Ranjit Singh (13 November 1780 – 27 June 1839) was the founder and first
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 ...
, in the northwest
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...
, ruling from 1801 until his death in 1839.
Born to
Maha Singh
Maha Singh ('; 1760 – 15 April 1790 or 1756 – April 1792), also spelt as Mahan or Mahn Singh, was the second Sardar of the Sukerchakia Misl, which as a Sikh grouping with its guerilla militia was one of twelve Sikh Misls that later became ...
, the leader of the
Sukerchakia
The Sukerchakia Misl was one of twelve Sikh misls in Punjab during the 18th century, concentrated in Gujranwala and Hafizabad districts in western Punjab (in modern-Pakistan) and ruled from (1752–1801). The misl, or grouping with its own gu ...
Misl
Major Indoor Soccer League has been the name of three different American professional indoor soccer leagues:
*Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992), known in its final two seasons as the Major Soccer League
*Major Indoor Soccer League (2001–2 ...
, Ranjit Singh survived
smallpox
Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...
in infancy but lost
sight in his left eye. At the age of ten years old, he fought his first battle alongside his father. After his father died around Ranjit's early teenage years, he became leader of the Misl. Ranjit was the most prominent of the Sikh leaders who opposed
Zaman Shah
Zaman Shah Durrani, or Zaman Shah Abdali ( Persian: ; 1767 – 1844) was the third King of the Durrani Empire from 1793 until 1801. An ethnic Pashtun of the Sadozai clan, Zaman Shah was the grandson of Ahmad Shah Durrani and the fifth son of Timu ...
, the ruler of
Durrani Empire
The Durrani Empire, colloquially known as the Afghan Empire, or the Saddozai Kingdom, was an Afghanistan, Afghan empire founded by the Durrani tribe of Pashtuns under Ahmad Shah Durrani in 1747, which spanned parts of Central Asia, the Iranian ...
, during his third invasion. After Zaman Shah's retreat in 1799, he captured
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 ...
from the Sikh
triumvirate
A triumvirate () or a triarchy is a political institution ruled or dominated by three individuals, known as triumvirs (). The arrangement can be formal or informal. Though the three leaders in a triumvirate are notionally equal, the actual distr ...
which had been ruling it
since 1765. At the age of 21, he was formally crowned at Lahore.
Before his rise, the Punjab had been fragmented into a number of warring Sikh (known as
misl
Major Indoor Soccer League has been the name of three different American professional indoor soccer leagues:
*Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992), known in its final two seasons as the Major Soccer League
*Major Indoor Soccer League (2001–2 ...
s), Muslim and Hindu states. A large part of Punjab was under direct Durrani control.
By 1813, Ranjit Singh had successfully annexed the Sikh misls and taken over the local kingdoms; the following decades saw the conquest of Durrani Afghan-ruled territories of
Multan
Multan is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, fifth-most populous city in the Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab province of Pakistan. Located along the eastern bank of the Chenab River, it is the List of cities in Pakistan by populatio ...
,
Kashmir
Kashmir ( or ) is the Northwestern Indian subcontinent, northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term ''Kashmir'' denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir P ...
and
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 ...
into his expanding Sikh Empire. Ranjit Singh established friendly relations with the
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.
* British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
.
Ranjit Singh's reign introduced reforms, modernisation, investment in infrastructure and general prosperity.
[ His Khalsa army and government included ]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'' ...
, Hindus
Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...
, Muslims
Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
and Europeans
Europeans are the focus of European ethnology, the field of anthropology related to the various ethnic groups that reside in the states of Europe. Groups may be defined by common ancestry, language, faith, historical continuity, etc. There are ...
. His legacy includes a period of Sikh cultural and artistic renaissance, including the rebuilding of the Harmandir Sahib
The Golden Temple is a gurdwara located in Amritsar, Punjab, India. It is the pre-eminent spiritual site of Sikhism. It is one of the Holy place, holiest sites in Sikhism, alongside the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur in Kartarpur, Pakistan, ...
in Amritsar
Amritsar, also known as Ambarsar, is the second-List of cities in Punjab, India by population, largest city in the India, Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab, after Ludhiana. Located in the Majha region, it is a major cultural, transportatio ...
as well as other major gurdwaras
A gurdwara or gurudwara () is a place of assembly and worship in Sikhism, but its normal meaning is "place of guru" or "home of guru". Sikhs also refer to gurdwaras as ''Gurdwara Sahib''. People from all faiths and religions are welcomed in gurd ...
, including Takht Sri Patna Sahib
Takht Sri Patna Sahib also known as Takhat Sri Harimandir Ji, Patna Sahib, is one of the five takhts of the Sikhs, located in Patna, Bihar, India.
History
Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh Guru, was born in Patna, Mughal Empire on 22 Decemb ...
, Bihar
Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...
and Hazur Sahib Nanded, Maharashtra
Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...
under his sponsorship.[ He also founded the Order of the Propitious Star of Punjab in ]1837
Events
January–March
* January 1 – The destructive Galilee earthquake causes thousands of deaths in Ottoman Syria.
* January 26 – Michigan becomes the 26th state admitted to the United States.
* February 4 – Seminoles attack Fo ...
. Ranjit Singh was succeeded by his son Kharak Singh
Kharak Singh (22 February 1801 – 5 November 1840) was the second maharaja of the Sikh Empire, ruling from June 1839 until his dethronement and imprisonment in October 1839. He was the eldest son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, founder of the Sikh ...
after his death in 1839.
Early years
Ranjit Singh was born in a Sandhawalia
Sandhawalia is a Jat clan of present-day India and Pakistan.
History
The members of one particular Sandhanwalia Jat Sikh family occupied important positions in the Sikh Confederacy. The progenitor of this family was Choudhary Chanda Singh, w ...
Jat Sikh
Jat Sikh or Jatt Sikh (Gurmukhi: ਜੱਟ ਸਿੱਖ) is an ethnoreligious group, a subgroup of the Jat people whose traditional religion is Sikhism, originating from the Indian subcontinent. They are one of the dominant communities in Pu ...
family on 13 November 1780 to Maha Singh
Maha Singh ('; 1760 – 15 April 1790 or 1756 – April 1792), also spelt as Mahan or Mahn Singh, was the second Sardar of the Sukerchakia Misl, which as a Sikh grouping with its guerilla militia was one of twelve Sikh Misls that later became ...
and Raj Kaur
Rani Raj Kaur was the wife of Maha Singh, the leader of the Sukerchakia Misl and the mother of Ranjit Singh, Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the founder of the Sikh Empire. She was affectionately known as ''Mai Malwain'' after her marriage. She is also r ...
in Gujranwala
Gujranwala is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, fourth most-populous city in the Pakistani province of Punjab. Located in northern-central Punjab's Rachna Doab, it serves as the headquarters of its Gujranwala District, epony ...
, Punjab region (present-day Punjab, Pakistan
Punjab (, ) is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. With a population of over 127 million, it is the Demographics of Pakistan, most populous province in Pakistan and the List of first-level administrative divisions by popu ...
). His mother Raj Kaur
Rani Raj Kaur was the wife of Maha Singh, the leader of the Sukerchakia Misl and the mother of Ranjit Singh, Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the founder of the Sikh Empire. She was affectionately known as ''Mai Malwain'' after her marriage. She is also r ...
was the daughter of Sidhu
Sidhu is a Punjabi Jat clan found in Punjab.
The Sidhus have had a significant impact on Sikh history.
Etymology and origin
During British Raj, historians like HA.Rose and Alexander Cunningham note an account of local bards (bhatts) hi ...
Jat Sikh ruler Raja Gajpat Singh of Jind. Upon his birth, he was named Buddh Singh after his ancestor who was first in line to take Amrit Sanchaar. The child's name was changed to Ranjit (literally, "victor in battle") Singh ("lion") by his father to commemorate his army's victory over the Chattha chief Pir Muhammad of Chattha dynasty
Chattha (also spelled ''Chatha'') is a politically influential Punjabi people, Punjabi Jat clan concentrated in the Rachna Doab, particularly around the historical Gujranwala District (which includes modern day Wazirabad District, Wazirabad and Ha ...
.[
Ranjit Singh contracted ]smallpox
Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...
as an infant, which resulted in the loss of sight in his left eye and a pockmarked face.[ He was short in stature, never schooled, and did not learn to read or write anything beyond the ]Gurmukhi
Gurmukhī ( , Shahmukhi: ) is an abugida developed from the Laṇḍā scripts, standardized and used by the second Sikh guru, Guru Angad (1504–1552). Commonly regarded as a Sikh script, Gurmukhi is used in Punjab, India as the official scrip ...
alphabet. However, he was trained at home in horse riding, musketry and other martial arts.[
At age 12, his father died.] He then inherited his father's Sukerchakia Misl
The Sukerchakia Misl was one of twelve Sikh Sikh Confederacy, misls in Punjab region, Punjab during the 18th century, concentrated in Gujranwala and Hafizabad districts in western Punjab region, Punjab (in modern-Pakistan) and ruled from (1752 ...
estates and was raised by his mother Raj Kaur, who, along with Lakhpat Rai, also managed the estates.[ The first attempt on his life was made when he was 13, by Hashmat Khan, but Ranjit Singh prevailed and killed the assailant instead. At age 18, his mother died and Lakhpat Rai was assassinated, and thereon he was helped by his mother-in-law from his first marriage.]
