit of Chingiz-
Khan; also that from moonlike virgins, delightful of aspect and
fair of character, sweet in their beauty and beautiful in their
glances, graceful in motion and elegant in repose, such that ' God
hath promised to them that fear Him '/* they should select forty
maidens of the race of the emirs and noyam to be decked out
with jewels, ornaments and fine robes, clad in precious garments
and dispatched together with choice horses to join his spirit. 10

And when he had finished with these matters he began to
concern himself with the administration of the kingdom and
the management of affairs.

First of aU he made a yasa that such ordinances and commands
as had previously been issued by Chingiz-Khan should be
maintained, and secured, and protected against the evils of change,
and alteration, and confusion. Now, from all sides there had

27 Attributed by Tha'alibi in the Tatimmat-d-Yttkn* in one place to Abd-
Harith b. at-Tammar al-Wasiti and in another place to Abu-Muhammad
Lutfillah b. al-Mu'a (M.Q.) See Eghbal's L, I, 48, and II, 89.

28 Koran, xliii, 22, 29 Ibid., xm t 35*
80 This custom was also followed in the case of Hiilegii. C Vassaf tr.

Hammer-Purgstall, 97 : * Es wurde nach mongolischem Gebrauche cine Grab-
statte bereitet, viel Gold und Juwelen hineingeworfen und ihm einige wie Sterne
schimmernde Madchen mit Schrnuck und funkelndem Geschmeide zu BeiscHa-
ferinnen gegeben, damit er von der Wilderniss der Finsternisse, von dem Grauen
der Einsamkeit, von des Grabes Bedrangnisse und peinlicher langer Wefle
Verhangnisse verschonet bleibe/

189

HISTORY OF

come and Informers to report and make known the

of each of the and governors. But Qa*an said :

* Every which until the day of our accession hath

issued from the mouth of any man,, we shall pardon and cancel
it ; but if from henceforth any man shall set foot to an action
that contravenes the old and new ordinances and yam, the
prosecution and punishment of that man shall be proportionate
to his crime. 9

And after decreeing these ytsts he dispatched armies to all the
climes of the world.

In Khorasan and Iraq the fire of strife and unrest had not yet
died down and Sultan Jalal-ad-Din was still active there.
Thither he dispatched Chormaghun 81 with a number of emirs
and thirty thousand warriors.

[150] To the lands of the Qifchaq and Saqsin and Bulghar he
sent Koketet m and Subetei n Bahadur with a like army.

Likewise to Tibet and Solangai M he dispatched greater or
lesser forces : to Khitai he decided to proceed in person accom-
panied by his brothers.

All of these campaigns shall be hereinafter described so that

B1 JWRMAFW"N. The Chormacjan of the Secret History. As appears
from Gogor's History of the Nation of &e Archers, 301, it is the diminutive form
of the name Choraian. See Cleaves, The Mongolian Names, 419. Chormaqan
is hardly recognizable in the Chirpodan, Cyrjpodan, etc., of Carpini.

32 KWKTAY. Cf. the Kokedei who took part in an embassy from Ghazan
Khan to Pope Boniface VIII. See Mostaert and Cleaves, Trots documents mongpls
ies Archives secretes wtkwes, 469 and 471. The name means * he of the swarthy
complexion*. (ZMt, 473-4*)

8a Reading SBTAY for the SNTAY of the text, which however corresponds
to the SWNDAY of Rashid-as-Din (Blochet, 18) and would appear to represent
the name Sdnket oc Sonidei, * the man of the So'nit *. A man of this name
actually appears in a list of Chormaghun's commanders. See Grigor, 303. His
name had originally been Chaghatai but had been changed to Sonitei upon the
death of a namesake. See Rashid-acl-Din tr. Khetagurov, 100, also my article,
Of the Titks Given injmml to Certdn Mongolian Princes, 153-4, n. 39-- It is
however far more likely that the great general Subetei Bahadur is here meant.
C below, p. 269.

s4 SLNGAY. North Korea or the North Koreans, the Solangqas of the
Secret History t Solangi of Carpini and Solanga of Rubruck. This is perhaps
the expedition under Jalayirtai referred to in the Secret History, 274. See also
below, p. 196, n. 18.

I9O

THE

the and of of be :

if God Almighty so will.

[XXX]

OF THE CAMPAIGN OF WORLD-EMPEROE QA*AN

AGAINST KHITAI ANB THE CONQUEST OF THAT COUNTRY l

WHEN the crown of sovereignty had auspicioiisly
upon the head of the World-Emperor and the bride of
had been laid in the bosom of his ability, having dispatched
armies to all the climes of the inhabitable quarter* he carried
out his intention of proceeding in person against the clime of
Khitai, whither he was accompanied by his brothers Chaghatai
and Ulogh-Noyan and the other princes* together with so
leviathan-like warriors that the desert from the flashing of their
arms and the clashing together of their horses appeared like a
raging, billowing sea, whose length and breadth wore beyond
comprehension and whose shores and centre were indiscernible.
The plain from the press of the cavalry vied with the mountains,
and the hills were trampled underfoot by the stamping of the
horses.

The army ms lei % by Af

wt$ ctwU W the mmtntm t@ps cntsbei

First of all they came to a town called *Khojanfu BakqaSun a

and beleagured it all round from the banks of the river Qara-

Miiren. 3 [151] By the encircling disposition of their ranks they

1 For an account of this campaign based on the Chinese sources see Franke,
GescMte des cbinesfscben Ratte, IV, 285-90. See also Grousset, UEm^ire ies
Steppes, 321-4, L'Empire Mon&l, 291-4.

2 Reading XWjANFWBLQSWN for the XWjATBWNSQYN of the
text Khojanfu represents the Chinese Ho-dhung fu, the modem Pe-chou.
As for Bakqasun, this reading was su^ested to me by Professor Cleaves in a
letter dated the I4th June, 1955. As he points out in a subsequent letter dated
the 2nd August, 1955, *%*# r tatypstt, the Mongol word for *town* or
'city*, occurs several times in the Secret History ( 247, 248, 253 and 263)
in apposition to the names of Chinese towns.

3 QRAMWRAN. Ot/the Black River \ the Mongd name
Ho or Yeiow River, the Caramoran of Marco Polo and Friar Odoric.

191

THE HISTORY OF

tip fresh fortifications ; and for the space of forty days they
fought fierce battles, the Turkish archers (who can, if they wish,
with the discharge of an arrow, sew up the eyes of the heavens)
charging to and fro with such effect that

With every arrow that they let fly with the speed of
a shooting star they hit the target.

When the people of the town realized that to strike against
the goad would yield no fruit but repentance and to quarrel
with the fortunate was to attract misfortune and was the sign of
desertion [by Fate], they asked for quarter, and for excess of

weakness and terror the countrymen and townspeople

At last all kid their heads on the threshold of the
King's Court,

while the Khitayan soldiers, to the number of a tSmen, embarked
in a ship they had built and fled away. A great number of
the townspeople, who had stretched their arms to combat, were
dispatched ' unto tbe Fin of -God and His Hell 3 ; while their
youths and children were carried off in the bonds of servitude
and sent to other places.

And when the Mongols departed from this town, Ogetei sent
on Ulugh-Noyan and Giiyiik in advance with ten thousand
men, whilst he himself slowly brought up the rear. When
Altun-Khan, 4 who was the khan of those climes, got tidings
of the approach of the Mongol army, he sent back against them
two of his generals, Qadai Rengii and Qamar Nekuder 5

4 See above, p. 39, n. 18. This was Aksung, the last ruler of the Chin
dynasty.

* QD AY RNKW and QMR NKWDR. Of these two Chin generals
the former, as Professor Cleaves points out in his letter of the I4th June, is unques-
tionably to he identified with the Qada of the Secret History ( 251 and 252),
who appears as Ho-ta in the Yum M f Chapter 2 (ts*e i), 3r4. RNKW (or
perhaps Y RNKW) is conceivably a corruption of SNKM, i.e. senggiim, the
Chinese Mang*dm ' general * See Pdliot, Notes sur k " Turkestm" fa M W.
BartboU, 45, n. 5. As for QMR NKWDR, QMR is perhaps a corruption
of TMR, Le. Temtir, and Nekuder is a perfectly good Mongol name (* the
Slave*, see Cleaves, The Mongolian Names, 427). It is however more likely,
as Professor Cleaves suggests in his letter, that QMR NKWDR is a corruption
of Hobogetur, the name of a Chin general mentioned together with Qada in
251 of the Secret History.

192

with a hundred The

aroiy s rendered ovcr-conident by and

numbers and the fewness of the Mongols*
passed them and stood In a circle all round them, thai

in this way they would bring the Mongol army to
who could then hold a hunting review and the

finishing stroke.

Ulugh-Noyan realized that the belt of resistance had
drawn right and that the Khitayans might be countered by
and deceit for * war is fraud * and their candle extinguished
with the wind of trickery. Amongst the Mongols was a QanqH
who was well versed in the science of yaif that is the use of the
rain-stone. Ulugh-Noyan commanded him to begin practising
his art and ordered the whole army to put on raincoats over
their winter clothes and not to dismount from their horses for
three days and nights. The Qanqli busied himself with his yd
so that it began to rain behind the Mongols, and on the last day
the rain was changed to snow, to which was added a cold wind.
From this excessive summer chill, which was such as they had
not experienced in winter, the Khitayan army were disheartened
and dismayed and the Mongol army emboldened and exhilarated.
Finally

When tbe red Jewel of morning distinguished the white
from die black

they beheld the army of Khitai like a flock of sheep * the
head of one at the tail of another ' huddled together in groups
on account of the coldness of the weather and the excessive
chill, their heads and feet tucked in like hedgehogs [153] and
their weapons frozen with ice 'and tbon migbtest have seen tbe

6 yai was the Turkish and j&fa the Mongol name for the magical process of
producing rain, snow, etc., by placing bezoar-stones in water. The Naiman*
according to the Secrtt History ( 143) and Rashid-ad-Din (Smirnova, 121-2),
had attempted to employ this same device against the forces of Chingiz-Khan ;
but the storm they had raised turned against themselves, with disastrous effects.
See also Grousset, L' Empire Mongol 112-13* Quatremere, Histofa fas Montis
& Pent, 328-35, has collected together a number of references in medieval Moham-
medan authors to this method of rain-making. For an account of the ptactice
in modern times see Frazer, Tbe GoUett Bovgb, I, 305-6.

193

HISTORY OF

laii m thy bat fcwi rf* $/ &0//0W *. 7

The jw/db* 8 now ceased his yai f and the army issued forth behind
them and like hawks falling upon a flock of pigeons, nay like
charging upon a herd of dcer f they turned upon those
deer-necked ones with the eyes of wild cows, the gait of partridges
and the appearance of peacocks and attacked them from every
side.

The falcon seized the dove with the beak of severity ; the
lion crashed the deer with the ckw of violence.

They did not pollute their swords with their blood but from the

backs of their horses dispatched them to hell with their lances.

Aai the Mks of tSot ftoKt-kartd mmgst them were
tssolvcd Jy the twist of the soM-harted spear?

As for the two aforementioned generals they escaped together
with five thousand men and cast themselves upon the water:
with a discharge of arrows the Mongols laid them low and
stretched them out on the black earth; and as for those two
demon-like wretches, who were in the van with a hundred
thousand 10 men, though they crossed the water like the wind,
yet soldiers who had crossed beforehand cast the fire of perdition
on these abject ones ; and it was commanded that the greater
part of the army should commit upon them the deed of the
companions of Lot, according as they saw fit. 11

HoU fack and leware of the knee points wUcb are a
thuket through which the serpent passed and returned
Jfottht"

7 Koran, box, 7. a Lc. the master of the art of yd or rain-making.

From a $zw& of Abu-Ishaq Ibrahim b. 'Uthman al-Ghazzi in praise of
Mukram b. at-' Ala, the governor of Kerman.

10 This seems to be inconsistent with the foe thousand men mentioned just
above. The whole army numbered a hundred thousand men. See above, p. 193.

11 This was appaiently an act of reprisal for the insulting references made by
the Chin troops to the Mongols* womenfolk. See Rashid-ad-Din ed, Blochet,
21 and 23.

12 From a qasiJa of Abu-Ishaq al-Ghazzi, two baits of which have been quoted
above, I, 63 [i, 81-2]. (MQ.)

194

They a the ears of the l3 and

to the of the to Qa*an.

He too now arrived they turned Alton-Khan,

at that in the town of Managing. 14 For he

continued to fight there; [154] then perceiving the
of fortune had left the mould of his kingdom and the
part of his army had been slain, he entered a house
his wives and children, who were still with him* and
wood to be laid all round the house and set fee to ; so he
was burnt alive. 15 e He bst this ml tfa This

same is the win! u
And when the Mongol army entered the town,

Thy tbeir ml eyes t ml ttf

of their morels % ibcir

And they plundered and pillaged exceedingly, and wrought
incalculable slaughter, and took immeasurable booty. They
also captured several other towns and took prisoner so many
moon-faced beauties, both youths and maidens, that all the ends
of the earth were rendered flourishing thereby and all men*s
hearts laid desolate.

Ogetei left e Aziz Yakvach in Khitai and, victorious and
triumphant, turned his reins towards his own or&j, dispatching

13 C below, p. 270. So too altar the Battle of Uegnitz * the victorious
Mongols cut one ear off every enemy corpse they found on the battlefield ; nine
large bags of ears were collected *. (Vernadsky, Tk Mongols ml Rmsm f 55.)

14 NAMKYNK. The Nanagrag of the Start History, I.e. Nan-ching, the
southern capital of the Chin, the present-day K'al-fifog.

15 Juvaini gives a somewhat garbled account of the Chin Emperor's suicide.
Ai-tsung was no longer in K'ai-feng having fled first to Kuti-te and then to
Ts*ai-chou (the present-day Ju-nan) near the Sung frontier. Hemmed in once
again by Mongol and Sung forces and despairing of the possibility of further
resistance he hanged himself in a palace or pavilion, which was then set on fire,
either in accordance with his own previous instructions or by the subsequent
command of a close kinsman. See Franke, op. at., IV, 290, V, 157.

16 Koran, xxii, n.

17 Another line of the $wwk by al-Ghazzi in piaise of the Turks. See above,
I, 63 [i, 81-2]. (M.Q.)

Q 195

HISTORY OF

armies against Manzi and to Solangai 18 and other regions such
as the lands of the Tangut, Tibetans and Su-Moghol ; 1S as you
shal hereinafter read.

[XXXI]

OF THE SECOND QURILTAI

WHEN the Emperor, who was a Hatim in bounty and a Khusxau
in affability, his mind set at rest regarding the conquest of Khitai,
had proceeded in triumph to his place of residence and the
princes and emirs whom he had dispatched to the ends of the
inhabitable quarter had all of them attained their goal and object
and [155] returned pleased with their success, his high counsel
and lofty resolve required that he should again call together his
children and kinsmen so that in consultation with them he might
confirm the old and new yasas and ordinances, and they might
again dispatch armies to such countries as they saw fit, and all
the princes and armies, noble and base, might have their share
of the gifts of his goodness and liberality, which were like the
spring rain. Accordingly he dispatched messengers to summon
them, and they all set out from their places of residence and
turned their faces towards the Court. In the year . . .*, at

18 This too could be a reference to the expedition under Jalayirtai. See above,
p. 190, n. 34-

19 SWMTWL. Lit. 'Water Mongols', su being the Turkish word for
'water*, the * Sumongol, id est aquatici MongoH* of Carpini (Wyngaert, 51),
the * Su-Moal, hoc est Moal aquarum * of Rubruck (iUL, 269) and the Shui
Ta-ta of the Chinese: they inhabited the eastern part of Manchuria. See Bret-
schneider, II, 175, n. 93 5 Professor Cleaves informs me, in a letter dated the
26th August, 1955, that he can find no evidence in the Far Eastern sources that
Qgedei sent an expedition against the Shui Ta-ta. It is stated however in the
passage from the Secret History referred to above (p. 190, n. 34) that Jakyirtafs
expedition was intended to reinforce troops that had been previously dispatched
against the Jurchen and Sokngqas; and Professor Cleaves suggests that in
this instance the term Jiirchen may perhaps include the Shui Ta-ta, who appear
to have been a branch of that people and are often mentioned in association
with them in the Yuan sMb.

1 There is a blank in A and B. The correct year, as M.Q. points out, must
be 632/1234-5 since this ^rfltm was held, according to Rashid-acMDin (Blpchet,
40-1), in the Year of the Sheep, Le. 1235.

the the was a of I nm f 2 and the

of the the of the

munificent like the of the King, and the

by the continuous favours of the had

coloured robes* and the and had drunk the sip

of well-being and verdancy

The for far ff

lie ^f f fcf

Jlx tk jfee raw $f <?

if w de & <jf /ie itf dv

1 fl rde, JW % dt

roynl fifti yellow jewel

the princes reached his Court, and the was adorned

and beautified as are the Pleiades when by conjunction

with the radiant foil moon. It was as though

They togetlxr again on the of the

after having teen long separated.
And they the of tbehr fertile

and the garkns ofjlirtatum gmen with terk.

And there came also crowds of ncyans and emirs, officials
(arMlhi-asbgltiil) and local governors (ashab-HfmSl).

The World-Emperor welcomed those of his kinsmen that
were his elder brothers and uncles with every mark of respect,
and deference, and honour, and veneration, [156] while as for
his younger brothers and sons, who were as his children, nay,
as pieces of his liver, he distinguished them with all manner of
benevolence and with excess of kindness. And for one con-
tinuous month in unison with like-minded relatives and with
the assistance of kinsmen without compare he joined dawn to
dusk and morning to evening in constant application to bowls
and goblets and the handing round of cups by the hands of
beauteous cupbearers. And they had their heart's desire of the
flowers and fruit of false Fate, that is the enjoyment of all kinds
of wanton pastimes. And all present at the assembly and

2 A fabulous earthly paradise In the deserts of South Arabia, constructed by
the jinn for Shaddid the son of f Ad.

197

HISTORY OF

resident at the Court passed several days in sweet and pleasant
content in the sanctuary of QaWs royal munificence, which was
raised up by the action and power of God, and complied with
the following quatrain which I heard in Qara-Qoram :

O thou whose lifetime is certainly bet a few days*

What is even the empire of the whole world for a few days ?

Enjoy thy share of life as best thou canst

For these few days will pass away.

And Qa*an in his wonted manner and in accordance with
his usual practice opened the doors of the treasuries,, which no
man had ever seen closed, and distributed amongst all present,
kinsman and stranger, all the valuables that had been gathered
together from every clime since the holding of the first qpriltai,
scattering them upon small and great as the spring cloud rains
upon grass and trees,

Tty fafrs ftml mtb 2fkr% m tmas if mhf&rtim,

ml At s&m cf &e eartb cM wt for tdp hcmse tbey
were Ireming Aercm.

And from all the corners of the earth there had come merchants,
and speculators, and seekers of governorships (ifmal) and
appointments, and all returned having attained their goal and
object, and succeeded in their wishes and desires, and received
the double of what they had in mind. How many a poor man
became rich, how many a pauper wealthy and prosperous !
And every obscure person became a man of great account.

When in this manner the feasting had come to an end, he
turned to affairs of state and the disposition of the armies. And
since there were many parts of the climes where the wind of
rebellion had not left men's brains, he charged each of his sons
and kinsmen with a different campaign and resolved once again
to take part in parson and set his reins in motion. [157] But
after he had made up his mind, Mengii Qa*an, who, though in
respect to age he was in the first stage of youth, yet with regard
to wisdom and dignity was in the rank of the elders of the age
and of experienced veterans, remarked upon Qa*an*s [decision]
to take part [in person] and said : * All of us brothers and sons

198

to thy and set

our to the the of

difficulties, in we to be

commanded, while Qa*an

amusements* and the enjoyment of and and

himself from the toil of travels and the
Otherwise of what use are so many and

Go fir the <rf At sm will mt

When these aged words from the tongue of that incomparable
prince had reached the hearing of those present, made
their model and guide and each of them delivered a speech in
the same manner until Qa*an too was convinced.

Thereupon each of the princes and was designated to

a different campaign and they were dispatched to the East and
the West, the South and the North. And since the tribes of
the Qifchaq and the Keler 3 had not yet been completely crushed
the chief attention was paid to the conquest and extirpation of
these peoples. Of the princes Batu, Mengii Qa*an and Guytik
were appointed to conduct this campaign and each departed to
his own encampment with a large army of Taziks and Turks
intending to set out at the beginning of the coming spring.
They made preparations for the journey and started out at the
appointed time.

As for Qa'an he was exempted from the wearying of his
person. Agents and scribes were dispatched to the regions that
had submitted. Drawn swords were sheathed; the foot of
tyranny and oppression was shackled; the hand of justice and
munificence was opened ; and mandates and yasas were written
to every side saying that no man should injure another nor the
strong impose upon the weak. The dust of disturbances and
calamities subsided and all creation was secure. Qa'an's fame
was spread by the north wind like a fragrant zephyr throughout

3 Le. the Hungarians. Keler (KLAR), like the Kerel of the Secret History
( 262 and 270), is a corruption of the Hungarian fe'mly 'king', the name of
the ruler being applied to his people. See Pelliot, Honk tQr, 115-23.

199

THE HISTORY OF

the plain of the world* and the report of his justice and bounty
travelled to every horizon [158] and soared op like the Eagle,

Thou m & ml thy fme on ;

it th sad the

And by reason of the fair tales that were spread about him
the people of every side chose from sincere desire to be his subjects
and considered temporal happiness to consist in obedience and
allegiance to him. They therefore dispatched messengers with
presents to his Court, and from the uttermost lands, on account
of a name and lame compared with which the mention of former
kings seemed naught but a fable, all the races of mankind vied
with one another in hastening to do him homage.

And SO' he passed his rime and had his full share of the enjoy-
ment of listening to songs, and dallying with songstresses, and
quaffing purple wine.

What life that mbm wdssitutes kst kng ? Tto is

Ufe when j@y is mmmL

The days when I am honoured and my command obeyed, it &
these tbtt I reckm as my life.

For the remainder of his life he continued in this manner until
suddenly on the 5th of Jumada II, 639 [nth of December, 1241],
the Destroyer of Delights sprang out from ambush and unex-
pectedly discharged the arrow of Doom from the thumb of
Destiny.

Such is ever the wont of the Blue Circle : when it sees a
man without grie it swiftly brings about his decline. 5

The drinking-place of Life was muddied by the dust of Death,

If it were possible for roses to exist without thorns, every
moment there would be a fresh pleasure in the world.

This ancient palace of Life would be pleasant to us if Death
were not at the door.

4 The opening line of a * hunting poem * by Abu-Firas al-Hamdani (M.Q.)

5 Quoted again in III, 6 (ii, 549).

[XXXII]

OF THE AND ACTIONS OF

WHEN the hand of the creation of had the

of the Empire upon the of his fortune* as has

set forth, he dispatched to all and land,

and most of the climes were purged of his The

fame of his justice and beneficence became an in all

ears and his favours and kindnesses like on the

and forearms of all [159] His Court became an to all

the world and his presence a refuge and to the whole

earth. As the lights of the dawn of his equity were without
the dust of the darkness of evening (sbam), so the extent of his
empire reached from farthest Chin and Machin to the uttermost
districts of Syria (Sbam), His bounty was general to all man-
kind, and waited not for month or year, 1 His being and
generosity were two coursers running neck and neck* and his
nature and constancy twin sucklings at one breast. The mention
of Hatim Tai was abolished during his lifetime, and the clemency
of Ahnaf 2 was as nothing compared with his. During hk
reign the reeling world came to rest and the cruelties of the
implacable heavens were tempered. In the time of his Khanate

Heaven, that swift steed that had never been tamed, ambled
gently under the saddle of obedience to him.

And in the prospect of his mercy and compassion hope revived
in every breast. And such as had survived the sword remained
in the noose of life and the bed of security. The banners of
the Mohammedan faith were unfurled in the farthest lands of
infidelity and the remotest countries of polytheism, whose nostrils
the scent of Islam had not yet reached. And opposite the
temples of idols were reared up the shrines of God the Merciful.
The fame of his justice caused the chaining of strays, and the
report of his bounty occasioned the capture of wild beasts,

1 I.e. he was generous at all times, not merely on festive occasions,

2 Ahnaf the son of Qais was a pre-Iskmic Arab famous for his clemency

ZOl

HISTORY OF

Because of the awe he inspired the froward were enslaved, and
by reason of the severity of his punishment the haughty were
humbled. His did the work of the sword, and the pages

of his letters stole the lustre from the sabres of cavalry.

He uriA fur be &nl put

to fight uriA letters ,

The generals of his Court and the servants of his fortune led
armies to the East and the West, while Qa'an was able to dis-
pense with being present In person, and in accordance with the

verses,

The world Is half for rejoicing and half for acquiring

lame.
When thou loosenest thine own bonds are loosened, and when

thou kindest thoti thyself art bound,

and in opposition to the words of advisers and censurers, rejecting

this saying of theirs:

When tbe kfag spfmts Ms tng*ff& w amusement,

Ms kmglm to woe ml

[160] he was ever spreading the carpet of merrymaking and
treading the path of excess in constant application to wine and
the company of peri-faced ones of beautiful form.

In the distribution of gifts he bore the palm from all his
predecessors. Being by nature extravagantly bountiful and
liberal he gave away everything that came in from the farthest
and nearest parts of the Empire without its being registered by
accountant (mustaufi) or inspector (musbrif). And he drew the
line of cancellation through the sum total of the tales of former
kings, since it appeared to be bash 4 compared with the expendi-
ture of his own actions, and marked as paid (taryn minibad) the
fariz 5 of past traditions, which was wrong from beginning to
end. No mortal returned from his presence without his lot or
share and no petitioner heard from his tongue the words No
and

s Abul-Fath BustL (M.Q.)

4 I.e. entries in kind of which the ultimate cash value was doubtful.
5 1.e, cash entries. On the terms josi? and tsriz see above, p. 32, n. IS*

202

Q w orff (if <?f aaf as

Those in need that came to from side

their wishes unexpectedly fulfilled,
petitioners straightway went home with whatever of
had desired,

For the of At was f

to M? r dun fe f

Upon those that came from distant and rebellious
he bestowed presents in the same way as upon that were

from near and subject (il) countries. And no one went away
from his presence disappointed or frustrated. From time to time
the pillars of the Empire and the Court would object to his
extravagance, saying that if there was no escape from this con-
ferring of gifts and favours it was incumbent upon him to
bestow them on his servants and subjects. Qa*an would reply :
4 The censorious are devoid of the jewel of wit and undemanding,
and their words are idle in two ways. Firstly, because when the
fame of our manners and customs has reached the rebellious,
their hearts will necessarily incline towards IB, for fe Mm is the
slave of kindness " ; and by reason of that beneficence the army
and the people will be saved the trouble of encountering and
fighting them and spared much toil and hardship. And
secondly, it is even clearer since this world has notoriously been
faithful to none but in the end has turned the back of cruelty
that it beseems a wide-awake man, who is adorned with the
light of understanding, [161] to keep himself alive by the per-
petuation of a good name.

Come, let us not tread the world In evil; let us by
striving take every opportunity of doing good.

If I die with a good name, it is well; I need a name
since for the body there is death. 8

6 A reference to the shape of the letter tim~atif used to wike Is * no **

7 From a qasOa by Abu-Tammam. (M.Q.)

8 For the first Hne see the Sbabwm ed. Vullers, 61, L 528, The second foe
is not in Vullers.

203

THE HISTORY OF

And die of olden rime were mentioned together

with customs and usages* and reference was made to their
up and hoarding of gold and silver* he would say that
those who deposited valuable treasures beneath the earth were
devoid of their share of intellect and strong understanding, for no
distinction could be made between that treasure and the dust,
seeing that it could be neither the cause of warding off harm
nor the occasion of a source of advantage. When the day of
doom arrived, of what assistance would be the treasures they
had laid by and of what avail to them ?

Wkrt are th Kbtsrws, tiwjirsi mgbty ones? They
stortl up treasures, and the toctsttres en&rei not,

M thy

* As for us, for the sake of our good name we shall store up our
treasures in the corners of men's hearts and shall leave nothing

over for the morrow.

Even in their sleep the Sultans of the age do not see

as much wealth as Is the tenth part of what we bestow

as presents from what is ready at hand.
We have given the silver and gold of the whole world to

mankind because they are the acts of generosity of

our risHess hand.*

The above is but a brief account of his actions. It may be
that those who hear and read this history will regard these state-
ments as belonging to the category of ' The fairest poetry is the
falsest \ In order to prove their truth we shall in a succinct
manner free from the contingencies of detraction or hyperbole
recount some few anecdotes wherefrom these statements may be
fully confirmed, though indeed they are but litde out of much
and as one out of a thousand.

[i] It is laid down in the yasa and custom of the Mongols
that in the season of spring and summer no one may sit in water
by day, nor wash his hands in a stream, nor draw water in gold
or silver vessels, nor lay out washed garments upon the plain ;
it being their belief that such actions increase the thunder and

Manabbi (M.Q.)

204

THE

For in the HFC It of

the time from the of the end of

and the clashing of the thunder is [162] &# it

r lfcj into ears

fmr of V afl d ^e flashing of the is such

r fif ulfffiwf iwifj f je? J ; u and it has

observed that when it lightnings and

f nj asjislxs y , u Every year that one of is struck by

lightning they drive his tribe and household out fiom
the tribes for a period of three years, during which time
may not enter the orfa of the princes. Similarly if an animal
in their herds and flocks is so struck, they proceed in the same
manner for several months. And when such a happening
occurs they eat no food for the remainder of the month* and as
in the case of their periods of mourning, they hold a celebration
(suySrmisbi) at the end of that month.

One day Qa'an was returning from his hunting ground
together with Chaghatai when at noon they beheld a Moslem
sitting in midstream washing himself. Now Chaghatai was
extremely zealous in enforcing the yasa and spared no one who
had deviated even slightly from it. When he caught sight of
this man in the water, from the flame of the fire of his anger he
wished to commit the earth of his being to the wind of annihila-
tion and to cut off the source of his life. But Qa*an said :
* To-day it is late and we are tired. This man shall be held in
custody until to-morrow, when we can inquire into his case and
ascertain the reason for his violating our yasa! And he ordered
Danishmand Hajib to take charge of the man till the morning,
when his innocence or guilt might be discovered ; he also told
Danishmand, in secret, to have a talisb of silver thrown in the
water where the man had been sitting and to instruct the man,

10 Koran, ii, 18. u IKl, 19.

12 C Rubruck : * They never wash clothes, for they say that God would
he angered thereat, and that it would thunder if they hung them up to dry. They
will even beat those they find washing them. Thunder they fear extraordinarily ;
and when it thunders they wiH turn out of their dwellings all strangers, wrap
themselves in bkck felt, and thus hide themselves till it has passed away/ (Rock-

205

THB HISTORY OF

when he was examined, to say that he was a poor man with
many obligations, that this was his whole capital and that
it was for this reason that he had acted so rashly. On the next
day the guilty man was examined in Qa*an*s presence. Qa*an
to the excuse with the ear of acceptance, but by way of
precaution someone went to the spot and the balisb was taken
out of the water. Then Qa'an said : * To whom could it occur
to meditate breaking our yast and commandment [163] or
swerving a single hakVbreadth therefrom ? But it seems to be
that this man is a person of poor estate and little property and so
has sacrificed himself for a single falifb* He commanded that
the man should be given ten more hlisb in addition to the one ;
and a written statement was taken from him that he would not
commit a similar action again. And so he not only escaped
with his life but acquired property. And on this account free-
men became the skves of this act, which was better than immense

treasures.

Anlfrm his far smrl there cam bkdes wfareutitb the
freeman mas enskvd and the careworn Vkwtd. lz

[it] When they first rose to power they made a yasa that no
one should slaughter animals by cutting their throats but should
slit open their breasts after the Mongols* own fashion.

A Moslem bought a sheep in the market, took it home, closed
the gates securely and slaughtered the animal after the Moslem
fashion in [the lane between] two or three houses, not knowing
that he was being watched by a Qifchaq, who, awaiting his
opportunity, had followed him from the market. When he
drew the knife across the sheep's throat, the Qifchaq leapt down
from the roof, bound him tight and bore him off to the Court
of the World-Emperor. Qa'an examined the case and sent out
scribes to investigate. When the circumstances were made
known to his clear intellect, he spoke as follows : * This poor
man has observed the commandment of our yasa and this Turk
has infringed it.* The Moslem's life was spared and he was

13 From a qasufa by Ibrahim b, 'Uthman al-Ghazzi in praise of Abu-'AbcWkh,
the governor of Kerman. (M.Q.) This anecdote is also recounted by Juzjani
See Raverty, 1107-9.

2O6

THE

the

was over to the of Fate,

If one of thy favour the the

off its the jaws of the

[iii] A troupe of players had come Khitai and

wondrous Khitayan such as [164] no one had ever seen

before. One of these plays consisted of tableaux of
in the midst of which an old man with a long and

a turban wound round his head was dragged forth upon his
face bound to the tail of a horse, Qa'ae asked who this was
meant to portray. They replied that it represented a rebellious
Moslem, for that the armies were dragging them out of the lands
in this manner. Qa'an ordered the show to be stopped and
commanded his attendants to fetch from the treasury all sorts of
jewels from the lands of Khorasan and the two Iraqs, such as
pearls, rubies, turquoises, etc., and also gold-embroidered webs
and garments, and Arab horses, and arms from Bokhara and
Tabriz ; and likewise what was imported from Khitai, being
garments inferior to the others, small horses and other Khitayan
products ; and all these things he commanded to be laid side
by side so that it might be seen how great was the difference.
And he said : * The poorest Moslem has many Khitayan slaves,
while the great emirs of Khitai have not one Moslem captive.
And the reason for this can only be the beneficence of the
Creator, Who knoweth the station and rank of every nation ;
it is also in conformity with the ancient yasa of Chingiz-Khan,
according to which the blood-money for a Moslem is forty
lalisb and for a Khitayan a donkey. In view of such proofs
and testimonies how can you make a laughing stock of the
people of Islam ? This crime you have committed ought to be
punished, but I will spare your lives. Count that as a total
gain; depart from my presence forthwith and be seen no more
in this neighbourhood/

[iv] A certain ruler from . . ." sent a messenger to him and

3 <D has : * Someone sent a messenger to him who was son of the ling (pSdsM}

of Badakhshan . . / The corresponding passage in RasWd-ad-Din (Blochet,

64) runs : ' One of the rulers (nuM) of Persia (Irib-ztmim) sent a messenger . . .*

307

THE HISTORY OF

a desire to field him homage and obedience, sending
among other gifts a polished ruby which had come down to
him fiom the victories of his ancestors. [165] The name of
Mohammed the Prophet of God was written on top of the stone,
while beneath it in due order were impressed the names of his
forefathers. Qa'an commanded the jewellers to leave the name
of Mohammed for luck's sake bet to erase the names of the
sultans and to set his own name after the name of the Prophet
if tiidptact I) and that of Him Who sent him.

[v] A poor man, who was unable to earn a living and had
learnt no trade, sharpened pieces of iron into the shape of awls
and mounted them on pieces of wood. He then sat down where
the retinue of Qa'an would pass and waited. Qa*an caught
sight of him from afar and sent one of his attendants to him.
The poor man told him of the weakness of his condition, the
smallness of his property and the largeness of his family and gave
him the awls. But when the messenger saw his clumsy awls,
whereof even a hundred would hardly have been worth a barley-
corn, he thought them unworthy of being presented to Qa*an
and so left them with him and [returning] told what he had
seen. Qa*an ordered him [to go back and] bring all the awls
that the man had with him. And taking them in his hand he
said : * Even this kind will serve for herdsmen to mend the
seams in their qumiz 15 skins with.* And for each awl he gave
the man a fatisb.

[vi] An aged man, whose strength had been exhausted by the
revolution of days and nights, came to Qa'an and asked for
two hundred hdisb of gold to form a company with him. Said
one of the courtiers : * The sun of this man's life has reached its
evening, and he has no children or grandchildren or any fixed
dwelling or abode, and no one is acquainted with his condition.*
Qa'an repKed [166] : * Since he must have cherished this wish
in his heart during all his long life and ever sought such an
opportunity, it would be remote fiom magnanimity to send him
from our presence disappointed and frustrated, nor would this

15 qttnfe, ic. fermented mare's milk, is the cosmos of Ruferuck, who gives a
detailed account of its manufacture. See RockhiU, 66-7,

208

be of the God has us.

Give he for he to his

O / wlf jwf is ff*f

fk jwf fwll not ir %

Jto

Tif 0f ffo few ilf Hill ie

Mr are & fk ON?

He shall not give np the ghost without accomplishing his desire.*
The man had not yet received all the when lie died. The
report hereof brought many persons to Qa*an*s threshold.

ffir fmc tk my to Ms m- Ac

of M$ om t tlx m.

[vii] A person came to him and asked for Ive hundred
in connection with some deal. He ordered his petition to be
granted. His courtiers pointed out that the man was a person
of no standing who had not a farthing of his own and owed debts
amounting to all that he had asked for. Qa*an told them to
double the amount so that he might make half of it his capital
and give the remainder to his creditors.

These arts of generosity art mt tw& cwps &/ mil. 17

[viii] A document was found which told that in such-and-such
a place in his dominions was a treasure that had been laid up by
Afrasiyab. And it was written in the document that all the
beasts of burden in that region could not raise up that treasure.
But Qa'an said : c What need have we of a treasure laid up by
another ? We bestow it all upon the servants of God Almighty
and our own subjects/

He bath cms to the gmtest &f mbkb then is m lmit f
mi Us slightest are Is mm gbrms tbtm Dtstmy.

[ix] An ortaq 18 came to him and received a capital of five
hundred talisb. He went away for a while and then returned

16 Attributed in the Hmasa to Hatim of Tayyi*. (M.Q.)

17 From the well-known verses by Umayya b. Abus-Salt ath-Thaqafi in
praise of Saif b. Dhu-Yazan quoted in a long story in the Ktathd-A^bmL (M.Q.)

18 An ortaq, in Turkish lit. * partner *, was a merchant who formed a com-
mercial association with a ruler or great man. See Minovi and Minorsky,
Nasfr al-Dm Tm on Fmwct, 788, Hinz, En ormfatiscbes Hmklsmternebmen, 534.

THE HISTORY OF

saying that he had not one left and offering some unaccept-
able excuse. Qa*an ordered him to be given the same amount
again. In a year's time the man returned even poorer than the
first time and gave some other excuse. He was given another
five hundred balisb. When he returned the third time the
UtikcUs were afraid to communicate his message. Instead they
denounced his wastefulness and extravagancy saying, * He wastes
and devours this money in such-and-such a country.* * How,*
asked Qa'an, * can one devour htlisb ? * They replied that he
gave them to worthless persons and spent them on food and
drink. * Since the baUsb themselves are there/ said Qa*an, * and
since those who take them from him are also our subjects, the
money remains in our hands and is not scattered underfoot.
Give him as much as you gave him the first time but tell him
to stop being wasteful and extravagant.*

Anl I tml Um m le& fejfrfw ml fomi Mm

mm offfmr m Ms rftum Am m Ae

[x] There is a town in the clime of Khitai called *Tayanfu, 20
the people of which presented a petition saying, * We have
incurred a debt of eight hundred falifb, which will be the cause
of our undoing, and our creditors are demanding payment. If
an order is given for our creditors to be easy with us for a time,
we shall then be able gradually to repay them and shall not be
uprooted and scattered.* * If we order their creditors to be easy
with them,* said Qa*an, * they will suffer a great loss, and if we
leave things as they are the people will be ruined and homeless.*
He therefore commanded a proclamation to be made and
declared throughout the realm that whoever had a claim on
them [168] should bring documentary proof or else the debtor
should produce the creditor and he should receive cash from the
treasury. And the door of the treasury, which had never been
shut, was opened wide, and the people came thither and received

19 From a qtwla by Ibn-al-'Amid, the famous minister of the Buyids. (M.Q.)

20 The text has TAYM'W, which I haw emended to TAYNFW, Le.
Tayanfu. Cf. Marco Polo's Taianfu for Tai-yiian fii, which was then the
capital of the province of ShansL See Yule, The Bock cf Ser Marco Pok, n,
15, n. 2. On the other hand cf. Blochet, 66-7, n. k,

210

THE

; no

to be creditor debtor so ; so

received double the sum they had

fe & ram & jwl to

on? d* is dx

[xi] When he was on his hunting ground
him two or three water-melons. None of his

or garments available, but Moge M Khatun who
present, had two pearls in hot the two of

the Lesser Bear when rendered auspicious by conjunction
the radiant moon. Qa'an ordered these pearls to be given to
the man. But as they were very precious she said : * This man
does not know their worth and value : it is like giving saffron
to a donkey. If he is commanded to come to the to-morrow,
he will there receive Misb and clothing/ * He is a poor man/
said Qa'an, * and cannot bear to wait till to-morrow. And
whither should these pearls go ? They too will return to us in
the end.

Give tben md U not stmff wben a kgggr ^gprmnkr, far
I kwc m attachment Acrtto, ml art n& mj

excuses! 22

At Qa'an's command she gave the pearls to the poor man, and
he went away rejoicing and sold them for a small sum, round
about two thousand dinars. The buyer was very pleased and
thought to himself: * I have acquired two fine jewels fit for a
present to the Emperor. He is rarely brought such gifts as
these/ He accordingly took the pearls to the Emperor, and at

21 MWKA. According to Rashid-ad-Din (Khetagurov, 149-50) she was
the daughter of the ruler of the Bekrin, who gave her in marriage to Chingiz-
Khan. After his death she became in accordance with the Mongol custom
the wife of his son Ogedei, who * loved her more than his other wives so that
they were jealous of her*. (Cf. below, p. 218, where it is stated that he loved
her * more than all his other ladies '.) She was evidently a woman of considerable
attractions. Chaghatai too was enamoured of her and having sought her hand
too late refused the offer of any other of his father's ladies as a substitute. Ogedei
had no children by ha and this is perhaps the reason why she is not mentioned
in die section on his wives and concubines (Blochet, 3-4).

22 See the SMnd-Hmasa, Bdbq, ed., IV, 67. (M.Q.)
R 211

THE HISTORY OF

that rime Mdge Khatun was with him. Qa'an took the pearls

and said : * Did we not say that they would come back to us ?
The poor man did not leave us disappointed but gained his
end, and the pearls too have come back to us.* [169] And he
distinguished the bearer with all kinds of favours.

Wb*ercr sffjs &t Ac m ml & ?m mt the tw mmt

resembling eazb e&tr tbet ml so prmses Mb mn

ml sea.

[xii] A stranger brought him two arrows and knelt down
afar off. Qa*an commanded his attendants to inquire into the
man's condition and find out what he wanted. The man said :
* I am by trade an arrowsmith. I have incurred a debt of seventy
balisb and that is the reason for the confusion of my affairs. If
it is commanded that I be given this quantity of Misb I will
deliver ten thousand arrows every year/ Said the Hatim of the
age : * Unless this poor fellow's affairs are entirely distraught and
he is in despair, he will not accept so contemptible an amount
of ttalisb in return for so many arrows. Let him be given a
hundred lalisb so that he can mend his affairs/ When they
brought the balisb the old arrowsmith was incapable of carrying
them. Qa*an smiled and commanded an ox-wagon to be
brought also* and the old man loaded the twlisb on it and went
his way.

