Kunwar Rattan Singh (1805–1845) was the second son 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 ...

, the founder 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 ...

and his queen consort,

Maharani Datar Kaur Maharani Datar Kaur (born Bibi Raj Kaur Nakai; (c. 1784– 20 June 1838) was the queen consort of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the founder of the Sikh Empire and the mother of his successor, Maharaja Kharak Singh. She was the daughter of Sardar Ran ...

. His elder,

Maharaja 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 Jun ...

was the second Maharaja of the Sikh Empire and nephew, Maharaja Nau Nihal Singh was the third Maharaja. He was the grandson of Sardar Maha Singh, second chief of the

Sukerchakia Misl The Sukerchakia Misl was one of 12 Sikh Misls in Punjab during the 18th century concentrated in Gujranwala and Hafizabad district in Western Punjab (in modern-Pakistan) and ruled from (1752–1801). Misl was founded by Chaudhary Charat Singh ...

and Rajmata Raj Kaur. Sardar Ran Singh, third chief of the

Nakai Misl The Nakai Misl ( pa, ਨਕਈ ਮਿਸਲ (Gurmukhi), (Shahmukhi)), founded by Sandhu Jats, was one of the twelve Sikh Misls that later became the Sikh Empire. It held territory between the Ravi and Sutlej rivers southwest of Lahore in what ...

and Sardarni Karmo Kaur were his maternal grandparents. His cousin,

Kahan Singh Nakai Sardar Kahan Singh Nakai (died 1873) was the sixth and the last chief of the Nakai Misl. He was the grandson of the famous Sikh chief, Ran Singh Nakai and Sardarni Karmo Kaur. His aunt, Maharani Datar Kaur was the wife of Maharaja Ranjit Sing ...

was the last Nakai chief.

Early life

It is widely known that Datar Kaur gave birth to a son, Kharak Singh who is known as the only son of Ranjit Singh and Datar Kaur. But, according to the documents such as Sajra Nasbe and Kursinama (pedigree table), as well as a painting of Ranjit Singh with Rattan Singh affirm that Datar Kaur and Ranjit Singh had another son named Rattan Singh born in 1805. Rattan Singh was born to Maharaja Ranjit Singh and his second wife and queen consort, Maharani Datar Kaur, the daughter of

Ran Singh Nakai Sardar Ran Singh Nakai (1750- 1784) was the third chief of the Nakai Misl. He distinguished himself at an early age in campaigns with his father, Natha Singh Sandhu and uncle, the legendary Heera Singh Sandhu who was the founder of the Misl. R ...

the third ruler of the

. He was the younger brother of Kharak Singh who succeeded their father as the second

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 the

. Until the birth of his nephew

Nau Nihal Singh Kunwar Nau Nihal Singh (9 March 1821 – 5 November 1840) was the third Maharaja of the Sikh Empire. He was the only son of Maharaja Kharak Singh and his consort, Maharani Chand Kaur. He was known as Yuvraj Kunwar Nau Nihal Singh. He was also kn ...

he was second in line of succession to the

throne A throne is the seat of state of a potentate or dignitary, especially the seat occupied by a sovereign on state occasions; or the seat occupied by a pope or bishop on ceremonial occasions. "Throne" in an abstract sense can also refer to the mona ...

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 a ...

. He was married to Raj Devi and Bhagbhari Kanwar and had three sons, Gurdit Singh, Thakur Singh and Bhagwan Singh. He served under

Hari Singh Nalwa Hari Singh Nalwa (1791–1837) was Commander-in-chief of the Sikh Khalsa Fauj, the army of the Sikh Empire. He is known for his role in the conquests of Kasur, Sialkot, Attock, Multan, Kashmir, Peshawar and Jamrud. Hari Singh Nalwa was respon ...

and his elder brother,

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 ...

during the Battle of Shopian in 1819. He was granted the Jagatpur Bajaj estate as his jagir. During the reign of Maharaja Sher Singh a large part of his jagir was confiscated by Raja Hira Singh Dogra, who did the same with his half brothers, Kashmira Singh and Pashaura Singh. He died during battle in 1845.

Descendants

In 2020 Sandeep Singh Sukerchakia, his descendant, wrote a detailed letter to

Narendra Modi Narendra Damodardas Modi (; born 17 September 1950) is an Indian politician serving as the 14th and current Prime Minister of India since 2014. Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is the Member of Parliament fro ...

, the Prime Minister of India insisting the inclusion of Punjabi Language in the New Jammu and Kashmir official Language Bill of 2020. In 2021, he appealed to

Imran Khan Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi ( ur}; born 5 October 1952) is a Pakistani politician and former Cricket captain who served as the 22nd Prime Minister of Pakistan from August 2018 to until April 2022, when he was ousted through a no-confidenc ...

, the

Prime Minister of Pakistan The prime minister of Pakistan ( ur, , romanized: Wazīr ē Aʿẓam , ) is the head of government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and his chosen cabinet, despite the president of Pa ...

to have a thorough probe into the incident of vandalism of the statue of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.

References

{{reflist 1805 births 1845 deaths Indian Sikhs Punjabi people

Early life

Descendants

See also

References