Sikh Empire
Maharaja Ranjit Singh was a Sikh ruler of the sovereign country of Punjab and the Sikh Empire. His father Maha Singh led Sukerchakia, a misl within the Sikh Confederacy. Born in 1780 in Gujranwala, Ranjit Singh succeeded his father at the age of 12. He united the Sikh factions into the Sikh Empire and took the title "Maharaja" on 13 April 1801, to coincide with Baisakhi. Lahore was his capital from 1799. In 1802 he conquered Amritsar, a holy city of the Sikh religion. In 1822 Ranjit Singh hired European mercenaries for the first time to train a part of his troops. He modernized his army, creating a military force whose power delayed the eventual British colonization of Punjab. The result was a powerful and heavily armed state. The Battle of Jamrud in 1837 was a major setback for Ranjit Singh: his general Hari Singh Nalwa was killed, the Khyber Pass was established as the western limit of the Sikh Empire's influence.
Ranjit Singh died in 1839, and his empire crumbled under internal strife and poor governance by his heirs. On the east of his realm Gulab Singh extended Sikh authority in the Himalayas until stopped by the Qing Empire in the Sino-Sikh war (1841–1842). After the First Anglo-Sikh War (1845–46), Punjab effectively ceased to be an independent state. The British Empire annexed the Sikh Empire following the Second Anglo-Sikh War (1848–49).
Read more about this topic: Military History Of India, The Medieval Era
Other articles related to "sikh empire, empire, sikh, sikhs":
... After Maharaja 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 First Anglo-Sikh War ... British encountered the Punjabi Army, opening with a gun-duel in which the Sikhs "had the better of the British artillery" ...
... century, the Khalsa's rise to power had been established but the creation of a Sikh Empire began when the tenth guru of Sikhism, Guru Gobind Singh sent his brave Sikh general, Banda Singh along ... Banda Singh with a large group of Sikhs advanced towards the main Muslim Mughal city of Sirhind and followed the instructions of the guru he punished all the culprits and ... Guru Gobind Singh, stabbed by a Pathan assassin, reached Banda Singh and Sikhs all over Punjab ...
... to the creation of the princely state, Kashmir was ruled by the Pashtun Durrani Empire, until it was annexed by Sikhs led by Ranjit Singh ... During Sikh rule, Jammu was a tributary of the Sikh Empire ... Jammu, Kishore Singh, in 1822, his son Gulab Singh was recognised by the Sikhs as his heir ...
... Sikh Sikhism Maratha Maratha Empire Mughal Empire Rajput Rajputana Aurangzeb Misl Punjab Army Ranjit Singh History of Punjab Punjab Chiefs Maharaja Ranjit Singh's Generals ...
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