And tlwu didst load him with wealth, wherewith the stages
are lightened to Urn that crosseth the foot. 23

[xiii] At the time when he ordered the building of Qara-
Qorum and the royal mind was busied with this scheme, he
one day entered the treasury where he found one or two fSmen
of lalisb. * What comfort,* he said, * do we derive from the
presence of aU this money which has to be constantly guarded ?
Let the heralds proclaim that whoever wants some laJisb should
come and take them/ Everybody set forth from the town and
bent their steps towards the treasury. Master and slave, rich and
poor, noble and base, greybeard and suckling, they all received
what they asked for and, each having obtained an abundant

23 From a qasMa by Hahim b. 'Uthman al-GhazzL (M.Q.)

212

left his and tip

for his

<?iff out

df i?f d* on?

[xiv] Thae had been no agriculture in the of

Qara-Qorum on account of the cold but his

reign they began to rill the ground. [170] A
planted radishes and succeeded in growing a few, which he
brought to Qa*an, Qa*an ordered the
to be counted. The number came to a hundred and so he
the man a hundred balisb.

If Ac bean and hand arc aa and mine, It is the
and hand of the king.* 5

[xv] Two parasangs to the east of Qara-Qorum a palace had
been built in a nook upon a hillside, and he was wont to pass
by on his way to and from his winter quarters so that offerings
of food (which they call tvzgbti) might be brought him from
the town. And on this account they called the place Tuzghu-
Baligh. 8 * A certain person planted several almond and willow
trees at the foot of this hill. No one had ever seen green trees In
that region before, but these trees became verdant with foliage.
Qa'an commanded that the man who planted them should be
given a balisb for each tree.

And the manner of the cl&nls wkm sbedling their water wm
almost telling Mm that if be mn ^mr&m tf
be woM rm gptt* 1

[xvi] When he seated himself upon the throne of kingship
and the fame of his kindness and generosity was spread through-
out the world, merchants began to come to his Court from every
side, and whatever goods they had brought, whether good or

24 From the Haiutsa. (M.Q.)

25 The opening line of a famous qasuta by Anvari in praise of Sultan Sanjar.

26 This is the T'u-su-hu ch'eng (* Tusqu City ') which, according to die
Yuan sblb f was constructed in the tenth year of Ogedefs reign, Le. 1238. See
Cleaves, The Mongolian Documents m the Mmle ie Ttbtrm, 90.

27 Badi'-az-Zaman of Hamadan. (M.Q.)

THE HISTORY OF

bad, he would command them to be bought at the full price*
And it usually happened that without casting a glance at their
wares or inquiring the price he would give them all away. The
merchants would then calculate to themselves : * This cost so
much and that so much/ and for * one * they would say * ten ?
and every shell they would call a pearl. When the merchants
had noted 'this custom of his, they used to open their bales and
then turn away; and in one or two days* rime, though their
wares had been the Sea of Oman, there remained thereof not
one drop. The merchants would then return and state the prices
of their goods ; and it was Qa'an's command that whatever the
price amounted to, his officials should raise it by 10 per cent
(dab~yazdab) and pay the money to the merchants. One day the
officers and ministers of his Court represented to him that it was
unnecessary to add this 10 per cent seeing that the price of the
goods was already in excess of their real value. * The dealings
of the merchants with our treasury/ [171] said Qa'an, * are for
the purpose of their acquiring some benefit and securing some
advantage under our protection. And indeed these people have
expenses to pay to your tittttcbb, and it is their debt to you that
I am discharging lest they depart from our presence having
suffered a loss.*

An! wby Ml the wor& of men mtbboU this from well-doing ?
and who tars the way of Um that encounters a wolf? 28

[xvii] Some people from India brought him two tusks of ivory,
He asked what they wanted and was told * Five hundred talisb.'
Without the slightest hesitation he ordered them to be given
this amount. His officers made a great outcry, asking how he
could give so large a sum for so contemptible a matter. * More-
over,* they said, * these people come from an enemy country.*
* No one/ he replied, * is an enemy of mine.*

So extravagantly iocs be strive to fa generous that be
causes enemies to receive the gifts of bis bands,

[xviii] At a time when his brain was heated with cups of
wine, in a time of debauch when he had grown merry, a man
28 Mutanabbi. (M.Q.)

214

a hat the of the of

Khorasan. He his to the a for

They the

log he had such a sum

On the day at the time the
self at the Qa*an*s glance fell upon and, the

being laid before him, he commanded his to it

up to three hundred There the ; and

day he added a hundred until the to six

Then summoning his emirs and scribes he
in this world of growth and decay was

would endure for ever. They replied with one voice that
was not. Then, addressing himself to the Minister Yalavach,
he said : * That is wrong. Good repute and fame endure for
ever in this world. 9 Then f turning to the scribes* he said:
* You are my real enemies ; for it is your wish that no fair
monuments or good reports should remain as a memorial to me.
You think perhaps [172] that if I give someone a present when
I am drinking it is because I am drunk ; and that is why you
delay payment and hold up what is due. Until one or two of
you are punished for their deeds as a warning to their fellows,
no good will ever come of you.*

Oder? tkm I &ky the censwms, tfbers tlmn I

U Ae reproachful
I ojtjwse tbost wba rtprwA f for Uvmg

ber f my I go farther.**

[xix] At the time when Shiraz had not yet submitted, a
person came from that place and bending his knee spoke as
follows: * I have come from Shiraz, because of the fame of the
Emperor's generosity and goodness; for I am a man with a
family and have many debts and little backing ; and my petition
is for five hundred Idish, which is the amount of my debt/
Qa*an ordered his officials to give him what he had asked for
and to add the same amount again. They hesitated, saying,
' To add to what he asked for is extravagance, if not ruination/

29 The second of these two "basts is ascribed in the Dmyat-d-Qflsr to Abo-
Bakr *AH al-Quhkanl (M.Q.)

215

THE HISTORY OF

He answered : * Because of our fame this careworn wretch has
traversed many mountains and plains and experienced hot and
cold ; and what he asked for wiE not meet the expenses of his
journey hither and his return home, nor will it be sufficient to
cover his debt. Unless it is added to it will be as though he
returned without achieving his object. How can it be considered
just that a poor man after travelling so great a distance should
return disappointed to his family and children ? Give him the
full amount that I said without any delay or procrastination/
The poor man returned home rich and joyful, and with the
Emperor there was left fair fame in this world.

When the petitioner comes from afar to sue Urn, be boUs
it mknifttl to refuse Urn wfon be bos a large family*

[xx] A poor man came to his Court with ten thongs tied to
a stick* He opened his mouth in prayer [for Qa'an] and took
his stand at a distance. The royal glance fell upon him, and
when the officers inquired about his business he spoke as follows :
** I had a kid in my household. I made its flesh the sustenance
of my family, and out of its hide I fashioned thongs for the
men-at-arms, which I have brought with me/ Qa'an took the
thongs [173] and said : This poor fellow has brought us what
is better than goats/ And he ordered him to be given a hundred
Misb and a thousand head of sheep. And he added that when
all this was consumed he should come to him again and he
would give him more.

In the morning Ms bounty was the harbinger of morning
showers and the messenger of provisions and victuals.

[xxi] A man brought him a hundred bone arrow-heads. He
gave him the like number of balisb.

[xxii] It was his custom to pass the three winter months in
the pleasures of the chase, and during the remaining nine months
he would sit down after breakfast on a throne outside his Court,
where, heaped up in piles according to their kind, was every
sort of merchandise that is to be found in the world ; and these

30 From a aasida by Ibrahim b, 'Uthman al~Ghazzi, a bait of which has been
quoted above, 169 [212], (M.Q.)

216

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

he would scatter amongst Moslems and Mongols and cast before
fortune-hunters and suppliants. And it would often happen
that he would command persons of great size and bulk to take
as many of the wares they chose as they could hold in their arms.
One day he so commanded a person of this description and the
man took as many costly garments as could be contained in the
arms of several [normal] persons. As he went away one of the
garments fell to the ground ; and when he had taken the others
home he returned to fetch the one he had dropped. c How,*
said Qa*an, * can a man have the trouble of a journey for the
sake of a single garment ? * And he commanded him again
to take as many as he could carry.

Were Hatim aim be would experience the generosity of thy
bawl; there is no doubt tbat be would be converted at tby band.

[xxiii] A man brought him two hundred whip handles made
of the wood of the red willow (tdbarkkun) which they burn in
those parts as firewood. He gave him a hdisb for every stick.

And seekers after boons came to him in crowds from every

quarter craning their necks.
And tbey obtained from his bands tbat wMcb they smgbt*

and be gave the glad tidings of bis generosity in Ms

wonted way.^

[174] [xxiv] A person brought him three of these same sticks
and he gave him half of that amount, i.e. a hundred fatisb.

[xxv] When Qara-Qorum was first being built he happened
to be going through the market and passed by a shop in which
jujubes were exposed for sale. He felt a craving for this fruit,
and when he sat down in his Court he ordered Danishmand
Hajib to take a lalisb from the treasury and go and buy some.
Danishmand went to the greengrocer, took a trayful of jujubes
and paid a quarter of the lalisb, which was double the value of
the jujubes. When the tray was set before Qa'an he remarked :
* A Mish is a very small price for so many jujubes/ Danishmand
took the rest of the Misb out of his sleeve and said : * They cost
but little/ Qa'an upbraided him roundly and said : * When has

S1 From a qasOa by Abu-'Ali al-Fadl b. Muhammad at-Tarasti. (M.Q.)

217

THE HISTORY OF

this man ever had a customer like us ? Make up the price to
ten tatisb and give him them all*

Ami ftme Us benefits, which are not benefits fait necklaces

afamt the necks of men. n

[xxvi] He was going hunting and the house of the Minister
Yalavach happened to lie on his way. Tuzghu was brought
forth and Yalavach told him the story of Solomon, the ant and
the locust's leg. S3 It was a pleasant spot ; Qa'an had the joy
of wine in his head ; and Moge Khatun, whom he loved more
than all his other ladies, was beside him. He condescended to
alight, and outside his tent he laid carpets ofnasij 34 and brocade
(zarlaft) and strewed the inside with the bubbles of pearl neck-
laces. And when they were seated upon their thrones he poured
a great quantity of royal pearls over their heads.

MI had I bestowed whst mis worthy of thee, I had bestowed
npm tbee all the auspicious stars of the havens?*

And that day he watched many spectacles and gave a robe and
a horse to all that were present in his service. And the next day
he ordered the Minister Yalavach to be honoured with all manner
of valuable presents, [175] to which were there added four
hundred latisb.

His lomty extended to thejtock and to the shepherds.

[xxvii] He commanded a hundred Misb to be given to a poor
man. The Ministers of the Court said to one another: * Does
he know how many dirhems there are to so many halfcb ? '
They took the hundred lalisb and scattered them where he would
pass by. And when he passed by he asked, * What is this ? *

32 The Cadi Hasan Mu'ammal b. Khalil b. Ahmad al-Busti, a contemporary
of the Ghaznavids, (M.Q.)

83 The ant brought Solomon a locust's leg as the choicest gift she had to
offer. The story is referred to by Sa'di in his Gutistan. See Arberry, Kings
and Beggars, 91 and no.

34 nosy, in Turkish naskb, the nask of Rubruck and the nasich of Marco Polo,
was * un tissu fait de sole et d*or *. See Pelliot, Une ville musulmane dans k Chine
du Nord sous Us Mongols, 269, n. i.

86 Abul-FathBusti.

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

They replied that it was the hundred klbb for the poor man.
* It is a miserable amount,* he said. And so they doubled it
and gave it all to the poor man.

Ktst Us fingers, wUcb are not Jwgers hit the keys to pwisms?*

[xxviii] A certain person had made a deal for a hundred
Mkh with his emirs and treasurers. He gave orders that the
man should be paid in cash. One day a poor man was standing
at the door of Qarshi. 37 When the World-Emperor came out
his glance fell upon the man and he thought : * Is this perhaps
the same person to whom the hundred Misb are to be paid ? *
And he called his officials to account, saying, * Days have passed
since we commanded that this man's money was to be paid in
cash without any delay or procrastination/ He waited where
he stood, and the qorcbis* s went to the treasury to fetch the
falfcb. Putting a hundred lalisb in the hems of their gowns they
brought them to the poor man. * What are these faUsb ? * he
asked, and they replied, * They are the talisb to be given in pay-
ment for your wares/ When they realized that he was someone
else, they took the latisb back and informed the Emperor. * It
was his good fortune/ he said. * How can anything be returned
that is taken out of our treasury ? * And so they gave all the
money to the poor man.

The clams of chivalry pass judgment on my wtalA :
supererogatory acts of chivalry are obligatory duties
in the eyes of the generous?*

[xxix] An Indian woman with two children on her back was
passing by the gate of Qarshi. Qa*an, who had just returned
from the country, caught sight of her and ordered the treasurer
to give her five balisb. [176] He took them to her at once, but
put one in the pocket of his cloak and gave her only four. The

3 Ibn-Duraid. (M.Q.)

37 a/rsti in Mongol means * palace *. The reference is perhaps to Qadhi-Soii
See below, p, 237.

38 jwdW means Ht. * quiver-bearer *. On the institution of this office by Chingiz-
Khan and the ditties performed by the ^orchis seethe Sore* History, 124, 225
and 229.

38 Ibn-Dtiraid (M.Q.)

2,19

THE HISTORY OF

woman noticed that one was missing and pleaded with him to
give it to her. Qa*an asked him what the woman had been
saying. He replied that she was a woman with a family and
was uttering a prayer. Qa*an then asked, * What family has
she ? * * Two small orphans/ replied the treasurer. When
Qa*an entered Qarshi he went to the treasury and ordered the
woman to be summoned. Then he commanded her to
take of every kind of clothing that pleased her fancy as many
embroidered garments as a rich and wealthy man would wear.

Tbott art a /uar&w of orphans in place of their fathers
so that we unsb that we ourselves were orphans.*

[xxx] A falconer came to him with a falcon upon his wrist.

* What sort of falcon is that ? * asked Qa'aru * It is a sick one,*
said the man, * and its medicine is the flesh of fowls/ Qa'an
ordered his treasurer to give the man a lalisk The treasurer took
the man with him, gave a twlisb to a banker and from that sum
credited him with the price of several fowls. When QaWs
eyes next fell on the treasurer he asked him what had happened
about the falcon and the treasurer told him of his efficiency.
Qa*an was angry and said : c I have placed in thy hands all
the wealth of the world, which cannot be counted or calculated,
and even so much is not sufficient for thee/ He went on:

* That falconer did not want a fowl, he only used that as a
pretext to seek something for himself. Everyone that comes to
us those that say, ** We shall become ortaqs and take balisb in
order to give interest/* and those others that bring wares, and
those others again of every sort that come to us we know that
they have all fashioned a net in a different way, nor is it hidden
from us. But we wish everyone to have comfort and repose
from us, and so they receive a share of our fortune, and we
pretend not to know their circumstances/ And he commanded
that several Misb should be given to the falconer.

[177] [xxxi] A certain person was a bow-maker and made
bad bows. He was so well known in Qara-Qorum that no
one would pay a single barleycorn for his wares ; and he had

40 From a qastia by Abu-Tammam in praise of the Caliph Ma'mun. (M.Q.)

220

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no other trade. The bow-maker became poor and embarrassed
in his affairs ; and he could think of no other device than to
take twenty bows, bind them to the end of a stick and take his
stand at the gate of the ordu. When Qa'an came out he sent
someone to ascertain who the man was. * I am,* he said, * that
man whose bows no one will buy. I have no other trade and
so my affairs have become embarrassed* I have brought twenty
bows to give to Qa*an.* Qa'an ordered his attendants to take
the bows and to give the man twenty Mish.

[xxxii] A valuable jewelled belt was brought to Qa'an. He
examined it and bound it round his waist. A stud became
loose at one end of it and he gave it to one of his courtiers to
get the stud fastened. The officer in question gave it to a gold-
smith whose name was Rashid Sudagar. The goldsmith took
the belt and sold it. And every day when they came to claim
it he had some different excuse. When this procrastination had
passed all bounds Qa'an sent a bailiff to make him give it back.
He was forced to disclose how he had got rid of it, and on
account of this impudence they bound him, bore him before
Qa'an and explained what had happened. 'Although the
crime is a great one/ said Qa'an, * yet his resorting to such an
action is a proof of weakness, impotence and poverty, for if his
affairs had not been utterly confused he could not possibly have
ventured upon such an act. Let him be freed and give him a
hundred and fifty fatisb from the treasury so that he may mend
his affairs and not presume to do the like again/

If thy kindness is of the substance of thy being, it is
to the body a picture of the soul.

Only be gave abundantly that gave with apologies, and only he
pardoned that was strong.* 1

[xxxiii] Someone brought him an Aleppo 42 goblet. Those
who were seated in the Court took it and showed it to him without
bringing in the person that had brought it. * He that brought

41 Abul"Ghauthal-Manjibi. (M.Q.)

42 kakti * of Aleppo f may refer to the metal of which the goblet was made:
in the modern language it means * tin-plate *. (V.M.)

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[178] this/ said Qa*an, * has endured hardships in order to bring
so fine a jewel to us from so great a distance. Let him be given
two hundred kalisbf The bearer of the goblet was seated at
the gate of the ordu wondering whether anyone had delivered
his message to the august ear of the Emperor. Suddenly the
chamberlains came out and told him the glad tidings of his
having been honoured ; and on the same day they gave him
two hundred balisb. The same day also there was talk about
Abyssinian servants, and Qa*an ordered his attendants to ask
this man whether he was able to get servants for him. * That
is just my business,* said the man, and Qa'an ordered them to
give him another two hundred lalbb for his travelling expenses,
and also gave him letters-patent. The man never came back
again and no one knew his home or origin.

I gwe away my wealth, then I wish for a sister to it that
I my drink a second time and support it with another draught.

[xxxiv] It has never been heard that anyone left his presence
disappointed except a person from Malin in Bakharz, 43 who
spread the tale far and wide that he had found a treasure but
would tell nobody where it was until his eyes had been brightened
with the beauty of Qa'an. And he would repeat these words to
every envoy proceeding in that direction. When his words
reached the august ear of Qa'an, he ordered him to be given a
mount. When the man came into his presence and entered the
ordu, they discussed his statement, and he said : * I had to have
some means of beholding the august countenance of Qa'an. I
know of no treasure/ Since these words had the appearance of
impudence and everyone can imagine such actions, they dis-
pleased Qa'an and he showed signs of anger. However, he
pretended not to understand and said : * You have seen my
face 44 and now you must go back/ And he gave orders that

43 The district of Bakharz lay to the south of Jam, the present-day Turbat-i-
Shaikh Jam. Malin appears to be identical with the modem Shahr-i-Nau.

44 Cf. Rashid-ad-Din tr. Khetagurov, 160 : " The Mongols have a custom
that when they have seen the king they say: ** We have seen the king's golden
face."' (V.M.)

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the man was to be handed over to the messengers and sent back
safely to his home.

And what are the clouds if they do not disperse from a town
and if they are not ready to gather one day over a blame-
worthy person ? 4S

[179] [xxxv] There was a person in Qara-Qorum to whose
affairs weakness and poverty had found their way. He made a
cup out of the horn of a mountain goat and sat upon the high-
way and waited. When he saw Qa'an's retinue in the distance
he rose to his feet and held out the cup. Qa'an took it from
him and gave him fifty falisb. One of the scribes repeated the
number of lalisb and Qa'an said : * How long must I ask you
not to deny my bounty and begrudge petitioners my property ? *
And to spite the censorious he commanded the sum to be
doubled and with those balisb made that poor man rich.

O "king of the age and the time, who art lofty in greatness

of state t
Two foes that never meet together in one place amongst men

are thy face and poverty.**

[xxxvi] A Moslem had borrowed four lalisb of silver from an
Uighur emir 47 and was unable to pay the money back. He
therefore seized him and took him to task saying that he must
forsake the faith of Mohammed (upon whom h peace !) and
embrace the creed of idolatry, or else he should be disgraced in
the middle of the market-place and receive a hundred blows of
the bastinado. The Moslem, bewildered by their 48 threats, asked
for three days' grace and went to Qa'an's audience-hall, where
he held up a sign on the end of a stick. Qa*an ordered him to
be brought forward. When he learnt of the poor man's position
he ordered his creditors to be sent for, and they were prosecuted
for the charge they had laid on the Moslem. As for the Moslem
he was given a Uighur wife and house. And Qa*an com-
manded that the Uighur should receive a hundred blows of the

45 Abu-Dufafa d-Misri. (M.Q.) 46 Abul-Wa6 ad-Damiyati. (M.Q.)

47 Reading amm with Rashid-ad-Din ed. Blochet (75) for the umara-yi of
the text

48 Le. the Uighurs'.

223

THE HISTORY OF

bastinado in the middle of the market-place and that the Moslem

should be given a hundred hlish.

Wbm wayfams alight Mpm th season, their having drunk a
fast draught dots not prevent them from drinking a second.

[xxxvii] There was a certain sayyid from Chargh near Bokhara
who was called [180] the e Alid of Chargh. He had received
some ttalisb from Qa*an for a commercial enterprise. When the
time came to make a payment he said that he had already handed
over the interest, The scribes asked for a statement in writing,
a receipt and witnesses. He said that he had given the money
to Qa*an in person. They brought him into the audience-hall.
c When did this happen ? * asked Qa'an, * and in whose pre-
sence ? for I know thee not.* * Thou wast alone that day,* said
the man, * and no one was present but myself/ Qa*an reflected
a while and then said : * His impudence is manifest and his
mendacity and falseness evident ; but if I call him to account
for these words, those who hear will say, " The World-Emperor
has gone back on his word." Let him be, but do not purchase
from him what he has brought to sell to our treasury/ A number
of merchants had come that day. They took the wares of each
of them and Qa'an gave them all a greater sum than the actual
price. Suddenly, he inquired again about the sayyil, saying,
* Where is he ? ' They brought him in and Qa'an said : * Is
thy heart sore because we commanded them not to take thy
goods ? ' He at once began to lament and weep. Qa'an then
asked, * What is the price of thy goods ? * * Thirty fcrfiri/
replied the sayyil, and with that I shall be satisfied/ He gave
him a hundred kdisb.

[xxxviii] A kinswoman of his came in and gazed upon his
wives and concubines and examined their clothes and pearls
and jewel-studded ornaments. The Minister Yalavach was
present and Qa'an ordered him to bring in the pearls that were
held in readiness. Twelve trays of pearls were then produced
which he had purchased for eighty thousand dinars. He
ordered them to be poured into her sleeves and the hem of her

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

skit. And he said : * Now that thou art sated with pearls
how many glances wilt thou cast on others ? *

The son of Armak trod pathways In kindness such that, bad
Hatlm passed along them, be would txtve lost bis way.

And be was lofty in bis resolve wbicb abased the hols of
Simak and tbe born of tbe twenty-fourth knar manmn. m

[181] [xxxix] Someone brought him a pomegranate as a
present. He commanded the seeds to be counted and each of
those present to receive his share. And afterwards he gave the
man a lalisb for every seed.

On this account tbe crowding of people at bis gate mas
like tbe crowding of seeds m a pomegranate.^

[xl] An Arabic-speaking apostate came to him and said:
* In the night I saw Chingiz-Khan in a dream and he said :
" Tell my son to slay the Moslems, for they are evil/* * After
reflecting a while Qa'an asked whether he had spoken to him
through an interpreter or in his own person. * With his own
tongue/ said the man. * Dost thou know the Mongol and
Turkish languages ? * asked Qa'an. * No/ said the man.
c Neither am I in any doubt/ said Qa'an, * but that Chingiz-
Khan knew no language save Mongolian. It is clear therefore
that what thou sayest is nothing but lies/ And he ordered the
man to be put to death. 51

[xli] A Moslem from the Tangut region, from a place called
Qara-Tash, 52 brought him a wagon-load of victuals in the hope

49 From a aasida by Abu-Salih b. Ahmad of Nishapur in praise of Abu-
Sa'd b. Armak. (M.Q.)

50 From a qasida by al-Ghazzi, one bait of which has already been quoted
above, I, 163 [i, 206]. (M.Q.)

51 In Juzjani's version of this anecdote (Raverty, 1110-14) the denouncer of
the Moslems is a toyin or Buddhist priest who knew Turkish but not Mongol.
For a theory that Chingiz-Khan may have had some knowledge of Chinese,
see Waley, Tbe Travels of an Alchemist, 159.

52 Hamdallah tr. le Strange, 250, mentions Eriqaya (spelt Yaraqiya, the
Egrigaia of Marco Polo, i.e. Ning-hsia in Kan-su) and Qara-Tash as * the
best known towns ' in the Tangut country, both being * cities of a certain size,
with numerous buildings'.

225

THE HISTORY OF

that he would receive permission to return [182] to his own
country. Qa*an gave him a wagon-load ofbalisb and set him

free.

The water in the sea is a tale of his nature ; the clouds in
the month of Bahman are a tradition of his generosity.

[xlii] A man came one day in the expectation of a feast.
Seeing that the guards were drunk he entered the sleeping
chamber, stole a goblet and went his way. The next day they
looked for the goblet and could not find it. Qa'an caused a
proclamation to be made that whoever brought the goblet back
would not only be pardoned but any boon that he craved would
be granted. The next day the thief brought the goblet back.
c Why didst thou commit this act ? ' asked Qa'an. c In order/
said the man, * that it might be a warning to the World-Emperor
not to trust his guards (whom they call turgaq)?* Otherwise
there were more goods than that in the treasury if I had gone
there for the purpose .of stealing.* Some of the emirs said that
an example should be made of him so that no one else might
commit such an action. * I have pardoned him,* said Qa'an.
* How then can I proceed against him a second time ? It would
be a pity for such a spirited fellow to be killed, otherwise I would
command his breast to be cut open to see what sort of heart
and liver he had considering they did not burst under such
circumstances/ And Qa'an gave him five hundred lalisb with
many horses and garments, and made him the commander of
several thousand soldiers, and sent him to Khitai.

[xlilij When the crops were growing so much hail fell as to
destroy them all. And at the time of this disaster there was such
a scarcity of corn in Qara-Qorum that a single maund could not
be obtained for a dinar. Qa'an ordered the heralds to proclaim
that whoever had sown corn should not give way to anxiety,
for his crop had suffered no harm. If they watered their fields
again, and tilled them, and there was no harvest, they would

53 The tutqui was the day-guard in contrast to the falte'til or night-guard.
See Minorsky, A Cml <md MUtary Rettkw in Pars in 881/1476, 163. On their
duties see the Secret History, 229.

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receive the full equivalent from his treasury and granaries. It so
happened that so much corn was reaped that year that there had
never been such a crop and harvest since they had first begun
to rill the ground.

[183] [xliv] Three persons were brought to him for a crime
they had committed. He ordered them to be put to death.
When he left his audience-hall he came upon a woman scatter-
ing dust and crying out aloud. * Why art thou doing this ? *
he asked. * Because, 9 she replied, * of those men whom thou
hast ordered to be put to death, for one of them is my husband,
another my son and the third my brother/ * Choose one of
them/ said Qa'an, c and for thy sake he shall be spared/ c I can
find a substitute for my husband/ replied the woman, * and
children too I can hope for ; but for a brother there can be no
substitute/ He spared the lives of all three. 54

[xlv] He was fond of watching wrestling and at first had a
number of Mongols, Qifchaqs and Khitayans in his service.
When Khorasan was subjugated he was told about the wrestlers
of Khorasan and Iraq, and he sent a messenger to Chormaghun
and ordered him to send one of these wrestlers. There was a
man from Hamadan called Pahlavan Fila, and it was he that
they sent. When he came to Qa'an the latter was well pleased
with his shape and appearance, the stoutness of his body and
the symmetry of his limbs ; and he ordered him to wrestle with
certain other wrestlers who were present. He beat them all, and
none could throw him on his back. Besides other presents
Qa'an gave him five hundred Mish ; and after a while he
bestowed on him a beauteous, graceful and sweet-voiced maiden.
It being the custom of wrestlers to abstain from sexual intercourse
in order to conserve their strength, he did not lay hands on her
but rather avoided her company. One day the girl went to the
wfa and Qa'an said to her : ' How hast thou found this Tazik ?
Hast thou received thy full share of the joys of love ? * For it

54 This story is related word for word in the Marzubm-Nma of Sa'd-ad-Din
Varavini written nearly 50 years before the Tarikb-i-Jahan-Guski. It is there
told with reference to the tyrant DahaL See rny edition of the Mtrzulw-Nma,
16-17. (M.Q.)

s 227

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is a standing joke with the Mongols to credit the Taziks with

extraordinary sexual powers. As the poet says:

[184] Vae tiU, o mi pern, nonne te puiet dedecome me inter sofaks,

Indmllter exsilire c swu it pawwm tolkre fa capite i 5S

* I have had no taste thereof/ said the girl, * and we live apart/
Qa*an sent for Fila and questioned him about this state of
affairs. * I have become famous in the Emperor's service/ said
the wrestler, * and no one has vanquished me. If I enter the
arena, my strength must not wane nor my rank be reduced in
the Emperor's service.' * My intention was/ said Qa*an, * for
you to beget children between you. From now on I exempt
thee from the strife and contention of wrestling/

Fila had a kinsman called Muhammad-Shah. A messenger
was sent after him and he was ordered to bring several of the
practitioners of that art. When they arrived Muhammad-Shah
entered the field of contest with several wrestlers and beat them
all. * Wilt thou wrestle with Fila ? * asked Qa*an. Muham-
mad-Shah at once knelt down and answered, * Yes/ * You are
kinsmen/ said Qa'an, * and there is brotherhood between you.
Do not wrestle with one another like enemies/ And when some
five days had passed, during which time he continued to view
him with the eye of favour, he gave him some l&lish. At that
moment seven hundred htlisb came in from somewhere, and he
gave him these also.

Riches know of a surety, when they alight m thy hands,
that they are not in a lasting

And that which he bestowed upon them in pay, etc., in the way
of clothes, furs and lalisb, was like running water, which might
in no wise be cut off. And it would often happen that he
would command them both to take as many as they could carry
of the garments which had been thrown down in a heap in
front of the orfa.

[185] [xlvi] One of my friends of pleasing speech told me
the following story;

55 Abus-Simt ofRa^'AIn. (M.Q.)
56 Abul-Hasan 'Ali b. Muhammad of Tihama. (M.Q.)

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During the reign of Sultan * Ala-ad-Din Kai-Qubad 5? I was
in Rum, and amongst my intimates was a person in embarrassed
circumstances who earned his bread by buffoonery. Now at
that time the tale of the bounty of the Emperor of the World
and the Hatim of the Age was on all men's tongues, and it was
said that in the East there sat a king of the Mongol race to whom
earth and gold were one and the same thing.

By the measure of his lofty resolve the cash of the seven
planets was of low standard.

It occurred to the buffoon to travel thither, but he had neither
mount nor travelling provisions. His friends all contributed
together and bought him a donkey, on which he set forth.
Three years later I was walking in the market place when I
saw a gentleman with a mounted retinue and horses, mules,
camels and Khitayan slaves upon his right and left. When he
caught sight of me he at once dismounted from his horse, greeted
me warmly and evinced great pleasure at seeing me again, He
insisted upon carrying me off to his house, where, as is the manner
of the courteous and the liberal, he showed me every attention,
placing food and drink before me and dishes of gold and silver ;
while ranged in order around us stood singing-girls, minstrels
and cup-bearers. In this manner he insisted on keeping me with
him all that day, and the second and third days likewise ; and
I did not recognize him until he said, * I am such-and-such a
person, whose entire property was one donkey.* I asked what
had befallen him, saying, ' " 1 saw the fooM : met when art
tbou become wise? 3 " * When I left Rum,* he said, C I went
a-begging on that same donkey to the Emperor of the Face of
the Earth. I had taken with me some dried fruit, and I sat
down upon a hilltop in a place by which he would pass. His
auspicious glance fell upon me from afar, and he sent someone
to inquire into my circumstances. I described the feebleness of
my state, telling how I had come from Rum on account of the
fame of the Emperors bounty and liberality and had set my

57 The Seljuq ruler of Rim or Asia Minor, 'Ala-ad-Din Kai-Qubid X
(1219-36).

229

THE HISTORY OF

face to the road with a hundred thousand privations in order

that the glance of the Emperor, who was the Lord of the Con-
junction, [186] might fall upon my wretched self and my con-
dition might be reversed and my horoscope rendered auspicious.

My father may his soul be filled with light because of me ! >

gave me a wise and famous piece of advice :
Hee from the unfortunate like an arrow and take up thy abode

in the street of the fortunate*

They held the tray of fruit before him and told him what I had
said. He took two or three of the fruits and dropped them in
a sitluq. S8 Perceiving that his attendants inwardly objected to
his action, he turned towards them and said : " This man has
come hither from a distant land. He has passed through many
sacred shrines and holy places and has attended on many great
ones. To seek a blessing from the breathings of such a person
is a profitable action. I therefore dropped the fruit in the suluq
so that I could eat it at any time as dessert with my children
and you might share the remainder among yourselves/' With
that he urged his horse on, and when he reached the ordu, he
took the fruit out of the suliufr counted it carefully over and
turning to Danishmand Hajib asked him where I was lodging.
Danishmand said that he did not know, and the Emperor
upbraided him roundly, saying, " What sort of Moslem art
thou ? A poor man comes to us from a great distance and
thou art negligent of his eating and drinking, his waking and
sleeping. Go this moment in person, seek him out and allot
him an honourable place in thy own house. But in any case
seek him out/* I had taken up lodgings near the market place.
People came running from right and left inquiring after me and
finally one of them found me and bore me off to Danishmand's
house. The next day, when Qa'an had taken his seat, he saw
a wagon-load ofMfsh being brought in to the treasury from the
conquest of a town in Manzi. The number ofbaltib was seven
hundred. Qa'an said to Danishmand Hajib : " Call that per-
son/* When 1 appeared he gave them to me and encouraged

58 A Turkish word meaning * vessel for holding water *.

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me with other promises. And so I received all those and

my affairs from the straits of poverty entered the broad plain of
prosperity.'

And wlm there came to him as a suppliant th lori of

sbeep and camds,
Thou sawest ttm in bts courtyaid the lord of Khwmmq

and Sadir.

[xlvii] A Mongol called Minquli Boke 60 had a flock of sheep.
One night when a cold wind was blowing a wolf feH upon his
flock and destroyed the greater part of it. The next day the
Mongol came to Court and told of the flock and the wolf saying
that a thousand head of his sheep had been lost. Qa'an asked
where the wolf had gone. It so happened that a troupe of
Moslem wrestlers brought in a live wolf with its jaws bound.

* I will buy that wolf from you for a thousand Judisbf said Qa'an*
And to the owner of the sheep he said : * Thou wilt derive
no advantage or benefit from the killing of this animal/ And
he ordered his officers to give the man a thousand head of sheep
and said : * We will release this wolf so that he can inform his
friends of what has happened and they may leave this region/
When they released the wolf the lion-like hounds of the dog-
keepers ran alter it and tore it to pieces. Qa'an was angry and
ordered the dogs to be put to death for killing the wolf. He
entered the orfo in a pensive and melancholic state of mind and
turning to his ministers and courtiers he said : * I set that wolf
free because I felt a weakness in my bowels and I thought that
if I saved a living creature from destruction God Almighty
would grant that I too should be spared. Since the wolf did

59 From a gmJa by Abu-Bakr of Khorazm in praise of Abu-'Ali b. Simjur.
(M.Q.) Khawarnaq and Sadir were the names of two palaces said to have
been built for the Sassanian monarch Bahram Gur (Fitzgerald's 'Bahrain, that
great Hunter *) by the Arab king of Hira, Nu'man b. Mundhir.

60 Reading MYNQWLY BWKA for the SNQWLY BWKA of the text.
The corresponding passage in Rashid-ad-Din (Blochet, 83) has MYNFWLY
BWKH. Minquli appears to be Turkish Ming-Quli, from mng 'thousand*
and qil 'slave'* Boke, which is Mongol and stands in apposition, means

* the Wrestler '. Of. the name of Mongke's youngest full brother, Arigh B6ke,
Arlgh the Wrestler.

THE HISTORY OF

not escape from the dogs, neither perhaps shall I come forth
from this danger.* A few days later he passed away.

Now It is not concealed from the wise and discriminating
that kings are snatched up and carried off by God and that they
receive divine inspiration. And that story is like the one that
is told in the . * .

When Ma'mun sent Tahir b. al-Husain and e Ali b. 'Isa b.
Mahan to Baghdad to make war on his brother Muhammad
Amin/ 1 [188] at the same time Muhammad Amin was saying
to Hammad Rawiya, who was one of his courtiers : * To-day
we shall walk abroad and drink and be merry.* They fetched
a boat and embarked in it. Now Amin had a slave girl called
Qabiha, who had a yellow tooth, and the perfection of her
beauty depended upon that tooth. He took her with him on to
the boat. And he had a goblet made of fiery red rubies and
fashioned in the shape of a vessel, and in his eyes it was worth
all the fair things of this world and all the contents of his treasury.
When the company had become heated with wine and all had
grown merry, Qabiha stood up for some purpose and, her foot
catching in her skirt, she fell upon the goblet and broke it ; and
her teeth striking the boat, the yellow tooth, which was the
apple of Muhammad's eye, was likewise broken. Muhammad
Amin turned to Hammad and said, * It is all over with us/
Hammad, as is the wont of courtiers, uttered a deprecatory
prayer and said, * Far be it from thee ! ' And they began to
argue about it. Suddenly a voice from above cried out, " The
matter if decreed concerning which ye inquire" * 62 * Didst thou
hear ? * said Muhammad Amin to Hammad ; but he turned a
deaf ear. Again Amin heard those words, uttered in a loud
and terrible voice, and he said to Hammad, c There is no longer
any doubt. Arise and see to thy own affairs, for

We shall not meet again till Judgement Day.*

61 The Caliphs Amin (809-13) and Ma'mun (813-33) were sons of the
famous Harun ar-Rashid (786-809). In the civil war between the brothers
'All b. *Isa b. Mahan, as is pointed out by M.Q., was actually the commander
of Amin's forces: he engaged the forces of Ma'mun under Tahir b. al-Husain
at Ray and was slain in battle. 62 Koran, xii, 41.

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

[xlviii] An old man from the neighbourhood of Baghdad
came and sat down In the roadway. When the Emperor passed
by he saw the old man standing in his way, and he had him
summoned before him. * Why art thou standing In the road ? *
asked Qa'an. * I am old and poor,* replied the other, * and I
have ten daughters, and because of my poverty I cannot find
husbands for them/ * Thou art from Baghdad/ said Qa'an,
* Why does not the Caliph give thee something and help thee
to find husbands for thy daughters ? * [189] * Whenever I ask
the Caliph for alms,' said the old man, * he gives me ten dinars
In gold, and I need that amount for my own expenses. 9 Qa'an
gave orders for him to be given a thousand talisb of silver. His
courtiers suggested that a draft should be made on the land of
Khitai, but Qa'an ordered him to be paid in cash from the
treasury. When they brought the Mish from the treasury and
set them before the old man, he said : * How shall I carry all
these balisb fiom hence ? I am old and feeble and can Hfi up
only one laUsb, or two at most/ Qa'an ordered his officers to
give him mounts and bags and the means to take the Misb with
him. But the old man said : * I cannot reach my own country
safely with so many lalisb, and if anything happens to me on
the way my daughters will be deprived of the Emperor's bounty/
Qa'an then ordered that two Mongols should go along to guard
him and the money until they reached friendly (il) country and
should bring him and the bali^ safely through. The Mongols
departed with him but he died upon the way. They informed
the Emperor, who asked : * Did he not indicate his house and
say where his daughters lived ? * They replied that he had done
so. * Then take those bafcb to Baghdad/ said Qa*an, * enter his
house and give them to his daughters. And say, " The Emperor
has sent these lafcb as alms so that husbands may be found for
those daughters/**

[xlix] The daughter of one of his courtiers was being sent to
her husband and a casket of pearls carried by eight persons had
been brought for her dowry. When the casket was borne before
Qa'an he was engaged in carousing. He ordered the lid to be
taken off the casket and distributed all the pearls, the value of

23 3

THE HISTORY OF

which varied between one dinar and two sixths of a dinar, among
those present. It was represented to him that he had bestowed
that casket upon such-and-such a maiden as her dowry. * To-
morrow,* he said, * you shall give her that other casket which is
the fellow of this one/

[i] The ato&eg of Shiraz, 63 sent his brother Tahamtan to
Qa*an and among [190] the presents he brought were two
carboys filled with pearls, which are held in high esteem amongst
them in accordance with the saying, 'Every party rgoicetk in
wlwt it bath.' When this was represented to Qa'an and he
learnt that these gems were of value in the eyes of him that
brought them, he ordered his attendants to bring in a long
casket filled with royal pearls. The envoy and all present were
dumbstruck at the sight. Qa'an gave orders for the cup that
was being passed round in that banquet to be filled with these
pearls ; and they were thus all distributed among those present.

When thou bringest a drop of water to the deep sea,
this judgement resembles madness.

We have described something of that which the Necessarily
Existent caused to be present in his nature in the way of clemency,
forgiveness, justice, generosity and the teachings of the religion
of God ; and this we have done that it may be known that in
every age there is a Lord of the Conjunction, such as in former
times were Hatim and Nushirvan and others, and their fame
will shine forth like the fountain of the sun until the end of time,
and tales and traditions will be told and recorded of them.
' And in every age there is a Sodom and a *Jandab! u And had
we treated this subject exhaustively it would have led to pro-
lixity ; we have therefore limited ourselves to this brief summary.
And we shall tell one story of his violence, fury, severity and
awesomeness, so that it may be known not only how his kindness
and bounty would flow but how his vengeance and rigour
would chasten.

63 This was Abu-Bakr (1226-60), the patron of the poet Sa'di.
64 |NDB. This word defeated M.Q. The whole phrase is clearly some
kind of proverbial saying.

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

He bad a day of hrdsMp on which there mere
for mankind, and a day of tax on which wen
Uesswgs for mankind.

On the day of generosity there rained dew from Ms kinds,
and on tht day of seventy thre rained Mood from Ms

Among the tribe of * . ., 66 who was the commander of a
thousand, a rumour sprang up that [191] it had been decreed
that the daughters of that tribe should be affianced to certain
persons. Being frightened by this news they affianced most of
their daughters to husbands within the tribe and some they
actually delivered up to them. Tidings hereof spread from
mouth to mouth and reached the ear of the Emperor. He
appointed a group of emirs to go thither and investigate the
matter. When the truth of the report had been established, he
gave orders that all the girls over seven years old should be
gathered together and that all who had been given that year to
husbands taken back from them. Four thousand starlike
maidens, each of whom affected men's hearts in a different way,
were thus assembled.

