Maharaja Ranjit Singh out thought the British. This is why this man must be admired.. He knew that as long as the Sikhs, Rajputs, Hindus and Muslims people bond together –without the British playing dirty “divide and rule” tactics , as they did in the rest of India, he would be just fine. His army would be too hard to beat, in a one on one fight. To keep the bonding alive he treated Sikhs, Muslims, Rajputs and Hindus subjects alike. He never discriminated. So he agreed to sign the Treaty of Amritsar of 1809. This would be an insurance policy as far as British attacks were concerned. This treaty was signed by Mr. Charles Theophilus Metcalfe on behalf of British Government , whose Governor General was Lord Minto , and Maharaja Ranjit Singh at Amritsar on April 25, 1809. Charles Theophilus Metcalfe was born in Calcutta in January 1785 and he was the son of Thomas Theophilus Metcalfe who was appointed by Rothschild as the Director of the British East India Company. Below: Charles Metcalfe He was only 23 years old when he was appointed envoy to the court of Maharajah Ranjit Singh, as Rothchild’s hawk’s eye. This was a very young age to be given such a huge responsibility. Later in life Charles Metcalfe would be acting Governor-General of India. The Text of the Treaty:Treaty with the Rajah of Lahore - 1809 Whereas certain differences which had arisen between the British Government and the Rajah of Lahore have been happily and amicably adjusted, and both parties being anxious to maintain the relations of perfect amity and-concord, the following Articles of treaty, which shall be binding on the heirs and successors of the two parties, have been concluded by Rajah Runjeet Sing on his own part, and by the agency of Charles Theophilus Metcalfe, Esquire, on the part of the British Government. Article 1. Perpetual friendship shall subsist between the British Government and the State of Lahore. The latter shall be considered, with respect to the former, to be on the footing of the most favoured powers; and the British Government will have no concern with the territories and subjects of the Rajah to the northward of the Sutlej. Article 2. The Rajah will never maintain in the territory occupied by him and his dependents .on the left bank of the River Sutlej, more troops than are necessary for the internal duties of that territory, nor commit or suffer any encroachments on the possessions or rights of the Chiefs in its vicinity. Article 3. In the event of a violation of any of the preceding Articles, or of a departure from the rules of friendship on the part of either State, this Treaty shall be considered to be null and void. Article 4. This Treaty, consisting of four Articles, having been settled and concluded at Amritsar, on the 25th day of April, 1809, Mr. Charles Theophilus Metcalfe has delivered to the Rajah of Lahore a copy of the same, in English and Persian, under his seal and signature, and the said Rajah has delivered another copy of the same, under his seal and signature; and Mr. Charles Theophilus Metcalfe engages to procure, within the space of two months, a copy of the same duly ratified by the Right Honourable the Governor-General in Council, on the receipt of which by the Rajah, the present Treaty shall be deemed complete and binding on both parties, and the copy of it now delivered to the Rajah shall be returned. Seal and signature of C.T. METCALFE Signature and seal of RAJAH RUNJEET SING Companys Seal MINTO (Sd) Ratified by the Governor-General in Council on 30th May, 1809. This treaty though would put a limit on extending the Sikh kingdom to the south, already occupied by the British, it would in theory allow expansion to the North and West without any interference from the British. This rough terrain was where all the Mughal treasures were , including the Kohinoor diamond, originally stolen from India. The British kept low , even after Ranjit Singh vacuumed all the wealth from the North West areas , including the Kohinoor diamond and kept it in a nice pile. They would at the right time murder him by inducing a stroke by putting extra crushed pearls in his daily aphrodisiac drink, he got addicted to. Addiction was achieved by adding opium in increasing quantities. The stoke would be achieved by clogging his kidneys with crushed pearls. This potion was prepared daily by the Romanian Jew quack doctor. Once Ranjit Singh was out of the way they would drive an irreversible wedge between the Rajputs and the Sikhs by making the gullible Sikhs suspect the loyal Rajput members of Ranjit Singh’s inner darbar and army. Sir Lepel Griffin a British propaganda mouthpiece for Rothschild wrote “There are perhaps no characters in Punjab history more repulsive than Rajputs Dhian Singh and Gulab Singh Dogra “. Nothing is further than the truth , as both these loyal men were handpicked by Ranjit Singh himself-- and Ranjit Singh has the capability to gauge men. A distraught Prime Minister Dhian Singh nearly jumped into the funeral pyre of Ranjit Singh, and he was held back by force. Gulab Singhs own son Udam Singh was killed along with Naunihal Singh while returning from the funeral of his father Maharaja Kharak Singh. Dhian Singh , the blood brother of Gulab Singh , too was badly injured . Naunihal was a great leader at a young age, and he had the potential to be even greater than Ranjit Singh. Below Dhian Singh It was the Rothschilds British agents who collapsed the stone archway over the passing elephant. They did this to drive a wedge between Rajputs and Sikhs. In Sikh history Dhian Singh is Ram, Gulab Singh is Lakshman and Tej singh is Ravan. See how Rothschild monopolized encyclopedias, media , historians , movie and TV , have converted Ram to Ravan and vice versa, in a disgraceful manner. They never anticipated an Internet age, right? The purpose of this blog site is to reverse such white lies , as I have told from the outset. Lepels son Sir Lancelot Cecil Lepel Griffin later would be appointed by Rothschild as the last political secretary of British India. Even today the naïve Sikhs think that Dhian Singh and Gulab Singh are the real culprits for the astonishing disintegration of the mighty Sikh empire. None of them even know that such a Jew owner of British East India Company by the name of Rothschild exists. The King of England never dared to cross Rothschild, as he held the money. When Rothschild, the owner of British East India Company, who grew opium in India and sold it in China, screamed at the King or Queen of England to