Bawarij

Bawarij were Indian corsairs that chased Arab shipping bound for India and China. Laurier, pg. 132] They are mentioned by Ma'sudi as frequenting the pirate den at Socotra and Marco Polo describes them as pirates of Gujarat. Ibn Batuta describes them being warships with oars, fifty rowers, and fifty men-at-arms and wooden roofs to protect against arrows and stones. Tabari describes them in an attack upon Basra in 866 CE as having one pilot "(istiyam)", three fire-throwers "(naffatun)", a baker, a carpenter and thirty-nine rowers and fighters making up a complement of forty-five. [ Hourani pg. 114]

These ships were unsuited for warlike maneuvers and lacked the sleek prows or ramming capabilities of other contemporary naval units, but were intended to provide for hand-to-hand battles for crew upon boarding.

ee also

* Muhammad bin Qasim
* History of Sindh

Footnotes

References

* George F. Hourani, John Carswell, "Arab Seafaring in the Indian Ocean in Ancient and Early Medieval Times", Princeton University Press, 1995, ISBN 0-691-00032-8

* Laurier Books Limited, Horatio John Suckling, "Ceylon: A General Description of the Island, Historical, Physical, Statistical", Asian Educational Services, 1994, ISBN 8-120-60934-4