When her beauty removes the veil from its face, the moon
of f O for shame ! ' is overcast.

And first he ordered those who were daughters of emirs to be
separated from the rest; and all who were present were com-
manded to have intercourse with them. And two moonlike
damsels from amongst them expired. As for the remaining
chaste ones, he had them drawn up in rows in front of the &r$u,
and such as were worthy thereof were dispatched to the harem,
while some were given to the keepers of cheetahs and wild beasts
and others to the various attendants at the Court, and others
again were sent to the brothel and the hostel of the envoys to
wait upon travellers. As for those that still remained it was
decreed that all present, whether Mongols or Moslems, might

65 Husain al-Mutayyar al-Asadi. (M.Q.)

66 There is a blank in A and B. D has ' the Oirat *, which does not make
sense in the context, though according to Rashid-ad-Din's version of the anecdote
(Blochet, 84) the tribe in question were in fact the Oirat.

235

THE HISTORY OF

carry them off. And their fathers, brothers, relatives, kinsmen
and husbands looked on and were unable to breathe or move
their tongues. And this is an absolute proof of his rigid enforce-
ment of his orders and of the obedience of his army.

[XXXIII]

OF THE HOUSES AND DWELLING-PLACES OF QA*AN

AFTER the Hatim of the Age and the Ruler of the World had
been established on the throne of kingship and, his mind set at
rest regarding the campaign against Khitai, had proceeded in
triumph to the great ordu of his father, [192] he bestowed his
own place of residence, which was in the region of the Emil,
upon his son Giiyiik, choosing for his [new] residence and the
capital of the kingdom a place in the region of the river Orqon
and the Qara-Qorum mountains. There had previously been no
town or village in that place except for the remains of a wall
called Ordu-BaHgL At the time of his accession a stone was
found outside the ruins of the fortress on which there was an
inscription stating that the founder of that place was Buqu Khan.
(This matter has been described in detail in the chapter on the
land of the Uighur. 1 ) The Mongols named it Ma'u-BaKgh, 2
and Qa'an caused a town to be built on it, which they called
Ordu-Baligh, though it is better known as Qara-Qorum.
Hither artisans of every kind were brought from Khitai, and
likewise craftsmen from the lands of Islam ; and they began to
till the ground. And because of QaWs great bounty and
munificence people turned their faces thitherward from every
side, and in a short space of time it became a city.

Above the town a garden was built for Qa'an with four gates,
one for the passage of the World-Ruling Emperor, another for
his children and kinsmen, another again for the princesses, and
a fourth for the entrance and egress of the populace. And in

1 See above, Chapter VII.

2 Le. * Bad Town ', the name given by the Mongols to Bamiyan. See above,
p. 133.

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the midst of that garden Khitayan artisans reared op a castle
with doors like the gates of the garden ; and inside it a throne
having three flights of steps, one for Qa*an alone, another for
his ladies and a third for the cupbearers and table-deckers ; and
on the right and left houses for his brothers and sons and the
turqaq, [the walls of these houses bong] painted with pictures.
And in the quarters of the cupbearers they placed vats which
could not be moved because of their weight and other utensils
in like proportion, besides [193] elephants, camels, horses and
their attendants in appropriate numbers, so that when a public
feast was held they might lift up the various beverages. And
all the utensils were of gold and silver and studded with jewels.
Twice in the year would Qa'an alight in this pleasant abode.
Whenever the sun entered the sign of Aries, and the world was
glad, and the face of the earth, because of the weeping of the
clouds, smiled and shone forth through the mouths of the flowers,
he would feast for a month in this residence Venus-like in the
manner of the sun; and as the bounty of the rain reaches both
herbs and trees, so both great and small took part in the feasting,
and Poverty took flight from that assembly.

The slowness of the rain in reaching then M not hurt the
peopk of the frontier seeing that among them was YMSI/
the son of Muhammad.

And when the beauty of spring had reached its culmination
and the herbs had grown to their full height, he would betake
himself to another pleasance which had been raised up by Moslem
engineers to despite the Khitayans and was called Qarshi-Suri.
It was a very tall castle filled with all kinds of many-coloured,
jewel-studded embroideries and carpets. In the entrance was
placed a throne full worthy of the place, and in the banqueting-
hall were jasper vases, and ewers studded with pearls, and other
utensils in keeping with them. Here he would feast for forty
days. And in front of the castle there were pools of water
(which they call kil),* wherein many water fowls used to gather.
And he would watch the hunting of these birds and afterwards

3 k&l is the normal Turkish word for ' lake '.

THE HISTORY OF

would give himself up to the joys of drinking and spread the
carpet of bounty, which was never rolled up. And every day
[194] without cease he dispensed his bounty to all and sundry
as long as he abode in that place ; and as for conviviality and
constant application to pleasure it was as though he had hearkened
with the ear of acceptance to the advice of Quhistani : 4

this world, for its seasons are transitory, mi the

life of a ywng man (my tbou have the joy thereof! )

ksteih at most for a moment
And hasten to take an aiundant share of pleasure, for a share

that has passed will not return nor can it he confined.
And spend the time of good fellowship in good fellowship, and

fa awafa to thy pleasure, for there is no pleasure to him

that skepeth,
And do not preoccupy thyself to-day with the cares of to-morrow,

te Ud adieu to the tale of to-morrow, for to concern thyself

therewith is folly.
The spirit is Ifke a lamp, and wine is its oil, so he off

with tbeetbis is advice to he accepted.
I shatt tell tbee of myself and what I have experienced,

not traditions handed down from Anas through

And when the life of spring had reached its maturity and the
day thereof its decline, he would return to his summer residence.
And since the garden and palace in the town lay upon his way,
he would reside there for several days in his wonted manner
carrying out the commandments of God (amr-i-ma*ruf) and would
thence move on towards his destination. And when he left
there he would go to a small palace which he had built on a
hilltop three miles from the town, through which he also passed
in returning from his winter residence. On both occasions he
would amuse himself for four or five weeks in this spot, and
offerings of food would be brought out to him from the town.
And from thence in the summer he would go into the mountains,
where there would be erected for him a Khitayan pavilion,
whose walls were made of latticed wood, while its ceiling was

4 I.e. Abu-Bakr 'AH b. al-Hasan al-Quhistani of Ghazna, a contemporary
of Sultan Mahmud, (M.Q.)

5 Anas b. Malik was a Companion of the Prophet and one of the most prolific
of the traditionists. Qatada, who died in 117/735-6, was another traditibnist

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

of gold-embroidered cloth, and it was covered all over with
white felt: this place is called Shira-Ordu. 6 In these parts
there are cool waters and much grass. Here he would remain
until the sun entered Virgo and there was a fall of snow. And
here [195] his bounty would flow more freely than in his other
pleasances. And departing from hence he would arrive at his
winter residence by the end of autumn, which is the beginning
of their winter. There he would make merry for three months,
and during these months his generosity and munificence were
under some restraint and did not flow so freely. There too were
fulfilled these verses of double meaning :

Between MS and the rose bos passed <* long-lasting
coU as though /pod omens bad ken MSdm in ill

The spring and its kanty have ken veiled wtb mw just
as peacock chicks are concealed in wUte eggs. 1 *

And praise be to God Almighty, these dwelling-places are
to-day adorned by the blessed footsteps of that mighty king and
glorious emperor, the Nushirvan of the Age, Mengii Qa'an,
from the shadow of whose statesmanship and justice the world
is made resplendent and every place in every cHme turned into
a rose-garden. May God Almighty grant him endless years of
life, his justice ever increasing and his word ever obeyed, and
strengthen through him the hand of the True Faith !

[XXXIV]

OF^TOREGENE 1 KHATUN

WHEN the decree of God Almighty had been executed and
the Monarch of the World, the Hatim of the Age, Qa'an, had

6 Reading Sym ARDW with E. The tm has SYR ARDW and Rashid-
ad-Din (Blochet, 49) SRH ARDW, i.e. apparently Sira-Ordu. It is the Sira-
Orda of Carpini and the Syra-Orda of Benedict the Pole, who has left a detailed
description of it. See Rockhill, 38. ,

7 Abu-Mansur Qasim b. Ibrahim al-Qa'ki, whose kaab was Buzurjmihr.
He was a poet at the court of Sultan Mahmud. (M.Q.)

iTWRAKYNA. The Doregene of the Secret History. According to
Rashid-ad-Din (Blochet, 3) she belonged to the Uhaz-Merkit and had or had

THE HISTORY OF

passed away, Giiyiik, his eldest son, had not returned 2 from the
campaign against the Qifchaq, and therefore in accordance with
precedent the dispatch of orders and the assembling of the people
took place at the door of the ordu or palace of his wife, Moge
Khatun, who, in accordance with the Mongol custom, had
come to him from his father, Chingiz-Khan. But since
Toregene Khatun was the mother of his eldest sons [196] and
was moreover shrewder and more sagacious than Moge Khatun,
she sent messages to the princes, i.e. the brothers and nephews
of Qa*an, and told them of what had happened and of the death
of Qa'an, and said that until a Khan was appointed by agreement
someone would have to be ruler and leader in order that the
business of the state might not be neglected nor the affairs of the
commonweal thrown into confusion; in order, too, that the
army and the court might be kept under control and the interests
of the people protected*

Chaghatai and the other princes sent representatives to say that
Toregene Khatun was the mother of the princes who had a
right to the Khanate; therefore, until a quriltai was held, it was
she that should direct the affairs of the state, and the old
ministers should remain in the service of the Court, so that
the old and new yasas might not be changed from what was
the law.

Now Toregene Khatun was a very shrewd and capable
woman, and her position was greatly strengthened by this unity
and concord. And when Moge Khatun shortly followed in
the wake of Qa'an, by means of finesse and cunning she obtained
control of all affairs of state and won over the hearts of her
relatives by all kind of favours and kindnesses and by the sending
of gifts and presents. And for the most part strangers and

not been the wife of Dayk-t)siin, the ruler of that tribe. In the chapter on
the Merkit (Khetagurov, 110") she is also stated to have been the wife of Dayir-
XJsiin. On the other hand, according to the Secret History, 198, her first hus-
band had been Qodu, the eldest son of Toqto'a, the ruler of the Uduyit-Merkit.
According to the Yum sbib (quoted by Pelliot, Les Mongols et k Papautt, [193])
she was not a Merkit but a Naiman.

2 Reading nuzul w-karda with E for the nuzul karda of the text. The correspond-
ing passage in Rashid-ad-Din (Blochet, 232) has furti w-y-amda.

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

kindred, family and army inclined towards her, and submitted
themselves obediently and gladly to her commands and prohibi-
tions, and came under her sway. The Prophet of God (may God
Mess him and give Um peace !) bath said : ' Hearts wire firmed to lorn
them that use them well and to hate them that me them ill! And all
manner of men bent their steps towards her ; while Cfainqai 3
and the other ministers of Qa'an continued to perform their
duties as before, and the governors on every side remained
at their posts.

Now during the lifetime of Qa'an there had accumulated in
her breast a feeling of hatred towards certain of the courtiers,
and the wound had grown deep. When she was entrusted
with affairs of state, and her position had grown strong, and
none dared quarrel or dispute with her, she determined to act
at once, and without losing time [197] or missing an opportunity,
in accordance with the hemistich :

Make baste, for dm Is a trendmt

to seek relief from her pain by avenging herself on each of these
persons. She accordingly sent messengers to Khitai to fetch the
Minister Yalavach and also tried to lay hands on the Emir
Chinqai. Chinqai, however, with the discernment of under-
standing perceived that she had something else in mind ; and
before her plan could be realized he set his face to the road and
went his own way. And hastening to Koten, 5 her son, he
sought his protection and so saved his life by running away. As
for Yalavach, when the messengers reached him, he welcomed
them with marks of respect and honour. And every day he
showed them fresh attentions and civilities so that in this way
two or three days passed by. And all this time he was secretly
preparing the means of flight by getting together horses etc. At
last on the third night, which in fact was the day of his fortune,

3 Reading CYNQAY for the JYNQAY of the text. He Is Carpmfs
'Chingay the prothonotary '. For an account of his career and his origins
see Waley, Travels of an Alchemist, 34-8.

4 From a qisifa by Abu-Ishaq al~GhazzL (M.Q.)

S KWTAN. He is called K'ucKuan, i.e. Kodon, in the Ymt rMk See
Hambis, Le <%te CWZ, 71.

241

THE HISTORY OF

be put the messengers to sleep @ and departed to Koten together
with a few horsemen, and so escaped from their hands.

Ami I refytmd to Fabm though I bed not expected to return
ml b&w ofim have I escaped from the like of tbem f while
ibq wMstkd \impQtently\ I 7

And when both notables reached Koten, and sought refuge
with him, and made his threshold their asylum, they were
embraced with his favour. Toregene Khatun sent a messenger
to demand their return, and Koten replied : * The kite that takes
refuge in a thicket from the talons of the falcon is safe from its
fury. 8 These too have sought sanctuary with us and touched
the skirt of our authority. To send them back is forbidden by
the code of magnanimity and humanity and is remote from the
practice of generosity and liberality : I should find excuse with
neither far nor near, [198] neither Turk nor TaziL A quriltd
is shortly to be held : let their crimes and offences be brought
to the attention of the family and the emirs, and let them receive
whatever punishment they deserve.* She sent messengers several
times again, and Koten excused himself in the same manner.
When she realized that their return was impossible and that he
would in no wise send them back, she endeavoured to persuade
the Emir *Ima<i-al-Mulk Muhammad of Khotan, who had been
one of the ministers of Qa'an, to turn to account the intimate
terms on which he had been with them in former times by
making a statement regarding them and fabricating some false-
hood so that by that pretext she might cast a stumbling-block
in their path and on that excuse they might be punished at the
great quriltai. But since loyalty and generosity, which are amongst
the most essential and the most beautiful of the characteristics of

6 By making them drunk. The story is told in greater detail in Rashid-ad-
Din (Blochet, 233-4).

7 Ta'abbata Sharran. (M.QO

8 Barthold, Turkestan, 41, n. 3, quotes this passage as an indication of JuvainTs
use of Mongol sources, die same image being employed by the sons of Sorqan
Shira in reproaching their father for his harsh words towards the fugitive Temiijin.
See the Secret History, 85 : * If a tuwmtai [the name of a small bird of prey, per-
haps the Merlin] causes a little bird to take refuge in a bush, the bush saves the
little bird/ See Mostaert, Sur qttetytts passages de I'Histoire secrete des Mongols, 3 13.

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the great and are as non-existent in this present age as the f

or the philosophers* stone, had gained mastery of his being, he
refused to consent to the shame and disgrace of slander and
calumny and made his body the prisoner of free will until God
Almighty, because of his pure faith, delivered him from that
frightful gulf and the like thereof, and at the Court of Guyuk
Khan he enjoyed even greater authority than in the previous
reign.

And when the Emir Mas'ud Beg observed this state of affairs
he too thought it inadvisable to remain in his own territory and
saw fit to hasten to the Court of Batu.

And Qara Oghul 10 and the wives of Chaghatai sent Qur-
bagha 11 Elchi together with the Emir [199] Arghun 12 to seize
Korguz. 13

And at that time there was a woman called Fatima, who had
acquired great influence in the service of Toregene Khatun and
to whose counsel and capability were entrusted all affairs of state.
She exalted *Abdar-Rahman and sent him to Khitai in place
of Mahmud. An account of this woman will be given separately
in a subsequent chapter. 14

And when Emir Arghun brought Korgiiz to Toregeae
Khatun she imprisoned him because of an ancient grudge and
sent the Emir Arghun to Khorasan in his stead.

And everyone sent ambassadors in every direction and broad-
cast drafts and assignments ; and upon every side they attached
themselves to parties and followed their instructions all save

9 The name of a fabulous bird which appears in the Sbabwm as the foster-
parent of Rustain's father ZaL

10 I.e. Prince Qara. On Qara or Qara-Hiilegu, the grandson and first
successor of Chaghatai, see below, pp. 273-4.

11 Reading QWRBQA for the QWRBQAY of the text, which elsewhere
has QRBQA (II, 230 and 239) and QWRBIA (II, 243). Rashid-ad-Din
(Blochet, 57) has QWR BWQA, which would appear to be a compound
name with faga 'bull* as the second element. I have however taken the
QWRBQA or QWRBFA of Juvaini as standing for the Turkish
'frog'.

12 On Arghun see below, H, Chapters XXX and XXXL

13 On Korgiiz see below, II, Chapter XXVTIL

14 Chapter XXXV.

T 243

THE HISTORY OF

Sorqotanl Beki and her sons, who did not swerve one hair's
breath from the yasa and law of their ordinances.

As for Toregene Khatun she dispatched ambassadors to the
East and the West of the world and to the North and Sooth
thereof to summon the sultans and emirs, the grandees and
governors, and to bid them to the quriltaL

Meanwhile Giiyiik had not yet returned and his place seemed
empty. In accordance with the saying, f He that is strong taketh,
and the strength of the free man is in his abstinence ', Otegin thought
to seize the Khanate by force and violence. With this intention
he set out for the orfa of Qa'an. When he drew near, Mengli
Oghul, 15 a grandson [of Chingiz-khan], approached him with
his retinue and troops and made him repent of his design. He
made use of the pretence that he was mourning some disaster
and excused himself in this manner. In the meantime there came
tidings of the arrival [zoo] of Giiyiik at his orfa, which lies on
the bank of the Emil ; whereupon his repentance increased.

And when Giiyiik came to his mother, he took no part in
affairs of state, and Toregene Khatun still executed the decrees
of the Empire although the Khanate was settled upon her son.
But when two or three months had passed and the son was
somewhat estranged from his mother on account of Fatima, the
decree of God the Mighty and Glorious was fulfilled and
Toregene passed away.

[XXXV]

OF FATIMA KHATUN

AT the time of the capture of the place in which there lies the
Holy Shrine x of *Ali ar-Riza (upon whom he the most excellent
of blessings and benedictions !) 9 she was carried off into captivity.
It so chanced that she came to Qara-Qorum, where she was a

15 Le. Prince Mengli (MNKLY). This is apparently Melik (see below,
ii, 573, and n. 73), a son of Ogedei, who appears in the Yuan rbih both as Mie-li
(MeH[k]) and Ming-li (*MingHpcj). See Hambis, op. at, 72, n. 7.

1 Le. the. modem Meshed.

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

procuress in the market ; and in the arts of shrewdness and
cunning the wily Delilah could have been her pupil. During
the reign of Qa'an she had constant access to the or At of Toregene
Khatun ; and when times changed and Chinqai withdrew from
the scene, she enjoyed even greater favour* and ha influence
became paramount ; so that she became the sharer of intimate
confidences and the depository of hidden secrets, and the ministers
were debarred from executing business, and she was free to issue
commands and prohibitions. And from every side the grandees
sought her protection, especially the grandees of Kbozasan.
And there also came to her certain of the sayyi&s of the Holy
Shrine, for she claimed to be of the race of the great sayyils.

When Giiyiik succeeded to the Khanate, a certain native of
Samarqand, who was said to be an e AHd, 2 one Shira, the cup-
bearer of Qadaq, 3 hinted that Fatima had bewitched Koten,
[201] which was why he was so indisposed. When Koten
returned, the malady from which he was suffering grew worse,
and he sent a messenger to his brother Giiyiik to say that he
had been attacked by that illness because of Fatiina's magic and
that if anything happened to him Giiyiik should seek retribution
from her. Following oil this message there came tidings of
Koten's death. Chinqai, who was now a person of authority,
reminded Giiyiik of the message, and he sent an envoy to his
mother to fetch Fatima. His mother refused to let her go saying
that she would bring her herself. He sent again several times,
and each time she refused him in a different way. As a result
his relations with his mother became very bad, and he sent the
man from Samarqand 4 with instructions to bring Fatima by
force if his mother should still delay in sending her or find some
reason for refusing. It being no longer possible to excuse herself
she agreed to send Fatima; and shortly afterwards she passed
away. Fatima was brought face to face with Giiyiik, and was
kept naked, and in bonds, and hungry and thirsty ifor many days
and nights; she was plied with all manner of violence, severity,

2 Le. a descendant of the Caliph *AIi.

8 On Qadaq see below, p. 259 and n. 37*

4 The text has Smarqmt, i.e. apparently Samarqanli.

^45

THE HISTORY OF

harshness and intimidation; and at last she confessed to the
calumny of a slanderous talebearer and avowed her falseness.
Her upper and lower orifices were sewn up, and she was rolled
up in a sheet of felt and thrown into the river.

One thou raisest op and givest him a kingdom, and then
thou castest him into the sea to the fishes. 5

And everyone that was connected with her perished also.
And messengers were sent to fetch certain persons who had come
from the Shrine and claimed to be related to her; and they
suffered many annoyances.

This was the year in which Giiyiik Khan went to join his
father, [202] and it was then that e Ali Khoja of Emil 6 accused
Shira of the same crime, namely of bewitching Khoja. He was
cast into bonds and chains and remained imprisoned for nearly
two years, during which time by reason of all manner of question-
ing and punishment he despaired of the pleasure of life. And
when he recognized and knew of a certainty that this was the
punishment of e Here is our money returned to us? 7 he resigned
himself to death and surrendering his body to the will of Fate
and Destiny confessed to a crime which he had not committed.
He too was cast into the river, and his wives and children were
put to the sword.

He slew his grandfather, and he himself did not remain
here, nor did the world read his prockmation. 8

When in that same year, in a happy and auspicious hour, the
Khanate had been settled upon Mengii Qa'an, he set * Biirilgitei 9
over the region of Besh-Baligh. And when Khoja was brought
to the Qa*an, a messenger was sent to *AK Khoja, who was one
of his courtiers. Some other person brought the same accusation

5 Sbabnama ed. Vullers, 1003, 1. 734.

6 I.e. the town of Emil named after the river : Carpini's Omyl.

7 Koran, xit, 65. 8 Sbabwma ed. Vullers, 1277, 1. 99.

9 The text has here BRNKWTAY and elsewhere (IE, 53 and 57)
BRNKWTAY, for which I read BRLKTAY in view of the spelling of
his name in the Yuan sbib f viz. Pu-lin-chi-tai (BikHgidei). Professor Cleaves, in
a letter dated the 5th December, 1954, w^ g<* enough to supply me with trans-
lations of the two passages Yto M, 3 (&V 2), 205-6 and 8ai-2 in which this

246

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

against him, and Mengii-Qa 9 an ordered him to be beaten from
the left and the right until all his Hmbs were crushed ; and so
he died. And his wives and children were cast into the baseness
of slavery and disgraced and humiliated.

Approve not for another what thou approves! not for thy$el

And the voice of Destiny cried out saying, * Thy
while thy mouth was Homing!

If It be silk, thou hast woven it thyself^ and if it is a
load of thorns, thou hast sown them

And the Lord of the Prophets (upon whom h the most excellent of
blessings and peace !) hath truly said : e Thou twst skin and sbalt le
slain ; and thy slayer shall fa slain! And it was said of old :

There is no band Ifut the band of God is above it f and tbert
is no tyrant who is not tormented by a greater tyrant,

[203] And it is not hidden from the wise and intelligent man,
who looks at these matters in the light of understanding and
reflects and ponders upon them, that the end of treachery and
the conclusion of deceit, which spring from evil ways and wicked
pretensions, is shameful and the termination thereof unlucky.
And fortunate is he that can take warning from another:
** ^ e that is advised ly what lefalletb others.'

And bad tbey known what iniquity brings upon tbm tbot
practise it, [it bad been well] but tbey looked not
to tbe consequences .^

God preserve us from the like positions and from trespassing into $x
region of deliberate offences !

commander is mentioned. The first reference is sub anno 1251 : * The princes
[of the blood] Yeh-su Mang-k'o (Yesii Mongke), Pu-li (Biiri), Hou-che (Qoja)
and others not having arrived [even] after the appointed time, Pu-lin-chi-tai
(Biirilgidei) was dispatched to deploy (lit. "lead") troops to prepare against
diem.' The second reference, sub anno 1257, runs as follows : c The army of
the marshal Pu-Un-chi-tai (Biirilgidei) [went forth] from Teng-chou and occu-
pied the region and crossed the Han-chiang.* In a subsequent letter, dated the
4th February, 1955, Professor Cleaves suggests that Biidgidei is a derivative
of the Mongol word bmlgl and means * Dissipator ' or * Destroyer *.

10 Sbabnama ed. Vullers, 122, 1. 1042.

11 From a qasida by Abu-Ishaq al-Ghazzi, (M.Q.)

247

THE HISTORY OF

[XXXVI]

OF THE ACCESSION OF GUYUK KHAN
TO THE THRONE OF THE KHANATE

IN the year in which Qa'an was to bid farewell to the comforts
of this life and to forswear the pleasures of this vile world, he
had sent for Giiyuk, bidding him turn the reins of homecoming
and direct his will and desire towards hurrying to his presence.
In compliance with this command Giiyiik pressed the spurs of
haste and loosened the bridle of speed ; but when the time was
at hand when the touch of plague that arises from length of
distance was to have been expelled by closeness of propinquity
and the veil of absence and exile removed, Fate's inevitable
decree was carried out, and no respite was given for those thirsting
in the desert of separation to quench their thirst with a drop of
the limpid water of reunion or for father and son to anoint their
eyes with the collyrium of each other's beauty. When Giiyuk
received tidings of that irremediable calamity he saw fit to make
still greater haste, and grief for what had happened did not suffer
him to halt until he reached the EmiL Neither did he tarry
here, for there was a report of the coining of Otegin, but pro-
ceeded to his father's oriu : and the hopes of the ambitious were
dashed by his arrival. And in that neighbourhood he took up
his abode.

| State business was still entrusted to the counsel of his mother,
Toregene Khatun, and the binding and loosening of affairs was
in her hands, and Giiyiik did not intervene therein to enforce
yasa or [204] custom nor did he dispute with her about these
matters.

And when messengers were dispatched to far and near to bid
princes and noyans and summon sultans and kings and scribes,
everyone left his home and country in obedience to the command.
And when the world, because of the coming of spring, had set
the foot of beauty upon the head of the stars and drawn the pen
of oblivion through the Garden of Iram ; and the earth, because
of the arrival of Farvardin and her auxiliary plants, had donned

248

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

a covering of every manner of flower ; and the springtime, in
thanksgiving for this wondrous bounty, had with blossoms made
its whole body a mouth and with lilies converted all Its limbs
into tongues ; and ring-doves dallied with turtles, and melodious
nightingales together with the lark composed this glmzttl in
mid air:

The host of Spring have pitched their tents out on the plain
thou too must pitch thy tent out on the plain,

Drink wine from mom til eve and gather roses from dusk till
dawn

then it was that the princes arrived, each with his horsemen
and servants, his army and retinue. The eyes of mankind were
dazzled by their accoutrement, and the fountain of their enemies*
delight was troubled by the harmony that reigned among them all.
Sorqotani Beki and her sons arrived first with such gear and
equipage as e eye bath not seen nor ear beard \ And from the East
there came Koten with his sons; Otegin and his children;
Elchitei ; and the other uncles and nephews that reside in that
region. From the ordu of Chaghatai came Qara, Yesii, 1 [205]
Biiri, 2 Baidar, 3 Yesiin-Toqa 4 and the other grandsons and great-
grandsons. From the country of Saqsin and Bulghar, since
Batu did not come in person, he sent his elder brother Hordu
and his younger brothers Siban, Berke, Berkecher and Toqa-
Teimir. And distinguished noyans and leading emirs, who had
connections with one or other party, came in attendance on the
princes. From Khitai there came emirs and officials ; and from
Transoxiana and Turkestan the Emir Mas'ud accompanied by
the grandees of that region. With the Emir Arghun there came

1 YS W. Yesii, Yesu-Mengii or Yesii-Mongke was the fifth son of Chaghatai.

2 BWRY. The second son of Metiken or Mo'etiiken.

8 BAYDAR. The sixth son of Chaghatai.

4 Reading YSNTWQH for the YSNBWQfl of the text. Rashid-ad-Din
usually has variants of this form but in one place (Blochet, 166) YYSWTWA
or YYSWNTWA, ie. Yesun-To'a. Pelliot, Honk ffOr, 88-92, equates the
name with the Yesiinte'e or Yesiinto'e of the Secret History, but the forms in
Juvaini and Rashid-ad-Din seem rather to support the etymology proposed
by Blochet, 242n, viz. yesim-togha * the number nine *, fiom the Mongol yesun
f nine* and togba {to* a) 'number'. Yesiin-Toqa or Yesiin-To*a was the third
son of Metiken.

249

THE HISTORY OF

the celebrities and notables of Khorasan, Iraq, Lur, Azerbaijan
and Shirvan. From Rum came Sultan Rukn-ad-Din 5 and the
Sultan of Takavor ;* from Georgia, the two Davids ; 7 &om
Aleppo, the brother of the Lord of Aleppo ; 8 from Mosul, the
envoy of Sultan Badr-ad-Din LuluV and from the City of
Peace, Baghdad, the chief cadi Fakhr-ad-Din. There also came
the Sultan of Erzeram, 10 envoys fiom the Franks, 11 and from
Kerman and Fars also ; and from 'Ala-ad-Din 12 of Alamut,
his governors (muhtasbam) in Quhistan, Shihab-ad-Din and
Shams-ad-Din.

And all this great assembly came with such baggage as befitted
such a court ; and there came also from other directions so many
envoys and messengers that two [206] thousand felt tents had
been made ready for them : there came also merchants with the
rare and precious things that are produced in the East and the
West

When this assembly, which was such as no man had ever
seen nor has the Hke thereof been read of in the annals of history,

5 Oaij-Arskn IV (1257-65).

$ TAKWR. As M.Q. has shown, III, 484-90, this is the Armenian word
fqgttwr * king * mistakenly applied by Juvaini, not to the ruler of Cilicia or Little
Armenia, bat to the country itself. Here, however, is meant not King Het'um I
himself but his brother the Constable Sempad (Smbat).

7 Le. David IV, the son of Queen Rusudani, and David V, the illegitimate
son of her brother King GiorgL See Allen, A History of the Georgian People,
113-14-

8 This was th Ayyubid Nasir Salah-ad~Dui Yusuf, the ruler of Aleppo
(1236-60) and Damascus (1250-60).

9 The Zangid atakg of Mosul (1233-59).

10 This is an anachronism, and it is significant that Rashid-ad-Din, who in
this part of his history (Blochet, 242) follows Juvaini almost word for word,
has omitted the reference to 'the Sultan of Erzeram*. Rukn-ad-Din Jahan-
Shah, the Seljuq ruler of Erzeram, had been deposed and executed after the
defeat of Jalal-ad-Din Khora2m-Shah by the allied forces of Rum and Syria
(1230) ; and his territory had then been incorporated in the kingdom of his
cousin * Ak-ad-Din Kai-Qubad L

11 This would appear to be a reference to the mission of John de Piano
Carpini

12 Marco Polo*s * Old Man of the Mountain, Alaodin by name ', i.e. Muham-
mad HI, die Grand Master of the Isma'ilis or Assassins (1221-55), on whom
see below, ii, 703-12, also Hodgson, The Order of Atsassm, 256-8.

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

was gathered together, the broad plain was straitened and in
the neighbourhood of the orfa there remained no place to alight
in, and nowhere was it possible to dismount.

Because of the many tents, and men, and pavilions there
remained no level place on the plain. 1S

There was also a great dearth of food and drink, and no fodder
was left for the mounts and beasts of burden.

The leading princes were all agreed as to committing the
affairs of the Khanate and entrusting the keys of the Empire to
one of the sons of Qa*an. Koten aspired to this honour because
his grandfather had once made a reference to him. Others ware
of the opinion that Siremiin, 14 when he came of age, might be
a suitable person to charge with the affairs of the Kingdom. But
of all the sons of Qa'an Giiyiik was most renowned for his
might, and ruthlessness, and intrepidity, and dominion ; he was
the eldest of the brothers and had had most practice in the
handling of difficult matters and most experience of weal and
woe. Koten, on the other hand, was somewhat sickly, and
Siremiin was but a child. Moreover, Toregene Khatun favoured
Giiyiik, and Beki and her sons were at one with her in this,
and most of the noyans were in accord with them in this matter.
It was therefore agreed that the Khanate should be setded upon
Giiyiik and that he should ascend the throne of the Kingdom.
Giiyiik, as is the custom, for some time rejected the honour and
recommended instead now this person, now that. Finally on a
day chosen by the practitioners of the science of the qam all [207]
the princes gathered together and took off their hats and loosened
their belts. And [Yesii] 15 taking one hand and Hordu the

1S Shabnam ed. Vullers, 474, 1. 652.

14 SYRAMWN. The older pronunciation of the name. Cf. the Siramun
of Grigor and the Chinese transcription Hsi-lieh-men. The later pronunciation
(Shirermin) is represented by the Chirenen of Carpini, the SYRAMWN of
Rashid-ad-Din and the Chinese transcription Shih-lieh-men. See Cleaves,
The Mongolian Names, 426-7. The name appears to be the Turco-Mongolian
form of Solomon. See PeUiot, Les Mongols et la Papautf, [2os]-[204], n. 4,
or Cleaves, loc. dt, where Pelliot's note is quoted in full. Siremiin or Shiremun
was the eldest son of Ogedei's second son, Kochii.

15 There is a blank in the text as in A and B, but E has NYSW, Le. YYSW.

251

THE HISTORY OF

other they set him on the throne of Dominion and the cushion
of Kingship and seized their goblets ; and the people that were
present inside and outside the audience-hall knelt down three
times s$ and called him * Giiyiik Khan *. And in accordance
with their custom they gave declarations in writing that they
would not change his word or command, and uttered prayers
for his welfare ; after which they went out of the hall and knelt
three rimes to the sun. And when he reposed again upon the
throne of greatness, the princes sat on chairs on his right and the
princesses on his left, each in exceeding grace like a precious
peari And in the place of cupbearers was every youth of
graceful mien, and violet cheeks, and rosy complexion, and
sable locks, and cypress form, and blossorn-like mouth, and
pearly teeth, and happy aspect.

And had It ken in the agt of Joseph, the hearts of men
woM have hen cut, not the hands of women. 1 ' 7

Sweethearts such that if recluses behold their fair faces
they snatch them to their bosom with a blessing.

They girded up their loins and at the beginning of that day
passed round in succession cups ofqumiz and every kind of wine.

When the Miles dance around the Mm thou seest
pearls In red caskets.

Venus the Fair, gazing upon that pleasant assembly, was but a
spectator upon the roof of the green cupola ; and the Moon and
Jupiter, for wonder at the peri-like sun-faced ones, were grief-
stricken and sat in the midst of ashes. And the minstrels,
Barbad-like, 18 opened their lips in song before the Chosroes of
the World, and all others were tongue-tied for awe and dread.
And in this manner rill midnight [208] of that day the wine
cups were filled to the brim, and the princes in the presence of
the peerless King

16 C above, p. 187, D has 'nine times'.

17 The reference is to a well-known episode in the Joseph saga. The Egyptian
ladies, guests of Zulaikha (Potiphar's wife), unable to take their eyes off the
handsome young man-servant, cut their hands with the knives provided for
peeling their oranges.

18 Barbad was a famous court minstrel in Sassanian times.

252

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

To the tune of the strings and the melody of the flute,
with jessamine-cheeked beauties at the feet of the Chostoes,

Drank wine til! midnight, and the minstrels opened their
lips in song. 19

When they had grown drank, after uniting in praising and
belauding the Monarch of the Face of the Earth, they departed
to their sleeping quarters ; and on the next day, when the bright-
faced Chosroes lifted the pitchy veil from his shining countenance
and the patrolman, Dawn, left the Turk, Night, weltering in
his blood

Until Dam pitched far tent and Darkness Jepartel trmlmg
the hem <?f her cloak

the princes, noyans and common people

Came strutting to the King's court, open-hearted and
well-wishing they came. 20

And when the bright banner of the sun was unfurled on the
roof of the azure vault, the mighty king and puissant monarch,
preparing to leave his chamber,

Donned imperial brocade, placed on his head the crown
of greatness, 21

and with the arrogance of greatness and the haughtiness of pride

Came strutting from the pavilion, a shining banner
standing behind him, 22

and sat down in his audience-hall upon the throne of pomp and
magnificence : and noble and commoner were granted permission
to enter, and everyone sat in his own place and

Began to praise the hero, saying, * Thou art wakeful and

enlightened :
May the world, from end to end, be under thy feet; may

thy place always be upon the throne ! * 23

19 Sbahnama ed. Vullers, 472, II. 623-4, which instead of 'and the minstrels
opened their lips in song * has * having opened their Hps in mention of the great *.
20 1M, 465, L 504. 21 J&, 1648, 1. 2669.

22 IM, L 2670. 2S HM., 470, 1L 571-2*

253

THE HISTORY OF

The princesses and concubines strutted in with the beauty of
youth, Eke envoys of the materials of gaiety, and held cups of

wine before them.

I saluted tby cheeks, my 1 saluted for joy rose wtb

rose and apple mtb appk.

And they seated themselves upon the left like the northern
zephyr. And all the men and women [209] and youths and
maidens had donned garments of fine pearls, whose sparkle and
lustre was such that the stars of the night out of jealousy wished
to be scattered before the time of scattering. And in the drinking-
bout of enjoyment they stretched out for cups of pleasure and
set the foot of merriment in the arena of amusement, gratifying
their eyes by gazing on the songstresses and their ears by hearken-
ing to the songs ; and their hearts were exalted by the succession
of joys and delights

In the head the headache of wine, and in the hand the
tresses of the Beloved.

In this manner the day drew to its close : and on this wise for
seven days, from noon till eve and from dawn till dusk, they
were employed in handing round goblets of wine and gazing on
peri-faced, fair-limbed beauties.

And many a faurn'r song did his kinds suggest to the
strings, signs of longing.

When they had done with feasting, he ordered the doors of
the old and new treasuries to be opened and every sort of jewels,
money and clothes to be got ready. And the direction of this
business, that is, the distribution of these valuables, he entrusted
to the counsel and discretion of Sorqotani Beki, who had the
greatest authority in that quriltai. The first to receive their share
were the princes and princesses that were present of the race and
lineage of Chingiz-Khan ; as also all their servants and attendants,
noble and base, greybeard and suckling ; and then in due order
the noyans, the commanders of tiimen, thousands, hundreds and
tens, according to the census, the sultans, maUb, scribes, officials

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

and their dependents. And everyone else who was present,
whoever he was, did not go portionless, nay everyone received
his full share and appointed lot.

And after dispatching this business they began to inquire into
affairs of state. [210] First they took the case of Otegin, which
they saw fit to investigate carefully and examine minutely. And
since this examination was a matter of great delicacy and it was
impossible to confide in strangers, Mengii and Hordu were the
examiners and no one else could have a say in the matter. When
they had completed their task, a group of emirs put him to
death in accordance with the yasa. And in the same way they
dealt with other important matters which the emirs were not
allowed to discuss.

A short while after Qa*an Chaghatai also died. He was
succeeded by his grandson, Qara Oghul, and Yesii, who was
his immediate son, did not interfere. And because Giiyiik
Khan had a great friendship and affection for the latter, he
said : c How can a grandson be heir when there is a son ? *
During their lifetime both Qa*an and Chaghatai had designated
Qara Oghul as the successor to Chaghatafs kingdom; but
Giiyiik settled it upon Yesii [211] and strengthened his arm
in all affairs.

After Qa'an's death each of the princes had acted for himself,
and each of the nobles had attached himself to one of them ;
and they had written drafts on the Kingdom and issued p&izas.
Giiyiik ordered these to be called in. And since what had been
done was outside their yasa and custom, they were ashamed and
hung their heads in confusion. And the paizas and yarlighs of
everyone of them were called in and laid before the author with
the words : ' Read what thou bast written! 24 But Beki 2S and her
sons held their heads high, for no one could produce any docu-
ment of theirs that was contrary to the yasa. In all his speeches
Giiyiik Khan used to hold them up as an example ; and because

24 Koran, xvii, 15.

25 Le. Sorqotani (Sorqoqtani) Beki. Beki (* the Princess ') may have been
a sort of posthumous tide adopted in order to avoid the mention of her real name.
See my article, On the Titles Given in Jmdnl to Certain Mongolian Prmcer, 153.

THE HISTORY OF

of their observance of the yasas he held others lightly but them
he praised and lauded.

And he made a yasa that just as Qa'an, at the time of his
accession, had upheld theyaoz? of his father and had not admitted
any change or alteration of his statutes, so too the yasas and
statutes of his own father should be immune from the con-
tingencies of redundance and deiciency and secure from the
corruption of change, and every yarligb that had been adorned
with the royal al-tomgba should be signed again without reference
to the Emperor.

And after this they consulted together about the army and the
sending thereof to all parts of the world. And when it was
learnt that of the clime of Khitai Manzi, which is the farthermost
part thereof, had freed itself from its allegiance and set aside its
submission, he dispatched Subetei Bahadur and Jaghan 26 Noyan
to that region with a mighty host and a numerous army ; and
the like to Tangut and Solangai ; while to the West he dispatched
Eljigitel 27 and a large army. And he commanded that from
[212] every prince two men out of every ten should join Eljigitei,
that all the men in that region should mount horse with him,
that two out of every ten Taziks should go along and that they
should begin by attacking the Heretics. 28 And it was agreed

26 JTAN. In III, 6"4, A 6 name is spelt Jl~A, i.e. Jagha. jqgban in Mongol
means * elephant '. Blochet, 306, adopts the form CFAN, Le. Chaghan, which
is also possible, cbctgbm being the Mongol for * white*. According to Rashid-
ad-Din (Berezin, VII, 156-7, Khetagurov, 144-5, where the name is spelt
Uchagan), Jaghan was by oiigin a Tangut and had, at the age of fifteen, been
adopted by Chingiz-Khan as his fifth son. (There is evidently some confusion
with Orchan or Orchaqan, the Conqueror's son by a Tatar concubine, on
whom see above, pp. 180-1, n. 6, also Khetagurov, no, where his name is spelt
Chagan.) He commanded Chingiz-Khan's * chief ttimen * (hazara-yf-luzurg)
and was afterwards appointed by Ogedei to the command of all the Mongol
forces on the borders of Khitai or Northern China, as also to the governorship
of Khitai itself.

27 Reading AYLjYKTAY for the AYL<SYKTAY of the text. On
the form and meaning of the name see Peltiot, Les Mongols et k Papautl, [116],
n. 2, and [171], n. 2. This was the Elcheltay, etc., * king of the Tartars ', who
sent a mission to Louis IX. See Pelliot, op. dt., [i$4]-[i55]t also, for the Latin
translation of his letter to St. Louis, [i<5i]~[i64]. See also Grousset, L'Empire
des S&ppes, 421-3.

