Raja Sir Harnam Singh Ahluwalia , KCIE (15 November 1851 – 20 May 1930) was a member of the Kapurthala royal family in the direct line founded by

Jassa Singh Ahluwalia Sultan-ul-Qaum Sardar Jassa Singh Ahluwalia (3 May 1718 – 23 October 1783) 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. This period w ...

. He was the first president of the All India Conference of Indian Christians, which played an important role in the

Indian independence movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British rule in India. It lasted from 1857 to 1947. The first nationalistic revolutionary movement for Indian independence emerged ...

, advocating for self-rule and opposing the partition of India. He was also a member of the Kapurthala Council of State and one of the founder trustees of the

Tribune Tribune () was the title of various elected officials in ancient Rome. The two most important were the tribunes of the plebs and the military tribunes. For most of Roman history, a college of ten tribunes of the plebs acted as a check on the ...

Newspaper. He also was one of the patrons of the New India Insurance company founded in 1906 in Calcutta under the

Swaraj Swarāj ( sa, स्वराज, translit=Svarāja '' sva-'' "self", '' raj'' "rule") can mean generally self-governance or "self-rule". It was first used by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj to attain self rule from the Mughal Empire and the Adil ...

movement. It was later nationalised to become India's 4th largest Insurance Company National Insurance Company.

Biography

Harnam Singh was the second son of Raja Sir Randhir Singh Ahluwalia , GCSI, Raja of Kapurthala, and younger brother of Raja Karak Singh Bahadur. He left Kapurthala in 1878 after the premature death of his elder brother led to a struggle for the succession to the Kapurthala throne. Under the influence of his English Tutor Rev. Woodside and aided by a Bengali Missionary Golaknath Chatterji, Harnam Singh converted to Christianity thus renouncing his rights for good. Raja Harnam Singh held many dignities in his life. He was a member of the Legislative Council for the Punjab from 1900 to 1902, a Member of the Kapurthala Council of State and an honorary Fellow of Panjab University. In 1902 he and his wife were in London to attend the Coronation of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra, as representatives of the Christian community in India. He was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire (CIE) in 1885 and knighted as a Knight Commander of the order (KCIE) in 1898.Great Britain. India Office In 1907, Harnam Singh was given the personal title of

Raja ''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia. The title has a long history in South Asia and Southeast Asia, being attested f ...

(roughly equivalent to the modern British life peerage), and he was made a hereditary

in 1911, thus enabling him to found a separate branch of the

Ahluwalia Ahluwalia may refer to: * Ahluwalia (misl) * Ahluwalia (surname) * Ahluwalia (caste) Ahluwalia (also transliterated as Ahluvalia) is an Indian caste native to the Punjab region. The Ahluwalias originally belonged to the Kalal caste, whose t ...

dynasty. He was given the administration of his Awadh properties for his lifetime, a move which was objected by Jagatjit Singh but in vain. Harnam Singh died in 1930 at the age of 78, and was succeeded in his title by his eldest son, Raghubir Singh, who himself died two years later without issue. whereupon the title devolved upon his second surviving son,

Raja Maharaj Singh Raja Sir Maharaj Singh (17 May 1878, Kapurthala, Punjab – 6 June 1959, Lucknow) was the first Indian Governor of Bombay. He was also the Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir during Maharaja Hari Singh's rule and also the Dewan of Jodhpur for ...

. The line of Maharaj Singh maintains the title to this day.

Family

In 1875, he married Rani Priscilla Kaur Sahiba (née Priscilla Golaknath), and had nine children, seven sons and two daughters: #

Raghbhir Singh,

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(3 May 1876 – 17 November 1932) # Kanwar Rajendra Singh (1877–1883) #

Sir

Maharaj Singh Maharaj Singh was an Indian politician. He was elected to the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India from the Mainpuri constituency of Uttar Pradesh as a member of the Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress ...

