Dr Devinder Pal Singh and Ravi Jasal About About Relevance Of Maharaja Ranjit Singh In Present Tim

Ranjit Singh[a] ( 13 November 1780 – 27 June 1839) was the founder and the first maharaja of the Sikh Empire, ruling from 1801 until his death in 1839. Born to Maha Singh, the leader of the Sukerchakia Misl, Ranjit Singh survived smallpox in infancy but lost sight in his left eye. At the age of ten, he fought his first battle alongside his father. After Maha Singh died in his early teenage years, Ranjit Singh became leader of the Misl. Ranjit Singh was the most prominent of the Sikh leaders who opposed Zaman Shah, the ruler of Durrani Empire, during his third invasion. After the retreat of Zaman Shah in 1799, he captured Lahore from the Sikh triumvirate which had been ruling the city since 1765. At the age of 21, he was formally crowned at Lahore. Before his rise, the Punjab had been fragmented into a number of warring Sikh, Muslim, and Hindu states.A large part of Punjab was under direct Durrani control.By 1813, Ranjit Singh had successfully annexed the Sikh misls and taken over the local kingdoms;[10] the following decades saw the conquest of Durrani Afghan-ruled territories of Multan, Kashmir and Peshawar into his expanding Sikh Empire. Ranjit Singh established friendly relations with the British. During his reign, Ranjit Singh introduced military reforms, structural changes in administration, and modernisation. His Khalsa army and government included Sikhs, Muslims, Hindus, and Europeans. His legacy includes a period of Sikh cultural and artistic renaissance, including the rebuilding of the Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar as well as other major gurdwaras, such as the Takht Sri Patna Sahib and the Hazur Sahib Nanded under his sponsorship despite being located outside of his realm. He also founded the Order of the Propitious Star of Punjab in 1837. Ranjit Singh was succeeded by his son Kharak Singh after his death in 1839. Early years Ranjit Singh was born in a Sandhawalia Jat Sikh family on 13 November 1780 to Maha Singh and Raj Kaur in Gujranwala, Punjab (present-day Punjab, Pakistan). His mother Raj Kaur was the daughter of Sidhu Jat Sikh ruler Raja Gajpat Singh of Jind.[18][19][b] Upon his birth, he was named Buddh Singh after his ancestor who was first in line to take the Amrit Sanchaar. The child's name was changed to Ranjit (literally, "victor in battle") Singh ("lion") by his father to commemorate his army's victory over the Chattha chief Pir Muhammad.[4][22] Singh contracted smallpox as an infant, which resulted in the loss of sight in his left eye and a pockmarked face.[4] He was short in stature, unattractive, never schooled, and did not learn to read or write anything beyond the Gurmukhi alphabet.[23][24] However, he was trained at home in horse riding, musketry and other martial arts.[4] Painting of a young Ranjit Singh from the Iqbalnama-i-Maharaja Ranjit Singh In 1792 at age 12, his father died and Ranjit Singh became the minor head of the Sukerchakia Misl.[25][26] He then inherited his ancestral Sukerchakia misl estates and was raised by his mother Raj Kaur, who, along with Lakhpat Rai, also managed the estates.[4] The first attempt on his life was made when he was 13, by Hashmat Khan, but Ranjit Singh prevailed and killed the assailant instead.[27] At age 18, his mother died and Lakhpat Rai was assassinated, and thereon he was aided by his mother-in-law from his first marriage.[28] He succeeded to the throne in 1799 after removing his mother as regnant by putting her to death. The young Ranjit Singh formed relations with the Kanhaiya and Nakkai misls and would consolidate his territory.[26] Reign Portrait of Ranjit Singh, c. 1816–1829 Early conquests Ranjit Singh's fame grew in 1797, at age 17, when the Durrani Shah Zaman attempted to bring Panjab into his control through his general Shahanchi Khan and 12,000 soldiers.[4][5] The victory in the 1798 battle of Amritsar gained Ranjit Singh recognition.[4] Ranjit Singh did not resist Zaman Shah when he entered Lahore in 1798. Blocked off all food and supplies, and burnt all crops and food sources that could have supported the Afghan army, which retreated to Afghanistan. In 1799, Ranjit Singh leading an army of 25,000, supported by another 25,000 soldiers led by his mother-in-law Rani Sada Kaur of Kanhaiya misl, attacked the region controlled by Bhangi Sikhs centered around Lahore. The Bhangis escaped, marking Lahore as the first major conquest of Ranjit Singh.[5][29] The Sufi Muslim and Hindu population of Lahore welcomed the rule of Ranjit Singh.[4] In 1800, the ruler of the Jammu region ceded control of his region to Ranjit Singh.