Sher Singh (4 December 1807 – 15 September 1843) was the fourth

Maharaja Maharaja (also spelled Maharajah or Maharaj; ; feminine: Maharani) is a royal title in Indian subcontinent, Indian subcontinent of Sanskrit origin. In modern India and Medieval India, medieval northern India, the title was equivalent to a pri ...

of the

Sikh Empire The Sikh Empire was a regional power based in the Punjab, Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent. It existed from 1799, when Maharaja Ranjit Singh captured Lahore, to 1849, when it was defeated and conquered by the East India Company, Br ...

. He was elder of the twins of

Maharaja Ranjit Singh Ranjit Singh (13 November 1780 – 27 June 1839) was the founder and first maharaja of the Sikh Empire, in the northwest Indian subcontinent, ruling from 1801 until his death in 1839. Born to Maha Singh, the leader of the Sukerchakia Misl ...

, founder of the Sikh Empire and Maharani Mehtab Kaur. His reign began on 18 January 1840 following his assault on

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

which ended the brief regency of Maharani Chand Kaur. Syad Muhammad Latif, Lahore: Its History, Architectural Remains and Antiquities: With an Account of Its Modern Institutions, Inhabitants, Their Trade, Customs, Printed at the New Imperial Press, 1892 He was assassinated on 15 September 1843 by Ajit Singh Sandhawalia, a relative. His short-reign only lasted for two-years. An experienced military-man, Sher Singh had the backing of the Sikh Army.

Birth

Sher Singh was the son of Maharaja

Ranjit Singh Ranjit Singh (13 November 1780 – 27 June 1839) was the founder and first maharaja of the Sikh Empire, in the northwest Indian subcontinent, ruling from 1801 until his death in 1839. Born to Maha Singh, the leader of the Sukerchakia M ...

and Maharani Mehtab Kaur, he had a younger twin brother Tara Singh (1807–1859). He was the second son of Ranjit Singh.

Early life

In 1820, Maharaja Ranjit Singh granted him the privilege of being seated in the Darbar and bestowed civil and military honors on him. From 1831 to 1834 he acted as Governor of Kashmir and in 1834 he was a commander of the force that captured

Peshawar Peshawar is the capital and List of cities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by population, largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is the sixth most populous city of Pakistan, with a district p ...

from the Afghans.

Military campaigns

Barelvi The Barelvi movement, also known as Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jama'ah (People of the Prophet's Way and the Community) is a Sunni revivalist movement that generally adheres to the Hanafi school, Hanafi and Shafi'i school, Shafi'i schools of jurisprudenc ...

declared ''

jihad ''Jihad'' (; ) is an Arabic word that means "exerting", "striving", or "struggling", particularly with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it encompasses almost any effort to make personal and social life conform with God in Islam, God ...

'' against the

Sikhs Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Sikh'' ...

and established a camp in Balakot. Along with Shah Ismail Dehlvi and his tribesmen, in 1831, Sher Singh accompanied by Pratab Singh Attarwala and Akali Hanuman Singh arrived in Balakot. He invested Balakot on all sides. The Sikh slowly advanced narrowing the besieged area gradually. On reaching near the Sayyid residence, the Sikh drew out their swords, cut down the sayyid troops and shot down Sayyid Ahmed Khan. His head cut off for display, and about 500 followers of Sayyid were killed including Shah Ismail Dehlvi. The entire property of Sayyid fell into the hands of Sikhs. A sum of Rs. 50,000 along with a letter of appreciation was sent to Sher Singh promising an additional Jagir.

Reign

Sher Singh became the maharaja on 27 January 1841, after the sudden death of Nau Nihal Singh whose death was set in motion, some say purposely while returning from his father's cremation. He was the half-brother of Nau Nihal Singh's father, former Maharaja Kharak Singh. Proclaimed Maharaja by his wazir (prime minister)

Dhian Singh Raja Dhian Singh (22 August 1796 – 15 September 1843) was the longest serving wazir of the Sikh Empire, during the reign of Maharajah Ranjit Singh, and the brief rule of four of his successors over four years. He held the office for twenty fiv ...

Dogra __NOTOC__ Dogras, or Dogra people, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic community of Pakistan and India. Dogra, Dogras or Dogri may also refer to: * Dogra dynasty, a Hindu dynasty of Kashmir * Dogri language, a language spoken by Dogras and other ethnic commu ...

, he won the throne after a protracted siege of the Lahore Fort which was held by the royal family. Thousands died in the siege. Sher Singh had pro-British views, a continuation of his father's amicable ties to the British. An example of Sher Singh's pro-British sympathies is him allowing the British army to retreat from Afghanistan via Punjab in 1842. This is despite many of his officials wishing to raid the fatigued British during their Afghan retreat for spoils. Sher Singh was a patron of the arts, with one of his court painters being Kehar Singh. The painter

August Schoefft August Theodor Schoefft (1809 – 1888) was a 19th-century Hungarian painter. He spent more than one year in the Sikh Empire, arriving in 1841, where he painted portraits and scenes of the surrounding area. His best known works include ''The Cou ...

arrived in the Punjab and worked during his reign. Sher Singh was also a fan of wrestling and often would take wrestlers outside the walled city of Lahore to the tomb of Qasim Khan. One of these wrestlers were Sultan Muhammad, who later became a contractor under the British colonial administration.

Death

Depiction of the assassination of Maharaja Sher Singh by the Sandhawalia Sardars

Sher Singh was killed in September 1843 as he was asked to inspect a new shotgun brought by Ajit Singh Sandhawalia. Sandhawalia then pulled the trigger and then killed the wounded Sher Singh with his sword by cutting off his head. Ajit Singh Sandhawalia had served as Prime Minister first for Ranjit Singh then for Sher Singh's brother Kharak Singh then Karak Singh's son Nau Nihal each of whom had died shortly after taking office. Ajit Singh Sandhawalia then served as Prime Minister for Kharak Singh's widow Chand Kaur who served as regent. Ajit Singh Sandhawalia preferred having Chand Kaur as regent ruler as it allowed him more power. Chand Kaur had been removed as the expected heir her late son Nau Nihal's daughter in law was about to deliver died stillborn. Sher Singh only had time to utter, "what treachery." The Sandhawalias also murdered Dhian Singh. The Sandhawalias were thought to have also had designs on the empire.

Legacy

His palace is leased to Baring Union Christian College.

Notes

References

External links

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Maharaja Sher Singh (1807 - 1843)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Sher Sher Singh 1807 births 1843 deaths