Establishment of the Sikh Empire
Background
After the death of Aurangzeb
Alamgir I (Muhi al-Din Muhammad; 3 November 1618 – 3 March 1707), commonly known by the title Aurangzeb, also called Aurangzeb the Conqueror, was the sixth Mughal emperors, Mughal emperor, reigning from 1658 until his death in 1707, becomi ...
in 1707, the Mughal Empire fell apart and declined in its ability to tax or govern most of the Indian subcontinent. In the northwestern region, particularly the Punjab, the creation of the Khalsa
The term ''Khalsa'' refers to both a community that follows Sikhism as its religion,[Khalsa: Sikhism< ...]
community of Sikh warriors by Guru Gobind Singh
Guru Gobind Singh (; born Gobind Das; 22 December 1666 – 7 October 1708) was the tenth and last human Sikh gurus, Sikh Guru. He was a warrior, poet, and philosopher. In 1675, at the age of nine he was formally installed as the leader of the ...
accelerated the decay and fragmentation of the Mughal power in the region. Raiding Afghans attacked the Indus river valleys but met resistance from both organised armies of the Khalsa Sikhs as well as irregular Khalsa militias based in villages. The Sikhs had appointed own ''zamindars
A zamindar in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semi-autonomous feudal lord of a ''zamindari'' (feudal estate). The term itself came into use during the Mughal Empire, when Persian was the official language; ''zamindar'' is th ...
'', replacing the previous Muslim revenue collectors, which provided resources to feed and strengthen the warriors aligned with Sikh interests. Meanwhile, colonial traders and the East India Company had begun operations in India on its eastern and western coasts.
By the second half of the 18th century, the northwestern parts of the Indian subcontinent (now Pakistan and parts of north India) were a collection of fourteen small warring regions. Of the fourteen, twelve were Sikh-controlled ''misls'' (confederacies), one named Kasur (near Lahore) was Muslim controlled, and one in the southeast was led by an Englishman named George Thomas. This region constituted the fertile and productive valleys of the five rivers – Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Bias and Sutlej. The Sikh ''misls'' were all under the control of the Khalsa fraternity of Sikh warriors, but they were not united and constantly warred with each other over revenue collection, disagreements, and local priorities; however, in the event of external invasion such as from the Muslim armies of Ahmed Shah Abdali from Afghanistan, they would usually unite.
Towards the end of 18th century, the five most powerful ''misls'' were those of Sukkarchakkia, Kanhayas, Nakkais, Ahluwalias and Bhangi Sikhs. Ranjit Singh belonged to the first, and through marriage had a reliable alliance with Kanhayas and Nakkais. Among the smaller misls, some such as the Phulkian ''misl'' had switched loyalties in the late 18th century and supported the Afghan army invasion against their Khalsa brethren. The Kasur region, ruled by Muslims, always supported the Afghan invasion forces and joined them in plundering Sikh ''misls'' during the war.
Military campaigns
Early conquests
Ranjit Singh's fame grew in 1797, at age 17, when the Durrani Shah Zaman attempted to bring Panjab into his control through his general Shahanchi Khan and 12,000 soldiers. The battle was fought in the territory that fell in Ranjit Singh's controlled misl, whose regional knowledge and warrior expertise helped resist the invading army. This victory at the Battle of Amritsar (1798) gained him recognition. In 1798, Zaman Shah army, which Ranjit Singh did not resist. He let them enter Lahore, then encircled them with his army, blocked off all food and supplies, and burnt all crops and food sources that could have supported the Afghan army. Much of the Afghan army retreated back to Afghanistan.
In 1799, Raja Ranjit Singh's army of 25,000 Khalsa
The term ''Khalsa'' refers to both a community that follows Sikhism as its religion,[Khalsa: Sikhism< ...]
, supported by another 25,000 Khalsa led by his mother-in-law Rani Sada Kaur of Kanhaiya ''misl'', in a joint operation attacked the region controlled by Bhangi
Chuhra, also known as Bhanghi and Balmiki, is a Dalit caste in India and Pakistan. Populated regions include the Punjab region of India and Pakistan, as well as Uttar Pradesh in India, among other parts of the Indian subcontinent such as south ...
Sikhs centered around Lahore. The rulers escaped, marking Lahore as the first major conquest of Ranjit Singh. The Sufi Muslim and Hindu population of Lahore welcomed the rule of Ranjit Singh. In 1800, the ruler of the Jammu region ceded control of his region to Ranjit Singh.
In 1801, Ranjit Singh proclaimed himself as the "Maharaja of Punjab", and agreed to a formal investiture ceremony, which was carried out by Baba Sahib Singh Bedi
Baba Sahib Singh Bedi (Punjabi: ਬਾਬਾ ਸਾਹਿਬ ਸਿੰਘ ਜੀ ਬੇਦੀ, 7 April 1756 – 17 July 1834) is a renowned Sikh Brahmgiani Saint, who was a direct tenth-generation lineal descendant of Guru Nanak, the first Sikh G ...
– a descendant of Guru Nanak. On the day of his coronation, prayers were performed across mosques, temples and gurudwaras in his territories for his long life. Ranjit Singh called his rule "Sarkar Khalsa", and his court "Darbar Khalsa". He ordered new coins to be issued in the name of Guru Nanak named the "NanakShahi" ("of the Emperor Nanak").
Expansion
In 1802, Ranjit Singh, aged 22, took Amritsar from the Bhangi Sikh ''misl'', paid homage at the Harmandir Sahib
The Golden Temple is a gurdwara located in Amritsar, Punjab, India. It is the pre-eminent spiritual site of Sikhism. It is one of the Holy place, holiest sites in Sikhism, alongside the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur in Kartarpur, Pakistan, ...
temple, which had previously been attacked and desecrated by the invading Afghan army, and announced that he would renovate and rebuild it with marble and gold.
On 1 January 1806, Ranjit Singh signed a treaty with the British officials of the East India Company, in which he agreed that his Sikh forces would not attempt to expand south of the Sutlej River, and the Company agreed that it would not attempt to militarily cross the Sutlej River into the Sikh territory.
In 1807, Ranjit Singh's forces attacked the Muslim-ruled principality of Kasur
Kasur (Punjabi language, Punjabi / ; ; also Romanization, romanized as Qasūr; from pluralized Arabic word ''Qasr'' meaning "palaces" or "forts") is a city to the south of Lahore, in the Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. The city s ...
and, after a month of fierce fighting, defeated the Afghan chief Qutb-ud-Din, thus expanding his empire northwest towards Afghanistan. In the same year he also annexed the Sial
In geology, sial is an antiquated blended term for the composition of the upper layer of Earth's crust, namely rocks rich in aluminium silicate minerals. It is sometimes equated with the continental crust because it is absent in the wide ocea ...
-ruled Jhang
Jhang ( Punjabi / ; ; ) is the capital city of Jhang District in central Punjab, Pakistan. Situated on the east bank of the Chenab river, it is the 13th most populous city of Pakistan.
Etymology
The historical name of the city and dis ...
.
The most significant encounters between the Sikhs in the command of the Maharaja and the Afghans were in 1813, 1823, 1834 and 1837.[ In 1813, Ranjit Singh's general ]Dewan Mokham Chand
Diwan Mokham Chand (died 16 or 29 October 1814) was one of the chief commanders of the Sikh Empire. He conquered Attock from the Durrani Afghans in 1813 and subdued the Rajputs in the Hills of Himachal and in Jammu at Jasrota, Chamba, and ...
led the Sikh forces against the Afghan forces of Shah Mahmud
Shāh Mahmūd Hotak, (Pashto/Dari: ) or Shāh Mahmūd Ghiljī (), also known by his epithet, The Conqueror (lived 1697 – April 22, 1725), was the ruler of the Hotak dynasty who overthrew Safavid dynasty to become the king of Persia from 1722 ...
led by Fateh Khan Barakzai. The Afghans lost their stronghold of Attock
Attock ( Punjabi, ), formerly known as Campbellpur (Punjabi, ), is a city in Punjab, Pakistan, not far from the country's capital Islamabad. It is the headquarters of the Attock District and is 36th largest city in the Punjab and 61st largest c ...
in that battle.
In 1813–14, Ranjit Singh's first attempt to expand into Kashmir was foiled by Afghan forces led by Azim Khan, due to a heavy downpour, the spread of cholera, and poor food supply to his troops. In 1819 at the Battle of Shopian
The Battle of Shopian took place on 3 July 1819 between an expeditionary force from the Sikh Empire and Jabbar Khan, the governor of the Kashmir Valley province of the Durrani Empire. It was the decisive battle during the Sikh expedition into K ...
