March

Maharaja Ranjit Singh, (1780 - 1839) was a man of great charisma and military skill who at a remarkably young age succeeded in forging the Sikh Kingdom of Punjab from the separate Sikh Misls or independent clans that came to power in the century following the death of the Tenth Sikh Guru, Gobind Singh Ji. After being proclaimed the first Sikh ruler of Punjab in 1801, he set about modernizing his administration and established an army called the Khalsa which although taking its name from the Khalsa community originally created by Guru Gobind Singh Ji in 1699, was modelled on Western lines (even down to some of the uniforms) and employed Europeans amongst its top ranking officers. His kingdom, which stretched from Afghanistan in the West, Kashmir to the North, to the Chinese border on the East and just short of Delhi to the South, was secular in character, with people of all religions being afforded equal rights, protection and opportunity.

It was under Ranjit’s patronage that the arts of Punjab flourished and Punjab’s main cities of Amritsar and Lahore became major centres of trade and commerce. Leather craft, metal work, calico printing and armory were amongst the more popular skills developed. Significant trade links with the west included exports of the highly prized Kashmiri shawl - subsequently popularized as the Paisley shawl, after the Scottish town which was to master the skill from weavers under Ranjit’s patronage and become a centre of manufacturing in Britain.

After his death, the Kingdom which he had ruled for forty years became the object of intense political intrigue and betrayal, eventually resulting in annexation by the British in 1849. It remained under British rule until 1947 (when India gained Independence) and was then divided through Partition between India and Pakistan. Ranjit Singh owned the famous Koh-i-Noor diamond which was confiscated by the British from his youngest son and eventual heir Dhuleep Singh, cut in three and incorporated into the British Crown Jewels.