Ballabhgarh estate, historically known as Ballabgarh estate was a jagir or estate in

Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land ar ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, ruled by Hindu

Jats The Jat people ((), ()) are a traditionally agricultural community in Northern India and Pakistan. Originally pastoralists in the lower Indus river-valley of Sindh, Jats migrated north into the Punjab region in late medieval times, and subse ...

of Tewatia clan. It was founded by

Jat The Jat people ((), ()) are a traditionally agricultural community in Northern India and Pakistan. Originally pastoralists in the lower Indus river-valley of Sindh, Jats migrated north into the Punjab region in late medieval times, and subse ...

king Raja Gopal Tewatia on 1705.

History

The founder: Gopal Singh

Gopal Singh, a

Tewatia Tewatia / Tewatiya / Teotia / Tevatiya are the surnames used by Jats that may refer to the following notable people: *Debi Singh Tewatia (1930–2017), Indian judge *Harendra Singh Tewatia, Indian politician *Rahul Tewatia (born 1993), Indian cricke ...

Jat, the founder of the princely state of Ballabgarh, migrated from Alwalpur village in 1705, and established himself at

Sihi Sihi is a village panchayat, or village counsel, located in the Gurugram district of Haryana state, India. The village is dominated by dalits. Sihi is located away from Chandigarh, the capital of Haryana. The nearest state capital to Sihi is Delh ...

( from Ballabhgarh) after attacking the local Tyagi

Brahman In Hinduism, ''Brahman'' ( sa, ब्रह्मन्) connotes the highest universal principle, the ultimate reality in the universe.P. T. Raju (2006), ''Idealistic Thought of India'', Routledge, , page 426 and Conclusion chapter part X ...

rulers there. Gopal Singh Tewatia of Sihi started establishing his power in Delhi,

Khair Khair is a town and a municipal board in Aligarh district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Khair is the biggest town of Aligarh district. It is situated around 27 km from Aligarh, 114 km from Delhi and 60 km from Mathura. Histo ...

and

Mathura Mathura () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Mathura district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located approximately north of Agra, and south-east of Delhi; about from the town of Vrindavan, and from Govardhan. ...

areas. He attacked

Rajput Rajput (from Sanskrit ''raja-putra'' 'son of a king') is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating from the Indian subcontinent. The term Ra ...

of that area with the help of local Jat villagers. He became more powerful and richer and started looting the mughal travelers on Delhi–Agra royal route during the reign of

Aurangzeb Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...

(d. 1707). In 1710, during the reign of Aurangzeb's son

Bahadur Shah I Bahadur Shah I (14 October 1643 – 27 February 1712), also known as Muhammad Mu'azzam and Shah Alam I. was the eighth Mughal Emperor who ruled from 1707 until his death in 1712. In his youth, he conspired to overthrow his father Aurangzeb, t ...

, the

Mughal Mughal or Moghul may refer to: Related to the Mughal Empire * Mughal Empire of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries * Mughal dynasty * Mughal emperors * Mughal people, a social group of Central and South Asia * Mughal architecture * Mug ...

officer Murtaza Khan killed him in 1711. Gopal's successor was his son Charan Das Tewatia, who was also ambitious. When Charan Das saw weakening of the Mughal rule, he stopped paying ''malgujari'' (octroi) to Mughals. As a result, Mughals arrested and imprisoned Charan Das at Faridabad fort for a short time in 1714 during the reign of

Farrukhsiyar Farrukhsiyar or Farrukh Siyar () (20 August 16839 April 1719) was the tenth emperor of the Mughal Empire from 1713 to 1719. He rose to the throne after assassinating his uncle, Emperor Jahandar Shah. Reportedly a handsome man who was easily sw ...

(r. 1713–1719). His son Balram Singh freed him by pretending to pay the ransom. Charan Das's son, Balram Singh, later rose to be a powerful king.

Expansion: Balram Singh (Ballu Jat)

On 30 June 1750, Safdar Jung, marched against Balram but Balram managed to evade him using stratagem with the help of Marathas. Mughal king Ahmad Shah Bahadur replaced Safdar Jung with Gaziuddin Khan ("Intizam-Ud-Daullahas" or "lmad-ul-Mulk", the imperial

Mir Bakhshi The ''Bakhshi'' () in the Mughal Empire denoted a number of hierarchical government officials, typically involved with military administration and intelligence. The offices were introduced during the reign of Mughal emperor Akbar. ''Bakhshis'' we ...

) as new wizir. Safdar Jung, supported by Balram Jat and Surajmal Jat, revolted against the Mughal king. Murtija Khan's son Aqaibet Mahmud Khan was the chief diwan of Gaziuddin Khan, he and Balram agreed to meet to negotiate the terms of truce. Balram arrived with his son, diwan and 250 men, angry words flew, Balram put his hand on his sword, Aquibat's guard suddenly fell upon Balram and killed him, his son, diwan and 9 other escorts. Maharaja

Suraj Mal Suraj Mal (13 February 1707 – 25 December 1763) was a Jat ruler of Bharatpur in present-day state of Rajasthan. Under him, the Jat rule covered the present-day districts of Agra, Aligarh, Bharatpur, Dholpur, Etawa, Hathras, Mainpuri, M ...

