1 Weak government
2 of Aram.
3 Many districts of
4 the Panjib are lost
5 to the empire.
6 He is deposed by
7 Shams-ud-din Alta-
8 mash, 1210 4. D.
9 Ancestry of Shams-
10 ud-din.
11 Ye defeats Taj-id-
12 din Yelduz, king of
13 Ghunl, 1215 a. D.,
14 And repels Salal-
15 ul-din of Khwarzm,
16 His conquests in
17 Hun lostan,
18 D ath of Shams-ud-
19 tin Alta sh, bg ap,
20 96 JUSTORY OF THE PANJAB.
21 ARAM.
22 On the death of Kutb-ud-din, Aram, his only son, succeeded him on the
23 throne. He was wanting in courage and resolution, and, owing to his weak-
24 ness, Nair-ud-din Kubacha, one of the adopted slaves of Muhammad Ghort,
25 made himself independent, and, marching thither at the head of an army,
26 established his authority in Sindh, Multdn, Uch, Shirwan and other districts
27 of the Panjab. Other chiefs, following his example, also asserted their
28 independence. Upon this, a deputation of the Omerahs waited upon Shams-
29 ud-din Altamash, the son-in-law and adopted son of the late king, and in-
30 vited him to assume the sovereignty of the kingdom. Shams-ud-din readily
31 acceded to their request, and, having defeated Aram in a battle within sight
32 of the city of Delhi, took possession of the throne. This event happened
33 the same year, 1210, in which Aram was crowned king.
34 SHAMS-UD-DIN ALT AMASH.
35 Shams-ud-din was the son of one Elam Khan, of the Albery tribe, and
36 his mother belonged to a noble family of Khata. He was sold as a slave
37 by his brothers to a company of travelling merchants, who carried him to
38 Bokhara, where they sold him to a relative of Sadar Jahan, prince of that
39 country. He received a good education at Bokhara, and, on the death of
40 his master, was sold to a merchant, who again sold him to another. With
41 the permission of Sultan Muhammad Ghori, he was ultimately purchased
42 for fifty thousand pieces of silver by Kutb-ud-din Ebak, who, later on, gave
43 him one of his daughters in marriage.
44 Altamash, now the son-in-law of his master, daily rose to favour, being
45 first created general-in-chief and soon after appointed viceroy of Northern
46 India. Four years after his accession to the throne, Taj-ud-din Yelduz, king
47 of Ghazni, having been defeated by Khwarzm Shah, king of Khwarzm,
48 turned his attention towards the conquest of the east. In the year 1215,
49 he seized the Panjab and occupied Thanesar. Shams-ud-din Altamash, having
50 collected his troops, gave him battle on the plains of Narain, defeated him,
51 and took him prisoner. Inthe year 1217, Altamash attacked Nasir-ud-din
52 Kubdchd, his brother-in-law, who had become independent in Sindh, and
53 gained a complete victory over him at Manserarah; on the banks of the
54 Chindb. Four years afterwards, the Tartars, under their great leader,
55 Changez Khan, having overrun the country of Khwarzm and penetrated
56 as far as Ghazni, Jaldl-ud-din, son of the late Sultan of Khwarzm, was com-
57 pelled to retreat in the direction of Lahore, where Altamash gave him battle
58 and compelled him to retreat. The same year, Altamash finally reduced
59 Sindh, with the co-operation of his wazir, Nizim-al-mulk* Junédi, Jaldl-ud-
60 din Kubdchd, his old adversary, having been drowned while attempting
61 to cross the Indus. Shams-ud-din Altamash reduced Malwa and Ujjain and
62 re-established his authority over the province of Bengal, which had assumed
63 independence. At Ujjain, one of the most famous and ancient Hindu ities
64 in India, he destroyed all the great temples and conveyed the images of
65 Mahakdli and Vikramaditya, from whose death the Hindus reckon their
66 era, together with many other figures of brass, to Delhi; to be broken at the
67 door of the grand mosque. In the year 1236 he marched an army towards
68 Multan, but fell sick on the road, and, returning to Delhi, died on the 30th
69 April 1236, after reigning twenty-six years. He was another model of self-
70 elevation by the force of genius, and during his reign the Mahomedan empire
71 in India extended and gained materially in strength.
72 RE 1 Se ESR GAY Tes aE AERTS TR RC a cre ee
73 pases ee Pe ani nips who received the title of Nizim-ul-mulk. The title
74 : pted afterwards, and +8
75 ul-mulk are to this day the reigning Nawabs of Hyderabad sae enthetiee e
76 Sri Satguru J agjit Singh Ji eLibrary * NamdhariElibrary@ gmail.com