The Dogra dynasty of

Dogra The Dogras or Dogra people, are an Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic group in India and Pakistan consisting of the Dogri language speakers. They live predominantly in the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir, and in adjoining areas of Punjab, Himacha ...

Rajputs 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 ...

from the Shiwalik Himalayas created Jammu and Kashmir when all dynastic kingdoms in India were being absorbed by the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and South ...

. Events led the

Sikh Empire The Sikh Empire was a state originating in the Indian subcontinent, formed under the leadership of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, who established an empire based in the Punjab. The empire existed from 1799, when Maharaja Ranjit Singh captured Lahor ...

to recognise Jammu as a vassal state in 1820, and later the British added Kashmir to Jammu by the

Treaty of Amritsar A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal pers ...

in 1846. The founder of the dynasty,

Gulab Singh Gulab Singh Jamwal (1792–1857) was the founder of Dogra dynasty and the first Maharaja of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, the largest princely state under the British Raj, which was created after the defeat of the Sikh Empire in ...

, was an influential noble in the court of the Sikh emperor

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 ...

, while his brother

Dhian Singh Raja Dhian Singh (22 August 1796 – 15 September 1843) was the longest serving wazir of the Sikh Empire, during the reign of Maharajah Ranjit Singh, and four of his successors. He held the office for twenty five years, from 1818 up till his deat ...

served as the prime minister of the Sikh Empire. Appointed by Ranjit Singh as the hereditary

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 ...

of the

Jammu Jammu is the winter capital of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters and the largest city in Jammu district of the union territory. Lying on the banks of the river Tawi, the city of Jammu, with an area of ...

principality, Gulab Singh established his supremacy over all the hill states surrounding the Kashmir Valley. After the

First Anglo-Sikh War The First Anglo-Sikh War was fought between the Sikh Empire and the British East India Company in 1845 and 1846 in and around the Ferozepur district of Punjab. It resulted in defeat and partial subjugation of the Sikh empire and cession o ...

in 1846, under the terms of the Treaty of Lahore, 1846, the British Indian government 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 British India, receiving a 21-gun salute for its Maharaja in 1921. It was ruled by Gulab Singh and his descendants till 1947. The last ruling

Maharaja Mahārāja (; also spelled Maharajah, Maharaj) is a Sanskrit title for a "great ruler", "great king" or " high king". A few ruled states informally called empires, including ruler raja Sri Gupta, founder of the ancient Indian Gupta Empire, a ...

of Jammu and Kashmir was

Hari Singh Maharaja Sir Hari Singh (September 1895 – 26 April 1961) was the last ruling Maharaja of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. Hari Singh was the son of Amar Singh and Bhotiali Chib. In 1923, following his uncle's death, Singh became ...

, who contributed troops to the British war effort in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and served on

Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from 1 ...

's Imperial War Cabinet. Following the Partition of India in 1947, Hari Singh faced a rebellion in the western districts of the state and a Pakistan-supported tribal invasion, leading him to accede to the Union of India and receive military assistance. Pakistan contested the accession, giving rise to the enduring

Kashmir conflict The Kashmir conflict is a territorial conflict over the Kashmir region, primarily between India and Pakistan, with China playing a third-party role. The conflict started after the partition of India in 1947 as both India and Pakistan claimed ...

. With India's support, the popular leader of Jammu and Kashmir, Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, forced the Maharaja to abdicate in favour of his son, ''Yuvraj'' (Crown Prince)

Karan Singh Karan Singh (born 9 March 1931) is an Indian politician and philosopher. He is the son of the last ruling Maharaja of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, Sir Hari Singh. He was the prince regent of Jammu and Kashmir until 1952. From 1 ...

, who subsequently accepted the position of a constitutional head of state (''Sadr-i-Riyasat'') and voluntarily gave up the title of ''Maharaja''.

Etymology

The term

is thought to derive from ''Durgara'', the name of a kingdom mentioned in an eleventh century copper-plate inscription in

Chamba Chamba may refer to: People * Gilberto Chamba (born 1961), Ecuadorian serial killer * Jessica Chamba (born 1981), European activist Places Ghana * Chamba, a town in the Northern Region India * Chamba (Vidhan Sabha constituency), Himachal Pradesh ...

. In medieval times the term became ''Dugar'', which later turned into Dogra. Kalhana's ''

Rajatarangini ''Rajatarangini'' ("The River of Kings") is a metrical legendary and historical chronicle of the north-western part of India, particularly the kings of Kashmir. It was written in Sanskrit by Kashmiri historian Kalhana in the 12th century CE. Th ...