, he successfully defeated the Afghan rulers and annexed Kashmir valley
The Kashmir Valley, also known as the Vale of Kashmir, is an intermontane valley in northern Jammu and Kashmir, a region in Indian-administered Kashmir.(a) (subscription required) Quote: "Kashmir, region of the northwestern Indian subcont ...
, stretching his rule into the north and the Jhelum valley, beyond the foothills of the Himalayas,[ along with a yearly revenue of Rs seventy lacs. Diwan Moti Ram was appointed governor of Kashmir.]
In 1818, Darbar's forces led by Kharak Singh and Misr Dewan Chand occupied Multan, killing Nawab Muzaffar Khan
Nawab Muzaffar Khan (1757 – 2 June 1818) was the last Afghan governor of Multan.
Early life
Nawab Muzaffar Khan, born in Multan in 1757, was the eldest son of Shuja Khan, the governor of Multan between 1767 and 1772. He was well educated in re ...
and defeating his forces, leading to the end of Afghan influence in the Punjab. The whole Bari Doab
''Doab'' () is a term used in South Asia Quote: "Originally and chiefly in South Asia: (the name of) a strip or narrow tract of land between two rivers; spec. (with) the area between the rivers Ganges and Jumna in northern India." for the tract ...
came under his rule with that conquest. With the defeat of Nawab of Mankera in 1821, whole Sind Sagar Doab
Sindh Sagar Doab (, ''Sind Sāgar Dōāb''), sometimes shortened as Sagar Doab, is a '' Doab'' or tract of land in the Punjab region, lying between the Indus and Jhelum rivers, in present-day Pakistan. It, administratively, covers a huge portion ...
came under subjugation by the Sikhs. In 1823, Yusufzai
The Yusufzai or Yousafzai (, ), also referred to as the Esapzai (, ), or Yusufzai Afghans historically, are one of the largest tribes of Pashtuns. They are natively based in the northern part of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ( Malakand, Dir, Swat, Shangl ...
Pashtuns fought the army of Ranjit Sing north of the Kabul River
The Kabul River (; ), the classical Cophen , is a river that emerges in the Sanglakh Range of the Hindu Kush mountains in the northeastern part of Maidan Wardak Province, Afghanistan. It is separated from the watershed of the Helmand River by th ...
.
In 1834, Mohammed Azim Khan once again marched towards Peshawar with an army of 25,000 Khattak
The Khattak () tribe is a prominent Pashtun tribe located in the Khattak territory, which consists of Karak, Nowshera, Kohat districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.
History Origins
Multiple British Raj historians have identified the Khat ...
and Yusafzai
The Yusufzai or Yousafzai (, ), also referred to as the Esapzai (, ), or Yusufzai Afghans historically, are one of the largest Pashtun tribes, tribes of Pashtuns. They are natively based in the northern part of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (Malakand Distr ...
tribesmen in the name of jihad, to fight against the king. The Maharaja defeated the forces. Yar Mohammad Khan was pardoned and was reinvested as governor of Peshawar with an annual revenue of Rs one lac ten thousand to Lahore Darbar.
In 1835, the Afghans and Sikhs met again at the Standoff at the Khyber Pass, however it ended without a battle.
In 1837, the Battle of Jamrud
The Battle of Jamrud was fought between the forces of the Emirate of Afghanistan under Wazir Akbar Khan, and the Sikh Empire under Maharaja Ranjit Singh on 30 April 1837. The Afghans confronted the Sikh forces at Jamrud. The garrisoned army was ...
, became the last confrontation between the Sikhs led by him and the Afghans, which displayed the extent of the western boundaries of the Sikh Empire.
On 25 November 1838, the two most powerful armies on the Indian subcontinent assembled in a grand review at Ferozepore as Ranjit Singh, the Maharajah of the Punjab brought out the ''Dal Khalsa'' to march alongside the sepoy troops of the East India Company and the British troops in India. In 1838, he agreed to a treaty with the British viceroy Lord Auckland to restore Shah Shoja to the Afghan throne in Kabul. In pursuance of this agreement, the British army of the Indus entered Afghanistan from the south, while Ranjit Singh's troops went through the Khyber Pass and took part in the victory parade in Kabul.[Ranjit Singh]
Encyclopædia Britannica, Khushwant Singh (2015)
Extent of the rule
The Sikh Empire, also known as the Sikh Raj and Sarkar-a-Khalsa, was in the Punjab region, the name of which means "the land of the five rivers". The five rivers are the Beas, Ravi
Ravi may refer to:
People
* Ravi (name), including a list of people and characters with the name
* Ravi (composer) (1926–2012), Indian music director
* Ravi (Ivar Johansen) (born 1976), Norwegian musical artist
* Ravi (rapper) (born 1993), a Sou ...
, Sutlej
The Sutlej River or the Satluj River is a major river in Asia, flowing through China, India and Pakistan, and is the longest of the five major rivers of the Punjab region. It is also known as ''Satadru''; and is the easternmost tributary of t ...
, Chenab
The Chenab River is a major river in India and Pakistan, and is one of the 5 major rivers of the Punjab region. It is formed by the union of two headwaters, the Chandra and Bhaga, which rise in the upper Himalayas in the Lahaul region of Himac ...
and Jhelum
Jhelum (; , ) is a city, located along the western bank of the Jhelum River, in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the 21st largest city in Punjab and 31st largest in Pakistan, by population. Located in northern Punjab, it serves as the capital of the ...
, all of which are tributaries of the river Indus
The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans- Himalayan river of South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in the Western Tibet region of China, flows northwest through the dis ...
.
The geographical reach of the Sikh Empire under Singh included all lands north of Sutlej River, and south of the high valleys of the northwestern Himalayas. The major towns at the time included Srinagar, Attock, Peshawar, Bannu, Rawalpindi, Jammu, Gujrat, Sialkot, Kangra, Amritsar, Lahore and Multan.
Muslims formed around 70%, Hindus formed around 24%, and Sikhs formed around 6–7% of the total population living in Singh's empire
Administration
Governance
Ranjit Singh allowed men from different religions and races to serve in his army and his government in various positions of authority. His army included a few Europeans, such as the Frenchman Jean-François Allard
Jean-François Allard (; 1785–1839), born in Saint Tropez, was a French soldier and adventurer.
Biography
France
Allard served in Napoleon's Army, where he was twice injured. He was promoted to the rank of Captain of the French 7th Huss ...
, and Italian Jewish Jean-Baptiste Ventura
Jean-Baptiste (Giovanni Battista) Ventura, born Rubino (25 May 1794 – 3 April 1858), was an Italian soldier, mercenary in India, general in Maharaja Ranjit Singh's Sarkar-i-Khalsa, and early archaeologist of the Punjab region of the Sikh Empir ...
though Singh maintained a policy of refraining from recruiting Britons into his service, aware of British designs on the Indian subcontinent. Despite his recruitment policies, he did maintain a diplomatic channel with the British; in 1828, he sent gifts to George IV
George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death in 1830. At the time of his accession to the throne, h ...
and in 1831, he sent a mission to Simla to confer with the British Governor General, William Bentinck, which was followed by the Ropar Meeting
The Ropar Meeting in October 1831 was between Maharaja Ranjit Singh and Lord William Bentinck, Governor-General of the East India Company, on the banks of the river Satluj, in a town of the same name. Ranjit Singh's fame had reached its peak ...
; while in 1838, he cooperated with them in removing the hostile Islamic Emir in Afghanistan.[
]
Religious policies
As consistent with many Punjabis of that time, Ranjit Singh was a secular king and followed the Sikh path. His policies were based on respect for all communities, Hindu, Sikh and Muslim. A devoted Sikh, Ranjit Singh restored and built historic Sikh Gurdwara
A gurdwara or gurudwara () is a place of assembly and place of worship, worship in Sikhism, but its normal meaning is "place of guru" or "home of guru". Sikhism, Sikhs also refer to gurdwaras as ''Gurdwara Sahib''. People from all faiths and rel ...
s – most famously, the Harmandir Sahib
The Golden Temple is a gurdwara located in Amritsar, Punjab, India. It is the pre-eminent spiritual site of Sikhism. It is one of the Holy place, holiest sites in Sikhism, alongside the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur in Kartarpur, Pakistan, ...
, and used to celebrate his victories by offering thanks at the Harmandir. He also joined the Hindus in their temples out of respect for their sentiments. The veneration of cows was promoted and cow slaughter was punishable by death under his rule. He ordered his soldiers to neither loot nor molest civilians.
He built several gurdwaras, Hindu temples and even mosques, and one in particular was Mai Moran Masjid, built at the behest of his beloved Muslim wife, Moran Sarkar
Moran Sarkar (–1862) was an Indian queen, the wife of Maharaja Ranjit Singh of the Sikh Empire. She was a nautch
The nautch (, meaning "dance" or "dancing" from Hindustani: "naach")Scott A. Kugle, 2016When Sun Meets Moon: Gender, Eros, a ...
