James Skinner CB (1778 – 1841) , 19th century

The Jahaj Kothi Museum in Hisar,

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 ...

, originally an 18th-century Jain temple which was also the residence of George Thomas ( – 22 August 1802) and James Skinner ( – 1841), is located inside the Firoz Shah Palace Complex which lies in front of

Hisar Bus Stand Hissar ( ar, حصار, link=no) means fort or castle in Arabic, with variants adopted into Persian (hesar, hessar) and Turkish (hisar). Hissar, Hisar and Hesar may refer to: Places Asia (South and Central) India *Hisar (city), a city in Haryana ...

.Jahaj Kothi museum
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History

''Jahaj Kothi Museum'' is a later era building located inside Firoz Shah Palace Complex and maintained by

Archaeological Survey of India The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is an Indian government agency that is responsible for archaeological research and the conservation and preservation of cultural historical monuments in the country. It was founded in 1861 by Alexande ...

. It is called the , Hindi for the ''ship'' as its shape resembles a ship. It was originally a Jain temple which was later used as residence by the Irish mercenary adventurer George Thomas ( – 22 August 1802). George's father was a poor Catholic tenant farmer near Roscrea who died when George was a child. Originally press-ganged at

Youghal Youghal ( ; ) is a seaside resort town in County Cork, Ireland. Located on the estuary of the River Blackwater, the town is a former military and economic centre. Located on the edge of a steep riverbank, the town has a long and narrow layout. ...

, where he worked as a labourer on the docks, Thomas deserted from the British Navy in

Madras Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

in 1781. Still illiterate, he led a group of

Pindari The Pindaris were irregular military plunderers and foragers in 17th- through early 19th-century Indian subcontinent who accompanied initially the Mughal army, later the Maratha army, and finally on their own before being eliminated in the 1817� ...

s north to

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...

by 1787, where he took service under

Begum Samru Joanna Nobilis Sombre (– 27 January 1836), popularly known as Begum Samru (née Farzana Zeb un-Nissa),. a convert Catholic Christian started her career as a nautch (dancing) girl in 18th century India, and eventually became the ruler of Sard ...

Sardhana Sardhana is a city and a municipal board in Meerut district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is northeast of New Delhi and 13 mi from Meerut. It is 5 km from Meerut Karnal National Highway and 12 km from National Highway 5 ...

. Supplanted in her favour by a Frenchman, he transferred his allegiance to Appa Rao, a Mahratta chieftain. He carved out an independent kingdom in the districts of Rohtak and Hissar and made

Hansi Hansi, is a city and municipal council in Hisar district in the Indian state of Haryana. It appears that at one time Hansi was larger, more prosperous and more important than Hisar. The town has several important buildings of archeological import ...

as his capital. During his short period of rule, he established a mint in Hansi and released rupees of his own kingdom. His area of control included area from

Ghaggar The Ghaggar-Hakra River is an intermittent river in India and Pakistan that flows only during the monsoon season. The river is known as Ghaggar in India, before the Ottu barrage, and as the Hakra in Pakistan, downstream of the barrage, ending ...

to Beri in south and from Meham to Baharda in west. He rebuilt Hansi, which was in ruined state and built defensive walls and fortifications. In 1796 AD, George rebuilt ''Jahaj Kothi'' at Hisar,

which was his residence. He ruled the area independently up to 1801, when he was driven out by Sikh-Maratha-French confederacy. He was finally defeated and captured by Scindia's army under General

Pierre Cuillier-Perron Pierre Cuillier-Perron (1753 to 1755–1834), French military adventurer in India born Pierre Cuillier (or Cuellier) at Luceau near Château-du-Loir, the son of a cloth merchant. In India, he changed his name to Perron (a diminutive of Pierre). He ...

