92
TheIslamicateContext
toleratethechaoticnatureoftribal
warfare,so
they
forcedtheir
slavestolearn
discipline.
Throughmilitarytraining,
thenatural
courage
andhardiness
of
marginal
areasoldierswascombined
withthe
organization,
techniques,
and disciplineofgovernment
armies. The slaves
emergedsuperblyaccomplished
inthemartialartsandfully
in-
tegrated
intoan
organizedarmy.
The
maindrawbackofthe
trainingprogramlay
inthe
timeit
required;
whilemercenaries
andalliescame
fullyprepared
forbattle,
military
slaveshadto
be
acquired
andtrainedfarinadvanceoftheir
employnent.
They
couldbe
properly
used
only
inthecontext
of
long-range
planning.
81
Besidesbringingmilitarypower
to the
dynasty
asawhole,
military
slaves
provided
the ruler with
political
henchmen.
While
serving
the
armyagainst
externalenemies,they
also
sup-
ported
the
ruler
against
internalrivals.
Althoughcomplemen-
tary,
thesetwofunctionswerenotidentical.As
agents,they
were
totally
beholdentotheruler,devotedtohim,and
lackingany
traceof
envy;
nobetter
agents
could
befound.Mercenariesand
alliescouldnot
reliablyprovide
this
personal
service.
Muslimleaderscouldchoosetorecruitalien
marginal
area
soldiersinother
ways,
buttheseentailedmoredifficulties.For
example,
the
Mughals
did nothavemany military
slaves; in-
stead,theyemployed
Hindusas
palaceguards,
usedlower-class
men as
infantry,
and recruited
cavalry
from Iran and Cen-
tral Asia
by offeringespecially high
salaries.
82
However, the
Mughals
oftenhad
problemsacquiring
thesetroops
and
keeping
their
loyalty.
GiventheMuslims’needforalienmarginal
area
soldiers,
militaryslaverybrought
withitseveraladvantages
over
othermethods
of
organization;
theslaves’numbers,
quality,
and
youth
assuredthebestmaterialtoworkwith;
their
isolation,
training,
andindoctrinationassured
fineand
loyal
soldiers.
Noting
the
advantages
of
military
slaves,weshouldnotfind
their
military
roleinthemillennium820-1850
c.E.so
puzzling.
81.
Ayalon,
"Aspects,"p.208.
82.
On
military
slaves; W.Irvine,The
Army
of
theIndianMoghuls(London,
1903),p.11;
onothers,
Qureshi,pp.
131-33,124.