. The Sikhs led by Singh never razed places of worship to the ground belonging to the enemy. However, he did convert Muslim mosques into other uses. For example, Ranjit Singh's army desecrated Lahore's Badshahi Mosque
The Badshahi Mosque (; ) is a Mughal Empire, Mughal-era congregational mosque, imperial mosque located in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. It was constructed between 1671 and 1673 during the rule of Aurangzeb, opposite of the Lahore Fort on the north ...
and converted it into an ammunition store, and horse stables. Lahore's Moti Masjid (Pearl Mosque) was converted into "Moti Mandir" (Pearl Temple) by the Sikh army,[ and Sonehri Mosque was converted into a Sikh ]Gurdwara
A gurdwara or gurudwara () is a place of assembly and place of worship, worship in Sikhism, but its normal meaning is "place of guru" or "home of guru". Sikhism, Sikhs also refer to gurdwaras as ''Gurdwara Sahib''. People from all faiths and rel ...
, but upon the request of Sufi Fakir (Satar Shah Bukhari), Ranjit Singh restored the latter to a mosque. Lahore's Begum Shahi Mosque was also used as a gunpowder factory, earning it the nickname
A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...
''Barudkhana Wali Masjid'', or "Gunpowder Mosque."
Singh's sovereignty was accepted by Afghan and Punjabi Muslims, who fought under his banner against the Afghan forces of Nadir Shah and later Azim Khan. His court was ecumenical in composition: his 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 ...
, was a Hindu (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 ...
); his foreign minister, Fakir Azizuddin
Note: Fakir Aziz-ud-Din is not to be confused with Fakir Aziao-Din, a Navratna in the Mughal ruler, Akbar's court.
Fakir Aziz ud-Din ( ; ; 1780–1845) was a physician, linguist, diplomat, and foreign minister at the court of Maharaja Ranji ...
, was a Muslim; and his finance minister, Dina Nath, was also a Hindu (Brahmin
Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...
). Artillery commanders such as Mian Ghausa were also Muslims. There were no forced conversions in his time. His wives Bibi Mohran, Gilbahar Begum retained their faith and so did his Hindu wives. He also employed and surrounded himself with astrologers and soothsayers in his court.
Ranjit Singh had also abolished the gurmata
A Gurmata ( Punjabi: ਗੁਰਮਤਾ; literally, 'Guru's intention' or 'advice of the Guru'), alternatively romanized as Gurumatta, is an order upon a subject that affects the fundamental principles of Sikh religion and is binding upon all Si ...
and provided significant patronage to the Udasi
Udasis ( Gurmukhi: ਉਦਾਸੀ ਸੰਪਰਦਾ; ''udāsī saparadā'') (Devanagari: उदासी संप्रदाय), also spelt as Udasins, also known as Nanak Putras (meaning "sons of Nanak"), are a religious sect of ascetic ' ...
and Nirmala sect, leading to their prominence and control of Sikh religious affairs.
Khalsa Army
The army under Ranjit Singh was not limited to the Sikh community. The soldiers and troop officers included Sikhs, but also included Hindus, Muslims and Europeans. Hindu Brahmin
Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...
s and people of all creeds and castes served his army, while the composition in his government also reflected a religious diversity. His army included Polish, Russian, Spanish, Prussian and French officers.[ In 1835, as his relationship with the British warmed up, he hired a British officer named Foulkes.]
However, the Khalsa army of Ranjit Singh reflected the regional population, and as he grew his army, he dramatically increased the Rajputs and the Sikhs who became the predominant members of his army.[ In the Doaba region his army was composed of the Jat Sikhs, in Jammu and northern Indian hills it was Hindu Rajputs, while relatively more Muslims served his army in the Jhelum river area closer to Afghanistan than other major Panjab rivers.
]
Reforms
Ranjit Singh changed and improved the training and organisation of his army. He reorganised responsibility and set performance standards in logistical efficiency in troop deployment, manoeuvre, and marksmanship
A marksman is a person who is skilled in precision shooting. In modern military usage this typically refers to the use of projectile weapons such as an accurized scoped long gun such as designated marksman rifle (or a sniper rifle) to shoot ...
. He reformed the staffing to emphasise steady fire over cavalry and guerrilla warfare, and improved the equipment and methods of war. The military system of Ranjit Singh combined the best of both old and new ideas. He strengthened the infantry and the artillery. He paid the members of the standing army from treasury, instead of the Mughal method of paying an army with local feudal levies.[
While Ranjit Singh introduced reforms in terms of training and equipment of his military, he failed to reform the old ''Jagirs'' (''Ijra'') system of Mughal middlemen.] The ''Jagirs'' system of state revenue collection involved certain individuals with political connections or inheritance promising a tribute (''nazarana'') to the ruler and thereby gaining administrative control over certain villages, with the right to force collect customs, excise and land tax at inconsistent and subjective rates from the peasants and merchants; they would keep a part of collected revenue and deliver the promised tribute value to the state. These ''Jagirs'' maintained independent armed militia to extort taxes from the peasants and merchants, and the militia was prone to violence.[ This system of inconsistent taxation with arbitrary extortion by militia, continued the Mughal tradition of ill treatment of peasants and merchants throughout the Sikh Empire, and is evidenced by the complaints filed to Ranjit Singh by East India Company officials attempting to trade within different parts of the Sikh Empire.]
According to historical records, Sunit Singh, Ranjit Singh's reforms focused on the military that would allow new conquests, but not towards the taxation system to end abuse, nor on introducing uniform laws in his state or improving internal trade and empowering the peasants and merchants. This failure to reform the ''Jagirs''-based taxation system and economy, in part led to a succession power struggle and a series of threats, internal divisions among Sikhs, major assassinations and coups in the Sikh Empire in the years immediately after the death of Ranjit Singh; an easy annexation of the remains of the Sikh Empire into British India followed, with the colonial officials offering the ''Jagirs'' better terms and the right to keep the system intact.
Infrastructure investments
Ranjit Singh ensured that Panjab manufactured and was self-sufficient in all weapons, equipment and munitions his army needed. His government invested in infrastructure in the 1800s and thereafter, established raw materials mines, cannon foundries, gunpowder and arms factories. Some of these operations were owned by the state, and others were operated by private Sikh operatives.
However, Ranjit Singh did not make major investments in other infrastructure such as irrigation canals to improve the productivity of land and roads. The prosperity in his Empire, in contrast to the Mughal-Sikh wars era, largely came from the improvement in the security situation, reduction in violence, reopened trade routes and greater freedom to conduct commerce.
Muslim accounts
The mid 19th-century Muslim historians, such as Shahamat Ali who experienced the Sikh Empire first hand, presented a different view on Ranjit Singh's Empire and governance. According to Ali, Ranjit Singh's government was despotic, and he was a mean monarch in contrast to the Mughals. The initial momentum for the Empire building in these accounts is stated to be Ranjit Singh led Khalsa army's "insatiable appetite for plunder", their desire for "fresh cities to pillage", and eliminating the Mughal era "revenue intercepting intermediaries between the peasant-cultivator and the treasury".
According to Ishtiaq Ahmed, Ranjit Singh's rule led to further persecution of Muslims in Kashmir, expanding the previously selective persecution of Shia Muslims and Hindus by Afghan Sunni Muslim rulers between 1752 and 1819 before Kashmir became part of his Sikh Empire. Bikramjit Hasrat describes Ranjit Singh as a "benevolent despot".
The Muslim accounts of Ranjit Singh's rule were questioned by Sikh historians of the same era. For example, Ratan Singh Bhangu in 1841 wrote that these accounts were not accurate, and according to Anne Murphy, he remarked, "when would a Musalman praise the Sikhs?" In contrast, the colonial era British military officer Hugh Pearse in 1898 criticised Ranjit Singh's rule, as one founded on "violence, treachery and blood". Sohan Seetal disagrees with this account and states that Ranjit Singh had encouraged his army to respond with a "tit for tat
Tit for tat is an English saying meaning "equivalent retaliation". It is an alternation of '' tip for tap'' "blow for blow", first recorded in 1558.
It is also a highly effective strategy in game theory. An agent using this strategy will fi ...
" against the enemy, violence for violence, blood for blood, plunder for plunder.
Decline
Singh made his empire and the Sikhs a strong political force, for which he is deeply admired and revered in Sikhism. After his death, the empire failed to establish a lasting structure for Sikh government or stable succession, and the Sikh Empire began to decline. The British and Sikh Empire fought two Anglo-Sikh wars Anglo-Sikh War may refer to:
* First Anglo-Sikh war, 1845–1846
* Second Anglo-Sikh war
The Second Anglo-Sikh War was a military conflict between the Sikh Empire and the East India Company which took place from 1848 to 1849. It resulted i ...
with the second
The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of U ...
ending the reign of the Sikh Empire. Sikhism itself did not decline.
