Title: Waqai-i-Manazil-i-Rum – Tipu Sultan’s Mission to Constantinople
Author: Khwaja Abdul Qadir
Editor: Mohibbul Hasan
Publisher: Aakar Books, 2005 (First
published 1968)
ISBN: 9788187879565
Pages: 100 (English), 170 (Persian)
South
India in the eighteenth century was the battleground of the British and the
French for ascendancy in the subcontinent. The contest was all-out and even
wars in distant Europe were reenacted in India between the rivals. Both
colonial aspirants intervened in local politics and contests for power within
the royal houses. Eventually, all local rulers joined one side or the other.
The Nizam of Hyderabad and the Nawab of Arcot joined the English while Tipu was
a staunch ally of the French. As a precursor to French military routs in all
major wars after Napoleon to the present day, France stood no chance against
the British. Tipu Sultan and his father Hyder Ali chose the wrong horse and had
had to cede territories to the British after military defeats of their own.
Tipu wanted to salvage the situation by making an alliance with the Ottoman
sultan and also to try his luck in France and England by sending a diplomatic
mission to these countries. He assembled an embassy with 900 members travelling
in four ships and carrying lavish gifts such as elephants for the European
sovereigns. He also wanted to establish warehouses and trading concessions for
Mysore’s products in Arabia, Turkey and Iraq. The mission set out in 1785 and
returned in 1789. This book is the diary of the embassy from Mysore till Basra
where it abruptly cuts off. This was authored by Khwaja Abdul Qadir, the munshi
(secretary) of the mission. It sheds light on Tipu’s commercial ambitions in
the Persian Gulf and on certain aspects of his administration. The title
literally means the ‘true facts about the
House of Rome’ (Constantinople). This is translated from Persian and edited
by Mohibbul Hasan who was a professor of history in the department of Islamic
History at the University of Calcutta and the Aligarh Muslim University.
The
mission was instructed by Tipu himself to visit Turkey, France and England in
that order, seeking military and commercial alliances bypassing the local
governor in the case of England. This fact runs counter to recently fabricated
claims that Tipu Sultan was a freedom fighter who fought wars against the
British. In fact, the mission was empowered to offer Trichinopoly to the
British in exchange for an alliance. An elephant each was to be gifted to the
monarchs of all the three kingdoms. However, the elephants – including a fourth
reserve animal – died on the sea voyage. The mission was stalled at Istanbul as
the French were not too eager to entertain a second embassy so close on the
heels of a previous one. The team was given three objectives – a) establish
factories in Turkish dominions for selling the produce of Mysore, b) secure
confirmation of Tipu’s title to the throne of Mysore from the caliph as he had
failed to secure an investiture from the Mughal emperor and was regarded as a
usurper and c) obtain military assistance from the Ottomans against the
English.
The
diary provides a review of the political formations, the state of commerce and
other facts about trade in the Arabia sea rim. It also consists of the
commercial transactions undertaken by the mission and the rates obtainable for
various commodities at each port of call. The threat of piracy was ever
present, with bold pirates operating near every port and sea lane. The shipping
was very much subservient to the weather. We read about many ships floundering
in bad weather. Another notable feature is the immense influence of wealthy
merchants who even controlled and guided the diplomatic relations of kingdoms
and emirates which were much dependent on sea trade for survival. A Hindu
trader named Maoji Seth was resident in Muscat, but had powerful agents at all
ports. He loaned money to the mission at Basra. But we were taught by
conventional historians that Hindus considered overseas travel as taboo which
would cause them to be excommunicated. As more books on Indian traders in
medieval times are published, one more falsehood at the heart of Indian
historiography is being exposed. These merchants also developed practices that
were later adopted by banking houses. A rich Jewish merchant named Abdullah had
his agents everywhere that he issued a bill of exchange at Basra which was
payable at Baghdad. When highway robbery was rampant, this was very convenient
to travelers.
Even
though the diarist is quite specific about the religious nature of the mission,
both the editor Mohibbul Hasan and Irfan Habib who penned the foreword take
great pains to present the effort as in fact ‘secular’. A pir (Muslim saint)
always accompanied the mission. They were instructed to visit Islamic holy
places in Najd and Iraq. On their return journey, Tipu insisted that they pay a
visit of Mecca and Medina. A clear picture of slavery which was widely
practiced by Tipu Sultan and his nobles is seen in the narrative. When one of
the four ships of the embassy caught fire and sank, Jafar Khan – one of the
four leaders of the mission – rescued a male and female slave from the sinking
ship with much difficulty and then kept them for his own use. When their
original owner knew of this and demanded them back, Khan returned only the male
slave. When the owner complained to higher authorities, Khan had no option but
to return the girl too. He then restored the slave to her owner along with five
rupees!
Mohibbul
Hasan’s commentary also remarks on the lack of any tangible results of the
expedition. The cost in men and material incurred by Mysore was immense. Three
out of the four ships that sailed out to Turkey were wrecked at sea. A huge sum
of money was spent in arranging merchandise for trade and as offerings to
dignitaries. Many of the retinue died of dysentery, fever, cold and plague. Out
of the 900 men who embarked on the perilous journey, only a handful returned
after three years. Despite enormous expenses and loss of life, the mission was
only able to obtain the caliph’s permission for Tipu to assume the title of an
independent king, the right to strike coins and to have the Friday prayers
recited in his name. The embassy could not obtain any commercial privileges.
The Ottoman sultan was already in alliance with the British in response to the
political manipulations in Eastern Europe which directly affected Turkey’s
interests as Austria and Russia were teaming up for emancipation of the
European provinces that were under Turkish occupation.
The
book includes a summary of the expedition’s diary reduced to nearly a third of
the original size which we read in English. The main text is edited by Mohibbul
Hasan, but remains untranslated in Persian. This is a serious drawback of the
work. A full translation of the content is required to serve the purpose of
presenting an important historical document to modern readers. The narration is
in a stiff, academic style which deters readers.
The
book is recommended only to serious readers of history.
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