Poonch District is a district of Pakistan-administered Azad Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region. It is one of the 10 districts of this Pakistan-administered territory. It is bounded on the north by Bagh District, on the north-east by Haveli District, on the south-east by the Poonch District of Indian-administered Kashmir, on the south by Azad Kashmir's Sudhanoti and Kotli districts, and on the west by Rawalpindi District of Pakistan's Punjab Province. The Poonch District is part of the greater Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan. The district headquarters is the city of Rawalakot. It is the third most populous district of Azad Kashmir.
Hari Singh Nalwa was the 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, Jamrud constituted the western boundary of the Empire.
Maharaja Gulab Singh Jamwal (1792–1857) was the first Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir and the founder of the Dogra dynasty. Originally a commander of the Sikh Empire, he sided with the British in the First Anglo-Sikh War and briefly became prime minister of the Sikh Empire in 1846. In the same year he signed the Treaty of Amritsar with the British, establishing the state of Jammu and Kashmir under the suzerainty of the British Raj; this treaty formalized the transfer of all lands that were ceded by the Sikhs to the British in the Treaty of Lahore.
Pallandri, also spelled Palandri, originally Pulandari, is a Tehsil which serves as the administrative capital of Sudhanoti district of Azad Kashmir. It is located at latitude 33° 42′ 54″ N, longitude 73° 41′ 9″ E, 90 km (56 mi) from Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan. It is connected with Rawalpindi and Islamabad through Azad Pattan road. The main tribe of Pallandri is the Sudhan tribe. Here in Palindri the first Government of Sidhnuti Azad Kashmir on October 4,1947 was established
Sudhan are one of the major tribes from the Poonch Division in Azad Kashmir with their population centered around Poonch and Sudhanoti, alongside a smaller population in the northern areas of the neighboring Bagh and Kotli. According to the local oral tradition of the tribe, they are allegedly a branch of the Saddozai tribe and originated from Pashtun areas in Afghanistan, and were the founders of their heartland of Sudhanoti.
Bhimber is a town and the headquarters of the eponymous district in Pakistan-administered Azad Kashmir. The town and district are between the Jammu region of Indian-administered Kashmir and Pakistan proper, about 47 km (29 mi) by road southeast of Mirpur.
Poonch, is a town and the administrative headquarters of the Poonch district, of the Indian-administered union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, which is part of the larger disputed territory of Kashmir. It is located near the Line of Control – the de facto border in the disputed region. Poonch shares a de facto border with the Poonch district of the Pakistan-administered, self-governing territory of Azad Kashmir.
The Battle of Jamrud was fought between the Emirate of Afghanistan under Emir Dost Mohammad Khan and the Sikh Empire under Maharaja Ranjit Singh on 30 April 1837. Afghan forces confronted the Sikh forces at Jamrud. The garrisoned army was able to hold off the Afghans till Sikh reinforcements arrived to relieve them.
The Dogra dynasty of Dogra Rajputs from the Shivalik hills created Jammu and Kashmir through the treaties with the East India Company following the First Anglo-Sikh war. Events led the Sikh Empire to recognise Jammu as a vassal state in 1820, and later the British added Kashmir to Jammu with the Treaty of Amritsar in 1846. The founder of the dynasty, Gulab Singh, was an influential noble in the court of the Sikh emperor Maharaja Ranjit Singh, while his brother Dhian Singh served as the prime minister of the Sikh Empire. Appointed by Ranjit Singh as the hereditary Raja of the Jammu principality, Gulab Singh established his supremacy over all the hill states surrounding the Kashmir Valley. After the First Anglo-Sikh War in 1846, under the terms of the Treaty of Lahore, 1846, the British East India Company acquired Kashmir from the Sikh Empire and transferred it to Gulab Singh, recognising him as an independent Maharaja. Thus, Jammu and Kashmir was established as one of the largest princely states in India, receiving a 21-gun salute for its Maharaja in 1921. It was ruled by Gulab Singh and his descendants until 1947.
Poonch Jagir, sometimes called Poonch District was former semi-autonomous region in the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. The jagir was administered through four subdivisions to the north, Bagh and Sudhanoti in the west, and Haveli and Mendhar in the east. The Poonch Town, the headquarters of the district, was located in the Haveli tehsil. The territory was divided between India and Pakistan in 1947, represented by the present-day Poonch Division of Azad Kashmir and Poonch District of Jammu and Kashmir.
Diwan Mokham Chand was one of the chief commanders of the Sikh Empire. He conquered Attock from the Durrani Afghans in 1813 and subdued the Rajputs in the Hills of Himachal and in Jammu at Jasrota, Chamba, and Basroli. He also commanded one of the early Sikh expeditions to conquer Kashmir that ended in failure due to bad weather blocking the passes to the valley. Mokham Chand was born in a Hindu Khatri family.
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. From a petty clerk he rose to the position of chief of artillery and commander-in-chief of the armies that conquered Multan and Kashmir and also served as the Commander-in-Chief of the Khalsa Army from 1816 to 1825.
Akali Phula Singh Nihang was an Akali Nihang Sikh leader. He was a saint soldier of the Khalsa Shaheedan Misl and head of the Budha Dal in the early 19th century. He was also a senior general in the Sikh Khalsa Army and commander of the irregular Nihang of the army. He played a role in uniting Sikh misls in Amritsar. He was not afraid of the British who at many times ordered for his arrest but were not successful. During his later years he served for the Sikh Empire as a direct adviser to Maharaja Ranjit Singh. He remained an army general in many famous Sikh battles up until his martyrdom in the battle of Nowshera. He was admired by the local people and had a great influence over the land and his settlement was always open to help the poor and helpless. He was well known and was a humble unique leader and prestigious warrior with high character. He was also known for his effort to maintain the values of Gurmat and the Khalsa panth.
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.
Chibhal, meaning the land of the Chib Rajputs or Bhimber state was an Kingdom founded by a cadet branch of the Katoch Rajputs of Kangra in 1400. Its capital was the town of Bhimber. in modern day Azad Kashmir. It was founded in 1393 AD. By Raja Pratap chand prince of Kangra state.
The 1837 Poonch Revolt, also known as the 1837 Sudhan Revolt was a revolt in the Sudhanoti state in under the Sikh Empire. It took place in what is now the Poonch Division in Azad Kashmir administered by Pakistan. The region was given as a jagir to the Dogra brothers, Dhian Singh and Gulab Singh, whose administration was effectively the target of the rebellion. It was led by an influential zamindar of Poonch and headman of the Sudhans, Shams Khan. After some initial successes, the rebellion was crushed by Gulab Singh with some brutality. A memorial for the victims called Yaadghar-e-Shahuda has been erected at Mong after the formation of Azad Kashmir.
The Kashmir expedition took place in 1814 after the battle of Attock. Ranjit Singh began planning to invade Kashmir, leading to the Sikh invasion led by Hari Singh Nalwa and Ram Dayal.
Sardar Malli Khan was a military general and of Sudhanoti region and leader of the 1837 Poonch Revolt.
Shams-Ud-Din Khan was former governor of Poonch Jagir and influential zamindar of Sudhanoti subdivision and head of the Sudhan tribe and former confidential follower of Raja Dhyan Singh who led the 1837 Poonch Revolt against princely state of Jammu and Kashmir.