Clive Dewey has argued that the decline of the empire after Singh's death owes much to the jagir
A jagir (), ( Hindustani: जागीर/جاگیر, ''Jāgīr''), ( Marathi: जहागीर, ''Jahāgīrá'') also spelled as jageer, was a type of feudal land grant in the Indian subcontinent at the foundation of its Jagirdar ( Zamindar ...
-based economic and taxation system which he inherited from the Mughals and retained. After his death, a fight to control the tax spoils emerged, leading to a power struggle among the nobles and his family from different wives. This struggle ended with a rapid series of palace coups and assassinations of his descendants, and eventually the annexation of the Sikh Empire by the British.
Personal life
Wives
In 1789, Ranjit Singh married his first wife Mehtab Kaur
Maharani Mehtab Kaur ( 1782 – 1813) was the first wife of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the founder of the Sikh Empire. She was the mother of Maharaja Sher Singh, who briefly became the ruler of the Sikh Empire from 1841 until his death in 1843. ...
, the muklawa happened in 1796. She was the only daughter of Gurbaksh Singh Kanhaiya
Gurbaksh Singh Kanhaiya () was the eldest son and heir of Jai Singh Kanhaiya, the chief of the Kanhaiya Misl. He was the father of Maharani Mehtab Kaur and thus, the father-in-law of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the founder of the Sikh Empire.
Early l ...
and his wife Sada Kaur
Rani Sada Kaur (Punjabi language, Punjabi: ਸਦਾ ਕੌਰ; 1762 – 1832) was a Sikhs, Sikh leader. She served as the Chief of the Kanhaiya Misl from 1789 to 1821, following the death of her husband Gurbaksh Singh Kanhaiya, the heir to Jai ...
. She was the granddaughter of Jai Singh Kanhaiya
Jai Singh Kanhaiya (1712–1793) was the founder and, until his death, leader of the Kanhaiya Misl in Punjab. His daughter-in-law, Sada Kaur succeeded him as the ''misl'' leader.
Early life
Jai Singh was born in a Jat family of the village Kah ...
, the founder of the Kanhaiya Misl
The Kanhaiya Misl was one of the twelve misls of the Sikh Confederacy. It had been founded by Sandhu Jats.
History
Jai Singh Sandhu (son of Khushal Singh) of the village Kanha (district Lahore) was the founder of this ''Misl''; hence th ...
.[ This marriage was pre-arranged in an attempt to reconcile warring Sikh ''misls'', Mehtab Kaur was betrothed to Ranjit Singh in 1786. The marriage, however, failed, with Mehtab Kaur never forgiving the fact that her father had been killed in battle with Ranjit Singh's father, and she mainly resided with her mother after marriage. The separation became complete when Ranjit Singh married ]Datar Kaur
Maharani Datar Kaur (born Bibi Raj Kaur Nakai; (c. 1784– 20 June 1838) was the queen consort of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the founder of the Sikh Empire and the mother of his successor, Maharaja Kharak Singh. She was the daughter of Sardar Ran ...
of the Nakai Misl
The Nakai Misl ( (Gurmukhi), (Shahmukhi)), founded by Sandhu Jat people, Jats, was one of the twelve Sikh Confederacy, Sikh Misls (groupings with their distinct guerrilla militia) that later became part of the Sikh Empire. It held territory bet ...
in 1797 and she turned into Ranjit's most beloved wife. Mehtab Kaur had three sons, Ishar Singh
Sardar Bahadur Ishar Singh VC, OBI (30 December 1895 – 2 December 1963) was a soldier in the British Indian Army and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British ...
who was born in 1804 and died in infancy. In 1807 she had Sher Singh
Sher Singh (4 December 1807 – 15 September 1843) was the fourth Maharaja of the Sikh Empire. He was elder of the twins of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, founder of the Sikh Empire and Maharani Mehtab Kaur. His reign began on 18 January 1840 followi ...
and Tara Singh. According to historian Jean-Marie Lafont, she was the only one to bear the title of Maharani
Maharaja (also spelled Maharajah or Maharaj; ; feminine: Maharani) is a royal title in Indian subcontinent of Sanskrit origin. In modern India and medieval northern India, the title was equivalent to a prince. However, in late ancient India ...
. She died in 1813, after suffering from failing health.
His second marriage was to, Datar Kaur
Maharani Datar Kaur (born Bibi Raj Kaur Nakai; (c. 1784– 20 June 1838) was the queen consort of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the founder of the Sikh Empire and the mother of his successor, Maharaja Kharak Singh. She was the daughter of Sardar Ran ...
(Born ''Raj Kaur'') the youngest child and only daughter of Ran Singh Nakai
Sardar Ran Singh Nakai (1750- 1784) was the third chief of the Nakai Misl, one of the Sikh groupings and guerilla militia that later became part of the Sikh Empire. He was born to the Sandhu family of Jats, Jat Sikhs. He was in campaigns with ...
, the third ruler of the Nakai Misl
The Nakai Misl ( (Gurmukhi), (Shahmukhi)), founded by Sandhu Jat people, Jats, was one of the twelve Sikh Confederacy, Sikh Misls (groupings with their distinct guerrilla militia) that later became part of the Sikh Empire. It held territory bet ...
and his wife Karman Kaur. They were betrothed in childhood by Datar Kaur's eldest brother, ''Sardar Bhagwan Singh,'' who briefly became the chief of the Nakai Misl, and Ranjit Singh's father Maha Singh. They were married in 1797; this marriage was a happy one and Ranjit Singh always treated Raj Kaur with love and respect. Since Raj Kaur was also the name of Ranjit Singh's mother, his wife was renamed Datar Kaur. In 1801, she gave birth to their son and heir apparent, Kharak Singh
Kharak Singh (22 February 1801 – 5 November 1840) was the second maharaja of the Sikh Empire, ruling from June 1839 until his dethronement and imprisonment in October 1839. He was the eldest son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, founder of the Sikh ...
. Datar Kaur bore Ranjit Singh two other sons, Rattan Singh and Fateh Singh. Like his first marriage, the second marriage also brought him a strategic military alliance. Along with wisdom and all the chaste virtues of a noblewoman, Datar Kaur was exceptionally intelligent and assisted Ranjit Singh in affairs of the State. During the expedition to Multan in 1818, she was given command alongside her son, Kharak Singh
Kharak Singh (22 February 1801 – 5 November 1840) was the second maharaja of the Sikh Empire, ruling from June 1839 until his dethronement and imprisonment in October 1839. He was the eldest son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, founder of the Sikh ...
. Throughout his life she remained Ranjit Singh's favorite and for no other did he have greater respect for than Datar Kaur, who he affectionately called ''Mai Nakain.''
Even though she was his second wife she became his principal wife and chief consort. During a hunting trip with Ranjit Singh, she fell ill and died on 20 June 1838.
Ratan Kaur and Daya Kaur were wives of Sahib Singh Bhangi of Gujrat (a ''misl'' north of Lahore, not to be confused with the state of Gujarat). After Sahib Singh's death, Ranjit Singh took them under his protection in 1811 by marrying them via the rite of ''chādar andāzī'', in which a cloth sheet was unfurled over each of their heads. The same with Roop Kaur, Gulab Kaur, Saman Kaur, and Lakshmi Kaur who looked after Duleep Singh when his mother Jind Kaur was exiled. Ratan Kaur had a son Multana Singh in 1819, and Daya Kaur had two sons Kashmira Singh and Pashaura Singh
Kunwar Pashaura Singh
(1821 – 11 September 1845), also spelt Peshawara Singh, sometimes styled as ''Shahzada'', was the younger son of Ranjit Singh, Maharaja Ranjit Singh and Rani Daya Kaur.
Maharaja Ranjit Singh named Pashaura as he had re ...
in 1821.
Jind Kaur
Maharani Jind Kaur ( – 1 August 1863) was regent of the Sikh Empire from 1843 until 29 March 1847. After the Sikh Empire was dissolved on 29 March 1847, the Sikhs claimed her as the Maharani and successor of Maharaja Duleep Singh. However, o ...
, the final spouse of Ranjit Singh. Her father, Manna Singh Aulakh, extolled her virtues to Ranjit Singh, who was concerned about the frail health of his only heir
Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Offi ...
Kharak Singh. The Maharaja married her in 1835 by 'sending his arrow and sword to her village'. On 6 September 1838 she gave birth to Duleep Singh
Maharaja Sir Duleep Singh (6 September 1838 – 22 October 1893), also spelled Dalip Singh, and later in life nicknamed the "Black Prince of Perthshire", was the last ''Maharaja'' of the Sikh Empire. He was Maharaja Ranjit Singh's youngest son ...
, who became the last Maharaja 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 ...
.
His other wives included, Mehtab Devi of Kangara also called Guddan or Katochan and Raj Banso, daughters of Raja Sansar Chand of Kangra.
