Surguja State, was one of the main

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, ...

s of Central India during the period 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 ...

, even though it was not entitled to any

gun salute A gun salute or cannon salute is the use of a piece of artillery to fire shots, often 21 in number (''21-gun salute''), with the aim of marking an honor or celebrating a joyful event. It is a tradition in many countries around the world. Histo ...

. Formerly it was placed under the

Central India Agency The Central India Agency was created in 1854, by amalgamating the Western Malwa Agency with other smaller political offices which formerly reported to the Governor-General of India. The agency was overseen by a political agent who maintained ...

, but in 1905 it was transferred to the

Eastern States Agency The Eastern States Agency was an agency or grouping of princely states in eastern India, during the latter years of the Indian Empire. It was created in 1933, by the unification of the former Chhattisgarh States Agency and the Orissa States Agen ...

. The state spread over a vast

mountainous A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited Summit (topography), summit area, and ...

area inhabited by many different people groups such as the Gond, Bhumij, Oraon,

Panika The Panika are a Hindu community found in the Indian states of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Uttar Pradesh. Traditionally they are weaver. They are also known as Panka and Panikar. Etymology They used to made Pankha(fan). ...

, Korwa, Bhuiya,

Kharwar Kharwar is a community found in the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Orissa and West Bengal. Etymology The ''Khar'' grass is totem of the Kharwar. They don't cut or injure it while growing. Kharwar tribe of pres ...

, Munda,

Chero The Chero is a caste found in the states of Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh in India. History and origin The community claims to have originally been tribal people. The Chero are essentially one of many tribal communities, such as the Bhar ...

, Rajwar,

Nagesia The Kisan or nagesia are a tribal group found in Odisha, West Bengal and Jharkhand. They are traditional farmers and a food gathering people. They speak Kisan, a dialect of Kurukh, as well as Odia and Sambalpuri. The tribe mainly lives in north ...

and

Santal The Santal or Santhal are an Austroasiatic speaking Munda ethnic group in South Asia. Santals are the largest tribe in the Jharkhand and West Bengal state of India in terms of population and are also found in the states of Odisha, Bihar and A ...

. Its former territory lies in the present-day state of

Chhattisgarh Chhattisgarh (, ) is a landlocked state in Central India. It is the ninth largest state by area, and with a population of roughly 30 million, the seventeenth most populous. It borders seven states – Uttar Pradesh to the north, Madhya Prade ...

and its capital was the town of Ambikapur, now the capital of Surguja district.

History

Maharajah Ramanuj Pratap Singh Deo with cheetah kill 1948 BNHS

According to

tradition A tradition is a belief or behavior (folk custom) passed down within a group or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common examples include holidays or ...

, the family of the

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 ...

is very ancient, and is stated to belong to the

Rajputs Rajput (from Sanskrit ''raja-putra'' 'son of a king') is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating from the Indian subcontinent. The term Ra ...

of the Lunar race Haihaivansh. The present ruling family is said to be descended from a Raksel Raja of

Palamau Palamu district is one of the twenty-four districts of Jharkhand state, India. It was formed in 1892. The administrative headquarter of the district is Medininagar (formerly DaltonGanj), situated on the Koel River. History The Palamu district ha ...

. The state became a British protectorate in 1818 after the

Third Anglo-Maratha War The Third Anglo-Maratha War (1817–1819) was the final and decisive conflict between the English East India Company and the Maratha Empire in India. The war left the Company in control of most of India. It began with an invasion of Maratha ter ...

. Neighbouring Udaipur State was founded in 1818 as an offshoot of Surguja State. In 1860 The State was conferred to younger son of

Amar Singh Deo, to

Raja Bahadur ''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia. The title has a long history in South Asia and Southeast Asia, being attested fr ...

Bindeshwari Prasad Singh Deo CSI. The Chief resided at Partabpur, the headquarters of a tract which he held as a maintenance grant in

Surguja Surguja district is a district of the Indian state of Chhattisgarh. The district is one of the oldest districts of Chhattisgarh. The headquarters of the district is Ambikapur. The district lies in its eponymous Surguja dialectal region (where ...

, and was a ruler of considerable ability and force of character. In 1871 he aided in the suppression of a rebellion in the

Keonjhar State Keonjhar State ( or, କେନ୍ଦୁଝର), also known as Keunjhar, was one of the princely states of India during the period of the British Raj. The second largest of the states of the Orissa States Agency, it was located in present-day Ken ...

