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Sikh Empire

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Not to be confused with Kingdom of Sikkim.

Sikh Empire
Sarkār-i-Khālsa
Khālasā Rāj
1799–1849
Motto: ਅਕਾਲ ਸਹਾਇ
Akāl Sahāi
"With God's Grace"
Anthem: ਦੇਗ ਤੇਗ ਫ਼ਤਿਹ
Dēg Tēg Fateh
"Victory to Charity and Arms"
The Sikh Empire c. 1839, at the time of Ranjit Singh's death
The Sikh Empire c. 1839, at the time of Ranjit Singh's death
StatusEmpire
Capital
Common languages
Religion
GovernmentFederal monarchy
Maharaja 
• 1801–1839
Ranjit Singh (first)
• 1843–1849
Duleep Singh (last)
Regent 
• 1840–1841
Chand Kaur
• 1843–1846
Jind Kaur
Vizier 
• 1799–1818
Khushal Singh (first)
• 1846
Gulab Singh (last)
Historical eraEarly modern period
• Capture of Lahore by Ranjit Singh
7 July 1799
29 March 1849
Area
1839[5]520,000 km2 (200,000 sq mi)
Population
• 1800s
12,000,000[6]
CurrencyNanak Shahi Sikke
Preceded by		 Succeeded by
Sikh Confederacy
Durrani Empire
Kangra State
Sial dynasty
Maqpon dynasty
Namgyal dynasty
Punjab Province (British India)
Jammu and Kashmir (princely state)
Today part of
Part of a series on the
History of India
Timeline
Prehistoric
Ancient
Classical
Early medieval
Late medieval
Early modern
Modern
Related articles

The Sikh Empire, officially known as Sarkār-i-Khālsa and Khālasa Rāj,[citation needed] was a regional power based in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent.[7] It existed from 1799, when Maharaja Ranjit Singh captured Lahore, to 1849, when it was defeated and conquered by the British East India Company in the Second Anglo-Sikh War. It was forged on the foundations of the Khalsa from a collection of autonomous misls.[1][8] At its peak in the 19th century, the empire extended from Gilgit and Tibet in the north to the deserts of Sindh in the south and from the Khyber Pass in the west to the Sutlej in the east.[9][10] It was divided into four provinces: Lahore, which became the Sikh capital; Multan; Peshawar; and Kashmir from 1799 to 1849.[citation needed] Religiously diverse, with an estimated population of 4.5 million in 1831 (making it the 19th most populous country at the time),[11] it was the last major region of the Indian subcontinent to be annexed by the British Empire.

The formation of the empire began with the capture of Lahore from its Durrani ruler, Zaman Shah Durrani. Ranjit Singh was proclaimed as Maharaja of the Punjab on 12 April 1801 (to coincide with Vaisakhi), creating a unified political state. Sahib Singh Bedi, a descendant of Guru Nanak, conducted the coronation.[12] The formation of the empire was followed by the progressive expulsion of Afghans from Punjab by capitalizing off Afghan decline in the Afghan-Sikh Wars, and the unification of the separate Sikh misls. Ranjit Singh rose to power in a very short period, from a leader of a single misl to finally becoming the Maharaja of Punjab. He began to modernise his army, using the latest training as well as weapons and artillery. After the death of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the empire was weakened by the British East India Company stoking internal divisions and political mismanagement. Finally, in 1849, the state was dissolved after the defeat in the Second Anglo-Sikh War.

Terminology

The empire is also referred to as the Lahore State, such as in contemporary British maps.[13][14][15] The term Lahore Darbar refers to the Sikh court at Lahore of the empire's ruling government.[note 2][16] However, the term "Lahore Darbar" only gained currency around the time of Ranjit Singh's death, with it not being found in British sources until then.[16] The empire's own Persian chronicles refers to its ruling government as the Sarkar Khalsaji.[16]

History

Background

The foundation of the Sikh Empire can be traced to as early as 1707, the year of Aurangzeb's death and the start of the downfall of the Mughal Empire. With the Mughals significantly weakened, the Sikh army, known as the Dal Khalsa, a rearrangement of the Khalsa inaugurated by Guru Gobind Singh, led expeditions against them and the Afghans in the west. This led to a growth of the army which split into different confederacies or semi-independent misls. Each of these component armies controlled different areas and cities. However, in the period from 1762 to 1799, Sikh commanders of the misls appeared to be coming into their own as independent.[citation needed]

Mughal rule of Punjab

Sikhism began during the conquest of North India by Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire. His grandson, Akbar, supported religious freedom and after visiting the langar of Guru Amar Das got a favourable impression of Sikhism. As a result of his visit, he donated land to the langar and the Mughals did not have any conflict with Sikh gurus until his death in 1605.[17]

