CHAPTER II
Campaigns of the Crescent again in milder form--Masûd's imitation of Mahmûd's exploits--The Ghuznevide dynasty--Shahâb-ud-din and Ghiâss-ud-din, the brother kings--The former's change of name to Mahomed--His loot and riches.
The Râjput resistance--Râjputs born soldiers--Prithvi-Râj--Story of his marriage with Princess Sunyogata of Kanaûj--His victory over Mahomed Ghori--The latter's disgust--His final attempt at revenge--Princess Sunyogata's reply--The fatal field of Pâniput--Râjputs overthrown--Kutb-din the slave left viceroy of India--Mahomed Ghori's death.
The slave kings--Delhi founded by a slave--The Kutb Minâr-- Kutb-ud-din Eîbuk--Altâmish--His bad sons and good daughter--The Empress Râzia--Scandal--Her and her husband's death--Nâsir-ud-din--A good king followed by many bad ones--Extinction of dynasty.
The Tartar dynasties--Slack rule--Tendency to break up into petty States--House of Khilji--Allah-ud-din--His murder of his uncle, Dervish Sidi--Allah-ud-din and Padmani--Sack of Chitore--Difficulties in the Dekkan--Extinction of House of Khilji--Toghluk dynasty--Ferôze Toghluk.
Invasion of Timur--The Toork--Timur's terrible cruelty--A crushing blow--Thirty years of stupefaction.
Devastated India--No master hand in India--Puppet kings--The Dekka fairly consolidated--The Râjputs raise their heads-- Thirty-six years of kinglessness--Three strong men: a warrior, a bigot, a tyrant.
The Great Moghuls--Story of Babar the adventurer--His extraordinary versatility and charm--His memoirs and literary skill--His constant knight errantry and endless fluctuations of fortune--His final attraction to India.
Babar Emperor of India--His invasion of the Punjâb and return to gather more troops--His swoop on Delhi--The fatal field of Pâniput once more--His victories--His dislike to India--His overthrow of the Râjputs--His vow of total abstinence and victory--His unfailing vitality--Babar as lover and husband-- Devotion to his wife and children--His son Humâyon--Strange story of a father's devotion--The most romantic figure in Indian History.
Humâyon--His patience and clemency--Addicted to opium-- Dilatory character--The brothers' bracelet--Ungrateful brothers --His flight from Bengal--Increasing misfortunes--Driven to the desert--Falls in love--Romantic story--Akbar born in the desert--Father and mother forced to fly to Persia.
The House of Sûr--Absolute usurpers--Not royal--Aided, however, by Humâyon's brothers--Held India for twelve years.
The wanderings of a king--Humayon's record of misfortunes--His dilatoriness and absolute good temper--Little Prince Akbar's marvellous escapes--Europe's first knowledge of India--The Portuguese settlement-Humâyon's final return to India as Emperor--His death.
Akbar the Great--The times in Europe--His singular, almost incredible, character--A man of genius--His age at accession--His immediate grip on affairs--Byrâm-Khân--Fatal field of Pâniput once more--Hemu--Akbar's mercy--Dismissal of Byrâm--Record of the reign--English merchants--Birth of an heir--Fatehpur Sikri--Akbar's religion--His disappointment in his sons--A great dreamer.
Jahângir and Nurjahân--Story of Mihr-un-nissa--Her meeting with Jahângir-His constancy and final marriage--The first charter of the English trading company--Sir Thomas Roe's embassy-- Captain Hawkins--Nurjahân's influence.
Shâhjahân--Knight of the rueful countenance--An age of gold-- Grant to England--Greatest magnificence of the Court--Trouble with English settlers at Calcutta--Pirates of Arracan--Indian revenues--Shâhjahân's sons--His devotion to his wife--The Tâj.
Aurungzebe--End of Middle Age--Unamiable character--Good king--Quarrel with Mahrattas under Siva-ji--Likeness between Aurungzebe and the Mahratta general--Extreme astuteness of latter--Additional grants to England--Help promised by James II. to East India Company--Sir John Child as scapegoat-- India's coral strand--Aurungzebe's untiring energy--His deathbed.
THE MODERN AGE
India in the beginning of the eighteenth century--General volte face--Review of the Indian Peninsula--Temptation of Tom Tiddler's ground--Gold but no riches--Bernier's horror at commercial status of India--Surprise at high state of intellectual civilisation--Curious contrasts--Western methods-- Salaries of officers--Story of the king of Guzerât--Gabriel Boughton--William Hamilton.
Rise of the Mahratta power--Siva-ji's genius for the sea--Moghuls' star descending--Bahâdur Shâh's difficulties--The Sikhs--Death of the Emperor--Recrudescence of the murders and horrors of the past--Accession of Farokhsir--Mahratta war--Growing strength of Mahrattas--Final victory--Asaf-Jâh returns Delhi-wards--Nâdir the Persian crosses the Indian Border.
