Maharaja Sir Sumer Singh (14 January 1898 – 3 October 1918) was

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, an ...

of Jodhpur from 20 March 1911 to 3 October 1918, succeeding his father, Maharaja

Sardar Singh Sardara Singh (born 15 July 1986), sometimes referred as Sardar Singh, is an Indian former professional field hockey player and captain of the Indian national team. He usually plays the center half position. Sardara became the youngest player t ...

Life

Sumer Singh was born on 14 January 1898 at

Mehrangarh Mehrangarh Fort covers an area of 1,200 acres (486 hectares) in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India. The complex is located on a hilltop around 122 metres above the surrounding plain, and was constructed by Rajput ruler Rao Jodha, though most of the exi ...

Jodhpur Jodhpur (; ) is the second-largest city in the Indian state of Rajasthan and officially the second metropolitan city of the state. It was formerly the seat of the princely state of Jodhpur State. Jodhpur was historically the capital of the Ki ...

, the eldest son of Maharaja Sir Sardar Singh, GCSI by his first wife, the Maharani Shri Lakhsman Kanwarji Maji Sahiba. In March 1911 at the age of 13, he succeeded to the Jodhpur ''gadi'' upon the death of his father, and served as a

page of honour A Page of Honour is a ceremonial position in the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. It requires attendance on state occasions, but does not now involve the daily duties which were once attached to the office of page. The onl ...

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936. Born duri ...

at the

Delhi Durbar The Delhi Durbar ( lit. "Court of Delhi") was an Indian imperial-style mass assembly organized by the British at Coronation Park, Delhi, India, to mark the succession of an Emperor or Empress of India. Also known as the Imperial Durbar, it was ...

that year. Educated at

Mayo College Mayo College (informally Mayo) is a boys-only independent boarding school in Ajmer, Rajasthan, India. It was founded in 1875 by Richard Bourke, 6th Earl of Mayo, who was the Viceroy of India from 1869 to 1872. This makes it one of the oldest Pub ...

, Ajmer and

Wellington College Wellington College may refer to: *Wellington College, Berkshire, an independent school in Crowthorne, Berkshire, England ** Wellington College International Shanghai ** Wellington College International Tianjin *Wellington College, Wellington, New Z ...

in Berkshire, he reigned for five years under the regency of his great-uncle General Maharaja Sir

Pratap Singh of Idar Lieutenant-General Sir Pratap Singh, (21 October 1845 – 4 September 1922), was a decorated British Indian Army officer, Maharaja of the princely state of Idar (Gujarat), administrator and Regent of Jodhpur and heir to Ahmednagar later ...

, who had abdicated his throne at Idar in order to oversee the Jodhpur regency.

Wartime service

Upon the outbreak of the

First World War 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 ...

, the young Maharaja volunteered to serve in combat and was commissioned as an honorary

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

in October 1914. On 26 February 1916, a month after he had come of age, Sumer Singh was granted full ruling powers by the

Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...

, Lord Hardinge, in person. Shortly after, he left India for the battlefields of the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...

, leading the Jodhpur Imperial Service Lancers in combat in France and Flanders. He was promoted to the rank of an honorary Major in the British Army in 1917. For his services, Sumer Singh was decorated and subsequently knighted as a Knight Commander of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(KBE) in 1918.London Gazette, 28 December 1917
/ref>

Personal

On 9 December 1915, Sumer Singh married Pratapha Kanwarji Maji Sahiba, the daughter of Kumar Jivansinhji Jhalamsinhji Sahib of Sarodar, a branch of the Nawanagar royal family, and the sister of cricketer

Ranjitsinhji Colonel H. H. Shri Sir Ranjitsinhji Vibhaji II, Jam Saheb of Nawanagar, (10 September 1872 – 2 April 1933), often known as Ranji or K. S. Ranjitsinhji, was the ruler of the Indian princely state of Nawanagar from 1907 to 1933, as Mah ...

. He married secondly, on 23 May 1918, Umrao Kanwarji Sahiba (d. 30 November 1949), the daughter of Thakur Shri Suraj Malji, of Sointra, under Jodhpur Marwar. By his first wife, Sumer Singh had one daughter: #Maharajkumari Shri Kishor Kumariji Baijilal Sahiba .H. Maharani Shri Kishor Kumari Sahiba, of Jaipur Jo Didi"(Mehrangarh, Jodhpur, 20 September 1916 – Rambagh Palace, Jaipur, 30 April 1958) who m. at Mehrangarh, Jodhpur, 24 April 1932, as his second wife, Maharaja

Sawai Man Singh II Major General Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II GCSI GCIE (born Sawai Mor Mukut Singh; 21 August 1912 – 24 June 1970) was an Indian prince, government official, diplomat and sportsman. Man Singh II was the ruling Maharaja of the princely state ...

of Jaipur, Maharaja of Jaipur

Death

The Maharaja returned to Jodhpur in early 1918, but died on 3 October from

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

at the Ratanada Palace. He was cremated at Mehrangarh. As he had only left a daughter at his death, he was succeeded by his younger brother

Umaid Singh Umaid Singh (8 July 1903 – 9 June 1947), also spelled Umed Singh, was Maharaja of Jodhpur from 1918 until his death, He was the Rajput Ruler. The second son of Sardar Singh of Jodhpur, he succeeded his elder brother Maharaja Sir Sumer ...

Honours

British

*1911 Delhi Durbar medal in gold *

1914 Star The 1914 Star, colloquially known as the Mons Star, is a British World War I campaign medal for service in France or Belgium between 5 August and 22 November 1914. Institution The 1914 Star was authorised under Special Army Order no. 350 in Nov ...

(with August - November 1914 clasp) *

British War Medal The British War Medal is a campaign medal of the United Kingdom which was awarded to officers and men of British and Imperial forces for service in the First World War. Two versions of the medal were produced. About 6.5 million were struck in si ...

*Victory Medal *Knight Commander of the

, (KBE) - awarded 1918

Foreign

*Grand Cordon of the

Order of the Nile The Order of the Nile (''Kiladat El Nil'') was established in 1915 and was one of the Kingdom of Egypt's principal orders until the monarchy was abolished in 1953. It was then reconstituted as the Republic of Egypt's highest state honor. Sultana ...

of Egypt-1918

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sumer Singh of Jodhpur Monarchs of Marwar British Army General List officers Indian Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire 1898 births 1918 deaths British Army personnel of World War I Deaths from pneumonia in India