Mian Dido Jamwal was a

Dogra Rajput The term Dogra Rajput refers to Dogra people who are of Rajput clans found in the Jammu region and parts of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab. Dogra Rajput dynasty ruled Jammu and Kashmir till 1947. Hari Singh was the last ruler of this dynasty. The ...

warrior from the

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 ...

clan who rebelled against the overlords of

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 ...

, 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 ...

. He was descended from Raja Hari Dev of Jammu. Mian Dido was extremely popular among the common people of Jammu, and even today he is the subject of several ballads and legends. He is considered a hero and propagator of the regional identity of Jammu in political terms. He was killed by the troops of

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 ...

after being surrounded.

Early life

According to oral tradition, Mian Dido was born in 1780, to Mian Hazara Singh ( jagirdar of Jagti village) in Jagti village, Jammu. He was the descendant of Raja Hari Dev of Jammu after six generations, Raja Hari Dev was the common ancestor of both Mian Dido and

, the first ruler of Jammu and Kashmir princely state. Mian Hazara Singh started to train his son as a swordsman and archer right from his childhood.

Rebellion

In 1808, the Dogra rulers of Jammu were defeated in the

Battle of Jammu The Battle of Jammu was fought between the Sikhs under the command of Banda Singh Bahadur against the Mughal forces near the hills of Jammu on January 22, 1712. The Mughals were able to achieve victory against the Sikhs. Background After t ...

and Jammu came under the rule of Ranjit Singh, ruler of the

. Mian Dido was disturbed as he thought of the Sikh conquest as an insult to the dignity and prestige of the natives. Hence, he decided to organize the common people in a rebellion against Sikh authority. Mian Dido, along with his father Mian Hazara, were successful in raising the local peasants and

zamindar A zamindar ( Hindustani: Devanagari: , ; Persian: , ) in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semiautonomous ruler of a province. The term itself came into use during the reign of Mughals and later the British had begun using it as ...

s against Sikh rule. The ballads on Mian Dido describe how the rebels damaged the integrity of Sikh rule in Jammu by plundering towns and villages, frustrating the tax collection process of the tax officials, robbing merchants and traders, murdering government servants and the

s refused to pay their dues. The rebellion rapidly became popular as the common people viewed Mian Dido's rebellion as a fight for their honour and dignity. He became a figure somewhat similar to

Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is dep ...

, a legendary outlaw of Europe. He regularly attacked the town of Jammu, which had a garrison of about 2,000 men, with varying numbers- 2,000 to 50-60 outlaws. Inspired by his victories, other social groups of Jammu such as the Chib Rajputs and Bhows flared up in revolt. Several ballads were composed in praise of his deeds, which may be somewhat exaggerated:

Death

When all else failed, Ranjit Singh decided that an indigenous

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 ...

commander would be able to suppress the rebellion since he would be able to communicate with the natives, be aware of the culture and would know the terrain thoroughly. Hence, he sent

, a

courtier at

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 ...

to crush the resistance of Mian Dido. Initially,

tried to convince Mian Dido to submit, he would be spared and given a high post in the Sikh court if he stopped the rebellion. However, the latter refused and then

tried to use his kinmanship with him (Raja Hari Dev of Jammu was their common ancestor) as a pretext to not fight. When negotiations failed, Gulab Singh cut off the food supplies of Mian Dido's men. The latter still refused to surrender, and

sent his troops under Attar Singh Kallol to surround the village of Jagti, the ancestral jagir of Mian Dido. Dido was not present there, however his father Mian Hazara Singh defended the village and was killed. Mian Dido fled to the Trikuta hills with his family. When they were surrounded by Sikh forces, Dido left his wife and two sons under the protection of a priest of the

Vaishno Devi Vaishno Devi (also known as Mata Rani, Trikuta, Ambe and Vaishnavi) is a manifestation of the Hindu Mother Goddess, Durga or Adi Shakti. The words "''Maa''" and "''Mata''" are commonly used in India for ''mother'', and thus are often heavily ...

temple. At this juncture, legend says that he slew Attar Singh Kallol, who had killed his father, and with great composure, sat on a rock and started smoking his hookah. He was killed by a bullet from the Sikh soldiers from a distance.

References

{{reflist 1780 births 1821 deaths Dogra people

Early life

Rebellion

Death

See also

References