28 mtiUda (sing. muUticfy : the term usually applied to the Isma'ilis or Assassins

256

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

that he himself should follow after. And although he had
placed all the armies and conquered peoples under the command
of Eljigitel, he especially entrusted to him the affairs of Rum,
Georgia, Aleppo, Mosul and Takavor 2i in order that no one
else might interfere with them and the sultans and governors of
those parts might be answerable to him for their tribute. And
he bestowed the countries of Khitai upon the Great Minister
Yalavach, as also Transoxiana, Turkestan and the other lands
that had been under the control of the Emir Mas c ud Beg. And
Iraq, Azerbaijan, Shirvan, Lur, Kerman, Pars and die territory
in the direction of India he entrusted to the Emir Arghun. And
to all of the emirs and maliks that were dependent on each of
them he gave yarli$$ and paizas : he confided important business
to them and distinguished them with tiger-headed so pdzas and
with yarligbs. And he settled the Sultanate of Rum upon Sultan
Rukn-ad-Din, because he had come to do him homage, and
deposed his elder brother. 31 And David, the son of Qiz-Malik, S2
he made subject to the other David. And yarUgbs were given to
the Sultans of Takavor 33 and Aleppo and to the envoys. As

It was known to Rubruck, who speaks of * the Hacsasins, whom they call
Mulidet* (Rockhill, 222), and is used also by the Armenian writers Yardan
(Mlhedk*) and Kirakos (Mlhedk* and Mulhedk*). mvM is actually a stronger
word than heretic, the Isma'ilis being regarded as outside the pale of Islam*

29 The text has Diyar-Bekr (Diyar-Bakr), but E has TAKWR (corrupted
by B and C into BAKWR), i.e. Takavor, on which see above, p. 250, n. 6.

30 sbfr-sar f which could also mean * lion-headed '. C Marco Polo cd Bene-
detto, 112: 'And you must know that he who is captain of 100 men has a
silver tablet, he who is captain of 1000 men a tablet of gold or gilt silver, he
who is captain of 10,000 men a gold tablet with a lion's bead? What is meant in
both cases is the Chinese bu-fu or * tiger tally *. Marco Polo, as Pelliot remarks,
always uses * lion ' for * tiger ' * par exemple a propos des bm-fou ou M tabkttes
au tigre ", vraisembkbement sous Finfluence du person sir, sfr '. (Notes sur k
" Turkestan " fa M. W. Bartbold, 17.) In fact in Classical Persian sfar (or $ber t
as it was then pronounced) was applied indifferently to the Lion and the Tiger.
In present-day Persia the word means exclusively * Hon ', but in India, where
the old pronunciation (sber) has been preserved, it is the ordinary term for * tiger *.
Cf. the Shere Khan of the/^fe Tales.

31 'Izz-ad-Din Kai-Ka'us n (1245-57). For the somewhat complicated
details of the two princes" reigns see Grousset, op. at., 423.

32 Le. Rusudani. Qiz-MaUk is more or less * Queen ', from the Turkish
<jz ' maiden " and the Arabic maUk * king *.

83 See above, p. 250 and n. 6.

257

THE HISTORY OF

for the envoy from Baghdad the yarUgb with which he had been
honoured was taken back from him, and Giiyiik Khan sent
angry messages to the Commander of the Faithful [213] because
of a complaint that Siremiin, 34 the son of Chormaghun, had
made about them. As for the envoys from Alamut, he dismissed
them with contempt and disdain ; and the reply to the memor-
andum they had brought was couched in correspondingly harsh
language.

And when important affairs had thus been disposed of, the
princes, after taking leave and performing the ceremonies of
obeisance, departed homewards and busied themselves with the
words and commands of Giiyiik Khan by arranging the dis-
patch of armies and the appointment of emirs.

And when the report of his accession was published throughout
the world and the severity and awesomeness of his justice became
known, before the armies reached his opponents, for fear and
dread of his rigour there was a host in every heart and a warrior
in every bosom.

Before thy Ibe thy arrow is a valiant army; around thy
army thy terror is a strong fortress.

And every lord of the marches who heard that report, for fear
of his fury and dread of his ferocity, e sought out an opening into
the earth or a ladder into Heaven J . 35

I see no foeman in the whole world, either overt or

covert,
Who when he hears thy name will not writhe. Writhe,

did I say ? verily he will fall lifeless. 86

And his ministers, favourites and courtiers were unable to
raise the foot of representation nor could they bring any matter
to his attention before he had taken the initiative in speaking of
it. And visitors from near and far did not step a span higher
than the stables except that person who used to present his

84 Not to be confused with the grandson of Ogedei, on whom see above,
p. 251, n. 14.

85 An adaptation of Koran, vi, 55.

3e Sbahnama ed. Vullers, 1637, 11 2492-3.

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

offering on the first day and then depart without even going
inside.

Now Qadaq S7 had been in attendance OB him since his
childhood in the capacity ofatabeg ; and since he was by religion
a Christian, Giiyilk too was brought up in that faith, [214] and
the picture thereof was painted on the page of his bosom * Ufa
a picture curved on stone. To this was added [the influence of]
Chinqai. He therefore went to great lengths in honouring the
Christians and their priests, and when this was noised abroad,
priests set their faces towards his Court from Damascus and
Rum and Baghdad and the As 38 and the Rus;** and for the
most part too it was Christian physicians that wore attached to
his service. And because of the attendance of Qadaq and
Chinqai he naturally was prone to denounce the faith of
Mohammed (upon whom fa the most excellent of peace mi blessings !).
And since the Emperor was of a languid nature he had entrusted
the binding and loosening, the tying and untying of affairs to
Qadaq and Chinqai and made them responsible for good and
evil, weal and woe. Consequently the cause of the Christians
flourished during his reign, and no Moslem dared to raise his
voice to them.

Now Giiyiik Khan wished the fame of his own generosity to
surpass the fame of his father's. His munificence exceeded aU
bounds. When the merchants gathered together ftom the
farthest and nearest parts of the world and brought rare and
precious things, he commanded them to be valued in the same
way as had been done in his father's reign. On one occasion
the dues of a group of merchants who had waited upon him
amounted to the sum of seventy thousand Mish, for which drafts
were written upon every land. Now the goods received from
those merchants and those delivered in one day from the lands
of the East and West, from Khitai to Rum, together with the
wares of every clime and people, were piled up in heaps, each

37 Carpini's ' Kadac, the procurator of the whole empire '. (RockHil, 27.)

38 The As (As) or Alans (Alan) were the ancestors of the present-day Ossetes,

39 Le. the Russians. On the derivation of the name sec Vernackky, Ancient
ia, 276-8.

359

THE HISTORY OF

sort in a different pile. * It will be difficult to transport all this/
said the ministers, * and it has to be sent to the treasury in Qara-
Qorum.' * It would also be difficult to guard/ said Giiyiik,
* and would not profit us : let it be distributed among the soldiers
and those in attendance on us/ And for days it was distributed
and sent to all the subject peoples on the right and the left;
[215] and not an infant remained without its share. And it
was distributed likewise among all who had come fiom far and
near, whether master or slave. Finally only a third had not been
disposed of; this too was distributed but in the end there still
remained a great deal. One day Giiyiik came from the ordu and
passed by these wares. * Did I not tell you/ he said, c to give
it all to the army and the people ? ' c This/ they replied, * is
what is left after everyone has twice received his full share/ He
commanded everyone that was present at that moment to carry
off as much as he could.

And that year 40 he passed in his winter-quarters ; and when
the New Year came, and the world escaped again from the cold
of winter, and a pleasant haze descended, and the face of the
earth donned the motley robe of spring, and the trees and branches
again drew up sap, and the fertilizing winds began to blow,
and the air (bwi) was like the love (bava) of a sweet mistress,
and the gardens became radiant like the cheeks of princesses,
and birds and beasts mated, and fond friends and intimate com-
panions, taking advantage of the days of joy before the coming
of autumn, slept not nor rested in compliance with the verses

Arise thou, who art the one the love of whom stole the

peace of mind of the jasmine, let us rejoice together in the

time of the jasmine ;
Let us pluck roses from the face of the rose-coloured garden,

let us drink wine from the lips of the wine-coloured

jasmine

then it was that Giiyiik Khan fulfilled his intention of depart-
ing and quitted the capital of his kingdom. 41 And wherever

40 Le. 1247.

41 According to Rashid-ad-Din (Blochet, 250), he gave it out that he was
proceeding, for reasons of health, to the region of the Enul, but Princess Sorqoq-

26O

THE WORJLD-CONQUEROR

he came where there was a sown field or where be saw people,
he would command his attendants to give them and

clothes, so that they were freed from the humiliation of poverty
and indigence. And in this manner with the greatest awesome-
ness and majesty he proceeded towards the countries of the West.
When he reached the confines of * Qum-Sengir, 42 a week's
journey from Besh-Baligh, the predestined hour [216] arrived 4S
and did not grant him respite to advance one step beyond that
place.

How many hopes have been unfulfilled through the jugglery
of the cruel Heavens ! Neither violence nor fury hindered, and
neither armies nor munitions could coerce. And what is still
stranger is that however much men look and observe the like
hereof they in no wise take warning ; greed and cupidity are
every day on the increase ; the predominance of avidity is
strengthened hourly ; and yet the voice of the tongueless speaker
does not prevent, and its admonishment in the ear of under-
standing does not prohibit.

The world is ever saying : * It were better not to set thy
heart on me.* Thou dost not hearken to the voice of this
speechless speaker.

etani suspected that his real intention was to attack his cousin Batu, to whom she
accordingly sent a warning.

42 Reading QMSNKR for the SMRQND, i.e. Samarkand of the text,
which is of course impossible. In Les Mongols tt la Papwtt, [i9<s]-[i97] n * *
Pelliot had already suggested such an emendation based on the MSKR of D
and the QMSTKY of the corresponding passage in Barhebraeus, which forms
he identified with the Heng-seng-yi-erh of the Ywn sbtb and the Ghumsghur
of Kirakos. According to the latter (213, Bretschneider, I, 168), King Het'um
of Little Armenia, leaving Qara-Qoram on the homeward journey, reached
Ghumsghur after travelling for 30 days and proceeded from thence to Befbalekh
and Beshbalekh, i.e. Besh-Baligh. Qum-Sengir, the *Sand Promontory', is
the Qum-Shinggir of the Secret History ( 158) and is to be sought, according
to Pelliot, Campagnes, 316, along the upper course of the Urungu, where that
river is still known as the Bulgan, * probablement quand il cesse de couler du
Nord au Sud pour faire son grand coude vers FOuest et le Nord-Ouest ; c*est
encore la que passe aujourd*hui k route postale en direction de *' Gutchai'Y

43 The death of Giiyuk occurred, according to the Yum sbfb f in the third
month (27th March-24th April) of 1248. See Pelliot, LKS Mongols et k

[I9SHI96].

261

THE HISTORY OF

Wherefore dost thou seek the love of the cruel one by whom

Alexander lost his life ? Wherefore dost thou dally with
the mistress by whom Darius lost his kingdom ?
Seest thou not what tricks this fair-seeming beldame produces

every hour from this mercury-coloured tent ?

[XXXVII]

OF PRINCESS OGHUL-GHAIMISH * AND HER SONS

WHEN the inevitable fate of all mortals had overtaken Giiyiik
Khan, the roads were closed (as is their custom and wont when-
ever a king dies) and a yasa was promulgated to the effect that
everyone should halt in whatever place he had reached, whether
it was inhabited or desert. [217] And after the sorrow for this
calamity had abated Oghul-Ghaimish sent messengers to Sor-
qotani Beki and Batu informing them of what had happened ;
and after consulting and deliberating with the ministers as to
whether she should return to the ordu of Qa'an or proceed to
the Qobaq and the Emil, where the former ordu of Giiyiik Khan
was situated, in accordance with her own inclination she set out
for the Emil. And Sorqotani Beki, as is their usual custom,
sent her clothing and a faghtagb* together with messages of

*ATWL TAYMS. According to Rashid-ad-Dm, who calls her Oqul-
Qaimish, she was a Merkk. (Khetagurov, 116.) It was she who received
the first mission from Louis IX and her reply to the French King has been pre-
served in the pages of Joinville. See Pelfiot, Les Mongols et la Papautl, [213],
In Mongke's letter to St. Louis she is referred to as Camus : * . . . After the death
of Keu Chan your ambassadors reached this court. And Camus his wife
sent you wsk stuffs and letters. But as to affairs of war and peace and the welfare
and happiness of a great realm, what could this woman, who was viler than a
dog, know about them ? . . / (Rockhifl, 249-50.)

2 The iofte^fc or %te# was the headdress of the married women. It is
the fcxra, i.e. *&c&, of Rubruck, who describes it as follows : * Furthermore
they have a headdress which they call locca, made of bark, or such light material
as they can find, and it is big and as much as two hands can span around, and
is a cubit and more high, and square like the capital of a column. This locca
they cover (^33) with costly silk stuff, and it is hollow inside, and on top of the
capital, or the square on it, they put a tuft of quills or light canes also a cubit
or more in length. And this tuft they ornament on the top with peacock feathers,
and round the edge (of the top) with feathers from the mallard's tal, and also

262

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

advice and condolence. And Batu consoled and comforted her
In the like manner and heartened her with fair promises ; and
among other things he suggested that Oghul-Ghaimish, as
heretofore, should administer affairs of state together with the
ministers and attend to all that was necessary. On the pretext
that his horses were lean, he halted In Ala-Qamaq ; 3 and word
was sent to all the princes and emirs bidding them present them-
selves at that place in order to consult together regarding the
entrusting of the Khanate to a fitting person so that affairs 01
state might not again be deranged and confusion might not arise.
Khoja and Naqu also should come, and Qadaq should not
fail to accompany them, [218] Khoja and Naqu for their part
set out to join Batu. As for Qadaq, at the time when from
loftiness of station he had set foot on the Heavens he had uttered
ravings that befitted not his rank and from extremity of folly

with precious stones. The wealthy ladies wear such an ornament on their
heads, and fasten it down tightly with an amess, for which there is an opening
in the top for that purpose, and inside they stuff their hair, gathering it together
on the backs of the tops of their heads in a kind of knot, and putting it in Ac
face, which they afterwards tie down tightly under the chin. So it is that when
several ladies are riding together, and one sees them, from afar, they look like
soldiers, helmets on head and lances erect. For this fact looks like a helmet,
and the tuft above it is like a lance.* (Rockhfll, 73-4.)

3 ALAQMAQ. Apparently identical with the A-Ia-tVhu-k-wu (*AIa-
Toghra'u ?) of the Yuan sMb, in which Pelliot, Les Mongols et la Papautl, [190],
n. 2, sees ^Ala-Toghraq, *le Peuplier tachete*, from the Turkish ak 'speckled*,
'black and white* and togbrtq 'poplar*. He accounts for the discrepancy
between the two forms by suggesting that Ala-Qamaq may be a corruption
of *Ala-Toghraq. Another solution of the problem would be to see In the
second element of Ala-Qamaq a variant or corruption of the Ottoman and
Azerbaijani word for 'poplar*, viz. qtvaq (ktvaK). Ala-Qamaq lay a week*s
journey from Qayatigh (see below, ii, 557), perhaps, as Barthold suggests in his
article on Batu in the Encyclopedia of Islam, in the Ala-Tau mountains between
the Issik-Kul and the IK. According to Rashid-ad-Din (Blochet, 274-8)
Batu's meeting with the princes took place, not at Ala-Qamaq (which is nowhere
mentioned), but somewhere in his own territory. Being crippled with rheumatism
at the time of Giiytik's death (see also Blochet, 251), he summons the princes
to his own headquarters in the West ; and the sons of Cgedei, Chaghatai and
Giiyiik are represented as refusing to make the long journey to the Qipchaq
Steppe. Otherwise Rashid-ad-Din's account of the meeting in no way differs
from Jiraini's detailed description of the quriltd at Ala-Qamaq. Sec below,
ii, 557-62.

263

THE HISTORY OF

and excess of ignorance had spoken words that were the source
of panic and the substance of gossip. Therefore being afraid he
drew back his foot and bowed his head pretending to be ill.
And though messengers were sent several times again he did not
give way, nor would Oghul-Ghaimish and her sons consent to
his going. They therefore took their leave of him immediately*

And when Khoja and Naqu arrived in Ala-Qamaq they
did not remain more than a day or two and went back before
the other princes, because the star of their fortune was on the
wane. They left Temiir Noyan with Batu as their representative
telling him that whatever agreement was reached by the princes
he too was to give a written undertaking to the same effect.
And when the princes were agreed as to the accession of the
Just Monarch Mengii Qa'an he too gave his written consent.

The princes, in order to show respect to the sons of Giiyiik
Khan, still left the government in their hands until such time
as there should be a quriltai ; and they sent a messenger to them
to say that since Chinqai had always been a trustworthy person
and had charge of weighty matters he was to continue the direc-
tion of affairs and issue yarligbs until such time as a Khan was
appointed and the secret of God Almighty revealed.

[219] From Ak-Qamaq the princes all departed to their own
wfa$ in order to make ready for the quriltai. As for Temiir he
went back to Khoja and Naqu and told them how the princes
had agreed to the auspicious accession of Mengii Qa'an. They
reproached him for having given his written word and agreed
with the rest ; and they plotted to set an ambush in the pathway
of Mengii Qa'an and let fly the arrow of treachery from the thumb
of incivility. However Fortune being vigilant, and helpful, and
kind, and Fate being at his side, and Luck his helpmeet, and
the Grace of the Creator (glorious are His bounties and many His
Uessings!) accompanying him, and the solicitude of the people
assisting and supporting him, he had passed through the
ambushes and dangers before they were aware. Nevertheless
they still cherished that thought in their breasts and continued
to deal with current affairs, although these amounted to little
except negotiations with merchants, the provisional allocation

264

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

of sums of money to every land and country and the dispatch
of relays of churlish messengers and taxgatherers. And most of
the time Oghul-Ghaimish was closeted with the yim carrying
out their fantasies and absurdities. 4 As for Khoja and Naqu
they held two separate courts in opposition to their mother ; and
thus there were three rulers in one place. And elsewhere also
the princes made dealings in accordance with their owe wishes,
and the grandees and notables of every land attached themselves
to a party according to their own inclination. And the affairs
of Oghul-Ghaimish and her sons got out of control because of
their differences with one another and their contentions with
their senior kinsmen ; and their counsels and schemes diverged
from the pathway of righteousness. As for Chinqai he was
weak and confused in the conduct of affairs, and his advice was
not admitted to the ear of their understanding : [220] being
young they acted in accordance with their own counsel, while
Oghul-Ghaimish pleased herself in hindering men of goodwill

Two things with which the ascetic can do nothing are the
counsel of women and the command of young men :

As for women their inclination is towards psskn> (ml as
for young men* they mn mth loose

And they sent messengers to Batu saying : * We will not consent
to the election of another Khan ; we shall never connive at that
agreement/

A sentence was passed and a letter preceded, fat of what

avail was impatience or anxiety?
God passeth what judgement He pleasetb : wbetefore then art

tbou disturbed seeing that all is mil ?

They sent all these messages with Yesu's encouragement and
with his consent and support. And again and again their
loving kinsfolk Beki and Batu sent them words of advice, saying,
* At any rate you should come to the quriltoi, and take counsel,

4 William of Rubruck was informed by Mongke * with his own lips that
Camus was the worst kind of a witch, and that she had destroyed the whole
of her family by her witchcraft*. (Rockhill, 250.)

5 Husain b. ' Ali of Marv-ar-Rud who flourished under the Samanids. (M.Q.)

265

THE HISTORY OF

and deliberate together a second time when all the aqa and ini s
are assembled together.* And from Batu there would come
messengers saying that [221] if the Khanate was settled on Mengii
Qa'an most of the advantages therefrom would accrue to them*
But since they looked with the gaze of puerility and petulance
and had not been chastened and corrected by experience of life,
they persisted in these ideas. And as for Qadaq, for fear of the
effects of his foolish words and immature thoughts, he agreed
with their ideas of opposition. And though messengers came
from every side bidding them hasten the calling of the guriltai f
they persisted in their lassitude and procrastination, planning
schemes behind the curtain of opposition and casting the dice
of counsel on the chequer-board of desire ; and they still held
back from doing what was expedient. Finally a messenger came
from the princes saying that they were gathered together in the
presence [of Mengii]. Accordingly Naqu set out to join them,
and was followed by Khoja, and afterwards by Ghaimish, as
shall be related in the chapter on the accession of the World-
Emperor Mengii Qa'an; when through shortsightedness and
vanity things came to such a pass that the understanding of the
wise struggled in the mire of the thought thereof and could find
no way out.

[XXXVIII]

OF TUSHI AND THE ACCESSION OF BATU * IN HIS STEAD

WHEN Tushi, who was the eldest son, had gone to Qulan-
Bashi to join Chingiz-Khan and had returned from thence, the
predestined hour arrived. And of his sons, Boghal, 2 Hordu,
Batu, Sibaqan, Tangut, Berke and [222] Berkecher, these seven,

6 Le. the elder and young brothers.

1 On the reign of Batu, the founder of the Golden Horde, see Vernadsky,
The Mongols cmd Russia 140-9, Grousset, ISEmptre des Steppes, 470-4, Spuler,
Dk GoUew Horde, 10-32.

2 Reading BWTL for the BMHL of the text. Rashid-ad-Din has BWWAL,
Le. Bowal or Bo'al, and BWQAL, i.e. Boqal Bo'al is in fact the Western
pronunciation of the Mongol name Bo*ol meaning 'slave*. See Pelliot, Horde
d'Or, 52-4. Bo'al, who appears in Lane-Poole, The Mohammadan Dynasties, as
Teval, was the grandfather of the famous general Noqai, the Nogai of Marco Polo.

266

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had come of age; and Bate succeeded his father and became
ruler of the kingdom and his brothers. And when Qa f an
to the throne of the Empire Batu reduced and subjugated all
the territory adjoining his own, including all that remained of
the Qifchaq, die Alan, the As and the Rus, and other lands
also such as Bulghar^ Magas, 8 etc.

And Batu abode in his own encampment, which he had set
up in the region of the Etil; 4 and he built a town there which
is called Sarai ; s and his word was law in every land. He was
a king that inclined towards no faith or religion : he recognized
only the belief in God and was blindly attached to no sect or
creed. His bounty was beyond calculation and his liberality
immeasurable. The kings of every land and the monarchs of
the horizons and everyone else came to visit him; and before
their offerings, which were the accumulation of ages, could be
taken away to the treasury, he had bestowed them all upon
Mongol and Moslem and all that were present, and heeded not
whether it was much or little. And merchants from every side
brought him all manners of wares, and he took everything and
doubled the price of it several rimes over. And he wrote drafts
on the Sultans of Rum and Syria and granted them yarligbs ;
[223] and no one that came to visit him departed without
achieving his purpose.

When Giiyuk Khan succeeded to the Khanate, Batu, at his
request and entreaty, set out to meet him. When he had reached
Ala-Qamaq the death of Giiyuk Khan occurred. He halted in
that place, and the princes came to visit him from every side ;
and they settled the Khanate upon Mengii Qa'an, the account
whereof will be given in the chapter on Mengii Qa*an. And

3 MKS. Magas, the Meget, etc., of the Secret History f was actually the capital
of the Alans or Ossetes. See Minorsky, Cattcasica HI, 232-8.

4 AYTYL. The Volga. Carpini was the fat Western writer to call the
river by its Russian name. Even Rubruck calls it Etilia. See RockhiH, 8,
n. 2. The name was given to the Volga by the Bulgars and Avars ; and etil
is to this day the Chuvash word for ' river *. See Barthold, Hitfoire ies Twcs, 22.

5 This is Chaucer's * Sarray, in the land of Tartarye '. Sarai (called afterwards
* Old Sarai * to distinguish it from the * New Sarai * founded by Berke) was
situated on the eastern bank of the Akhtuba, about 65 miles north of Astrakhan.
See Vernadsky, op. dt. t 141 and 153, Spuler, op. dt., 266-8.

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THE HISTORY OF

from thence he went back, and came to his own orfa, and
busied himself with pleasures and amusements. And whenever
a campaign was being organized he would, in accordance with
the exigencies of the occasion, dispatch armies led by his relations,
kinsfolk and commanders. When, in the year 653/1255-6,
Mengii Qa'an held another qmltai, he sent Sartaq, who was an
adherent of the Christian faith. Sartaq had not yet arrived when
the commandment of God was fulfilled and the inevitable state 6
came to pass in the year . . S And when Sartaq arrived,
Mengii Qa'an received him with honour and respect and dis-
tinguished him with all manner of kindnesses above all his equals ;
and he dismissed him with such wealth and riches as befitted so
great a king. He had not yet reached his ordu but had only
come to ... when he too departed to join his father. Mengii
Qa'an sent his emirs to console his wives and brothers ; and
he commanded that Boraqchin 8 Khatun, who was Batu's chief
wife, should issue orders and educate Ulaghchi, 9 the son of
Sartaq, until he grew up and succeeded his father. But Fate
had not willed it thus, and Ulaghchi passed away that same year.

[XXXIX]

[224] OF THE CONQUEST OF BULGHAR x

AND THE TERRITORY OF THE AS AND THE RUS 2

WHEN Qa'an held the great ymltai for the second time, they
deliberated together concerning the extirpation and subjugation

6 I.e. the death of Batu.

7 There is considerable divergency in the sources as to the date of Batu's death,
hut it seems most likely that he died in 1255. See Spuler, op. eft., 32, n. 108.

8 BRAQCYN. On Boraqchin*he name is the feminine form of the
Mongol foro ' grey 'see PdEot, op. cit., 3S~44- According to Rashid-ad-Din
(Khetagurov, in) she belonged to the Alchi tribe of the Tatar.

9 According to Rashid-ad-Din Ulaghchi' the man in charge of post horses *
was not the son but the brother of Sartaq, but see Pelliot, op. dt., 34-9.

1 Bulghar is used in this chapter both for the town (on which see above,
p. 42, n. 12) and for the people. On the Volga Bulgars see Vernadsky, Andent
Rwm, 222-8.

2 This and the following chapter have already appeared in print in Minorsky,
Cattcasica 111, 222-3.

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of all the remaining rebels ; and it was decided to seize the
lands of the Bulghar, the As and the Rus, which bordered on
the camping grounds of Batu ; for they had not completely
submitted being deluded by the size of their territory. He there-
fore deputed certain princes to aid and assist Bate, viz. Mengii
Qa'an and his brother Bochek; 3 his own sons Giiyiik Khan
and Qadaghan ; of the other princes, Kolgen, Biiri and Baidar ;
Batu's brothers, Hordu and Tangut ; and several other princes as
well as Siibetei Bahadur from amongst the chief commanders.
The princes departed each to his own place of residence in order
to organize their forces and armies ; and in the spring they each
of them set forth from his own territory and hastened to carry
out this undertaking. They came together in the territory of the
Bulghar. The earth echoed and reverberated from the multitude
of their armies, and at the size and tumult of their forces the very
beasts stood amazed. First they took by storm the city of
Bulghar, famous throughout the world for the strength of its
position and its ample resources; and as a warning to others
they slew the people or led them captive. And from thence
they proceeded to the land of the Rus and conquered that
country 4 as far as the city [225] of Magas, 5 the inhabitants of
which were as numerous as ants or locusts, while its environs
were entangled with woods and forests such that even a serpent
could not penetrate them. The princes all halted on the out-
skirts of the town, and on every side they built roads wide enough
for three or four waggons to pass abreast. And they set up

3 BWfiK. The Bujck of the Secret History and the Bichac or Bechac of
Carpini. Bochek was actually Mongke's half-brother. See Rashid-ad-Din cd.
Blochet, 207, where there is a blank for his mother's name. He most be the
brother of Mongke and Arigh Boke, * by the father *, who according to Rubruck
had captured the goldsmith William Buchier * in Hungary, in a town called
Belgrade *. See Rockhill, 222.

4 At this place, Minorsky, op. dt t 222, n. 2, assumes a great lacuna in Ac
text. Hence the impression is given that Magas was captured during the opera-
tions in Russia, whereas it was actually taken in the course of a subsequent cam-
paign in the Caucasus.

5 In Persian mgf means * fly ', and the following reference to ants, locusts
and a serpent is therefore an example of the figure known as tanastA. See above,
p. 117, n. 7.

269

THE HISTORY OF

mangonels opposite the walls, and after a space of several days
left nothing of the city but its namesakes/ and took great booty.
And they gave orders to cut off the right ears of the people, and
two hundred and seventy thousand ears were counted. 7 And

from thence the princes turned homewards.

[XL]

OF THE HORSEMEN 1 OF THE KELER AND BASHGHIRD 2

WHEN the Rus, the Qifehaq and the Alan had been annihilated,
Batu resolved to proceed to the destruction of the Keler and
Bashghird, who are large nations professing the Christian faith
and are said to border on the land of the Franks. With this
object in mind he arrayed his armies and set out in the new year.
And that people was rendered arrogant by the magnitude of
their numbers, the greatness of their power and the strength of
their arms; and when they heard the report of Batu's approach
they too set out to meet him with four hundred thousand horse-
men, each of whom was famous in war and considered flight
disgrace. Batu sent his brother Sibaqan on in advance with
ten thousand men to spy out their numbers and send word of
the extent of their strength and might. Sibaqan set forth in
obedience to his command and at the end of a [226] week came
back and reported that they were double the size of the Mongol
army, all men of war and battle. When the two armies drew
close to each other Batu went up on to a hilltop ; 3 and for one
day and night he spoke to no one but prayed and lamented ;
and he bade the Moslems also assemble together and offer up

6 A pun: nothing but jfe. 7 C above, p. 195 and n. 13.

1 Or * the horsemen (kbaS) tvbo marched against the Keler and Bashghird '.
This is how Minorsky, Cwcaska III, 223, understands the heading. On the
other hand < the reference below to the 400,000 horsemen of the Hungarians.

2 Bashghird is here simply a synonym of Keler, i.e. the Hungarians, and does
not refer to the Uralian Bashkirs, whose descendants are now citizens of the
Bashkir Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. On these latter see Minorsky,
Hud&d, 318-19.

8 Cf. above, p. 80.

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prayers. The next day they made ready for battle. A large
river 4 lay between the armies : Batu sent over a detachment by
night and then his [main] army crossed. Batons brother entered
the battle in person and made attack after attack ; but the enemy's
army was strong and did not budge. Then the [main] army
arrived from behind ; and Sibaqan attacked at the same time
with all his forces ; and they bore down on their royal pavilions
and cut the ropes with their swords/ And when the Mongols
had overturned their pavilions the army of the Keler f lost heart
and fled. And no more of that army escaped, and those lands
also were subjugated. This was one of their greatest deeds and
their fiercest battles.

[XLI]

OF CHAGHATAI

CHAGHATAI was a fierce and mighty khan, stern and severe.
When the lands of Transoxiana and Turkestan were subjugated,
his camping grounds and those of his children and armies
extended from Besh-Baligh to Samarqand, fair and pleasant
places fit to be the abode of Hngs. In spring and summer he
had his quarters in Almaligh and Quyas, which in those seasons
[227] resembled the Garden of Irani. He constructed large
pools (which they call kol I ) in that region for the flocking of
the waterfowl. He also built a town 2 called Qudugh. The

* The Sayo.

5 As Minorsky, Cawaska 111, 223, n. 3* has pointed out, Carpini saw in
Batu's camp on the lower Volga * tents made of linen. They are large and
quite handsome, and used to belong to the king of Hungary.* (Rockhul, 10.)

6 * The battle against the Hungarkns was won at Mohi, on the right bank
of the river Sayo, above its junction with the Tisza, on nth April, 1241, On
this occasion quarrels arose between Batu and Siibedey, see the translation of
the latter's Chinese biography in PeUiot, [Horde <f OrJ I 3 I - The Mongols spent
the summer of 1241 on the Hungarian plain and on 25th December, 1241,
crossed the Danube on the ice.* (Minorsky, op, dt. t 228.)

1 See above, p. 237, n. 3.

2 Or village (<?$). See above, p. 45, n. 5.

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THE HISTORY OF

autumn and winter he spent in [? Maraozik] 3 on the Ila. And
at every stage, from beginning to end he had laid up stores of
food and drink. And he was ever engaged in amusements and
pleasures and dallying with sweet-faced peri-like maidens.

For fear of his yasa and punishment his followers were so well
disciplined that during his reign no traveller, so long as he was
near his army, had need of guard or patrol on any stretch of road ;
and, as is said by way of hyperbole, a woman with a golden
vessel on her head might walk alone without fear or dread.
And he enacted minute yasas that were an intolerable imposition
upon such as the Taziks, e.g. that none might slaughter meat in
the Moslem fashion nor sit by day in running water, and so on.
The yasa forbidding the slaughter of sheep in the lawful manner
he sent to every land ; and for a time no man slaughtered sheep
openly in Khorasan, and Moslems were forced to eat carrion.

When Qa'an died ChaghataTs Court became the rendezvous
of all mankind, and men journeyed from near and far to do
him homage. But it was not long before a sore disease attacked
him such that the cause was victor over the cure. He had a
Turkish vizier, a man called Hujir, who had risen to power at
the end of his reign and had taken over the affairs of the Kingdom.
Together with the physician Majd-ad-Din this man did every-
thing in his power to cure Chaghatafs disease and showed great
kindness and solicitude. [228] However, when Chaghatai
died, Yesuliin, 4 his senior wife, ordered them both to be killed
together with their children.

The Emir Habash "Amid, who had been attached to
Chaghatafs service ever since the conquest of Transoxiana and
had attained to the rank of vizier, still remained in the service

9 The text has MRAWRYL following A, but there are several variants.
The word is either a proper name or a corruption of some word meaning ' neigh-
bourhood ', * banks * or the like, in which case the whole phrase would run :
* near (on the banks of) the Ha.* Da was the Old Turkish name of the Hi.

4 YSLWN. According to Rashid-ad-Din (Blochet, 1 54) she was the daughter
of Qata Noyan, the son of Daritai of the Qonqxrat tribe. Daritai was the brother
of Dei Sechen, the ruler of the tribe and the father of Chlngiz-Khan's chief wife,
Borte Fujin : Yesulun's father and Borte were therefore first cousins. Rashid-ad-
Din, however, goes on to say that after Yesuliin's death Chaghatai married her
sister, whereas, according to Juvaini's account, she outlived her husband.

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of Chaghataf s widow. There was a poet called Sadid-i-A'var

Sha'ir. One feast day he composed certain topical verses, which
he dedicated to the Emir Habash *Amid:

It has become clear to thee that this gloomy world is the

snare of calamity ; thou hast learnt that this world is

a deceitful coquette.
Of what avail were qmMs and ttkeitts 5 and valiant soldiers

when Fate attacked and struck to right and fcfi ?
He for fear of whom none entered water is drowned in an ocean

that is exceeding vast.

Chaghatai had many sons and grandsons ; but his eldest son,
Metiken, having been killed at Bamiyan and Qara * having been
born at that time, Chingiz-Khan, and after him Qa*an and
Chaghatai, had made him Chaghatai's heir and successor.
[229] In accordance with this ruling, after Chaghatafs death,
his wife Yesiiliin, Habash Amid-al-Mulk and the Pillars of
the State favoured his claim. But when Giiyiik Khan was
raised to the Khanate, having a friendship for Yesii, who was
Chaghataf s own son, he said : * Why should the grandson
succeed when there is a son ? * Accordingly he set up Yesii in
his father's kingdom and entrusted him with the direction of
affairs of state. Now Yesii was constantly carousing ; he was
ignorant of sobriety and made intoxication a habit, drinking
wine from morn till eve.

When he became firmly established in the kingdom he grew
angry with Habash 'Amid because of his having supported
Qara ; and he plotted against him. Now when Habash 'Amid
first rose to power he had given his sons to the sons of Chaghatai
and allotted each of them to one of the princes. Chaghatai,
however, used to contrast them with Baha-ad-Din Marghinani
on account of the latter's accomplishments and learning ; and
he appointed him to wait on Yesii. Because of the length of
his service Baha-ad-Din also rose to power; he was entrusted
with the office of vizier to Yesii, and Habash 'Amid was dis-
carded. The imam Baha-ad-Din performed aU the ceremonies
and courtesies of respect and several times restrained Yesii fiom

5 Le. nightrguards. See above, p. 226, n. 53. e Le, Qara-Hiiegii.

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THE HISTORY OF

carrying out the designs he had upon Habash 'Amid. How-
ever, there was an ancient grudge in the heart of the Emir Habash
'Amid, [230] and he was waiting for an opportunity to ease
his breast thereof.

Yesii continued to reign until Mengii Qa'an ascended the
throne of the Khanate. Yesii opposed his accession, whereupon
Mengii Qa*an settled the kingdom upon Qara by virtue of the
earlier testament. He distinguished Qara with all kinds of
favours and sent him home. Upon the way back the inevitable
hour prevented him from reaching his ordu. Accordingly
Mengii Qa'an settled the kingdom upon his son; and since
the latter was as yet but a child, he placed the keys of government
in the hands of Orqina, 7 Qara's widow. When she returned
to her ordu, Yesii also, by Batu's leave, shortly afterwards arrived
home. To him also Fate gave no quarter. 8

The Emir Habash e Amid and his son Nasir-ad-Din returned
to power in the service of Orqina. And when Qara returned 8
he delivered up Baha-ad-Din Marghinani to Habash *Amid
together with his property and children [2^1] in order that he
might wreak his vengeace on him.

When Baha-ad-Din was seized and fastened in the two-
pronged press he composed the following quatrain:

Those that have tied up the bundle of their lives
Have escaped from the toil and trouble of this world.
My body broke because of my many sins.
Therefore it was that they bound up this broken thing.

7 AWRQYNH. Spelt AWRQNH by Rashid-ad-Din (Blochet, lo^and
HRTNH, ix. apparendy Horghina, by Vassaf (ed. Hammer-Purgstall, 28,
Bombay ed., 14). The Organum of Rubruck, as was already pointed out by
Yule, Cathay and the Way Tbttber, IV, 161, is the name of this princess trans-
ferred to the territory in which she resided. According to Rashid-ad-Din she
was the sister of Buqa-Temor of the Oirat and therefore the grand-daughter of
Chingiz-Khan by his second daughter Checheken. See Khetagurov, 119,
Smimova, 70.

8 According to the more detailed account of Rashid-ad-Din (Blochet, 175
and 184-93), Orqina, the wife of Qara-Hulegu, after her husband had died
on the homeward journey, put Yesii to death by the order of Mongke Qa'an
and then for ten years ruled the ukf of Chaghatai in her husband's stead. (M.Q.)

9 This is inconsistent not only with the facts but with the author's own state-
ment a few lines before. (M.Q.)

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And in order to sue for favour he sent this other quatrain also :

King, take what was my woof and warp ;
And if my life avail thee aught take that also.

It is a life that has come to my lips and left my bosom.
Of these two take whichever tfaou wilt.

But when he saw that no stratagem would be of service and that
humility and self-abasement were of no avail he composed the
following two verses and sent them to Habash c Amid:

1 revelled with friend and foe, and then departed; I
tucked the garment of life under my arm, and then
departed.

The hand of Fate gave me the pill that purges the spirit ;
I ottered a hundred effective curses on her pill, 10 and
then departed.

Habash e Amid ordered his men to roll him up in a piece of
felt and crush his limbs and members in the way they beat felt.
In the year 649/1251-2, when we were returning from the
ordu of Ghaimish, I went to the Court of Yesii in the train of
the Emir Arghun. When I paid my respects to the imam Baha-
ad-Din, he first recited the following vase before uttering anything
else :

When the generous man is generous, be is generous by himself;
but when the son of the generous man is genermt, he mikes
them both generous.

[232] And he distinguished me with the glance of honour and
respect.

Baha-ad-Din united lofty descent with noble attainments, for
on his father's side he was hereditary sbaikb-al-Islam of Farghana,
while on his mother's side he was related to Toghan Khan, 11
who was the khan and ruler of that country ; and as for his
noble attainments, he joined to the lofty rank of vizier to which
he had risen the nobility of every kind of spiritual and temporal
knowledge. Of a truth, I found his presence the meeting-place

10 I.e. habb-ash, which can also be read Habash.

11 On Toghan Khan, the Qara-Khanid ruler of Kashghar, who died in
408/1017-18, see Barthold, Turkestan, 274-5 and 279-82.

x 275

THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

of all the savants in the world and the resort of the sadrs of the
horizons. Whoever had a capital of the goods of learning (for
which there is no sale) always found a market for his wares with
Baha-ad-Din and was relieved by his mercy and compassion.
It would take long to relate his accomplishments and virtues,
but there is neither rime nor space to record them. And what
person of merit hath Fate reared up whom she hath not cast
down again ?

To what cypress hath she given loftiness which she did not
bend again with sorrow ?

O Tim, why dost tbou all thy life tend the gardens of nolle

deeds, loth shoots and luxuriant plants ?
O Time, what bast tbou to do with the nolle ones that sit

in the bigbest places ? What barm wouU it do tbee if

tbou left owe nolle man ? 12

The Emir Baha-ad-Din was survived by sons and small
infants, and Habash c Amid wished to send all his male children
after their father.

12 Abul-Faraj b. Abu-Hasin, the cadi of Aleppo. (M.Q.)

2,76

In the name of God Almighty !

THE SECOND PART OF

JUVAINI'S HISTORY OF THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

OF THE ORIGIN OF THE DYNASTY OF THE

SULTANS OF KHORAZM
(MAY GOD MAKE BRIGHT THEIR EXAMPLE /)

IT is recorded in the Ma$harib-at-Tajaril * of Ibn-Funduq al-
Baihaqi, which is the continuation of the Tqarib-al-Umam,* and
is likewise mentioned in the historical section of Razf s JawamT-
al-*Ulum? which latter work was written for Sultan Tekish, that
a certain Bilge-Tegin 4 was one of the principal officials of the
House of Seljuq, just as under the Samanids Alp-Tegin 5 was
Army Commander of Khorasan. This Bilge-Tegin purchased
from Gharchistan 6 a Turkish slave [2] called Nush-Tegin
Gharcha, who by dint of intelligence and sagacity gradually
attained to greatness of rank, until he became an important
official in the House of Seljuq, just as Sebuk-Tegin 7 in the

1 On the MadMrfa-at-Tajirib m~Gbatvari)-d-Gtwr$*it of Abul-Hasan 'AM b.
Zaid of Baihaq see Barthold, Turkestan, 31.

2 Tqarib^lrUwm (* Experiences of the Nations *) is the tide of a celebrated
historical work by Abu-* AH Ahmad b. Muhammad Mislcawaih. See Barthold,
of. cit., 31-2.

3 The Jawami'-al-Ulum was the name of an encyclopedia compiled by the
famous theologian Fakhr-ad-Din Abu^Abdallah b. Muhammad b. ^mar
ar-Razi.

4 In Turkish 'Wise Lord*.

5 Alp-Tegin (* Brave Lord ') was the founder of the Ghaznavid dynasty.

6 The mountainous region of Gharchistan ky to the east of Badghis along
the Upper Murghab. It corresponds to the modern Kruzkuh.

