[Footnote16:IshouldquoteThuroczius,theoldestgeneralhistorianparsii。c。74,p。150inthe1stvolumeoftheScriptoresRerumHungaricarum,didnotthesamevolumecontaintheoriginalnarrativeofacontemporary,aneye—witness,andasufferer,M。Rogerii,Hungari,VaradiensisCapituliCanonici,Carmenmiserabile,seuHistoriasuperDestructioneRegniHungariaeTemporibusBelaeIV。RegisperTartarosfacta,p。292—
321;thebestpicturethatIhaveeverseenofallthecircumstancesofaBarbaricinvasion。]
[Footnote17:MatthewParishasrepresented,fromauthenticdocuments,thedangeranddistressofEurope,consultthewordTartariinhiscopiousIndex。Frommotivesofzealandcuriosity,thecourtofthegreatkhaninthexiiithcenturywasvisitedbytwofriars,JohndePlanoCarpini,andWilliamRubruquis,andbyMarcoPolo,aVenetiangentleman。TheLatinrelationsofthetwoformerareinsertedinthe1stvolumeofHackluyt;theItalianoriginalorversionofthethirdFabric。
Bibliot。Latin。MediiAevi,tom。ii。p。198,tom。v。p。25maybefoundinthesecondtomeofRamusio。]
[Footnote18:InhisgreatHistoryoftheHuns,M。deGuigneshasmostamplytreatedofZingisKhanandhissuccessors。Seetom。
iii。l。xv。—xix。,andinthecollateralarticlesoftheSeljukiansofRoum,tom。ii。l。xi。,theCarizmians,l。xiv。,andtheMamalukes,tom。iv。l。xxi。;consultlikewisethetablesofthe1stvolume。Heiseverlearnedandaccurate;yetIamonlyindebtedtohimforageneralview,andsomepassagesofAbulfeda,whicharestilllatentintheArabictext。
Note:TothiscatalogueofthehistoriansoftheMogulsmaybeaddedD'Ohson,HistoiredesMongols;HistoiredesMongols,fromArabicandPersianauthorities,Paris,1824。Schmidt,GeschichtederOstMongolen,St。Petersburgh,1829。Thiscuriouswork,bySsanangSsetsenChungtaidschi,publishedintheoriginalMongol,waswrittenaftertheconversionofthenationtoBuddhism:itisenrichedwithveryvaluablenotesbytheeditorandtranslator;but,unfortunately,isverybarrenofinformationabouttheEuropeanandeventhewesternAsiaticconquestsoftheMongols。—M。]
ChapterLXIV:Moguls,OttomanTurkds。
PartII。
ThearmsofZingisandhislieutenantssuccessivelyreducedthehordesofthedesert,whopitchedtheirtentsbetweenthewallofChinaandtheVolga;andtheMogulemperorbecamethemonarchofthepastoralworld,thelordofmanymillionsofshepherdsandsoldiers,whofelttheirunitedstrength,andwereimpatienttorushonthemildandwealthyclimatesofthesouth。
HisancestorshadbeenthetributariesoftheChineseemperors;
andTemuginhimselfhadbeendisgracedbyatitleofhonorandservitude。ThecourtofPekinwasastonishedbyanembassyfromitsformervassal,who,inthetoneofthekingofnations,exactedthetributeandobediencewhichhehadpaid,andwhoaffectedtotreatthesonofheavenasthemostcontemptibleofmankind。Ahaughtyanswerdisguisedtheirsecretapprehensions;
andtheirfearsweresoonjustifiedbythemarchofinnumerablesquadrons,whopiercedonallsidesthefeeblerampartofthegreatwall。Ninetycitieswerestormed,orstarved,bytheMoguls;tenonlyescaped;andZingis,fromaknowledgeofthefilialpietyoftheChinese,coveredhisvanguardwiththeircaptiveparents;anunworthy,andbydegreesafruitless,abuseofthevirtueofhisenemies。HisinvasionwassupportedbytherevoltofahundredthousandKhitans,whoguardedthefrontier:
yethelistenedtoatreaty;andaprincessofChina,threethousandhorses,fivehundredyouths,andasmanyvirgins,andatributeofgoldandsilk,werethepriceofhisretreat。Inhissecondexpedition,hecompelledtheChineseemperortoretirebeyondtheyellowrivertoamoresouthernresidence。ThesiegeofPekin^19waslongandlaborious:theinhabitantswerereducedbyfaminetodecimateanddevourtheirfellow—citizens;whentheirammunitionwasspent,theydischargedingotsofgoldandsilverfromtheirengines;buttheMogulsintroducedaminetothecentreofthecapital;andtheconflagrationofthepalaceburntabovethirtydays。ChinawasdesolatedbyTartarwaranddomesticfaction;andthefivenorthernprovinceswereaddedtotheempireofZingis。
