Jean-Baptiste Ventura
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Jean-Baptiste Ventura | |
---|---|
Duchy of Modena | |
Died | 3 April 1858 Lardenne, France |
Allegiance | |
Rank | Governor of Lahore |
Awards | Legion of Honour |
Spouse(s) | Anna Moses |
Children | Victorine Ventura (daughter) |
Jean-Baptiste (Giovanni Battista) Ventura, born Rubino (25 May 1794 – 3 April 1858), was an Italian soldier,
Early life
Ventura was born in
In 1817, persecuted by the local authorities for his revolutionary ideas and his sympathies for Napoleon, he had to flee from Finale because of an argument between him and a member of the reactionary police of the
, where he was for a time a ship-broker. He changed his name in Jean-Baptiste to hide his Jewish origins.Having learned that
Serving the King of Punjab
He traveled east, ending up in Lahore alongside Jean-François Allard in 1822. They took service with Maharaja Ranjit Singh, King of Punjab, as the Maharaja was encouraging veterans from erstwhile Napoleon's army in his ongoing bid to modernize his Sikh Khalsa Army in European warfare.
In March of the following year both Allard and Ventura commanded the Maharaja's troops in the
Along with Jean-Francois Allard,
Ventura married Anna Moses in
He served faithfully under Ranjit Singh and his successors Kharak Singh, Nau Nihal Singh, and Sher Singh. Upon Maharaja Sher Siṅgh's assassination in September 1843, he left the Punjab.
Later life
In France, he presented King Louis Philippe with a set of ancient Greek coins which he had unearthed. These coins were taken as evidence of Alexander the Great's march through Afghanistan and the Sindh-Punjab region of ancient India.
In his later years he lost a part of his large fortune in unsuccessful commercial enterprises. According to Flaminio Servi, Ventura was baptized toward the end of his life.[2]
He died on 3 April 1858 in Lardenne, near
Awards
He received the French Legion of Honour from the King Louis Philippe I in 1835.
Monuments
A monument donated by the
Notes
- ^ Bansal, Bobby Singh (7 November 2010). "Firangis in Ranjit Singh's Durbar". The Tribune.
- ^ VENTURA, RUBINO on "Jewish Encyclopedia"
Sources
- Balboni, Maria Pia; “Ventura. Dal ghetto del Finale alla corte di Lahore”, Biblioteca Nuova serie, Pagine VIII-212, Aedes Muratoriana, Modena, 1993;
- Balboni, Maria Pia, “Il generale Rubino Ventura. La straordinaria vita di un ebreo del Finale al servizio del maharaja Ranjit Singh”, Baraldini editore, Finale Emilia, 2019;
- Notizie Storiche e Biografiche del Generale Rubino Ventura, Finalese, Esposte da un Suo Concittadino, Finale (Emilia), 1882;
- F. Servi, in Corriere Israelitico, x. 47 et seq.;
- idem, in Vessillo Israelitico, xxxi. 308 et seq.;