Kharak Singh

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Maharaja Kharak Singh
Datar Kaur
ReligionSikhism

Kharak Singh (22 February 1801 – 5 November 1840) was the second

Maharaja Ranjit Singh, founder of the Sikh Empire and his consort, Maharani Datar Kaur. He succeeded his father on 27 June 1839 and reigned until his dethronement and imprisonment on 8 October 1839.[2] He was succeeded by his only son Nau Nihal Singh
.

Early life

He was born on 22 February 1801 in Lahore, Punjab. He was the first son of Ranjit Singh and his second wife Datar Kaur Nakai.[4] His mother was the daughter of Ran Singh Nakai, third ruler of the Nakai Misl. The prince was named by his father [5] "Kharak" (ਖਰਕ) which means 'Wielder of the Sword' he was named after the unconquerable warrior mentioned in Dasam Granth. According to Gyani Sher Singh, Ranjit Singh knew the entire Dasam Granth by heart. It was his birth that persuaded his father to proclaim himself the Maharaja of Punjab.[6]

He married four times. In 1812, at the age of 11 he was married to

British raj due to her anti-British role in the war.[3] His third wife was, Kishan Kaur Samra, a daughter of Chaudhari Raja Singh of Amritsar of the Samra clan; they were married in 1818. She was the only queen to live after the fall of the Sikh Empire in 1849, had an annual pension paid by the British Raj of RS 2324 and died in Lahore in 1876 while living at the Lahore Fort. His last wife, Inder Kaur Bajwa was married by proxy in a "chadar dalna" ceremony, in 1815.[7] She was a relative of Chet Singh Bajwa.[8]

Early military campaigns and administration

Kharak Singh portrait

Kharak Singh was brought up in his family's martial tradition and assigned to a variety of military expeditions. While barely six years old, he was given the command of the Sheikhupura expedition. In 1811, he was placed in charge of the Kanhaiya estates, and deputed in 1812 to punish the recalcitrant chiefs of Bhimbar and Rajauri. Kharak received the principality of Jammu as his jagir in 1812.

Since his birth he was

heir of his father. But Sada Kaur only viewed him as heir presumptive as her daughter Mehtab Kaur was the first queen of Ranjit Singh. In 1816 to put an end to all intrigues Ranjit Singh officially announced Kharak Singh as his heir apparent and anointed him "Tikka Kanwar Yuvraj" (Crown prince).[9][10]

The same year, his mother,

He was also sent on similar campaigns undertaken by Ranjit Singh for the conquest of Peshawar and against the Mazaris of Shikarpur.

In 1839, Ranjit Singh awarded Kashmir to Kharak Singh, which was seen as a check on the ambitions of Gulab Singh Dogra.[15]

On the advice of Fakir Azizuddin, before his death his father proclaimed him the Maharaja of the Sikh Empire.[16]

Maharaja of the Sikh Empire

Maharaja Kharak Singh on horseback

On the death of his father he was proclaimed the Maharajah and installed on the throne at Lahore Fort on 1 September 1839.

Kharak Singh was a patron of arts and had commissioned a Sanskrit astronomy manuscript – the Sarvasiddhantattvacudamani.[11]

Though courageous and good in battle, Kharak was regarded as simple minded.[17] It was believed he lacked his father's diplomatic skills.[17][4] He developed a close relationship with his tutor Chet Singh Bajwa after the death of his mother, who gained such an ascendancy over him as to render him a puppet.[4] This relationship with Chet Singh created tensions with Prime Minister Raja Dhian Singh.[4]

The

Henry Montgomery Lawrence -who has never met Kharak Singh.[20] Burns was the first to refer to Kharak Singh as imbecile but also mentions that Prince Kharak is extremely kind hearted and noted that the prince is the master of an impressive military and good at the administrating and handling important strategic and governing duties assigned to him.[21]

Claude Martin Wade, who was at the Lahore Durbar for 16 years disagreed as well, stating that Kharak Singh was a man with a “mild and humane disposition, who was “loved by his dependants”.[13] Wade suggests that Kharak Singh seemed to have a has a dismal reputation as he maintained a low profile.[13] Dr. Priya Atwal and Sarbpreet Singh note that Kharak Singh was politically intelligent and well versed in multiple language, the most educated prince of Maharaja Ranjit Singh who not only led military expeditions but also diplomatic events.[22][21] Sarbjeet Singh states Kharak Singh along with his brothers is a victim of circumstance, something he labeled "A Shakespearean tragedy".