[Footnote19:MoreproperlyYen—king,anancientcity,whoseruinsstillappearsomefurlongstothesouth—eastofthemodernPekin,whichwasbuiltbyCublaiKhan,Gaubel,p。146。Pe—kingandNan—kingarevaguetitles,thecourtsofthenorthandofthesouth。TheidentityandchangeofnamesperplexthemostskilfulreadersoftheChinesegeography,p。177。
Note:AndlikewiseinChinesehistory—seeAbelRemusat,Mel。Asiat。2dtom。ii。p。5。—M。]
IntheWest,hetouchedthedominionsofMohammed,sultanofCarizime,whoreignedfromthePersianGulftothebordersofIndiaandTurkestan;andwho,intheproudimitationofAlexandertheGreat,forgottheservitudeandingratitudeofhisfatherstothehouseofSeljuk。ItwasthewishofZingistoestablishafriendlyandcommercialintercoursewiththemostpowerfuloftheMoslemprinces:norcouldhebetemptedbythesecretsolicitationsofthecaliphofBagdad,whosacrificedtohispersonalwrongsthesafetyofthechurchandstate。ArashandinhumandeedprovokedandjustifiedtheTartararmsintheinvasionofthesouthernAsia。^!AcaravanofthreeambassadorsandonehundredandfiftymerchantswerearrestedandmurderedatOtrar,bythecommandofMohammed;norwasittillafterademandanddenialofjustice,tillhehadprayedandfastedthreenightsonamountain,thattheMogulemperorappealedtothejudgmentofGodandhissword。OurEuropeanbattles,saysaphilosophicwriter,^20arepettyskirmishes,ifcomparedtothenumbersthathavefoughtandfalleninthefieldsofAsia。SevenhundredthousandMogulsandTartarsaresaidtohavemarchedunderthestandardofZingisandhisfoursons。InthevastplainsthatextendtothenorthoftheSihonorJaxartes,theywereencounteredbyfourhundredthousandsoldiersofthesultan;andinthefirstbattle,whichwassuspendedbythenight,onehundredandsixtythousandCarizmianswereslain。Mohammedwasastonishedbythemultitudeandvalorofhisenemies:hewithdrewfromthesceneofdanger,anddistributedhistroopsinthefrontiertowns;trustingthattheBarbarians,invincibleinthefield,wouldberepulsedbythelengthanddifficultyofsomanyregularsieges。ButtheprudenceofZingishadformedabodyofChineseengineers,skilledinthemechanicarts;informedperhapsofthesecretofgunpowder,andcapable,underhisdiscipline,ofattackingaforeigncountrywithmorevigorandsuccessthantheyhaddefendedtheirown。ThePersianhistorianswillrelatethesiegesandreductionofOtrar,Cogende,Bochara,Samarcand,Carizme,Herat,Merou,Nisabour,Balch,andCandahar;andtheconquestoftherichandpopulouscountriesofTransoxiana,Carizme,andChorazan。ThedestructivehostilitiesofAttilaandtheHunshavelongsincebeenelucidatedbytheexampleofZingisandtheMoguls;andinthismoreproperplaceIshallbecontenttoobserve,that,fromtheCaspiantotheIndus,theyruinedatractofmanyhundredmiles,whichwasadornedwiththehabitationsandlaborsofmankind,andthatfivecenturieshavenotbeensufficienttorepairtheravagesoffouryears。TheMogulemperorencouragedorindulgedthefuryofhistroops:thehopeoffuturepossessionwaslostintheardorofrapineandslaughter;andthecauseofthewarexasperatedtheirnativefiercenessbythepretenceofjusticeandrevenge。ThedownfallanddeathofthesultanMohammed,whoexpired,unpitiedandalone,inadesertislandoftheCaspianSea,isapooratonementforthecalamitiesofwhichhewastheauthor。CouldtheCarizmianempirehavebeensavedbyasinglehero,itwouldhavebeensavedbyhissonGelaleddin,whoseactivevalorrepeatedlycheckedtheMogulsinthecareerofvictory。