Chapter 5

Accession of Raja Sur—His military talents obtain him
honours—Reduces Rao Surthan of Sirohi—Commands against the
King of Gujarat—Battle of Dhanduka gained by the
Raja—Wealth and honours acquired—Gifts to the
bards—Commanded against Amra Balecha—Battle of the
Rewa—Slays the Chauhan—Fresh honours—Raja Sur and his son
Gaj Singh attend the court of Jahangir—The heir of Marwar
invested with the sword by the Emperor’s own
hands—Escalade of Jalor—Raja Gaj attends Prince Khurram
against the Rana of Mewar—Death of Raja Sur—Maledictory
pillar erected on the Nerbudda—The Rathor chiefs’
dissatisfaction at their long detention from their native
land—Raja Sur embellishes Jodhpur—His issue—Accession of
Raja Gaj—Invested with the Raj of Burhanpur—Made Viceroy
of the Deccan—The compliment paid to his contingent—His
various actions—Receives the title of Dalthaman, or
‘barrier of the host’—Causes of Rajput influence on the
Imperial succession—The Sultans Parvez and Khurram, sons
of Rajput Princesses—Intrigues of the Queens to secure the
succession to their immediate offspring—Prince Khurram
plots against his brother—Endeavours to gain Raja Gaj, but
fails—The Prince causes the chief adviser of Raja Gaj to
be assassinated—Raja Gaj quits the royal army—Prince
Khurram assassinates his brother Parvez—Proceeds to depose
his father Jahangir, who appeals to the fidelity of the
Rajput Princes—They rally round the throne, and encounter
the rebel army near Benares—The Emperor slights the Rathor
Prince, which proves nearly fatal to his cause—The rebels
defeated—Flight of Prince Khurram—Raja Gaj slain on the
Gujarat frontier—His second son, Raja Jaswant,
succeeds—Reasons for occasional departure from the rules
of primogeniture amongst the Rajputs—Amra, the elder,
excluded the succession—Sentence of banishment pronounced
against him—Ceremony of Desvata, or ‘exile,’
described—Amra repairs to the Mogul court—Honours
conferred upon him—His tragical death 969