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In 1922 Bhagat Singh joined the National College which had been set-up by Lala Lajpat Rai at the Bradlaugh Hall Lahore for those students who did not want to study in British institutions as part of the non cooperation movement. Bhagat Singh studied in National College till 1926 and during this time became involved in many revolutionary organizations such as Naujawan Bharat Sabha and the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association.
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Gurdwara Rori Sahib is the sacred shrine which marks the site where, according to tradition, Guru Nanak after the destruction of the town had stayed with Bhai Lalo. Here the Guru had to sit and lie on a hard bed of pebbles (small stones) (ror-ree in Punjabi) as alluded to in Bhai Gurdas Varan.
When the armies of Babar entered Punjab in 1521, Guru Nanak Dev was present in Eminabad. At the time of capture of Eminabad, many locals were arrested, among whom was Guru Nanak Dev Ji. At the time of the arrest, Guru Nanak was sitting on the pebbles and was busy in his prayers. The Gurdwara stands at the place of the pebbles.
An imposing Gurdwara has been built over the place. A large pond and other buildings make it more graceful. A large estate worth Rs.5000 per annum and 9 squares of agricultural land is endowed to the Gurdwara from the era of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Vaisakhi and Kattak Puranmashi festivals used to be held in the past but only Vaisakhi festival is held now where people from Gujranwala and its adjoining areas participate with fanfare.
This was the premier gurdwara of the town. Its central building is a three-storey imposing structure of cut brick work, which is topped with three chhatri-like structures covered with a large central gumbaz (dome) with smaller chhatris (dome-shaped pavilions) on either side. A rectangular hall adjoins it on the left side of the entry. A large sarovar, surrounded with low walls on two of its sides is set askew to the right of the central entry tower. At the rear of the complex there is a room topped with a particularly exquisite ribbed white lotus dome with a circumambulatory verandah. This room covers the pebbled area on which Guru Nanak was arrested.
Before Partition, Eminabad was known for its week-long Baisakhi fair which included largely attended Congregational gatherings of the Sikhs in Gurudwara Rori Sahib as well as the usual fun and a cattle fair.
Still taken from a play “Shaeed – e – Aazam Bhagat Singh!
Copyright Ankur Thatai / A T Images
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Today, March 23rd is martyrdom day of Indian Freedom Fighters Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev.
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Shaheed Bhagat Singh photographed secretly at Lahore Railway Police Station, during his first arrest 29 May to 4 July 1927 - in connection with Lahore Dussehra Bomb Case (25 Oct 1926) with Gopal Singh Pannu DSP, CID Lahore.
Bhagat Singh was born in Chak Banga 105 G.B. Lyallpur (Faisalabad) Pakistan. Date Of Birth 26-9-1907. He was hanged on 23rd March, 1931 at 7 PM. in Lahore Jail.
Shortly after his arrest and trial for the Assembly bombing, the British came to know of his involvement in the murder of J. P. Saunders. Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, and Sukhdev were charged with the murder. Bhagat Singh decided to use the court as a tool to publicize his cause for the independence of India. He admitted to the murder and made statements against the British rule during the trial.[citation needed] The case was ordered to be carried out without members of the HSRA present at the hearing. This created an uproar amongst Singh's supporters as he could no longer publicise his views.
While in jail, Bhagat Singh and other prisoners launched a hunger strike advocating for the rights of prisoners and those facing trial. The reason for the strike was that British murderers and thieves were treated better than Indian political prisoners, who, by law, were meant to be given better rights. The aims in their strike were to ensure a decent standard of food for political prisoners, the availability of books and a daily newspaper, as well as better clothing and the supply of toilet necessities and other hygienic necessities. He also demanded that political prisoners should not be forced to do any labour or undignified work. During this hunger strike that lasted 63 days and ended with the British succumbing to his wishes, he gained much popularity among the common Indians. Before the strike his popularity was limited mainly to the Punjab region.
Muhammad Ali Jinnah, one of the politicians present when the Central Legislative Assembly was bombed, made no secret of his sympathies for the Lahore prisoners - commenting on the hunger strike he said "the man who goes on hunger strike has a soul. He is moved by that soul, and he believes in the justice of his cause." And talking of Singh's actions said "however much you deplore them and however much you say they are misguided, it is the system, this damnable system of governance, which is resented by the people".
