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899 AH.— OCT. 12th. 1493 TO OCT. 2nd. 1494 13

Tashkint, which in books they write Shash, and sometimes Chach, whence the term, a Chachi, bow.^ He gave it to The Khan, and from that date (890AH.-1485AD.) down to 908AH. (1503AD.) it and the Shahrukhiya country were held by the Chaghatai Khans.

At this date (i.e., 899AH.-i494AD.) the Mughul Khanship was in SI. Mahmud Khan, Yunas Khan's younger son and a half-brother of my mother. As he and 'Umar Shaikh Mirza's elder brother, the then ruler of Samarkand, SI. Ahmad Mirza were offended by the Mirza's behaviour, they came to an agree- ment together ; SI. Ahmad Mirza had already given a daughter to SI. Mahmud Khan;2 both now led their armies against 'Umar Shaikh Mirza, the first advancing along the south of the Khujand Water, the second along its north.

Meantime a strange event occurred. It has been mentioned that the fort of Akhsi is situated above a deep ravine ;3 along this ravine stand the palace buildings, and from it, on Monday, Ramzan 4, (June 8th.) 'Umar Shaikh Mirza flew, with his pigeons and their house, and became a falcon.4

He was 39 (lunar) years old, having been born in Samarkand, in 860AH. (1456AD.) He was SI. Abu-sa'id Mirza's fourth son,5 being younger than SI. Ahmad M. and SI. Muhammad

1 i.e. one made of non-warping wood (Steingass), perhaps that of the White Poplar. The Shah-nama (Turner, Macon ed. i, 71) writes of a Chachi bow and arrows of khadang, i.e. white poplar. (H.B.)

2 i.e. Rabi'a - sultan, married circa 893 AH, -1488 AD. For particulars about her and all women mentioned in the B.N. and the T.R. see Gulbadan Begim's Humayun-nama, Or. Trs. Series.

3 jar, either that of the Kasan Water or of a deeply-excavated canal. The palace buildings are mentioned again on f . 11ob. Cf. Appendix A.

4 i.e. soared from earth, died. For some details of the accident see A.N. (H. Beveridge, i, 220.)

5 H. S. ii, 192, Firishta, lith. ed. p. 191 and D'Herbelot, sixth.

It would have accorded with Babur's custom if here he had mentioned the parentage of his father's mother. Three times (fs. 17b, 70b, 96b) he writes of " Shah Sultan Begim " in a way allowing her to be taken as 'Umar Shaikh's own mother. Nowhere, however, does he mention her parentage. One even cognate statement only have we discovered, viz. Khwand-amir's (H.S. ii, 192) that 'Umar Shaikh was the own younger brother {baradar khurdtar khud) of Ahmad and Mahmud. If his words mean that the three were full-brothers, 'Umar Shaikh's own mother was Abu-sa'id's Tarkhan wife. Babur's omission (f. 21b) to mention his father with A. and M. as a nephew of Darwesh Muh. Tarkhan would be negative testimony against taking Khwand-amir's statement to mean " full-brother," if clerical slips were not easy and if Khwand -amir's