Page:History of Aurangzib (based on original sources) Vol 1.djvu/264

234 some going back to the fort, others into the jungle outside it.

Next day the siege of Golkonda began. The west side was unoccupied, but Mughal officers entrenched on the other three sides. A regular siege was impossible, as Aurangzib had made a quick march with light artillery, while the fort had guns of large calibre. Moreover, Shaista Khan, Shah Nawaz Khan, and other officers in command of reinforcements had not yet arrived, nor had the big guns ordered from the fort of Ausa. Aurangzib, therefore, contented himself with holding the city and surrounding the fort, to prevent the escape of the king, while he waited for reinforcements and Shah Jahan's fresh commands. His first expectation of murdering Qutb Shah and capturing his kingdom by a sudden coup had failed, and he had to resort to slower methods for which he was not prepared. The leaguer of Golkonda lasted from 7th February to 30th March, and was conducted very languidly, because, with the materials at his disposal, he could do no injury to such an impregnable fortress. Sometimes the siege-trenches were attacked by