jump , they never dared to ask WHY? They only whispered “ How high , Sir?” Now let me tell how Ranjit Singh got his hands on the fabulous Kohinoor diamond. Lord Krishna received this diamond called Syamantakam from his father in law Jambavan as dowry in 4100 BC. It passed through many hands over the years. Nadir Shah was assassinated and the Kohinoor diamond fell into the hands of Ahmad Shah Abdali, one of his ablest generals, who later became the King of Afghanistan. After his death in 1772, the Koh-i-noor diamond passed into the hands of his successors. In the battle for succession that followed, the Koh-i-noor ended in possession of one of his sons Shah Shuja Mirza. In the changing fortunes of war, Shuja Mirza was defeated and made prisoner by the allies of his brother, Mahmud Shah. However, before being captured, he managed to send his family to Punjab to seek refuge with Maharaja Ranjit Singh . Wafa Begum, Shuja Mirza’s wife, carried the Koh-i-noor diamond with her to Lahore. Wafa Begum became greatly distressed when she heard the dreadful news of her husband. She sent envoys to Ranjit Singh and implored him to use his influence to get her husband released and in return for his help promised him the Koh-i-noor diamond. Ranjit Singh marched against the Afghans and got Shah Shuja released. After securing the Koh-i-noor diamond, Ranjit Singh had the prized jewel fitted in his turban. Later he had it sewn into an armlet, which he wore on all the important state occasions, where it remained for twenty years. Before Ranjit Singh died in 1839, his priests tried to get him to donate the diamond to the Temple of Jaggannath. Apparently he agreed, but by this time he was unable to speak due to a stroke , and the keeper of the royal treasure refused to release the stone, on the grounds that he has not received such orders. Kohinoor signed away to queen Victoria in 1849 by 11 year old boy King Duleep Singh while in exile. As a reward he could play with the royal kids in London. The terms of the treaty, at the end of the Second Anglo-Sikh War specified that: The gem called Koh-I-noor, which was taken from Shah Shuja-ul-Mulk by Maharajah Ranjit Singh shall be surrendered by the Maharajah of Lahore to the Queen of England. John Lawrence, the colonial administrator, put it in his waistcoat pocket and forgot about it. When asked for the prize, Lawrence had no idea where it was. Racing home, he asked his servant- who said, yes, he had found a small box, containing a piece of glass in his master’s waistcoat! After gaining the famous diamond, the Governor General, Lord Dalhousie immediately sent the Koh-i-noor to England after taking every care to ensure its safe passage over the land and the sea-routes. On 6 April 1850 the Koh-i-noor left the shores of India on board of the HMS Medea. So shrouded in mystery was its departure that even the Captain of the Medea did not know the precious cargo his ship carried. It was delivered to Sir J. W. Logg, Deputy Chairman of the British East India Company, who presented the diamond to Her Majesty, Queen Victoria, in the presence of Sir John Hobhouse, at Buckingham Palace on July 3 1850. Prince Albert hired stupid experts at Coster Diamonds in Amsterdam to cut the diamond into a brilliant, reducing it by up to 43% of its original size, which made it lose its natural divine moonlight blue glow. Probably they tried to get rid of the curse attached to the diamond. Little do the British know that their great empire went into decline and the mental acquity of their people eroded ( MAD COW ) as a result of the curse of the Kohinoor. Such great stones cannot be mined but are found on riverbeds in their natural state. 6100 years ago a slave stole it from Lord Krishna when he was sleeping. Edward VIII , abdicated the throne to his brother King George VI ( Ruler of India ) within 362 days . George was a misfit, terribly shy with a stutter. He would cry and was prone to melancholy. His English subjects never knew that he could NOT speak without a endless stammer. This suited Rothschild , as he could conduct 2nd World War to carve out the state of Israel, as he wanted , with Winston Churchill whose Jewish mother Jenny Jerome, was of Rothschild blood. King George’s wife Elizabeth ( present queen’s Elizabeth II’s mother ) was very shrewd and managed all affairs with an iron will. She got the great Kohinoor diamond stolen from India for her own crown , and was most of the time sozzled on leg bucklin ZAZA ( this is 30% gin and 70% dubonnet --neat-- with a slice of lime ). Maharaja Gulab Singh came from a distinguished Dogra-Rajput Royal lineage, unlike Ranjit Singh who was a commoner. Gulab Singh was a Ikshvaku Surya Vansi blue blooded Rajput, one of the most ancient and respected lineages of India . Lord Rama is the kuldevta (family deity) of the Dogras. Gulab Singh Dogra and was born on October 21, 1792 to Kishore Singh, whose grandfather was the brother of the illustrious king of Jammu namely, Raja Ranjit Dev. In his childhood Gulab Singh was sent by his father for martial training to his grandfather Zorawar Singh, who was one of the most ferocious tough warriors of this planet. Gulab Singh learnt martial arts at a very young age, and in course matured into a great soldier. In a single combat Ranjit Singh with one eye, stood no chance against Gulab Singh on foot or on horse. Maharaja Ranjit Singh had dispatched Bhai Hukma Singh (Chimni) to annex Jammu in the year 1808. A young and reckless 16 year old Gulab Singh ( without informing his grandfather ) quietly joined in the battle and due to the astonishing resistance put forward by him and his small group against the superior Sikh forces, the Sikh forces were forced to withdraw to Saidgarh. Eventually,Maharaja Ranjit Singh sent re-inforcements and was able to annex Jammu to his Sikh empire. Bhai Hukma Singh was greatly impressed by the outstanding leadership and exceptional fighting abilities of this young prince Gulab Singh and told about this to Maharaja Ranjit Singh. In in the year 1809 Maharaja Ranjit Singh invited Gulab Singh to Daska a village situated a few miles from Sialkot and personally requested him to join his army. Ultimately due to the services rendered and loyalty displayed by Gulab Singh, Maharaja Ranjit Singh made Gulab Singh, the Raja of Jammu. Any other vested version by British and Sikh historians is wrong, and was written more to make the Sikhs hate the Rajpiuts, and break their alliance. Ranjit Singh was NOT the type to be arm twisted