Bhagat Singh also maintained the use of a diary, which he eventually made to fill 404 pages. In this diary he made numerous notes relating to the quotations and popular sayings of various people whose views he supported. Prominent in his diary were the views of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. The comments in his diary led to an understanding of the philosophical thinking of Bhagat Singh. Before dying he also wrote a pamphlet entitled "Why I am an atheist, as he was being accused of vanity by not accepting God in the face of death".
On March 23, 1931, Bhagat Singh was hanged in Lahore with his fellow comrades Rajguru and Sukhdev. His supporters, who had been protesting against the hanging, immediately declared him as a shaheed or martyr. According to the Superintendent of Police at the time, V.N. Smith, the hanging was advanced:
Normally execution took place at 8 am, but it was decided to act at once before the public could become aware of what had happened...At about 7 pm shouts of Inquilab Zindabad were heard from inside the jail. This was correctly, interpreted as a signal that the final curtain was about to drop.
Singh was cremated at Hussainiwala on banks of Sutlej river.
These samadhis of the royal ladies of the Sikh Empire are situated within the grounds of the Islamia College at Civil Lines, just south west of the Chilla of Baba Farid Ganj Shakar. The samadhis are placed on a solid 10 feet high square platform. The original staircase was on the east end of the platform and led up to the samadhi of Maharani Nakain Kaur. Her samadhi is square in structure measuring 16 feet on each side surmounted by a fluted dome. The dome was topped by a metal finial, which is no longer extant. A door has been provided on each of the four sides. Inside, at the center was an 18 inches high and 3x3 feet wide platform on which was placed the stone urn containing the ashes of the second wife of Maharaja Ranjit Singh and mother of Kharak Singh. Her original name was Raj Kaur but she changed her name to Datar Kaur because Ranjit Singh's mother was also named Raj Kaur. She was married to the Maharaja in 1798 who lovingly addressed her as Mal Nakain. She died on 20 June 1838 and her samadhi was built around the same time.
South of the samadhi of Nakain Kaur, on the same platform is the samadhi of Maharani Chand Kaur, wife of Kharak Singh and mother of Naunehal Singh. Her samadhi is also square in construction and measures 16 feet on each side, similar to that of her mother-in-law's. Each of the four corners of the building are topped by small domed towers. In the center is a fluted dome similar to that of Nakain Kaur's samadhi, however; it was never topped with a finial and only the metal rod could be seen emanating from the top of the dome when Kanhaiya Lal wrote about them in 1884. Chand Kaur was married to Kharak Singh in 1812 at the age of 10. She claimed the throne of Lahore in November 1840 for about two and a half months following the deaths of her husband Kharak Singh and son Naunehal Singh. She challenged Sher Singh, the second son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, on the grounds that her daughter in law, Kanvar Naunehal Singh's widow, Sahib Kaur, was pregnant and that she would assume regency on behalf of the unborn legal successor to her husband's throne. Sher Singh, winning support of a rival group at the court and of a section of the army, marched upon Lahore. In July 1841, Nau Nihal Singh's widow Sahib Kaur delivered a stillborn son. This ended whatever hopes Chand Kaur had of realizing her claims. She was killed on 11 June 1842 by her maids who had been appointed by Dhian Singh in collusion with Sher Singh.
Between these samadhis, to the west is another smaller samadhi belonging to Sahib Kaur, wife of Naunehal Singh. It is octagonal in shape, about half the height of the other two samadhis and topped by a smaller simpler dome. Naunehal Singh was married to Sahib Kaur in 1837 at the age of 16. She died in 1841.
Copyright © 2012 Tahir Iqbal, all rights reserved.
This image is not available for use on websites, blogs or other media without the explicit written permission of the photographer.
Copyright © 2013 Tahir Iqbal, all rights reserved.
This image is not available for use on websites, blogs or other media without the explicit written permission of the photographer.
Princess Bamba Sutherland (1869–1957) was the last member of the family that ruled the Sikh Empire in the Punjab. She returned to Lahore from her childhood in England where she was said to have "lived like an alien in her father’s kingdom".Bamba Sofia Jindan Daleep Singh was the eldest daughter of Duleep Singh Sukerchakia and his first wife Bamba Müller. She was born on 29 September 1869 in London. She led an unusual life as her father (the ruler of the Punjab) had been brought to Britain as a child under the care of the East India Company, after the close of the Second Anglo-Sikh War and the subsequent annexation of the Punjab on 29 March 1849.