7 ' Beloved Lord * from the Turkish seUk (sevtiK) * beloved * and tegin ' lord *.
See Pelliot, Notes m k " Turkestan " At M. W. BtrtboU, 16. Sebuk-Tegin
(976-97), the slave, son-in-kw and successor of Alp-Tegin, was the father
of the celebrated Sultan Mahmud (998-1030).

277

THE HISTORY OF

latter days of the Samanids, and received the title of Basin-Holder
(td$bt-dar)* Now in those days the expenses of this office were
met by the revenues of Khorazm, just as the expenses of the
Wardrobe were paid from the revenues of Khuzistan. Nush-
Tegin, in consequence, was given the title ofsbabna of Khorazm.

Several sons were born to him, the eldest of whom, Qutb-
ad-Din Muhammad, he put to school at Merv in order that he
might learn the etiquette and ceremonial of leadership and
command.

At that time Berk-Yaruq 9 son of Malik-Shah had conferred
the absolute viceroyalty of all his empire upon Dadbeg Habashi
son of Altun-Taq, the Emir of Khorasan, in whose praise many
poems were composed by the poets of the age, his official panegyrist
being Abul-Ma'ali Nahhas of Ray. Dadbeg Habashi now [3]
transferred the office of Khorazm-Shah from Ekinchi son of
Qochqar 10 Khorazm-Shah, a slave of Sanjar, to Qutb-ad-
Din Muhammad, conferring that title upon him in the year
491/1097-8. From thence onward Qutb-ad-Din on many
occasions distinguished himself in the service of the Seljuqs, as
will be found recorded in works of history. For thirty years he
ruled Khorazm in ease and contentment, one year coming in
person to attend at Sanjar's court and the next year sending his
son Atsiz u in his place, and so he continued until his death.

In 522/1128 he was succeeded by his son Atsiz. Atsiz is
renowned for his virtues and accomplishments ; he is the author
of many Persian poems and quatrains. In courage and bravery
[4] he dwarfed all his peers and equals ; he won many victories
in the service of Sultan Sanjar and was constant in the fulfilment
of his duties as a vassal ; whereof one example is the following :
In the year 524/1129-30 Sultan Sanjar had passed into Tran-

8 According to Barthold, op. dt. f 323, * the superintendent of the royal washing
utensils". The tasht-iar was the servant in charge of the wash-basin (taskf) and
ewer offered after meals, etc.

9 1094-1104. His name means 'Strong Brightness*.

10 Ekinchi, i.e. 'the Sower*. See Houtsma, Glossar, 31. qpchqar is the
Turkish for * ram '. On Ekinchi as an authority on the great migration of
Turkish tribes in the nth century see Minorsky, Marvazi, 101 and 104.

11 'Horseless/

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THE WOR3LD-CONQUEROR

soxiana to quell the rebellion of Tamghach-Khan " and upon
arriving in Bokhara had gone one day to his hunting grounds ;
where a number of slaves and domestics, who had but recently
been enlisted in his service, had plotted to waylay the Sultan
and make an end of him. Atsiz, who had not gone hunting
that day, awoke at noon from his sleep, called for a horse and
hurried off to join the Sultan. When he arrived, the Sultan,
surrounded by that rabble, was indeed in an evil case and fallen
into a desperate strait. Atsiz at once charged down upon those
wretches and rescued the Sultan. The latter asked him how
he had become aware of his plight, and he replied : * I dreamt
that an accident had befallen the Sultan in the hunting grounds,
and I at once hastened to his side.*

On account of this display of loyalty the affairs of Atsiz
prospered; his power and prestige increased daily, and the
Sultan was ever conferring fresh honours and favours upon him.
He became in consequence an object of envy to the other mdiks
and emirs, and because of their jealousy they plotted against him
and made attempts on his life. From Zul-Qa'da of the year
529 [August-September, 1135] when the Sultan marched
against Ghazna to crush the rebellion of Bahram-Shah l3 until
Shawal of the next year [July-August, 1136] when he arrived
in Balkh, Atsiz was ever in attendance on him. In the course
of these journeyings he had become aware of the intrigues of
those envious emirs and of the ill-will they bore him, and was
also apprehensive regarding the Sultan himself. He obtained
leave to return home; and as he was departing the Sultan
remarked to his courtiers : * There goes the back of one whose
face we shall not see again/ They answered : * If Your Majesty

12 This was the Qara-Khanid ruler Arslan-Khan Muhammad b. Sukiman
(1102-30), on whom see Barthold, op. tit., 319-21. That he was also known
as Tamghach-Khan is confirmed by 'Aufi and the author of the Kitab~i~Mulla>-
Zada. (IMl, 319, n. 2.) On this Qara-Khanid title ('Emperor of China')
see Barthold, of, at., 304, HMre des Turn, 77-8. The Tamghach or rather
Tabghach (Tavghaeh), in Chinese TVpa, were a Turkish or proto-Mongol
people who founded the Chinese dynasty of the Wei (436-557) and whose
name became synonymous with Northern China. See Grousset, IfEtnpire fas
Steppes, 103-9, Hambis, La Hmte-Ask, 29-31, Gabain, 2.

13 The Ghaznavid (ir 18-52).

279

THE HISTORY OF

is certain of this, why then did he obtain leave to return home
and receive such kindness ? * [5] And he replied : * The
services he has rendered us have placed us under a great obliga-
tion to him : to harm him would be contrary to our tenets of
generosity and clemency/

Amving in Khorazm Atsiz entered upon the path of froward-
ness and rebellion, and day by day the ill-will increased on
either side and finally reached such a pitch that in Muharram
of the year 553 [September-October, 1138] Sultan Sanjar
marched into Khorazm to do him battle. The Khorazm-Shah
got together an army to oppose that of the Sultan and even set
it in fighting array ; and then, without making any attempt to
offer battle, realizing he could place little confidence in his troops,
he sought safety in flight. His son Atligh was taken prisoner
and brought before the Sultan, who gave orders that he should
be immediately cut in hal Sanjar then conferred the kingdom
of Khorazm upon his nephew Sulaiman b. Muhammad and
returned to Khorasan; whereupon Atsiz re-entered Khorazm
and Sultan Sulaiman fled before him and returned to Sanjar.
And Atsiz continued in the path of frowardness and rebellion
until the year 536/1141-2, when Sanjar was defeated in the
battle against Khitai 14 at the gates of Samarqand and came
fleeing to Balkh (the story is well known) : Atsiz then seized
his opportunity and marched against Merv, looting the city and
making great slaughter of the inhabitants. Thereafter he returned
to Khorazm.

Here we reproduce a letter from the correspondence which
passed between the hakim Hasan Qattan [6] and Rashid-ad-Din
Vatvat concerning the books that were lost from the former's
library during the pillaging of Merv and which he suspected
Vatvat of having appropriated :

f It has reached my ear from the mouths of those that arrive in Khorazm
and from the tongues of those that journey hither that Your Honour
(may God perpetuate bis excellence I), when he is not busy with his
private affairs or occupied with Us lectures, doth proceed in his assemblies
to speak evil of me and to abuse and defame me at great length. And

14 I.e. Qara-Khitai. See above, p. 44, n. 2.

2SO

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

be accuseth me of 'plundering bis library and

down tbe mis and coverings of 'generosity* Doth this and

humanity, is it in accordance with generosity and that tbou

sbouldst fabricate concerning a hotter Moslem so a Ik and

so painful a calumny ? By God, when tbe trumpet shall he
upon tbe Day of Resurrection, and when these rotten bones shall h
dispatched from tbe tomb to h clad in tbe raiment of tbe Second Life ;
wfan tbe servants of God shall h gathered together at tbe &f

the plains, and when tbe kaves of men's deeds shall he scattered
their doers ; when every soul shall he asked concerning that it

hath gained both that of the sinner who shall k dragged face -downward
into hellfae and that of the righteous man who shall he home on t$x
shoulders of tbe angels into Paradise : none shall in that dreadful place
lay hold of my skirt seeking of me property that I seized, or wealth tktt
I pillaged, or Mood that I shed, or a veil that I rent away, or a man that
I slew, or a right that I denied. For, hebold, Cod bath placed me by
lawful means in the way of [7] a thousand volumes of choice hooks and
noble treatises, and I have bequeathed them all to tbe libraries that bam
been founded in tbe countries of Islam, that the Moslems might profit by
them. And whoever holdeth such tenets, bow could be find it in Us
heart to rob tbe books of a learned imam that bath expended tbe whole
of bis life in gathering together a few paltry leaves such as, were they
sold with their leather bindings, would not fetch tbe price of a miser's
dinner? Of a truth, let Your Honour fear God, let him not may
God perpetuate his excellence Ibe guilty of fabricating a Ik against tbe
like of me, and let him not commit a sin that will cleave to his skirts
on the Day of Judgement. Let him fear God f than Whom there is no
other god, and let him think of the day when the truthteller shall he rewarded
for his trutbtelling and tbe liar punished for bis lying. Farewell I *

Because of this weakening of the Sultan s position vainglory
waxed great in the brain of Atsiz. Rashid Vatvat has a qasida
on this subject, of which the following is the opening line :

King Atsiz ascended the throne of the kingdom: the
luck of Sdjuq and his family came to an end.

And he has other qasidas in the same strain.
Sultan Sanjar, in order to take vengeance for this shameful

281

THE HISTORY OF

act, set out for Khorazm to make war on him In the year
538/1143-4; and hairing at the gates of the town he set up his
mangonels and unfurled the standard of battle. But when the
moment was at hand when Khorazm should have been con-
quered and the weal of Atsiz changed to woe, he dispatched
gifts and presents to the emirs of the Court and sought the
Sultan's pardon [8] and courted his favour. The Sultan was
mollified and turned back along the path of peace and recon-
ciliation, whereupon Atsiz raised the head of rebellion in his
wonted manner. The Sultan then sent Adib Sabir upon a
mission to him and Adib remained for some time in Khorazm.
Meanwhile, Atsiz had suborned two Khorazmian ruffians of
the sect of the Heresy, 15 buying their souls and paying the price,
and had sent them to slay the Sultan unawares. Adib Sabir
learnt of this circumstance, and he wrote a description of the
two men and sent it to Merv in the leg of an old woman's boot.
When the letter reached Sanjar he ordered a search to be made
for the men; and they were discovered in a tavern and dis-
patched unto hellfire. When Atsiz learnt of this he flung Adib
Sabir into the Oxus.

In Jumada II, 542 [October-November, 1147], the Sultan
again attacked Khorazm ; and first he besieged for two months
the small town of Hazar-Asf, 16 which in the present age was
submerged after [the passage of] the Mongol army. Anvari,
who was in attendance on Sanjar in this campaign, wrote the
following quatrain upon an arrow, which he let fly into Hazar-
Asf:

O king, all the empire of the earth is accounted thine ;

By fortune and good luck the world is thy acquisition:

Take Hazar-Asf 17 to-day with a single assault,

And to-morrow Khorazm and a hundred thousand horses shall be thine.

Vatvat, who was in Hazar-As wrote the following lines upon
the arrow and shot it back:

15 I.e. the heresy (ilhai) of the Isma'ilis. See above, p. 256, n. 28.

16 Or Hazar-Asp, as it is called to this day.

17 Or * a thousand horses *, the literal meaning of Hazar-Asp, from the Persian
bazar * thousand ' and w$ (a$) * horse '.

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

If thine enemy, O king, were the hero Rustam himself.

He could not cany forth a single ass from thy thousand hones.

[9] After much toil and countless trouble the Sultan finally
took Hazar-Asf. And because of the verse previously mentioned
and the lines quoted above and other similar poems he was
greatly wroth with Vatvat and had sworn that when he was
found his seven limbs should be torn asunder. Accordingly he
made great efforts to trace him issuing proclamation after pro-
clamation. Meanwhile Vatvat [lay hidden] all night on a roof-
top and all day in a riverbed. 18 Then, realizing that flight would
avail him nothing, he secretly approached the king's ministers,
but none of them, seeing the Sultan's wrath, would undertake
to intercede on his behalf. By virtue of their common profession
he then sought refuge with the uncle of the great-grandfather of
the author of these lines, Muntajab-ad-Din Badi c al-Katib (may
God water tfa surface of bis gmn with th clouds of His sanctity !).
Muntajab-ad-Din, since he united the office of scribe with that
of courtier, was accustomed to approach the Sultan at the time
of the morning prayer before the dignitaries of the Divan came
in, and after the performance of the prayer he would begin to
give advice and would relate some merry tale suitable to the
occasion after the serious business was over; and the Sultan
used to consult him about the secrets of the kingdom. To be
brief, the conversation gradually came round to Rashid Vatvat
and Muntajab-ad-Din rose to his feet and said : * I have a
request if Your Majesty will grant it/ The Sultan having
promised to do so, Muntajab-ad-Din went on : * Vatvat is bet
a puny little bird ; 19 [10] he will not bear being divided into
seven pieces. If Your Majesty so command, let him be simply
cut in two/ Whereupon the Sultan laughed and spared
Vatvat's life.

When the Sultan reached the gates of Khorazm, an ascetic
called Zahid-i-Ahu-Push, 20 whose food and clothing was the
flesh and hide of the deer, presented himself before Sanjar and

18 Not to be taken literally: vatv% (watwaf) in Arabic means "swallow
or 'swift*.
19 Cf. the preceding note. 20 Le. * the hermit clad in deerskins '.

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after delivering a goodly sermon interceded for the people of the
town. Atsiz too sent messengers bearing gifts and presents and
offering excuses. The Sultan, who was clemency and forgive-
ness personified, pardoned his faults for the third time, and it
was arranged that Atsiz should come to the banks of the Oxus
and make obeisance to him. On Monday the I2th of Muhar-
ram 543 [2nd of June, 1148], Atsiz came and made obeisance
on horseback ; and then rode off before the Sultan could turn
rein. Though Sanjar was incensed at this lack of respect, yet
since he had already pardoned him he swallowed his anger as
best he could and said nothing. And at once he was dis-
tinguished with the excellence of the verse : ' And who master
their anger and forgive others,' 21 for f God loveih the doers of good! 21

And when the Sultan reached Khorasan he dispatched mes-
sengers and distinguished Atsiz with donatives and gratuities.
Atsiz for his part received the messengers with every respect and
sent them back with many gifts and presents. Hereafter Atsiz
went on several campaigns against the infidels 22 and gained the
victory over them. At that time the ruler of Jand was Kamal-ad-
Din, 23 the son of Arslan-Khan Mahmud, and there was great
friendship between them. When Atsiz had conquered most of
that region he set out in Muharram, 547 [April-May, 1152],
for Suqnaq and the other territories [beyond] intending to
proceed thither together with Kamal-ad-Din. He had reached
the neighbourhood of Jand when Kamal-ad-Din took fright and
fled with his army to [n] Rudbar. 24 When Atsiz learnt of
his alarm and flight, he sent a number of the notables and chief
men to reassure him with promises and safeguards. Kamal-ad-
Din came to join him, and he ordered him to be put in chains,
in which he remained until his death.

Kamal-ad-Din had been on terms of friendship and affection
with Rashid Vatvat, and Atsiz was now given to understand
that Vatvat had been aware of Kamal-ad-Din's attitude. For

21 Koran, iii, 128. 22 I.e. the heathen Turks.

23 Apparently a Qara-Khanid. See Barthold, Turkestan, 328.

24 Perhaps the Rudbar in the province of Shash (the present-day Tashkent).
See Barthold, op. cit. t 174, n. 3.

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this reason he dismissed him from his service for a while. Vatvat
has both qasidas and qifas on this subject. The following are
two or three verses from such a qifa :

O king, when Destiny saw that the hand of thy magnificence

was no longer laid on my head, she ground my body tinder

the foot of oppression.
Without the fairness of thy favour and the goodness of thy

grace, the World decreased my comfort and Destiny

increased my pain.
Look upon me with greater kindness, for should aught Wall

me, then, by God, Destiny will show no other like

unto me.

And here are some verses from another:

For thirty years thy servant did sing thy praises in the

shoe-rank, 25 and thou didst call for those praises from

thy throne.
The Lord of the [Heavenly] Throne knoweth that never did

there stand in any court such a singer of praises as thy

servant,
Now thy heart hath grown weary of him that was thy servant

for thirty years : weariness indeth its way into thy

heart because of the length of time.
But the proverb says : * When the master is annoyed he findeth

fault * and yet thy wretched servant is blameless.

[12] And when Jand was purged of rebels Atsiz dispatched
Abul-Fath Il-Arslan 26 thither and set him over that region.

And it was in this year that the Ghuzz host (hasbam) was
victorious and took Sultan Sanjar prisoner, setting him by day
upon a royal throne and keeping him at night in an iron cage. 27
Desirous of seizing the kingdom but giving as his pretext that

25 'The "shoe-rank" (Saffun-nMl in Arabic, pd-m&cUn in Persian) is the
pkce by the door where those who enter kick off their shoes, and where servants
and humble visitors take their stand/ (Browne, A Literary History of Persia, II,
332, n. I,)

26 His son and successor.

27 qafas-i-abcM. The cage would appear to have been a real one, unlike that in
which the Ottoman Sultan Bayezid was said to have been imprisoned by Tamer-
lane. The story of this latter cage, * so long and so often repeated as a moral
lesson ', was already in Gibbon's day * rejected as a fable by the modern writers,
who smile at the vulgar credulity*. See Gibbon, VII, 60 and n. 53.

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he was fulfilling his obligations to his benefactor, Atsiz set out
for Amuya with all his following and troops. He advanced
very slowly and upon reaching Amuya endeavoured to possess
himself of the castle by diplomacy. However, the governor
refused to listen to him, and he sent a message to Sultan Sanjar
to make professions of fealty and loyalty and to crave the castle
of Amuya. The Sultan sent the following reply : * We begrudge
thee not the castle, but first send IkArslan with an army to our
assistance, and then we shall grant thee the castle of Amuya
and the double thereof/ Emissaries passed twice or thrice
between them with question and answer, but finally, in the face
of this refusal, Atsiz turned back and went to Khorazm, from
whence he again prepared a foray against the infidel.

At this juncture Rukn-ad-Din Mahmud b. Muhammad
Boghra-Khan, 28 the nephew of Sultan Sanjar, to whom the
army had sworn allegiance and whom they had set on the throne
of the Sultanate as Sanjar's successor, bethought himself of his
former friendship with Atsiz and sent a messenger from Khorasan
to seek his assistance in quenching the flame of the Ghuzz.
The Khorazm-Shah accordingly set out for Shahristana taking
Il-Arslan with him and leaving another son, Khitai-Khan, 29
in Khorazm as regent. Upon reaching Shahristana he sum-
moned the emirs of that region in order to restore order to a
kingdom that had been lost and to affairs that had become
distraught. Meanwhile news [13] arrived that the Emir e lmad-
ad-Din Ahmad b. Abu-Bakr Qamaj had dispatched a thousand
horsemen and carried off Sultan Sanjar from the hunting field
bearing him to Tirmiz. Nobles and commoners rejoiced and
made merry; and the Khorazm-Shah halted in Nisa to wait
for Mahmud Khan and the other emirs. These now regretted
both his coming and their having sent for him. However they
dispatched *Aziz-ad-Din Tughra'i and concluded a treaty with

28 The son of Arslan-Khan, on whom see above, p. 2,79, n. 12. His father
is here wrongly given the title of Boghra-Khan, probably on account of a con-
fusion with his uncle Abul-MuzarTar Tamghadi-Boghra-Khan Ibrahim. Mah-
mud Khan had abandoned his territories in Transoxiana after the defeat of
Sanjar by the gur-^ban. See Barthold, ep. ctt. f 322 and 326.

29 Cf. the Qara-Khanid title of Tamghach-Khan. See above, p. 279, n. 12.

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him. He then departed and went to Khabushan of Ustuva,
whither came Khaqan Rukn-ad-Din from Nishapur. They

met and trod together the pathway of friendship, remaining in
each other's company for three months striving to repair the rain
of the kingdom. One day the Khorazm-Shah held a feast to
which he invited Khaqan Rukn-ad-Din. The following is a
verse in their praise from a qasida of Vatvat :

They are united like two auspicious stars in one 3hoosc,
two monarchs in one happy court.

After this the Khorazm-Shah fell ill. One day in the midst of
his illness there reached him the sound of someone reciting the
Koran. Thinking to take an augury he listened intently and
bade his courtiers be silent. The reader had reached the follow-
ing verse : ' Neither knoweth any soul in which land it shall die! w
He took this as an evil omen ; his illness grew worse ; and on
the night of the 9th of Jumada II, 551 [soth of July, 1156], he
passed away and the pride of haughtiness and arrogance went
out of his head. [14] Rashid-ad-Din Vatvat wept over his body
and pointing to it said:

* O King, Heaven trembled at thy severity, it laboured

like a slave before thee.

Where is there a man of discernment to consider whether
all thy kingdom was worth but this ? *

After four days had passed his death was made known and
Il-Arslan set out for Khorazm ; and on his journey thither all
the emirs and soldiers swore allegiance to him. He imprisoned
his younger brother, Sulaiman-Shah, on whose brow he had
observed the signs of rebellion, and executed Oghul-Beg, his
atabeg. And on the 3rd of Rajab of the same year [22nd of
August, 1156] he ascended the throne of the Khorazm-Shahs ;
whereupon he arrested some that harboured thoughts of ill-will
and granted the emirs and soldiers more pay and larger fiefs
than they had had in his father's day; he likewise bestowed
many charities. Rukn-ad-Din Mahmud Khan sent envoys to

80 Koran, xxxi, 34.

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congratulate him on his accession and to condole with him on
his father's death.

And when news- came that on the 6th of Rabf I, 552 [8th
of May, 1157], Sultan Sanjar had passed into the nearness of
God, the people of Khorazm sat down in mourning for three
days.

And in the year 553/1158-9 some of the chiefs of the Qarlugh
that dwelt in Khorazm, under the leadership of Lachin Beg and
the sons of Bighu Khan 31 and others like them, fled from the
Khan of Samarqand, Jalal-ad-Din *Ali b. al-Husain 32 known
as Kok~Saghir, 33 and came to Khorazm saying that Jalal-ad-
Din had slain Bighu Khan, who was the leader of the Qarlugh,
and had designs upon the leaders. The Khorazm-Shah II-
Arslan [15] gave them encouragement and in Jumada II of
the same year [July, 1158] set out for Transoxiana. When the
Khan of Samarqand received the report of his approach he
sought refuge in the citadel and took with him into Samarqand
all the nomad Turcomans that lived between Qara-Kol and
Jand. He appealed to the Qara-Khitai for help and they sent
Ilig Turkmen 34 to the rescue with ten thousand horse. Mean-
while the Khorazm-Shah, having encouraged the people of
Bokhara with promises, set out from thence for Samarqand.
The Khan of Samarqand, for his part, drew up his forces, and
the two armies halted on either side of the Sughd River, the

31 BYTW. Barthold, op. tit, 333, reads this name Payghu but suggests the
reading Yabghu. (yabgbu was the title of the ancient rulers of the Qarluq. See
HuSH f 97.) On the other hand, Pelliot, op. tit., 16, prefers to see in it the Turkish
word %fof, *norn d'un oiseau de proie assez analogue au faucon*. Cf. the
name of the other Qarluq leader Lachin, i.e. * the Falcon *,

22 His father's name was actually Hasan QIlch-Tamghach-Klhan Abul-
Ma'ali Hasan b. *AM k al-Mu*inin, also known as Hasan Tegin. See Barthold,
op. dL, 322 and 333-

83 KWKSATR. Perhaps 'Blue Ox'. C the form sqjtir in Houtsma,
Glossw, 8i for the normal sigbir ' ox *. He also bore the tide of Chaghri-Khan.
See Barthold, op. dt.,^n and n. 5. chagbri according to Kashghari was one of
the innumerable Turkish words for * hawk * or * falcon *.

34 AYLK TEJOLAN, i.e. apparently Dig the Turcoman. Barthold, op.
dt., 333, n. 10, suggests that this was perhaps the former ruler of Baksaqun, on
whom see below, p. 355 and n. 7. % is an Old Turkish word for ' king*.
See Pelliot, op. dt. t 16.

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young men attacking each other In skirmishes. But when Ilig
Turkmen saw the Khorazm-Sbah and his army he began to
humble and abase himself, and the imams and ukma of Samarqand
engaged in intercession and supplication and sued for peace.
The Khorazm-Shah acceded to their prayers and having restored
the Qarlugh emirs to their posts with full honours he returned
to Khorazm.

Now after the death of the Sultan, Mahmud Khan had ascended
the throne, but because of the Ghuzz and the victories of
Mu'ayyid Ai-Aba/ 5 who had been ngbulam** at Sanjar's court
[i6] t where he was distinguished above the other ibulams for
his horsemanship and skill in racing, the affairs of Khorasan
were confused and distraught. And In Ramazan, 557 [August-
September, 1162] Mu'ayyid Ai-Aba took Sultan Mahmud out
of the inner city of Nishapur and blinded him ; and he died
in the castle in which he had been imprisoned. And in the
year 558/1162-3 the Khorazm-Shah set out for Shadyakh with
a numerous army and a mighty host ; and for a while he besieged
Ai-Aba there, till envoys passed between them, and they made
peace, and he returned to Khorazm.

And in the year 566/1170-1 the armies (hasiwm) of Khitai
and Transoxiana gathered in great numbers to attack him.
Upon receiving tidings hereof he made ready for battle and sent
'Ayyar Beg, his commandet-in-chief, who was o0e of the
Qarlugh of Transoxiana, on [17] in advance to Amuya. Before
the Khorazm-Shah's arrival the armies had already joined battle :
c Ayyar Beg's army was put to flight, and he himself was taken
prisoner. Il-Arslan fell ill and returning to Khorazm he died
upon the ipth of Rajab of the same year [8th of August, 1170].

His younger son, Sultan-Shah, who was his heir apparent,
ascended the throne of Khorazm in succession to his father ; and
his mother, Queen Terken, administered the kingdom. His
elder brother, Tekish, was then in Jand, A messenger was sent
to summon him but he refused to come. An army was then

36 On the name see above, p. 148, n. 26.

36 On the career of the jWfi* ('slave') as a member of the sovereign's per-
sonal guard see Barthold, op. dt. t 227.

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THE HISTORY OF

fitted out to attack him, and upon receiving tidings of this he
fled and betook himself to the daughter of the Khan of Khans
of Qara-Khitai, who at that time herself bore the title of Khan, 37
the affairs of the kingdom being administered by her husband,
Fuma. s8 When he had come to them Tekish promised them
all the treasures and wealth of Khorazm and undertook, once
the country was subjugated, to send a yearly tribute. Fuma was
accordingly dispatched to accompany Tekish with a numerous
army. When they drew near to Khorazm, Sultan-Shah and
his mother, rather than fight and do battle, took the straight road
before them and joined the malik Mu'ayyid ; and on Monday
the 22nd of [18] Rabi* I, 568 [Monday the nth of December,
1172], Tekish entered Khorazm and ascended the throne of the
Khorazm-Shahs. Each of the poets and orators composed
congratulatory speeches and poems. Rashid-ad-Din Vatvat,
who had passed his eightieth year in the service of his ancestors,
was brought before Tekish on a Htter. * Everyone/ he said,
* has composed his congratulations in accordance with his fancy
and talent. But as for thy servant, because of the weakness of
my constitution and the greatness of my age my strength is
unequal to the task. I must confine myself to a single quatrain
that I have composed for luck's sake:

Thy grandsire washed tyranny off the page of the world ;
Thy father's justice repaired whate'er was broken ;
O thou, whom the cloak of the Sultanate exactly fits,
Come, let us see what thou canst do for 'tis thy turn to rule.*

And Tekish performed the rites of justice and equity and having
fulfilled his obligations to Fuma sent him back with all honour
and respect.

As for the mother of Sultan-Shah she sent the malik Mu'ayyid
presents consisting of precious jewels and all kinds of treasures

37 This was P'u-su-wan, the Empress Ch'eng-t'ien (1164-77). She was the
sister of the late Khan, the Emperor Yi-lieh (1151-63), and the daughter of
the original gtir-khan, Yeh-lii Ta-shih (1124-43). See Wittfogel and Feng,
History of Chinese Society : Liao, 621 and 644.

38 Reading FWMA with Barthold for the FRMA of the text. Fuma is
really a title, the Chinese fom * imperial son-in-law '. See Barthold, op. tit, 337
and n. 3, Wittfogel and Feng, op. dt., 665 and 670.

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and offered him the kingdom of Khorazm and all its territory*
boasting of the attachment of the people and the army to mother
and son. In the end the malik Mu'ayyid was deluded by their
words, and the Satanish whisperings of his lost for land and
wealth led him far astray from the path of righteousness. He
collected his scattered forces and set out for Khorazm with
Sultan-Shah and his mother. When they reached Suburai 8i
[19] a town which is now submerged in the river, Mu*ayyid*s
army being unable to cross the desert in one body, they proceeded
in detachments not knowing that the Khorazm-Shah himself had
halted in Suburni. The malik Mu'ayyid was in the van. When
he reached Suburni Tekish fell upon his detachment, slew the
greater part of them and took Mu'ayyid himself prisoner. He
was brought before him and was cut in half at the door of his
tent. This event fell out on the ninth of Zul-Hijja, 569 [nth of
July, 1174]-

Meanwhile Sultan-Shah and his mother fled to Dihistan. 1 *
Tekish followed them thither and Dihistan surrendered to him :
he put Sultan-Shah's mother to death and returned home.
Sultan-Shah fled from thence and made his way to Shadyafch,
where Toghan-Shah, the son of the malik Mu'ayyid, had taken
up residence in succession to his father. He remained some time
in Nishapur, but Toghan-Shah being unable to assist him with
men or money he went from thence to join the Sultans of Ghur 41
and laid hold of the skirt of appeal to them : they welcomed
him with the kindnesses that are shown to such guests.

39 The text has SWBRLY. There are many variant spellings. According
to Yaqut it was the last place in Khorazm on the road to Shahristan (i.e. to
Khorasan). See Barthold, op. dL, 153 and 337, n. 5.

40 Dihistan was the name of a district north of the Atrek on the eastern shores
of the Caspian, in what is now Turkmenistan. * Dihistan undoubtedly echoes
the name of the ancient nomad people Adai Dabae one of whose branches were
the Aparnoi; from the latter arose the family of the future Parthian rulers. . . /
(Minorsky, Hudud, 386.)

41 I.e. Ghiyas-ad-Din Muhammad and his younger brother Shihab-ad-Din
(Muhammad Ghur). On the Sultans of Ghur (the Ghurids or Ghorids) see
Barthold, op. dt. f 338-9, Lane-Poole, The Mohammadan Dynasties, 291-4. * The
name of Ghur was borne by the mountain region situated to the east and south-
east of Herat and south of Gharjistan and Guzgan ; the dialect of these moun-
taineers differed materially from that of Khurasan.' (Barthold, op. dt. f 338.)

Y 291

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As for Sultan Tekish, he had completed the restoration of
order In Khorazm and the affairs of the kingdom were in good
trim* Meanwhile the envoys of Khitai were continually passing
to and fro, and their constant impositions and demands were
beyond endurance, and moreover they did not observe the
conventions of courtesy. Now the nobility of the soul necessarily
refuses to tolerate oppression and will not bear to accept tyranny.
f The nature of a free soul is filed with pride ! He caused one of
the notables of Khitai, who had come upon an embassy, to be
put to death on account of his unseemly behaviour ; and there
was an exchange of abuse between Tekish and the people of
Khitai.

When Sultan-Shah learnt of this estrangement between them
he rejoiced and considered it a sign [20] of his own good fortune.
The Khitayans, in order to despite Tekish, summoned him to
them ; and at his request Sultan Ghiyas-ad-Din dispatched him
thither with ample gear and equipment. When he left Ghiyas-
al-Din the latter turned to his emirs and said : * It has occurred
to me that this man would have stirred up sedition in Khorasan
and must needs have caused us much toil and trouble. Per-
chance this was a divine inspiration/

Upon arriving in Khitai Sultan-Shah spoke of his popularity
with the people of Khorazm and with the army, and they sent
Fuma to assist him with a large army. When they reached the
neighbourhood of Khorazm Tekish flooded the way of passage
with the waters of the Oxus ; and on this account they were
unable to move to and fro. The Sultan then made ready for
battle within the town and disposed his thrusting and striking
weapons. Fuma halted at the gates, and seeing of Sultan-Shah's
popularity with that people no sign save strife and contention
he repented of his precipitance and made ready to return home.
Sultan-Shah perceived that no good would come of the attack
on Khorazm, and knowing of no other means of escape he
asked Fuma to send a detachment of his army to escort him to
Sarakhs. Fuma granted his request, and he fell upon Sarakhs
and attacked Malik Dinar, who was one of the Ghuzz emirs.
Most of the defenders he made fodder of the sword, and Malik

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

Dinar himself Be herled into the castle moat. He was pulled
out of the water by the hair by those inside the castle, in which
the remainder of the Ghuzz now sought refuge. Sultan-Shah
then set out for Merv, where he took up his abode, sending
back the army of KhitaL And he made constant attacks upon
Sarakhs until most of the Ghuzz had been scattered. [21] As
for Malik Dinar, finding himself powerless in the fortress, for
most of his men had deserted him, and he was left like a bad
dinar at the bottom of the purse, he sent a message to Toghaa-
Shah to ask for Bistam in place of Sarakhs, Toghan-Shali
granted his request and sent the Emir 'Urnar of Firuzkoh 4S to
Sarakhs to take over the castle from him; and Malik Dinar
departed to Bistam. 43

When Sultan Tekish came to Jajarm from Khorazm on his
way to Iraq Malik Dinar abandoned his dinars and his fief and
went to join Toghan-Shah. The latter then recalled 'Umar of
Firuzkuh from Sarakhs and sent in his stead the Emir Qara-
Qush, who was one of his father's ghulams. Meanwhile, Sultan-
Shah made ready to attack Sarakhs with less than three thousand
men and sought an opportunity to break and violate his covenant
and agreement. Toghan-Shah, for his part, set out from
Nishapur with ten thousand men fully equipped with money
and supplies and marched against Sarakhs intent on battle. In
Asiya-yi-Hafs on Wednesday the 22nd of Zul-Hiya, 576
[i3th of May, ii8i], the millstone (asiya) of war began to turn,
and the warriors entered the field from either side; and after
much strife and carnage the shock of the onslaught of Sultan-
Shah's army was the bane and ruin of Toghan-Shah ; [22] and
by the might of God Sultan-Shah triumphed and much wealth
and property found its way as booty into his treasury, including
amongst other things three hundred backgammon boards.

Sultan-Shah now made himself master of Sarakhs and Tus
and all that region, and the star of his fortune rose again after
setting. And being, unlike Toghan-Shah, a man of war and

42 See below, p. 328, n. 5* _ f , r -

43 Bistam, the modern Biistam (Bostam), was famous for tfoe tomb of tfoe
celebrated Sufi Abti-Yazid (Bayazfd), who died and was buried here in 74-

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THE HISTORY OF

battle, not a lover of cymbal and harp, he was constantly attack-
ing the latter, so that his army grew weary, and most of his emirs
and nobles went over to Sultan-Shah, and his kingdom lost its
lustre. He appealed several times for help to Sultan Tekish
and the Sultan of Ghur, sending messengers to them and on
one occasion going to Herat in person to ask for an army to
assist him. It was of no avail, and he continued in the like
state of frustration until the night of Tuesday the i2th of Muhar-
ram, 581 [15* of April, ii86], when he departed from this
to the next world and his son, Sanjar-Shah, was set upon the
throne in succession to his father. Mengli Beg, 44 who was his
atakeg, was now paramount and opened his hand in confiscations
and extortions; whereupon most of Toghan-Shah's emirs
entered the service of Sultan-Shah, who gained control of the
greater part of Toghan-Shah's territory.

As for Malik Dinar, he went to Kerman, and all the Ghuzz
Turks, wherever there were any of them left, came to join him
there*

In the beginning of the year 582/1186-7 Sultan Tekish went
from Khorazm to Khorasan, and Sultan-Shah availed himself
of the opportunity to enter Khorazm at the head of a large army.
Sultan Tekish came to Merv and sat down before the gates of
the town. As for Sultan-Shah, contrary to his expectations, he
was not admitted into Khorazm; and because of Tekish's
presence at the gates of Merv he dared not remain where he was.
Upon reaching Anxuya he left most of his army there and in
the night with only fifty men-at-arms cut his way through the
armies of [23] Tekish and entered Merv. The next day, when
the Sultan learnt that his brother had entered the town and
fortified himself there, he turned rein and without waiting further
hastened away to Shadyakh. In Rabi' I, 582 [March-April,
1 1 86], he sat down before that town and besieged Sanjar-Shah
and Mengli Beg for two months. When peace had been
established and the Sultan had returned home, he sent Shihab-
ad-Din Mas'ud the Grand Chamberlain, Saif-ad-Din Mardan-
Shir the Table-Decker and Baha-ad-Din of Baghdad the Scribe

44 Ibn-al-Atlur calls Win Meagli Tegm. (M.Q,)

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upon a mission to Mengll Beg to conclude the treaty of peace
and confirm the agreement to which he had engaged himself.
The Sultan's domestics not having accompanied them Mengli
Beg sent them in chains to Sultan-Shah, and they remained
imprisoned until a reconciliation was effected between the
brothers.

Now the imam Burhan-ad-Din Abu-Sa*id b. al-Imam Fakht-
ad-Din *Abd-al- Aziz of Kufa was in the service of the Sultan.
He was one of the greatest savants and the most distinguished
imams of the day and held in high esteem by the sultans of the
age ; and the posts of Cadi and sbaiklhul-Ishm of Khorasan
were entrusted to him. Of the products of his mind are these
two or three verses which he sent to Kufa and which were
dictated (imla) to me by a friend when I was writing this account
of him :

Will returning to the confines of Kufa slake the thirst

of longing before my death ?
And shall I walk in the morning between al-Kunas and *KMi 45

shedding my tears upon those Mils?

[24] God preserve my companions in Iraq even though Ay have jkrng Ae
whole of my life from them in scattered fragments.

After the conclusion of peace he entered Shadyakh, and Mengli
Beg seized him and put him to death.

Upon hearing the tidings of his brother's return home, Sultan-
Shah, in conformity with his custom and his desire to hold
sway over the territory of Nishapur, again advanced on Shadyakh
and fought there for a while ; but perceiving that he made no
progress and that the townspeople were too strong for him, he
turned from thence to Sabzavar, to which he laid siege, setting
up his mangonels. The people of Sabzavar hurled insults at
him and he grew angry and exerted every effort to take the town.
When the inhabitants were in desperate straits and were left
without asylum or means of escape, they approached Ahmad~i-
Badili, the shaikh of the age, who was one of the saints (ahi&l)

45 Al-Kunas must be an abbreviated form of al-Kunasa, the name of a quarter
of Kufa. The vocalisation of KNDH is quite uncertain. It is dearly not
identical with Kinda, a district in die Yemen. (M.Q.)

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THE HISTORY OF

of this world and without peer in the religious and mystic
sciences. He went forth to save them and interceded with
Sultan-Shah, who received him with marks of respect and
granted his prayer for fair pardon and condonation of their faults
and hasty utterances. Now Shaikh Ahmad was a native of
Sabzavar, and as he left the town on his mission of intercession
the people hurled abuse at him on account of their quarrel with
the Sufis 4fi and the shaikhs. And he said : * If there had been
a more refractory people than this, Ahmad, my teacher, 47 would
have sent me to them/ They shot an arrow after him and it
hit him in the heel ; but he paid no attention. Shaikh Ahmad
is the author of mystic poetry, ghazals, quatrains and epistles.
The following [25] is one of his quatrains :

O soul, if thou cleansest thyself from the dust of the body,
Thou wilt become a holy spirit in the heavens.
A throne is thy seat: art thou not ashamed
To come and dwell in an earthly abode ?

Sultan-Shah entered Sabzavar but kept his word and left for
Merv after remaining but an hour.

And on Friday the I4th of Muharram, 583 [27th of March,
1187], Sultan Tekish sat down before Shadyakh, set up his
mangonels and began a fierce battle. Mengli Beg was finally
compelled to appoint imams and shaikhs as mediators sending
them to him and laying his hand upon the skirt of supplication.
Tekish granted his petition and confirmed his word by oath.
And Mengli Beg presenting himself before the Sultan the latter
entered the town on Tuesday the I7th 48 of Rabi e I of the same
year [27th of May, 1187], and spread the carpet of justice and

46 abl4-si(ffa had nothing to do with the Sufis but by a false etymology fttffa
had been associated with stiff (see Reckendorf in the Encyclopedia of If km) ; there-
fore here probably * the saintly people *, * the Sufis '. (V.M.)

47 jwr. Possibly the reference is to Ahmad of Jam (441-536/1049-1142),
whose sanctuary (the town of Turbat-i-Shaikh Jam) lies in Khorasan near the
Afghan border. (V.M.)

48 So according to E. The rest of the MSS. give the date as the 7th, but
that day, as Barthold has pointed out (op. dt. f 346, n. 2), was actually a Sunday.
The 17th of Rabi* I (which is also given in a Petrograd University MS. quoted
by Barthold) would be a Wednesday, only one day out.

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clemency, and cleared the site of the thorns and rubbish of
injustice and oppression. He set a supervisor over MengH Beg
to see that he duly restored what he had wrongfully taken ; and
then in order to avenge Burhan-ad-Din for ' the flesh of the
learned is poisoned ' he was handed over, in accordance with the
fatwas of the imams, to the imam Fakhr-ad-Din 'Abd-al-'Aziz
of Kufa to be put to death in vengeance for his son ' life for
life, and for wounds retaliation! 49 The whole region 50 of Nishapur,
purged of his tyranny, was now surrendered to the Khorazm-
Shah, who placed the reins of the administration thereof in the
competent hands of his elder son, Nasir-ad-Din Malik-Shah,
and in Rajab of the same year [September-October, 1187]
returned to Khorazm.

Seeing that the coast was clear again Sultan-Shah at once led
an army to attack Malik-Shah, and caused the inhabitants of
Shadyakh to drink brimful goblets of striking and thrusting,
and destroyed the greater part of the wall And from either
side the armies clashed together [26] and opposed each other in
strife and battle. And Malik-Shah dispatched a relay of couriers
to his father and sent letters seeking aid and assistance. Where-
fore Tekish also, for his part, brooked no delay but set out with
such troops as he had at hand. And he commanded a member
of his bodyguard (mufradan-i-khass) 51 to proceed from Nisa in
the guise of a deserter and inform Sultan-Shah that Tekish had
arrived in Khorasan at the head of a great army. On receiving
these tidings Sultan-Shah set fire to his mangonels and departed
with the humility of dust and the speed of the wind. And
when the Sultan reached the town he repaired the ruins and in
the winter departed to winter quarters in Mazandaran ; and all
the emirs of Khorasan, who had not previously joined his
service, now attached themselves to him and were distinguished
and singled out by inclusion amongst the recipients of his favour.

^ Koran, v, 49. The full version is: * Life for life, and eye for eye, and nose
for nose, and ear for ear, and tooth for tooth, and for munds retaliation?