Retreating,ashefought,tothebanksoftheIndus,hewasoppressedbytheirinnumerablehost,till,inthelastmomentofdespair,Gelaleddinspurredhishorseintothewaves,swamoneofthebroadestandmostrapidriversofAsia,andextortedtheadmirationandapplauseofZingishimself。ItwasinthiscampthattheMogulconqueroryieldedwithreluctancetothemurmursofhiswearyandwealthytroops,whosighedfortheenjoymentoftheirnativeland。EucumberedwiththespoilsofAsia,heslowlymeasuredbackhisfootsteps,betrayedsomepityforthemiseryofthevanquished,anddeclaredhisintentionofrebuildingthecitieswhichhadbeensweptawaybythetempestofhisarms。AfterhehadrepassedtheOxusandJaxartes,hewasjoinedbytwogenerals,whomhehaddetachedwiththirtythousandhorse,tosubduethewesternprovincesofPersia。Theyhadtrampledonthenationswhichopposedtheirpassage,penetratedthroughthegatesofDerbent,traversedtheVolgaandthedesert,andaccomplishedthecircuitoftheCaspianSea,byanexpeditionwhichhadneverbeenattempted,andhasneverbeenrepeated。ThereturnofZingiswassignalizedbytheoverthrowoftherebelliousorindependentkingdomsofTartary;andhediedinthefulnessofyearsandglory,withhislastbreathexhortingandinstructinghissonstoachievetheconquestoftheChineseempire。
[Footnote!:Seetheparticularaccountofthistransaction,fromtheKholauesutAkbaur,inPrice,vol。ii。p。402。—M。]
[Footnote20:M。deVoltaire,Essaisurl'HistoireGenerale,tom。
iii。c。60,p。8。HisaccountofZingisandtheMogulscontains,asusual,muchgeneralsenseandtruth,withsomeparticularerrors。]
[Footnote*:Everywheretheymassacredallclasses,excepttheartisans,whomtheymadeslaves。Hist。desMongols。—M。]
[Footnote*:Theirfirstduty,whichhebequeathedtothem,wastomassacrethekingofTangcouteandalltheinhabitantsofNinhia,thesurrenderofthecitybeingalreadyagreedupon,Hist。desMongols。vol。i。p。286。—M。]
TheharemofZingiswascomposedoffivehundredwivesandconcubines;andofhisnumerousprogeny,foursons,illustriousbytheirbirthandmerit,exercisedundertheirfathertheprincipalofficesofpeaceandwar。Toushiwashisgreathuntsman,Zagatai^21hisjudge,Octaihisminister,andTulihisgeneral;andtheirnamesandactionsareoftenconspicuousinthehistoryofhisconquests。Firmlyunitedfortheirownandthepublicinterest,thethreebrothersandtheirfamilieswerecontentwithdependentsceptres;andOctai,bygeneralconsent,wasproclaimedgreatkhan,oremperoroftheMogulsandTartars。
HewassucceededbyhissonGayuk,afterwhosedeaththeempiredevolvedtohiscousinsMangouandCublai,thesonsofTuli,andthegrandsonsofZingis。Inthesixty—eightyearsofhisfourfirstsuccessors,theMogulsubduedalmostallAsia,andalargeportionofEurope。Withoutconfiningmyselftotheorderoftime,withoutexpatiatingonthedetailofevents,Ishallpresentageneralpictureoftheprogressoftheirarms;I。IntheEast;II。IntheSouth;III。IntheWest;andIV。IntheNorth。
[Footnote21:ZagataigavehisnametohisdominionsofMaurenahar,orTransoxiana;andtheMogulsofHindostan,whoemigratedfromthatcountry,arestyledZagataisbythePersians。
Thiscertainetymology,andthesimilarexampleofUzbek,Nogai,&c。,maywarnusnotabsolutelytorejectthederivationsofanational,fromapersonal,name。
Note:SeeacuriousanecdoteofTschagatai。Hist。desMongols,p。370。M]
