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Sobha Singh Kanhaiya of Niazbeg, [1] his first name is alternatively spelt as Suba or Soba, was one of the triumvirates who ruled over Lahore, alongside sardars Lehna Singh Kahlon [2] and Gujjar Singh of the Bhangi Misl, prior to the leadership of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. [3] [4] [5] [6] [7]
Sobha Singh was from the Kanhaiya Misl, a Sikh grouping with a distinct guerilla militia. [8] With its Governor of Punjab Lehna Singh Kahlon Installed by Pashtun King Amir Ahmad Shah Abdali 1747–1772 of Afghanistan Durrani first crossed the Indus River in 1748, the year after his ascension – his forces sacked and absorbed Lahore during that expedition. The following year (1749), the Mughal ruler was induced to cede Sindh Delhi, Vrndavana Mathura and Kashmir and all of the Punjab including the vital trans Indus River to Afghan Pashtun forces of the Durrani Empire.
On 17 April 1765, Sobha Singh Kanhaiya joined the joint capture of Lahore by Gujjar Singh and Lehna Singh Kahlon. [9]
For thirty long years Lehna Singh Kahlon [note 1] , Gujjar Singh Banghi and Suba Singh ruled supreme and kept paying the Afghan Pashtun Ahmad Shah Abdali 1747–1772 and his offspring Timur Shah 1772 – 1793 an annual sum as Taxes.
The Lahore Fort and the Walled Lahore City and its gates went to Lehna Singh Kahlon. He was, for formal purposes, the Governor of Lahore, and was so recognized.
To Suba Singh went the area to the south of the Walled Lahore City, and he resided in the garden of Zubaida Begum in Nawankot, where he built a small fort for himself.
The area between Amritsar and Lahore, or more correctly between the Shalamar Gardens and Lahore, went to Gujjar Singh Banghi.
Gujjar Singh Banghi erected that part of the city, then a jungle and invited people to settle there. He also dug wells to supply water. A mosque was also built for the Muslims in the area. He also built himself a small fort called Qila Gujar Singh. Today, a few walls of that old fort can be seen in a street between today's Nicholson Road and Empress Road, and the area is still called Qila Gujar Singh.
On a final note, their rule of ended when Ranjit Singh besieged the Lahore Fort in 1799 and the three chieftains Lehna Singh Kahlon, Gujjar Singh Banghi and Suba Singh fled, leaving the city firmly in the hands of the young man from Gujranwala Ranjit Singh.
The Sukerchakia Misl was one of twelve Sikh misls in Punjab during the 18th century, concentrated in Gujranwala and Hafizabad districts in western Punjab and ruled from (1752–1801). The misl, or grouping with its own guerilla militia, was founded by Charat Singh of Sandhawalia, grandfather of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. The last Sukerchakia Misldar was Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Towards the end of the eighteenth century, Maharaja Ranjit Singh united all the misls and established an independent Sikh Empire.
Maha Singh, also spelt as Mahan or Mahn Singh, was the second chief of the Sukerchakia Misl, which as a Sikh grouping with its guerilla militia was one of twelve Sikh Misls that later became part of the Sikh Empire. He was the eldest son of Sardar Charat Singh and Sardarni Desan Kaur Warraich. He was the father of Sher-e-Punjab Maharaja Ranjit Singh.
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Jassa Singh Ahluwalia was a Sikh leader during the period of the Sikh Confederacy, being the supreme leader of the Dal Khalsa. He was also Misldar of the Ahluwalia Misl, a Sikh grouping with a distinct guerilla militia. This period was an interlude, lasting roughly from the time of the death of Sikh army leader Banda Bahadur in 1716 to the founding of the Sikh Empire in 1801. He founded the Kapurthala State in 1772.
Sardar Hari Singh Dhillon was an 18th century Sikh warrior and the chief of Bhangi Misl. During the formation of the Dal Khalsa he was acknowledged as leader of Tarna Dal, and he was made chief of Bhangi Misl following the death of Bhuma Singh Dhillion, who he was an adopted son of, in 1748. Hari Singh made the Bhangi Misl the most powerful of all the Misls. He was described as brave, fearless and a great warrior. Under Hari Singh the Bhang Misl expanded to Jammu, Lahore, Chiniot, Buria, Jagadhari, Firozpur, Kushab, Majha, Malwa, Sandal Bar and Jhang.
The Zamzama Gun also known as Kim’s Gun or Bhangianwali Toap is a large-bore cannon. It was cast in about 1757 in Lahore during the Durrani Empire. It is currently on display in front of the Lahore Museum in Lahore, Pakistan.
Vadda Ghalughara was the mass murder of unarmed Sikhs by the Afghan forces of the Durrani Empire during the years of Afghan influence in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent owing to the repeated incursions of Ahmad Shah Durrani in February 1762. It is distinguished from the Chhota Ghalughara. Mostly non-combatants were killed in the event, and an estimated that 10,000 to 50,000 Sikhs were killed on 5 February 1762.
The KanhaiyaMisl was one of the twelve misls of the Sikh Confederacy. It had been founded by Sandhu Jats.
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.
Sardar Charat Singh, also romanised as Charhat Singh, was the founder of Sukerchakia Misl, father of Mahan Singh, and the grandfather of Ranjit Singh, the first Maharaja of the Sikh Empire. 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, a separate grouping with its distinct guerilla militia.
Sardar Gujjar Singh Bhangi was a Sikh warrior of the Bhangi Misl, and one of the triumvirates who ruled over Lahore prior to the leadership of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.
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.
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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.
Kahlwan is a village in Jalandhar district of Punjab State, India. It is located 22 kilometres (14 mi) from Jalandhar, which is both district and sub-district headquarters of Kahlwan. The village is administrated by a Sarpanch who is an elected representative of village as per the constitution of India and Panchayati raj (India). Khalwan is famous for being the birthplace and area of activity of notorious gangster Sukha Khalwan.This village is also linked with Sardar Lehna Singh Kahlon of the Bhangi Misl, who ruled Lahore between 1765 and 1797 and his son Chet who ruled for 2 years before losing Lahore to Maharaja Ranjit Singh - the Kahlons in this village are from his Tubbar (clan) as the Jathera of people in Kahlwan is Village Saidowal near Gurdaspur which is where Lehna's grandfather came from with the mother village in Kartarpur being Mustfapur which is where the grandfather settled - see Sir Leppel Griffin's Panjab Chiefs under Bhangi Sardars.
Sardar Kahan Singh Nakai was the sixth and last chief of the Nakai Misl. He was the grandson of the famous Sikh chief, Ran Singh Nakai and Sardarni Karmo Kaur. His aunt, Maharani Datar Kaur was one of the wives of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, founder of the Sikh Empire. From an early age he assisted his father in campaigns and even commanded campaigns assigned to him by his uncle, Maharaja Ranjit Singh. His cousin, Kharak Singh went on to become the second Maharaja of the Sikh Empire, though he ruled for barely four months. He was the uncle of the third Maharaja, Nau Nihal Singh.
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. She was the mother of Maharani Datar Kaur, one of the wives 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.
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.
Lehna Singh Bhangi was one of the triumvirate rulers of Lahore during the late 18th century.
A history of the Sikhs by Kushwant Singh
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)Abdali then wrote a letter to Lehna Singh with an offer of governorship of Lahore, which was refused. As soon as Abdali left Lahore, Lehna Singh, Gujar Singh and Sobha Singh returned to take over the administration of Lahore.