Page:Historic Landmarks of the Deccan.djvu/109

97 10,000 Deccani horse into Berar to harass the army of Malwa during its retreat, and marched on Bidar with the remainder of his force. Mahmud Gawan encamped between Bir and Kandhar and cut off Mah- mud Khalji's suppHes and raided his camp, but would not risk a battle, though the enemy could bring no more than 30,000 horse into the field. At length the army of Malwa was starved out, and Mahmud Khalji, after blinding his elephants and burning his heavy baggage, retreated through Gondwana, being afraid to venture into Berar. His trust in the Gonds whose raja was nominally his vassal, was misplaced. He was pursued and harassed by Mahmud Gawan, and, to avoid being cut off by him, attempted to reach his own dominions by way of the Sat- puras. But he escaped the Deccanis only to encounter worse foes. His army died by the thousand from heat and thirst, and the Korkus of the hills, instigated by their raja, fell upon the exhausted force, slaughtering and capturing many and robbing the troops of all that they possessed. When the army at length emerged from the wild hill country Mahmud Khalji had the Korku Raja put to death.

After the retreat of the invaders Nizam Shah returned to his capital and the city was restored to its former grandeur. In the follow- ing year Mahmud Khalji again invaded the Bahmani dominions and marched towards Daulatabad, but the Deccanis prepared to meet him, and Mahmud Shah of Gujarat again marched to their aid whereupon Mahmud Khalji repented of the enterprise and retired. In 1471 Mahmud Gawan, the great minister of the later Bahmani kings, built a splendid college at Bidar and furnished it with a library of three thousand volumes. The ruins of this college are still standing, and though much dilapidated, still convey some idea of the former magnificence of the building. Nearly the whole of one side has disappeared and but one of the two stately minarets remains. The principal architectural orna- ment of the college was the exterior decoration in enamel and encaustic tiles and enough of this beautiful work remains, sadly mutilated though it is, to convey an impression of the whole design. The encaustic tiles of various colours are arranged in zigzag lines, and along the top of the building runs a frieze ornamented with texts from the Quran in coloured letters nearly three feet high on a ground of gold and green. On April 5, 1481, the great Mahmud Gawan was unjustly executed by order