His successor Jahangir, saw the Sikhs as a political threat. He ordered Guru Arjan, who had been arrested for supporting the rebellious Khusrau Mirza,[18] to change the passage about Islam[clarification needed] in the Adi Granth. When the Guru refused, Jahangir ordered him to be put to death by torture.[19] Guru Arjan's martyrdom led to the sixth Guru, Guru Hargobind, declaring Sikh sovereignty in the creation of the Akal Takht and the establishment of a fort to defend Amritsar.[20]

Jahangir attempted to assert authority over the Sikhs by jailing Guru Hargobind at Gwalior Fort, but released him after a number of years when he no longer felt threatened. The Sikh community did not have any further issues with the Mughal Empire until the death of Jahangir in 1627. The succeeding son of Jahangir, Shah Jahan, took offence at Guru Hargobind's "sovereignty" and after a series of assaults on Amritsar forced the Sikhs to retreat to the Sivalik Hills.[20]

The next guru, Guru Har Rai, maintained the guruship in these hills by defeating local attempts to seize Sikh land and playing a neutral role in the power struggle between two of the sons of Shah Jahan, Aurangzeb and Dara Shikoh, for control of the Mughal Empire. The ninth Guru, Guru Tegh Bahadur, moved the Sikh community to Anandpur and travelled extensively to visit and preach in defiance of Aurangzeb, who attempted to install Ram Rai as new guru. Guru Tegh Bahadur aided Kashmiri Pandits in avoiding conversion to Islam and was arrested by Aurangzeb. When offered a choice between conversion to Islam and death, he chose to die rather than compromise his principles and was executed.[21]

Formation of the Khalsa

Guru Gobind Singh assumed the guruship in 1675 and to avoid battles with Sivalik Hill rajas moved the guruship to Paunta. There he built a large fort to protect the city and garrisoned an army to protect it. The growing power of the Sikh community alarmed the Sivalik Hill rajas, who attempted to attack the city, but Guru Gobind Singh's forces routed them at the Battle of Bhangani. He moved on to Anandpur and established the Khalsa, a collective army of baptised Sikhs, on 30 March 1699.[22]

The establishment of the Khalsa united the Sikh community against various Mughal-backed claimants to the guruship.[23] In 1701, a combined army of the Sivalik Hill rajas and the Mughals under Wazir Khan attacked Anandpur. The Khalsa retreated but regrouped to defeat the Mughals at the Battle of Muktsar. In 1707, Guru Gobind Singh accepted an invitation by Aurangzeb's successor Bahadur Shah I to meet him. The meeting took place at Agra on 23 July 1707.[22]

Banda Singh Bahadur

In August 1708, Guru Gobind Singh visited Nanded. There he met a Bairāgī recluse, Madho Das, who converted to Sikhism, rechristened as Banda Singh Bahadur.[22][24] A short time before his death, Guru Gobind Singh ordered him to reconquer Punjab region and gave him a letter that commanded all Sikhs to join him. After two years of gaining supporters, Banda Singh Bahadur initiated an agrarian uprising by breaking up the large estates of Zamindar families and distributing the land to the poor peasants who farmed the land.[25]

Banda Singh Bahadur started his rebellion by defeating the Mughal armies at the Battle of Samana, establishing the First Sikh State in 1709. This was followed the next year by another Sikh victory at the Battle of Sadhaura. The rebellion culminated following their defeat at the Siege of Gurdaspur. During the rebellion, Banda Singh Bahadur made a point of destroying the cities in which Mughals had been cruel to the supporters of Guru Gobind Singh. He executed Wazir Khan in revenge for the deaths of Guru Gobind Singh's sons and Pir Budhu Shah after the Sikh victory at Sirhind.[26]

He ruled the territory between the Sutlej river and the Yamuna river, established a capital in the Himalayas at Lohgarh and struck coinage in the names of Guru Nanak and Guru Gobind Singh.[25] In 1716, his army was defeated by the Mughals after he attempted to defend his fort at Gurdas Nangal. He was captured along with 700 of his men and sent to Delhi, where they were all tortured and executed after refusing to convert to Islam.[27]

Dal Khalsa period

Main article: Dal Khalsa (Sikh Army)
Sikh Confederacy
Main article: Misl

The period from 1716 to 1799 was a highly turbulent time politically and militarily in the Punjab region. This was caused by the overall decline of the Mughal empire[28] that left a power vacuum in the region that was eventually filled by the Sikhs of the Dal Khalsa, meaning "Khalsa army" or "Khalsa party". In the late 18th century, after defeating several invasions by the Afghan rulers of the Durrani Empire and their allies,[29] remnants of the Mughals and their administrators, the Mughal-allied Hindu hill-rajas of the Sivalik Hills,[30][31] and hostile local Muslims siding with other Muslim forces.[29] The Sikhs of the Dal Khalsa eventually formed their own independent Sikh administrative regions, Misls, derived from a Perso-Arabic term meaning 'similar', headed by Misldars. These Misls were united in large part by Maharaja Ranjit Singh.