He was also married to Rani Har Devi of Atalgarh, Rani Aso Sircar and Rani Jag Deo According to the diaries, that Duleep Singh
Maharaja Sir Duleep Singh (6 September 1838 – 22 October 1893), also spelled Dalip Singh, and later in life nicknamed the "Black Prince of Perthshire", was the last ''Maharaja'' of the Sikh Empire. He was Maharaja Ranjit Singh's youngest son ...
kept towards the end of his life, these women presented the Maharaja with four daughters. Dr. Priya Atwal notes that the daughters could be adopted. Ranjit Singh was also married to Jind Bani or Jind Kulan, daughter of Muhammad Pathan from Mankera and Gul Bano, daughter of Malik Akhtar from Amritsar.
Ranjit Singh married many times, in various ceremonies, and had twenty wives. Sir Lepel Griffin, however, provides a list of just sixteen wives and their pension list. Most of his marriages were performed through chādar andāz. Some scholars note that the information on Ranjit Singh's marriages is unclear, and there is evidence that he had many concubines. Dr. Priya Atwal presents an official list of Ranjit Singh's thirty wives. The women married through chādar andāzī were noted as concubines and were known as the lesser title of Rani
''Rani'' () is a female title, equivalent to queen, for royal or princely rulers in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. It translates to 'queen' in English. It is also a Sanskrit Hindu feminine given name. The term applies equally to a ...
(queen). While Mehtab Kaur and Datar Kaur officially bore the title of Maharani
Maharaja (also spelled Maharajah or Maharaj; ; feminine: Maharani) is a royal title in Indian subcontinent of Sanskrit origin. In modern India and medieval northern India, the title was equivalent to a prince. However, in late ancient India ...
(high queen), Datar Kaur officially became the Maharani after the death of Mehtab Kaur in 1813. Throughout her life was referred to as Sarkar Rani. After her death, the title was held by Ranjit's youngest widow Jind Kaur. According to Khushwant Singh in an 1889 interview with the French journal '' Le Voltaire'', his son Dalip (Duleep) Singh remarked, "I am the son of one of my father's forty-six wives." Dr. Priya Atwal notes that Ranjit Singh and his heirs entered a total of 46 marriages. But Ranjit Singh was known not to be a "rash sensualist" and commanded unusual respect in the eyes of others. Faqir Sayyid Vaḥiduddin states: "If there was one thing in which Ranjit Singh failed to excel or even equal the average monarch of oriental history, it was the size of his harem." George Keene noted, "In hundreds and in thousands the orderly crowds stream on. Not a bough is broken off a wayside tree, not a rude remark to a woman".
Issues
Issues of Ranjit Singh
* Kharak Singh
Kharak Singh (22 February 1801 – 5 November 1840) was the second maharaja of the Sikh Empire, ruling from June 1839 until his dethronement and imprisonment in October 1839. He was the eldest son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, founder of the Sikh ...
(22 February 1801 – 5 November 1840) was the eldest and the favorite of Ranjit Singh from his second wife, Datar Kaur. He succeeded his father as the 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 ...
.
* Ishar Singh
Sardar Bahadur Ishar Singh VC, OBI (30 December 1895 – 2 December 1963) was a soldier in the British Indian Army and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British ...
(1804-1805) son of his first wife, Mehtab Kaur. This prince died in infancy.
* Rattan Singh (1805–1845) was born to Maharani Datar Kaur. He was granted the Jagatpur Bajaj estate as his jagir.
* Fateh Singh (1806-1811) was born to Maharani Datar Kaur.
* Sher Singh
Sher Singh (4 December 1807 – 15 September 1843) was the fourth Maharaja of the Sikh Empire. He was elder of the twins of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, founder of the Sikh Empire and Maharani Mehtab Kaur. His reign began on 18 January 1840 followi ...
(4 December 1807 – 15 September 1843) was the elder of the twins of Mehtab Kaur. He briefly became the Maharaja of the Sikh Empire.
* Tara Singh (4 December 1807 – 1859) younger of the twins born of Mehtab Kaur.
* Multana Singh (1819–1846) son of Ratan Kaur.
* Kashmira Singh (1821–1844) son of Daya Kaur.
* Pashaura Singh
Kunwar Pashaura Singh
(1821 – 11 September 1845), also spelt Peshawara Singh, sometimes styled as ''Shahzada'', was the younger son of Ranjit Singh, Maharaja Ranjit Singh and Rani Daya Kaur.
Maharaja Ranjit Singh named Pashaura as he had re ...
(1821–1845) younger son of Daya Kaur.
* Duleep Singh
Maharaja Sir Duleep Singh (6 September 1838 – 22 October 1893), also spelled Dalip Singh, and later in life nicknamed the "Black Prince of Perthshire", was the last ''Maharaja'' of the Sikh Empire. He was Maharaja Ranjit Singh's youngest son ...
(4 September 1838 – 22 October 1893), the last ''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 ...
. Ranji Singh's youngest son, the only child of Jind Kaur.
According to the pedigree table and Duleep Singh
Maharaja Sir Duleep Singh (6 September 1838 – 22 October 1893), also spelled Dalip Singh, and later in life nicknamed the "Black Prince of Perthshire", was the last ''Maharaja'' of the Sikh Empire. He was Maharaja Ranjit Singh's youngest son ...
's diaries that he kept towards the end of his life another son Fateh Singh was born to Mai Nakain, who died in infancy. According to Henry Edward only Datar Kaur and Jind Kaur's sons are Ranjit Singh's biological sons.
It is said that Ishar Singh
Sardar Bahadur Ishar Singh VC, OBI (30 December 1895 – 2 December 1963) was a soldier in the British Indian Army and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British ...
was not the biological son of Mehtab Kaur and Ranjit Singh, but only procured by Mehtab Kaur and presented to Ranjit Singh who accepted him as his son. Tara Singh and Sher Singh
Sher Singh (4 December 1807 – 15 September 1843) was the fourth Maharaja of the Sikh Empire. He was elder of the twins of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, founder of the Sikh Empire and Maharani Mehtab Kaur. His reign began on 18 January 1840 followi ...
had similar rumours, it is said that Sher Singh was the son of a chintz weaver, Nahala and Tara Singh was the son of Manki, a servant in the household of Sada Kaur
Rani Sada Kaur (Punjabi language, Punjabi: ਸਦਾ ਕੌਰ; 1762 – 1832) was a Sikhs, Sikh leader. She served as the Chief of the Kanhaiya Misl from 1789 to 1821, following the death of her husband Gurbaksh Singh Kanhaiya, the heir to Jai ...
. Henry Edward Fane, the nephew and aide-de-camp to the Commander-in-Chief, India, General Sir Henry Fane, who spent several days in Ranjit Singh's company, reported, "Though reported to be the Maharaja's son, Sher Singh's father has never thoroughly acknowledged him, though his mother always insisted on his being so. A brother of Sher, Tara Singh by the same mother, has been even worse treated than himself, not being permitted to appear at court, and no office given him, either of profit or honour." ''Five Years in India'', Volume 1, Henry Edward Fane, London, 1842
Multana Singh, Kashmira Singh and Pashaura Singh
Kunwar Pashaura Singh
(1821 – 11 September 1845), also spelt Peshawara Singh, sometimes styled as ''Shahzada'', was the younger son of Ranjit Singh, Maharaja Ranjit Singh and Rani Daya Kaur.
Maharaja Ranjit Singh named Pashaura as he had re ...
were sons of the two widows of Sahib Singh, Daya Kaur and Ratan Kaur, whom Ranjit Singh took under his protection and married. These sons, are said to be, not biologically born to the queens and only procured and later presented to and accepted by Ranjit Singh as his sons.
Punishment by the Akal Takht
In 1802, Ranjit Singh married Moran Sarkar
Moran Sarkar (–1862) was an Indian queen, the wife of Maharaja Ranjit Singh of the Sikh Empire. She was a nautch
The nautch (, meaning "dance" or "dancing" from Hindustani: "naach")Scott A. Kugle, 2016When Sun Meets Moon: Gender, Eros, a ...
, a Muslim nautch girl. This action, and other non-Sikh
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 ''Si ...
activities of the Maharaja, upset orthodox Sikhs, including the Nihang
The Nihang (also spelt as Nihung lit. "Crocodiles") or Akali (lit. "Immortals"), also known as '' Dal Khalsa'', is an armed Sikh warrior order originating in the Indian subcontinent. Nihangs are believed to have originated either from Fateh Sin ...
s, whose leader Akali Phula Singh
Akali Phula Singh Nihang (born Phula Singh; 1 January 1761 – 14 March 1823) was an Akali Nihang Sikh leader. He was a saint soldier of the Khalsa Shaheedan Misl and head of the Budha Dal in the early 19th century. He was also a senior gener ...
was the Jathedar
A jathedar () is a leader of high regard chosen to head and ensure discipline within a jatha, a troop of Sikhs. In modern-times, the term is used to in-reference to leaders of Sikh spiritual organizations, such as any of the Panj Takhts.
