Raigarh was a

princely state A princely state (also called native state or Indian state) was a nominally sovereign entity of the British Raj, British Indian Empire that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule, ...

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 ...

at the time of the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

. The state was ruled by a Gond dynasty of Gond clan.

History

Raigarh estate was founded in 1625 by Madan Singh. He was descended from the Gond kings of Chanda. In 1911 Raigarh estate was recognized as a state. The state had an area of 3,848 square km and a population of 174,929 according to the 1901 census. The capital of state was city of

Raigarh Raigarh is a city in Eastern Chhattisgarh. History The tradition preserved by the ruling family of the erstwhile state of Raigarh maintains that the Raj Gond family migrated to this region from Bairagarh/Wariagarh of Chanda district of Mahara ...

, which had a population of 6,764 inhabitants in 1901. The Rajas of Raigarh also owned the Estate of

Bargarh Bargarh is a city and municipality in Bargarh district in the state of odisha in India. It is the administrative headquarters of Bargarh District. Bargarh is popularly known for intensive cultivation of 'paddy', therefore called "Bhata Handi" o ...

and so held the title of Chief of Bargarh. Around 1625, the Raja of

Sambalpur Sambalpur () is the fifth largest city in the Indian State of Odisha. It is located on the banks of river Mahanadi, with a population of 335,761 (as per 2011 census). Prehistoric settlements have been recorded there. It is the home of the Samb ...

, created Daryo Singh as Raja of Raigarh. However, under British, it became a

only in 1911, during the reign of Raja Bahadur Bhup Deo Singh. Among the notable rulers of State were Deonath Singh, who assisted the British in the

Mutiny of 1857 The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the for ...

. Other rulers were Raja Bahadur Bhup Deo Singh,

Raja Chakradhar Singh Raja Chakradhar Singh (19 August 1905 −7 October 1947) was the Raja of Raigarh and Chief of Bargarh ruled by Gond dynasty. He was the ruler of Princely state of Raigarh from 1924 till his death in 1947. He was son of Raja Bhup Deo Singh, ...

.Raigarh darbar by P. D. Ashirwadam Agam Kala Prakashan, 1990 On the contribution of Chakradhar Singh, Raja of Raigarh, 1905-1947, to Kathak dance and Hindustani music. Chakradhar Singh is noted for his contributions to

Kathak Kathak ( hi, कथक; ur, کتھک) is one of the eight major forms of Indian classical dance. It is the classical dance from of Uttar Pradesh. The origin of Kathak is traditionally attributed to the traveling bards in ancient northern Ind ...

and

Hindustani music Hindustani classical music is the classical music of northern regions of the Indian subcontinent. It may also be called North Indian classical music or, in Hindustani, ''shastriya sangeet'' (). It is played in instruments like the violin, sit ...

, especially for founding of Raigarh Gharana. The last ruler was

Lalit Kumar Singh Raja Lalitkumar Singh (1924–2000) was the last official ruler of princely state of Raigarh State. He ascended the throne in 1947 upon death of his father Raja Chakradhar Singh and acceded his State into Union of India on 1 January 1948. He lat ...

, his son succeeded him to the throne of Raigarh and ruled briefly before the Raigarh State was merged into Union of India on December 14, 1947. The princely states of

Jashpur Jashpur District is a district of the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh bordering Jharkhand and Odisha. Jashpur Nagar is the administrative headquarters of the district. The district was formerly a princely state before Indpendence. Highly mou ...

, Raigarh, Sakti,

Sarangarh Sarangarh is a New District in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh. History During the British Raj era, Sarangarh State was one of several princely states governed by the Raj Gond dynasty of Rajputs. It was originally a dependency of the Ratan ...

and

Udaipur Udaipur () (ISO 15919: ''Udayapura''), historically named as Udayapura, is a city and municipal corporation in Udaipur district of the state of Rajasthan, India. It is the administrative headquarter of Udaipur district. It is the historic capit ...

were united later to form the

Raigarh district Raigarh district is a district of the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh. Raigarh is the district headquarters. The district was formed by merging the princely states of Raigarh, Sakti, Sarangarh, Udaipur and Jashpur. Jashpur is now a sepa ...

in present Chhattisgarh.Publication by Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics - 1973- Issue 61 - Page 346India Today 1992- Page 74

Rulers

Rajas

*c. 1800 - c. 1830 Jujhar Singh *c. 1830 - 1863 Deonath Singh *1863 - 1890 Ganshyam Singh *1890 - 1911 Bhup Deo Singh (b. 1867 - d. 1917)

Raja Bahadurs

*1911 - 22 Mar 1917

Bhup Deo Singh Raja Bhup Deo Singh Bahadur (1867–1917) was the Raja of Raigarh and Chief of Bargarh ruled by Gond dynasty. He was the ruler of the Princely state of Raigarh from 1894 till his death in 1917. He was son of Raja Deo Nath Singh. Bhup Deo Sin ...

*22 Mar 1917 - Feb 1924 Natwar Singh (b. 1891 - d. 1924) *23 Aug 1924 - 15 Aug 1947

Lal Chakradhar Singh Raja Chakradhar Singh (19 August 1905 −7 October 1947) was the Raja of Raigarh and Chief of Bargarh ruled by Gond dynasty. He was the ruler of Princely state of Raigarh from 1924 till his death in 1947. He was son of Raja Bhup Deo Singh, ...

(b. 1905 - d. 1947) *15 Aug 1947 - 1 Aug 1948

Lalitkumar Singh Raja Lalitkumar Singh (1924–2000) was the last official ruler of princely state of Raigarh State. He ascended the throne in 1947 upon death of his father Raja Chakradhar Singh and acceded his State into Union of India on 1 January 1948. He lat ...

(b 1924 - d. 2000)

References

{{Princely states of the Eastern States Agency Princely states of India History of Chhattisgarh Raigarh district 1947 disestablishments in India States and territories disestablished in 1947 States and territories established in 1911 1911 establishments in India

History

Rulers

Rajas

Raja Bahadurs

See also

References