Bamba's future father was forcibly separated from his mother and brought up as a Christian. When Duleep returned from burying his mother in India he married 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 was their first daughter and was named after her mother, her maternal grandmother and her paternal grandmother respectively. The name "Bamba" means pink in Arabic.
Bamba's grandmother, Jind Kaur, suffered a poor life in India after Bamba's father was taken from her. Eventually she was allowed to rejoin her son in England. Duleep collected her after special permission was given. Duleep was allowed by the British to visit India for the second time to bury his mother's ashes after she died in Britain, although the body had to remain at Kensal Green Cemetery for nearly a year whilst this was agreed. His mother's ashes were not allowed to be buried in Lahore but had to be placed in a memorial in Bombay.
Bamba lived at Elveden Hall until her mother died from kidney failure. She and the rest of her brothers and sisters were placed in the care of Arthur Oliphant, who was her father's equerry. There she completed her schooling until she went to Somerville College at Oxford.
When Bamba decided to visit India, she placed an advertisement to hire a companion. The lady selected was a Hungarian, Marie Antoinette Gottesmann, whose father was an Austro-Hungarian government official from the Catholic upper class circles of Budapest, with the cultural interests requested. The two of them made a number of visits to India settling in Lahore and Shimla. Whilst with the princess, Marie Antoinette met and married Umrao Singh Sher-Gil and they went to live in Hungary. A notable painter, Amrita Sher-Gil, was the result. Bamba settled alone in Lahore and eventually married the Principal of King Edward Medical College in Lahore - Dr David Waters Sutherland.
In 1924 permission was finally given for her grandmother's ashes to be buried in Lahore. It was Bamba who supervised their transfer from Bombay where they had been placed when her father visited India. Her grandmother had actually died in 1863, but it had taken a year to get permission for her body to be returned to India. This was apt as her father had met Bamba's mother in Cairo on his way back from burying his mother's ashes. Bamba deposited the ashes in the memorial to Maharaja Ranjit Singh, her great grandfather.
Sutherland was widowed in Lahore when her husband died in 1939. She was reported to dream of her former glory. She was the last survivor of a royal family who should have owned the Punjab. When she finally died it was said that her funeral was arranged by United Kingdom Deputy High Commissioner in Lahore.Actually the quiet funeral with few guests was arranged by her secretary, Pir Karim Bakhsh Supra.
Sutherland died on 10 March 1957. As the last surviving member of the dynasty, Bamba 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.
Jean-François Allard (1785 - 1839) was a French soldier and adventurer.
Born in Saint Tropez, he became a soldier and was twice injured while serving in Napoleon's army. He was awarded the Légion d'honneur and promoted to Captain of the 7th Hussars. After Waterloo, he drifted around and went to Persia where he visited Abbas Mirza to propose his services. He was promised the position of a Colonel, but never actually received the troops corresponding to his function. In 1820, Allard left for Punjab, where he in 1822 entered the service of the Maharaja Ranjit Singh. He was commissioned to raise a corps of dragoons and lancers. On completion, Allard was awarded the rank of general, and became the leader of the European officer corps in the Maharaja's service.
Allard was a charming and gentle man, very different from some of the other European mercenaries in the Punjab. He also took the trouble learning Persian, and is said to have composed poetry in his new language.
In June 1834, Allard returned to France on leave, but returned 18 months later. He continued to serve the Maharaja until his death in 1839.
Another European taking service in the Punjab with Allard in 1822 was the Italian Jean-Baptiste Ventura. They were joined four years later by the Neapolitan Paolo Di Avitabile and the Frenchman Claude August Court. A Spaniard, Oms, also served with them for a while. Together, these officers drilled the Sikh army into a formidable force.
Allard was awarded the Légion d'Honneur by Napoleon Bonaparte, and the Bright Star of the Punjab by Ranjit Singh.
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Maharani Jind Kaur, (1817 in Chachar, Gujranwala, Sikh Empire – 1 August 1863 in London, United Kingdom) also popularly known as Rani Jindan. She was the youngest wife of Maharaja Ranjit Singh and the mother of the last Sikh Emperor, Maharajah Duleep Singh. In 1845 she became Regent of Punjab for Duleep Singh. The Queen Mother (or Mai) of the last Sikh sovereign of the Punjab. She was renowned for her great beauty and personal charm along with her 'characteristic strength of a man' qualities which the British came to dislike.