, for which he received the thanks of Government, and gifts of an elephant with gold-embroidered trappings and a gold watch and chain. He obtained the title of

as a personal distinction, and was also made a

Companion of the Most Exalted Order of the Star of India The Most Exalted Order of the Star of India is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1861. The Order includes members of three classes: # Knight Grand Commander (GCSI) # Knight Commander ( KCSI) # Companion ( CSI) No appointment ...

. In 1820 hereditary title of

was conferred on ruling chief of

. Surguja was one of the

Chota Nagpur States The Chota Nagpur Tributary States or Chota Nagpur States were a group of non-salute states (minor princely states) at the time of British Raj, located on the Chhota Nagpur Plateau. British suzerainty over the states was exercised through the g ...

and its rulers were

Rajput Rajput (from Sanskrit ''raja-putra'' 'son of a king') is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating from the Indian subcontinent. The term Ra ...

s of the Raksel dynasty. They were the ''de facto'' overlords of the smaller states of

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 ...

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 ...

Koriya Korea State, currently spelled as Koriya, was a princely state of the British Empire of India. After Indian independence in 1947, the ruler of Koreaccededto the Union of India on 1 January 1948, and Koriya was made part of Surguja District ...

(Korea) and

Changbhakar Changbhakar State, also known as Chang Bhakar, was one of the princely states of British Empire in India in the Chhattisgarh States Agency. It included 117 villages and had an area of with a 1941 population of 21,266 people. Bharatpur was the ...

that were fringing its territory.

Indrajit Singh Deo (1827–1879) of Surguja was described as a

lunatic Lunatic is an antiquated term referring to a person who is seen as mentally ill, dangerous, foolish, or crazy—conditions once attributed to "lunacy". The word derives from ''lunaticus'' meaning "of the moon" or "moonstruck". History The te ...

by Anglo-Indian writer George Robert Aberigh-Mackay in 1877. Maharaja Ramanuj Saran Singh Deo, the last ruler of this princely state signed the accession to the Indian Union on 1 January 1948. The Maharaja has the notorious record of having shot and killed a total of 1710

Bengal tiger The Bengal tiger is a population of the ''Panthera tigris tigris'' subspecies. It ranks among the biggest wild cats alive today. It is considered to belong to the world's charismatic megafauna. The tiger is estimated to have been present in ...

s, the highest known individual score; he doesn't hold the official record of shooting into extinction 3 of the last physically recorded

Asiatic cheetah The Asiatic cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus venaticus'') is a critically endangered cheetah subspecies currently only surviving in Iran. It once occurred from the Arabian Peninsula and the Near East to the Caspian region, Transcaucasus, Kyzylkum D ...

s in India, effectively making the species almost locally extinct in 1947, considering that a female was spotted in what was to be the District of Korea in 1951. The last three Asiatic Cheetas were shot by Maharaja Ramanuj Partap Singh Deo of

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

Rulers

The rulers of Surguja State bore the title of 'Maharaja', although a few had the title of 'Maharaja Bahadoor', including the last head of the state.Princely States of India
/ref>

Rajas

*1678 – 1709 Baiha Dadu Singh Deo *1709 – 1728 Balbhadra Singh I Deo *1728 – 1749 Jaswat Singh Deo *1749 – 1758 Bahadur Sigh Deo *1760 – 17.. Sheo Singh Deo *1792 – 1799 Ajit Singh Deo *1799 – 1800 Balbhadra Singh II Deo (1st time) *1800 – 1813 Lal Singram Singh Deo *1813 – 1816 Balbhadra Singh II Deo (2nd time) *1816 – 1820 interregnum *1820 – 1851 Lal Amar Singh Deo (from 1820 with hereditary style Maharaja) *1851 – 25 March 1879 Indrajit Singh Deo (b. 1827 – d. 1879) *25 Mar 1879 – 31 December 1917 Raghunath Saran Singh Deo (b. 1860 – d. 1917) (from 1887 with personal style Maharaja; from 1896 Maharaja Bahadur) *31 Dec 1917 – 1918 Ramanuj Saran Singh Deo (b. 1895 – d. 1965) (with hereditary style Maharaja)

Maharaja

*1820 – 1851 Lal Amar Singh Deo (from 1820 with hereditary style Maharaja) *1851 – 25 March 1879 Indrajit Singh Deo (b. 1827 – d. 1879) (Maharaja Bahadur) *25 Mar 1879 – 31 December 1917 Raghunath Saran Singh Deo (b. 1860 – d. 1917) (from 1887 with personal style Maharaja; from 1896 Maharaja Bahadur) *1918 – 15 August 1947 Ramanuj Saran Singh Deo ( Maharaja Bahadur) *2001 - (present day) TS Singh Deo ( Titular Maharaja )

References

External links