| Maharaja Gulab Singh | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | |||||
| Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir | |||||
| Reign | 16 March 1846 – 20 February 1856[1] | ||||
| Predecessor | Duleep Singh (Sikh Empire) | ||||
| Successor | Ranbir Singh | ||||
| Raja of Jammu | |||||
| Reign | 16 June 1822 – 16 March 1846[2] | ||||
| Predecessor | Kishore Singh | ||||
| Successor | Himself as Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir | ||||
| Wazir of theSikh Empire | |||||
| In office | 31 January 1846 – 9 March 1846 | ||||
| Predecessor | Lal Singh | ||||
| Born | (1792-10-21)21 October 1792 Jammu | ||||
| Died | 30 June 1857(1857-06-30) (aged 64) | ||||
| Wives | Nihal Kour, Rani Rakwal | ||||
| Issue | Sohan Singh Udam Singh Ranbir Singh | ||||
| |||||
| House | Dogra dynasty | ||||
| Father | Mian Kishore Singh | ||||
| Religion | Hinduism | ||||
| Signature |  | ||||
Maharaja Gulab Singh Jamwal (21 October 1792 – 30 June 1857) was the firstMaharaja ofJammu and Kashmir and the founder of theDogra dynasty. Originally a commander of theSikh Empire, he sided with the British in theFirst Anglo-Sikh War and briefly became prime minister of the Sikh Empire in 1846.[3] In the same year he signed theTreaty of Amritsar with the British, establishing the state of Jammu and Kashmir under the suzerainty of theBritish Raj; this treaty formalized the transfer of all lands that were ceded by the Sikhs to the British in theTreaty of Lahore.[4]
Gulab Singh was born on 17 October 1792 in aHinduDogra Rajput family. His father was Kishore Singh Jamwal. He joined the army ofRanjit Singh in 1809 and was sufficiently successful to earn ajagir worth 12,000 rupees and also 90 horses.[2][page needed]
In 1808, following the Battle of Jammu, the kingdom was annexed by Ranjit Singh. Ranjit Singh appointed a governor to administer the newly conquered area which was expanded in 1819 with theannexation of Kashmir by a Sikh force. In 1820, in appreciation of services rendered by his family and Gulab Singh in particular, Ranjit Singh bestowed the Jammu region as a hereditary fief upon Kishore Singh.[2][page needed]Apart from their sterling services, the family's intimate association with the region commended Kishore Singh's candidature to the Lahore court.[5][page needed]
In 1821, Gulab Singh captured conquered Rajouri fromRaja Agarullah Khan and Kishtwar from Raja Tegh Mohammad Singh (alias Saifullah Khan).[5][page needed] That same year, Gulab Singh took part in the Sikh conquest of Dera Ghazi Khan. He also captured and executed his own clansman,Mian Dido Jamwal, who had been leading a rebellion against the Sikhs.[6][page needed]
Kishore Singh died in 1822 and Gulab Singh was confirmed as Raja ofJammu by his suzerain, Ranjit Singh.[2][page needed] Shortly afterward, Gulab Singh secured a formal declaration of renunciation from his kinsman, the deposed Raja Jit Singh.[7][page needed]
As Raja (Governor-General/Chief) of Jammu, Gulab Singh was one of the most powerful chiefs of theSikh Empire. Under the Imperial and Feudal Army arrangement, he was entitled to keep a personal army of 3 Infantry Regiments, 15 Light Artillery Guns and 40 Garrison Guns.[8]
In 1824 Gulab Singh captured the fort of Samartah, near the holyMansar Lake. In 1827 he accompanied the SikhCommander-in-ChiefHari Singh Nalwa, who fought and defeated a horde ofAfghan rebels led by Sayyid Ahmed at theBattle of Shaidu. Between 1831 and 1839 Ranjit Singh bestowed on Gulab Singh thejagir of the salt mines in northern Punjab,[2][page needed] and the nearby Punjabi towns like Bhera, Jhelum, Rohtas, and Gujrat.[citation needed]
1837 Poonch Revolt In 1837, after the death of Hari Singh Nalwa in the Battle of Jamrud, the Muslim tribes of Sudhan, Tanolis, Karrals,Dhunds, Sattis and Maldayal rose in revolt in Hazara and Poonch. The insurgency of Poonch was led by Shams-Ud-Din, a Chief of the Sudhan tribe[9][10] and former confidential follower of Raja Dhyan Singh.[10] Thus the betrayal of Shams Khan against the regime was taken personally, and Gulab Singh was given the task of crushing the rebellion. After defeating the insurgents in Hazara and Murree hills, Gulab Singh stayed at Kahuta for some time and promoted disunion among the insurgents. Then his forces were sent to crush the insurgents. Eventually, Shams Khan Sudhan and his nephew Raj Wali Khan were betrayed and their heads were cut off during their sleep while the lieutenants were captured, flayed alive and put to death with cruelty. The contemporary British commentators state that the local population suffered immensely.[11]
