Ala Singh

Founder and first ruler of Patiala

Ala Singh
Maharaja of Patiala

Maharaja of Patiala
Predecessor	None (founder)
Successor	Amar Singh

Born	1691 Phul, Punjab, India
Died	(1765-08-07)7 August 1765
Spouse	Fateh Kaur
Issue	Sardaul Singh, Bumian Singh and Lal Singh
Dynasty	Phulkian dynasty
Father	Chowdari Ram Singh
Mother	Sabi Kaur
Religion	Sikhism

Ala Singh (1691–1765) was the founder and first ruler of the princely state of Patiala. Singh was born into the Phulkian dynasty, which claimed an ancient lineage tracing back to Rawal Jaisal, the founder and ruler of Jaisalmer, and further back to Rao Bhatti, the common ancestor of the Bhati Rajputs.^[1]^[2] Rising to power through key battle, Singh expanded his territory in Punjab.^[1]^[3]

In 1763, he established the city of Patiala and founded Patiala State.^[4] Singh, at various times, had both adversarial and allied relations the Afghan Durrani Empire.^[5] Ahmed Shah Durrani, the Emir of the Durrani Empire, granted Singh the title of Raja and other sovereign powers.^[6] Singh was praised and criticised, both by his contemporaries and historians, for his shrewd and cunning policies and strategies.^[1] Singh's reign ended with his death in 1765, and he was succeeded by his grandson, Amar Singh. His descendants were the rulers of Patiala until 1947, when India gained independence from the British Empire. His descendants who had royal titles retained them until 1971, when they were abolished through the 26th Amendment to the Constitution of India.

Lineage

Ala Singh was born into the Phulkian dynasty, named after Chaudhary Phul Sidhu-Brar, Singh's paternal grandfather, who was also the common ancestor of the rulers of Nabha, Jind and Faridkot.^[1]^[7] Singh was a direct descendant of Rawal Jaisal, a Bhati Rajput who was the founder and first ruler of Jaisalmer from 1156 to 1168.^[1]^[7] Due to being a descendant of Jaisal, Singh is also the direct descendant of Rao Bhatti, a 3rd century Hindu king, who was the common ancestor of the Bhati Rajputs.^[2]^[8]

Mythological ancestry

Descendants of Rao Bhatti, including the former and historical Patiala royal family, also claim to be direct descendants of Yadu, a mythological Hindu monarch from whom Bhatti claimed descent.^[2]^[9]^[10] According to Hindu mythology, Yadu was the founder of the mythological Yadu dynasty, a branch of the legendary Lunar dynasty (IAST: Candravaṃśa).^[2]^[10]

Early life

Ala Singh was born in 1691 in Phul, in the present-day Bathinda district of Punjab. He was born into the Jat Sikh Phulkian dynasty to Chaudhary Ram Singh of the Phulkian Misl.^[11] Singh's mother was Sabi Kaur.^[12] His father had six children, from eldest to youngest: Dunna, Sabha, Ala, Bakhta, Buddha, Laddha.^[12]

At the age of 16, Singh married Fateh Kaur.^[12] Kaur's cousin, Gurbaksh Singh Kaleke, later helped Singh found Patiala State.^[12] Singh's father Ram, was killed by the sons of Chain Singh. He and his brother Subha later avenged their father by killing two of Chain Singh's sons.^[12]

Battles, conflicts and conquests

During his life, Singh engaged in many battles and conflicts in the Punjab region. The Battle of Barnala in 1731 was a significant turning point in Singh's life. In the battle, Singh, along with the Majha Sikhs led by Kapur Singh, faced off against a confederacy of neighboring Muslim chiefs.^[13] His victory in this conflict established him as one of the prominent chiefs in the Cis-Sutlej region.^[13] In 1749, he built a fortress in Bhawanigarh and led an expedition to Bhatinda where he conquered territory for himself and his then expanding domain.^[1]

Conflicts with the Durrani Empire

Singh had numerous conflicts with the Afghan Durrani Empire. In 1748, Singh plundered Ahmed Shah Durrani, the Emir of the Durrani Empire, and in 1757, he plundered Ahmed Shah Durrani's son, Taimur Shah Durrani.^[5] In 1760, he supplied grain to the Maratha Confederacy during their conflicts against the Durrani Empire.^[5]

During the Vadda Ghalughara in April 1762, Singh did not assist other Sikhs during the massacre by the Durrani Empire.^[3] He stayed neutral during the events and did not initiate hostilities against the Durrani Empire.^[3] However, Singh's neutrality did not benefit him as Ahmed Shah Durrani, who was told that Singh was secretly an ally of the Majha Sikhs by Zain Khan and Bikhan Khan, would later burn the city of Barnala and advances upon Bhawanigarh, where Singh had fortified himself.^[3] Singh sought the help of Najib-ud-Daula, the Mughal Empire's Administrator of Delhi, and was forced to pay a humiliating fee of five lakh rupees as a tribute and an additional twenty-five thousand rupees permission to appear before Ahmed Shah Durrani with his long hair intact.^[3] Singh was later detained for a short period of time but was released on the promise that his territory would pay an annual tribute to the Durrani Empire.^[3]