Intra-Misl Wars

After the reign of Jassa Singh Ramgarhia, the Sikh Misls became divided and fought each other. A sort of 'Cold War' broke out with the Bhangi, Nakkai, Dalelwala and Ramgharia Misls verses Sukerchakia, Ahluwalia, Karor Singhia and Kaniyeha. The Shaheedan, Nishania and Singhpuria also allied but did not engage in warfare with the others and continued the Dal Khalsa.

The Phulkian Misl was excommunicated from the confederacy. Rani Sada Kaur of the Kanhaiya Misl rose in the vacuum and destroyed the power of the Bhangis. She later gave her throne to Maharaja Ranjit Singh.

Empire

The expanding Sikh Empire in 1809. The Cis-Sutlej states are visible south of the Sutlej River

The formal start of the Sikh Empire began with the unification of the Misls by 1801, creating a unified political state. All the Misl leaders, who were affiliated with the army, were the nobility with usually long and prestigious family backgrounds in Sikh history.[1]

The main geographical footprint of the empire was from the Punjab region to Khyber Pass in the west, to Kashmir in the north, Sindh in the south, and Tibet in the east.[32]

In 1799, Ranjit Singh moved the capital to Lahore from Gujranwala, where it had been established in 1763 by his grandfather, Charat Singh.[33]

Ranjit Singh annexed the Sial State, a local Muslim-ruled chieftaincy, after invading Jhang in 1807.[34] The basis for this annexation was that the local ruler of Jhang, Ahmad Khan Sial, was conspiring with Nawab Muzaffar Khan of Multan and had signed a secret treaty with the latter.[34]

Ranjit Singh holding court in 1838

Hari Singh Nalwa was Commander-in-Chief of the Sikh Khalsa Army from 1825 to 1837.[35] He is known for his role in the conquests of Kasur, Sialkot, Multan, Kashmir, Attock and Peshawar. Nalwa led the Sikh army in freeing Shah Shuja from Kashmir and secured the Koh-i-Nor diamond for Maharaja Ranjit Singh. He served as governor of Kashmir and Hazara and established a mint on behalf of the Sikh empire to facilitate revenue collection. His frontier policy of holding the Khyber Pass was later used by the British Raj. Nalwa was responsible for expanding the frontier of Sikh empire to the Indus River. At the time of his death, the western boundary of the Sikh Empire was the Khyber Pass.

The Namgyal dynasty of Ladakh paid regular annual tribute to the Sikh Empire starting 1819 until 1834.[36] The tribute was paid to the local Sikh governors of Kashmir.[36] The Namgyal kingdom would later be conquered by the Dogras, under the leadership of Zorawar Singh.[37]

The domain of the Maqpon kingdom of Baltistan, based in Skardu, under the rule of Ahmad Shah Maqpon, was conquered in 1839–40 and its local ruler was deposed.[37][38][39][40] The Dogras at this time were under the suzerainty of the Sikh Empire.[37]

During the Sino-Sikh War of 1841, the forces of the empire invaded the Tibetan Plateau, which was then under the control of the Qing dynasty.[41] However, this control was short-lived and the military of the empire was forced to retreat to Ladakh due to a counterattack by the Chinese and Tibetans.[41]

Cis-Sutlej states

Main article: Cis-Sutlej states

The Cis-Sutlej states were a group of Sikh[42] states in the Punjab region lying between the Sutlej River to the north, the Himalayas to the east, the Yamuna River and Delhi district to the south, and Sirsa District to the west. These states fell under the suzerainty of the Maratha Empire after 1785 before the Second Anglo-Maratha War of 1803–1805, after which the Marathas lost control of the territory to the British East India Company. The Cis-Sutlej states included Kalsia, Kaithal, Patiala State, Nabha State, Jind State, Thanesar, Maler Kotla, Ludhiana, Kapurthala State, Ambala, Ferozpur and Faridkot State, among others.[43] The Sikh Empire of Ranjit Singh occupied Faridkot State in 1807.[44] However, control was restored to Gulab Singh of Faridkot in 1809 due to the signing of a treaty between the Lahore Darbar and the British East India Company.[44]

While these Sikh states had been set up by the Dal Khalsa, they did not become part of the Sikh Empire. There was a mutual ban on warfare following the treaty of Amritsar in 1809 (in which the empire forfeited the claim to the Cis-Sutlej States, and the British were not to interfere north of the Sutlej or in the empire's existing territory south of the Sutlej),[45] following attempts by Ranjit Singh to wrest control of these states from the British between 1806 and 1809[46][47]

The Sikh crossing of the Sutlej, following British militarization of the border with Punjab (from 2,500 men and six guns in 1838 to 17,612 men and 66 guns in 1844, and 40,523 men and 94 guns in 1845), and plans on using the newly conquered territory of Sindh as a springboard to advance on the Sikh-held region of Multan,[48] eventually resulted in conflict with the British.