'' makes no mention of a kingdom by this name, but it could have been referred to by its capital (ether ''Vallapura'', modern Balor, or ''Babbapura'', modern Babor). In modern times, the term Dogra turned into an ethnic identity, claimed by all those people that speak the

Dogri language Dogri ( Name Dogra Akkhar: ; Devanagari: डोगरी; Nastaliq: ; ) is an Indo-Aryan language primarily spoken in the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir, India, with smaller groups of speakers in adjoining regions of western Himachal Pr ...

. The family of Raja Gulab Singh is referred to as

Jamwal Jamwal is a toponymic surname for a Dogra Rajput clan of the same name from Jammu, in Jammu and Kashmir, India. They claim descent from the traditional founder of Jammu, Jambu Lochan, and there at one time some of their members were rulers of ...

(or ''Jamuwal''). According to some accounts, Raja Kapur Dev, who ruled the area of Jammu around 1560 AD had two sons named Jag Dev and Samail Dev. The two sons ruled from the Bahu and

on the opposite banks of the

Tawi River Tawi is a river that flows through the city of Jammu. The Tawi is a major left bank tributary of the river Chenab. Tawi river is considered sacred and holy, as is the case with most rivers in India. * The source of Tawi is the Kailash Kund Sp ...

and their descendants came to be called ''Bahuwals'' and ''Jamuwals'' respectively. The members of the family however claim descent from a legendary Suryavanshi (solar) dynasty ruler

Jambu Lochan Maharaja Jambu Lochan was a Kshatriya Rajput King who belonged to Sialkot Sangala after whom the Indian city of Jammu is believed to have been named. According to historical texts, he is the earliest known Rajput King of Jammu. He had another br ...

, who is believed to have founded the city of Jammu in antiquity.

History of Jamwal rulers

Dhruv Dev laid down the foundations of the Jamwal rulers of Jammu in 1703. His son Raja Ranjit Dev (1728–1780), introduced social reforms such as a ban on sati (immolation of the wife on the pyre of the husband) and female infanticide. Raja Ranjit Dev was succeeded by Raja Braj Dev who killed his brother and nephew to become king. Braj Dev was killed during the Sikh invasion of Jammu in 1787. His infant son Raja Sampuran Singh (1787–1797) succeeded with Jammu becoming an autonomous tributary under the Sikh Confederacy Misls. Sampuran Singh with no issue, was succeeded by his uncle Raja Jit Singh. Jit Singh was involved in another conflict with the Sikh empire, which he lost and was exiled into British territory. With Jammu fully annexed by the Sikhs around 1808, Ranjit Singh first allotted it to his son

Kharak Singh Kharak Singh (22 February 1801 – 5 November 1840) was the second Maharaja of the Sikh Empire. He was the eldest son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, founder of the Sikh Empire and his consort, Maharani Datar Kaur. He succeeded his father on 27 June ...

. However, Kharak Singh's agents were unable to maintain law and order, with locals led by Mian Dedo rebelling against the Sikh ''jagirdar'' (governor). In 1820, Ranjit Singh then bestowed the territory as a hereditary

fiefdom A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of f ...

to Gulab Singh's father Kishore Singh, a distant kinsman of Raja Jit Singh. On his father's death in 1822, Jammu passed to Gulab Singh.

Gulab Singh

Around 1808, Jammu became part of the

, under

. Ranjit Singh in 1820, bestowed the place as a jagir on Gulab Singh's father Kishore Singh, who belonged to the Jamwal Rajput clan that ruled Jammu. As a ''jagirdar'' (governor) for the Sikhs, Gulab Singh extended the boundaries of the Sikh Empire to western Tibet with the help of his fine General

Zorawar Singh Zorawar Singh may refer to: * Zorawar Singh (Dogra general), general of Raja Gulab Singh * Zorawar Singh (Sikhism), third son of Guru Gobind Singh * Kanwar Zorawar Singh, Indian Army general {{Hndis, Singh, Zorawar ...

. The Sikh rule was then extended beyond the Jammu Region and the Kashmir Valley to include the Tibetan Buddhist Kingdom of Ladakh and the Emirates of

Hunza Hunza may refer to: * Hunza, Iran * Hunza Valley, an area in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan ** Hunza (princely state), a former principality ** Hunza District, a recently established district ** Hunza River, a waterway ** Hunza Peak, a mou ...