50 The text has arts' ' Barters ', apparently a reference to the four ' territories *
of Nishapur. See the Hudud, 102 and 325-

51 See below, ii, 412, in. i.

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Finally, when Spring revealed her face from behind the veil of
Winter and gave the world a share of her beauty, he returned to
Khorasan and encamped in the meadows of Radkan of Tus.
Ambassadors passed to and fro between him and Sultan-Shah
and they made peace with each other. The Khorazm-Shah, to
show his good will, placed Jam, Bakharz and Zir-i-Pul 52 in
the hands of Sultan-Shah ; and the latter, for his part, sent back
in robes of honour the Khorazm-Shah's ministers whom Mengli
Beg had dispatched to him in chains; and either party was
cleansed from the impurities of discord and Khorasan was purged
of rebels and enemies. And on Tuesday the i8th of Jumada I,
585 [24th of July, 1189], [27] the Khorazm-Shah ascended the
throne of the Sultanate in the meadows of Radkan of Tus ; and
his fame spread throughout the world and fear of his majestic
presence took root in the hearts and minds of all creation. The
poets composed many congratulatory poems and addresses upon
this occasion, and 'Imadi of Zuzan has a qarida on this subject
of which the opening lines are as follows:

Praise be to God, from East to West hath the world

been confided to the sword of the World-Monarch.
The supreme Commander, the Emperor of the Universe,

the Giver of signets to kings, the Lord of the Earth,
Tekish Khan, son of Il-Arslan, son of Atsiz kings,

father and son, from the time of Adam.
He hath stridden up to the throne of victorious fortune

as the sun strides up to the throne of the turquoise canopy.

The Sultan showered gifts and presents upon the poets in
particular and upon mankind in general; and in the autumn
of that year returned to Khorazm.

Now whilst there was peace between the brothers there was
constant enmity and warfare between Sultan-Shah and the
Sultans of Ghur; but finally, after Sultan-Shah had been
routed in the battle of Marv-ar-Rud and Panj-Dih and the pillar
of his might and glory overthrown, both parties thought it expedient
to come to terms and outwardly concluded peace with each other.

As for Sultan-Shah, he was constantly imposing on his

52 Unidentified,

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brother and made many demands of him ; and certain of his
actions pointed to a breach of their pact and a violation of their
covenant. Accordingly, in the year 586/1190-1, the Sultan set
out from Khorazm to attack him, and sitting down before the
castle of Sarakhs, which was crammed with Sultan-Shah's men
and with endless stores and armaments, he took it by storm and
destroyed it. He turned back from thence to Radkan [28] and
passed the summer there. The brothers were now reconciled a
second time, and Sultan-Shah repaired the castle of Sarakhs and
filled it with treasures and provisions. And the ropes of fraternity
and concord remained twined together between the two brothers
until the year 588/1192-3, when Qutlugh-Inanch, the son of
the atabeg Muhammad, the son of Ildegiz, 53 dispatched messengers
to the Sultan from Iraq to inform him about Sultan Toghril the
Seljuq how he had escaped from the fortress in which he had
been imprisoned 54 and was wresting the kingdom of Iraq from
his hands.

In reply to his appeal for help the Sultan set out from Khorazm.
Now Baha-ad-Din the Scribe of Baghdad 5S was at that rime
in the Sultans service. When the Sultan came to Juvain [and
arrived] at the town of Azadvar, my great-grandfather Baha-ad-
Din Muhammad b. 'AH went to wait upon him. And in the
royal presence a discussion took place between these two 56 and
the Sultan's gaze fell upon them, whereupon at a sign from
the minister my great-grandfather extemporized the following
quatrain :

Thy favour steals the glory of the hidden jewel ;

The generosity of thy hand steals away the splendour of the Oxus ;

63 Shams-ad-Din Ildegiz (1136-72) was the founder of the dynasty of the
atakegs of Azerbaijan. His son Muhammad Jahan-Pahlavan (1172-85) was the
father not only of Qutiugh-Inanch but also of the atakgs Abu-Bakr (1191-1210)
and Oz-Beg (1210-25). His immediate successor was his brother Qizil-Arskn
*Usman (1185-91).

s* By the recently deceased Qizfl-Arslan. Toghril II (1177-94) was the
last of the Seljuqs of (Persian) Iraq.

65 On Baha-ad-Din Muhammad b. Mu'ayyid al-Baghdadi and his collection
of official documents see Barthold, op. ctt. f 33-4.

56 I.e. the two Baha-ad-Dins.

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Thy decision, if thou deliberatest,

Will remove a foolish fancy from the head of Heaven.

To this tune the Sultan drank wine till nightfall ; and he made
much of my great-grandfather and honoured him with presents.

When the sun entered Aries he took the road to Iraq to assail
the rebels. And as news of his coming reached Qutlugh-Inanch
and his mother S7 they repented of having invited him and
decided to take refuge in the castle. Sitting down before Ray
the Sultan took the castle of Tabarak, 58 which was crammed
with men of battle and weapons of war [29], within one or two
days ; and his army was heartened by the capture of much
booty. He passed the summer in the neighbourhood of Ray ; and
because of the unhealthiness of the air and the insalubrity of the
water many of his army perished. Meanwhile, Sultan Toghril,
perceiving the estrangement which had arisen between the Sultan
and Qutlugh-Inanch, dispatched gifts and presents and took
refuge in the seeking of protection. And on that account the
highway of friendship was cleansed from the impurities of
embroilment and the goblet of affection filled to the brim. And
the Sultan collected the taxes and placed the Emir Tamghach
(who was the senior Turkish emir) in Ray together with an
army.

As he returned he was met on the road by scouts with the
news that Sultan-Shah, taking advantage of his absence, had
departed to lay siege to Khorazm. Sultan Tekish hastened
thither with great speed, but when he reached Dihistan mes-
sengers arrived with the glad tidings that upon the news of his
homecoming Sultan-Shah had turned back. Arriving in
Khorazm the Sultan gave himself up to feasting during the
wintertime, but when fresh down appeared upon the lips of the
earth and the bud of spring displayed its tongue in wide-mouthed
laughter, he made ready to proceed to Khorasan and attack his
brother. Upon his reaching Abivard ambassadors again passed
between the brethren and resumed the work of peace and

67 Qutlugh-Khatun. (V.M.)

58 On the castle of Tabarak, built on a hill of the same name to the north
of Ray, see le Strange, The Lands of the Eastern Caliphate, 216-17.

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reconciliation. But in spite of correspondence and the dispatch
of letters by either side the pus of contention could not be removed,
and Sultan-Shah from the exceeding malignancy of his nature
and violence of his temper would speak words remote from the
path of righteousness and divorced from modesty and propriety.
Meanwhile the governor of Sarakhs, Badr-ad-Din Chaghir, 59
growing apprehensive on account of calumnies and slanders
which had been related against him before Sultan-Shah,
imprisoned a number [30] of the garrison in whom he had no
confidence and dispatched a courier to Abivard to summon the
Sultan. The latter sent on a large force in advance and set out
in person in their wake. Upon his approach Chaghir came
out to meet him and make professions of loyalty; and he
delivered up the key to the castle and the treasuries. From grief
at this news and mortification at these tidings the light of day
was darkened to Sultan-Shah, and two days later, viz. on the
night of Wednesday, the last day of Rainazan, 589 [22nd 01
September, 1193] the sun of his life and fortune reached its
decline. The next day, because of this news, was to the Sultan
as the festival of Nauruz and in triumph he seized upon the
kingdom and possessions of Sultan-Shah.

Having thus inherited the latter's throne and court and treasury
and army he dispatched a swift messenger to Khorazm to sum-
mon Malik Qutb-ad-Din Muhammad. 60 However, his elder
son, Nasir-ad-Din Malik-Shah, who was governor of Nishapur,
was passionately fond of hunting with cheetahs and falcons, and
because of the great number of hunting grounds around Merv he
offered to exchange Nishapur for that place.

What a poor substitute for you are Syria and its people,
even though they are my own people and my home is
amongst them I

The Sultan granted his request and settled Nishapur upon

59 Reading ClR with D for the JfR of the text, chaghtr is a variant of the
Turkish cbacjir ' merlin ', * stone-Eicon '. On the use of this word as a proper
name see Houtsma, op, cit. f 28.

60 This is the famous Muhammad Khorazm-Shah, who, after his father's
death, received the tide of ' Ala-ad-Din. (M.Q.)

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Malik Qutb-ad-Din ; and he strengthened the hands of both
sons in their kingdoms and in the loosening and binding, the
tying and untying [of affairs].

Now having at the time of the dispute with his brother received
tidings that Sultan Toghril had violated the treaty between them
and hearing afterwards from Tamghach of his attack upon the
army of Khorazm and seizure of the castle of Tabarak, which
was filled with Tamghach's men, the Sultan set out for that
region in the beginning of the year 590/1194-5 in order to
avenge himself on Sultan Toghril and resolve that problem.
Inanch accompanied by the emirs of Iraq came as far as Samnan
to meet him and [31] in a posture of shame and contrition
busied himself with excuses and apologies for having donned
the necklace of his past crimes. The Sultan pardoned and
forgave him and sent him back in advance with the army of
Iraq. Meanwhile Sultan Toghril together with a great army
and a numerous host had pitched his camp three parasangs from
Ray and unfurled the banner of resistance and conflict. When
Inanch drew near he too disposed his forces and donned the
garments of battle. Now Sultan Toghril had a heavy mace, in
which he took great pride. He rode to and fro in front of the
army and, as was his custom, recited the following verses from
the Shaknama :

When the dust arose from that countless army,

the cheeks of our worthies turned pale.
As for me I raised the mace that kills with a single

blow and felled that host upon the spot.
I uttered a yell from my saddle saying, * The earth

has become a millstone upon them.' 61

And at that very moment the mill of Heaven was grinding the
grain of his life beneath the stone of annihilation and changing
the hope he had cherished into despair. He fell from his horse
and as he lay on the ground Qutlugh-Inanch came up and was
about to deal him a blow without having recognized him. He
threw off his veil to make himself known, and when Qutlugh-

61 Shahnama ed. Vullers, I8&, 1L 1060-2,

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Inanch realized who he was he exclaimed: * It was thou I
sought amongst all these and that was the purpose of this bustling
amongst friend and foe.' With one blow he removed the
haughtiness of pride and the dominion of terror from his vain-
glorious brain and confided his spirit to its original home.
Against the fickleness of the revolving heavens of what avail is
the Sultan's heavy mace ? And when Fate is hostile where is
there any conceivable advantage from abundance of troops [32]
and allies ? He was slung across a camel and brought before
the Sultan. And when the latter saw his enemy in that condition
he dismounted from his horse to prostrate himself in thanksgiving
to God and rubbed his face in the ground. ToghriTs head,
which had borne no good will towards the Commander of the
Faithful an-Nasir li~Din-Allah, 62 he sent to Baghdad ; whilst
his corpse was hanged in the market-place in Ray. This event
fell out on Thursday the 29th of Rabi e I, 590 [24th of April,
1194]. The poet Kamal-ad-Din, who was ToghriTs familiar
companion and one of his panegyrists, was taken prisoner and
brought before the vizier Nizam-al~Mulk Mas'ud, who said:
c So great was the fame of this fellow ToghriTs strength and
power, and yet he could not stand up to one charge by a scouting
party from the army of the Lord of Islam/ Kamal-ad-Din at
once replied:

'Human was superior to Bizhan in strength: virtue
becomes vice when the sun has set.* 63

The Sultan did not remain long in Ray, from whence he set
out for Hamadan; and within a short time he had captured
most of the castles in Iraq.

Now the Commander of the Faithful, an-Nasir H-Din- Allah,
wished [33] the Sultan to surrender Iraq or part of it to the
Supreme Divan. 64 Messengers passed to and fro between the
two parties, and as the Sultan would not agree the Caliph sent

62 11801225.

63 SUbium ed. Vullers, 1182, I 809. Human was a Turanian hero slain

by Bizhan.

64 Le. the Caliphate.

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Els vizier, Mu'ayyid-ad-Din Ibn-al-Qassab, to him with robes
and gifts and all kinds of honourable presents. By the time the
vizier had reached Asadabad more than ten thousand men
Kurds from Iraq and Arab soldiery had gathered around him ;
and his excessive officiousness and lack of wit and learning pre-
vailed upon him to send the following message to the Sultan :
* The honour and the diploma of Sultanship have been bestowed
by the Supreme Divan, and the surety for the affairs of the realm,
that is the vizier, has come hither on that errand. The obligation
under which he is placed by that boon requires the Sultan to
advance to meet the vizier with a small following and great
humility and to proceed on foot in front of the vizier's horse/
The pride of kingship and the Sultanate, and the knowledge
of the guile and treachery of such a meeting, and the good fortune
that attended him caused the Sultan to ward off that treason by
dispatching an army to greet him; and before the men of
Baghdad had eaten supper they gave the vizier a taste of breakfast.
He fled, bringing disgrace on the Caliphate, and the army
pursued his forces as far as Dinavar. 65 Their reputation had
been destroyed ; and the Sultan entered Hamadan possessed of
dinars and dirhems and riches beyond measure. He dispatched
revenue officials (*unimal) to the countries of Iraq and entrusted
the affairs of that realm to the emirs and agents (gumashtagan),
He bestowed Isfahan upon Qutlugh-Inanch and enrolled the
emirs in his suite. Ray he conferred upon his own son Yunis
Khan with Mayanchuq 66 as his atofag and [34] controller (naqik)
of the army. And the other districts having been disposed of
in like manner the Sultan set off in triumph to return to Khorasan.
On the way thither he received tidings that Malik-Shah had
fallen ill on account of the unhealthy climate of Merv. He sent
for him, and when he came to Tus and had recovered his health
he again entrusted the emirate of Nishapur to him and struck
the tents of departure to Khorazm. Having allotted a fief to
Sultan Muhammad in Khorasan he took him along with him.
When the winter of the year 591/1194-5 was over he set out

65 The ruins of DInavar lie about halfway between Kangavar and Kermanshah.

66 The text has MYANjQ and E MYANjWQ.

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for Suqnaq and that region to attack Qayir-Buqu 67 Khan.
The Sultan and all his forces had reached as far as Jand, when
Qayir-Buqu Khan, upon news of his approach, turned rein and
fled, and the Sultan hastened in his pursuit. Now in the
Sultan's army [35] there were a number of Oran 68 (who used
to serve as A'jamis) 69 in attendance upon the Sultan. These
now sent a message to Qayir-Buqu saying that he should stand
firm and when the armies came together they would turn their
faces and show their backs. Relying upon this Qayir-Buqii
returned and the two armies drew up in battle-order on Friday
the 6th of Jumada II of that year [yth of February, 1195]. The
Sultan's Oran withdrew behind the centre of the army and
plundered the baggage. The army of Islam was routed ; many
perished under the sword and yet more were buried in the desert
on account of heat and thirst. The Sultan himself reached
Khorazm after eighteen days.

Whilst the Sultan had been preparing for this expedition,
Yunis Khan had sent men of trust to his brother Malik-Shah
in Khorasan to announce the approach of the army of Baghdad
and to seek his aid. Upon his request Malik-Shah set out for
Iraq but before he could come to his brother's aid Yunis Khan
himself had already routed the army of Baghdad [36] and taken
much booty. The brothers met in Hamadan, and after they
had remained together a while carousing and making merry,
Malik-Shah returned home.

Upon arriving in Khorasan he sent a decree to Arslan-Shah 70
in Shadyakh appointing him his deputy and set out for Khorazm
to wait on his father. On account of his absence the humours

67 Reading QAYR BWQW with E for the QATR BWQW of the text.
Further on (II, 40 and 41) the text has QADR BWQW, i.e. Qad'ir-Buqu.
qaytr is the Western form of the normal Turkish qadir * strong * : buqu means * stag *.

68 The text has Urawyan, i.e. more precisely Orcmians. On the Oran tribe
see Barthold, op. at, 343, n. 2. Cf. also Qara-Alp Oran, i.e. Qara-Alp the
Oran. (See below, p. 309, n. 83.) For a quite different reading of the name
see Pelliot-Hambis, Campagnes, 107-8.

69 a'jamiyan, i.e. 'barbarians* in the Greek sense. So the Janissary novice
was called f ajem ogbkn * foreign lad ' as being of non-Moslem birth. See Gibb
and Bowen, Iskmic Society and the West, 329, n. 4.

70 Malik-Shah's son.

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of corruption were generated in Nishapur by the agency of a
number of demon-like men the hand of whose domination had
been restrained from tyranny and oppression under the rule of
the Solomon-like Sultan, 71 as the sword of iniquity and injustice
had then remained undrawn in the sheath of their volition.
These persons, from behind the curtains of opposition, began
to prepare for war against the Sultan together with the son of
Toghan-Shah, Sanjar-Shah, whom the Sultan used to cherish
in the bosom of his kindness and in the stronghold of his
benevolence and to favour like his own children by reason of
two ties which he maintained with him, the first being that
Sanjar's mother was married to the Sultan and the second that
the Sultan's sister had followed his daughter into Sanjar's house-
hold. He now by reason of his adverse fortune and unlucky
horoscope was reduced by the above-mentioned persons to join
in their plot. They made their plans in secret in order that no
rumour thereof might get abroad and their design might not be
revealed until they should raise up right and left and front and
rear. And in sympathy with these plans of rebellion Sanjar's
mother sent gold and jewels to Nishapur from Khorazm in order
to beguile the notables and chief men of the town with money
and lead their counsel far astray from the right path. However,
their secret became known, and Sanjar-Shah was summoned to
Khorazm where he was held in custody after being blinded in
his world-beholding eyes. 72 The light of his sight was not
completely cut off but he did not reveal this. The following is
[part of] a quatrain of his :

[37] When the hand of Destiny blinded my eye,
A cry arose from the world of Youth.

After a while the emirs and Pillars of State interceded on his
behalf urging the claims of his close relationship by marriage,
and he was released and reinstated in the fiefs he held. And
so he continued until upon a pretext made by the Angel of
Death his appointed hour arrived, viz. in the year 595/1198-9.

71 Lc. Tekish.

72 This was done by passing a white-hot bar before the victim's eyes.

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At the time when the bar was passed before his eyes no one
had known [that he had not been completely blinded] nor had
he informed anyone thereof, so that the very members of his
household were ignorant of that circumstance, and he would
squint at all that happened, good or ill, and suffered no hurt
therefrom, for to the wise man a sign is enough \

After his death the Sultan turned to preparation for war and
the disposition of striking and thrusting weapons, and he dis-
patched messengers to every side to summon the emirs of every
quarter so that he might again make ready for some adventure.
At this juncture news arrived of a dispute among the emirs of
Iraq. In the meantime, his son Yunis Khan, on account of
some hurt that had affected his eye and which could not be cured
(perhaps a punishment, for God Almighty hath said : c An eye for
an eye ' 73 J, returned from Ray leaving Mayanchuq behind as his
deputy. And in Baghdad an army commanded by [38] the
vizier was fitted out to make an attack on Iraq. Qutlugh-
Inanch came to Ray to the assistance of Mayanchuq. They
remained together for several days, and then Mayanchuq sud-
denly fell upon Qutlugh-Inanch and killed him. He sent his
head to Khorazm claiming that he had been meditating rebellion.
The Sultan was much affected by this shameful excuse and
manifest treason and realized that these were the symptoms of
insurrection, but he judged it expedient not to reveal his feelings.
Finally, in [592/1195-6] 74 he set out for Iraq for the third time.
The vizier of the Caliph being in Hainadan with an army the
Sultan halted upon reaching Muzdaqan. 75 A day or two later
the two sides joined battle and the army of Baghdad saw no
refuge save in seeking quarter. In his wonted manner the Sultan
spared their lives and dismissed them with honour. Some days
before the battle the vizier, who had commanded the army, had
passed away, and the news of his death had been kept so secret
that the army were ignorant of it until after their defeat. The

73 Koran, v. 49. See above, p. 297* n. 49.

74 There is a blank in the MSS. and M.Q. has supplied the date firom Ibn-al-
Athir.

75 Now Mazdacjan to the west of Saveh in Central Persia.

z 307

THE HISTORY OF

dead man's head was cut off and sent to Khorazm an act as
unchivakous as it was unworthy of a Sultan.

The report of the Sultan's victory spread through the two
Iraqs and his cause prospered accordingly. The atcktg Oz-Beg
came to him from Azerbaijan having fled from his brother.
The Sultan received him with honour and bestowed Hamadan
upon him.

From Hamadan the Sultan proceeded to Isfahan where [39]
he remained some time. The following qifa was composed by
Khaqani 76 [in reference to that occasion] :

Gkd tidings I the Khorazm-Shah has taken the kingdom

of Isfahan ; he has taken the kingdom of the two Iraqs as

well as Khorasan.
The crescent 77 upon his parasol has conquered the castle

of the heavens ; the wavy lustre 78 upon his sword has

taken the kingdom of Solomon. 79

After a while he set out upon the return journey having placed
his grandson Erbiiz Khan, 80 son of Toghan-Toghdi 81 in the
town of Isfahan and left Bighu Sipahsalar-i-Samani 82 as his
atabeg. Upon arriving in Khorazm he sent Nasir-ad-Din Malik-
Shah a mandate conferring upon him the emirate of Khorasan
but said : * Go not to Merv, for its climate agrees not with your
constitution. 9 However, the violence of his passion for the chase
made his intellect its prey and he set out for Merv, where he fell
sick. He left for Nishapur but his illness grew worse; his
disease prevailed over him and because of that malady he betook
himself from this transient abode to the place of eternity ; and

76 According to * Ali 'Abdorrasuli, the editor of Khaqani's Divan, Tehran,
1216/1937-8, viti, the author of these lines was actually Kamd-ad-Din Isma'il.

77 mabcba ' little moon *, which can also mean the knob at the end of his parasol.

78 murcha, which means lit. * little ant '.

79 This would normally mean Fars.

80 ARBWZ. C the name Erviiz (Erwiiz) in Kashghari.

81 Actually a sentence : togban togMi ' the falcon is born '. For other examples
of this type of name see Houtsma, op. at*, 34-5.

82 Lit. * the Samanid Commander-in-Chief *. Conceivably the title was
inherited from an ancestor in the service of the Samanids (874-999), the Persian
rulers of Transoxiana, whose dynasty was overthrown by the Qara-Khanids.

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this came to pass on the eve of Thursday the 9th of Rabf II 9
593 [ist of March, 1197]. When news of his death smote the
ear of the Sultan he moaned and lamented loudly, which availed
him nothing, and abandoned the expedition which he had
intended to make against the infidel. And since the sons of
Malik-Shah were meditating connivance at rebellion and opposi-
tion to the Sultan, he dispatched Nizam-al-Mulk Sadr-ad-Din.
Mas'ud of Herat to Shadyakh to administer affairs and allay
disturbances; [40] he sent Malik-Shah's sons, the eldest of
whom was Hindu-Shah, to Khorazm ; and by reason of his
well-considered measures the tumults of unrest and the calamities
of Fate died down under his firm control. And in the wake
of this vizier the Sultan dispatched his second son Qutb-ad-Din
Muhammad, to assume responsibility for the affairs of Khorasan,
When he arrived the vizier had already completed his work and
repelled the disturbers of the peace : two days later on the second
of Zul-Hijja [i6th of October, 1197] he returned to the Sultan
and Malik Qutb-ad-Din busied himself with the administration
of Khorasan.

[He continued to administer that province] until the time
when an estrangement occurred between Qadir-Buqu and his
nephew Alp-Direk. 83 The latter came to Jand and sent mes-
sengers to the Sultan to say that if he received help from him
he would get rid of Qadir-Buqu and his kingdom would then
be the Sultan's for the taking. The vindictiveness of anger,
more malignant than the evil eye, prevailed on him to listen to
a people of strangers, and he dispatched emissaries in all directions
to assemble troops and conclude treaties and likewise summoned
-Malik Qutb-ad-Din back from Shadyakh. Upon the latter's
arrival in Khorazm they set out together in Rabf I, 594 [January-
February, 1198], and Qadir-Buqu made a raid as far as Jand in
order to attack Alp-Direk. His arrival at Jand coincided with
that of Malik Qutb-ad-Din, who had advanced ahead of the

83 ALB DRK. I take the second element of the name to be the Turkish
tirek or dink * pillar'. On the use of this word in Old Turkish in the sense
of 'minister* see Hamilton, Us Outpours a Vfyoque ks Cinq Dynasties, 157.
Barthold, op. dt, 343-4, identifies Alp-Direk with the Qipchaq chieftain Qara-
Alp Oran (ibii, 34Q- 1 )-

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main army in order to reconnoitre ; and in this divine predestina-
tion favoured the Sultans lot. The two forces drew up and
joined battle. Qadir-Buqu was put to flight and [41] Malik
Qutb-ad-Din set out in his pursuit. [Having captured him]
he bore him, together with his chiefs and troops' linked together
in chins 3 M before the Sultan, who dispatched him in bonds
and shackles to Khorazm in Rabi* II of that year [February-
March, 1198]. Following upon him the victorious Sultans
themselves arrived in the capital.

The remains of Qadir-Buqu's people, despairing of their
leader, gathered around * Kun-Er-Direk 85 and collected together
to work confusion and light up the flame of unrest. Acting
upon the proverb : * Iron is split ly iron 3 86 the Sultan raised
Qadir-Buqu from the abasement of captivity to the glory of
command and having bound him by firm treaties dispatched
him at the head of a large force to dead with Alp-Direk.

Meanwhile, the Sultan himself set out for Khorasan and
arrived in Shadyakh on Tuesday the 2nd of Zul-Hijja, 594
[5th of October, 1198]; Three months later he left for Iraq to
settle with Mayanchuq. Because he had for so long ruled that
country and preoccupied himself with its affairs a desire for
absolute rule and complete independence had taken firm root in
his brain, and the demon of Error had rested in his overweening
mind, and he was deluded and misled by the munitions and
equipment [42] that had accrued to him by the Sultan s fortune.
During the winter of that year the Sultan tarried in Mazandaran,
but in the beginning of spring he prepared for action. As for
Mayanchuq, for all the great army he had gathered together, when
he heard the sound of the raging sea, that is, the movement of
the Sultan's troops, he was unable to picture constancy in his
heart and became exceedingly frightened and alarmed ; he was
at his wits' end as to what course he should take, and pride

84 Koran, xiv, 50, or xxxviii, 37.

85 KNAR DRK. The first part of the name is conceivably a compound
of the Turkish kun * sun * and er ' man \ As M.Q. states in a footnote, Kun-
Er-Direk must be identical with Alp-Direk, the nephew of Qadir-Buqu.

86 * Set a thief to catch a thief/

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

and firmness were inconsistent with the state of his mind. With
the few men that still remained with him he was twice chased
all round Iraq by the Sultan ; and all this time he was constantly
sending messengers to make excuses and seek pardon and at the
same time in his fear was beseeching the Sultan to desist from
summoning him to his presence. When it became clear to the
Sultan that his heart was false he dispatched an army to pursue
him like the wind. They came upon him unawares and put the
greater part of his followers to the sword. He himself with a
small defeated band made his way to the castle of Firuzkuh, 87
which he had previously seized by guile and treachery from the
Sultan's commanders, slaying those who held it on his behalf
and installing his own men in it with a great store of supplies
and provisions. Arriving before the castle in his pursuit the
Sultan's army set about besieging it: under shots from their
mangonels they dragged him by force out of the castle, bound
him upon a camel and took him to the Sultan at Qazvin. The
latter, speaking through his chamberlains, enumerated all the
boons and blessings he owed to the royal house and went on
to recount the ingratitude with which he had requited these
kindnesses and favours, committing acts of treachery, abolishing
imposts, cancelling taxes, ousting Erbuz Khan from Isfahan and
expelling his tax-collectors [43] from the Divan. * Although/
said the Sultan, * his just retribution would be nought less than
exemplary punishment and the imposition of every degree of
chastisement, nevertheless because of my debt of gratitude to his
brother Aqcha, who never committed an act of disloyalty, I
have spared his life, but on condition that as a punishment
for some of his rebellious actions he shall be enchained and
imprisoned for a year and then pass the rest of his life on one of
the frontiers against the infidel on the Jand border/

Simultaneously with this victory came the glad tidings of
Qadir-Buqu's defeat of * Kun-Er-Direk and, thirdly, the news
that messengers had arrived from Baghdad bearing splendid and

87 Le. the famous casde on the slopes of Mt. Damavand (see le Strange, of,
dt.> 371 and 372, n. i), not to be confused with Firuzkuh in Ghur, on which
see below, p. 328, n. 5.

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THE HISTORY OF

numerous presents and a patent conferring the tide of Sultan of
Iraq, Khorasan and Turkestan.

Being no longer preoccupied with all these matters and having
no further cause for apprehension regarding the Supreme Divan,
the Sultan now took it into his head to uproot and extirpate
the Heretics and led an army to the foot of QalVyi-Qahira, 88
a castle which had been captured by Arslan son of Toghril 89
and had therefore become known as Arslan-Gushai. He con-
tinued to lay siege to it for four months until, finally, being
compelled to come to terms the garrison began to come down
[44] in detachments and depart to Alamut ; and so they all of
them got away in safety with all their possessions. Arslan-Gushai
is a castle near Qazvin on the borders of the Rudbar of Alamut,
near to earth and far from heaven, by no means impregnable
and but ill supplied with men and treasure. Sayyid Sadr-ad-Din
in the Zukdat-at-Tawarikh, wishing to magnify the exploits of the
Sultan,* describes it as follows : ( It is a strong castle built of solid
rock upon a lofty mountain-top, which seizes Heaven by the forelock
and butts Orion ; and it was crammed with men eager to give their
lives and supported ly every manner of arms! 91

Now had Sayyid Sadr-ad-Din been witness of the conquest ot
their strong castles that were taken in the present age by the
army of the illustrious King 92 within a short space of time (as
shall be mentioned in its proper place), he would have been
ashamed to mention this conquest, let alone describe the
castle, and would have considered the following line of 'Unsuri
appropriate to the occasion:

Such are the actions of the great when action is called for ;
such are the traces left by the swords of the Khusraus.

88 Lit * the Mighty Castle '. According to Ravandi, 289-90, the castle was
built by the Assassins during the reign of Sultan Mas'ud (1133 ~5^) Arslan's uncle,
and given the name of Jahan-Gushai. It was unsuccessfully besieged by Mas'ud
but was finally captured by Arslan (11(51-77) at the beginning of his reign.

89 Le. Toghril I (1132-3). 90 I.G. Sultan Arslan, not of course Tekish.

91 This passage is absent from, the history of Sadr-ad-Din edited by Muham-
mad Iqbal (Lahore, 1933)- This may not however be the original work of
Sadr-ad-Din but a later compilation based upon it. The absence of the passage
quoted by Juvaini was first noticed by Houtsma in Ada Oriwtalia f III, 145.
(V.M.) MU Hiilegu.

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

And If it should occur to anyone who has not seen these castles
that this is nought but rhetorical language bearing the brand of
flattery like that describing Arslan-Gushai, such a person may
be answered with the jest of Abul-Fazl Baihaqi, who In the
Tarikb-i-Nasiri relates as follows: 'When the Sultan was
returning from Somnat 93 one of his falconers slew a great serpent.
They skinned it, and the hide was thirty ells long and four ells
broad/ Now the point of this is that Abul-Fazl goes on to
say : * If any one doubts this story let him go to the castle of
Ghazna and see that hide for himself where it hangs from the
gate like a curtain/ 94 The compiler of these histories for his
part [45] remarks that nothing now remains of that hide but a
story, but let such a doubter rise up and from Tarum 95 in the
West to the region of Sistan, which is a distance of nearly 300
parasangs, let him survey the mountains and castles that shall
stand firm till the time when it shall come to pass ' that the
mountains shall be like flocks of carded wool '; 96 let him with his reason
compare that one puny fortress with the hundred or more stout
castles, each of them a hundred times as strong as Arslan-Gushai,
that were conquered in this present age by the grace of God the
Avenger and the fortune of the august monarch Hiilegii ; and
from thence let him deduce the prowess and might of each of
their armies and warriors.

After capturing that castle and quenching the flame of unrest
the Sultan established his son Taj-ad-Din 'Ali-Shah in Iraq,
fixing his place of residence in Isfahan, and he himself turned
back and made his way to Khorazm, which he entered on the
roth of Jumada II, 596 [28th of March, 1200].

Meanwhile, the Heretics observing that the Sultan's hostility
was due to the endeavours of Nizam-al-Mulk, who was the
chief vizier, Jilcfif took up positions on the path to a palace to

93 Or Somnath, on the south coast of the peninsula of Kathiawar.

94 This passage is not to be found in the edition of the Tankb-i-Baiha^. On
the author and his work see Barthold, op. dt, 22-4.

95 Tarum (Tarom) is a district to the north of Zanjan on the south-western
slopes of the Elburz range, by which it is separated from the Caspian province
of Gflan.

96 Koran, ci, 4.

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THE HISTORY OF

which the vizier was going. When he came out of the palace
one of the accursed ones struck a blow at his back whilst another
from the other side stabbed him in the head, so that he straight-
way gave up the ghost. Now it was one of the wondrous events
of this world that the said vizier bore an enmity towards the
Grand Chamberlain Shihab-ad-Din Mas'ud of Khorazm and
also Hamid-ad-Din 'Ariz of Zuzan, and In those last days he
had been attacking these two dignitaries before the Sultan. Just
before his own death he had caused 'Ariz to be beheaded at the
gate of that palace and he was plotting to send Shihab-ad-Din
Mas'ud after him. But vengeful Fate, nay rather the previous
commandment of the Creator, required it that before fulfilling
this intention his own blood should be spilled upon that of c Ariz.
As for the /Mr they were cut to pieces on the spot [46]. The
Apostk of God (may God ikss Mm and bis family !) hath truthfully
said : ( Thou bast slain and shah be slain ; and thy slayer shall be
slain!

Sultan Tekish was much grieved at this and determined upon
requital and revenge. He appointed Malik Qutb-ad-Din to
this task and sent a messenger to Instruct him first to choose his
troops and then to begin with Quhistan. 97 In accordance with
this command Qutb-ad-Din made his preparations and com-
menced with Turshiz. 98 With a host such that the mountain
could not bear the trample of their feet he laid siege to that
castle. For four months he continued to fight; the moat of
Turshiz, which was as deep as a cavern, had been filled in, and
the siege was so far advanced that the castle might have been
taken within a week. Meanwhile, the Sultan, who had been
assembling armies from every side in Khorazm and preparing
for action, was attacked by a plethoric disease which developed
Into quinsy (from which God preserve us!). His physicians
treated the disease, and when he began to recover he set out

97 Quhistan, * the Mountain Country *, was the name given to the region
stretching southwards from the Nishapur area along what is now the Afghan
border. It is Marco Polo's Tunocain, a name derived from its two chief towns
Tun (now Erdaus) and Qa in. The principal town to-day is Birjand.

98 There is still a district of Turshiz, to the west of Turbat-i-Haidari. Le
Strange, op. dt., 354, n. 2, locates the town on the site of the present-day Firtizabad,

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

[for Turshiz]. The physicians forbade him to travel, but the
Sultan, because of the fierceness of the fire of wrath, would not
recite the sura on the acceptance of advice. He continued to
journey till he came to the stage known as Chah-i-'Arab
(* Arabs' Well *), and since the bucket of his life had fallen to
the bottom of the well his malady returned and he departed
from this transient abode to that eternal resting-place. This was
on the ipth of Ramazan, 596 [2$rd of June, 1200],

The Pillars of State at once dispatched messengers to Malik
Qutb-ad-Din to inform him. Meanwhile a prodigy occurred :
his standard snapped for no reason and drooped its head. He
took this as an evil omen and following upon it came the news
of his father's death. He concealed it from the army and on
the pretext of sickness [47] made ready to return. Envoys passed
to and fio and they began to discuss terms of peace. Having
no inkling of his father's death the people of Turshiz performed
many services and offered tribute over and above 100,000 dinars.
Malik Qutb-ad-Din then returned. Like a downrushing flood
or a torrent of rain he joined day to night and night to day until
he reached the gates of Shahristana. There he performed the
rites of mourning and hastened on to Khorazm*

PI]

OF THE ACCESSION OF * ALA-AD-DIN KHORAZM-SHAH

WHEN he arrived at the capital, the emirs and Pillars of State
gathered together and held a feast ; and on Thursday the 2Oth
of Shawal, 596 [4th of August, 1200] with divine assistance
they set him upon the throne of kingship. The withered
branches of the realm became fresh and verdant and the dead
soul of justice returned to life and health ; and bearers of the
good tidings proceeded to every corner of the land.

When news of his father's death reached the Sultans of Ghur,
Shihab-ad-Din and Ghiyas-ad-Din, those painters, the prompt-
ings of the demon Ambition, limned pictures of wicked and
unprofitable imaginings and drawings of lewd and fruitless

315

THE HISTORY OF

phantasies upon the page of their brain ; and the bride-dressers
known as Human Pride [48] perfumed and painted the brides
called Greed and Cupidity. They therefore dispatched an army
in advance to Merv, where they stationed Muhammad Kharang ;
whilst they themselves set out with a great host and ninety
elephants, each the size of a mountain. First they came to Tus,
where they engaged in much looting and pillaging, and from
thence in Rajab, 597 [April-May, 1201], to Shadyakh. Here
was the brother of Sultan Muhammad, 'Ali-Shah, who had
returned from Iraq, together with other dignitaries. The brother
Sultans rode all round the walls as though they were sightseeing
and then came to a halt in front of the town. In order to watch
the army a large crowd of people had taken up their stand in a
tower facing them. The tower collapsed. The soldiers took
this as a favourable augury ; they stormed the town that very
day and began to plunder, sending sbahnas to the houses of
ascetics and holy men lest any harm should befall them. They
continued to pillage till mid-day, when a proclamation was made
that they should desist. [49] And such was the discipline of
the army that each soldier at once let go of what he was holding ;
and all the spoil having been gathered together, as soon as anyone
recognized his goods, they were at once restored to him; for
there was policy in their plundering.

As for the army of Khorazm they were taken out of Shadyakh
together with Taj-ad-Din *Ali-Shah and the notables and
dignitaries of the Sultan's realm and subjected to many tortures
and torments, after which they were dispatched to the capital
of Ghur. Every one who had had some hand in the administra-
tion of the Divan had his property confiscated, and shahnas were
dispatched to Jurjan and Bistam to take possession of those
places. The Sultans then turned back after placing Ziya-ad-
Din in Nishapur at the head of a large army and repairing the
walls of the fortifications. Ghiyas-ad-Din went to Herat, whilst
Shihab-ad-Din proceeded to Quhistan to destroy the abodes of
the Heretics and demolish their castles. After first resisting, the
people of Junabid x sued for peace and tendered their submission.

1 Now Gunabad.

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

He set the cadi of Tulak 2 over that place as guardian and went
to Herat.

When Sultan Muhammad learnt of the turmoil and confusion
amongst the peopFe of Khorasan he set out from Khorazm like
a raging lion or a terror-striking lightning-flash with a great
army and an immense host, and on the lyth of Zul-Hijja of the
same year [i8th of September, 1201] sat down before Shadyakh
and stationed his forces around the town. The Ghuris made
sallies and engaged in battle, being full of conceit of their might
and prowess. But after tasting the valour of the army of
Khorazm, they realized that their toil was in vain and all their
fighting of no avail They crept like mice into their hole, and
mangonels were set in action on the outside until the walls were
humbled like the earth and the moat filled in. Perceiving that
they were about to fall into the abasement of captivity, they had
recourse to ambassadors and causing the shaikhs and ulema to
intervene on their behalf they humbly and servilely begged the
Sultan [50] for quarter. He put into practice the proverb:
' Iftbou art king, be indulgent ' with respect to them and closed his
eyes to crimes and misdemeanours ; and having honoured and
dignified them with robes in great number and money without
measure he dispatched them, loaded with boons and favours, to
the Sultan of Ghur, in order that they might learn how to give
when powerful and how to be clement and indulgent in the
face of great rancour and hatred.

Having ordered the walls of the town to be completely
demolished the Sultan set out from thence for Merv and Sarakhs,
which was held by Hindu-Khan, his nephew, on behalf of the
Sultans of Ghur. When Hindu-Khan heard of his uncle's
approach the rain of discomfiture rained down upon him and
he left for Ghur. Upon the Sultans arrival at Sarakhs the
governor of the fortress did not come forward [to meet him],
and he left a party to besiege the town until they took it and
made the governor prisoner.

Meanwhile the Sultan himself had returned to Khorazm by

2 Tulak is still the name of a town and district to the east of Herat. Juzjani
took part in the defence of the fortress against the Mongols. (Raverty, 1961.)

317

THE HISTORY OF

way of Merv and had a second time made ready for battle. In
Zul~Qa e da of that year 3 he set out once again intending to
attack Herat and extirpate its noble rulers. He encamped in
the meadows of Radkan, and as soon as his followers were
gathered together from every side set out from thence at the head
of a great army of Taziks and Turks, His pavilion was erected
outside Herat, and his troops pitched tent after tent all round
the town, like a bracelet about the arm. Mangonels were set in
action upon either side, and battering rams moved with the speed
of chargers ; the towers were breached and the walls smashed
to pieces. Now the governor (kutval) of the fortress, 'Izz-ad-
Din Marghazi, 4 was a man who had been polished and pruned
by the experiences of life. He saw no other means of escape
but to seek humbly for quarter. He therefore sent forward
ambassadors [51] and accepted a heavy tribute, dispatching his
own son to the Sultan as a hostage. At this the violence of
the Sultan's anger abated and his acceptance of the people's
request for pardon and forgiveness became a chain of gratitude
about their necks.

Meanwhile the Sultans of Ghur were gathering their forces
and making ready to return to Khorasan. When the Sultan
was* occupied with the siege of Herat they determined to avail
themselves of the absence of the Khorazm-Shah and his allies
from the lands and regions of that kingdom and to lead their
armies thither. Receiving tidings of this the Sultan turned back
by way of Marv-ar-Rud, while Sultan Shihab-ad-Din came up
by way of Talaqan. Sultan Muhammad thought it would be
prudent not to cross the river so that the water, like fire, might
serve as a screen between the two armies. As for the troops
they were divided in their minds whether to cross or to stay;
and some actually crossed. As the Sultan had no mind for an
encounter he decided to proceed to Merv. The men of Ghur
followed in pursuit of the Sultan's army. Upon reaching

3 Which year ? Juvaini cannot mean Zul-Qa*da of the year 597 since on
the iTth of Zul-Hijja of that year (ipth of September, 1201) the Khorazm-Shah
had laid siege to Shadyakh. [See above, p, 317.] It seems most likely that
he means Zul-Qa'da of the following year [August, 1202]. (M.Q.)