Hist ...
of the Akal Takht
The Akal Takht (; ), also spelt as Akal Takhat and historically known as Akal Bunga, is the most prominent of the Takht (Sikhism), five takhts (Seat (legal entity), seats of authority) of the Sikhs. Located within the Golden Temple, Darbar Sah ...
. When Ranjit Singh visited Amritsar
Amritsar, also known as Ambarsar, is the second-List of cities in Punjab, India by population, largest city in the India, Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab, after Ludhiana. Located in the Majha region, it is a major cultural, transportatio ...
, he was called outside the Akal Takht, where he was made to apologise for his mistakes. Akali Phula Singh took Ranjit Singh to a tamarind tree in front of the Akal Takht and prepared to punish him by flogging him. Then Akali Phula Singh asked the nearby Sikh pilgrims whether they approved of Ranjit Singh's apology. The pilgrims responded with ''Sat Sri Akal
Sat Śri Akāl (Gurmukhi: ਸਤਿ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਅਕਾਲ, ) is a ''jaikara'' (lit. "Call of Victory") now used, often, as a greeting by Sikhs. It is the second half of the Sikh clarion call, given by the tenth Sikh guru, Guru Gobind Singh. Th ...
'' and Ranjit Singh was released and forgiven. An alternative holds that Ranjit went to visit Moran on his arrival in Amritsar
Amritsar, also known as Ambarsar, is the second-List of cities in Punjab, India by population, largest city in the India, Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab, after Ludhiana. Located in the Majha region, it is a major cultural, transportatio ...
before paying his respects at Harmandir Sahib Gurdwara, which upset orthodox Sikhs and hence was punished by Akali Phula Singh. Iqbal Qaiser and Manveen Sandhu make alternative accounts of the relationship between Moran and the Maharaja; the former states they never married, while the latter states that they married. Court chronicler, Sohan Lal Suri makes no mention of Moran's marriage to the Maharaja or coins being struck in her name. Bibi Moran spent the rest of life in Pathankot. Duleep Singh makes a list of his father's queens which also does not mention Bibi Moran.
Death and legacy
Death
In the 1830s, Ranjit Singh suffered from numerous health complications as well as a stroke, which some historical records attribute to alcoholism and a failing liver. According to the chronicles of Ranjit Singh's court historians and the Europeans who visited him, Ranjit Singh took to alcohol and opium
Opium (also known as poppy tears, or Lachryma papaveris) is the dried latex obtained from the seed Capsule (fruit), capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid mor ...
, habits that intensified in the later decades of his life. He died in his sleep on 27 June 1839. According to William Dalrymple, Ranjit Singh had been washed with water from the Ganges, paid homage to the Guru Granth Sahib, and was fixated on an image of Vishnu and Lakshmi just before his death.
Four of his Hindu wives- Mehtab Devi (Guddan Sahiba), daughter of Raja Sansar Chand, Rani Har Devi, the daughter of Chaudhri Ram, a Saleria Rajput, Rani Raj Devi, daughter of Padma Rajput and Rani Rajno Kanwar, daughter of Sand Bhari along with seven Hindu concubines with royal titles committed sati
Sati or SATI may refer to:
Entertainment
* ''Sati'' (film), a 1989 Bengali film by Aparna Sen and starring Shabana Azmi
* ''Sati'' (novel), a 1990 novel by Christopher Pike
*Sati (singer) (born 1976), Lithuanian singer
*Sati, a character in ''Th ...
by voluntarily placing themselves onto his funeral pyre as an act of devotion.
Singh is remembered for uniting Sikhs and founding the prosperous Sikh Empire. He is also remembered for his conquests and building a well-trained, self-sufficient Khalsa army to protect the empire. He amassed considerable wealth, including gaining the possession of the Koh-i-Noor
The ; ), also spelled Koh-e-Noor, Kohinoor and Koh-i-Nur, is one of the largest cut diamonds in the world, weighing . It is currently set in the Crown of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother.
The diamond originated in the Kollur mine in present ...
diamond from Shuja Shah Durrani
Shuja (, , ) is a surname and male given name.
Notable people with this name include:
* Shuja al-Khwarazmi, was the mother of Abbasid caliph Al-Mutawakkil
Ja'far ibn al-Mu'tasim, Muḥammad ibn Harun al-Rashid, Hārūn al-Mutawakkil ʿalā ...
of Afghanistan, which he left to Jagannath Temple
The Jagannath Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to the god Jagannath, a form of Vishnu in Hinduism. It is located in Puri in the state of Odisha, situated on the eastern coast of India. As per temple records, King Indradyumna of Avanti (reg ...
in Puri
Puri, also known as Jagannath Puri, () is a coastal city and a Nagar Palika, municipality in the state of Odisha in eastern India. It is the district headquarters of Puri district and is situated on the Bay of Bengal, south of the state ca ...
, Odisha
Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...
in 1839.[''The Real Ranjit Singh''; by Fakir Syed Waheeduddin, published by Punjabi University, , 2001, 2nd ed.]
Gurdwaras
Perhaps Singh's most lasting legacy was the restoration and expansion of the Harmandir Sahib, the most revered Gurudwara of the Sikhs, which is now known popularly as the "Golden Temple". Much of the present decoration at the Harmandir Sahib, in the form of gilding and marblework, was introduced under the patronage of Singh, who also sponsored protective walls and a water supply system to strengthen security and operations related to the temple. He also directed the construction of two of the most sacred Sikh temples, being the birthplace and place of assassination of Guru Gobind Singh – Takht Sri Patna Sahib
Takht Sri Patna Sahib also known as Takhat Sri Harimandir Ji, Patna Sahib, is one of the five takhts of the Sikhs, located in Patna, Bihar, India.
History
Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh Guru, was born in Patna, Mughal Empire on 22 Decemb ...
and Takht Sri Hazur Sahib, respectively – whom he much admired. The nine-storey tower of Gurdwara Baba Atal
Gurdwārā Bābā Aṭṭal Rāi (Punjabi language, Punjabi pronunciation: Help:IPA/Punjabi, �ʊɾᵊd̪ʊäːɾäː bäbːäː əʈəllːə̆ is a famous Gurdwara in Amritsar dedicated to Atal Rai, a son of Guru Hargobind and Mata Nanaki. ...
was constructed during his reign.
Memorials and museums
*Samadhi of Ranjit Singh
The Samadhi of Ranjit Singh is a 19th-century building in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan that houses the funerary urns of the former Maharaja of Punjab Ranjit Singh. It is located within the Walled City, adjacent to the Lahore Fort, Badshahi Mos ...
in 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 ...
, Pakistan, marks the place where Singh was cremated, and four of his queens and seven concubines committed sati.
*On 20 August 2003, a 22-foot-tall bronze statue of Singh was installed in the Parliament of India
The Parliament of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the supreme legislative body of the Government of India, Government of the Republic of India. It is a bicameralism, bicameral legislature composed of the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok ...
.
*A museum at Ram Bagh Palace
Ram Bagh is a garden built during the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh in Amritsar, Punjab, India. Ram Bagh palace also known as Ram Bagh Mahal, is a palace situated in the centre of this garden, which was used as the summer residence of Ranjit ...
in Amritsar contains objects related to Singh, including arms and armour, paintings, coins, manuscripts, and jewellery. Singh had spent much time at the palace in which it is situated, where a garden was laid out in 1818.
*On 27 June 2019, a nine-foot bronze statue of Singh was unveiled at the Haveli Maharani Jindan, Lahore Fort
The Lahore Fort (; ; ) is a citadel in the walled interior of Lahore in Punjab, Pakistan. The fortress is located at the northern end of the Walled City and spreads over an area greater than . It contains 21 notable monuments, some of which ...
at his 180th death anniversary. It has been vandalised several times since, specifically by members of the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan
Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (; TLP), also known as Tehreek Labbaik Ya Rasool Allah is a far-right Islamist populist political party in Pakistan. The party was founded by Khadim Hussain Rizvi in August 2015, who also became it’s first A ...
.
Exhibitions
* ''Ranjit Singh: Sikh, Warrior, King'' (The Wallace Collection
The Wallace Collection is a museum in London occupying Hertford House in Manchester Square, the former townhouse of the Seymour family, Marquesses of Hertford. It is named after Sir Richard Wallace, who built the extensive collection, along wi ...
, London; 10 April–20 October 2024) – co-curated by the Wallace Collection's director, Xavier Bray, and scholar of Sikh art, Davinder Singh Toor.
Crafts
In 1783, Ranjit Singh established a crafts colony of Thatheras near Amritsar
Amritsar, also known as Ambarsar, is the second-List of cities in Punjab, India by population, largest city in the India, Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab, after Ludhiana. Located in the Majha region, it is a major cultural, transportatio ...
and encouraged skilled metal crafters from Kashmir
Kashmir ( or ) is the Northwestern Indian subcontinent, northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term ''Kashmir'' denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir P ...
to settle in Jandiala Guru
Jandiala Guru, commonly known as Jandiala, is a town in the Amritsar district of Punjab, India. It is located on the Grand Trunk Road, and has an altitude of 229 m (754 ft).