Rani Jind Kaur had a Brother Sardar Jawahar Singh and a elder Sister Who Married Sardar Jawala Singh Padhania Chief of Padhana Village in Lahore District.
Rani Jindan was the daughter of a Sikh named Sardar Manna Singh, a Aulakh Jatt of small village of Chachar, in the district of Gujranwala, now in Pakistan. It was reported that Maharaja Ranjit Singh was not interested in marrying a young bride, reportedly she would be his 17th wife. The tender years of Duleep Singh, is the reason why the Maharani did not become 'sati' on the funeral pyre of her husband along with some of the other wives. In order to get rid of Manna Singh's constant requests, the Maharaja sent 'his arrow and sword' to her village to which Jind Kaur was symbolically married in 1835 AD.[1] Ranjit Singh had married nine of his wives with the usual rites and ceremonies of the institution of Anand Karaj (Sikh religious marriage ceremony) and the other seven with the less orthodox customs of 'Chaddar-Pauna', 'Karewa' or ' Tir-patka',[citation needed] a prevalent custom among the Jats of the Punjab. This custom was born from the Sikh religion's rejection[citation needed] of the ancient ritual of 'Sati' or self-immolation of the widow on her husband's funeral pyre, a custom which was still prevalent within most of the families of the nobility and royalty of the Sikh Kingdoms. The Sikh custom allowed the eldest (or younger brother) of the deceased to symbolically marry the widow by placing a 'nath' or nose-ring in the nose of the widow[citation needed] whilst both seated under a white sheet held aloft by members of the family.
In 1845 the First War Took place against the British in Bhai Phero City in Kasur District (Sikh Territory), Before Rani Jind kaur Found that These Hindu Dogra Brothers Were Allies of the British in which to Save the Empire from the Enemies She gave a Letter to Sardar Sham Singh Attariwala to give it to Jathedar Akali Baba Hanuman Singh Shaheed (1755–1845) who was the Head of Sikh Nihang Army and the Head Priest of Amritsar Of Akal Takhat Sahib in the Letter it said that the Sikh Empire Should Be Saved and Protect it against the Dogra and the British, The Jathedar got ready with his Sikh Army to die for the Sikh Kingdom of Motherland Punjab, A Big Battle was fought in which Hundreds of Sikhs Attained Martyrdom on the Battlefield Jathedar with his Few Surviving Sikh Army Injured Traveled in to the Malva Region of Punjab at that time the British Informed Maharaja Karam Singh Of Patiala Sikh Kingdom who was a Allie of the British During the Wars along with other Traitors Such as Maharaja Pahar Singh of Faridkot Sikh Kingdom The British Told them to Attack the Jathedar and his Army These Two Maharaja Traitors Attacked their own Sikh Brothers and Killed the Surviving Sikhs from the Battlefield.
Shortly after the First Anglo-Sikh War saw the British gain hold of Punjab, and in 1846 she was deposed as Regent, forcibly separated from her only son and banished to Sheikhupura near Lahore.
After moving around several gaols, Rani Jindan eventually escaped from Chunar fort, Uttar Pradesh on 19 April 1849 and left a note for the British "You put me in the cage and locked me up. For all your locks and your sentries, I got out by my magic ... I had told you plainly not to push me too hard – but don’t think I ran away, understand well, that I escape by myself unaided ... When I quit the Fort of Chunar I threw down two papers on my gaddi and one I threw on the European charpoy, now don’t imagine, I got out like a thief". The British confiscated her jewelry and rescinded her pension. Rani Jindan arrived in Kathmandu, Nepal on 29 April 1849 and was given political asylum by Prime Minister Jung Bahadur. She was assigned a residence at Thapathall and given an allowance by the Nepalese government.
On 30 March 1849, Duleep Singh (1838–1893) held his last court at Lahore, at which he signed away all claims to the rule of the Punjab. A proclamation by Dalhousie, annexing the Punjab, was then read out. For his services the Earl of Dalhousie received the thanks of the British parliament and a step in the peerage, as Marquess. Gough also received rewards for his services, although his tactics at Chillianwala Near the Jhelum River were to be questioned for the remainder of his life. Many of the junior British Political Agents who had organised local resistance to the Khalsa were to have distinguished later careers.
The End of the Sikh Empire in 1849 was a great Shock for the Punjabi people and the Sikhs and a Great Imperial Power Came to an end, But sikhs made lots of sacrifices to save the Empire but in the end all hopes were lost.