4 Le. of Merv.

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

Sarakhs, he halted ; and ambassadors passed to and fro between
the two sides. The Sultan was asked to surrender some of the
provinces of Khorasan, but because he disdained to accept
tribute he would not agree and set out from Sarakhs for Khorazm.
As for Sultan Shihab-ad-Din he led his army to Tus and
wrenched out the wings and feathers of the inhabitants with
tortures and confiscations. There being insufficient provisions
for his army he forced the people to sell corn and sent men to
carry off the grain which they had transported to Meshed
(Mashhad~i-Tus) where it was under the protection of the tomb
of the shrine. For these hard reasons, in addition to what had
gone before, the minds of noble and base alike were filled with
hatred of their rule, and the people had an even greater desire
to attach themselves [52] to the Khorazm-Shah's party.

At this juncture there came news of the death of his brother
Ghiyas-ad-Din and Shihab-ad-Din beat the drum of departure.
Upon reaching Merv he left Muhammad Kharang there. This
Muhammad Kharang was one of the chief emirs and heroes of
Ghur and, in bravery, the Rustam of the age. He made a raid
on Abivard, where he took some of the Sultan's emirs prisoner
and slew a number of people. From thence he proceeded to
Tarq 5 to attack Taj-ad-Din Khalaj, who sent him his son as
a hostage ; and as he turned back the emir of Margha 6 Hkewise
sent him his son. Elated by this success he was returning to
Merv when he received tidings that an army from Khorazm was
approaching the city by way of the desert. He turned to meet
them, and when the two armies came together the winds of the
Sultan's fortune began to blow from the direction of Divine
Assistance and the hearts of his adversaries began to tremble.
And though the army of Khorazm was not the half of the army
of Ghur they charged down upon them and put them to flight.
By a thousand wiles Kharang succeeded in entering Merv, but
the army of Khorazm arrived before the town and making a

5 Unidentified. The spelling is uncertain but may be the same as that of
the village called Tarq in Central Persia. See le Strange, The Ltmis of&e Eastern
Caliphate, 209 and 449.

6 The castle near Merv. See above, pp. 154 and 165.

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THE HISTORY OF

breach in the walls took him prisoner. For fear of his fury one
of the emirs at once dealt him a blow and his head was dispatched
to Khorazm, where the Sultan disavowed the killing. When
news of his death reached Sultan Ghiyas-ad-Din, 7 he was filled
with anxiety and bewilderment and overwhelmed with weakness
and impotence, for Kharang had been the mainstay of the Sultans
of Ghur and [53] their bulwark in battle; and his strength of
arm and courage were such that on several occasions they had
commanded him to engage in combat with a lion 8 and an
elephant and he vanquished both. When the Sultans made
him fight with these beasts every few days he killed them both
and said : * How long must I fight with a dog and a pig ? *
He would break the leg of a three-year old horse.

After the Sultan's troops had won this victory the Pillars of
State began to urge him to attack the kingdom of Herat, 9 which
kingdom they decked out to appeal to his heart and eye. c The
elder brother, Ghiyas-ad-Din,* they said, * is now removed, and
his sons are quarrelling among themselves about the kingdom
and the inheritance. The greater part of the emirs are inclined
in favour of the Sultan, and since his exalted banners have cast
their shadow over those regions, most of them have been clutch-
ing the handle of fortune/ These words produced a most
pleasant effect upon the Sultan's heart, and dreams of wealth
became pictures upon his mind. In Jumada I, 600 [January,
1204], he set out for Herat with a well-equipped army of war-
riors adorned with bravery and valour. Now Alp-Ghazi, the
chief emir of Ghur, had been appointed governor of Herat.
When the Sultan's retinue arrived before the town they set up
the royal pavilion. Mangonels were then aimed at the towers
and from every side stones rained down like hail upon the bazaars
and streets so that it became impossible for people to walk about.
The inhabitants began to despair, and Alp-Ghazi caused
ambassadors to intercede. * I have/ he said, * full authority from
the Sultan to make peace and so ensure that the path of unity

7 So in all the MSS. for Shihab-ad-Din. (M.Q.)

8 Or perhaps a tiger. See above, p. 257, n. 30.

9 I.e. the kingdom of the Ghurids.

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

be trodden and the customs of orthodoxy observed. No one
shall henceforth molest Khorasan neither shall the Sultan's men
in any way molest or injure these regions/ In addition to these
agreements and covenants he undertook to pay a huge tribute
and went surety for the Ghuris' good faith. The Sultan for his
part, wishing to lance the abscess of strife and rancour [54] and
so spare the lives and honour of fellow Moslems, gladly accepted
the offers of Alp-Ghazi and the people of Herat and protected
them from losing their lives and property. Alp-Ghazi came to
wait upon the Sultan, and the floor of the audience-hall was
bruised by the touch of his lips and his forehead covered with
dust from his prostrating himself in thanksgiving. In accordance
with their treaty the Sultan sent him back to the town after
loading him with honours, and Alp-Ghazi, in order to collect
the tribute which he had undertaken to pay, opened the hand
of oppression and exaction against the people and began to
extract it from them by such means. When the Sultan heard
of his tyranny and violence, he did not neglect the obligations
of justice towards the people and considered the waiving of this
condition to be a more lasting treasury and a stouter bastion.
In fulfilment of the treaty he withdrew. His army laid waste
the region of Badghis 10 and were heartened by the capture of
goods and cattle, although they were in fear and dread of the
Sultan on account of that pillaging. He proceeded to Merv,
and Alp-Ghazi, who had been dismissed from the service of
Sultan Shihab-ad-Din for undertaking to effect a reconciliation,
reached the appointed time only two or three days after the
Sultan's departure.

In order to take his revenge Sultan Shihab-ad-Din was again
preparing to go to war and this time he intended to begin by
attacking Khorazm. When news of his intention reached the
Sultan, he practised caution by acting with decision and returned
to Khorazm by way of the desert. In this way he raced the
army of Ghur, which exceeded ants or locusts in their numbers,
and arriving in his capital, informed the people of that army's

10 Badghis is now a district of Afghanistan, to the north of Herat on the frontier
with Turkmenistan.

321

THE HISTORY OF

approach, and announced the occurrence of that unexpected
calamity. The whole population, inwardly boiling with zealous
rage and outwardly agitated with fear of humiliation and abase-
ment, with one heart and voice agreed to resist and fight, to
oppose and repel, and all [55] of them busied themselves with
the provisions of arms and implements of war such as swords
and lances. The revered imam Shihab-ad-Din of Khivaq, 11 who
was a pillar of the Faith and a bulwark of the realm, went to
every extreme in his efforts to discomfit the enemy and repulse
them from harem and homeland, and in sermons from the pulpit
he gave sanction for battle in accordance with the true tradition :
f Whoso is slain in defence of his life and property, the same is a martyr !
On this account the zeal and good will of the people were
redoubled, and they set to work as one man. Meanwhile, the
Sultan had sent relays of messengers to every part of Khorasan
to summon infantry and cavalry, having also sought aid from
the giir-kban. He fixed his camp on the bank at Nuzvar, 12 and
within only a few days seventy thousand men of action and
spirit had been gathered together. Meanwhile the army of Ghur,
with so many troops and elephants and with such bustle and
clangour that, had they wished, they could have turned the Oxus
into a plain and made the plain an Oxus with blood, pitched
their camp opposite on the eastern bank. 13 The Sultan of Ghur
ordered them to seek a ford in order to cross the next day and
trouble the drinking-place of the Sultan's pleasure. And he
began to dispose his elephants and instruct his men in order that
next day at dawn they might fashion the cup of battle out of
human skulls. Suddenly news came that Tayangu 14 of Taraz, 15
the commander of the army of Qara-Khitai, was approaching

11 The later Khiva.

12 Reading NWZWAR for the NWRAWE. of the text. On Nuzvar
see Barthold, Twketim, 148 and 155.

13 Barthold, of, c&, 350, n. 5, comments that * perhaps not the main river
bed but the channel flowing near Gurganj is intended*.

14 TAYNKW. This was probably the man's title rather than his name :
tayangu in Old Turkish means * chamberlain *.

15 Taraz or Talas, the kter Aulie-Ata and the present-day Jambul, on the
river Talas.

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

with a fire-like host and that with him was the Sultan of Sultans
of Samarqand When the people of the elephant 1S realized
that the Lord of Lords had cast their plotting into confusion
and lhat from war and battle could come nought but despair,
they thrust back the sword of combat into the belt of retreat and
chose to flee rather than to stay ; and despite [56] disappointment
and loss of honour complied with the proverb :

This is not tby nest, depart then from a dmUing that
lefits the not.

Shihab-ad-Din commanded his men to bum the baggage in the
night and sew up the eye of sleep ; and from excess of aberration
and perversity they hamstrung the horses and the camels. As
they retreated the Sultan pursued them like a raging lion or a
jealous stallion as far as Hazar-Asf, where they turned and gave
battle. The Sultan's army charged their right wing, and the
standards of the Ghuris were overturned and their fortune reversed.
Many of their emirs and leaders fell into the bonds of captivity,
and the rest of them limped and stumbled through the waterless
wilderness * like some bewildered man whom the Satans have spell-
bound in the desert 3 . 17 The army of Khorazm continued to follow
angrily at their heels, like stallions in pursuit of mares, until by
infamous wiles they passed through Saifabad. 18 The Sultan,
enveloped in gracious bounty and submerged in bounteous
grace, turned back possessed of wealth, and elephants, and
camels, and horses ; and Auspicious Fortune through the tongue
of Predestined Felicity inspired men's hearts with the verse:
' God promised you the taking of a rich booty and sped it to you.' 19
The Sultan gave a feast in Khorazm, and one of his courtiers
asked Firdaus of Samarqand, a minstrel girl, for a quatrain
suitable to the occasion. She extemporized as follows :

O king, the Ghuri escaped from thee in confusion;
Like a chicken he escaped from the kite.

16 A reference to Koran, cv, where by ' the people of the elephant * are meant
the forces of Abraha, the Abyssinian viceroy of the Yemen, who marched against
Mecca in the year of the Prophet's birth. See Nicholson, A Literary History of
the Arabs, 65-9.

17 Koran, vi, 70. 18 Unidentified. 19 Koran, xlviii, ao,

A A 323

THE HISTORY OF

He alighted from his horse and hid his lace ;

The king gave thee his elephants and escaped being killed. 20

As for the army of Ghur, when they reached Andkhud 21
they saw what they saw ; for the army of Khitai overtook them
[37] and encompassed them on every side. And from dawn
till dusk either side fought with sword and lance, and many
perished. On the next day, when the standard of the sun was
raised upon the walls of the horizon and the solar scouts appeared
from behind the Eastern curtain, the army of Khitai showed
their mettle and charged all together. The neck of their
opponents* resistance was broken and the hand of conflict tied ;
all that were left of the army, viz. 50,000 men, were slain in
battle, and Sultan Shihab-ad-Din found himself alone in the
centre with some 100 men. By means of a ruse he flung himself
into the citadel of Andkhud ; but the army of Khitai breached
a hole in the wall and he was on the point of being captured
when the Sultan of Samarqand sent him the following message :
'For the honour of Islam I should not like a Moslem Sultan
to fall into the snare of unbelievers and be slain at their hands.
It is advisable therefore for thee to offer as ransom for thy person
all that thou hast in the way of elephants and horses and immov-
able and movable property. On this pretext I will seek to
mediate on thy behalf and obtain the consent of this people.*
Sultan Shihab-ad-Din offered everything that he had as a
ransom and all at once the contents of the treasuries and arsenals
were scattered as largesse. By a thousand wiles he obtained his
release through the intercession of the Sultan of Samarqand and
got away with his life at a time when f no time was it of escape \ M

If we return safe with bonoumlk souls that hoped
for something 1swt were disappointed in their hope,

20 The second two lines have a double meaning and may also be translated
as follows:

From being a knight he became a pawn and hid [covered] the castle.
The king surrendered the bishops to thee and so became checkmated.

21 The present-day Andkhui in Northern Afghanistan.

22 Koran, xxxviii, 2.

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

Our souls are the best of all spoils : they return with
their sap and their life in them. 23 [58]

When the Sultan of Ghur arrived in his own country stripped
of his army and treasure and displaying a hundred thouand
blemishes, the Sultan sent one of his chamberlains to him with
the following message : * It was your men who started these
hostilities and "the aggressor is the more unjmt", but henceforward
let the paths of concord be followed and the highway of discord
closed/ Sultan Shihab-ad-Din for his part confirmed the terms
of peace with mighty oaths and bound himself to aid and assist
the Sultan whenever he so commanded ; and a pact was con-
cluded between the two Sultans to this effect. However, two
months later a part of the army of Ghur assembled in the confines
of Talaqan, and Taj-ad-Din Zangi, who was the instigator of
this rebellion, made an attack on Marv-ar-Rud (which was to
result in his losing his head), drove the revenue official famil)
unexpectedly into the snare of destruction and began to stir up
oppression, and arouse tyranny, and extort money. News of
this reached the Sultan, and he dispatched Badr-ad-Din Chaghir
from Merv and Taj-ad-Din c Ali from Abivard to repel these
disturbers of the peace. After the battle Zangi, together with
ten of the emirs, was sent in chains to Khorazm, where in
punishment for their actions their heads -far le it from my
listeners ! were severed from their bodies. The violence of these
disturbances was allayed and the realm was at peace.

But though the ropes of solemn oaths were spliced together
between the two Sultans, yet Sultan Shihab-ad-Din because of
chagrin for what had passed was gnawing the back of his hand
and, in preparation for action, was assembling troops and
manufacturing weapons on the pretext of an expedition against
the infidel. Finally, in the year 602/1205-6 he took it into his
head to make a beginning by an inroad into India for the purpose
of mending the affairs of his retainers and followers, who had

23 Abdallah b. 'Utaiba, one of the chief men of Basra. Quoted by 'Utbi
in his history. See Shaikh Ahmad al-Manini, Shark~al-Yaminl f Cairo ed., II,
417. (M.Q.)

325

THE HISTORY OF

lost all their gear and accoutrement during the last few years of
campaigning in Khorasan. 2 * Upon arriving in India, he was
able by one victory that God granted him to repair all the deficits
of treasury and army* He turned back for the homeward
journey and forded the Jhelum. 25 [59] His pavilion was erected
on the bank of the river 26 so that half of it extended over the
water; and no care was taken to guard that side against jida'ti.
Suddenly, in the middle of the day at the time of the Sultan's
siesta two or three Indians 27 emerged from the water as unex-
pectedly as fire and threw themselves into the pavilion, where he
was lying forgetful of the waiting and watching of foes and
oblivious to the perversity of Fate. They turned the bright day
into black night for the army by destroying the king, and spoiled
for him the flavour of the food of life. When our doom awaits
us, of what avail is the might of man ? And when fortune
wanes of what assistance are quantities of elephants ? All his
gear and accoutrement, all this white and black profited him
nothing.

24 The purpose of the expedition seems rather to have been to quell a rising
of the Khokars and the tribes of the Salt Range. See Juzjani tr. Raverty, 481-2,
Rashid-ad-Din tr. Smirnova, 156-7, Haig, Turks and Afghans, 47-8.

25 Reading JYLM, ie Jelam, for the HYLY of the text, as suggested by
M.Q.

26 Jii$% i.e. the Indus, Barthold, Turkestan, 352, takes this for the Oxus,
but in Juvaini, as M.Q. has pointed out in his introduction to Vol. II, x, this
name is applied to any large river such as, for instance, the Kur in the Caucasus
and the Jaxartes or Syr Darya.

27 It is not clear from Juvaini's account whether the assassins were or were
not ji&fis, i.e. agents of the Isma'ilis ; and Rashid-ad-Din (Smirnova, 158)
implies that they were Khokars. On the other hand Juzjani (Raverty, 484-5)
states specifically that Shihab-ad-Din * attained martyrdom at the hand of a
disciple of the Mulahidah '. Haig, op. at., 48, discusses the various versions
of the assassination and concludes that though the Khokars * were perhaps privy
to the design, and, if so, certainly furthered it, the actual assassins appear to have
been fanatical Shiahs of the heretical Ismaili sect '. The scene of his death,
according to both Juzjani (Raverty, 484 and 486) and Rashid-ad-Din (Smirnova,
157), was a place called Damyak ; and the date is given in a quatrain quoted
by Juzjani (Raverty, 486) as the 3rd of Sha'ban, 602, Le, die I5th of March,
1206. The position of Damyak is not known, but it was probably situated on
the northern bank of the Indus. Raverty, however, Uc. eft., n. 5, thinks it most
likely that it was a little to the west of the Jhelum.

326

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

All who ruled and were obeyed and possessed wealth

and valiant troops
Reigned for a while and were chiefs and leaders anl

then became nothing but the theme of conversation.* 8

[60] So many times had he toiled that the Sultan might have
the profit of his toil ! Still stranger was the case of the malik of
Bamiyan, his close kinsman, himself wasting away and yet
awaiting the approach of Shihab-ad-Din's end. When by the
latter's death he attained his long-cherished wish he thought that
the branches of his desire had borne fruit and that the garden
of his fortune was become fresh and verdant. Without any
pause or delay he travelled two stages in the space of one and
traversed three parasangs in a single spurt. He was on the verge
of realizing his wish when Death, by the decree of the Almighty,
charged out from ambush and cut off the caravan of his life,
which was fully loaded with the ambitions of this world. For
a throne was substituted a bier, and misery took the place of
felicity.

If any man attains a wish from his life in this world,

Fate causes the alif to fall from it,
Became from her is the origin of his composition, when

both ends of his wish are elided. 29

Now these events were the cause of the Sultan's fortune, as
shall be set forth in another chapter.

[mi

[6l] HOW THE KINGDOM OF THE SULTANS OF GHUR
PASSED INTO THE HANDS OF SULTAN MUHAMMAD

WHEN Sultan Shihab-ad-Din departed from this vile abode to
the eternal mansion, his slaves, each of whom had become a

28 Abul-Faraj Ahmad b. 'AH K Khalaf of Hamadan, a contemporary of
Tha'alibi and quoted by him in the Tattmmat-al-Yatima. (M.Q.) See EghbaTs
ed., II, 99.

29 If the initial alif of AMNYH (umwya) * wish ' is elided there remains MNYH
(maniya) ' death ' ; and when the final ha is also removed there remains MNY
(tnarif) 'seminal fluid*. (M.Q.)

327

THE HISTORY OF

local ruler, now achieved independence within the territory
under their sway* Thus Qutb-ad-Din Ai-Beg was for a time
ruler of Delhi and the frontiers of India and carried out several
great expeditions against the infidel of that country. When he
died and left no male heir, a slave of his own, Il-Tutmish by
name, renowned for his intelligence and acumen, was set upon
the throne as his successor x and received the laqab of Shams-ad-
Din. His fame spread through the greater part of India and
into every land and country : there are many tales and traditions
regarding his campaigns and victories. The countries along the
Indus including Ucha, 2 Multan, Lahore and Peshawar were
seized by Qubacha [62] and were afterwards conquered by
Sultan Jalal-ad-Din, as shall be mentioned in the proper place.
Zavulistan 3 and Ghaznin 4 after many uprisings and dis-
turbances were taken by Taj-ad-Din Ilduz, who became the
ruler of that area. Herat, Ghiyas-ad-Din s capital, and Firuzkuh 5
were occupied by his son the Emir Mahmud. As is usual with
heirs, he devoted himself to drinking and pleasure, to extravagance
and frivolity ; and because of the cheerful sound of the harp
could not reconcile himself to the hardships of war. And since
the emirs saw in his actions nought but softness and langour,
and weakness and impotence, there arose a disagreement among
the notables and chief men, and 'Izz-ad-Din Husain, son of
Kharmil, the governor of Herat, who was the pride and the
bulwark of the Sultan's kingdom, anticipated the other emirs

1 In fact Ai-Beg was succeeded by his son Aram Shah, who was however
dethroned by Il-Tutmish after reigning for less than a year. See Haig, Turks
(mi Afghans, 50-1.

2 Reading AWC A for the AWjA of the text, i.e. Uch on the Chenab
in the State of Bahawalpur.

s Zavulistan (or Zabulistan) was the name given to the mountainous country
along the upper waters of the Hdmand.

* Ghaznin is another form of Ghazna (now Ghazni).

6 Identified by Holdich, The Gates (flniia, 222-3, with Taiwara in the Ghur
valley. ' Taiwara is locally known as Ghur, and may be absolutely on the site
of the ancient capital, for there are ruins enough to support the theory. . . .
There is ... absolutely no difficulty in traversing these Taimani mountain
regions in almost any direction, and the facility for movement, combined with
the beauty and fertility of the country, all point unmistakably to Taiwara and
its neighbourhood as the seat of the Ghuri dynasty of the Afghan kings.'

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

in swearing allegiance to Sultan Muhammad (may God nuke
bright his example!) and sent message after message and mes-
senger after messenger to him urging him first of all to advance
against Herat and annex that kingdom to his other dominions.
Now at that time the Sultan was apprehensive of the Khan of
Khitai 6 fearing lest he should steal a march on him and take
possession of Balkh and the adjoining territory, which had been
in the hands of the Sultans of Ghur and lay close to the kingdom
of Khitai. Wishing, therefore, in the first place to keep off the
Turks of Khitai he refrained from approaching that area [in
person] but sent a messenger to Shadyakh to bid the army of
Khorasan proceed to Herat. e !zz~ad-Din, son of Kharmil, came
out to welcome them and surrendered the town to them, and
trod not the road of resistance. He was greatly distinguished
by the Sultan with all kinds of gifts and presents [63] and
received also a patent with togbra conferring that territory upon
him. Meanwhile the other emirs, who sided with the Emir
Mahmud, united to attack the Sultan's army. But before they
could bestir themselves the Sultan's army charged down upon
them like a lion leaping upon its prey or a falcon attacking a
mountain partridge. They dispersed and scattered the whole of
them, and sent bearers of these good tidings to the Sultan, and
craved his presence with them ; and whilst awaiting the arrival
of the royal standards they halted by the way. When the Sultan
arrived in the region of Balkh, the commanders of the castles
came to wait on him and hastened to surrender the keys of their
strongholds. As for the governor of Balkh, 'Imad-ad-Din, who
was the chief emir of Bamiyan, he at first breathed hotly the
breath of devotion to the Sultan and was constantly giving voice
to claims of allegiance and loyalty to his Court. But when the
royal banners rose up upon the desert horizon it became as clear
as the sun that his claims were illusory and his words inconstant ;
for relying upon the fortress of Hinduvan, which was a stout
stronghold and a firm foundation, he broke his promise and
assembled therein choice treasuries of jewels and money. The
victorious army, both horse and foot, sat down like a bracelet
8 I.e. Qara-KhitaL

THE HISTORY OF

around the walls of the fortress and rained down arrows and
missiles until the foundations began to collapse and the garrison
to turn their backs in flight. And since there was no other
cure to c !mad-ad-Din*s hurt save submission and subjection, by
force of necessity, not from choice, he began to knock at the
door of supplication and sued for quarter. The Sultan granted
his request lest he should take fright and treated him with greater
indulgence than he had expected, promising to confirm him in
the possession of the territories of which he was governor. When
he came out of the fortress and kissed the floor of the audience-
hall, he was distinguished by the greatness of the royal attentions
and the abundance of the kingly favours he received ; the bird
of his security began to soar over the horizon of protection; and
the distinction he enjoyed in the banquet of conviviality made
him the envy alike of man and jinn and the Lord knoweth what
their breasts conceal J . 7 [64] Suddenly the patrols seized a letter
from the hands of the couriers and brought it to the Sultan.
The contents of that letter, which was addressed to the governor
of Bamiyan, consisted of nothing from beginning to end but
belittling of the Sultan's cause and warnings against yielding
obedience and allegiance to him. The Sultan placed that
epistle in his hand saying : ( " Read thy book : there wantetb none
but thyself to make out an account against the this day." * B He fell
to the ground, and since his tongue could pronounce no excuse
for his treachery, the Sultan declared that his violation of his
covenant called for his release from the noose of life, but that
since the tongue of pardon had granted his comprehension in
the royal favour, in chivalry it might not be held lawful by
the code of magnanimity to make any change or alteration
therein. He therefore sent him to Khorazm together with
all he desired in the way of choice treasures and congenial
companions.

\ His son was in the castle of Tirmiz. Upon receiving news
of his father he decided to refuse to come out. However his
father sent a confidential messenger to upbraid and threaten him ;

7 Koran, xxviii, 69.

8 Itid., xvii, 15. The Arabic word for * book ' also means ' letter \

330

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

and he came down and, at the Sultan's command, surrendered
Tirmiz to the Sultan of Samarqand.

The Sultan then entrusted the region of Balkh to Badr-
ad-Din Chaghir and strengthened his hand with a large
army.

Having cleansed that area of the impurities of internal dis-
turbances the Sultan decided to proceed to Herat. Triumphant
and victorious he set out by way of Jurzuvan, 9 with Time sub-
missive to his command and the revolution of the heavens in
accordance with his desire. Bearers of the glad ridings proceeded
to Herat, and the inhabitants rejoiced and were of good cheer.
The nobles hastened out to accord him a dutiful welcome,
whilst the other classes busied themselves with decorating the
town. They adorned the thoroughfare through the markets and
streets with all kinds of gold-embroidered garments and hung up
images and pictures. In the middle of Jumada I of that year 10
the Sultan entered the town with such equipage and majesty as
no eye had ever seen and such elegance and good order as no
ear had ever heard of. Cherubs preceded him crying [65]
f ff Enter ye therein in peace, secure" } u and the people praised
God, saying, e " Praise fa to God, Lord of the world ! }J * 12 The
Sultan strengthened the foundations of justice and under the
shadow of his mercy and equity brought peace and repose to
the whole people ; and all the local rulers came to make obeisance
to him. Thus the malik of Sistan hastened to his Court and
was enrolled among the dignitaries of the kingdom : in the
attentions and favours he received he was distinguished above
all his coevals.

The Sultan likewise sent e AUama of Kerman to win over the
Emir Mahmud, whom he encouraged with many promises.
The following verse about the Emir Mahmud is taken from a

9 Jurzuvan or Gurzuvln was situated either at QaTa Wali or at Takht-i-
Khatun in north-western Afghanistan east of Bala Murghab, See le Strange,
The Lands of the Eastern Caliphate, 424 and n. i.

10 What year ? There has been no previous mention of any year in this
chapter. Ibn-al-Athir records this event sub anno 603/1206-7. (M.Q.)

11 Koran, xv, 46.
12 IW v i, I.

33*

THE HISTORY OF

qasida composed by 'Allama at the time when he was sent on
this mission:

Sultan of East and West, Emperor of West and East,
Mahmud, son of Muhammad, son of Sam, son of Husain. 13

Mahmud sent an ambassador to the Sultan together with 'Allama
in order to crave his appointment as viceroy of Firuzkuh and
the settlement of that territory upon him. And by that envoy
he sent such presents as were the accumulated treasures of all his
ancestors, to which he added a white elephant. The following
verse is from a qasida of 'Allama of Kerman describing this
elephant which was brought along with him:

To the capital of the realm I have led an elephant j
although I am not Alraha^ the son of as-SaUab.

The Sultan granted MahmucTs request and settled the viceroyalty
upon him ; and he ennobled the coinage and the kbittba with
the Sultan's title and adorned men's ears with the sound thereof.
Being now finished with the affairs of that region the Sultan
decided to return home. He honoured 7zz-ad-Din Husain, son
of Kharmil, with the viceroyalty of those countries, showing him
all manner of kindnesses and favours in gratitude for his services
and assigning him land to the value of 250,000 1S dinars ofntkni
gold. And in Jumada [66] II of that year 16 he shook the reins
of departure in the direction of Khorazm gladdened with the
advent of victory and prosperity and blessed by auspicious
Exertion and predestined Fortune with the achievement of his
desires.

13 Husain no doubt for the sake of the rhyme with maghribatn ' East and West *.
His great-grandfather was *Izz-ad-Din Hasan. His grandfather was Baha-ad-Din
Sam, who ruled in Firuzkuh.

14 See above, p. 323, n. 16.

15 In A these figures are written in siyaq notation [siyaq or SvM is a system of
figures in which Persian revenue officials keep their accounts], and since this
MS. is very old (689/1290-1) it appears that in that age the siyaa^ notation was
employed in more or less the same form as at the present day. (M.Q.)

ie Again what year 1 Apparently 601/1206-7. according to Ibn-al-Athk and
also the context. (M.Q.)

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[IV]

OF WHAT BEFELL KHARMIL AFTER THE
SULTAN'S RETURN

HAVING placed the government of the countries of Herat in the
grasp of Kharmil, the Sultan turned his reins homewards and
thereafter busied himself with all kinds of other matters such as
raids and expeditions against the infidel. Rumours spread
abroad that he had perished in an attack upon the army of
Khitai, and the demon Temptation stuffed KharmiTs brain with
foolish imaginings and the vanities of pride took up their abode
in his nature. He sent an emissary to Sultan Mahmud, and
since to oppose the Sultan was to agree with them * they promised
him all kinds of benefits, and he again struck coin and read the
kbutla in the name of the Ghuris and imprisoned such as claimed
some connection with the Sultan's court. However, when the
news spread of the Sultan's return and triumphant entry into
Khorazm, Kharmil was frightened at his own stupidity (kbar-
maill) and in dread of the violence and fury of the Sultan's anger.
He had recourse to insincere excuses and sought by falsification
and dissimulation to conceal his shortcomings from the Sultan
and to be exempted from the duty of hastening to his presence.
The Sultan pardoned and forgave him and saw fit to condone
his offences.

The men of Ghur, perceiving his hypocrisy and duplicity,
and realizing that he again supported the court of Khorazm,
prepared to attempt his life. Becoming aware of their secret
intention Kharmil applied to the Sultan's officers in Khorasan
and besought their [67] aid. Most of the leading men set out
for Herat and encamped outside the town. After obtaining an
oath from them and craving the Sultan's protection Kharmil
came out, and all agreed as to the extirpation and destruction
of the army of Ghur. On this account the words : * At early
dawn ymr waters sMl have sunk away ' 2 might have been applied

1 Le. presumably Mahmud and his advisers.

2 Koran, Ixvii, 30. Lit. ' your waters shall have become a ghaut (ie. a sinking
in the ground) 'a word-play on Ghur.

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THE HISTORY OF

to the source of the Ghuris' power, and all their followers were
scattered.

When KharmiTs duplicity became apparent, men ceased to
repose confidence in his words or deeds, because in the first place
he had for no reason entered the noose of obedience and had
then, without any motive of fear or dread, divested himself of
the garb of allegiance. On account of such suspicions accusa-
tions were made against him before the Sultan, to whom mes-
sages were sent, saying : * Herat is a forest whereof he is the lion,
and an ocean whereof he is the leviathan. If you neglect to
deal with him, there will be distraction of minds and hearts.*
The Sultan accordingly sent a message to the emirs ordering
them to remove him and excise the source of his corruption.
They continued to treat him with courtesy in their wonted
manner and still kept treading the path of gaiety and joviality.
Finally, one day, they summoned him for a consultation and
closeted themselves with him. They discoursed on all manner
of topics, and when they had finished the malik of Zuzan,
Qivam-ad-Din, invited him to his house ostensibly to take food
and drink ; but he persisted in refusing, giving frivolous excuses
(1 ti-babana-yi-takhfif). The malik of Zuzan then openly seized
the reins of his horse and signalled to the chief officials to unsheathe
the swords of death. His followers were scattered and he was
dragged on foot into a tent. From thence they sent him to the
castle of Salumid 3 near Khaf and pillaged his movable and
immovable property. Several days later they sent his head to
Khorazm.

His chief supporter and mainstay [68] was a person called
Sa*d-ad-Din Rindi, a man of shrewdness and intelligence, not
a fool or a glutton. He now escaped like a fox from the hunter
and took refuge in the citadel of Herat. Together with him
the followers of Kharmil had no desire but to repel attack, and
the ruffians (aubash) and libertines (rindi) of Herat made ready
to resist in the company of Rindi. He distributed Kharmirs

8 Salumid, the Salumidh of the Httdud, also known as Salumak and Salam,
is presumably the present-day Salami to the north-west of Khaf on the road
to Turbat-i-Haidari.

334

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

treasuries and all his possessions as largesse among the common
people and such of them as had previously possessed nothing
but a stick now became men of wealth and affluence. On this
account they had, like^fc'/r, taken their lives In their hands and
prepared themselves for war and battle.

At this juncture, Kozli 4 drew his hand out of the sleeve of
rebellion in Shadyakh, as shall be described in the following
chapter. The Sultan came from Khorazm to Shadyakh and
from thence to Sarakhs.

Now when during Hindi's rebellion envoys were sent to him
to reproach and rebuke him for an action which ill befitted his
condition he used to excuse himself by saying : * I am a faithful
servant of the Sultan and only await the arrival of the royal
standards to surrender the town and perform the ceremonies of
fealty ; for I place no trust in the word of the emirs/ This
statement was reported to the Sultan, and the emirs instigated
him to proceed to Herat and urged him to hasten thither* When
he arrived Rindi repented of what he had done and continued
to offer resistance. The flame of the Sultan's anger flared up
higher and he ordered the water of the river to be diverted against
the walls and the bank of the moat to be piled with tree-trunks
and rubbish. After some time had elapsed and the water had
thoroughly soaked the walls, a dyke was opened and the water
flowed back with a rush like the wind. The tower known as
the Tower of Ashes collapsed, after which they filled in the
moat in the neighbourhood of the gates and raised it up with
earth and rubbish, thus affording access to the fighting men [69]
on every side. One day Rindi was feasting a crowd of louts and
ruffians, when the babadurs 5 raised their standards upon the walls,
and before that company had finished their breakfast they had
the supper of revenge upon them. The crafty Rindi, perceiving
his position to be hopeless, exchanged the robes of iniquity for

4 KZLY. Cf. the kSzlii ' seeing ' of Houtsma, Gloswr, 99.

6 labafar, a word yet to be borrowed from his victorious opponents, is here
anachronisdcally applied to Sultan Muhammad's own forces. The word still
survives in modem Mongolian in the form bator. Cf. Ulan Bator, 'the Red
Hero *, as Urga, the capital of Outer Mongolia, is now called.

335

THE HISTORY OF

the rags of Sufism and sought in this way to conceal himself.
The net of search was cast over the streets and bazaars until he
was caught therein and dragged by the hair into the Sultan's
presence. The latter then issued a proclamation that the soldiers
should desist from pillage ; and the shops of the town were
re-opened that very day.

As for Rindi he was brought to account and questioned
regarding the treasuries and what he had unjustly taken from the
citizens of the town ; and he rendered up all that he had or
knew o And in the end he was punished for his deeds, and
Herat was purged of the impurities caused by the strife and
tyranny of the unrighteous and was decked out with the bounteous
justice of the Sultan. And from thence the Sultan set out for
Khorazm.

[V]

OF KOZU AND HIS LATTER END

KOZLI was a Turk, one of the kinsmen of the Sultan's mother.
The emirate of Nishapur had been entrusted to him and the
administration of that region was in his hands. Being informed
of certain suspicions that the Sultan entertained against him, he
took fright, and at the time of the siege of Herat, he suddenly
withdrew, 1 before the Sultan set out thither, and came to
Shadyakh. Here he put out a rumour that the army of Khitai
had entered Khorazm and that the Sultan had retired in pre-
cipitation from Herat and on that account had ordered him to
strengthen the walls of Shadyakh. On this pretext he took
possession of the town [70] and opened the hand of confiscation
and oppression upon the officials of the Divan and the wealthy.
He likewise set about strengthening the ramparts and walls and
digging out the moat and sent an envoy to the court of Khorazm
seeking to engage the Sultan for the time being with false pre-
tences and misrepresentations until the town had been fortified.
What he thought was that when these fortifications were com-

1 Apparently from the siege of Herat.

336

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

plete and he was in possession of dinars and dirhems, the kingdom
being in a state of disorder, the Sultan would fear the danger of
the outcome and so would not forfeit the pleasure of safety but
would meet him on equal terms and do him no harm. When
his envoy arrived in Khorazm it was clear from the message he
bore that Kozli had deviated from the path of rectitude, and the
auspicious banners of the Lord of the Sultans of the age were
borne forth at the head of an army beyond number, every soldier
a Mount Bisutun 2 in valour, the whirlwind of zeal fanning the
flame of wrath in their nature and their flashing swords grinding
all opponents in the dust. Kozli's envoy fled back to Shadyakh
and reported what had happened. Not having the where-
withal to resist Kozli prepared for flight and together with his
family and following left the town for the desert. The more
eminent officials of the Divan such as Sharaf-al-Mulk (who was
the vizier), Sayyid 'Ala-ad-Din the 'Alid, etc., as also the chief
cadi Rukn-ad-Din Mughisi and other notables were compelled
to accompany him. That same dark night with his Turks and
Taziks he took the road to Turshiz. Upon his arrival there
the governor (muhtasbam) 3 besought him to release the notables
whom he had brought with him by compulsion. From fear,
not free will, he left them in Turshiz, after seizing all their
belongings, and then departed in the direction of Kerman.
Meanwhile, on the nth of Ramazan, 604 [30th of March,
1208] the Sultan arrived at Shadyakh, from whence he visited
the Shrine [71] of Tus 4 and then left for Sarakhs on his way
to Herat. As for Kozli, he had had no success in Kerman and
when he heard of the Sultan's departure from Khorasan, the
craving for the soil of Shadyakh so fanned the flame of vain
ambition in his being that he speedily returned from Kerman.
Some persons arrived from Tabas with the news that he was
coming back but that his destination was unknown. Then
came tidings of his arrival in Turshiz. In the night of the third
day when the dawn birds raised their lament, his son together

2 The great mountain to the north of Kermanshah on whose rocks were carved
the famous Achaemenid inscriptions.

3 Muhtosbam was an Isma'ili tide. 4 I.e. Meshed.

337

THE HISTORY OF

with some of his followers charged forward and cast turmoil and
confusion into the town. The townspeople hastily closed the
gates and the soldiers took up their positions on the walls.
Kdzlfs son and his men circumambulated the town for a while
and then encamped nearby, uncertain whether to stay or to
depart. Suddenly by one of those chances which are due to
the goodness and grace of the Lord of Favours there came news
of the arrival in Tus of the kfahbad. 5 Sharaf-al-Mulk dispatched
a courier to report Kozlf s rebellion and to crave the aversion of
that evil. The isfahbad ordered a thousand horsemen to set out
without delay. They fell upon Kozli, put him to flight and
then began to plunder and pillage. Kozli and his men returned
and charging down upon them, drove each of them into a
[different] valley.

However, when Kozli realized that he could not obtain
admittance into the town, that the kfahbadkzd arrived in Shadyakh
and that the Sultan was at the gates of Herat, he began to quiver
like a bird with its throat cut and to tremble like a gazelle before
the hawks and the hunters. He repented of his deeds and began
to bite his fingers at the commission of rebellion, which was a
pain without cure, and to consult with his followers as to whether
they should depart or remain and what their destination and
objective should be. Some said that they should seek the pro-
tection of the Sultan's mother and therefore proceed to Khorazm.
A Turcoman from Yazir 6 who was amongst them, said:
* Our best course is to go to Yazir and make its strongholds [72]
our refuge. I wiU go on ahead and devise some stratagem. It
may be that I can at once easily obtain possession of a stronghold/
His words were in agreement with Kozli's wishes, and he sent
him on in advance with a band of men. When he came to
Yazir the townspeople perceived his intention and realized his
treachery. They bound him and dispatched him in chains to
the Sultan.

When this plan too had broken in their jaws, their bewilder-
ment increased and a difference of opinion arose between Kozli,

5 Le. the isfahbai or ruler of Kabud-Jama, on which see below, p. 351, n. 3.

6 See above, jx 151, n. 8.

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THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

his son and his followers. His son said : * We must go to
Transoxiana and attach ourselves to the Khan of Khitai* His
father said : ' Let us go to Khorazm and place ourselves under
the protection of Terken Khatun.' Neither would accept the
other's opinion, and Kozlfs son plundered his treasury and set
out for Transoxiana. Upon reaching the ford over the Oxus he
was met by a company of the Sultan's courtiers, who, after a
furious struggle, took him and his followers prisoner and sent
their heads to the Sultan.

As for Kozli himself, when he arrived in Khorazm, Terken
Khatun encouraged him with promises and said : * The cure
[for thy affairs] is for thee to take up thy abode beside the tomb
of Sultan Tekish, clad in garments of rags. Perhaps by this
device the Sultan will be induced to pass over thy faults and
offences/ He accordingly adopted the practices of Sufism beside
the dust of Tekish, until Terken Khatun suddenly learnt that
his head had been severed from his body and brought to the
Sultan. And so the wind of that insurrection subsided,
and the Sultan's justice was scattered upon the noble and
the base,

The revolving cupola, we can imagine, is appreciative
of good and evil.

It was in that same year, viz. 605/1208-9, that God Almigky
showed His servants an example of the terror of When the Earth
with her quaking shall quake ' ; 7 and it was by His grace that the
beginning of that calamity was in broad daylight so that the
whole of the people rushed out into the countryside [73] leaving
all that they had in the town. All the mansions and palaces
bowed their heads to the ground like worshippers and of the
buildings of the town few only stood firm except the Mani'i
mosques, [the buildings round] the square and the like thereof.
And so it continued whilst for a time all the people remained
in the open country. Nevertheless, 2000 men and women were
buried beneath the walls, and in the villages so many perished
that their numbers cannot be computed. The two villages of

7 Koran, xcix, i.

BB i. 339

THE HISTORY OF

Dana and Banask 8 actually collapsed in a single instant and of
the people inside them not a single soul escaped alive. God
Almighty preserve us from the like thereof and the punishment of this
world and the next !

[VI]

OF THE ACCESSION OF MAZANDARAN AND KERMAN

WHEN Fortune began to smile upon the Sultan, important
events would show their faces hour by hour from behind the
veil of the unseen, without any effort or exertion on his part ;
and one such instance was the case of Mazandaran.

When the Sultan set out for Transoxiana in the year 606/1209-
1210 Shah-Ghazi, 1 who was a descendant of King Yazdajird 2
and retained of the possessions of his ancestors only the interior
of Mazandaran, chose out from amongst his sarhangs a person
called Bu-Riza 3 and showed him favour, exalting his rank so
that he shared the kingdom with him and giving him his sister
as wife. Bu-Riza*s authority became more absolute than that of
a deputy and he began to aspire to the nobility of kinghood.
He assassinated Shah-Ghazi in his hunting grounds, but the
latter's sister, his own wife, acted like a man and put her husband
to death with violent torture in vengeance for her brother.

When Mengli 4 had returned from waiting on the Sultan and
had arrived in Jurjan he received news of this. Conceiving
a desire for the kingdom of Mazandaran [74] he proceeded
thither, took possession of Shah-Ghazi's treasures, which had

8 Neither place has been identified. The spelling of Banask (BNSK) is
uncertain.

* The kfahktd or ispablwcl Nasir~ad-Dauk Shams-al-Muluk Shah-Ghazi Rustam
was the last ruler of the House of Bavand. See Rabino, Mdzandardn and Astardbdd,

134-6-

2 Yazdajird III, the last of the Sassanians.

3 This was Abu-Riza Husain b. Muhammad al-'Alavi al MamtirL See
Ibn-Isfandiyar tr, Browne, 257.

4 Le. apparently Nasir-ad-Din Mengli, a skve of the atabei Muzai&r-ad-Din
Oz-Beg, who had made himself master of Persian Iraq. See below, ii, 701-2,
also M.Q/s note, III, 407-8.

