Diwan Bhawani Das | |
---|---|
Finance minister of the Sikh Empire | |
Reign | 1811-1834 |
Predecessor | Position established |
Successor | Diwan Dina Nath [1] |
Born | 1770 |
Died | 1834 |
Father | Diwan Thakur Das |
Religion | Hinduism [2] |
Diwan Bhawani Das (1770 - 1834) was a high-ranking Hindu [1] official under Durrani emperors, Zaman Shah and Shah Shujah. He later became the revenue minister of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, ruler of the powerful Sikh Empire. [3] [4] [5] [6]
Bhawani Das was born in 1770 and was the second son of Diwan Thakur Das, the revenue minister of the Durrani emperor, Ahmad Shah Abdali. He was born into a Khatri family. [7] Bhawani Das served as a high-ranking revenue officer under Durrani emperors, Zaman Shah and Shah Shujah, mostly employed in collecting the custom duties of Multan and Derajat.
In 1808, disgusted at the way he was treated at the Kabul court, he went to Lahore to serve under Maharaja Ranjit Singh, ruler of the Sikhs. He was warmly welcomed by Ranjit Singh as the Sikh state was in need of a proper state treasury and system of regular accounts. His employment proved fruitful- Bhawani Das established an office for pay of troops and a finance office, of both of which he was made the head. [8] He set up 12 departments called daftars (offices) to deal with all civil and military accounts. In the districts of different subahs, treasuries were established to maintain regular accounts of income and expenditure. In newly conquered territories, settlement officers were appointed to regulate revenue and finance. [3] [4] [9] His successes impressed Ranjit Singh and he was appointed the finance minister in 1811. [9] However, Bhawani Das was not an honest man, and had to reprimanded on several occasions. [10] Sohan Lal Suri, author of the Umdat-ut-Tawarikh, writes- "His hunchback was full of mischief". [11]
Bhawani Das was one of Ranjit Singh's counsellors at the negotiations with the British envoy, Charles T. Metcalfe. In 1810, a huge force under the command of Diwan Bhawani Das was dispatched by the Sikh court at Lahore to crush the rebellion of the popular warrior Mian Dido in the hills of Jammu and capture him. However, he failed in capturing Mian Dido despite trying his best and succeeded in only restoring order in Jammu town and failed to impose his authority in large areas of Jammu hills. [12] [13] In the same year, Bhawani Das was sent to collect tribute from the rulers of Mandi and Suket. In 1813, he invaded and annexed Haripur State in the Kangra hills [14] and accompanied Maharaja Ranjit Singh for the acquisition of the famed Koh-i-Noor diamond from Shah Shujah Durrani. [15] He was made chief diwan of prince Kharak Singh in 1816 and in the same year, he successfully annexed the Ramgarhia estates to the Sikh Empire. [3]
He was also present at the Siege of Multan, where he was bribed by the Nawab of Multan. [16] [17] He also took part in the expeditions to Peshawar and the Yusafzai country. [3] [4] He suffered an eclipse in his career when he quarreled with Misr Beli Ram, the treasurer and second son of Misr Diwan Chand. [18] Misr Beli Ram accused Bhawani Das of embezzlement and Bhawani Das was fined a lakh rupees by Ranjit Singh, and was expelled from the Lahore court to the hills of Kangra. However, his services were too valuable to wasted hence he was recalled and served as finance minister until his death in 1834. He was succeeded by Dina Nath as minister of finance. [3] [4] [9]
Ranjit Singh, popularly known as Sher-e-Punjab or "Lion of Punjab", was the first Maharaja of the Sikh Empire, which ruled the northwest Indian subcontinent in the early half of the 19th century. He survived smallpox in infancy but lost sight in his left eye. He fought his first battle alongside his father at age 10. After his father died around Ranjit's early teenage years, Ranjit subsequently fought several wars to expel the Afghans throughout his teenage years. At the age of 21, he was proclaimed the "Maharaja of Punjab". His empire grew in the Punjab region under his leadership through 1839.
Diwan Dina Nath (1795—1857), was an official of the durbar (court) of the Sikh Empire, whom served as the privy seal and finance minister, and later was conferred the title of Raja by Maharaja Ranjit Singh.
Sher Singh was the fourth Maharaja of the Sikh Empire. Elder of the twins of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, founder of the Sikh Empire and Maharani Mehtab Kaur. His reign began on 18 January 1840 following his assault on Lahore which ended the brief regency of Maharani Chand Kaur. He was assassinated on 15 September 1843 by Ajit Singh Sandhawalia.
