Tej Singh or Raja Teja Singh was a

Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism (Sikhi), a monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ...

commander in 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 appointed as Commander in chief of the Sikh Khalsa Army during the

First Anglo-Sikh War The First Anglo-Sikh War was fought between the Sikh Empire and the British East India Company in 1845 and 1846 in and around the Ferozepur district of Punjab. It resulted in defeat and partial subjugation of the Sikh empire and cession of ...

. After the death 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 Sikh court became fractious and the various agents acted at cross purposes to each other. Tej Singh appears to have had loyalties to the Raja

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 ...

of Jammu and he, along with Gulab Singh, believed it to be a mistake to be warring with the British. However, Rani Jindan, the Regent acting on behalf of the anointed prince

Duleep Singh Maharaja Sir Duleep Singh, GCSI (4 September 1838 – 22 October 1893), or Sir Dalip Singh, and later in life nicknamed the "Black Prince of Perthshire", was the last ''Maharaja'' of the Sikh Empire. He was Maharaja Ranjit Singh's youngest son, ...

, ordered him to march the troops against the British. He did so reluctantly. In the

Battle of Sobraon The Battle of Sobraon was fought on 10 February 1846, between the forces of the East India Company and the Sikh Khalsa Army, the army of the Sikh Empire of the Punjab. The Sikhs were completely defeated, making this the decisive battle of the ...

, General Tej Singh crossed a pontoon bridge on the Sutlej river and ordered its destruction. According to historian Amar Pal Sidhu, this incident led to the defeat of the Sikh Army, possibly as intended by Tej Singh. After the defeat of Sikhs, the

Treaty of Lahore The Treaty of Lahore of 9 March 1846 was a peace-treaty marking the end of the First Anglo-Sikh War. The treaty was concluded, for the British, by the Governor-General Sir Henry Hardinge and two officers of the East India Company and, for the ...

was signed by which Kashmir was sold to Gulab Singh to pay war indemnities to the British as well as the army was regulated.

References

External links

* People of the First Anglo-Sikh War Sikh Empire {{Asia-bio-stub