Mai Sukhan

Last updated

Mai Sukhan
Died1824
Known forLeader of the Bhangi Misl
Spouse Sardar Gulab Singh Dhillon

Mai Sukhan (died 1824), was an Majhail ruler of Misl. Mai Sukhan gained recognition in Punjab for her military leadership. Mai Sukhan was a powerful Sikh ruler of the Majha region, which gained her recognition throughout Punjab.

Biography

She was the widow of the Sikh leader Sardar Gulab Singh Bhangi, a Dhillon Jatt of Panjwar village, who had died in 1800 at Bhasin village now in Lahore District. [1] The rulers of the Misl were the Jatts of Dhillon Clan who had ruled from mid 1750s to 1805.

In 1805, when the forces of the Lahore-based Sikh emperor Ranjit Singh were in the midst of the conquest of the holy city of Amritsar, the Sikh band of defenders under the command of Mai Sukhan Dhillon held them off for a considerable period. [2] [3] When requested to surrender the gun Zamzama by Ranjit Singh, Mai Sukhan sealed the city and prepared to defend it. The emperor afterwards recognized her bravery by giving her five or six villages. [4]

She had a son named Gurdit Singh Dhillon, aged ten when his father Gulab Singh died. [1] She died in 1824. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ranjit Singh</span> First Maharaja of the Sikh Empire (1780–1839)

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chand Kaur</span> Malika Muqaddasa of the Sikh Empire from 1840–1841

Chand Kaur was fourth ruler of the Sikh Empire, proclaimed as Malika Muqaddisa on 2 December 1840. She was born to Sardar Jaimal Singh of the Kanhaiya Misl. In 1812, she was married to Crown Prince Kharak Singh, son and heir apparent of Maharaja Ranjit Singh and Maharani Datar Kaur. In 1821 she gave birth to their only son Nau Nihal Singh, who became second in line of succession to the throne of Punjab.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sikh Empire</span> Empire on the Indian subcontinent, 1799–1849

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gulab Singh</span> First Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir from 1846–1856

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Datar Kaur</span> Maharani consort of the Sikh Empire

Maharani Datar Kaur (born Bibi Raj Kaur Nakai; was the queen consort of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the founder of the Sikh Empire and the mother of his successor, Maharaja Kharak Singh. She was the daughter of Sardar Ran Singh Nakai, third ruler of the Nakai Misl and Sardarni Karmo Kaur.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dallewalia Misl</span> Sovereign state of the Sikh Confederacy

The Dallewalia misl was founded by Sardar Gulabi singh a Khatri Sikh as a Jatha but later Succeeded by a Jatt Sikh Sardar Tara Singh Ghaiba of Kang Clan Tara Singh made the Jatha into a powerful Misl in the 18th century India. The founder of this Misl was Sardar Gulab Singh resident of the village of Dallewal near Dera Baba Nanak, in Doaba Bist Jalandhar. He took Pahul and became an active member of the Dal Khalsa in 1726 A.D and launched upon a career of chivalry, fighting against the tyrannical government of the Punjab. One day at the head of 150 comrades, he attacked Jalandhar and having obtained a rich booty all of them returned to their camp in the jungle safely.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nakai Misl</span> State of the Sikh confederacy

The Nakai Misl, founded by Sandhu Jats, was one of the twelve Sikh Misls that later became the Sikh Empire. It held territory between the Ravi and Sutlej rivers southwest of Lahore in what became Pakistan. The misl fought against the Sials, the Pathans and the Kharals before it was incorporated into the Sikh Empire of the Sukerchakia Misl by Ranjit Singh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bhangi Misl</span> Sovereign state of the Sikh Confederacy

The Bhangi Misl was a large and powerful Sikh Misl headquartered in Amritsar. It was founded in the early 18th century by Sardar Chhajja Singh Dhillon, who was baptised by Banda Singh Bahadur. The misl received its name "Bhangi" because Chhajja Singh and his soldiers frequently used the herbal intoxicant bhang. It was a first misl to established a Khalsa Raj and publish Khalsa currency coins. The Bhangi Kingdom/Misl was founded by Dhillon Jats.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kharak Singh</span> Second Maharaja of the Sikh Empire from 1839–1839

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sada Kaur</span> Rani of Sarkar-e-Khalsa

