User:Profitoftruth85/sikhempire
Sikh Empire[nb 1] ਸਰਕਾਰ ਏ ਖਲਸਾ Sarkar-i-Khalsa | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1801–1846 | |||||||||||||
 Coat of arms
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| Motto: Shri Akal Sahai (God, our Sucourer) | |||||||||||||
| Anthem: Deg o Tegh o Fateh | |||||||||||||
 Punjab 1823-1839 | |||||||||||||
| Capital | Gujranwala (1799-1802) Lahore & Amritsar (1802-1849) | ||||||||||||
| Common languages | Administrative Persian Vernacular Punjabi Vernacular Hindustani | ||||||||||||
| Government | Federal monarchy | ||||||||||||
| Maharaja | |||||||||||||
• Apr. 1801-Jun.1839 | Ranjit Singh | ||||||||||||
• Jun. 1839-Oct. 1839 | Kharak Singh | ||||||||||||
• Oct. 1839-Nov. 1840 | Nau Nihal Singh | ||||||||||||
• Jan. 1841-Sep. 1843 | Sher Singh | ||||||||||||
• Sep. 1843–Mar. 1849 | Dalip Singh | ||||||||||||
| Legislature | Sarbat Khalsa (discontinued 1805)[nb 2][3] | ||||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||||
• Formation of Sikh Misls by Sarbat Khalsa | March 29, 1748 | ||||||||||||
• Coronation of Ranjit Singh | 12 April, 1801 1801 | ||||||||||||
• Second Treaty of Lahore | 22 December 1846 1846 | ||||||||||||
• Second Anglo-Sikh War | 1848-1849 | ||||||||||||
| Currency | Nanakshahi Rupee | ||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| History of South Asia |
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The Sikh Empire was a state in the north-western part of the Indian Subcontinent (present-day India and Pakistan) from 1799 to 1849.[4] The Sikh Empire was a secular state[5]
Ranjit Singh was crowned on April 12, 1801 (to coincide with Baisakhi). Sahib Singh Bedi, a descendant of Guru Nanak Dev, conducted the coronation [6]. Gujranwala served as his capital from 1799. In 1802 he shifted his capital to Lahore and Amritsar. Ranjit Singh rose to power in a very short period, from a leader of a single Sikh misl to finally becoming the Maharaja of Punjab.
Background[edit]
At the start of the Sikh Empire, the Punjab region was divided into fourteen warring principalities.[7] The Sikh Confederacy had lost it unity and strength and its member misls were at odds with each other, Zaman Shah and the Afghans were attempting to annex the punjab region as a province, the British East India Company's sphere of influence was growing closer to the Punjab, the Pathans had started establishing towns in the region, and the hindu Hill states encircled the Punjab.[8]
In the 1790s, the Punjab looked like a jig-saw puzzle consisting of fourteen pieces with five arrows piercing it from the sides. Twelve of these fourteen pieces were the Sikh Misals; the other two, the Pathan-controlled district of Kasur in the neighbourhood of Lahore, and Hansi in the south-east under the English adventurer, George Thomas. The five arrows were: The Afghans in the north-west; the Rajputs of Kangra in the north; the Gorkhas in the north-east; the British in the east; and the Marathas in the southeast.
— Khushwant Singh, Ranjit Singh, London, 1962, pg. 28
The Punjab region had no individually strong power but was a collection of "small, disintegrated states".[9] In 1783, George Forster noted that the Sikh Misls were not not united due to "discordant interests", but that "Should any future cause call forth the combined efforts of the Sikhs to maintain the existence of empire and religion, we may see some ambitious chief led on by his genius and successes, and, absorbing the power of his associates, display, from the ruins of their commonwealth, the standard of monarchy."[10]
Expansion[edit]
After Ranjit Singh captured Lahore and established the Sikh Empire in 1801, Ranjit Singh engaged the empire in campaigns of expansion. The first campaigns reduced the Sikh Misls and other states of the punjab region to tributary status. The Sikh Empire captured the historical Multan district in 1818 and Kashmir and Punchh in 1819 which eliminated Afghan influence east of the Indus. In 1823, the empire reduced the Peshewar valley to suzerainty status and annexed it in 1834.
End of Empire[edit]
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 Empire to launch the Anglo-Sikh Wars.
The Battle of Ferozeshah in 1845 marked many turning points, the British encountered the Punjabi Army, opening with a gun-duel in which the Sikhs "had the better of the British artillery". But as the British made advancements, Europeans in their army were especially targeted, as the Sikhs believed if the army "became demoralised, the backbone of the enemy's position would be broken"[11]. The fighting continued throughout the night earning the nickname "night of terrors". 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"[12].