History
Jandiala Guru is named after Jand, the son of the f ...
. In the year 2014, this traditional craft of making brass and copper products was enlisted on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
. The Government of Punjab is now working under Project Virasat to revive this craft.
Recognition
In 2020, Ranjit Singh was named as "Greatest Leader of All Time" in a poll conducted by 'BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
World Histories Magazine'.
In popular culture
* ''Maharaja Ranjit Singh'', a documentary film
A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...
directed by Prem Prakash covers his rise to power and his reign. It was produced by the Government of India
The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...
's Films Division
The Films Division of India (FDI), commonly referred as Films Division, was established in 1948 following the independence of India. It was the first state film production and distribution unit, under the Ministry of Information and Broadcastin ...
.
*In 2010, a TV series titled ''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 ...
'' aired on DD National
DD National (formerly DD1) is an Indian state-owned entertainment television channel, founded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. It is the flagshi ...
based on his life which was produced by Raj Babbar
Raj Babbar (born 23 June 1952) is an Indian Hindi and Punjabi language, Punjabi film actor and politician belonging to Indian National Congress. He is a three-time member of the Lok Sabha and a two-time member of the Rajya Sabha. He was the sta ...
's Babbar Films Private Limited. He was portrayed by Ejlal Ali Khan
*''Maharaja: The Story of Ranjit Singh'' (2010) is an Indian Punjabi
Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan
* Punjabi language
* Punjabis, Punjabi people
* Punjabi dialects and languages
Punjabi may also refer to:
* Punjabi (horse), a ...
-language animated film directed by Amarjit Virdi.
* A teenage Ranjit was portrayed by Damanpreet Singh in the 2017 TV series titled '' Sher-e-Punjab: Maharaja Ranjit Singh''. It aired on Life OK
Life OK was an Indian pay television channel owned by Star India.
It was launched on 18 December 2011 replacing Star One.
It also started airing in the United States on 1 March 2012, and in the United Kingdom and Ireland on 28 May of that s ...
produced by Contiloe Entertainment
Contiloe Pictures Pvt Ltd., formerly known as Contiloe Films from 1995 until 2008 and Contiloe Entertainment from 2008 until 2015 is an Indian production company. It was founded by Abhimanyu Singh and Aditya Narain Singh in 1995. It has produc ...
.
See also
* Baradari of Ranjit Singh
* History of Punjab
The History of Punjab is the history of the Punjab region which is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in the northwest of South Asia, comprising the Punjab province in Pakistan and the Punjab state in India. It is believed that t ...
* Charat Singh
Sardar Charat Singh (1721–1770 or 1733–1774), also romanised as Charhat Singh, was the founder of Sukerchakia Misl, father of Mahan Singh, and the grandfather of Ranjit Singh, the first Maharaja of the Sikh Empire. He distinguished hims ...
* Hari Singh Nalwa
Hari Singh Nalwa (29 April 1791 – 30 April 1837) was the commander-in-chief of the Sikh Khalsa Army, Sikh Khalsa Fauj, the army of the Sikh Empire. He is known for his role in the conquests of Kasur, Sialkot, Attock, Multan, Kashmir, Peshaw ...
* List of generals of Ranjit Singh
This article presents a list of pre-colonial Sikh generals throughout history from the Akal Sena to the Sikh Khalsa Army.
Akal Sena
This is a list of generals from the period of the Akal Sena.
Guru Hargobind's generals
* Baba Gurditta
* ...
* Koh-i-Noor
The ; ), also spelled Koh-e-Noor, Kohinoor and Koh-i-Nur, is one of the largest cut diamonds in the world, weighing . It is currently set in the Crown of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother.
The diamond originated in the Kollur mine in present ...
* Battle of Balakot
The Battle of Balakot was fought between the forces of Maharaja Ranjit Singh and Syed Ahmad Barelvi in Balakot on 6 May 1831. Barelvi had declared ''jihad'' against the Sikhs and established a camp in Balakot along with Shah Ismail Dehlvi and hi ...
[Profile of Dehlvi on books.google.com website]
Retrieved 16 August 2018
Notes
References
Bibliography
*
*
*Lafont, Jean-Marie ''Maharaja Ranjit Singh, Lord of the Five Rivers''. Oxford: Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...
, 2002
*
*Sandhawalia, Preminder Singh ''Noblemen and Kinsmen: history of a Sikh family''. New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal, 1999
*Waheeduddin, Fakir Syed ''The Real Ranjit Singh''; 2nd ed. Patiala: Punjabi University, 1981 (First ed. published 1965 Pakistan).
*
Further reading
*''Umdat Ut Tawarikh by Sohan Lal Suri
Sohan Lal Suri (died 1852) was a Punjabi historiographer, who specialized in the period of the Sikh Empire. Sohan was the son of Lala Ganpat Rai, the ''waqai navis'' or court chronicler of the Sukerchakia Misl and later Sikh Empire. Sohan Lal i ...
'', Published by Guru Nanak Dev University Amritsar .
* ''The Real Ranjit Singh'' by Fakir Syed Waheeduddin, published by Punjabi University, , 2001, 2nd ed. First ed. published 1965 Pakistan.
* ''Maharaja Ranjit Singh: First Death Centenary Memorial'', by St. Nihal Singh. Published by Languages Dept., Punjab, 1970.
* ''Maharaja Ranjit Singh and his times'', by J. S. Grewal, Indu Banga. Published by Dept. of History, Guru Nanak Dev University, 1980.
* ''Maharaja Ranjit Singh'', by Harbans Singh. Published by Sterling, 1980.
* ''Maharaja Ranjit Singh'', by K. K. Khullar. Published by Hem Publishers, 1980.
* ''The reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh: structure of power, economy and society'', by J. S. Grewal. Published by Punjab Historical Studies Dept., Punjabi University, 1981.
* ''Maharaja Ranjit Singh, as patron of the arts'', by Mulk Raj Anand. Published by Marg Publications, 1981. .
* ''Maharaja Ranjit Singh: Politics, Society, and Economy'', by Fauja Singh, A. C. Arora. Published by Publication Bureau, Punjabi University, 1984. .
* ''Maharaja Ranjit Singh and his Times'', by Bhagat Singh. Published by Sehgal Publishers Service, 1990. .
* ''History of the Punjab: Maharaja Ranjit Singh'', by Shri Ram Bakshi. Published by Anmol Publications, 1991. .
* ''The Historical Study of Maharaja Ranjit Singh's Times'', by Kirpal Singh. Published by National Book Shop, 1994. .
* ''An Eyewitness account of the fall of Sikh empire: memories of Alexander Gardner'', by Alexander Haughton Campbell Gardner, Baldev Singh Baddan, Hugh Wodehouse Pearse. Published by National Book Shop, 1999. .
* ''Maharaja Ranjit Singh: The Last to Lay Arms'', by Kartar Singh Duggal. Published by Abhinav Publications, 2001. .
* ''Fauj-i-khas Maharaja Ranjit Singh and His French Officers'', by Jean Marie Lafont. Published by Guru Nanak Dev University, 2002. .
* ''Maharaja Ranjit Singh'', by Mohinder Singh, Rishi Singh, Sondeep Shankar, National Institute of Panjab Studies (India). Published by UBS Publishers' Distributors with National Institute of Panjab Studies, 2002. ,.
* ''Maharaja Ranjit Singh: Lord of the Five Rivers'', by Jean Marie Lafont. Published by Oxford University Press, 2002. .
* ''The Last Sunset: The Rise and Fall of the Lahore Durbar'', by Amarinder Singh. Published by Roli Books, 2010.
* ''Glory of Sikhism'', by R. M. Chopra, Sanbun Publishers, 2001. Chapter on "Sher-e-Punjab Maharaja Ranjit Singh".
* ''Ranjit Singh, Maharajah of the Punjab'', by Khushwant Singh Published by Penguin, 2001. .
* ''Ranjit Singh – Monarch Mystique'', by Vanit Nalwa. Publishedc by Hari Singh Nalwa Foundation Trust, 2022. .
External links
*
*
Detailed article on Ranjit Singh's Army
* , painted by W Harvey and engraved by G Presbury for Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, 1838, with a poetical illustration by Letitia Elizabeth Landon
Letitia Elizabeth Landon (14 August 1802 – 15 October 1838) was an English poet and novelist, better known by her initials L.E.L.
Landon's writings are emblematic of the transition from Romanticism to Victorian literature. Her first major b ...
.
;Biographies
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Ranjit
Misl leaders
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 ...
People from Gujranwala
1780 births
1839 deaths
Alcohol-related deaths in India
Indian warriors
People from Lahore