The Sikh Empire was a regional power based in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent. It existed from 1799, when Maharaja Ranjit Singh captured Lahore, to 1849, when it was defeated and conquered by the British East India Company in the Second Anglo-Sikh War. It was forged on the foundations of the Khalsa from a collection of autonomous misls. At its peak in the 19th century, the empire extended from Gilgit and Tibet in the north to the deserts of Sindh in the south and from the Khyber Pass in the west to the Sutlej in the east as far as Oudh. It was divided into four provinces: Lahore, which became the Sikh capital; Multan; Peshawar; and Kashmir from 1799 to 1849. Religiously diverse, with an estimated population of 4.5 million in 1831, it was the last major region of the Indian subcontinent to be annexed by the British Empire.
Hari Singh Nalwa was Commander-in-chief of the Sikh Khalsa Fauj, the army of the Sikh Empire. He is known for his role in the conquests of Kasur, Sialkot, Attock, Multan, Kashmir, Peshawar and Jamrud. Hari Singh Nalwa was responsible for expanding the frontier of Sikh Empire to beyond the Indus River right up to the mouth of the Khyber Pass. At the time of his death, the western boundary of the empire was Jamrud.
Maharaja Gulab Singh Jamwal (1792–1857) was the founder of Dogra dynasty and the first Maharaja of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, which was a part of Panjab and Sikh Empire became the largest princely state under the British Raj, which was created after the defeat of the Sikh Empire in the First Anglo-Sikh War. During the war, Gulab Singh would later side with the British and end up becoming the Prime Minister of Sikh Empire. The Treaty of Amritsar (1846) formalised the transfer of all the lands in Kashmir that were ceded to them by the Sikhs by the Treaty of Lahore.
Kharak Singh was the second Maharaja of the Sikh Empire. He was the eldest son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, founder of the Sikh Empire and his consort, Maharani Datar Kaur. He succeeded his father on 27 June 1839 and reigned until his dethronement and imprisonment on 8 October 1839. He was succeeded by his only son Nau Nihal Singh.
Sardar Charat Singh, also romanised as Charhat Singh, was the founder of Sukerchakia Misl and father of Mahan Singh, and the grandfather of Ranjit Singh. He distinguished himself at an early age in campaigns against Ahmad Shah Abdali and along with 150 horsemen split from the Singhpuria Misl to establish the Sukerchakia Misl.
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The Battle of Shopian took place on 3 July 1819 between an expeditionary force from the Sikh Empire and Jabbar Khan, the governor of the Kashmir Valley province of the Durrani Empire. It was the decisive battle during the Sikh expedition into Kashmir in 1819.
Misr Diwan Chand was a notable officer and a powerful general of Maharaja Ranjit Singh's reign. He rose from petty clerk to the Chief of Artillery and Commander-in-chief of the armies that conquered Multan and Kashmir and also served as the Commander-in-Chief of Khalsa Army from 1816 to 1825. and was a notable pillar of the state.
The Sikh Rule in Lahore initiated from the conquest and rule of the Sikh Misls and extended till the Sikh Empire of Ranjit Singh which ended in 1849. The Sikhs began gaining power following the decline of the Mughal Empire in Punjab and consisted of a collection of autonomous Punjabi Misls, which were governed by Misldars, mainly in the Punjab region.
The Afghan–Sikh wars spanned from 1748 to 1837 in the Indian subcontinent, and saw multiple phases of fighting between the Durrani Empire and the Sikh Empire, mainly in and around Punjab region. The conflict's origins stemmed from the days of the Dal Khalsa, and continued after the Emirate of Kabul succeeded the Durrani Empire.
Adina Beg Khan was a Punjabi general and administrator who served as the last governor of the Punjab region of the Mughal Empire, including the provinces of Lahore and of Multan. He defeated Afghans after rising to power and was recognised as the Nawab of Punjab by Mughal emperor Alamgir II, who also gave him title of Jang Bahadur.
Nawab Muzaffar Khan was the last Afghan governor of Multan.
The Battle of Jammu was fought between Sikhs and the Dogra Rajputs in 1808. The Dogras lost Jammu and Hukam Singh Chimni captured the Jammu city. This was a great success for the Sikhs as now their route to Kashmir was open. Kashmir was later on conquered by Sikhs under Misr Diwan Chand the Army chief of Maharaja Ranjit Singh in 1819.
Mian Ghaus Khan, also known as Mian Ghausa, was a Punjabi Muslim of Arain descent who served as an artillery officer of the Sukerchakia Misl under Sardar Maha Singh. After Maha Singh's death, Ghaus Khan served his son, Ranjit Singh, the founder of the Sikh Empire. Ghaus Khan's son, Sultan Mahmud Khan and grandson, Sultan Ahmad Ali Khan, too served in the Sikh Khalsa Army.
Sultan Mahmud Khan was a commander of the Sikh Khalsa Army, the army of Sarkar e Khalsa. His derah of artillery was designated as Topkhana Sultan Mahmud. He is regarded as one of the best commanding officers of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.
The Battle of Ali Masjid took place on the 27 July 1839 between the Sikh Empire and its allies against the Emirate of Afghanistan. In the battle, the Khalsa Army and its Afghan levies emerged victorious and subsequently marched into Kabul.