Death

Raja Dhian Singh Dogra is known to resent the influence of Chet Singh Bajwa, tutor of Kharak Singh on the emperor, as well as the court. It was whispered that both the Maharaja and Chet Singh were secretly planning to sell out the Punjab to the British, pay them six annas in every rupee of state revenue and, worse of all, disband the Sikh army. Misled by these fictitious tales, the court and Nau Nihal Singh became estranged from Kharak Singh.[23]

Chet Singh was assassinated on 9 October 1839. Early that morning the conspirators entered the Maharaja's residence in the Fort and assassinated Chet Singh in the presence of their royal master, who vainly implored them to spare the life of his friend.

Kharak Singh was poisoned with white lead and mercury.[18] Within six months he was bedridden, and eleven months after the poisoning he died on 5 November 1840 in Lahore.[24][18] The official announcement blamed a sudden mysterious illness.[18] Though never proven, most contemporaries believed Raja Dhian Singh to be behind the poisoning.[18] Dhian Singh also murdered one of Kharak Singh's wife, Rani Inder Kaur by setting her on fire.[18]

Raja Dhian Singh had previously resisted attempts to allow Kharak training in statecraft, and on 8 October 1839 he instigated his removal from the throne with Nau Nihal Singh becoming de facto ruler.

See also

  • Gurdaspur District

References

  1. ^
    OCLC 163394684
    .
  2. ^ a b Āhlūwālīā, M. L. "KHAṚAK SIṄGH MAHĀRĀJĀ (1801–1840)". Encyclopaedia of Sikhism. Punjabi University Patiala. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
  3. ^ a b c ""Bibi Khem Kaur Dhillon", URL accessed 11/16/06". Archived from the original on 18 December 2017. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
  4. ^ a b c d e C. Grey, European Adventurers of Northern India, 1785 to 1849, Asian Educational Services, 1996,
  5. ^ Vaḥīduddīn, Faqīr Sayyid (1965). The Real Ranjit Singh. Lion Art Press.
  6. .
  7. ^ Griffin, Lepel Henry (1890). "The Panjab Chiefs: Historical and Biographical Notices of the Principal Families in the Lahore and Rawalpindi Divisions of the Panjab".
  8. ^ www.DiscoverSikhism.com. History Of The Sikh Misals.
  9. ISBN 978-93-5113-048-2. {{cite book}}: |last= has generic name (help
    )
  10. ^ Archives, India (Republic) National (1977). Maharaja Kharak Singh, June 27, 1839-November 5, 1840: Select Records Preserved in the National Archives of India, New Delhi. Department of Punjab Historical Studies, Punjabi University.
  11. ^ a b "Book Review: The Hidden History of Female Agency in the Sikh Empire". The Wire. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
  12. OCLC 16516859
    .
  13. ^ .
  14. .
  15. ^ Vanit Nalwa, Hari Singh Nalwa, "champion of the Khalsaji" (1791-1837), Manohar, New Delhi, 13 Jan 2009
  16. .
  17. ^ a b Bobby Singh Bansal, Remnants of the Sikh Empire: Historical Sikh Monuments in India & Pakistan, Hay House, Inc, 1 Dec 2015,
  18. ^ a b c d e f William Dalrymple, Anita Anand, Koh-i-Noor: The History of the World's Most Infamous Diamond, Bloomsbury Publishing, 15 Jun 2017
  19. ^ Sheikh, Majid (23 June 2019). "HARKING BACK: Exquisite haveli with bloody tales of treachery". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
  20. ^ Swamy, M. R. Narayan. "Palace Women, Princes in Sikh Empire". South Asia Monitor. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
  21. ^ .
  22. .
  23. , retrieved 12 September 2021
  24. ^ G. S. Chhabra, Advance Study in the History of Modern India (Volume-2: 1803-1920), Lotus Press, 2005, p.176

External links

Preceded by Maharaja of the Sikh Empire
27 June 1839 – 8 October 1839
Succeeded by