Decline

Two late 19th century drawings of Sikh troops in action against British forces during the Anglo-Sikh Wars
The Samadhi of Ranjit Singh is located in Lahore, Pakistan, adjacent to the iconic Badshahi Mosque

After Ranjit Singh's death in 1839, the empire was severely weakened by internal divisions and political mismanagement. This opportunity was used by the British East India Company to launch the First Anglo-Sikh War.

The Battle of Ferozeshah in 1845 marked many turning points, the British encountered the Punjab Army, opening with a gun-duel in which the Sikhs "had the better of the British artillery". As the British made advances, Europeans in their army were specially targeted, as the Sikhs believed if the army "became demoralized, the backbone of the enemy's position would be broken".[49] The fighting continued throughout the night. The British position "grew graver as the night wore on", and "suffered terrible casualties with every single member of the Governor General's staff either killed or wounded".[50] Nevertheless, the British army took and held Ferozeshah. British General Sir James Hope Grant recorded: "Truly the night was one of gloom and forbidding and perhaps never in the annals of warfare has a British Army on such a large scale been nearer to a defeat which would have involved annihilation."[50]

The reasons for the withdrawal of the Sikhs from Ferozeshah are contentious. Some believe that it was treachery of the non-Sikh high command of their own army which led to them marching away from a British force in a precarious and battered state. Others believe that a tactical withdrawal was the best policy.[citation needed]

The Sikh empire was finally dissolved at the end of the Second Anglo-Sikh War in 1849 into separate princely states and the British province of Punjab. Eventually, a Lieutenant Governorship was formed in Lahore as a direct representative of the British Crown.

Administration and state

Government

Detail from ‘Darbar (royal court) of Maharaja Ranjit Singh’, gouache, ca.1850

The empire's ruling court based out of Lahore is termed the Lahore Darbar or Khalsa Darbar.[16][15] Faqir Saifuddin of the Fakir Khana Museum prefers to use the term Punjab Darbar rather than "Khalsa Darbar", owing to the large role Muslims played in Ranjit Singh's court.[51] The ruling court was diverse and under the ultimate command of the ruling maharaja, who was the "drum of the Khalsa".[16] In-theory, the Sikh court was based on the Khalsa ideals propounded by Guru Gobind Singh yet the court was secular in-practice.[16] As an example of this secularism, members of the court came from various religious background, including Sikhs, Hindus, Muslims, and Christians.[16] Furthermore, the members also came from various ethnic, regional, and caste backgrounds, such as Dogras, Rajputs, Brahmins, Jats, and Europeans.[16] Whilst Ranjit Singh himself preferred to dress modestly, the Sikh court was filled with elaborately garbed and decorated members.[16] Only three individuals were permitted to be seated on chairs within the durbar, them namely being heir-apparent Kharak Singh, kanwar Sher Singh, and Raja Hira Singh.[16] Three sides of the hall of the durbar were covered with golden-pillars, with shawl carpets that were embroidered with golden and silver, and inset with precious stones, decorating the floor.[16] The maharaja was seated on a golden throne, with Ranjit Singh preferring to sit cross-legged on it.[16] The member of the court allowed to be seated behind the maharaja was Raja Dhian Singh.[16] The rest of the members of the court were seated as per their rank and status.[16] The colours of the Sikh court were yellow and green.[16] Thus, most of its members donned yellow-coloured dressings made from Kashmiri silk or woollens.[16] However, there existed no strict categorization scheme of the rankings of the constituent members of the Lahore Darbar, thus the rankings of its members was determined by the level of trust the maharaja held in them.[16] The court also granted awards upon its members, with most of these essentially being bestowed titles in the form of honourifics, however some members were granted jagirs (estate grant).[16] Laziness was heavily looked-down upon with the court, with the ruling maharaja often sending out the court's members on military or diplomatic missions.[16]