I。BeforetheinvasionofZingis,ChinawasdividedintotwoempiresordynastiesoftheNorthandSouth;^22andthedifferenceoforiginandinterestwassmoothedbyageneralconformityoflaws,language,andnationalmanners。TheNorthernempire,whichhadbeendismemberedbyZingis,wasfinallysubduedsevenyearsafterhisdeath。AfterthelossofPekin,theemperorhadfixedhisresidenceatKaifong,acitymanyleaguesincircumference,andwhichcontained,accordingtotheChineseannals,fourteenhundredthousandfamiliesofinhabitantsandfugitives。Heescapedfromthencewithonlysevenhorsemen,andmadehislaststandinathirdcapital,tillatlengththehopelessmonarch,protestinghisinnocenceandaccusinghisfortune,ascendedafuneralpile,andgaveorders,that,assoonashehadstabbedhimself,thefireshouldbekindledbyhisattendants。ThedynastyoftheSong,thenativeandancientsovereignsofthewholeempire,survivedaboutforty—fiveyearsthefalloftheNorthernusurpers;andtheperfectconquestwasreservedforthearmsofCublai。Duringthisinterval,theMogulswereoftendivertedbyforeignwars;and,iftheChineseseldomdaredtomeettheirvictorsinthefield,theirpassivecouragepresentedandendlesssuccessionofcitiestostormandofmillionstoslaughter。Intheattackanddefenceofplaces,theenginesofantiquityandtheGreekfirewerealternatelyemployed:theuseofgunpowderincannonandbombsappearsasafamiliarpractice;^23andthesiegeswereconductedbytheMahometansandFranks,whohadbeenliberallyinvitedintotheserviceofCublai。Afterpassingthegreatriver,thetroopsandartillerywereconveyedalongaseriesofcanals,tilltheyinvestedtheroyalresidenceofHamcheu,orQuinsay,inthecountryofsilk,themostdeliciousclimateofChina。Theemperor,adefencelessyouth,surrenderedhispersonandsceptre;
andbeforehewassentinexileintoTartary,hestruckninetimesthegroundwithhisforehead,toadoreinprayerorthanksgivingthemercyofthegreatkhan。YetthewaritwasnowstyledarebellionwasstillmaintainedinthesouthernprovincesfromHamcheutoCanton;andtheobstinateremnantofindependenceandhostilitywastransportedfromthelandtothesea。ButwhenthefleetoftheSongwassurroundedandoppressedbyasuperiorarmament,theirlastchampionleapedintothewaveswithhisinfantemperorinhisarms。"Itismoreglorious,"hecried,"todieaprince,thantoliveaslave。"AhundredthousandChineseimitatedhisexample;andthewholeempire,fromTonkintothegreatwall,submittedtothedominionofCublai。
HisboundlessambitionaspiredtotheconquestofJapan:hisfleetwastwiceshipwrecked;andthelivesofahundredthousandMogulsandChineseweresacrificedinthefruitlessexpedition。
Butthecircumjacentkingdoms,Corea,Tonkin,Cochinchina,Pegu,Bengal,andThibet,werereducedindifferentdegreesoftributeandobediencebytheeffortorterrorofhisarms。HeexploredtheIndianOceanwithafleetofathousandships:theysailedinsixty—eightdays,mostprobablytotheIsleofBorneo,undertheequinoctialline;andthoughtheyreturnednotwithoutspoilorglory,theemperorwasdissatisfiedthatthesavagekinghadescapedfromtheirhands。
[Footnote22:InMarcoPolo,andtheOrientalgeographers,thenamesofCathayandMangidistinguishthenorthernandsouthernempires,which,fromA。D。1234to1279,werethoseofthegreatkhan,andoftheChinese。ThesearchofCathay,afterChinahadbeenfound,excitedandmisledournavigatorsofthesixteenthcentury,intheirattemptstodiscoverthenorth—eastpassage。]
[Footnote23:IdependontheknowledgeandfidelityofthePereGaubil,whotranslatestheChinesetextoftheannalsoftheMogulsorYuen,p。71,93,153;butIamignorantatwhattimetheseannalswerecomposedandpublished。ThetwounclesofMarcoPolo,whoservedasengineersatthesiegeofSiengyangfou,l。
ii。61,inRamusio,tom。ii。SeeGaubil,p。155,157musthavefeltandrelatedtheeffectsofthisdestructivepowder,andtheirsilenceisaweighty,andalmostdecisiveobjection。I
entertainasuspicion,thattheirrecentdiscoverywascarriedfromEuropetoChinabythecaravansofthexvthcenturyandfalselyadoptedasanoldnationaldiscoverybeforethearrivalofthePortugueseandJesuitsinthexvith。YetthePereGaubilaffirms,thattheuseofgunpowderhasbeenknowntotheChineseabove1600years。
Note:Sou—houng—kian—lon。AbelRemusat。—M。
