Mai Sukhan (died 1824), was an Majhail ruler of

Misl The Misls (derived from an Arabic word wikt:مثل#Etymology_3, مِثْل meaning 'equal') were the twelve sovereign states of the Sikh Confederacy, which rose during the 18th century in the Punjab region in the northern part of the Indian ...

. Mai Sukhan gained recognition in

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

for her military leadership. Mai Sukhan was a powerful

Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...

ruler of the Majha region, which gained her recognition throughout

. She was the widow of the

leader

Sardar Sardar, also spelled as Sardaar/Sirdar ( fa, سردار, , 'commander', literally 'headmaster'), is a title of royalty and nobility that was originally used to denote princes, noblemen, chiefs, kings and other aristocrats. It has also been u ...

Gulab Singh Bhangi, a Dhillon Jatt of Panjwar village, who had died in 1800 at Bhasin village now in Lahore District. The rulers of the

were the

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

of Dhillon Clan who had ruled from mid 1750s to 1805. In 1805, when the forces of the

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...

-based Sikh emperor

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 ...

were in the midst of the conquest of the holy city of

Amritsar Amritsar (), historically also known as Rāmdāspur and colloquially as ''Ambarsar'', is the second largest city in the Indian state of Punjab, after Ludhiana. It is a major cultural, transportation and economic centre, located in the Majha r ...

, the Sikh band of defenders under the command of Mai Sukhan Dhillon held them off for a considerable period. When requested to surrender the gun

Zamzama The Zamzama Gun ( ur, , meaning "thunder" or "roar", sometimes written "Zam-Zammah" or "Zam-Zammeh") also known as ''Kim’s Gun'' or ''Bhangianwali Toap'' is a large-bore cannon. It was cast in about 1757 in Lahore (present-day Pakistan) du ...

by Ranjit Singh, Mai Sukhan sealed the city and prepared to defend it. The emperor afterwards recognized her bravery by giving her five or six villages. She had a son named Gurdit Singh Dhillon, aged ten when his father Gulab Singh died. She died in 1824.

References

Indian female royalty Military history of India Punjabi people History of Sikhism Female Sikh warriors Women in 19th-century warfare 18th-century births 1824 deaths Place of birth unknown Place of death unknown 18th-century Indian women 18th-century Indian people 19th-century Indian women 19th-century Indian people {{India-royal-stub