Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ - Shams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi - (22/226)

Siyar Aʿlām al-NubalāʾShams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi

and their strength grew after Khwarazm-Shah had shattered the Khitans, and they began to ravage the land. Their chieftain was called Kishlu Khan (1). The king of the Khitans wrote to Khwarazm-Shah: “What passed between us is forgiven. A hard enemy has fallen upon us; if he wins the day, nothing will keep him from you. Wisdom therefore dictates that you come to our aid.”

Khwarazm-Shah replied, “I am on my way to help you,” yet at the same time he wrote to Kishlu Khan: “I am coming, and I stand with you against the Khitans.” It was the worst of plans. He advanced until the two armies faced one another, and Khwarazm-Shah camped opposite them, leading each side to believe he was with it and lying in ambush for its sake. The rout then struck the Khitans, whereupon Khwarazm-Shah threw his support behind Kishlu Khan. Slaughter raged among the Khitans; they fled to the mountain tops, some of them entered Khwarazm-Shah’s service, and Kishlu Khan humbled himself before him, saying, “Let us divide the Khitan realm between us.”

Khwarazm-Shah retorted, “No, the land is mine,” and marched out to fight him. Once he realised the strength of the Tatars he began to dodge and harry them. Kishlu sent word: “Is this the conduct of a king? It is the way of thieves! If you are truly a king, draw up for a pitched battle (2).”

Khwarazm-Shah gave him no reply. Instead, he ordered the people of Farghana, Shash, and the Turkic towns to flee to Bukhara and Samarqand, then demolished those cities and levelled them, being unable to defend them against the Tatars.

Soon afterwards the tyrant Chinggis Khan marched against Kishlu Khan. They fought for a time until Chinggis Khan prevailed; he grew overbearing and rebellious, annihilated land and people, seized the Khitan provinces, made Khan Balik the seat of his rule, destroyed nations in the Turkic territories, Transoxiana, and Khurasan, and routed every army.

The story of his deeds is a chronicle unto itself, and al-Muwaffaq al-Baghdadi has given an excellent description of them, saying:

(1) He is also referred to as “Kashli Khan.” (2) The manuscript reads: “masaf” (battlefield). Most of the phrases here belong to al-Dhahabi, even though he took the substance from Ibn al-Athir. We have noted more than once that al-Dhahabi often conveys only the sense, alters the wording, abridges the passages, and recasts them in his own style—an admissible liberty on his part. In Ibn al-Athir’s al-Kamil the passage reads: “Otherwise, if you are truly a sultan, as you claim, we must meet; either you defeat me and seize the lands in my possession, or I will do the same to you.” He kept evading him and would not grant the request.

شَاه لِلْخَطَا، وَعَاثُوا، وَكَانَ رَأْسُهُم يُدعَى كشلو خَان (١) ، فَكَتَبَ ملكُ الخَطَا إِلَى خُوَارِزْمشَاه: مَا جَرَى بَيْنَنَا مغفورٌ، فَقَدْ أَتَانَا عدوٌّ صعبٌ، فَإِنْ نُصِرُوا عَلَيْنَا، فَلاَ دَافع لَهُم عَنْكَ، وَالمصلحَةُ أَنْ تُنْجِدَنَا، فَكَتَبَ: هَا أَنَا قَادِمٌ لنصرتِكُم، وَكَاتَبَ كشلوخَان: إِنَّنِي قَادِمٌ وَأَنَا مَعَكَ عَلَى الخَطَا، فَكَانَ بِئسَ الرَّأْي، فَأَقْبَلَ وَالتَقَى الجمعَانِ، وَنَزَلَ خُوَارِزْم شَاه بِإِزَائِهِمَا، يُوهِمُ كُلاًّ مِنَ الفرقَيْنِ أَنَّهُ مَعَهُ، وَأَنَّهُ كَمِينٌ لَهُ، فَوَقَعتِ الكَسْرَةُ عَلَى الخَطَا، فَمَالَ خُوَارِزْم شَاه حِيْنَئِذٍ مُعِيناً لَكشلوخَان، وَاسْتَحَرَّ القتلُ بِالخَطَا، وَلجؤُوا إِلَى رُؤُوْسِ الجِبَالِ، وَانضمَّ مِنْهُم خلقٌ إِلَى خُوَارِزْم شَاه، وَخضعَ لَهُ كشلوخَان، وَقَالَ: نَتقَاسمُ مَمْلَكَةَ الخَطَا. فَقَالَ خُوَارِزْم شَاه: بَلِ البِلاَدُ لِي، وَسَارَ لِحَرْبِهِ، ثُمَّ تَبيَّن لَهُ قوَّةَ التَّتَارِ، فَأَخَذَ يُرَاوِغُهُم وَيَكبِسُهُم، فَبَعَثَ إِلَيْهِ كشلو: مَاذَا فِعلُ ملكٍ، ذَا فِعْلُ اللُّصُوصِ، فَإِنْ كُنْتَ ملِكاً فَاعملْ مصَافّاً (٢) . فَلَمْ يُجِبْهُ، وَأَمرَ أَهْلَ فَرغَانَةَ وَالشَّاشَ وَمَدَائِنَ التُّرْكِ بِالجفلِ إِلَى بُخَارَى وَسَمَرْقَنْدَ، وَخرَّبَ المَدَائِنَ وَدحَاهَا عجزاً عَنْ حَفِظِهَا مِنْهُم. ثُمَّ خَرَجَ عَلَى كشلوخَان الطَّاغِيَةُ جِنْكِزْ خَان، فَتحَاربُوا مُدَّةً، وَظَفِرَ جِنْكِزْ خَان، وَطغَى وَتَمرَّدَ، وَأَبَاد البِلاَدَ وَالعِبَادَ، وَأَخَذَ أَقَالِيمَ الخَطَا، وَجَعَلَ خَان بِالق دَارَ مُلْكِهِ، وَأَفنَى الأُمَمَ بِإِقْلِيْمِ التُّرْكِ، وَمَا وَرَاءَ النَّهْرِ، وَخُرَاسَانَ، وَهَزَمَ الجُيُوْشَ. وَمَا جَرَى لَهُ فَسِيرَةٌ مُفْرَدَةٌ، وَقَدْ جَوَّدَ وَصفَهُم المُوَفَّقُ البَغْدَادِيُّ، فَقَالَ:

(١) ويقال فيه: " كشلي خان " أيضا. (٢) في الأصل: مصاف. وهذه التعابير معظمها للذهبي مع أنه نقل المادة من ابن الأثير، وقد اشرنا غير مرة أن الذهبي ينقل المعنى، ويغير في الألفاظ ويختصر النصوص ويصيغها بصياغته، وهذا تجوز منه ﵀. وفي كامل ابن الأثير: " وإلا إن كنت سلطانا، كما تقول، فيجب أن نلتقي، فإما أن تهزمني وتملك البلاد التي بيدي، وإما أن أفعل أنا بك ذلك. فكان يغالطه ولا يجيبه إلى ما طلب ".