The business of the ruling government was carried out in Lahore, specifically the Musamman Burj located within the Lahore Fort.[16] A public court was held from morning until noon in the Diwan-i-Aam ("hall of audience"), with the court being attended by important members of the court, including princes, ministers, nobles, and civil and military officers.[16] Some matters discussed in the court include high-level civil and military appointments, reports from the provincial satraps and kardars.[16] When matters of the court were read-out, royal decrees made orally were transferred into writing for final approval.[16] Tributes and nazaranas were also exchanged or bestowed within the court.[16] Supplicants to the court were dismissed with khill'ats (robes) or monetary gifts.[16] When the maharaja was travelling, the court ceased to be static and was held at whatever location the ruler's retinue decided to hold-up at, often under a tree or whilst moving on horseback.[16] The ruler would dictate orders to provincial governors whilst inspecting their troops or even in the midst of battle.[16]

Noble members of the court, including relatives of the royal family, resided in palatial haveli structures and donned expensive clothing and accessories (such as jewelry).[16] The Sikh princes, and also Raja Dhian Singh, were permitted to hold their own miniature durbars (courts).[16]

Foreign affairs

A letter sent from the King of France, Louis-Philippe to Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Ranjit Singh is addressed as “Rendjit Sing Bahador – Padichah du Pendjab”. 27 October 1835

Foreign visitors to the Sikh court were treated with respect and hospitality, with many contemporary accounts of foreign visitors to the court noting the good-treatment afforded to them by the state.[16] When a foreign visitor arrived, they would be greeted by a protocol officer, who would arrange for their temporary residence, which was based upon the status of the visitor.[16] The state government paid for the expenses regarding the visitor's entertainment.[16] There exists accounts of visitors being gifted by the state, with presents such as fruit, sweets, wines, and also money.[16] Full displays of the empire's regalia and military forces were displayed during important ceremonial functions, such as the marriages of important nobles or when receiving high-level foreign diplomatic dignatories.[16]

In order to keep tabs and updated on the happenings of surrounding regions, including remote parts of its territory and foreign countries, the Sikh court received reports from the waqa'nawis (news-writers) located in the empire's provinces (subas).[16] The reports were dispatched to the Lahore Darbar at regular intervals.[16] Furtheremore, the vakils (agents) of foreign countries were associated with the Sikh court on a reciprocal basis.[16] The Sikh court had news-writers located in Afghanistan and also had its own vakil emissaries in the Cis-Sutlej States and also in territory under the British East India Company's rule.[16] Other vakil emissaries of the Sikh court were sent to Rajputana, the Marathas, and Nepal on complimentary missions.[16]

Western/European officers from various backgrounds, including Britishers, Frenchmen, Germans, Italians, Spaniards, Americans, and Russians, also rose to high levels within the Sikh court in many instances.[16] However, the Sikh court was wary of the Westerners within the court, and kept them therefore under strict regulation.[16] These foreign Western members of the court were persuaded by the state to integrate themselves by marrying a local woman, settling down within the empire, and adopt the cultural customs of the locals, such as growing out a beard or wearing a turban.[16] The Western members of the court were also banned from publicly consuming beef or smoking.[16]

The Sikh Empire did enact a simple border policy where it did not allow uninvited foreigners into the state.[52] The purpose of this border policy was to dissuade potential foreign spies from entering the country.[52] An example of the policy in-action is the case of Captain Arnold Mathews, who snuck into the Sikh Empire in circa 1808 to spy under the guise of being a tourist headed towards Kashmir but was intercepted and brought to Lahore.[52]

Holidays

Maharaja Ranjit Singh holding court outside near the Golden Temple in Amritsar with everyone dressed in Basant (yellow)

The Sikh court observed the festivals of Vaisakhi, Dussehra, Basant, Holi, and Diwali.[16] Vaisakhi was considered an especially auspicious celebration within the Sikh court, with it giving and distributing gifts of money, gold, silver, cows, horses, elephants, gold-bangles, and food to Brahmins and the poor.[16] During Basant celebrations, the military troops of the empire were paraded donning yellow uniforms, with members of the Sikh court and nobles also wearing yellow clothing on the day.[16] During Basant, the officials bore gifts for the sovereign ruler, with the ruler in-turn bestowing robe-of-honours to the officials based on their rank and status.[16] During celebrations of Dussehra, the Sikh court assembled itself at Amritsar and the jagirdari troops of the empire's military were paraded and inspected by the maharaja.[16]

Geography

The Indian subcontinent in 1805.