Note:Lapoudreacanonetd'autrescompositionsinflammantes,dontilsseserventpourconstruiredespiecesd'artificed'uneffetsuprenant,leuretaientconnuesdepuistreslong—temps,etl'oncroitquedesbombardesetdespierriers,dontilsavaientenseignel'usageauxTartares,ontpudonnerenEuropel'ideed'artillerie,quoiquelaformedesfusilsetdescanonsdontilsseserventactuellement,leuraiteteapporteeparlesFrancs,ainsiquel'attestentlesnomsmemesqu'ilsdonnentacessortesd'armes。AbelRemusat,MelangesAsiat。2dsertom。i。p。23。—M。]
II。TheconquestofHindostanbytheMogulswasreservedinalaterperiodforthehouseofTimour;butthatofIran,orPersia,wasachievedbyHolagouKhan,thegrandsonofZingis,thebrotherandlieutenantofthetwosuccessiveemperors,MangouandCublai。Ishallnotenumeratethecrowdofsultans,emirs,andatabeks,whomhetrampledintodust;buttheextirpationoftheAssassins,orIsmaelians^24ofPersia,maybeconsideredasaservicetomankind。AmongthehillstothesouthoftheCaspian,theseodioussectarieshadreignedwithimpunityaboveahundredandsixtyyears;andtheirprince,orImam,establishedhislieutenanttoleadandgovernthecolonyofMountLibanus,sofamousandformidableinthehistoryofthecrusades。^25WiththefanaticismoftheKorantheIsmaelianshadblendedtheIndiantransmigration,andthevisionsoftheirownprophets;anditwastheirfirstdutytodevotetheirsoulsandbodiesinblindobediencetothevicarofGod。ThedaggersofhismissionarieswerefeltbothintheEastandWest:theChristiansandtheMoslemsenumerate,andpersonsmultiply,theillustriousvictimsthatweresacrificedtothezeal,avarice,orresentmentoftheoldmanashewascorruptlystyledofthemountain。Butthesedaggers,hisonlyarms,werebrokenbytheswordofHolagou,andnotavestigeisleftoftheenemiesofmankind,exceptthewordassassin,which,inthemostodioussense,hasbeenadoptedinthelanguagesofEurope。TheextinctionoftheAbbassidescannotbeindifferenttothespectatorsoftheirgreatnessanddecline。
SincethefalloftheirSeljukiantyrantsthecaliphshadrecoveredtheirlawfuldominionofBagdadandtheArabianIrak;
butthecitywasdistractedbytheologicalfactions,andthecommanderofthefaithfulwaslostinaharemofsevenhundredconubines。TheinvasionoftheMogulsheencounteredwithfeeblearmsandhaughtyembassies。"Onthedivinedecree,"saidthecaliphMostasem,"isfoundedthethroneofthesonsofAbbas:andtheirfoesshallsurelybedestroyedinthisworldandinthenext。WhoisthisHolagouthatdarestoriseagainstthem?Ifhebedesirousofpeace,lethiminstantlydepartfromthesacredterritory;andperhapshemayobtainfromourclemencythepardonofhisfault。"Thispresumptionwascherishedbyaperfidiousvizier,whoassuredhismaster,that,eveniftheBarbarianshadenteredthecity,thewomenandchildren,fromtheterraces,wouldbesufficienttooverwhelmthemwithstones。ButwhenHolagoutouchedthephantom,itinstantlyvanishedintosmoke。
Afterasiegeoftwomonths,BagdadwasstormedandsackedbytheMoguls;andtheirsavagecommanderpronouncedthedeathofthecaliphMostasem,thelastofthetemporalsuccessorsofMahomet;
whosenoblekinsmen,oftheraceofAbbas,hadreignedinAsiaabovefivehundredyears。Whatevermightbethedesignsoftheconqueror,theholycitiesofMeccaandMedina^26wereprotectedbytheArabiandesert;buttheMogulsspreadbeyondtheTigrisandEuphrates,pillagedAleppoandDamascus,andthreatenedtojointheFranksinthedeliveranceofJerusalem。Egyptwaslost,hadshebeendefendedonlybyherfeebleoffspring;buttheMamalukeshadbreathedintheirinfancythekeennessofaScythianair:equalinvalor,superiorindiscipline,theymettheMogulsinmanyawell—foughtfield;anddrovebackthestreamofhostilitytotheeastwardoftheEuphrates。^!ButitoverflowedwithresistlessviolencethekingdomsofArmenia^!!