It became a memory of the Golden Age of when the Empire had Reached its Zenith. For Sikhs they shall always remember the Last Sikh Raj.
In 1860 she was eventually permitted to see her son, Maharaja Duleep Singh in Calcutta, who brought her to the shores of England, She had lost her eye sight But as she Touched Duleep singh on the Head he had cut his hair she Started to Cry Pushed him and said The Maharaja Has Died, Our Empire Had Gone from out hands but i never thought that My son Would Forget His Sikh Background. he then after Grew His hair and became a True Sikh Again the British did not allow him to visit his Beloved Motherland Punjab. He died in Paris France never to step on British Soil.
From 1849-1947 For 98 Years the British ruled the Punjab Made it part of British India until the partition Took Place and Independence.
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Dhamuli is a Village in Bhogpur Mandal in Jalandhar District in Punjab State in India . Dhamuli is 24.9 km distance from its District Main City Jalandhar .
Copyright © 2013 Tahir Iqbal, all rights reserved.
This image is not available for use on websites, blogs or other media without the explicit written permission of the photographer.
Copyright © 2012 Tahir Iqbal, all rights reserved.
This image is not available for use on websites, blogs or other media without the explicit written permission of the photographer.
Hazuri Bagh is a garden in Lahore, Pakistan, bounded by the Lahore Fort (east side), Badshahi Mosque (west side), the Samadhi of Ranjit Singh (north side) and the Roshnai Gate (south side). In the center stands the Hazuri Bagh Baradari, built by Ranjit Singh.
The Hazuri Bagh is a small enclosure between the Alamgiri Gate of the Lahore Fort and eastern gate of the Badshahi Mosque. This garden was built by Maharajah Ranjit Singh in 1813 to celebrate the capture of the famous Koh-i-Noor Diamond from Shah Shujah of Afghanistan. The Serai Alamgiri formerly stood here.
The garden was planned and built under the supervision of Faqir Azizuddin in the traditional Mughal style layout. After its completion, it is said, Maharajah Ranjit Singh, at the suggestion of Jamadar Khushhal Singh, ordered that marble be removed from various mausoleums of Lahore to construct a baradari (pavilion) here. This task was given to Khalifa Nooruddin. Elegant carved marble pillars support the baradari’s delicate cusped arches. The central area, where Ranjit Singh held court, has a mirrored ceiling. Both the garden and the baradari, originally a 45-foot, three-storey square with a basement approached by fifteen steps, suffered extensive damage during the fratricidal Sikh wars and was only reclaimed and laid out according to the original plan during the British period. On 19 July 1932, the uppermost story collapsed and was never reconstructed.
Every Sunday afternoon, people gather in the gardens to hear reciters recite traditional Punjabi Qisse, such as Heer Ranjha and Sassi Punnun, and other Punjabi Sufi poetry.
The tomb of Muhammad Iqbal lies across from the garden outside of the Badshahi Mosque.
Shrine covering the pebbled area where Guru Nanak was arrested.
Gurdwara Rori Sahib is the sacred shrine which marks the site where, according to tradition, Guru Nanak after the destruction of the town had stayed with Bhai Lalo. Here the Guru had to sit and lie on a hard bed of pebbles (small stones) (ror-ree in Punjabi) as alluded to in Bhai Gurdas Varan.
When the armies of Babar entered Punjab in 1521, Guru Nanak Dev was present in Eminabad. At the time of capture of Eminabad, many locals were arrested, among whom was Guru Nanak Dev Ji. At the time of the arrest, Guru Nanak was sitting on the pebbles and was busy in his prayers. The Gurdwara stands at the place of the pebbles.
Copyright © 2013 Tahir Iqbal, all rights reserved.
This image is not available for use on websites, blogs or other media without the explicit written permission of the photographer.
Gurudwara Kiara Sahib is situated at a distance of one and a half kilometres from Gurdwara Janam Asthan. According to Janam Sakhi, when Guru Nanak was yet a young man, he was sent to graze cattle. While resting underneath a shady tree, Guru was immersed in thoughts and the cattle went astray in the fields of a farmer.
On having seen this, the farmer got red with rage. The clamouring made by the peasent disturbed the young Nanak waking him from his trance. Recognizing the the son of the village's patwari, he made a complaint to Rai Bular who went with the farmer to see the damage. But on getting to the field that had been trampled everyone was surprised to fine no damage at all.
