1 vill PREFACE,
2 Re
3 kind friends who have assisted me by lending me ra hooks, or with
4 their advice. Dewdn Ram Nath most courteously Mowed me the
5 use of his learned father Dew4in Amar Nath’s manubyipt history,
6 called the Khdlsd Dewan, in Persian, I had also. the jrivilege of
7 using Moulvi Din Muhammad’s History of the Panjab, in Myuscript,
8 which was lent me by his son, Munshi Ghulam Farid Kha, Extra
9 Assistant Commissioner. In sketching the British Period, te offi-
10 cial reports were consulted as well as my own notes. \
11 A few words are here necessary regarding the arrangement of
12 the work. Although particular cave has been taken to narrate wn
13 important fact that I was able to ascertain relating to the Panjab}
14 I have omitted nothing which was likely to be of interest to the
15 student of history. Though care has been taken to avoid entering
16 into the broad subject of Indian history, many events have had to
17 be mentioned for the sake of their historical value, and the intense
18 interest attaching to them. For instance, while describing the
19 events which occurred in the Panj4b in connection with the invasion
20 of Nadir Shah, or Ahmad Shah, I found it impossible to omit men-
21 tion of the more important account of the sack of Delhi and the
22 massacre of its inhabitants. Delhi, although the ancient capital of
23 Hindostdn, forms now an integral part of this province, and I have
24 treated it as a Panjdb city. Hence, whatever of interest took place
25 there, has been mentioned ; for, as it was the capital of the Mahome-
26 dan Empire of India, the incidents at the Court materially affected
27 the welfare of the Panjéb and its people. The History of the Pan-
28 jb would have lost much of its interest if no mention, however
29 brief, of the political condition of the empire, of which it formed a
30 component part at various periods, had been made, Some events,
31 although, strictly speaking, not relating to the Panjab, had to be
32 noticed, to render the narrative complete, for without them the link
33 between connected series of important occurrences would have been
34 missing. For instance, while describing the exploits of Mahmud of
35 Ghazni on the frontier of the Panjadb, I could not see my way to
36 omit mention of his more important victories at Somnath, so cele-
37 brated in history, and read with equal interest everywhere. A full
38 life has been given of celebrated sovereigns, conquerors and other
39 personages known to Indian history, who played a conspicuous part
40 in Panjab politics, such as Alexander the Great, Akber, Nédir 7
41 hdngir and the Empress Nur Jahan. A full life of Maharsj4 Ranitt
42 Singh, of modern fame, and a fuller account of his ; te Se ae
43 than has ever yet been published, have been civ : "The tee ea
44 Sikh Gurus, and an account of the Sikh a will eae abe
45 found to contain much new and impor eo ee hoped, be
46 important matter. They will give
47 the reader an idea of the m sds : Ww:
48 power developed in the Panigb. sais the Sikh religion and
49 ie reign of each Mahomedan
50 sae See aa rey, treated, with special reference to the
51 anjab and the political changes and condition of
52 Sri Satguru J agjit Singh Ji eLibrary NamdhariElibrary@ gmail.com