Page 75 - History of Portuguese in the Gulf_Neat

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184 APPENDIX A.
landed his men, but met with some resistance, and the matter
promised to be tedious. The men of the island were now hard
pressed, and the king’s men impatient that these held out so
long. Some of the men, thinking to make an end of the
business, offered battle, without orders, to Xady. He, seeing his
advantage, accepted it, and beat the Harmuzis with great slaughter.
The king, with the remnant, embarked in disorder, and at once
made sail for Harmuz.
When the king got his forces into proper order again, he returned
to the attack on Keys. Xady, who thought it not safe to await
him there, went over to Barhen, where his brother Xambe was.
The king came to Keys, took it easily enough, and allowed his
soldiers the sack of it. Then, leaving a strong garrison, he
returned to Harmuz, meaning presently to go against his nephews
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in Barhen. But they, seeing that he was gone, raised what forces
they could, and led them against Keys, thinking to recover it.
! day. But the king’s men beat them off handsomely;3 and as they
many distinguished men, came to visit us, and excused themselves on
account of the occupations in which the war involved them. We
passed sixteen days amongst them.” After describing his interviews
with the king, and his sister’s son, ’Ali Shrlh, son of Jalaluddm Alki'ji,
the traveller says : “This is the motive of the war that existed between
the Sultan and his two nephews. The former embarked one day on
the sea, at the new city, to go on a pleasure trip to Old Hormuz and
its gardens. The distance that separates these two cities by sea is
three parasangs, as we have said above. The Sultan’s brother,
Nizjtmuddfn, revolted against him, and arrogated to himself the
power. The inhabitants of the island took the oath of allegiance to
him, as also the troops. Kutbuddm entertained fears for his safety,
and embarked for the town of Kalhdt, of which I have spoken above,
and which forms part of his dominions. He stayed there several
months, equipped vessels, and set sail towards the island. The
inhabitants of the latter engaged him, in concert with his brother, and
obliged him to flee to Kalh&t. He renewed the same attempt on
many occasions ; but he had no success until he had recourse to the
stratagem of sending to one of the wives of his brother an emissary,
who persuaded her to poison him. The usurper being dead, the
Sultan proceeded once more against the island, and made his entry
into it. His two nephews fled, with the treasures, the goods, and the
troops, to the island of Kais, where are the pearl fisheries [j/zr]. From
this place they set themselves to intercept the road to those of the
inhabitants of India and Sind who were going towards the island,
and to make incursions into the districts of the littoral, so that the
greater part were devastated” (op. cit., tom. ii, p. 233 ct seq.). The
above, it will be seen, agrees to a great extent with Teixeira’s version ;
and, if we could rely on the dates he gives, I bn Batuta’s visit must
have taken place in 1346 or 1347. But, a little later, the traveller says
that he left Yaman for Mecca in A.H. 732, i.e.y A.n. 1332. It is true
that he visited Hormuz some years later (on his way home from
China), apparently, from his own statement, in a.d. 1347 ; but of his
three days’ stay there on this second occasion he gives no details
(op. cit., tom. iv, p. 311).—d. f.
KINGS OF IIOK MU/. is 5
However, when they were half way across, most of their captains
and soldiers deserted them, and went over to the king. Amongst
these were Xamcadin Mamud,1 Kamaladin Ismael, and Naceradin
Moceleh, all chiefs of note. These, passing by Keys, warned the
king’s governor, Mir Tagah, of the coming of the brothers.
Sailing next to Lapht, in the Isle of Broct or Queixome, where
Mir Sabekadin was in garrison, they took him on with them to
Harmuz; lest he, with his weak force, should be suddenly attacked
by the brothers, and come to some misfortune.
Xambd and Xady would not give up their enterprise for the
desertion of their captains and soldiers. But, sailing past Keys,
where they were not allowed into port, they came to Lapht.
The king, forewarned of their arrival, had sent his forces into
Broct, who encamped at Dargahon, near to Lapht,- where the
brothers heard of their arrival, and determined to attack them.
So they stood to arms through the night, and fell on at break of
had attacked by sea and by land, so on both were they broken,
and retired to Barhen with no light loss. When they had landed
on that isle, the brothers were at discord, for each laid their ill-
success at the other’s door. And the matter went so far that
Xady threw Xambe into prison, and would have slain him ; but
their mother hindered him, and had Xambe released.
He, once free, left Barhen, and went to the Persian mainland,
and settled near Xyraz, in a village called Fal.4 I'his is the place
of origin of all the wazirs and ruling men of the kingdom of Har­
muz, Reizes, Xarafos, Noradins, and Bradadins.6 The governor
of Xiraz heard of Xambe’s being in Fal, and who he was ; invited
1 This can hardly be the man described by I bn Batuta as Kutbud-
drn’s wazir (see note supra).—D. F.
2 Laft and Darguwdn still keep their places on our chart. They are
ports of the Isle of Kishm, on Clarence Strait.
3 tf Gallardamente. ”
* I cannot find on the maps any place of this name near Shiraz,
but there is a Falman a little to the north-cast of that town. Johnson’s
Persian Dictionary, however, has “ Fal, name of a place in Persia.’’
—D. F.
6 This I take to mean that the kings of Harmuz chose most of their
higher servants out of ' a clan or family of Persian khwdjas, originally
resident in Fal, and keeping up a connection with that place.
“ Reizes,” as we say “ Raises,” are rulers of almost any sort or size.
“ Xarafos” were probably treasurers. The two last words seem to
represent “ Nur-ud-din” and “ Burhdn-ud-dm,” which are often per­
sonal names. I suspect them to have been, in this case, names of
religious or legal dignitaries. [“Bradadin” (cf. supra, p. 16(0 more
probably represents Badr-ud-din.—1>. F.] “Ayzadin Gordonxa,’’ the
six teenth king, may probably have been of this family by one side.