340

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come down to him from ancient kings and noble monarchs,
and sought his sister's hand in marriage. She refused him and
dispatching a messenger to the Sultan offered herself as his bride
and her kingdom as dowry. The Sultan sent a deputy to take
possession of Mazandaran and summon the woman to him,
Desirous of marriage with the Sultan she came to Khorazm and
he bestowed her on one of his emirs and a year later entrusted
that kingdom to Amin-ad-Din of Dihistan. And so was that
kingdom obtained which might not be procured by arms or
armies.

And in the next year, which was the year 607/1210-11,
Kerman passed into his hands.

[VII]

OF THE CONQUEST OF TRANS OXI ANA l

AFTER the lands of Khorasan had been purged by him of the
impurities of rebels, the notables and chief men of Transoxiana
dispatched letter after letter to the Sultan calling upon him to
turn in that direction and cleanse that region from the oppression
and tyranny of the Khitayan tyrants ; for they were weary of
yielding obedience to idol-worshippers and had been humiliated
by subjection to their command, especially the inhabitants of
Bokhara ; for a man from amongst the common people of that
town, a person called Sanjar, the son of a shield-seller, had
usurped authority over them and had seen fit to treat with con-
tempt and contumely those to whom respect and honour were
due. His name was changed to Sanjar-Malik and one of the
wits of Bokhara composed the following quatrain about him :

[75] Kingship is a precious and valuable thing, hut the

son of the cutler [? maddai] would have it for nothing.
Kingship and a throne are notfttingfor one whose
father used to sell shields.

1 A quite different version of the struggle between Sultan Muhammad and the
Qara-KHtai is given in Chapter X. See Barthold, Turkestan, 355-9- Barthold
concludes that * the second version is nearer the truth, although it also contains
some statements which evoke great doubt".

341

THE HISTORY OF

At the same time the Sultan himself had had his fill of the
domineering attitude of Khitai and the contemptuous behaviour
of Khitayan envoys and ambassadors, and it irked him to pay
the tribute, to which his father had agreed at the time when he
sought the aid of Khitai against his brother Sultan-Shah. Year
after year, the ambassadors of Khitai would come and he would
pay that tribute, writhing with grief thereat and seeking a pretext
for breaking the treaty. Finally, in the year . . M 2 when the
envoys of Khitai came as usual to collect the tribute headed by
* Tushi, 3 the latter, in their wonted manner, seated himself on
the throne beside the Sultan and did not pay the proper respect
to royalty. Since a noble soul disdains to endure the contempt
of every base fellow, the Sultan ordered that foolish man to be
crushed to pieces and his body thrown in the river; and in
accordance with the verses:

Thou mi wdkr m Motion to this rnori, therefore discharge
thy Mts to it, for the sworl hath a just claim on thy hand*

he openly declared his enmity and proclaimed his hostility, and
in the year 6 . .. . set out for that region. [76] When he had
crossed the ford and reached Bokhara, the inhabitants were
engulfed in the effects of his all-embracing justice and overflowing
mercy and the whole area was made to blossom with the report
of his copious equity; while the son of the shield-seller reteived
the punishment of his deeds ( in recompense of their works.' 6

From Bokhara he proceeded to Samarqand sending on in
advance messengers to the Sultan of Samarqand, Sultan 'Usman.
The latter had become estranged from the giir-kban because of

2 There is a blank in A and B. C has ($07/1210 but this, as M.Q. points
out, is inconsistent with the statement in the previous chapter (see above, p. 340)
that Sultan Muhammad set out for Transoxiana in 606/1209.

3 The spelling of die name is quite uncertain. The text has TWYSY, for
which I read TWY with C and E. The name is probably Chinese and is
therefore not to be identified with that of Chingiz-Khan's eldest son.

4 From a qasida by Afau-Bakr al-Khuwarizmi in praise of Shams-al-Ma'ali
Qabus b. Vashmgir. It is quoted by 'Utbi in his history. (M.Q.)

5 * In the same year ' according to C and D. There is a blank in A and
B. 606/1209-10 must be meant or at the latest the beginning of 607/1210-11.
(M.Q.)

6 Koran, xxxii, 17.

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

his refusal to give him one of his daughters in marriage ; he
therefore hailed the auspicious arrival of the Sultan's retinoe with
joy and pleasure, of which the traces might be plainly seen on
the brow of his circumstances* He agreed to obey and abide
by the royal and imperial commands and prohibitions and read
the kbttiba and struck coin in the Sultan's name. The people of
Samarqand were ihen heartened by the Sultan's presence amongst
thejjn, and the two monarchs consulted together as to how they
should repel the gur-khan and agreed upon declaring a holy war
against him and engaging him in battle. As a measure of
precaution the Sultan ordered the gates of the town to be
strengthened. He also appointed Tort- Aba, 7 an emir related
to his mother, to be his representative with the Sultan of Samar-
qand ; and they set about preparing for action and assembling
their forces for battle. Meanwhile the Sultan himself set out
from thence to conduct the holy war at the head of valiant
warriors skilled in onslaught and attack. When news of this
reached the gur-khan, he for his part ordered Tayangu, who was
the embroidery (tiraz)* on the garment of his kingdom and had
his post at Taraz, to place himself in readiness. Tayangu, with
the arrogance of pride, mustered an army [in its numbers] like
unto serpents [77] or ants.

Having crossed the river at Fanakat the Sultan ordered the
bridge that had been built for the passage of his troops to be
destroyed so that they might set their hearts on honour and not
disgrace themselves and bring shame upon their cause; but
rather restore the water of Islam, which for some time past had
been drained from the stream of those parts; and cast the water
of true guidance upon the fire of that people's error or rather cast

7 Reading TRTBH for the TRTYH of the text. Barthold has adopted the
form Burtana. The name appears to be a compound of the Turkish tort * four*
and oka ' bear '. The second element might also be apa, on which see above,
p. 148, n. 26. Houtsma, Glossar, 34, gives two examples of this type of com-
pound : Aid-Bars from alt'i * six ' and fcwr c panther * and Toquz-Temiir from
toquz nine * and temiir c iron '. Tort- Aba seems also to have been the name
of Sultan Jalal-ad-Din's "Grand Huntsman* (amir-shMf), spelt by Nasawi
(ed. Houdas, 198 and 244) TRT ABH.

8 Introduced for the sake of the word-pky with Taraz * Talas*.

343

THE HISTORY OF

the fire e whose fuel is men and stones, prepared for the infidel * 9 upon
those worshippers of the fire ; so that perchance the arrested
winds of Islam might again begin to blow, and the tempests
of misfortunes destroy their lands, and the side wind of adversity
ruin the harvest of those liars* desire, and cast the dust of the
true faith in the eyes of those wretches, and force back the hands
of those vile ones from the kingdom. He came as far as the
steppe of Ilamish, 10 whilst Tayangu with a mighty host, misled
by conceit and self-delusion regarding his own strength and
infatuated and encouraged by the number of his men and
weapons, reached the ford over the Jaxartes, oblivious of God
the Changer who saith, '" Be I" and it is! u

Lean not upon water, or else thou wilt limn pictures on the
water vainly like bubbles and wilt measure the wind.

Now it so happened that they came face to face and opposed
their ranks one to another on a Friday in Rabi c I, 607 [Aug.~
Sept., 1210]. The Sultan commanded his men to behave in a
careless and dilatory manner and to advance not a single step
until the preachers of Islam had mounted their pulpits and
uttered the prayer, ' O God, assist the armies and squadrons of the
Moslems ! ' after which they should all attack on every side, and
perhaps, in answer to the prayers of the preachers of Islam and
the amens of the Moslems, God would vouchsafe the victory.
In obedience to the Sultan's command they waited for that
moment, the young men on either side engaging meanwhile in
skirmishes and knights defeating pawns upon the chessboard of
batde. Finally, when the oven of war had been heated,

The noise of the kettle-drum and the clamour of the fife
rose up ; the earth rose out of its pkce like the heavens ;

The commanders raised their banners on high, the valiant
warriors kid down their lives

[78] and on both sides bow and arrow were discarded and
sword and dagger unsheathed. The sound of the takUr was

9 Koran, ii, 22.

10 In the northern part of the Andijan district according to Barthold, op. at,
159- u Koran, ii, in.

344

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

heard from the ranks of the Sultan and the shrilling of flute and
whistle from the side of that Satan. Dust was stirred up like a
cloud and swords were unsheathed like lightning. The Sultan
became Lord of the banner of ' Verily, We have won V 2 whilst
his enemies became the target of ' We will surely take vengeance
on the guilty ones *. 13 The zephyr of divine grace began to blow
and the bird of those miscreants* hearts to tremble. At the time
of prayer the whole army raised a shout and charged down upon
those wretches. At once the people of error 14 became ' like tbe
people of Saka V 5 one man of the Sultan's army victorious and
a thousand of the enemy defeated, a lion and a thousand gazelles,
a hawk and a thousand partridges. 16 The greater part of that
sect of perdition were destroyed beneath the sword, and Tayangu
himself was wounded in the battle and had fallen on his face
like the subjects of the Khan of Khitai. A girl was standing
over him and when someone tried to cut off his head she cried
out : * It is Tayangu ! * and the man at once bound him up
and carried him off to the Sultan. He was then sent to Khorazm
together with the dispatches announcing the victory. And by
this triumph the army waxed mighty and because of this favour
they became possessed of fortune. Each achieved his object
according to his desire, and all received in their embraces mis-
tresses worthy of their longings. And by this victory, to which
the words

She hath two lovers, a pederast and an adulterer 17

might have applied, Majnun attained to Laik and Vamiq to
'Azra; 18 the devotees of wanton pastimes began to take their
pleasure of moon-faced beauties; and the ambitious were

12 Koran, xlviii, i. 13 Ibid., xxxii, 22.

14 iZw#: a pun on Khitai.

15 The Arabic proverb, ' (They departed} like the people of Saba? refers to the
dispersion of the Sabaeans caused by the bursting of the Dyke of Ma'rib. See
Nicholson, A Literary History of the Arab*; 15-17.

16 fibfi: according to Houtum-Sdhindler, Eastern Persian Irak, 3<5, the Sand-
Partridge, Ammoperdix hnhmi, Gray (A. gnseogAaris, Brandt), a bird * found
everywhere in Persia up to elevations of 7000 feet '.

17 From a well-known qasida by Abu-Nuwas. (M.Q.)

18 Majnun (* Madman ', his real name was Qais aPAmirl) and Lafla are
the Romeo and Juliet of the Arabs. Their story forms the subject of an epic

345

THE HISTORY OF

gratified by the acquisition of wealth and the amassing of horses
and camels. And to every part of the Sultan's domains there
set out a messenger bearing the glad tidings of the victory that
had been won. And in every soul there was relief at these
tidings and in every spirit ease from these victories ; and dread
of the Sultan was increased a thousandfold in the hearts of men.
Now it was the custom to write * the Second Alexander * as one
of Sultan Muhammad's titles. The Sultan said : * The reign
of Sanjar was very long. [79] If these titles are written for good
luck let them write " Sultan Sanjar * V And so Sultan Sanjar
was added to his titles. The imam Ziya-ad-Din Farsi 19 has a
qatida on this victory and on the Sultan's being proclaimed as
Sultan Sanjar. I shall set down a few verses of what I remember
of it ; it begins as follows :

Thy face by its beauty has given perfection to the world

of the soul; thy love by its kindness has given come-
liness to the countenance of the heart.
Now thy face has become the flame of the full moon ; now

thy locks have emitted the fragrance of the North wind.
Behold the talisman whereby the night has been mixed with

pure musk and thy ringlets given the colour of musk

and moles.
The joy he gave in my reunion with him was given by the

arrival of the virtuous Chosroes,
Sultan *Ala-yi-Dunya Sanjar, whom the Possessor of Glory has

chosen out from His creatures and given pomp and glory,
The King of the Persians, the Second Alexander, whose counsel

commanded his followers to conquer the kingdom of the Turks.
If the atmosphere of the age has been contaminated with

infidelity, thy sword with the fragrance of its victory has

restored it to salubrity.
Like the Sun thy sword has appeared in the East of righteousness

and has brought about the downfall of the kingdom of Error.

by the Persian poet Nkami. See Browne, A Literary History of Persia, II, 406-8.
The romance of Vamiq (Wamiq) and 'Azra (*Adhra), despite the Arabic
nanxs of its hero and heroine, was said to have been compiled for the Sassanian
monarch Nushirvan. (Ibid., 275-6.)

19 A manuscript of the divan of this poet (not mentioned by Browne in his
Literary History of Persia) was recently discovered by Professo* D. S. Robertson.
See his note, A Forgotten Persian Poet of the Thirteenth Centmy.

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I have heard as follows from my cousin the late Sadr-i-Imam,
the most excellent of the moderns, Shams-ad-DIn *Ali son of
Muhammad (may God envelop him in His mercy !) : * When
messengers arrived in Shadyakh with the news that the Sultan
had gained a victory over Khitai, all the people of the town,
each in accordance with his temperament and circumstances,
presented one another with gifts and addressed congratulations
one to another. The order of ascetics offered thanks to God ;
the great men and notables feasted and revelled to the sound of
timbal and flute; the common people rejoiced and made
merry ; the young men frolicked noisily in the gardens ; and
the old men engaged in talk one with another. With some
others I called on my master Sayyid Murtaza the son of Sayyid
Sadr-ad-Din (may God cloth them both in the raiment o/His mercy I).
I found him sitting sad and silent in a corner of his house. We
asked the reason for his grieving on so joyous an occasion. c O
men of little heed/' he replied, " beyond these Turks are a people
stubborn in their vengeance and fury [80] and exceeding Gog
and Magog 20 in the multitude of their numbers. And the
people of Khitai were in truth the wall of Zul-Qarnain S1
between us and them. And it is unlikely, when that wall is
gone, that there will be any peace within this realm or that any
man will recline in comfort and enjoyment. To-day I am in
mourning for Islam." '

What is seen by the young man in a mirror is seen by
the greybeard in a baked brick.

At the time when the Sultan returned in triumph from this
campaign against the infidel, the malik of Otrar had been opposing
righteous men, relying, as was his wont, upon strength and
might; and although envoys were constantly being sent to

20 Gog (Ya'juj) and Magog (Ma juj) personified the barbarous peoples of
North-Eastern Asia. .

21 Zul-Qarnain (Dhul-Qamain, * He of the Two Horns ) was an epitfoet
applied to Alexander the Great, who was said to have constructed a wall of
brass and iron to keep out Gog and Magog. See Koran, xviii, 82-98, Hamdallah
tr. le Strange, 236-7. The ' Wall of Gog and Magog * was in fact the Great
Wall of China.

BB* i. 347

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soften his attitude, he would not slip his head through the collar
of obedience. He refused to dislodge from his brain the
arrogance of pride and the vanity of riches, nor would he let
himself be saved from the perils of ignominy by the prohibitions
of admonition ; and he turned aside from ' the straight path ' 22
by leaguing himself with Khitai. Cod Almighty hath said:
c And what, now that guidance is come to them, ktteth men from
believing and from asking forgiveness of their Lord unless they wait till
that the doom of the ancients overtake tbem> or the chastisement come
upon them in the sight of the universe ? ' 23 When the Sultan learnt
of his obstinacy and presumption he set out to attack him. As
he drew near to their territory, the people of Otrar, seeing the
onrush of a raging flood in his vast host and realizing that it
could not be stemmed by resistance, approached the malik in a
body and said : * By thy rashness thou hast brought down upon
us a ravenous lion whom it is inconceivable that we can over-
come ; and thou hast forcibly and ignominiously cast thyself
and us into the jaws of a leviathan. Try courtesy in this pre-
dicament and desist from thy rude behaviour.* The ruler of
Otrar realized that it was impossible to strike a kite with the
talons of falcons and he saw no way to mend his affairs save by
submission. So he came out sword in hand but clad only in
a linen shirt, being midway, as it were, between hope and despair,
and laid his head upon the floor of the Sultan's tent begging
forgiveness for his crimes and offences. The Sultan requited
his sins and misdemeanours with pardon and [81] remission
and spared his life and property on condition that he left Otrar
and removed to Nisa (ha Nisa) with his horsemen and horses,
bag and baggage, there to settle with his women (ba nisa) M
and men.

In this way no blood was shed, and having dispatched the
malik to Nisa, the Sultan turned back to Samarqand, where
Sultan e Usman craved a pearl from the shell of the royal house
and sought in marriage a full moon from the starry sky of majesty.

22 * Guide Tbou us on the straight path, the path of those to whom Thou bast ken
gracious with whom Thou art not mgry, and who go not astray.* (Koran i, 5-6.)
2S JteZ., xviii, 53. 24 The usual pun on Nisa.

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The Sultan honoured him by granting that boon, as shall be
related in another chapter, and having appointed Tort- Aba, a
relation of Terken Khatun, as sbabna of Samarqand, he left for
Khorazm, the harbingers of good fortune upon his right and
left and the lights of prosperity upon his neck and brow.

His saddlecloth flung across the back of the Sun,
his stirrup putting a ring in the ear of the Moon ;

The banner of Kava 25 over the king's head was like
a wisp of cloud over the Moon.

He pierced the forbidding mouth with a smile, he said
* Keep back ! ' to the heavens from afar.

Upon arriving in Khorazin the Sultan prepared a feast and
caused Tayangu to be put to death and flung in the river. By
this victory fear of the Sultan was increased a thousandfold in
men's hearts and rulers upon every side sent relays of envoys and
gifts to his court. The words ' Shadow of God upon earth * were
written upon his auspicious togkra, and the chief scribe Fakhr-al-
Mulk Nizam-ad-Din Farid of Jam composed the following
verses :

O king of kings, disposer of the world, thou art he

from whose highmindedness the heavens might borrow.
In the eye of thy highmindedness the world in its

length and breadth seems smaller than an atom.
All the pure cherubs of thy age, after performing

the rites laid down by holy law,
[82] Chant as a charm the words : f The Sultan u the shadow

of God on earth.'

[vni]

OF THE SULTAN'S RETURNING A SECOND TIME
TO WAGE WAR ON THE GUR-KHAN

DURING the Sultan s absence from Khorazm some remnants of
the followers of Qadir Khan had breathed the breath of rebellion

25 lirafth-t-kaviyanl The blacksmith Kava was the first to revolt against the
tyrant Zahh5k (Dahak) ; and his apron, converted into a banner, became the
national standard of Iran.

349

THE HISTORY OF

in the region of JancL On that account the Sultan did not
remain long in Khorazm but set out for Jand to excise the pus
of their being ; whilst Sultan "Usman stayed behind to complete
his nuptials.

When the Sultan had extirpated that band of rebels, there
came tidings that the army of Khitai had arrived at the gates of
Samarqand and laid siege to the town. The Sultan set out in
that direction from Jand ; and at the same time he sent messengers
to every part of his kingdom, and summoned all the armies that
he had upon every side, and raised levies from all his lands.
Meanwhile he proceeded towards Samarqand, where the army
of Khitai had for some time been encamped on the bank of the
river at the gates of the town. They had fought seventy engage-
ments, and each time they had been defeated and the army of
Islam triumphant except on one occasion when they had been
victorious and had driven the army of Samarqand into the town.
They now perceived that they were achieving nothing by their
fighting and would soon be in a desperate plight, since bread
will not return once it has fallen into water. Moreover, from
one direction came news of the Sultan's approach and from the
other reports of Kuchliig Khan's conquests. They therefore
withdrew under cover of a truce.

When [83] the Sultan arrived in Samarqand the armies came
together from every side and he departed from the town. Mean-
while the governor of Ighnaq, 1 who though a Moslem had not
the character of one on account of his sympathy with the people
of hypocrisy and contention, had refused to do his duty, although
the Sultan had several times called on him to yield obedience
and had encouraged him with fair promises ; but because he
had fortified himself in a castle which he held Satan had blown
the wind of pride into his brain. The Sultan dispatched a
detachment from a great army, nay a wave from a raging sea,
which, upon arriving there, after some time brought him down

Ighnaq (AFNAQ) or Yighnaq (YTNAQ), according to
Yaqut, was a town in Turkestan, a dependency of Banakat. (M.Q.) Barthold,
Turkestan, 35<5 n. 7, suggests its identity with Yughank, a village near Samarqand

3SQ

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from his castle and sent him in chains and shackles to the
Sultan.

The Sultan now heard of Kiichlug's victories over the
Khitayans, and he became more ambitious. Kiichlug's envoys
approached him in secret and an agreement was reached between
them that first of all ihegur-kban must be removed : if the Sultan
gained the victory over him he should receive all territory as far
as Khotan and Kashgar, and if Kiichlug was the victor he
should have everything as far as the river at Fanakat. After
they had arrived at this understanding, Kiichliig was on one
occasion victorious and on another defeated, as has been recorded
in the chapter on the Qara-Khitai. 2 The Sultan now advanced
beyond Samarqand, and the giir-kban receiving tidings thereof
likewise made his preparations. When the armies drew near
together the is/Mad of Kabud-Jama 3 and Tort- Aba, the fasqtq 4
of Samarqand [84] joined in a conspiracy against the Sultan
and sent a messenger in secret to the giir-kban to say that on the
day of battle they and their troops would desert the Sultan on
condition that, after the gtir-kbans victory, Khorazm should be
ceded to Tort- Aba and Khorasan to the isfahbad, In his reply
the giir-khan promised the double of what they had asked. The
two armies now came face to face and charge after charge was
made [by either side]. The left wing of the Khitai attacked the
Sultan's right, and in accordance with their promise Tort- Aba
and the isfabbad withdrew and their forces also retired behind
the centre. At the same time the Sultan's left wing defeated the
gur-kban's right and they were put to flight. The centres of the
two armies then became so involved with one another that
neither could distinguish victor and vanquished, and both sides

2 In this chapter [Chapter X] there is in fact no mention of Kiichliig's first
and second campaigns against the giir~kh<m f which are dealt with only in I, 47-8

8 The district of Kabud-Jama, now called Hajjilar, lies in the extreme east of
Gurgan (Astarabad). See Rabino, Mdzanfardn and Astarab<H 84.

4 Tort-Aba had been appointed to act as Sultan Muhammad's * representative
with the Sultan of Samarqand ' (p. 343) ; he is then described as * the sbahtia
of Samarqand * (p. 349), and here as the fasqaq. On the terms fasgaq and sbahna
see above, p. 105, n. 24, p. 44, n. 3.

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looted and plundered and took to their heels. Now it was the
custom of the Sultan on the day of battle to don the garb and
dress of his opponents. Moreover certain of his retinue also in
the confusion of the two armies had found themselves amongst
the army of Khitai. For some days the Sultan remained
unrecognized amongst that outlandish people until seizing a
sudden opportunity he turned rein and reached the river at
Fanakat His arrival brought new life to his army. When the
news of his disappearance had been spread about, everyone had
had his own theory, some saying that he was a prisoner in the
midst of that strange host, others that he had been killed ; and
no one knew the truth. Therefore messengers went forth with
the glad tidings and letters-patent were dispatched to every side.
Meanwhile the Sultan of the World returned to the city of
Khorazm and again made ready for war and battle.

[IX]

OF THE CONQUEST OF FIRUZKUH AND GHAZNIN

AFTER the Sultan had conquered Herat he assigned Firuzkuh
to Sultan Mahmud x [85] and did no harm thereto ; and Sultan
Mahmud read the kbutta and struck coin in the Sultan's
name.

During the Sultan's campaign against the infidel, his brother
Taj-ad-Din c Ali-Shah, betook himself to Sultan Mahmud on
account of an estrangement fiom his brother Sultan Muhammad.
Sultan Mahmud received him with every honour, yielding him
precedence over all the great nobles and bestowing upon him all
manner of gifts and presents. After some time had passed
somebody entered Sultan Mahmud's harem by way of a conduit,
found him seated upon a throne and killed him. No one knew
who had struck the blow but there was a rumour amongst the
people that e Ali-Shah had assassinated him because he coveted
his kingdom. However that might be, when he was dead (and
his death took place in the year 609/1212-13) there was no

1 The son of Shihab-ad-Dln (Muhammad Ghuri).

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other descendant of the Sultans of Ghur who might strengthen
the pillars of the Sultanate and reinforce the foundations of the
kingdom ; and accordingly the notables of Firuzkuh agreed
upon Taj-ad-Din e Ali~Shah [as his successor] and set him upon
the throne of the Sultanate. In order to observe the forms of
respect he dispatched a message to the Sultan to inform him of
what had occurred and to seek permission to assume the rank
of Sultan as his brother's deputy. The Sultan sent Muhammad-
i-Bashir with robes of honour and other presents for the purpose
of his investiture as Sultan together with a signet and letter-
patent. When Bashir had completed the ceremonies of con-
gratulation, 'Ali-Shah retired to his robing-chamber in order to
don the robes of honour. Bashir picked up the robes and
followed him in. Then drawing his sword he struck off his
head at one blow. The bearer of good tidings (basbir) became
a harbinger of evil (nazir), and congratulations were turned into
condolences. With Ali-Shah's death there was no one left to
compete for the throne. The other letters-patent addressed to the
chief officials with a view to winning them over were now read
out, and the kingdom of Ghur and Firuzkuh and all that region
passed into the hands of the Sultan.

After this, in the year 611/1214-15, there came news that
Taj-ad-Din Ilduz had passed away in Ghaznin leaving no heir
to succeed him and that one of the ghulams had ascended the
throne in his place. The Sultan set out for that kingdom, which
was a goodly realm, and directed his whole attention towards
the conquest of those climes, which were then added to his other
possessions. [86] In the treasury at Ghaznin which had been
set up by Sultan Shihab-ad-Din there were discovered letters-
patent from the Holy Seat of the Caliphate wherein the Ghurids
were incited to attack the Sultan of Khorazm and the latter's (?)
deeds and actions were reviled and misrepresented. The Sultan's
anger with the Supreme Divan was increased hereby for he now
knew that the hostility of the Ghurids had been largely due to
the incitement and encouragement of the Seat of the Caliphate.
Having taken possession of the lands of the Sultan of Ghur in
the direction of India he returned to Samarqand. For the time

355

THE HISTORY OF

being he made no mention of that discovery wishing first of all to
conquer the eastern provinces. This subject has been dealt with
in a previous chapter. 2

The countries of Herat, Ghur, Gharchistan and Sijistan to
the frontiers of India were now added to the Sultan's domains.
This was a realm which no one had conquered. These lands
formed the central basis of the empire of Sultan Mahmud son
of Sebiik-Tegin and his descendants, generation after generation ;
and they still remained a separate entity under the Sultans of
Ghur. They were now made the seat of Sultan Jalal-ad-Din.

[X]

OF THE KHANS OF QARA-KHITAI, 1
THEIR RISE TO POWER AND THEIR DESTRUCTION

THEIR original home was in Khitai where they were persons
of authority and importance. Some powerful reason required
their expulsion from their country, and they were forced to go
into exile exposing themselves to perils and enduring the hard-
ships of travel. Their prince and leader they call the giir-khan,
i.e. the khan of khans. When he 2 left Khitai [87] he was
accompanied by 80 members of his family and retinue, 3 though
according to another tradition he was accompanied by a very

2 There is in fact no previous mention of this matter. There is however a
subsequent reference in Chapter XII (ii. 390).

1 A translation of this chapter was made by Dr. K. H. Menges for the use
of Professor Wittfogel and Professor Feng in the appendix on Qara-Khitai in
their monumental work, History of Chinese Society : Liao (907-112$).

2 Le. the original gitr-khan, Yeh-lii Ta-shih (1124-43). On the title gilt-khan
see above, p. 62, n. 4.

3 * Literally, " eighty people of his tribe and his followers". The wording is
ambiguous. It may mean: eighty followers, members of his own tribe and
others; or: eighty members of his tribe and (in addition) other followers. The
first interpretation seems suggestive since the figure eighty more probably refers
to the whole escort than to part of it ; but the argument is by no means con-
clusive. The second interpretation implies the existence of additional followers
beside the eighty tribesmen, which would bring the total closer to the number
mentioned in the Liao Sbth, i.e. two hundred." (Wittfogel and FSng, op. dt. f
631, n. 16.)

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large following. 4 When they reached the country of the Qirqiz
they made attacks on the tribes in that area, who in turn harassed
the Khitayans. From thence they journeyed on rill they came
to the Emil, where they built a town of which some traces still
remain. Here many Turks and tribes in great numbers gathered
around the giir-khan until they amounted to 40,000 households.
But here too they were unable to remain and so they moved on
until they came to the region of Balasaqun, which the Mongols
now call Ghuz-Baligh. 5 The ruler of that country was a man
who traced his descent to Afrasiyab but had no strength or
power. The Qarligh 6 and Qanqli Turks in that area had
shaken off their allegiance to him and used to molest him by
making raids upon his followers and cattle and carrying out
depredations. And this person, who was the ruler, was unable
to check them or ward them off. Hearing of the settlement of
the giir-khan and his followers and their great numbers, he sent
messengers to him to inform him of his own powerlessness and
of the strength and wickedness of the Qanqli and Qarluq and
to beg him to advance upon his capital so that he might place
the whole of his kingdom under his control and so free him-
self from the cares of this world. The giir-kban proceeded to
Balasaqun and ascended a throne [88] that had cost him nothing.
From the descendant of Afrasiyab he took over the title of khan,
giving him the designation of ilig *ttirkmen. 7 He then dispatched

4 ' The two versions recorded by Juwayni seem irreconcilable. However both
make sense if we accept the Chinese record which notes that Yeh-M Ta-shih
reached KVtun with only a small group of followers, adding numerous new
troops to this nucleus during his sojourn in the northern garrison. He soon
had " ten thousand war horses "... Juwayni's seemingly contradictory versions
possibly refer to these two phases of Yeh-lii Ta-shih's military career, which
the Moslem historian, writing a hundred and fifty years after the event, failed to
distinguish.' (Loc. dt, n. 17.)

5 Reading TZ BALYF for the FR BALYT of the text. The name has already
appeared in the form Quz-Baligh. See above, p. 58 and n. -21. In the
Chinese record we find the older form of the name, Quz-Ordu. See Wittfogel and
Hng, op. dt. t 538. e Qarligh (QRLYT) for the usual Qarlugh (QRLT).

7 Reading AYLK TRKMAN for the AYLK TRKAN of the text in
accordance with Barthold's suggestion. See above, p. 288, n. 34- It may be
however that the phrase is to be read: ilig-i-Turkan 'the % of the Turks'. See
Marquart, Uler das Volfatttm kr Komanen, 164.

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sbahnas to every region from Qam-Keinchik 8 to Barskhan 9 and
from Taraz to Yafinch. 10 When some time had passed and
his people had prospered and their cattle grown fat, he brought
the Qanqli under his sway and dispatching an army to Kashghar
and Khotan conquered that region also. He next dispatched
an army to the land of the Qirqiz to avenge the treatment he
had received at their hands. He also conquered Besh-Baligh
and sent an army from thence to Farghana and Transoxiana,
which countries likewise submitted to him, the Sultans of
Transoxiana, who were the ancestors of Sultan *Usman,
acknowledging him as their suzerain. After he had gained
these victories and his army had been heartened thereby and his
horsemen and horses increased in number, he sent Erbiiz, who
was his commander-in-chief, to Khorazm, where he sacked
the villages and wrought great slaughter. Atsiz, the Khorazm-
Shah, sent an envoy to him, accepted allegiance to the gur-kban
and agreed to pay a tribute of 3>ooo gold dinars, which he
delivered thereafter every year in goods or cattle. Having made
peace on these terms Erbuz returned home. Shortly afterwards
the gur-kban died and his wife, Kuyang, 11 ascended the throne
as his successor and began to issue commands. All [89] the
people yielded obedience to her until she was overcome with
sensual desire and was put to death with someone who was
related to and associated with her. 12 One of the giir-kban's two

8 I.e. the region of the Upper Yenisei. See above, p. 69, n. 21.

9 Reading BARS XAN for the BARSRHAN of the text. Apparently
Upper Baiskhan, which ky south of the Issyk Kul, " most probably near the
present-day Przhevalsk (Qara-qol) *. See Minorsky, Hudud, 292-3.

10 Reading YAFNC for the YAMNH of the text. Yafihch according to
Kashghari was * a town near the IK * (HE, 375) and also the name of a river (I, 59),
which Minorsky, op, dt. } 276, is inclined to identify with the Qara-Tal, which
flows into Lake Balkhash north of the Hi.

n KWYNK. This was T r a-pu-yen (1144-50), whose honorific title was
the Empress Kan-t'ien, her reign title being Hsien-ch'ing. See Wittfbgel and
F&ig, op. dt., 621 and 643. Kuyang is perhaps identical with the Mongol
title guyttftg from the Chinese kvo-wang ' prince de royaume ', on which see Pelliot-
Hambis, Campagnes, 221 and 362-4.

12 Here Juvaini has confused Yeh-lii Ta-shih*s widow with his daughter,
P f u-su-wan, on whom see above, p. 290, n. 37* The paramour was her
brother-in-law, Hsiao p c u-ku-chih. See Wittfbgel and Feng, op. dt. t 646.

356

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brothers, 13 who were still alive, was chosen to succeed him,
The other brother tried to seize the kingdom and was removed.
The first brother waxed in strength, appointing each person to
some office and sending sbabnas to all parts.

When Atsiz was succeeded by his son Tekish, the latter
continued to pay the fixed amount in tribute and strove to please
the gur-khan in every way. When he was lying on his death
bed he charged his sons not to fight the giir-kban nor to break
the agreement that had been reached, because * he was a great
wall behind which there were terrible foes'. 14

When Sultan Muhammad came to the throne he continued
for a while to pay the tribute and there was nothing to mar the
friendship between them. Thus, when Shihab-ad-Din of Ghur
attacked the Sultan, the gur-khan sent a force of 10,000 men to
his assistance. They joined battle at Andkhud and the Ghuris
were routed. However, the Sultan's ambition was such that he
considered the Lord of the Planets inferior in rank to his own
parasol, and it irked him to submit to a capitation-tax and to
pay tribute to the giir-kban. He held up payment for two or
three years and was slow in discharging his obligation. In the
end the giir-kban sent Mahmud Tai, 15 his chief vizier, to claim
what was due. When he arrived in Khorazm, the bearer of
somewhat harsh missives, the Sultan was preparing for a cam-
paign against the Qifchaq and did not wish to give a rough
reply and so disobey his father's injunctions. Furthermore he
was about to absent himself from his kingdom and it was
undesirable that the Qara-Khitayans should avail themselves of

18 These two brothers must in fact be the sons of the Emperor Yi-lieh (ii5i-63)t
who according to the Liao shtb had left instructions that his younger sister was
to succeed him since his son, i.e. apparently his elder son, was still of tender
age. Upon P'u-su-wan's death however it was Yi-lieh's younger son who came
to the throne. It would appear from Juvaini's account that the elder brother
had then attempted to assert his rights. See Wittfbgel and F&ig, op. dt., 644,
646 and n. 18. The younger brother was Chih-lu-ku, the last of the gut-Urns
(1178-1211).

14 See above, p. 347-

15 Cf. the name Oz-Beg Tai (ii* 414). Tai (TAY) could be either td * maternal
uncle* (Houtsma, Glossar, 83) or td * colt' (ML), which frequently occurs in
compound names.

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the opportunity and make an attack. On the other hand he
was ashamed to accept his position as a tributary. In replying,
therefore, he said neither good nor ill but entrusted the settlement
[90] of the matter to the counsel of his mother, Terken Khatun,
and made his departure.

Terken Khatun ordered the giir-kban 9 $ envoys to be received
with honour and respect. She treated them courteously and
paid up the annual tribute in full. She also sent some of the
notables of her court to accompany Mahmud Tai to thegur-kban
and apologize for the delay in payment ; and confirmed that the
Sultan was still bound by the terms of subjection and submission.
However Mahmud Tai had observed the ambition and con-
tumacy of the Sultan and had recognized that his temper was
such that he considered his rank too elevated for him to abase
himself and fawn before any mortal or to humble himself in any
way ; he deemed all the monarchs of the world to be his servants,
nay he considered Fortune herself to be his handmaid.

In war I am a ragmg lion, javelins my lair and

my swords my claws.

Time ts my slave and Generosity my thrall, the earth
my abode and mankind my guests.

Mahmud Tai reported all these circumstances to the gur-khan
and said : * The Sultan is insincere and will not pay tribute
again/ The g&r-kban, for his part, did not specially honour the
Sultan's envoys or pay them much attention.

When the Sultan returned in triumph from his campaign
against the Qifchaq to Khorazm, the capital of his kingdom,
he began to make plans for the conquest of Transoxiana, leading
an army to Bokhara and sending secret messages to every side
and encouraging everyone with promises, holding out particular
inducements to Sultan c Usman. All were tired of the long rule
of the gur-kban and had come to detest his revenue officials
(mnf&lanri-*umm8l) and local administrators (muqalladan-i-amal),
who, contrary to their former practice, had begun to conduct
themselves in a lawless and oppressive manner. Accordingly
everyone accepted the Sultan's invitation, which both heartened

35*

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

and rejoiced them ; and the Sultan turned back from Bokhara
on the understanding that he would return in the following year
to attack the giir-khan.

In the East, too, the emirs of the gur-kktn began to breathe
rebellion. At that time Kiichlug [91] was in attendance an
the gur-khan and was unable to oppose him as he would have
wished. When he heard how his fortunes had changed and
his kingdom was tottering he craved permission to return and
gather together the scattered remains of his forces, dispersed on
every side, in order that he might come to his assistance. This
pretence accorded with the gur-khans temper and he believed his
words, which exuded from a well of falsity and a mass of
iniquity. He distinguished him with costly robes of honour and
conferred upon him the tide of Kucbliig-Kban. When he had
gone the gtir-khan repented of having sent him

And be repented when repenting was of no ami

He sent for the local rulers upon every side that were his emits
and agents such as Sultan "Usman and others. Now Sultan
c Usman had sought a daughter of die giir-khan in marriage and
had been refused. He was therefore full of resentment against
him and did not respond to the summons. Instead he sent a
messenger to Sultan Muhammad to declare his loyalty to him.
He also read the khutba and struck coin in Samarqand in the
Sultan s name and rose in open rebellion against the giir-Um.
When the latter received tidings of this he mustered 30,000 men
and sent them to wage war on Sultan 'Usman. He recaptured
Samarqand but would allow no great harm to be done to it,
for he regarded it as his treasury. But when Kuchliig had
gathered strength in the more distant regions and began to attack
and ravage his territory he withdrew his army from Samarqand
in order to repel him and dispatched them against him. Learning
of the confusion caused by Kiichliig and of the jwr-felwV having
sent his army to destroy and uproot him, the Sultan availed
himself of the opportunity and set out for Samarqand. The
Sultan of Sultans came out to receive him and surrendered the

16 C afcove, p. 63.

THE HISTORY OF

kingdom of Samarqand into his hands* From thence they
proceeded together against the giir-khan and came at last to Taraz,
where Tayangu lay with an enormous army. He too mustered
his forces and came out to do battle. When the two armies
stood facing each other, attacks were made by either side, and
the left wing of both armies drove back the opposing right wing
[92], after which both sides withdrew. The giir-khan's army
then retreated, Tayangu having been taken prisoner; and the
Sultan also retreated. As they retired the army of Khitai set
their hands to rapine and massacre and devastation in the towns
and villages and amongst the peasantry. When they arrived
before Balasaqun, the inhabitants, who had set their hearts on
the Sultan's conquering that region, closed their gates and,
when the army of Qara-Khitai arrived, refused to admit them ;
nay rather they joined battle with them and fought hard for
sixteen days thinking that the Sultan was at their heels. Mahmud
Tai and the emirs of the gtir-kban tried to come to terms with
them and offered advice, but they would not trust them. Finally,
the army of Khitai, which lay open every side, was all gathered
together ; whereupon they drove the elephants they had captured
from the Sultan's army against the gates and destroyed them.
Having massed upon every side their troops now entered the
town, where they laid their hands on their swords sparing no
one. For three days and nights they massacred the inhabitants,
and 47,000 of the chief notables were counted among the slain;
whilst the giir-khan's army were greatly heartened by the quantity
of booty. Now the Khan's treasuries had been emptied partly
by looting and partly by the payments of wages and salaries,
and Mahmud Tai, fearing lest covetous eyes might be cast upon
his own wealth, which was greater than that of Qaran, suggested
that the private treasury which the army had retrieved from
Kuchliig should be collected together again. But when the
emirs heard of this idea, they hung back and became uneasy ;
and began to breathe the breath of independence and rebellion.
Meanwhile Kiichliig was again ready for action, and when he
heard that the giir-kban was separated from his army, [93] that
the towns and peasantry had been subjected to oppression and

THE WORLD-CONQUEROR

that the greater part of the army was standing aloof from him,
he again availed himself of his opportunity and falling upon
him like a lightning-flash from a cloud took him completely
unawares. God Almighty hath said : f Seest then net that we send
the Satans against the Infidels to urge them into sin ? * 17 All of his
army was scattered and far away, and having no other choice he
sought to do homage to Kuchliig and humble himself before
him ; but Kiichliig would not suffer this but treated him with
respect, looking upon him as a father and sparing his feelings.
Now the giir-khan had affianced to himself the daughter of a
great emir, who was the envy of Venus and Jupiter. When he
came under Kuchliig's dominion the latter took the girl for
himself. A year or two later thtgiir-khan passed away 18 and the
wind of that dynasty died down after they had reigned in pros-
perity and happiness for three qarn and five years, 19 during all
of which period no harm had touched the skirt of their fortune.
But when the time came for their decline and fall, one who had
been a captive in prison became ruler over the khan of that people,
whilst the giir-khan received a tomb for his abode and all his
people were bewildered and dismayed.

When the time came that kingdom did not remain;

all that lordly activity was of no avail.
When it comes, it is gain, when it goes it is pain;

empty-handedness is preferable to such treasure.

God Almighty hath said : e Their state is like that of the people of
Pharaoh, and of those before them who treated their Lord's signs as lies.
We therefore destroyed them in their sins, and we drowned the people of
Pharaoh ; for they were all doers of wrong. 9 20

17 Koran, xix, 86.

18 Chih-iu-ku was deposed by Kiichliig in 1211 and died in 1213. See
Wittfbgel and Feng, op. cit. f 652 and 653.

19 Reading si qam va panj sal with D. The text, following A, has si qam wvat
va panj sal ie. probably * three ym (= ninety) and five years '. Rashid-ad-Din
(Berezin, XV, 80) has the same reading as D. Smirnova, 182, translates the
phrase * three hundred and five years ', evidently taking qarn in its modern sense
of * century '. For qam * a period of thirty years * see Minovi and Minorsky,
Naflr d-Din TM on Finance, 760 and 772. In actual fact the dynasty (1124-1215)
lasted for rather less than 95 years 89 solar or 92 lunar years,

20 Koran, viii, 56.

361

1 24 449

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