British General Sire 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"[12]
The Punjabi ended up recovering their camp, and the British were exhausted. Lord Hardinge sent his son to Mudki with a sword from his Napoleonic campaigns. A note in Robert Needham Cust's diary revealed that the "British generals decided to lay down arms: News came from the Governor General that our attack of yesterday had failed, that affairs were disparate, all state papers were to be destroyed, and that if the morning attack failed all would be over, this was kept secret by Mr.Currie and we were considering measures to make an unconditional surrender to save the wounded..."[12].
However, a series of events of the Sikhs being betrayed by some prominent leaders in the army led to its downfall. Maharaja Gulab Singh and Dhian Singh, were Hindu Dogras from Jammu, and top Generals of the army. Tej Singh and Lal Singh were secretly allied to the British. They supplied important war plans of the Army, and provided the British with updated vital intelligence on the Army dealings, which ended up changing the scope of the war and benefiting the British positions[4][13].
The Sikh Empire was finally dissolved after a series of wars with the British at the end of the Second Anglo-Sikh War in 1849 into separate princely states and the British province of Punjab, which were granted statehood. Eventually, a Lieutenant Governorship was formed in Lahore as a direct representative of the British Crown.
Geography[edit]
The Punjab region was a region straddling India and Afghanistan. The following modern day political divisions made up the historical Sikh Empire:
- Punjab region till Multan in south
- Kashmir, conquered in 1818, India/Pakistan/China[14][15]
- Khyber Pass, Afghanistan/Pakistan[17]
- Parts of Western Tibet (1841), China[20]
Jamrud, Khyber Agency District 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 prominent Sikh general Hari Singh Nalwa in an offensive, though the Sikhs successfully held their position at their Jamrud fort.
Timeline[edit]
- 1762 - 1767, Invasion of Ahmed Shah Abdali.
- 1763 - 1774, Charat Singh Sukerchakia, Misldar of Sukerchakia misl established himself in Gujranwala.
- 1773, Ahmed Shah Abdali dies and his son Timur Shah launches several invasions of Punjab.
- 1774 - 1790, Maha Singh becomes Misldar of the Sukerchakia misl.
- 1790 - 1801, Ranjit Singh becomes Misldar of the Sukerchakia misl.
- 1801 April 12, Coronation of Ranjit Singh as Maharaja.
- 1801 - 27 June 1839, Reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, whose coronation took place in 1801.
- 27 June 1839 - 5 November 1840, Reign of Maharaja Kharak Singh
- 5 November 1840 - 18 January 1841, Chand Kaur was briefly Regent
- 18 January 1841 - 15 September 1843, Reign of Maharaja Sher Singh
- 15 September 1843 - 31 March 1849, Reign of Maharaja Duleep Singh
See also[edit]
- Mughal Empire
- Aurangzeb
- Misl
- Punjab Army
- Ranjit Singh
- History of Punjab
- Punjab Chiefs
- Maharaja Ranjit Singh's Generals
Notes[edit]
- footnotes
- ^ Since classical and modern concepts of state do not coincide, other possibilities include "Kingdom of Lahore" and "Kingdom of Panjab". The names "Sikh Empire", "Kingdom of Lahore", and "Kingdom of Punjab" were used interchangeably by the British.
- ^ Some scholars have stated that Ranjit Singh abolished the Sarbat Khalsa, however this is a mistaken view. Ranjit Singh never abolished the Sarbat Khalsa but simply never called one after 1805.[1] Fauja Singh has noted the egalitarian nature of the Sarbat Khalsa was considered impracticable for the organization of a territorial state.[2]
- References
- ^ Singh, Fauja. Some Aspects Of State And Society Under Ranjit Singh (First Edition ed.). New Delhi: Master Publishers. p. 60.
{{cite book}}:|edition=has extra text (help) - ^ Singh, Fauja. Some Aspects Of State And Society Under Ranjit Singh (First Edition ed.). New Delhi: Master Publishers. p. 60.