, Gilgit and Nagar. In the turmoil for succession of the Sikh empire that followed Maharaja Ranjit Singh's death in 1839, two of Gulab Singh's sons Udham Singh, and Sohan Singh were killed in the feuding between the Sikh heirs. His youngest brother Suchet Singh, was killed by his own nephew Hira Singh, the ''Vizir'' (prime minister) of the Sikh empire. Hira Singh, was a great favourite of Maharaja Ranjit Singh and Gulab Singh once even aspired to have him installed as the Sikh emperor. Hira Singh had become prime minister aged 24, after his father and Gulab Singh's brother ''Vizir'' Dhian Singh was assassinated in his blotched September 1843 coup d'état against Sikh emperor

Sher Singh Sher Singh (4 December 1807 – 15 September 1843) was the fourth Maharaja of the Sikh Empire. Elder of the twins of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, founder of the Sikh Empire and Maharani Mehtab Kaur. His reign began on 18 January 1840 following his ...

in Lahore. During the regency of Maharani

Jind Kaur Maharani Jind Kaur ( – 1 August 1863) was regent of the Sikh Empire from 1843 until 1846. She was the youngest wife of the first Maharaja of the Sikh Empire, Ranjit Singh, and the mother of the last Maharaja, Duleep Singh. She was renowned f ...

, Hira Singh was killed by the Sikh army in December 1844. Gulab Singh, came into possession of the

Koh-i-noor The Koh-i-Noor ( ; from ), also spelled Kohinoor and Koh-i-Nur, is one of the largest cut diamonds in the world, weighing . It is part of the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom. The diamond is currently set in the Crown of Queen Elizabeth The ...

diamond, after Maharaja

's mysterious death in prison in 1840, and had previously presented the famous stone to Maharaja Sher Singh to win his favour. After the

in 1846, Sir Henry Lawrence was appointed British Resident and ''Vizir''

Lal Singh Raja Lal Singh (died 1866) was Wazir of the Sikh Empire and commander of Sikh Khalsa Army forces during the First Anglo-Sikh War. Along with Tej Singh, Lal Singh was in the employ of the East India Company during the course of the war. Lal Sin ...

on behalf of infant emperor

Duleep Singh Maharaja Sir Duleep Singh, GCSI (4 September 1838 – 22 October 1893), or Sir Dalip Singh, and later in life nicknamed the "Black Prince of Perthshire", was the last ''Maharaja'' of the Sikh Empire. He was Maharaja Ranjit Singh's youngest son, ...

was asked to surrender Kashmir. ''Vizir''

was also a Dogra, and along with Gulab Singh colluded with the British to deliberately break the Sikh army and facilitate the British victory. Under the terms of the

that followed in March 1846, the British government sold Kashmir for a sum of 7.5 million Nanakshahee rupees to Gulab Singh, hereafter bestowed with the title of Maharaja. Thus the Princely State of Jammu and Kashmir came into being under Gulab Singh, as per the

treaty of Lahore The Treaty of Lahore of 9 March 1846 was a peace-treaty marking the end of the First Anglo-Sikh War. The treaty was concluded, for the British, by the Governor-General Sir Henry Hardinge and two officers of the East India Company and, for the ...

, signed between the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

and the Sikhs. Maharaja Partab Singh (enthroned in 1885) saw the construction of Banihal Cart Road (B.C. Road) mainly to facilitate telegraph services. During

WWI World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

he provided one Mountain Battery and three Infantry Battalions to fight for the British in East Africa, Palestine and

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...

. For the services of his troops the state was awarded a hereditary 21-guns salute. One of the main residences of the maharajas was the

Sher Garhi Palace Sher Garhi Palace is a former palace in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India. The complex is located in the south of the Old City at the banks of the Jhelum river. It was the residence of the Afghan rulers and Dogra Maharajas of Jammu and Kash ...

in their summer capital Srinagar.

List of Maharajas of Jammu and Kashmir (1846–1952)

Seal of Maharaja Hari Singh on the cover of the Civil List

(1846–1856) * Ranbir Singh (1856–1885) * Pratap Singh (1885–1925) *

(1925–1952) (Monarchy abolished) *

(Titular) (1952–1961)

Family tree

I. Gulab Singh, Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir (1792–1857; Maharaja: 1846 (abdicated 1856)) ** Simple silver crown

II. Ranbir Singh, Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir

GCSI The Most Exalted Order of the Star of India is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1861. The Order includes members of three classes: # Knight Grand Commander (:Knights Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India, GCSI) # ...

, CIE (1830–1885; r. 1856–1885) *** Simple silver crown

III. Pratap Singh, Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir

GCIE The Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria on 1 January 1878. The Order includes members of three classes: #Knight Grand Commander ( GCIE) #Knight Commander ( KCIE) #Companion ( CIE) No app ...

, GBE (1848–1925; r. 1885–1925) *** Raja Amar Singh KCSI (1864–1909) **** Simple silver crown

IV. Hari Singh, Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir

GCVO The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, or ...

