Cardamom Dreams: The Saga of India

Cardamom Dreams: An Introduction


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A land of many nations and cultures, each hugely varied and containing their own little, diverse systems.



In the south, a resistant Vijayanagar continues to hold out against the tide of Muslim invasion; its kings resolute in guarding its independence, all the while oblivious to nobles scheming in the court.


The Deccan remains home to a vast number of Shi'a Sultanates, each one possessing different goals and priorities concerning their kingdoms.


The west sees the Sultanate of Gujarat, a haven for the Afghan ruling elite....standing alone in this role.


In the east, minor kingdoms continue to hold out in the face of a grim fate, long after the fall of Bengal.


The Rajputs continue to feud between themselves in the northwest; the Rathores and Sisodias undecided on their fate, as Pratap Singh continues to wage a war to conquer the entire country.


On the ocean, a kingdom from a faraway land begins to get comfortable in various ports around the subcontinent, as they become a massive force on the seas of India.


And the north, where the Turkic Empire born from a Tiger and killer of another continues to prosper, stretching from the cool, mountainous cities of Afghanistan, to the dry, almost arid Delhi and beyond.


A land of kings. A land of diversity. A land of culture. A land of conflict.


Completely untamed, unstable and on the brink of war...welcome to India, 1562.

[FONT=&quot]"Agar Firdaws ba roy-i zamin ast, hamin ast-u hamin ast-u hamin ast,” [/FONT]
“If there is Paradise on earth, it is this, it is this, it is this."

-Jahangir


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This is actually my second go at this. Updates won't be very regular, as I have school, but I will try to have them up. Thanks for your support!:D
 
Golconda

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The day had been hot and extremely humid, the sun beating heavily on him, as he moved in his chains, with the rest of the group. He had never been to India, but he was more afraid of what his fate would be, rather than his environment.

"Slaves!", the merchant called out quite loudly, motioning them to step forward. The merchant was a flabby fellow, having eaten a bit too much in his day, he supposed. Sweaty, too, but then again, it was a hot day. He seemed to be having a conversation with a taller man, bedecked in a jeweled turban, and escorted by two guards. He could understand what they were saying, as he had managed to learn the language, even if his knowledge was a bit rough.


"They are a good bunch, captured from Abyssinia; each one worth a thousand rupees, in the least," he continued, "So, wh-"


"Enough," the client seemed very serious in tone, "We'll buy the whole lot. fourteen thousand rupees."


"That is very generous of you. I'm sure you will be happy with them."


"For your sake, that better be the case," the client threatened, with a sneer marking his face.


The merchant simply smiled and led the slaves to the men, as more escorts showed up to take them. He only hoped that their walk to the destination would be much better than their march here, but he felt optimistic.


The walk was long and hard, the sun not giving them a moment of respite from its rays. The streets themselves were filled with jeering and berating as they were led into a fort of some kind.


The other slave beside him began to cry. Something about his family or his children, he could not figure out. His mind was completely set on who was to be his owner. He knew that it had to be someone important, especially by this point. A man could not send so many escorts for so few slaves if he was not worth something.


As they approached the palace, they were met by even more guards, holding swords at their waists, and at this point, the client casually mentioned that they were now property of the Sultan of Golconda.


Smiling, he knew he would not be a slave for long.

******************

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Interesting update. Who are these guys? Are they OTL, or have we already passed the POD?

I'll be following this one eagerly!

Cheers,
Ganesha
 
Interesting update. Who are these guys? Are they OTL, or have we already passed the POD?

I'll be following this one eagerly!

Cheers,
Ganesha
These guys are new, very minor characters (at the moment). The Abyssinian slave is a fictional character, though more on him in a bit.
 
Golconda


The early life of Malik Bahadur was quite undeveloped. He was born sometime around 1519-1524 in Harer, Abyssinia. However, his childhood is basically unknown, with various different sources claiming vastly divergent accounts. In 1540, he became a soldier in the Sultanate of Adal. Here he held a fairly unimportant post, participating in several battles in the Adal-Abyssinian War, and getting wounded in his thigh, leaving a permanent scar on his left leg.


During the war, he had advocated recruiting Christian soldiers themselves to fill up the ranks, angering his commanders. He frequently made efforts to bring this to fruition in his personal command much to the chagrin of his commanders. Hiring Christian soldiers in pretext sounded like a good idea, but in practise it was not so easy to implement, even on a small scale. Christians willing to fight other Christians would be a hard sell, and other commanders simply did not bother. Malik (who had not yet earned the title), decided to try an experiment, by petitioning the Sultan, himself. The Sultan granted him permission, but before he could put it in action, he saw another battle against near a Portuguese encampment in 1553, where he was knocked down from his horse and captured by the Abyssinians.


Imprisoned in Gondar, he hatched a plan to escape along with a few Turkish soldiers, but the plan never came to fruition, instead getting sold to Portuguese traders. For three years he languished as a slave onboard a ship on the sea, until pirates took it over near Mauritius. He regained his freedom and served the captain loyally, as they continued to ransack many ships in the Indian Ocean, especially those of the Portuguese, as well as smaller Gujarati ships operating in the area.


Eventually, however, the captain was shot in the head in one of their ventures against a Ceylonese ship, leaving a vacuum of power. Malik was supported by much of the crew, but a charismatic Turkish member, formerly a captain of his own ship in the Ottoman Navy saw himself as the better leader. A violent mutiny occurred, where a band of the Turk's supporters killed a lot of the crew, and tied up Malik, selling him to a Portuguese ship along with his supporters.


The Turk eventually died twelve years later in a mutiny himself, but at this point in time, Malik was once again, a slave of the Portuguese, as they landed in India. He was grouped together with the Abyssinian slaves, and given to a Portuguese merchant who made his way to Golconda seeking fame and fortune. Eventually, the Sultan himself purchased the slaves and employed them.


Malik decided that before he could start doing anything to earn power, he had to assemble the knowledge of this foreign land which now served as his home. And so, he began to read about the Sultanate`s history as well as that of India.

And in doing this, he found out about the Slave Dynasty of Delhi.
 
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Malik decided that before he could start doing anything to earn power, he had to assemble the knowledge of this foreign land which now served as his home. And so, he began to read about the Sultanate`s history as well as that of India.

First, when did he learn to read and write?

Second, he's a slave; how does he have leisure to read books, and access to any books?

Third, he's an Abyssinian; there would not be any books in Golconda in any script he could have learned, I think.
 
First, when did he learn to read and write?

Second, he's a slave; how does he have leisure to read books, and access to any books?

Third, he's an Abyssinian; there would not be any books in Golconda in any script he could have learned, I think.
Many slaves in India were used for administration. It wasn't always manual work. Malik Bahadur is more of an administrative slave at this point. Furthermore, Golconda is a Muslim sultanate, so it is fair to say that there are still books in Arabic, though it will be a rarity.

As a Portuguese slave, his time was not so, 'lucky'...

EDIT: Here's a link, if you'd like. I got my info from books, however. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_India
 
More information will be given out on Malik Bahadur, but the next few posts will veer away towards Vijayanagar and the South, then Portugal, and lastly, the Mughal Empire, before going back to Golconda.
 
No update this weekend (my birthday party, and math homework) nor next weekend (for personal reasons). So next update will only be in two weeks.:(
 
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