against his better judgement. The widow of Kharak Singh, Mai Chand Kaur was crowned as the reagent thereafter on 2nd December, 1840 and she retained the able , wise and loyal Dhian Singh as her prime minister. Unfortunately soon Mai Chand Kaur and the son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh (from Mehtab Kaur), namely Sher Singh came into conflict due to a Rothschild conspiracy and Mai Chand Kaur abdicated and Sher Singh was declared as the Maharaja. Mai Chand Kaur was poisoned and then stoned to death by her maid servants on 11 June, 1842. Though historians say that , Mai Chand Kaur was put to death by the orders of Maharaja Sher Singh, it is well known that this was again a British conspiracy—to divide the Sikhs into various warring camps. Soon enough Maharaja Sher Singh along with his son Prince Pratap Singh and Dhian Singh were also killed by the Sikh Chiefs, the Sandhanwalias on 15th September 1843 after being bribed by the British. The British official Joseph Davey Cunningham, residing in Ludhiana during that period circulated the propaganda that Maharaja Sher Singh was killed by Dhian Singh and then the Sandhanwalias killed Raja Dhian Singh. The gullible Sikhs got confused and angry and nobody trusted a Rajput or even a fellow Sikh. Poison was indeed injected in the simple minds of the Sikhs. How quickly the Sikhs forgot the loyal services of Dhian Singh. Retribution would be quick. The son of Dhian Singh ( and nephew of Maharaja Gulab Singh) aided by his uncle Suchet Singh took revenge on the Sandhanwalia chiefs. The Sandhanwalia culprits Ajit Singh, Lehna Singh and about 600 of their gang were mercilessly put to the sword by the tough Rajputs. Interestingly when the widow of Dhian Singh heard that her son had avenged the murder (in the true Rajput tradition) of his father she mentioned to her son ,I will tell your father that you acted as a brave and a dutiful son, and she committed Sati. Dhian Singh’s son Hira Singh, was handsome, wise and brave and was a favourite of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. The British who were looking for an opportunity to seize the territories of the late Maharaja Ranjit Singh were obviously delighted. Lord Ellenborough the Governor General of India during that period wrote to her Majesty Queen Victoria on October 20, 1843, ...it is impossible not to preceive that the ultimate tendency of the late events at Lahore is without, any effort on our part, to bring the plains first, and at somewhat later period the hills, under our protection or control. After this the youngest wife Maharani Jindan Kaur crowned her son Duleep Singh as the Maharaja on September 18, 1843. Hira Singh , the son of the slain Shian Singh who was made the prime minister. Hira Singh was killed on December 21, 1844, along with his relatives, another of Rothchild’s conspiracies – for Hira Singh was as wise , loyal and level headed as his father Dhian Singh. However, brave Hira Singh died after giving a fierce fight. Maharani Jindan Kaur now made her own sweet brother Jawaher Singh the prime minister . She surprisingly goaded on by her own ambitious brother, the son of the dog keeper, made all efforts were made to beleaguer Raja Gulab Singh. . Eventually a conflict developed between the Lahore Sikh Durbar and Raja Gulab Singh. Things got from bad to worse and shove became push. Eventually a great battle took place on the plain of the Satwari and the Jammu forces commanded by Diwan Hari Chand routed the Sikhs. The divide was now complete and the British were very happy. Remote controlled intrigue in the Lahore Durbar continued and Jawahar Singh “the ambitious to be king” commoner brother of Maharani Jindan was killed by the orders of the Panch (military council) for his role in the killing of Prince Peshora Singh one of the sons of the late Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Jawahar Singh was beheaded, right in front of Maharani Jindan Kaur and her young son Maharajah Duleep Singh, on September 21, 1845. The death of her own brother right in front of her eyes, was something too much for the Maharani to bear, who gave vent to her anguish with loud cries of lamentation. Britain now declared war on the Sikhs , giving the lame excuse that the Sikhs did NOT allow the passage of the British troops through their territory during the first Afghan War of the 1839-1842. The Sikh army commanded by Tej Singh ( appointed by Jindan Kaur ) had crossed the Sutlej on December 11, 1845, ostensibly to occupy a former Sikh possession, the village of Moran, named after one of Maharajah Ranjeet Singhs favorite Muslim courtesans, on the east side of the river. Tej Singh and Lal Singh DELIBERATELY broke the Amritsar Treaty signed by Maharaja Ranjit Singh in 1809. The British considered this as a hostile move , breaking the Amristar treaty of 1809, and hence declared war. Tej Singh was bribed by the British to do this. Lal Singh the clandestine lover of the Queen Jindan kaur and the army chief Tej were in direct communication with the British, giving away camp and battle positions and tactic . The cannons would not fire as our Romanian Jew Dr. John Martin Honigberger made sure they would NOT fire. This was exactly the same modus operandi with Tipu Sultan in 1799, when Rothschild’s French arm fiddled around with the gunpowder. Tej Singh led his own dang army to deliberate defeat, during the First Angle Sikh war on December 13th 1845 . 60,000 ferocious Sikhs who fought their hearts out, could NOT handle 8,000 British , lowering the proud Sikh army morale for ever. The British troops showed no mercy and the result was a massacre of thousands of Sikh soldiers. The Rothschild planted Jewish French and Italian mercenary commanders were involved in this too . Below Tej Singh. Tej Singh whilst fleeing the battlefield destroyed bridges and even planted guns on his side of the river to shot any escaping Sikhs! — Well, well ! how do you like Rothschild’s conspiracies now? All this came to light only in 1857, during the First war of Independence , when the whole of India fought mutinied against the British except the Sikhs. YES! Tej Singh , the traitor raised Sikh cavalry regiments to aid the British. His scattered Jagirs were consolidated and he was rewarded with the new title Raja of Batala. Gulab Singh had tried in vain to convince Maharani Jindan to avoid a conflict with the British. Raja Gulab Singh during this conflict took no sides but still had sympathy for the Sikhs and sent them food and