. He died on his way down the Ganges on 22 August 1802. After George's defeat, this was taken over by James Skinner ( – 1841) who also used this as his residence. It lies near the locality called or " bridge" which still exists in the form of a ramp road to its east between this building and auto market.

use this as its site office and maintains a small museum inside.Hisar district history
/ref>
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Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

James Skinner CB (1778 – 4 December 1841) was an

Anglo-Indian Anglo-Indian people fall into two different groups: those with mixed Indian and British ancestry, and people of British descent born or residing in India. The latter sense is now mainly historical, but confusions can arise. The ''Oxford English ...

military adventurer in

, who became known as later in life, and is most known for two cavalry regiments he raised for the British, later known as 1st Skinner's Horse and

3rd Skinner's Horse The 3rd Skinner's Horse was a cavalry regiment of the British Indian Army. It was originally raised at Hansi by Lt.-Col. James Skinner as the 2nd Regiment of Skinner's Horse in 1814, the various changes and amalgamations are listed below. *18 ...

(formerly 2nd Skinner's Horse) at

in 1803, which still are a part of the

Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...

Colonel James Skinner CB
''

National Army Museum The National Army Museum is the British Army's central museum. It is located in the Chelsea district of central London, adjacent to the Royal Hospital Chelsea, the home of the "Chelsea Pensioners". The museum is a non-departmental public body. ...

'' (

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

Building material

Built in 18th century, the building is constructed of burnt mud and clay bricks and mortar made of

lime Lime commonly refers to: * Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit * Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide * Lime (color), a color between yellow and green Lime may also refer to: Botany ...

sand Sand is a granular material composed of finely divided mineral particles. Sand has various compositions but is defined by its grain size. Sand grains are smaller than gravel and coarser than silt. Sand can also refer to a textural class of s ...

, and surkhi.Dept of Archaeology Haryana
/ref> Surkhi is made by grinding to powder burnt bricks, brick-bats or burnt clay, used as a substitute for sand for concrete and mortar, has almost the same function as of sand but it also imparts some strength and hydraulicity.

Departments and collections

This zonal museum, maintained by the

Haryana State Directorate of Archaeology & Museums Haryana State Directorate of Archaeology & Museums is a ministry and department of the Government of Haryana in India. Description This department came into existence in 1972 after Haryana was established as a new state in 1966 within India a ...

,Haryana State Directorate of Archaeology & Museums
/ref> houses the collection of

Jain Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...

artifacts and inscription stone of George Thomas in English and

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

who had renovated this building to use as his residence.

Gallery

File:James Skinner tomb (St James, Delhi).JPG, Marble slab of Skinner's tomb in St. James' Church or Skinner's Church, Kashmiri Gate,

File:St. James' Church, Delhi, India.jpg, St. James' Church or Skinner's Church, Kashmiri Gate,

File:Skinner's Horse party, in a folio from 'Reminiscences of Imperial Delhi’, an album by Thomas Metcalfe, 1843.jpg,

Skinner's Horse The 1st Horse (Skinner's Horse) is a regiment of the Armoured Corps of the Indian Army. It traces its origins as a cavalry regiment from the times of the East India Company, followed by its service in the British Indian Army and finally, afte ...

party.Folio from 'Reminiscences of Imperial Delhi’, an album by Sir Thomas Metcalfe, 1843. File:A Khattri nobleman, in by Col. James Skinner, aka Sikandar (1778-1841).jpg, A

Khatri Khatri is a caste of the Indian subcontinent that is predominantly found in India, but also in Pakistan and Afghanistan. In the subcontinent, they were mostly engaged in mercantilistic professions such as banking and trade, they were the d ...

nobleman, in by Col. James Skinner File:Portrait of Ranjit Singh, Maharaja of the Punjab, 1830.jpg, A folio of by James Skinner, 1830, depicting Portrait of Maharaja

Ranjit Singh Ranjit Singh (13 November 1780 – 27 June 1839), 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 s ...

of the Punjab.

External galleries

Picture of inscription dating the earlier renovation to 1796
by George Thomas
31-image online picture gallery of Jahaj Kothi museum
taken by

American Institute of Indian Studies The American Institute of Indian Studies (AIIS), founded in 1961, is a consortium of 90 universities and colleges in the United States that promotes the advancement of knowledge about India in the U.S. It carries out this purpose by: awarding fello ...

in 2008 CE
Exterior-1 of Jahaj Kothi before the recent 21st century renovation

Exterior-2 of Jahaj Kothi before the recent 21st century renovation

Exterior-3 of Jahaj Kothi before the recent 21st century renovation

Exterior-4 of Jahaj Kothi before the recent 21st century renovation

Interior of Jahaj Kothi Museum

References