The Guru drove the cattle towards his house. On his return, the Guru just had a kind look at the fields which turned green. By watching this miracle, the Hindus and the Muslims revered the Guru. This Gurdwara is situated in that historical field. The building is large.
A boundary wall and a sarovar has been built around the whole field. Before obtaining the management of this Gurdwara by the panth in February 1921, a trio consisting of Mahant Fauja Singh, Mahant Ujjagar Singh and Mahantani Inder Kaur, was managing the affairs of this Gurdwara. After the partition of 1947, This Gurdwara came under the Pakistan Waqf Board.
The temple, located near Shish Mahal (Mirror Palace), was built in Ranjeet Singh`s period by Maharani Chand Kaur, the wife of Mahraja Kharak Singh.
Square in plan and placed on a raised platform, the temple`s interior and exterior walls have been adorned with fresco paintings. It has a cube shape crowned with a ribbed watermelon-shaped dome.
For being closed for a long time and lack of upkeep, the temple wears a worn-out and faded look. Its wooden door is on a significant height and cannot be reached without stairs which are not there. The Fort staff uses a rotten iron staircase to access the door. The temple`s lock has got jammed and can`t be opened without oiling.
“Under the prevalent circumstances, when there are security risks we just cannot open the temple for the public,” an official told wishing anonymity. About staff shortage, he said though 40 watchmen had been hired in addition to a team of 30, the Fort still needed more of them. The official said a proposal for hiring more staff was lying with the department but Punjab government`s `austerity drive` might prove a stumbling block.
He said the department was also reluctant to open the temple because most visitors were in the habit of writing graffiti or etching their names on walls which could spoil the historic structure.
He said the visitors generally lacked awareness as how to visit a historical place, suggesting print and electronic media advertisement campaigns to educate the public in this regard.
Maharani Chand Kaur (1802-1842) was the wife of Maharaja Kharak Singh, the eldest son of and successor to Maharaja Ranjit Singh. She was married to Prince Kharak Singh in February 1812 at the age of 10. After the death in most tragic circumstances of her husband, the then Maharaja of the Punjab, as well as of her other son Kanvar Nau Nihal Singh in November 1840, she withdrew her claim to the throne of Lahore.
This Gate was built on Manawala Nankana Sahib Road. Nankana Sahib Is 16 Kilometer from this point. This is Four lane road to Nankana Sahib.
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Maharaja Sher Singh (4 December 1807 - 15 September 1843), was the Sikh sovereign of Punjab from January 1841 until his assassination in September 1843. He was the son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, born on 4 December 1807 to Mahitab Kaur, Maharaja's first wife. Sher Singh grew up to be a handsome, broad-chested young man given to fashionable dress and lavish jewellery. His soldierly mien made him popular with the army. He loved hunting and hawking, and devoted attention to cultivating European interests and hobbies in the company of foreigners serving at the Sikh court.
In 1829, Maharaja Ranjit Singh conferred upon him civil and military honours and the privilege of being seated on a chair in his Darbar. Sher Singh took part in many of the campaigns undertaken by the Maharaja for the expansion of his kingdom. In May 1831 he defeated, at Balakot in Hazara district, the turbulent Sayyid Ahmad Barelavi who had started a jihad against Sikh rule. From 1831 to 1834 he acted as governor of the province of Kashmir. In 1834 he was one of the army commanders who led forces in Peshawar and who finally seized the city from the Afghans.
In the political vacuum created by the successive deaths in November 1840 of Maharaja Kharak Singh and his son Kanvar Nau Nihal Singh, Sher Singh staked his claim to the throne of the Punjab. Another major contestant was Rani Chand Kaur, Kharak Singh's widow, who sent for Gulab Singh Dogra from Jammu to counteract the influence of his brother, Raja Dhian Singh, who had declared support for Sher Singh. Dhian Singh suggested several compromises. Chand Kaur could marry Sher Singh or, being childless could adopt Sher Singh's son Pratap Singh as her son. However, Chand Kaur asserted that Nau Nihal Singh's widow was pregnant and might give birth to a rightful successor.