(1895–1961; r. 1925–1947; titular Maharaja: 1952–1961) ***** Simple silver crown

V. Karan Singh, President of Jammu and Kashmir (b. 1931; Regent of Jammu and Kashmir: 1949–1952; ''Sadar-e-Riyasat'' (President) of Jammu and Kashmir: 1952–1965; Governor of Jammu and Kashmir: 1965–1967; ******Vikramaditya Singh (born 1964) *******Martand Singh (b. 1992) ******Ajatshatru Singh (born 1966) *******Ranvijay Singh (born 1993)

The last ruling Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir

Sir Hari Singh Bahadur, Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir, 1944

The last ruler of Jammu and Kashmir was Maharaja

, who ascended the throne in 1925. He made primary education compulsory in the State, introduced laws prohibiting child marriage and allowed low castes to go to places of worship. Hari Singh was as a member of Churchill's

British War Cabinet A war cabinet is a committee formed by a government in a time of war to efficiently and effectively conduct that war. It is usually a subset of the full executive cabinet of ministers, although it is quite common for a war cabinet to have senio ...

in WWII, and supplied troops for the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

. Singh's reign saw the accession of Jammu and Kashmir to the newly independent Indian Union in 1947. He originally manoeuvered to maintain his independence by playing off

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 ...

and

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

against each other. There was an armed movement against the Maharaja's rule especially in the

Poonch Poonch, sometimes also spelt Punchh, may refer to: * Historical Poonch District, a district in the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir in British India, split in 1947 between: ** Poonch district, India ** Poonch Division, in Azad Kashmir, Pakistan, ...

district of Jammu, when his troops were unable to control these fighters and his troops retreated to Jammu, in October 1947, Singh appealed to

for its help. He acceded to India, though there is considerable controversy over exactly at what point, and whether or not his accession included the sovereignty of the state. In June 1952, Singh's rule was terminated by the state government of Indian-administered Kashmir. His son

Yuvraj Yuv(a)raj(a) (Sanskrit: युवराज) is an Indian title for the crown prince, and the heir apparent to the throne of an Indian (notably Hindu) kingdom or (notably in the Mughal Empire or British Raj) princely state. It is usually applied t ...

(Crown Prince)

too abdicated and was elected ''Sadr-e-Riyasat'' ('President of the Province') and

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

of the State in 1964.

Dogras in Politics post 1952

'' (Crown Prince)

after serving as the President of Jammu and Kashmir from 1952 to 1964 would go on to become the youngest cabinet minister as a leading member the

Indian Congress Party The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British E ...

in 1967. He was also the Indian Ambassador to the US in 1989. His elder son Vikramaditya Singh was a member of the Peoples Democratic Party. Currently in Congress party Karan Singh's younger son Ajatshatru Singh was a member of the National Conference (NC) headed by

Omar Abdullah Omar Abdullah (; born 10 March 1970) is an Indian politician and former Chief Minister of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. He became the 11th and the youngest Chief Minister of the State of Jammu and Kashmir, after forming a governme ...

, grandson of Sheikh Abdullah who had abolished the monarchy in 1952. Ajatshatru Singh had served with the NC as a minister in the Jammu and Kashmir Government from 1996 to 2002. In 2014 he quit the NC to join the

BJP The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Mo ...

, stating that he had done so to satisfy the "people’s desire to have a corruption and dynasty-free government".

Ankit Love The One Love Party was a minor political party in the United Kingdom that identified itself as techno-progressive. The party campaigned for clean air and a federal union of the world. It was founded in 2015 and its first contest was in the 2016 Lo ...

, son of Bhim Singh the founder of

Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party The Jammu & Kashmir National Panthers Party is a socialist and secular state political party in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, India. The party was founded on 23 March 1982 by Prof. Bhim Singh and a few prominent youth political personalitie ...

, claimed to be the "Emperor (Maharaja) of the Sovereign State of Jammu and Kashmir" when he was candidate in the 2016 London Mayoral Election, and again in the 2016 Richmond Park by-election for the

United Kingdom parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative supremac ...

Notes

References

Bibliography

External links

{{commons category, The Royal House of Jammu and Kashmir
Kashmir and Jammu, ''The Imperial Gazetteer of India'', 1909, v. 15, p. 71.

University of California at Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant uni ...

Library Bibliographies and Web-Bibliographies list Hindu dynasties Rajput rulers Jammu and Kashmir (princely state)

Maharajas of Jammu and Kashmir Mahārāja (; also spelled Maharajah, Maharaj) is a Sanskrit title for a "great ruler", "great king" or " high king". A few ruled states informally called empires, including ruler raja Sri Gupta, founder of the ancient Indian Gupta Empire, an ...

Dogra Rajputs Dynasties of the Rajputs Indian royalty 1952 disestablishments in India 1846 establishments in India