The Sikh Empire spanned a total of over 200,000 sq mi (520,000 km2) at its zenith.[53][54][55] Another more conservative estimate puts its total surface area during its zenith at 100,436 sq mi (260,124 km sq).[56]

The following modern-day political divisions made up the historical Sikh Empire:

Jamrud District (Khyber Agency, Pakistan) was the westernmost limit of the Sikh Empire. The westward expansion was stopped in the Battle of Jamrud, in which the Afghans managed to kill the prominent Sikh general Hari Singh Nalwa in an offensive, though the Sikhs successfully held their position at their Jamrud fort. Ranjit Singh sent his General Sirdar Bahadur Gulab Singh Powind thereafter as reinforcement and he crushed the Pashtun rebellion harshly.[66] In 1838, Ranjit Singh with his troops marched into Kabul to take part in the victory parade along with the British after restoring Shah Shoja to the Afghan throne at Kabul.[67]

Administrative divisions

Map of the Multan Province of the Sikh Empire, Herbert B. Edwardes, 1848–49

The empire was divided into various provinces (known as Subas), them namely being:[56]

No. Name Estimated population (1838) Major population centre
1. Lahore Suba 1,900,000 Lahore
2. Multan Suba 750,000 Multan
3. Peshawar Suba 550,000 Peshawar
4. Derajat Suba 600,000 Dera Ghazi Khan, Dera Ismail Khan
5. Jammu and Hill States Suba 1,100,000 Srinagar

Religious policy

Maharaja Ranjit Singh seeking the sanctuary of Guru Nanak, c. 1830

The Sikh Empire allowed men from religions other than their own to rise to commanding positions of authority.[68]

The Fakir brothers were trusted personal advisors and assistants as well as close friends to Ranjit Singh,[69] particularly Fakir Azizuddin, who would serve in the positions of foreign minister of the empire and translator for the maharaja, and played important roles in such important events as the negotiations with the British, during which he convinced Ranjit Singh to maintain diplomatic ties with the British and not to go to war with them in 1808, as British troops were moved along the Sutlej in pursuance of the British policy of confining Ranjit Singh to the north of the river, and setting the Sutlej as the dividing boundary between the Sikh and British empires;[70] negotiating with Dost Muhammad Khan during his unsuccessful attempt to retake Peshawar,[70] and ensuring the succession of the throne during the Maharaja's last days in addition to caretaking after a stroke, as well as occasional military assignments throughout his career.[71] The Fakir brothers were introduced to the Maharaja when their father, Ghulam Muhiuddin, a physician, was summoned by him to treat an eye ailment soon after his capture of Lahore.[72]

The other Fakir brothers were Imamuddin, one of his principal administration officers, and Nuruddin, who served as home minister and personal physician, were also granted jagirs by the Maharaja.[73]

Every year, while at Amritsar, Ranjit Singh visited shrines of holy people of other faiths, including several Muslim saints, which did not offend even the most religious Sikhs of his administration.[74] As relayed by Fakir Nuruddin, orders were issued to treat people of all faith groups, occupations,[75] and social levels equally and in accordance with the doctrines of their faith, per the Shastras and the Quran, as well as local authorities like judges and panches (local elder councils),[76] as well as banning forcible possession of others' land or of inhabited houses to be demolished.[77] There were special courts for Muslims which ruled in accordance to Muslim law in personal matters,[78] and common courts preceded over by judicial officers which administered justice under the customary law of the districts and socio-ethnic groups, and were open to all who wanted to be governed by customary religious law, whether Hindu, Sikh, or Muslim.[78]

One of Ranjit Singh's first acts after the 1799 capture of Lahore was to revive the offices of the hereditary Qazis and Muftis which had been prevalent in Mughal times.[78] Kazi Nizamuddin was appointed to decide marital issues among Muslims, while Muftis Mohammad Shahpuri and Sadulla Chishti were entrusted with powers to draw up title-deeds relating to transfers of immovable property.[78] The old mohalladari[definition needed] system was reintroduced with each mahallah, or neighborhood subdivision, placed under the charge of one of its members. The office of Kotwal, or prefect of police, was conferred upon a Muslim, Imam Bakhsh.[78]

Generals were also drawn from a variety of communities, along with prominent Sikh generals like Hari Singh Nalwa, Fateh Singh Dullewalia, Nihal Singh Atariwala, Chattar Singh Attariwalla, and Fateh Singh Kalianwala; Hindu generals included Misr Diwan Chand and Dewan Mokham Chand Nayyar, his son, and his grandson; and Muslim generals included Ilahi Bakhsh and Mian Ghaus Khan; one general, Balbhadra Kunwar, was a Nepalese Gurkha, and European generals included Jean-Francois Allard, Jean-Baptiste Ventura, and Paolo Avitabile.[79] other notable generals of the Sikh Khalsa Army were Veer Singh Dhillon,[citation needed] Sham Singh Attariwala, Mahan Singh Mirpuri, and Zorawar Singh Kahluria, among others.

