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SEPTEMBER, 1921] HISTORY OF THE NIZAM SHAH KINGS OF AHMADNAGAR 267
The fort of Narnála is famed for its great strength throughout India, nay, throughout the whole inhabited world. It is built on a high and inaccessible hill surrounded by deep and well nigh impassable valleys. The sides of the hill are covered with dense forest which made passage all the more difficult, threaded by but one narrow winding path from the base of the summit of the hill, dark from the overhanging trees and full of rolling stones.
Until Murtagâ Nigam Shâh appeared before Narnåla, the fortress had never been captured and no fortress had been seen like it in the world, except the fort of Gâwil, which in strength and loftiness is superior to the generality of forts, and is the counterpart of Narnâla.
When Tufal Khân found no place of rest or refuge on the face of the earth, he sent his son, with a number of his tribesmen and relatives, to Gâwil, while he himself, with his treasures and all his movable property, took refuge in the mountains and, in great grief and vexation, made Narnila his place of shelter and rest, and raised his standard against the invader.
Murtaza Nizam Shah sent a force under some of his chief amits, such as the Khânzamân, Rustam Khân, Mali Khân, Bahram Khan and Bahadur Khân, to besiege G&wil, and impressed on the officers the necessity for caution and patience. Then the Khânzamân was detached from this army and ordered to rejoin the king at headquarters, Bahrâm Khân being appointed commander of the force for Gâwil, while the king in person proceeded to besiege Narnâ la and set all in order for the siege.
The amirs and the troops were posted in the stations allotted to them around the fort and began to push forward the trenches. They also set themselves to cut down the forest and to make smooth the stony portions of the hill.
The wige vazir, Asad Khân, 188 who had at this time entered the royal service, and was a valiant and experienced soldier, specially skilled in siege works and artillery, devoted all his attention to the capture of this fortress and toiled much to carry the siege guns near to the defence; and Sayyid Murtaza, who was in command of all the silahdars made such efforts to ensure the success of the siege as caused him to be the recipient of renewed favours from the king, so that he was advanced to the position of Sar-j-Naubat and subsequently to that of Amir-ul-Umará. Since there was little love between Changiz Khan and Sayyid Murtaza, the latter's good services bore little fruit in the former's life-time, and the king, in deference to his minister's prejudices, showed Sayyid Murtațâ but little outward favour, but the day that Changiz Khân died, Sayyid Murtaza was made Sar-j-Naubat, as will shortly be related.
At this time, while the siege was in progress, news was received by the king that Ibrahim Qutb Shâh's army had attacked the troops of Ahmadnagar on the borders of the Kandhar district, and that the royal troops, unable to withstand the invaders, had suffered a defeat. The king was much annoyed by this news and ordered that the force which had been left to besiege Mâhîr should hasten to the support of the defeated army, and, acting in concert with it, should resist the advance of Ibrahîm Qutb Shah's troops.
At the same time Haidar Sultan who had been in command of the army of Kandhår, was recalled to headquarters and Mirza Yådgâr, the Sayyid, was appointed to the command of that army. The amirs set out from Mahûr and joined the defeated army in Kandhår. At this time the army of Ibrahim Qutb Shah was encamped at the village of Tamrl and the distance between the armies was no more than two gad.189 When the army of Golconda heard that the army of Kandhår had been reinforced, they marched from Tamri and did not halt until they reached Kaulås.
188 Asad Khan, a Georgian, had formerly been in the service of Gujarat. He and Bikander Ram Kh An, son of abashf Rami Khan, commanded the artillery at the siogo of NarnAla.-F. ii, 267
196 The gou is an ancient measure of distance, the lengths attributed to which vary greatly. Sayyid All pooms to use it for a distance of about four milos.
