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Ranjit
Singh, the Lion (shere) of the Punjab, is sometimes compared to the Mughal
Emperor Akbar (1542-1607). Both succeeded their fathers at the age of
twelve, both had long and prosperous reigns, considerably extended their
empires and both married women from other religions in addition to their
own in what appears to be a genuine effort to be non-sectarian. Both had
little of no formal education but possessed an insatiable curiosity which
left the people they quizzed exhausted. Both were succeeded by children
not quite as worthy as their illustrious fathers. In the annals of Indian
history they rank as tow of its most charismatic and likeable rulers. |
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Ranjit
Singh was scarred by small pox which also blinded one eye and effected
the movement on an arm and a leg, he was, particularly for a Sikh, of
small and insignificant stature. But on horseback he truly came to life
and rode, as he ruled, with grace and ease. His courtesy was laced with
robust Punjabi good humour and more the Akbar, he had the common touch. |
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| Rani
and children of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. |
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Maharani
Jindan, Ranjit Singh's favourite wife who played a pivitol role
after his passing. |
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As
a devout Sikh, Ranjit Singh saw his power as deriving from the Panth Khalsa
. He did not wear the emblem of royalty on his turban, he never sat on
his throne and when new coins were struck, they were in the name of Guru
Nanak Dev ji and not himself. Yet he was a passionate secularist and when
a courtier commented on this he reported to have said “God wanted
me to look upon all religions with one eye, that is why he took away the
light from the other.” |
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| Maharaja Ranjit
singh with physicians |
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Mughal style
painting of Maharaja Ranjit Singh |
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He was also politically
astute and managed to extend his kingdom as far north as Ladakh over
Kashmir's Himalayan ranges. Though guardedly friendly with the British
he had no illusions about their expansionist intentions and being the
shrewd soldier that he was, never attempted to invade states south of
the Sutlej river which was under British rule.
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Two years
before Ranjit Singh was anointed as Maharaja in 1801, Tipu Sultan,
the ruler of Mysore in South India and an unrelenting foe of
the British, had died in battle rather the surrender to them.
This knowledge would have further informed Ranjit Singh’s
mistrustful and cautious policies with the British. The 19th
century was a period of loss for India, to that extent Ranjit
Singh’s achievements were anomalous to what was happening
in the rest of India. As the last truly great Indian king when
all else was in decline, it is not surprising that his rule
arouses nostalgia and is looked upon as a golden age.
Ranjit
Singh was born in Gujranwala on November 2nd 1780. He was the
only son of Raj Kaur and Mahan Singh, the leader of the Sukarchakia
Misl. Hs father died in 1792, when Ranjit Singh was only 12
years old. In 1796, he was married to Sadha Kaurs daughter Mehtab
Kaur. Sadha Kaur was the widow of Gurbaksh Singh, the chief
of the Kanhaiya Misl. After succeeding his father to the leadership
of the Sukarchakia Misl, Ranjit Singh started to revolutionise
the face of the Punjab. He employed American, French and Italian
officers in his army, some of whom had fought in the Napoleonic
wars.
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Ranjit
Singh being shown the map of India by a European.
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Maharani
Jind Kaur was popularly known as Jindan, the wife of Maharaja
Ranjit Singh and mother of Maharaja Duleep Singh, the
last Sikh sovereign of the Punjab. She was daughter of
Manna Singh, an Aulakh Jatt of Gujranwala. The big eyed
queen became regent for her young son Dalip Singh, when
he was made Maharaja after the death of his foster-brother,
Maharaia Sher Singh. Rani Jindan, a woman of beauty, rose
to be a heroine of the Sikh nation.
She resisted the efforts of the British to annex the Punjab
for some time, but when the British did take power she
was removed from the Regency Council, which was to conduct
the administration during the minority of Maharaja Dalip
Singh. The Queen had become a symbol of national dignity.
She continued to urge the freedom fighters back in the
Punjab to continue the struggle dauntlessly. She was known
for her intelligence and intrepid spirit, Jindan was one
of the few persons who was intensely disliked and feared
by the British.
By
the end of her life and expelled to Nepal the once noble
lady became disillusioned, her health shattered she went
to England to stay with her son Maharaj Dalip Singh. Rani
resided in a separate house in England till her death
in 1863. As her last wishes, Dalip Singh brought her body
back for cremation to India, but was disallowed by the
British to perform the last rites in Punjab. He therefore
cremated her body at Nasik and returned to England.
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Maharani Jindan. |
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His
mother-in-law Sadha Kaur was a great influence in his life. Although they
were later estranged, this determined and ambitious woman was one of his
advisors in his younger years. Though his marriage to her daughter he
had allied himself to the influential misl of the Kanhaiyas and was able
to take control of the Punjab and Kashmir in careful but relentless stages.
Kangara and Gular in the Punjab hills and Rawalpindi and Jammu all came
under his control. Even more impressive, he was magnanimous in victory
and his rule was accepted by all people, who were tired of was and ready
for stability. |
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The
splendor of Maharaja Ranjit Singh's court in Lahore, capital of
the Sikh empire. |
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Ranjit
Singh had as his courtiers and advisors Sikhs, Hindus and Muslims. The
Brahmin Dina Nath was his finance minister, and the Muslim Aziz ud din
was a trusted counsellor. The lavish splendor of Ranjit Singh court attracted
a number of western visitors, many of whom wrote extensively of what they
saw. Honigberger, a Hungarian physician said to have introduced homeopathy
to India and Avatible and Hugel were treated with much kindness by Ranjit
Singh. He generally seems to have displayed a warm hospitality to all
curious visitors who flocked to his court, plying them with countless
questions about religion, science and military matters. He had, however,
a good intelligence network which ensured that he and his court were kept
reliably and minutely informed about the visitors activities, lest they
turned out to be spies. |
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Maharaja Ranjit
Singh with his courtiers. |
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Ever
the progressive, Ranjit Singh was keen to have an English school started
in the Punjab and the job was given to the American missionary J C Lowrie,
who was warm in his praise of Amritsar and Darbar Sahib (Golden Temple)
in his book Travels in North India. He liked it to Athens and Jerusalem
in learning and religion and marveled at the richness of the decoration
and architecture of the Gurdwara. |
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Raja Shere
Singh at Lahore. |
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Due to the treacherous
activities of Lal Singh and Tej Singh, when all was lost, this
poignant picture shows the youngest son of Ranjit Singh, Maharaja
Dalip Singh being forced to relinquishing the throne
to the British, never to sit on it again.
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The
samadh (mausoleum) of Maharaja Ranjit Singh Ji. |
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