The appointment of key posts in public offices was based on merit and loyalty, regardless of the social group or religion of the appointees, both in and around the court, and in higher as well as lower posts. Key posts in the civil and military administration were held by members of communities from all over the empire and beyond, including Sikhs, Muslims, Khatris, Brahmins, Dogras, Rajputs, Pashtuns, Europeans, and Americans, among others,[80] and worked their way up the hierarchy to attain merit. Dhian Singh, the prime minister, was a Dogra, whose brothers Gulab Singh and Suchet Singh served in the high-ranking administrative and military posts, respectively.[80] Brahmins like finance minister Raja Dina Nath, Sahib Dyal, and others also served in financial capacities.[79]

Muslims in prominent positions included the Fakir brothers, Kazi Nizamuddin, and Mufti Muhammad Shah, among others. Among the top-ranking Muslim officers there were two ministers, one governor and several district officers; there were 41 high-ranking Muslim officers in the army, including two generals and several colonels,[79] and 92 Muslims were senior officers in the police, judiciary, legal department and supply and store departments.[79] In artillery, Muslims represented over 50% of the numbers while the cavalry had some 10% Muslims from among the troopers.[81]

Thus, the government was run by an elite corps drawn from many communities, giving the empire the character of a secular system of government, even when built on theocratic foundations.[82]

A ban on cow slaughter, which can be related to Hindu sentiments, was universally imposed in the empire.[83][84] Ranjit Singh also donated large amounts of gold for the plating of the Kashi Vishwanath Temple's dome.[85][86]

The Sikhs attempted not to offend the prejudices of Muslims, noted Baron von Hügel, the Austrian botanist and explorer,[87] yet the Sikhs were described as harsh. In this regard, Masson's explanation is perhaps the most pertinent: "Though compared to the Afghans, the Sikhs were mild and exerted a protecting influence, yet no advantages could compensate to their Mohammedan subjects, the idea of subjection to infidels, and the prohibition to slay kine, and to repeat the azan, or 'summons to prayer'."[88]

According to Chitralekha Zutshi and William Roe Polk, Sikh governors adopted policies that alienated the Muslim population such as the ban on cow slaughter and the azan (the Islamic call to prayer), the seizure of mosques as property of the state, and imposed ruinous taxes on Kashmiri Muslims causing a famine in 1832. In addition, begar (forced labour) was imposed by the Sikh administration to facilitate the supply of materials to the imperial army, a policy that was augmented by the successive Dogra rulers.[89][90][91] These policies led the Kashmiri Muslim population to emigrate en masse to more lenient neighboring regions, particularly Ladakh.[92] As a symbolic assertion of power, the Sikhs regularly desecrated Muslim places of worship, including closing of the Jamia Masjid in Srinagar and the conversion of the Badshahi Mosque in Lahore to an ammunition store and horse stable, but the empire still maintained Persian administrative institutions and court etiquette; the Sikh silver rupees were minted on the Mughal standard with Persian legends.[93][94]

Christian missionaries had been active in the Punjab even prior to the dissolution of the empire in 1849.[95]

Demography

Religions in Khalsa Empire (1800s)[6][96]: 2694 
Religions Percent
Islam
 
 69%
Hinduism
 
 24%
Sikhism
 
 6%
others
 
 1%

The population of the Sikh empire during the time of Ranjit Singh's rule was estimated to be around 12 million people.[6] There were 8.4 million Muslims, 2.88 million Hindus and 722,000 Sikhs.[96]

The religious demography of the empire is estimated to have been just over 10%[97] to 12%[98] Sikh, 80% Muslim,[97] and just under 10% Hindu.[97] Surjit Hans gave different numbers by retrospectively projecting the 1881 census, putting Muslims at 51%, Hindus at 40% and Sikhs at around 8%, the remaining 1% being Europeans.[99] The population was 3.5 million in 1831, according to Amarinder Singh's The Last Sunset: The Rise and Fall of the Lahore Durbar.[100] Hans Herrli in The Coins of the Sikhs estimated the total population of the empire to be around 5.35 million during 1838.[56]

An estimated 90% of the Sikh population at the time, and more than half of the total population, was concentrated in the upper Bari, Jalandhar, and upper Rachna Doabs, and in the areas of their greatest concentration formed about one third of the population in the 1830s; half of the Sikh population of this core region was in the area covered by the later districts of Lahore and Amritsar.[98]

In 1839, a major pogrom, called the Allahdad, targeting the local Jews of Mashhad in Qajar Persia had occurred.[101] A group of Persian Jewish refugees from Mashhad, escaping persecution back home in Qajar Persia, settled in the Sikh Empire around the year 1839.[101] Most of the Jewish families settled in Rawalpindi (specifically in the Babu Mohallah neighbourhood) and Peshawar.[102][103][104][105][101] Most of these Jews would leave for India during the partition of 1947.[106][101]