On the death of Ranjit Singh in 1839, Lahore became a center of conspiracies and intrigue in which the three Jammu brothers were involved. They succeeded in placing the administration in the hands of PrinceNau Nihal Singh with RajaDhian Singh as prime minister. However, in 1840, during thefuneral procession of his father Maharaja Kharak Singh,Nau Nihal Singh together with Udham Singh, son of Gulab Singh, died under suspicious circumstances when an old brick gate collapsed on them.[12][page needed]
In January 1841,Sher Singh, son of Ranjit Singh tried to seize the throne of Lahore but was repulsed by the Jammu brothers. The defense of the fort was in the hands of Gulab Singh.[12][page needed]
After peace was made between the two sides, Gulab Singh and his men were allowed to leave with their weapons. On this occasion, he is said to have taken away a large amount of Lahore's treasure to Jammu.
.jpg)
Meanwhile, in the continuing intrigues at Lahore, the Sandhawalia Sardars (related to Ranjit Singh) murdered Raja Dhian Singh and the Sikh MaharajaSher Singh in 1842.[13][page needed] Subsequently, Gulab Singh's youngest brother, Suchet Singh, and nephew, Hira Singh, were also murdered. As the administration collapsed theKhalsa soldiery clamored for the arrears of their pay. In 1844 the Lahore court commanded an invasion of Jammu to extract money from Gulab Singh, reputed to be the richest Raja north of the Sutlej River as he had taken most of the Lahore treasury.[14][page needed]
However, Gulab Singh agreed to negotiate on his behalf with the Lahore court. These negotiations imposed an indemnity of 27 lakh Nanakshahee rupees on the Raja.[citation needed]
Lacking the resources to occupy such a large region immediately after annexing portions of Punjab, the British recognised Gulab Singh as a Maharaja directly tributary to them on payment of 75 thousand Nanakshahee Rupees for the war-indemnity. The angry courtiers of Lahore then incited the governor of KashmirImamuddin to rebel against Gulab Singh, but this rebellion was defeated, thanks in great part to the action ofHerbert Edwardes, Assistant Resident at Lahore.[citation needed]
In the second Sikh War of 1849, he allowed his Sikh soldiers to desert and go to fight alongside their brethren in Punjab. The treaties of Chushul and Amritsar had defined the borders of the Kingdom of Jammu in the east, south, and west but the northern border was still undefined. In 1850, the fort of Chilas in the Dard country was conquered.[citation needed]
Maharaja Gulab Singh died on the 30th of June 1857 and was succeeded by his son,Ranbir Singh.
Diwan Kirpa Ram, the "Maharajah's private secretary and the son of Dewan Jwala Sahai, the Maharajah's Prime Minister", of the Diwans of Eminabad family, wrote the first biography of Gulab Singh titledGulabnama in the 19th century in Persian.[15][16]
K. M. Panikkar describesGulabnama as an authoritative source;[15]
"This work, though written in the flowery style of the Persian panegyrists, is nonetheless a remarkable historical document, as the Dewan published in it many original documents which are not now available elsewhere. Its facts and chronology are beyond dispute. The Dewan was also fully conversant with the political conditions of the Punjab at the time, and his descriptions of events are vivid and informed by direct knowledge of men and things."
Gulab Singh Born: 18 October 1792 Died: 30 June 1857 | ||
| Regnal titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Jit Singh (as Raja of Jammu (tributary to theSikh Empire)) | Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir 1846–1856 | Succeeded by |
| Maharaja |  | |
|---|---|---|
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