, CIE,

CStJ The Order of St John, short for Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (french: l'ordre très vénérable de l'Hôpital de Saint-Jean de Jérusalem) and also known as St John International, is a British royal order of c ...

(17 May 1878 – 6 June 1959), who had issue (see article) #

Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

Dr. Doctor is an academic title that originates from the Latin word of the same spelling and meaning. The word is originally an agentive noun of the Latin verb 'to teach'. It has been used as an academic title in Europe since the 13th century, w ...

Kanwar Shamsher Singh,

M.D. Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. T ...

, MRCS, LRCP (21 June 1879–?) #

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Kanwar Indrajit Singh, MC,

, MRCP (27 December 1883 – 23 November 1914) (

KIA Kia Corporation, commonly known as Kia (, ; formerly known as Kyungsung Precision Industry and Kia Motors Corporation), is a South Korean multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. It is South Korea's second lar ...

) # Kanwar Sir Dalip Singh (2 June 1885 – 13 January 1971) # Kanwar Jasbir Singh, CIE (16 June 1887 – 15 October 1942), who had issue including: #*

Air Vice Marshal Air vice-marshal (AVM) is a two-star air officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes u ...

Kanwar Jaswant Singh, PVSM (1915–1963) #*

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

Kanwar

Billy Arjan Singh Kunwar "Billy" Arjan Singh (15 August 1917 – 1 January 2010) was an Indian hunter turned conservationist and author. He was the first who tried to reintroduce tigers and leopards from captivity into the wild.Thapar, V. (2010) ''Obituary: ...

(1917–2010) # Rajkumari Bibiji

Amrit Kaur Dame Rajkumari Bibiji Amrit Kaur (''née'' Ahluwalia) DStJ (2 February 1887 – 6 February 1964) was an Indian activist and politician. Following her long-lasting association with the Indian independence movement, she was appointed the first ...

DStJ The Order of St John, short for Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (french: l'ordre très vénérable de l'Hôpital de Saint-Jean de Jérusalem) and also known as St John International, is a British royal order of c ...

(2 February 1889 – 9 February 1964) # Bibi Raj Kaur (29 May 1882 – 29 May 1882)

Titles

*1852–1885: Kanwar Harnam Singh *1885–1898: Kanwar Harnam Singh, Ahluwalia, CIE *1898–1900: Kanwar Sir Harnam Singh Bahadur, KCIE *1900–1907: The Hon Kanwar Sir Harnam Singh Bahadur, KCIE *1907–1930: The Hon Raja Shri Sir Harnam Singh, KCIE

Honours

* Knight Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire (KCIE – 1898) (CIE – 1885) * Prince of Wales's Medal in silver – 1876 * KIH Silver Medal – 1877 *

Queen Victoria Golden Jubilee Medal The Golden Jubilee Medal was instituted in 1887 by Royal Warrant as a British decoration to be awarded to participants of Queen Victoria's golden jubilee celebrations. Issue The medal was struck to celebrate Queen Victoria's golden jubilee, the ...

– 1887 *

King Edward VII Coronation Medal The King Edward VII Coronation Medal was a commemorative medal issued in 1902 to celebrate the coronation of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra. Issue The medal was awarded in silver and bronze. It was issued in silver to members of the Royal fa ...

in silver – 1902 *

Delhi Durbar Medal Delhi Durbar Medals were instituted by the British Raj, United Kingdom to commemorate the Delhi Durbar where the new Emperor of India was proclaimed, in 1903 for Edward VII, and in Delhi Durbar Medal (1911), 1911 for George V. On both occasions t ...

in silver – 1903 * Personal title of

– 1907 *

in silver – 1911 * Hereditary title of

– 1911

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Harnam Indian Christians Indian royalty 1851 births 1930 deaths Knights Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire People from Kapurthala Punjabi people Members of the Punjab Legislative Assembly Indian knights Converts to Christianity from Sikhism

Biography

Family

Titles

Honours

See also

References