During the reign of Akbar the Great, Emperor of Hindostan, that part of the Deccan which now comprises Orissa and Bundelcund, was known by the name of Gurrah, and was governed by a warlike queen, named Durgautti, equally distinguished for her beauty, her accomplishments, and the talented manner in which she conducted the affairs of her kingdom. She succeeded to the throne on the death of her husband. The country was about one hundred and fifty crores in length and about fifty in breadth; yet so prosperous, that it contained upwards of seventy thousand towns and villages, closely populated. About the year 1564, Asaf Khan Hirvys, an Indian noble, was raised by the emperor to the rank of an Omrah of five thousand, and appointed governor of Kurrah and Mannichpoor. The new Omrah at once began a series of predatory incursions into Gurrah; and very soon he invaded the country with an army of about twelve thousand foot and five or six hundred horse. Durgautti assembled eight thousand horse, fifteen hundred elephants, and a few hundred foot, and advanced to meet the invaders. Clad in armour, a helmet on her head, a lance grasped in her right hand, a bow and a quiver lying by her side, she led her troops to battle, riding in a howdah on the back of an elephant. Though the men were totally unaccustomed to war, the love of liberty and the example of the Queen raised their courage to such a pitch that, in their eagerness to fight, they marched too rapidly, and would speedily have become an undisciplined mob. But Durgautti, perceiving the cause of their disorder, commanded a halt; and after re-forming their broken ranks, she gave them strict orders to march slowly, as compactly as they could, and not to engage the foe until they saw the signal displayed from the elephant of the royal standard. A sanguinary battle then ensued, in which Durgautti displayed the greatest courage. After a long and obstinate conflict, the Mahommedans were routed, with a loss of eight hundred slain. The queen pursued the flying enemy till night put an end to the contest. She then halted, and gave orders for the soldiers to wash and refresh themselves, preparatory to a night attack on the camp of Asaf Khan; but her vizier and the remainder of her generals refused to aid in a night assault, and seditiously demanded permission to inter their fallen comrades. She unwillingly consented; and when the bodies of the slain had been burned, she entreated the chiefs, one by one, to assist her in an assault on the Mogul camp. But all in vain. Not one would second her in this daring enterprise.