Ultimately an arrangement was arrived at under which Chand Kaur was to act as regent for her expected grandson, while Sher Singh would function as vice-regent and head of the council of regency, and Dhian Singh as the principal minister. But the triumvirate failed to work in unison. A few days later, two powerful Sandhanvalia Sardars, Atar Singh and Ajit Singh, collaterals of the royal contenders for the throne, arrived in Lahore and took over control. On 2 December 1840, Chand Kaur was proclaimed the Maharani of the Punjab, with the title of Malika Muqaddasa (immaculate queen). The next day Sher Singh left Lahore for his estate in Batala. A month later, Dhian Singh Dogra was compelled to quit the capital, and Chand Kaur and the Sadhanvalias gained complete control of the administration.
Sher Singh still had the support of the army and most of the crack regiments had gone over to his side. The European officers were with him too. In January, 1841, he arrived in Lahore at the head of a considerable force. Chand Kaur had appointed Gulab Singh Dogra as commander-in-chief and charged him with defending the city. She cleared the soldiers arrears of pay for four months, and lavished presents of gold bangles, necklaces and shawls on the officers. She issued orders to the city bankers forbidding them to lend money to Sher singh. But the situation turned decisively in favour of Sher Singh, when regiments stationed outside the city-walls joined him in a body. He finally had with him 26,000 infantry, 8,000 horses, and 45 guns, whereas Chand Kaur was left with only 5,000 men, a few guns and a limited quantity of gunpowder.
Sher Singh forced his way into the city, and made a proclamation assuring safety of life and property to the citizens and offering pardon to those who would come over to him. The leading courtiers made their submission and forwarded a joint appeal to Chand Kaur and Gulab Singh Dogra to lay down arms. The Maharani, however chose to fight. For two days, Sher Singh's artillery shelled the fort, but with little effect. On the evening of 17 January 1841, Dhian Singh Dogra arrived and secured a ceasefire. Chand Kaur was persuaded to accept a jagir and relinquish her claim to the throne. At midnight Gulab Singh Dogra and his soldiers evacuated the Fort, taking with them all the State's hoard of gold and jewels. From among the Sandhanvalia supporters of Chand Kaur, Ajit Singh fled to seek help from Mr. Cler, British political agent in Ludhiana, and, on his refusal to receive him, he proceeded to calcutta to see the Governor-General. Ajit Singh's uncle, Atar Singh, also sought asylum in the British territory.
Although Sher Singh had shown magnamity in allowing Atar Singh and Ajit Singh to return to the Punjab and to resume their accustomed positions at the court, they were not reconciled to him. Their original nominee for the throne of the Punjab, Mai Chand Kaur, whose cause they had persistently espoused even after crossing over to the British territory, was now dead (9 June 1842), yet they continued to nurture a feeling of hostility towards Sher Singh. This culminated in a murderous plot. On 15 September 1843, the Maharaja rode out of the city early in the morning, that being a sankrant the first day of the Bikrami month, there was no darbar for him to attend. He alighted near Tej Singh's garden where tents were put up for his son, Kanvar Partap Singh.
To fulfil the morning's engagement, he moved on the Shah Balaval where sitting in the baradari or pleasure house, he witnessed wrestling-bouts, with Diwan Dina Nath and Buddh Singh, his armour-bearer, in attendance. After he had dismissed the wrestlers with due charity, the Sandhanvalia Sardars, who had followed him with 150 horse and 300 foot, requested him to inspect their troops.
Totally without suspicion, Sher Singh agreed and came out of the room. After the parade, Ajit Singh sought his permission to show him a carbine he had obtained from an Englishman in Calcutta. As the Maharaja who was a great lover of weapons put forth his hands to take hold of the rifle, Ajit Singh pressed the triggers and emptied the loaded barrels into his chest. "Oh, Sardar, What deception?" was all the Maharaja could say as he dropped to the ground dead. Ajit Singh rushed forward and cut off his head with a single blow of the sword. The shots that killed Sher Singh were a signal for the elder Sandhanvalia, Lahina Singh, to pounce upon the 12-year old son of Maharaja Sher Singh, in the nearby Tej Singh garden, and hack off his head. Dhian Singh was also killed shortly after that. The Sandhanvalia sardars were hunted down and killed shortly after this.
Sher Singh was survived by his son Sahdev Singh, born to Rani Dukno in 1843, who, after the annexation of the Punjab in 1849, accompanied the deported king, Duleep Singh, to Fatehgarh in Uttar Pardesh. Descendants of Sahdev Singh, his son Basdev Singh and daughter Harbans Kaur (later married to the Rana of Dhaulpur), lived at Rae Bareli.