Ruler of Patiala

Raja of Patiala

By the beginning of the 1760s, Singh had conquered a considerable amount of territory in Punjab, including Sunam, Samana, Banur, Ghuram, and Sanaur, and his capital was located in Barnala.^[13] In 1763, Ala Singh at the age of 57, founded of the city of Patiala and laid the foundations of Patiala State.^[4]^[14] In Patiala, he also built Qila Mubarak in 1763, which was initially constructed as a mud fortress and later reconstructed with bricks.^[15]

In 1764, while leading the Sikh Confederacy against the Durrani Empire, he conquered Sirhind and the surrounding territories along with his close friend Nanu Singh Saini.^[4] The Sikh Confederacy gave part of the Sirhind area to Singh, which enlarged his territory and formed Patiala State.^[4] He also shifted his capital from Barnala to the city of Patiala in 1764.^[13] In 1765, Durrani granted Ala Singh the title of Raja, robe of honour and the right to mint coinage.^[6] During his time as the ruler of Patiala, Singh's territory also extended to Karnal and Thanesar.^[5]

Rule and policies

Singh and other Sikh leaders were noted for forming beneficial alliances and gaining concessions from more powerful empires that were competing for dominance in Punjab.^[6] However, Singh, during his time the as the Raja of Patiala, was particularly noted for particularly being shrewd and cunning in his military policy and foreign policy.^[5]^[1] He managed to simultaneously maintain cordial relations with the Mughal Empire, Maratha Confederacy, Durrani Empire and the Dal Khalsa, all whom were competing for power and dominance in Punjab.^[13] However, Singh's foreign and military policies were criticised by and angered the Dal Khalsa. In early 1765, the Dal Khalsa, angered by Singh's relations with the Durrani Empire and his royal titles, attacked Patiala State.^[16]

Death and succession

On 7 August 1765, Singh died of a fever at the age of 70.^[5] He was succeeded by his grandson Amar Singh, who later gained the title Raja-e Rajgan, his three sons having predeceased him.^[2] Sardaul Singh the eldest died in 1753, Bhumian Singh died in 1742 and Lal Singh the youngest died in 1748.^[2]

Gallery

Letter written by Baba Ala Singh of Patiala
Darbar of Baba Ala Singh in Patiala
Maharaja Ala Singh, founder of Patiala state, ruled until 1765. The portrait is from a set of portraits of six maharajas (rulers) of Patiala State, late 19th century

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Bond, J. W.; Wright, Arnold (2006). Indian States: A Biographical, Historical, and Administrative Survey. New Delhi: Asian Educational Services. pp. 232–242. ISBN 978-81-206-1965-4. Archived from the original on 20 June 2024. Retrieved 14 June 2024.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Singh, Kirpal (2005). Baba Ala Singh: Founder of Patiala Kingdom (2nd ed.). Amritsar: Guru Nanak Dev University. pp. 113–120.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Singh, Teja; Singh, Ganda (2006). "Sixth invasion of Durrani and second Holocaust". A Short History of the Sikhs. Vol. 1 (1469–1765). Publication Bureau of Punjabi University, Patiala. pp. 162–164. ISBN 8173800073.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Punjab District and State Gazetteers: Part A]. Part 1. Vol. XVII.A. Punjab Government Press. 1900. pp. 46–52. Archived from the original on 20 June 2024. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f VSM, D. S. Saggu (7 June 2018). Battle Tactics And War Manoeuvres of the Sikhs. Chennai: Notion Press. pp. 125–126. ISBN 978-1-64249-006-0.
^ ^a ^b ^c Ramusack, Barbara N. (8 January 2004). The Indian Princes and their States. New York: Cambridge University Press. p. 38. ISBN 978-1-139-44908-3.
^ ^a ^b Singha, H. S. (2000). The Encyclopedia of Sikhism (over 1000 Entries). New Delhi: Hemkunt Press. p. 165. ISBN 978-81-7010-301-1. Archived from the original on 20 June 2024. Retrieved 19 June 2024.
^ Punjab District Gazetteers: Bathinda. Chandigarh: Revenue Department, Punjab. 1992. p. 37.
^ The New India. Times Publishing Company. 1937.
^ ^a ^b Srivastava, Sanjeev Prasad (1991). Art and Cultural Heritage of Patiala. New Delhi: Sundeep Prakashan. p. 4. ISBN 978-81-85067-66-7.
^ Singh, Ravneet (28 November 2018). "Historian spots tomb of Ala Singh's father". The Tribune. Retrieved 30 June 2024.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Singh, Kirpal (2005). Baba Ala Singh: Founder of Patiala Kingdom (2nd ed.). Amritsar: Guru Nanak Dev University. pp. 8–15.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Kaur Grewal, Gurkiranjii (2012). "Political and Ideological Role of Baba Ala Singh and Jassa Singh Ahluwalia". The Punjab Past and Present. 43 (2). Patiala: Punjabi University, Patiala: 35–36 – via Internet Archive.
^ Patiala and Its Historical Surroundings: Being a Souvenir Issued on the Occasion of the Twenty-ninth Annual Session of the Indian History Congress Held at Patiala from December 30, 1967, to January 1, 1968. Patiala: Punjabi University, Department of History and Punjab Historical Studies. 1967. p. 22.
^ Rambani, Vishal (29 May 2017). "Plan to get CM Amarinder's ancestral house, Qila Mubarak, on UNESCO heritage site list". Hindustan Times. Archived from the original on 30 June 2024. Retrieved 30 June 2024.
^ Singh, Ganda (1990). Sardar Jassa Singh Ahluwalia. Patiala: Punjabi University. pp. 162–163.