Rani Sada Kaur was a Sikh leader. She served as the Chief of the Kanhaiya Misl from 1789 to 1821, following the death of her husband Gurbaksh Singh Kanhaiya, the heir to Jai Singh Kanhaiya, the leader of the Kanhaiya Misl, and she is sometimes referred to as Sardarni Sada Kaur.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jodh Singh Ramgarhia</span>

Jodh Singh Ramgarhia was a prominent Sikh leader of the Ramgarhia Misl in the Punjab, the son of Jassa Singh Ramgarhia who inherited Jassa's position on his death in 1803. His Ramgarhia followers played an important role in the struggle when Maharaja Ranjit Singh was establishing the Sikh Empire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chabhal Kalan</span> Town in Punjab, India

Chabhal Kalan is a town in the Tarn Taran district of Punjab, India and is located 13 miles (21 km) away from Amritsar city.

Baherwal Kalan is a village in the Kasur District of Punjab, Pakistan. The neighboring villages are Bhonikey, Rore, Taragarh, Khudian, Chak 41, Jaguwala and Kot Het Ram. It is the birthplace of Maharani Datar Kaur, wife of Maharaja Ranjit Singh and the mother of his successor, Maharaja Kharak Singh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ramgarhia Misl</span> State in the Sikh confederacy (1707–1799)

Ramgarhia Misl was a sovereign state (misl) in the Sikh Confederacy of Punjab region in present-day India and Pakistan. The misl's name is derived from Qila Ramgarh, a place located in Ramsar, near Amritsar, which was fortified and redesigned by Ramgarhia Misl chief Jassa Singh Ramgarhia. The Ramgarhia Misl was one of the twelve major Sikh misls, and held land near Amritsar.

Sardar Gulab Singh was the founder of Dallewalia Misl, one of the sovereign states of the Sikh confederacy that rose during the 18th century in the Punjab region. The Dallewalia and Nishanwalia Misl were stationed as a reserve force at Amritsar to protect the holy city and tackle any emergency. The Amritsar and the Punjab region was subject to raids by the Afghans led by Ahmad Shah Abdali therefore the Sikhs had created misls to defend the Punjab region and push back the invaders.

Sardar Ran Singh Nakai was the third chief of the Nakai Misl. He was born to the aristocratic Sandhu family of Jat Sikhs. He distinguished himself at an early age in campaigns with his father, Natha Singh Sandhu and uncle, the legendary Heera Singh Sandhu who was the founder of the Misl. Ran Singh was a fierce warrior and a powerful misldar under his leadership the misl was at its highest. He was the father of Maharani Datar Kaur and the father-in-law of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the founder of the Sikh Empire. He was the grandfather of Maharaja Kharak Singh, the second king of the Sikh Empire and Sardar Kahan Singh Nakai, the last chief of the Nakai Misl.

Sardarni Karam Kaur popularly known as Karmo Kaur was the wife of Ran Singh Nakai,the third ruler of the Nakai Misl. She served as the regent of the Nakai Misl during the reign of her sons, Bhagwan Singh and Gyan Singh. Being the mother of Maharani Datar Kaur, she was the mother-in-law of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the founder of the Sikh Empire. She was the grandmother of Maharaja Kharak Singh, the second king of the Sikh Empire and Sardar Kahan Singh Nakai, the last chief of the Nakai Misl.

The Siege of Lahore took place in early 1800 and spanned two months. It was a coalition response by Bhangi Sardars and Nawab Nizam-ud-Din Khan of Kasur against Ranjit Singh's expanding influence, supported by Rani Sada Kaur. The siege ended with the death of Gulab Singh Bhangi due to excessive drinking. The Bhangi and Pashtun forces then lifted the siege and retreated.

References

  1. 1 2 Bhagata, Siṅgha (1993). A History of the Sikh Misals. Punjabi University. p. 197.
  2. "Women in Power 1800-1840"; 1805 Army Leader Mai Sukhan in Punjab (India); URL accessed 29/12/14
  3. Mai Sukhan; In Your Face Women (includes a portrait); accessed 29/12/14
  4. Chhabra, G. S. (1972). Advanced History of the Punjab, vol 2: Ranjit Singh & post Ranjit Singh period (2 ed.). Punjab: New Academic Publishing Company. p. 106.