Economy

Nanakshahi coins of the Sikh Empire

Revenue

Revenue in Rupees, 1844[107]
Sr Particulars Revenue in Rupees
1 Land Revenue
1.a Tributary States 5,65,000
1.b Farms 1,79,85,000
1.c Eleemosynary 20,00,000
1.d Jaghirs 95,25,000
2 Customs 24,00,000
Total 3,24,75,000

Land revenue was the main source of income, accounting for about 70% of the state's income. Besides this, the other sources of income were customs, excises and monopolies.[108]

Timeline

List of rulers

S. No. Name Portrait Birth and death Reign Note
1 Maharaja Ranjit Singh 13 November 1780 (Gujranwala) 27 June 1839 (Lahore) 12 April 1801 27 June 1839 38 years, 76 days The first Sikh ruler Stroke
2 Maharaja Kharak Singh 22 February 1801 (Lahore) 5 November 1840 (Lahore) 27 June 1839 8 October 1839 103 days Son of Ranjit Singh Poisoning
3 Maharaja Nau Nihal Singh 11 February 1820 (Lahore) 6 November 1840 (Lahore) 8 October 1839 6 November 1840 1 year, 29 days Son of Kharak Singh Assassinated
Maharani Chand Kaur
(regent) 		1802 (Fatehgarh Churian) 11 June 1842 (Lahore) 6 November 1840 18 January 1841 73 days Wife of Kharak Singh Abdicated
4 Maharaja Sher Singh 4 December 1807 (Batala) 15 September 1843 (Lahore) 18 January 1841 15 September 1843 2 years, 240 days Son of Ranjit Singh Assassinated
5 Maharaja Duleep Singh 6 September 1838 (Lahore) 22 October 1893 (Paris) 15 September 1843 29 March 1849 5 years, 195 days Son of Ranjit Singh Exiled
Maharani Jind Kaur
(regent; nominal) 		1817 (Gujranwala) 1 August 1863 (Kensington) 15 September 1843 29 March 1849 5 years, 195 days Wife of Ranjit Singh Exiled

Viziers

Family tree

  • Ranjit Singh, c. 1830.[111]
    Ranjit Singh, c. 1830.[111]
  • Ranjit Singh listening to Guru Granth Sahib being recited near the Akal Takht and Golden Temple, Amritsar, Punjab, India.
    Ranjit Singh listening to Guru Granth Sahib being recited near the Akal Takht and Golden Temple, Amritsar, Punjab, India.
  • Sikh warrior helmet with butted mail neckguard, 1820–1840, iron overlaid with gold with mail neckguard of iron and brass
    Sikh warrior helmet with butted mail neckguard, 1820–1840, iron overlaid with gold with mail neckguard of iron and brass
Preceded by Sikh Empire
1799–1849 		Succeeded by

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Buddhism was mostly confined to Ladakh. Christianity and Judaism includes firangi soldiers and officials.
  2. ^ Alternatively spelt as 'Lahore Durbar'.

References

Citations

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Sources

Further reading

  • Grewal, J. S. (1998). The Sikhs of the Punjab. The New Cambridge History of India. Vol. II.3 (Revised ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 82–127. ISBN 978-1316025338. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  • Volume 2: Evolution of Sikh Confederacies (1708–1769), By Hari Ram Gupta. (Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers. 1999, ISBN 81-215-0540-2, 383 pages, illustrated)
  • The Sikh Army (1799–1849) (Men-at-arms), By Ian Heath. (2005, ISBN 1-84176-777-8)
  • The Heritage of the Sikhs By Harbans Singh. (1994, ISBN 81-7304-064-8).
  • Sikh Domination of the Mughal Empire. (2000, 2nd ed. ISBN 81-215-0213-6)
  • The Sikh Commonwealth or Rise and Fall of Sikh Misls. (2001, revised ed. ISBN 81-215-0165-2)
  • Maharaja Ranjit Singh, Lord of the Five Rivers, By Jean-Marie Lafont. (Oxford University Press. 2002, ISBN 0-19-566111-7)
  • History of Panjab, By L. M. Joshi and Fauja Singh [ISBN missing]
  • Maharaja Ranjit Singh and his Times, By Bhagat Singh. (Sehgal Publishers Service. 1990, ISBN 81-85477-01-9)
  • Ranjit Singh – monarch mystique, By V. Nalwa. (Hari Singh Nalwa Foundation Trust. 2022, ISBN 978-81-910526-1-9)
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