animals. He then left for a pilgrimage to Vaishno Devi and Purmandel. Maharani Jindan fervently summoned Raja Gulab Singh . Eventually Raja Gulab Singh, his son Ranbir Singh, nephew Jawahar Singh along with four thousand horsemen and about five thousand Rajputs of his clan left for Lahore. On arriving in Lahore Raja Gulab Singh was informed by Maharani Jindan that she had lost control of the affairs of the State. In the Durbar held on January 31, 1846, Maharani Jindan was cursed by the Panchas . The Punchas mentioned that Maharani Jindan was pushing the Sikh kingdom towards destruction by moving the army across the Sutlej River, against the British. In addition the Panchas also made it clear to Maharani Jindan that they would kill her if she did not make Raja Gulab Singh the prime minister. The battles between the Sikhs and the British were not decisive intially but with time the British started to make gains. Eventually on February 10, 1846, Sir Hugh Gough attacked the Sikhs at Sobraon with heavy artillery and the Sikhs suffered bad reverses. On accepting the prime ministership, Raja Gulab Singh made it clear he would only continue in this position only if the court officials gave it in written that they would not interfere with his peace efforts with the British. By now Maharani Jindan who was inexperienced in matters of the state became panicky. Sir Hugh Gough was supported by Lord Hardinge, the governor-general, who volunteered to serve under him. The Sikhs were overwhelmed and Gulab Singh sued for peace at Lahore. (The services of Sir Hugh Gough were rewarded by Rothschild and he was elevated to the peerage of the United Kingdom as Baron of Maharajpore and the Sutlej in April 1846.) Below : Baron Gough While Raja Gulab Singh continued to be the prime minister he and Lal Singh, the lover of Maharani Jindan Kaur ( and the biological father of Duleep Singh ) did not get along. Lal Singh made several attempts were made on the life of Raja Gulab Singh. Finally Lal Singh forced Maharani Jindan Kaur to dismiss Gulab Singh and he became Prime Minister on 26 February, 1847. The British were firm in their demand of two crore rupees from the Lahore Durbar as a fine and also wanted the Doab territory as reparation. Eventually the boy king Maharaja Dalip Singh was bought to Lahore for forcing a treaty. Some of the conditions of the peace treaty that was signed in Lahore between the Lahore Darbar and the British East India Company, on March 9, 1846, soon after the war ended, are as follows :- 1) The Jullundur Doab between the Beas River and the Sutlej River to be surrendered to the British. 2) The Lahore Darbar to pay an indemnity of 15 million (1.5 crore) rupees. 3) Maharajah DULEEP SINGH to continue as ruler of Punjab, with his mother Maharani Jindan Kaur remaining as regent. 4) The Sikh army was greatly reduced in size from its original 80,000 to around 20,000 thousand troops, that set the stage for the second Anglo-Sikh war. 5) The British troops were to be withdrawn from Lahore by the end of the year 1846. Lal Singh now the Prime Minister could not come up with the money which he was supposed to pay to the British. A conniving Lal Singh hence decided to kill two birds with one stone and one of the birds being Raja Gulab Singh. Lal Singh subsequently made an offer to the British that he, Lal Singh was willing to offer all the hill territory to them between the rivers Sindh and Beas including Kashmir and Hazara in place of rupees one crore. As this included the territory of Jammu this was indeed a clever way of marginalizing Gulab Singh. When Gulab Singh learnt about this he felt felt double-crossed. He then met the Governor General to access the situation. The clever Governor General realized that it was a good thing to have the Rajputs as allies and he knew the loyalty Gulab Singh commanded with Sikhs, Rajputs, Muslims and Hindus. Eventually after discussions with the British, Raja Gulab Singh sent Diwan Jwala Sahai his confidant to the British with the request that the territory of Jammu be handed over to his dependents for their support, while Raja Gulab Singh would himself lead a retired life in the holy city of Varanasi. However, it seems that Lord Hardinge had his own plans and informed Diwan Jwala Sahai that he would be willing to hand over the territories lying between the source of Beas including the areas of Kashmir and Hazara to Raja Gulab Singh. In exchange for these territories Raja Gulab Singh was to pay rupees one crore to the British. Since Raja Gulab Singh could not come up with this kind of money, hence, he decided to trade some territory on the the right side of the Beas River for less money. On receiving this proposal from Raja Gulab Singh, Lord Hardinge wrote the following to a secret committee, that the trans Beas portion of Kulu and Mandi with the fertile district and strong position of Nurpur and the celebrated fort of Kangra and the key to the Himalayas in native estimation with its districts and its dependencies should be in our possession. Eventually it was accepted that Raja Gulab Singh would pay 75 lakhs to the British for the smaller territory. On finding out that they had been outwitted and the tables turned on them, Lal Singh and Maharani Jindan dispatched the loyal but wily Kashmiri Brahmin Diwan Dina Nath to Henry Lawrence and Frederic Currie. The aim being to request the British to cancel their deal with Raja Gulab Singh and that they (Lahore Durbar) was willing to pay all the money in order to retain their territory. As the British were keen to get rid of the volatile Sikh threat to their Empire, hence, they found that the best strategy was to stick with Raja Gulab Singh. Eventually Raja Gulab Singh was invited by the Governor General at a camp on March 15, 1846. Following this Raja Gulab Singh was bestowed with the title of a Maharaja and the Treaty of Amritsar was signed between the British and Maharaja Gulab Singh on March 16, 1846. As a result of this treaty Maharaja Gulab Singh found himself in possession of the State of Jammu and Kashmir. By Article 1 of the Amritsar Treaty, Gulab Singh acquired all the hilly or mountainous country with its dependencies situated to the eastward of the River Indus and the westward of the River Ravi including Chamba and excluding Lahul, being part of the territories ceded to the British Government by the Lahore State according to the provisions of Article IV of the Treaty of Lahore, dated 9th March, 1846. Under Article 3, Gulab Singh was to pay 75 lakhs (7.5 million) of Nanak Shahi rupees (the ruling currency of Punjab) to the British Government, along with other annual tributes. The Treaty of Amritsar marked the beginning of Dogra rule in Kashmir, which was to end in 1948 after an attack by the Pakistani army which led to Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. Lord Hardinge gave the following reason for the transfer of Jammu and Kashmir to Maharaja Gulab Singh, It was necessary last March to weaken the Sikhs by depriving them of Kashmir. Getting back a bit in time — Maharajah Ranjeet Singh was succeeded by his eldest son Kharak Singh from his second wife, Raj Kaur, instead of his eldest surviving son Sher Singh by his most senior wife, Mehtab Kaur, daughter of Rani Sada Kaur. The succession caused a lot of bitterness among Ranjit Singhs heirs. Opium addict ,spiritual and soft, Kharak Singh was not fit and prepared to rule his fathers vast empire, and was unable to control the various factions within his kingdom. Therefore, Kharak Singhs eldest son Nau Nihal Singh, who was just 18 years old took control of the kingdom himself from his father, on October 8, 1839. Kharak Singh died of poisoning on November 5, 1840, and Nau Nihal Singh was to formally take over as king after his fathers death. However, unfortunately when Nau Nihal Singh was returning from his fathers funeral, he was fatally injured by debris from a collapsing archway that smashed his head. It is not known whether the building collapse was accidental or deliberate. Nau Nihal Singh, was succeeded by Sher Singh, the eldest surviving son of Ranjeet Singh by his most senior wife Rani Mehtab Kaur, who was believed by many to be the actual claimant to the throne of the Punjab, after Ranjeet Singhs death. Sher Singhs succession did not come automatically. He won the throne only after a protracted siege of the Lahore fort, that was held by the Royal family. He was installed as king, in January 1841, but was himself killed just two years after taking office, in September 1843, together with Prime Minister Dhian Singh in a plot hatched by the Sandhawalias, cousins of Sher Singh. Raja Dian Singhs son . Raja Hira Singh, with the support of the army, wiped out the Sandhawalia faction, and captured the fort of Lahore. Then on September 16, 1943, the army proclaimed Ranjeet Singhs youngest son, Duleep Singh who was just five years old, as king, with his mother Jindan Kaur as regent and Dhian Singh’s son Hira Singh was appointed as Wazir. The Treaty of Bhyroval was intended to tighten the noose on the Punjab, and to supercede the clause of withdrawing the British troops from Lahore as agreed by the first treaty of Amritsar in 1809 with Maharaja Ranjit Singh.. According to this new treaty signed on December 16, 1846, Maharani Jindan Kaur was removed as regent to her son Maharajah Duleep Singh, and replaced by a British Resident in Lahore Sir Henry Lawrence, supported by a Regency Council. This was ironically headed by the traitor Tej Singh, ( the double agent of Rothschild ) the former commander of the Sikh army, who treacherously facilitated the British victory in the first Anglo-Sikh war. The appointment of Tej Singh caused a lot of anger and resentment among the Sikh population. Below: Sir Henry Lawrence Meanwhile the British were waiting for the slightest pretext to separate the mother and the son. The pretext was cooked up when the boy king refused to confer the title as Raja of Sialkot in Aug 1847, at instigation of his mother Jindan Kaur. The British tried to implicate the Maharani in a conspiracy known as the Premilla Plot, in which Sir Henry Lawrence and Tej Singh were to be murdered at a fete at the Shalimar Gardens. A sham inquiry held into both incidents and on the orders of Henry Lawrence, the mother and son were separated, and Maharani Jindan Kaur was sent to the Summan Tower of Lahore Fort, from where she was transferred to the fort at Sheikhurpura, for incarceration in September 1847. Whither honour? Her annual allowance was drastically reduced from Rs 150,000 to a mere Rs. 48,000. She was then moved to the Fort of Chunar in Uttar Pradesh, from where she escaped to Nepal disguised as a maid-servant, on April 19, 1849. he fled to the Himalayas disguised as a beggar woman, and moved to Kathmandu, in Nepal, where she was given political asylum by the Prime Minister Jung Bahadur, mainly as a mark of respect to the memory of the late Maharajah Ranjeet Singh. The British authorities confiscated all her gold and jewelry, said to be worth around a fortune which also included the fabulous emerald and seed-pearl necklace, that had been left in the government treasury at Benares, and rescinded her pension. Maharani Jindan Kaurs exile in Kathmandu, Nepal, lasted for over ten years, until 1860. The second Anglo-Sikh war began as a localized rebellion on April 18, 1848, in the Muslim dominated Multan in southern Punjab. It was sparked by the killing of two British officers who accompanied the new governor, General Khan Singh Man to Multan. This started a rebellion and pent up feelings of the Sikhs spilled over. Sikh soldiers who escorted the new governor and the British officers from Lahore, defected and joined Mulrajs rebel army. As news of the rebellion spread, large numbers of Sikh soldiers deserted the regiments loyal to the Lahore Durbar, and joined the rebels under the leadership of Mulraj. None of the Sikh soldiers were properly paid. The news of the rebellion reached Lahore on April 21, 1848, and Currie sought for assistance from Governor-General Dalhousie and Hugh Gough, the commander of the Bengal army, to suppress the rebellion at Multan. However, Gough and Dalhousie decided not to send any assistance until the end of the hot weather and the monsoon seasons, which would be in November. The Battle of Gujrat has gone down in the history of British imperialism in India, as the biggest battle in terms of men and weaponry, and came to be known as the Battle of Guns. Here also the bribed foreign mercenary commanders of the Sikhs deliberately provided poor leadership allowing the British to slaughter the Sikh army. The Sikhs fled in confusion, pursued by the cavalry and horse artillery. The battle was over within a few hours. The Sikhs lost more than 5000 men, and the British casualties were less than 100. Ranjit Singh’s European mercenary generals were: Jean-François Allard-- French Jean-Baptiste Ventura – Italian Paolo Di Avitabile – Italian Claude August Court – French Josiah Harlan – American , later governor of Gujrat Alexander Gardner – American (Scots – Irish) Mercenaries are a unique breed who have have NIL loyalty to a person. Their loyalty is to money and “what is in it for me”.. On March 14, 1849, the whole Sikh Army of around 22,000 men, surrendered. Today our Maharaja Ranjeet Singh is truly dead, sighed the brave Sikh soldiers, as they kissed the swords with tears flowing down their cheeks, and laid them down on the ever-enlarging heap of steel. On March 29, 1849, Lord Dalhousie proclaimed the annexation of the Punjab. His foreign secretary, Sir Henry Meirs Elliot, arrived at Lahore to obtain the signatures of the minor king Maharajah Duleep Singh and members of the Regency Council. Maharajah Duleep Singh held his last court at Lahore, on March 29, 1849. A grand Darbar was held in the Lahore Fort, with the British troops lined up on his right, and the Sardars of the Regency Council on the left, the boy king Duleep Singh affixed his royal signatures in great pomp to the document which deprived him of his crown and kingdom. It was a poignant sight, even for the British. After the proclamation of the Punjab, as part of the British Empire in India, on March 29, 1849, the Sikh flag was taken down and the British flag was hoisted on the citadel of Lahore. Lord Dalhousie assigned Dr. John Login, the important task of taking the Koh-i-Noor and other famous jewels into the safe custody of British officials in Lahore, from the Toshakana (jewel house), whose custodian was the treasurer of the Punjab Government. The Toshakana had the single largest and valuable collection of jewels and jewelry in the world. The court jewels were well preserved either wrapped in soft cloth or secure inside their velvet-lined cases. The most famous and valuable jewels, such as the Koh-i-Noor and the Timur Ruby were taken into the custody of Dr. John Login, to be sent subsequently to London as gifts for Queen Victoria. The British officials were tripping over each other to see the fabled Koh-i-Noor Diamond . The relevant section of the treaty read tersely as follows :- The gem called the Koh-i-Noor which was taken from Sha Shuja-ul-Mulk, by Maharajah Ranjeet Singh, shall be surrendered by the Maharajah of Lahore to the Queen of England. The items were listed in seven printed catalogues, and the sales took place over five successive days, from 28th November 1850 to 2nd December 1850. Some of the jewels were boxed in Bombay, by Frazer and Hawes, and sent to London, where they were sold by Garrards. Maharajah Duleep Singh was eleven years old at the time he was deposed by the British on March 29, 1849. He was entrusted to the care of Dr. John Login, by Governor-General Dalhousie. Dr. Login took Duleep Singh from Lahore to Fatehgarh, in Uttar Pradesh, on December 21, 1849, “in order to keep the boy away from the influences of the Punjab” , his former kingdom. He was provided lavishly furnished houses in Fategarh and also in Lucknow, where he spent his remaining days in India, before being exiled to Britain in 1854. Thus he spent almost five years in India after he was deposed, before being exiled to Britain. During this period he came under the tutelage of both Dr. Login and Bhajan Lal, a Christian convert, both of whom exposed the poor boy to a lot of Christian text and literature. Governor-General Dalhousie had instructed Dr. Login, that the boy should be completely anglicized and “civilized” before he was sent to Britain to see Queen Victoria. It was in keeping with these instructions that Duleep Singh was raised in complete isolation from his own countrymen and tight restrictions were placed on who he was allowed to meet. No Indians except trusted servants, were allowed to meet him in private. Duleep Singhs closest childhood friends were both English, one the child of an Anglican missionary. The childs brain-washing was complete before he attained his 15th birthday, and he was converted to Christianity, at Fatehgarh, with the blessings of Governor-General Dalhousie. He was then exiled to Britain in 1854. His early years in the United Kingdom, until his settlement in Scotland, where he earned the nickname Black Prince of Perthshire Duleep Singh arrived in England in 1854, and was initially lodged at Claridges Hotel in London, before the Rothschild arranged a house for him in Wimbledon and later at Roehampton, which became his home for 3 years. Queen Victoria adopted him as a godson, and showered a lot of fake affection on the young turbaned Maharajah, so did the Prince consort, Prince Albert. The young prince became well known for his lavish life style, hunting trips and a love for wearing the funny Scottish highland costume. In spite of the luxurious life that he was leading in the United Kingdom, Duleep Singh was well aware that he was a virtual prisoner in the hands of his British hosts. His separation from his beloved mother traumatized him , and he was desperate to see his mother, and be re-united with her. In 1860, Duleep Singh secretly sent one of his native attendants to Kathmandu to get some information about his mother. A report was sent to England through the British Resident in Nepal that, Maharani Jindan Kaur had changed over the years and was now blind and physically weak, taking little interest in her surroundings, and what was going on around her. Ranjeet Singh immediately made a fervent appeal to Queen Victoria for permission to see his mother, and if circumstances permitted to bring her back to England to reside with him. The Queen granted permission after consulting Rothschild . It was determined that the Maharani no longer posed a serious threat to British interests in India. The Nepalese Government which had been on a confrontational course with the Maharani, imposing humiliating restrictions on her under British pressure, were happy to get rid of her and facilitated the meeting by appealing on her behalf. The Maharani herself was tired of her exile and isolation, and the indignity she had been made to suffer during the 10 years of her exile in Nepal, and was longing to re-unite with her only son. The meeting was arranged in Calcutta at the Spences Hotel. Duleep Singh set sail to Calcutta in late 1860, and the Maharani was taken overland from Kathmandu to Spences Hotel in Calcutta. The meeting took place in January 1861, and the mother and son were re-united for the first time in 13½years (1848 to 1861). It was an emotional moment for both the mother and son. Duleep Singh set sail to England with his mother from