Jat retaliated by capturing

Palwal Palwal is a city and a municipal council. It is the headquarters of Palwal district, the 21st district of Haryana state in northern India. It is a centre of the cotton trade in the area. It is also a part of National Capital Region. Etymol ...

from Mughals on 27 September 1754. He also caught the qazi there and slayed the qanungo Santokh Rai for scheming Balram's murder. In November 1755, Jats under Suraj Mal also recaptured Ballabgarh and Ghasira from Mughals. Suraj Mal appointed sons of Balram, Bishan Singh as Nazim and Kishan Singh as kiledar, who stayed in these roles till 1774 under Suraj Mal.Asloub Ansari, 200
Sir Syed Ahmed Khan: A Centenary Tribute
Page 166. From 1757 to 1760,

Ahmad Shah Abdali Ahmad Shāh Durrānī ( ps, احمد شاه دراني; prs, احمد شاه درانی), also known as Ahmad Shāh Abdālī (), was the founder of the Durrani Empire and is regarded as the founder of the modern Afghanistan. In July 1747, Ahm ...

waged war against Jats and Marathas. After the defeat of

Maratha Empire The Maratha Empire, also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy, was an early modern Indian confederation that came to dominate much of the Indian subcontinent in the 18th century. Maratha rule formally began in 1674 with the coronation of Shi ...

in the Third Battle of Panipat on 12 June 1761, Suraj Mal recaptured Ballabhgarh from Abdali's forced in 1762 and reinstated Balram's sons Kishan Singh and Bishan Singh in their roles under Bharatpur State. On 20 April 1774, Ajit Singh with title of "Raja" and Hira Singh with titles of "Raja" and "Salar Jang" were restored to Ballabhgarh as descendant of Balram by Mughal king after they were removed by Bharatpur king. In 1775, Ajit Singh was formally appointed Raja of Ballabhgarh under Mughal authority. In 1793, Ajit Singh was killed by his brother Zalim Singh, and Ajit's son Bahadur Singh became the king. Till 1803 Ballabhgarh rulers remained under Marathas .In 1785 mahadji capture deeg but not capture bharatpur after 1787 to keep peace with Jats gave 11 paragana to ranjit singh and make friendly relation with bharatpur to make peace ref agra province.

Jat rule during British era

In 1803, after the

Treaty of Surji-Anjangaon The Treaty of Surji-Anjangaon was signed on 30 December 1803 between the British and Daulat Rao Sindhia, chief of the Maratha Confederacy at Anjangaon town located in Maharashtra. On 30 December 1803, the Sindhia signed the Treaty of Surji-Anj ...

Haryana was transferred to British by

. British confirmed Ajit Singh's son Bahadur Singh as independent ruler of Ballabhgarh

jagir A jagir ( fa, , translit=Jāgir), also spelled as jageer, was a type of feudal land grant in the Indian subcontinent at the foundation of its Jagirdar (Zamindar) system. It developed during the Islamic rule era of the Indian subcontinent, start ...

, as a buffer state between British border and Sikhs rulers,1968
Haryana: Studies in History and Culture
Page 74. and it remained an independent

princely state A princely state (also called native state or Indian state) was a nominally sovereign entity of the British Raj, British Indian Empire that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule, ...

until the

Indian Rebellion of 1857 The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the fo ...

. Bahadur Singh killed in 1806. His son Narain Singh became king but he too was killed in 1806. Narain's son Anirudh Singh became king and ruled till he was killed in 1819. His infant son Sahib Singh ruled till 1825 when he died childless. Sahib's paternal uncle and Narain Singh's brother Ram Singh ruled till 1829 till his death. In

Raja Nahar Singh Raja Nahar Singh (died 1858) was a Jat Ruler of the princely state of Ballabhgarh in Faridabad District of Haryana, India . He fought The East India Company in the Indian Rebellion of 1857. The small kingdom of Ballabhgarh is only 20 miles fro ...

ascended the throne in 1829 after his father Ram Singh's death and proved to be a just ruler. Nahar Singh was ruler of 101 villages of Ballabhgarh. He, Nawab Ahmed Ali Khan of

Farrukhnagar Farrukhnagar is a town and municipality in Gurugram district of Haryana, India. It is one of the four administrative blocks of Gurugram district situated from Gurugram and shares its border with Jhajjar district. It is part of the Ahirwal regi ...

, and rulers of neighbouring principalities such as

Rewari Rewari is a city and a Municipal Council in Rewari district in the Indian state of Haryana. King of Rewari is Rao Onkar Singh.It is located in south-west Haryana around 82 km from Delhi

and

Jhajjar Jhajjar is a town in Jhajjar district in the Indian state of Haryana. The city is situated on the road connecting Rewari to Rohtak (NH-352), Loharu to Meerut (NH334B), Charkhi Dadri to Delhi and Gurgaon to Bhiwani. Jhajjar is located west o ...

, took part in the

. On 10 September 1857, just four days before the British Army stormed Delhi, Nahar Singh wrote a letter to

Governor General of India The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 19 ...

Lord Ellenborough Baron Ellenborough, of Ellenborough in the County of Cumberland, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 19 April 1802 for the lawyer, judge and politician Sir Edward Law, Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench from ...

(1842–1844), whom he had met as a young man, seeking his protection. According to a 2011 auction catalogue, "it seems was written as a ruse to deceive the British in the event of his capture... as he was fully committed to the cause of Indian Independence".

Rulers

*Ch Gopal Tewatia (1705–1711) *Ch Charan Das (1711–1714) *Balram Tewatia (1714–1753) *Bisan Tewatia (1753–1774) *Ajit Tewatia (1774–1793) *Bahadur Tewatia (1793–1806) *Narain Tewatia (1806-1806) *Anirudh Tewatia (1806–1819) *Sahib Tewatia (1819–1825) *Ram Tewatia (1825–1829) *

Nahar Singh Raja Nahar Singh (died 1858) was a Jat Ruler of the princely state of Ballabhgarh in Faridabad District of Haryana, India . He fought The East India Company in the Indian Rebellion of 1857. The small kingdom of Ballabhgarh is only 20 miles f ...

(1829–1858)

References