{{cite book}}:|edition=has extra text (help) - ^ Page, Melvin; Sonnenberg, Penny (2003), Colonialism: An International Social, Cultural, and Political Encyclopedia, ISBN 978-1576073353, retrieved 2010-04-26
- ^ a b Grewal, J. S. (1990). "Chapter 6: The Sikh empire (1799–1849)". The Sikh empire (1799–1849). The New Cambridge History of India. Vol. The Sikhs of the Punjab. Cambridge University Press. Cite error: The named reference "Grewal" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- ^ Maharajah Ranjit Singh, Anglo Sikh Heritage Trail, 2010, retrieved 30 April 2010
- ^ ""Ranjit Singh, Maharaja", Sikh Cyber Museum". Sikhcybermuseum.org.uk. Retrieved 2009-08-09.
- ^ Schmidt, Karl J. (1995). An atlas and survey of South Asian history. M.E. Sharpe. p. 66. ISBN 9781563243349. Retrieved 28 May 2010.
- ^ Prakash 2002, p. 330-331
- ^ Prakash 2002, p. 330-331
- ^ Forster 1798, p. 330-331
- ^ Ranjit Singh: administration and British policy, (Prakash, p.31-33)
- ^ a b c Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the last to lay arms, (Duggal,p.136-137)
- ^ Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the last to lay arms, (Duggal,p.136-138)
- ^ The Masters Revealed, (Johnson, p. 128)
- ^ Britain and Tibet 1765-1947, (Marshall,p.116)
- ^ Ben Cahoon. "Pakistan Princely States". Worldstatesmen.org. Retrieved 2009-08-09.
- ^ The Khyber Pass: A History of Empire and Invasion, (Docherty,p.187)
- ^ The Khyber Pass: A History of Empire and Invasion, (Docherty,p.185-187)
- ^ Bennett-Jones, Owen; Singh, Sarina, Pakistan & the Karakoram Highway Page 199
- ^ Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the last to lay arms, (Duggal,p.133)
Bibliography[edit]
- Heath, Ian (2005), The Sikh Army 1799-1849, Osprey Publishing (UK), ISBN 1-84176-777-8
- Kalsi, Sewa Singh (2005), Sikhism (Religions of the World), Chelsea House Publications, ISBN 978-0791080986
{{citation}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - Markovits, Claude (2004), A history of modern India, 1480-1950, London: Anthem Press, ISBN 978-1843311522
{{citation}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - Jestice, Phyllis G. (2004), Holy people of the world: a cross-cultural encyclopedia, Volume 3, ABC-CLIO, ISBN 978-1576073551
{{citation}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - Johar, Surinder Singh (1975), Guru Tegh Bahadur, University of Wisconsin--Madison Center for South Asian Studies, ISBN 8170170303
{{citation}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - Singh, Pritam (2008), Federalism, Nationalism and Development: India and the Punjab Economy, Routledge, pp. 25–26, ISBN 978-0415456661
{{citation}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - Nesbitt, Eleanor (2005), Sikhism: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press, USA, p. 61, ISBN 978-0192806017
{{citation}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - Prakash, Om (2002). Encyclopaedic History of Indian Freedom Movement. Anmol Publications. ISBN 978-8126109388.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|http://books.google.com/books?id=ignored (help) - George Forster (1798). A journey from Bengal to England: through the northern part of India, Kashmire, Afghanistan, and Persia, and into Russia, by the Caspian-Sea. Printed for R. Faulder.</ref>
Further Reading[edit]
- Volume 2: Evolution of Sikh Confederacies (1708–1769), By Hari Ram Gupta. (Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers. Date:1999, ISBN 8121505402, Pages: 383 pages, illustrated).
- The Sikh Army (1799–1849) (Men-at-arms), By Ian Heath. (Date:2005, ISBN 1841767778).
- The Heritage of the Sikhs By Harbans Singh. (Date:1994, ISBN 8173040648).
- Sikh Domination of the Mughal Empire. (Date:2000, second edition. ISBN 8121502136).
- The Sikh Commonwealth or Rise and Fall of Sikh Misls. (Date:2001, revised edition. ISBN 8121501652).
- Maharaja Ranjit Singh, Lord of the Five Rivers, By Jean-Marie Lafont. (Oxford University Press. Date:2002, ISBN 0195661117).
- History of Panjab, Dr L. M. Joshi, Dr Fauja Singh.
External links[edit]
- Article on Coins of the Sikh Empire
- Sikh Confederacy
- Confederacy of Punjab
- Sikh Kingdom of Ranjit Singh
- Battle of Jamrud
Category:1849 disestablishments Category:States and territories established in 1733 Category:Sikh history Category:History of Punjab Category:Sikh Empire Category:Sikh politics Category:Former countries in Asia
ko:시크 왕국 pnb:سکھ سلطنت ru:Сикхское государство fi:Sikhivaltio