Calcutta. Duleep Singh found her mother almost blind and suffering from poor health, although she was relatively young, and only 43 years old. Her premature aging was caused by trauma, her long years of isolation and incarceration. Duleep Singh returned to London with his sick mother, and took a house in Bayswater. He stayed there with his mother Maharani Jindan Kaur for the next two years. Lady Login noted changes in Duleep Singhs behavior ever since he returned to London with his mother. For the first time she heard him talking about his vast private property in Punjab, information that only his mother could have given him. The Maharani during her long conversations with her son seem to have reawakened her sons true faith and royal heritage, telling him stories of all that had been lost to the British. The Logins were worried about the Maharanis influence on her son, and tried to persuade Duleep Singh to find his mother a separate house. But, Duleep Singh would not listen to the Logins, for fear of hurting her mothers sentiments.. Maharani Jindan Kaur passed away in Kensington , England on 1st Auh 1863, at the age of 46 and her body is moved to the Dissenters Chapel, until it could be taken to India for cremation. The passing away of his beloved mother was a terrible blow to Duleep Singh, and he felt orphaned in his country of adoption, with no relatives or friends from his own country. According to Sikh traditions the Maharanis body had to be cremated and her ashes scattered in a river. But cremation was not allowed under English law at that time. Thus with the intervention of John Login the Maharanis body was moved to the Dissenters Chapel at Kensal Green Cemetery, until such time that it could be taken to India for the last rites. At a simple funeral ceremony held at Kensal Green, Duleep Singh addressed the small gathering of mourners, that included a number of Indian dignitaries and the Maharanis retinue that she had brought with her, in his native language Punjabi. Her body was kept at Kensal Green for almost an year, before permission was granted to take the body to India for cremation, which had been her dying wish. Maharani Jindan Kaurs body was cremated by the banks of the Godavari river, and the ashes scattered in the river, and part of the ashes entombed in a Samadhi built by the river. Duleep Singh accompanied his mothers body to India in 1864, but he was not given permission to take the body to Punjab. A small memorial containing part of her ashes was erected on the left bank of the Godavari river. Below Samadhi of Maharaja Ranjit Singh at Lahore In 1924, Maharani Jindan Kaurs granddaughter Princess Bamba Sutherland, carried her ashes from Bombay to Lahore and deposited it at the Samadhi of Ranjeet Singh, fulfilling the death wish of her grandmother. The fabulous Emerald and Seed Pearl Necklace of Maharani Jindan Kaur was sold at the Bonhams auction of October 8, 2009, for a sum of only £55,200. It was well known that the king sized dazzling green emeralds were replaced by ones of lesser fire by Rothschild. The velvet-lining on the lid of the case carried the following inscription in English :- From the Collection of the Court of Lahore formed by HH The Maharajah Rungeet Singh and lastly worn by Her Highness The Late Maharanee Jeddan Kower.(sic!) Jindan Kaur re-converted Duleep Singh to Sikhism, and then petitioned the British Crown to have his kingdom returned. He never received any justice or the respect he deserved. He died in 1893, in Paris, France. When Duleep returned from burying his mother in India he was introduced to a honey pot Bamba Muller by Rothschild’s agents—half German Jew and half Ethiopian. It is rumored that this girl was of Rothschild blood on her father’s side. She was an illegitimate girl who was working at a missionary school in Cairo. He brought her back to England as his wife and they lived a life of luxury and were known to Queen Victoria. Bamba Sutherland was their first child, and was named after her mother, her maternal grandmother and her paternal grandmother respectively. The name Bamba means pink in Arabic. In 1924 permission was finally given for Jindan Kaur’s ashes to be buried in Lahore. It was Princess Bamba Sutherland who supervised their transfer from Bombay where they had been placed when her father Duleep Singh visited India. Bamba Sutherland was widowed in Lahore when her husband died in 1939. She was the last survivor of a royal family who should have owned the Punjab. When she died on 10 March 1957 at the age of 89, her funeral was arranged by United Kingdom Deputy High Commissioner in Lahore. The rites were witnessed by a few select Pakistani dignitaries. The Pakistani authorities did not allow any of her distant relatives to attend, Sikh or Hindu, nor were any Sikhs in Pakistan allowed to attend her rites. Thus no Sikh was present at Princess Bambas funeral, the last of Dalip Singhs line. So much for Muslim and Christian mentality. She was NOT a terrorist. Like I said before Duleep Singh’s first wife was Bamba Muller, by whom he had six children, three boys and three girls. After the death of his first wife in 1887, Duleep Singh, took his second wife Ada Douglas Wetherill, by whom he had two children, both girls. As the last surviving member of the dynasty, Bamba Sutherland left a large quantity of important historical items to her secretary, Pir Karim Bakhsh Supra of Lahore. The collection consists of eighteen paintings, fourteen watercolours, 22 paintings on ivory and a number of photos and other articles. The collection was sold to the Pakistan government and it is kept in Lahore Fort. It is known as the Princess Bamba Collection. A translation of the Persian epitaph on her gravestone has been translated as: The difference between royalty and servility vanishes The moment the writing of destiny is encountered If one opens the grave of a dead None would be able to discern rich from poor The Pakistanis could NOT avoid sarcasm even on the tombstone -- such is the lack of culture!. In his memoirs Karl Wilhelm referred to Princess Bamba Sutherland as – “ the true heiress of Maharaja Ranjit Singh . For she was most conscious of the actual desperate situation of the whole family. She considered the Punjab and Kashmir as the lost possession of her family and was absolutely furious when the border between Pakistan and India was drawn right across the Punjab.” In Princess Bambas eyes, Pakistan or India did not exist, there was just the Punjab and its capital Lahore. She met distant relatives throughout her travels in India, trying to have one last glimpse of the glory that she was denied. In her mind she was the legitimate Queen of the glorious Sikh empire of Punjab. Like I said before none of Duleep Singh’s children has any issue. All the children , boy and girl , were made sterile in a covert manner — such is the sordid tale of British intrigue and treachery. British justice!! – say again? There was an incident of a young tiger cub being caught by shikaris. When Maharaja Ranjit Singh came to know that the mother tiger was running around in search of her cub, and moaning all night, he ordered it to be released to join the tigeress. Maharaja Ranjit Singh died at Lahore on June 27, 1839. At the time of his death, he ruled over an area of one lakh, forty five thousand square miles. But what is significant is that for the first time in a thousand years, he reversed the traditional direction of attacks on India and also laid down fresh frontiers for her. Attacking armies started to push northwards instead of pressing south as heretofore. The northern boundary of Pakistan today is, to an inch, the same as the boundary of the Sikh kingdom Here is a British account of Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s last journey-- When Ranjit Singh died, his body was bathed with fragrant waters, embalmed and then dressed in rich clothes and decorated with ornaments as when he was alive. The sacred Bhagwad Gita was placed on the Maharaja’s chest and, Dhian Singh, having touched the body of his royal master and the book, swore loyalty to the new Maharaja Kharak Singh. The Maharaja’s body was placed on a decorated pier (Hawan) shaped like a ship. As the funeral procession advanced, large amount of coins were thrown amongst the crowd as alms. For the first time in their lives, the Ranis of the Great Maharaja came out unveiled from the harem and followed the corpse bare-footed. They were dressed in pure, white silk and wore no ornaments. They had distributed all their jewels and valuables among the poor before leaving the Zenana for the final Sati. In front of each Rani, at a distance of two or three paces, a man with his face turned towards her walked backwards. He held a looking glass before the Rani in front of whom he walked that she might see that her facial features were composed and unaltered-- that her resolution to sacrifice her life had no effect on her outer appearance. The funeral pyre was constructed of sandalwood in the form of a square, six feet high and upon it were strewn inflammable substances such as cottonseeds etc. The bier, having been brought close to it, its valuable ornaments and coverings were given away to the people. The Brahmins and Gurus then recited passages from their holy books and offered prayers. This took about half an hour. The ascent to the funeral pyre was by a ladder. The ministers and Sardars first ascended and helped in gently removing the royal body from the bier and placing it on the pyre. The four Ranis, with death-despising intrepidity, then ascended the fatal ladders one by one, according to their rank and solemnly occupied a place at the head of their royal husband, holding the head with their hands. The Rajput princess of Kangra Guddan had his head on her lap . The 7 beautiful slave girls, with equal courage and contempt for death, then ascended the ladder and placed themselves at the foot of their lord. The sathis having thus seated themselves were covered with red mats, on which oil had been profusely poured. Raja Dhian Singh at this moment approached the Ranis and begged them to offer prayers for the prosperity of the new Maharaja, but not a word was uttered by the Ranis, who with eyes closed and hand stretched towards the head of the Maharaja, which they were holding, maintained a solemn silence in expectation of the final moment. A strong, thick mat of reeds was then brought and saturated with oil with which all were covered. The Minister, Raja Dhian Singh and the Sardars then came down. Then Dhian Singh suddenly lost his composure and overwhelmed with grief , insisting on being burnt with the Ranis. Thrice, he even attempted to force his way forward and it was with difficulty, that he was physically prevented from sharing the fate of the sathis. For the new king Karakh Singh was a dull witted person. Oil, atta and ghee were then profusely thrown on the pile. This being done, Prince Kharak Singh lit the pyre at each corner. In almost the twinkling of an eye, the unfortunate creatures who had been covered with the mats had ceased to exist and in a short time the whole mass was reduced to ashes. On the third day, the ashes of the dead were picked out by the members of the family and put in separate urns and, placed in separate tents made of Kashmiri shawls, the poles of which were wrought with gold and silver. Preparations were then made to send the ashes to the Ganga. The remains of the Maharaja and those of the Ranis, were placed in separate, richly caparisoned palanquins and brought out, in state, from the Fort. They were accompanied by costly presents such as valuable shawls, richly decorated elephants and horses, gold and silver utensils, rich cloth etc., which were to be distributed as alms among the Brahmins at Hardwar. On the procession leaving the Fort, a royal salute was fired. The procession traversed the principal bazaars and streets; housetops, windows and balconies were all filled with spectators. The door of the palanquin that contained the ashes of the Maharaja was open; those of the other four containing the remains of the Ranis were closed. Mourning was observed for thirteen days, the mourning costume being white. On the thirteenth day, the last funeral obsequies were gone through and thousands of rupees lavished on Brahmins and fakirs. Before the fatal and 4th stroke on June 22, 1839, the Maharaja was managing the affairs of the state as efficiently as before. After the third stroke attack in 1838 he was unable to speak while his mind was still active. He would give orders through the language of signs while the faithful minister Fakir Azizuddin would reduce them to writing and ensured their implementation. According to a British historian, “Ranjit Singh died like the old Lion as he had lived. He preserved his senses to the last, and was (which is unusual with the native princes) obeyed to the last by all his chiefs...”
Posted on: Wed, 06 Nov 2013 09:03:15 +0000
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