troops

Explore the legacy of Surat Singh Majithia, a Sikh commander who played a pivotal role in the Anglo-Sikh wars and was honored with the title of Raja.

Explore Diwan Ajudhia Parshad's detailed account of the first Anglo Sikh war, focusing on battles like Pherushahr and Sabhraon. Discover historical insights.

Discover the legacy of Patrick Alexander Vans Agnew, a civil servant pivotal in the East India Company era. Explore his journey and untimely end in Multan.

Explore the historical narrative of Wazir Khan, the Mughal faujdar of Sirhind, and his encounters with Guru Gobind Singh in the tumultuous early 1700s.

AHMAD YAR KHAN TIWANA (d. 1829), second son of Khan Muhammad Khan, the Tiwana chief of Mittha Tiwana, in Shahpur district, measured swords with Sikhs more than once during Maharaja Ranjit Singh`s time. Ahmad Yar Khan revolted against his father and, having succeeded in attracting most of the tribe to his side, compelled him to surrender the chief ship to him. In 1817, Maharaja Ranjit Singh dispatched troops under the command of Misr Divan Chand against the Tiwana chief at Nurpur Tiwana. The fort was conquered and Ahmad Yar Khan ran away to Jhandavala, situated in the Mankera territory. 

Discover the heroic legacy of Arjan Singh, a key military commander during the Sikh era, involved in pivotal battles like Sabhraon and the Kashmir expedition.

BISHAN SINGH, a general in the Sikh army, was the adopted son of Jamadar Khushal Singh, the royal chamberlain (deorhidar). He received his education at the Ludhiana Mission School across the AngloSikh frontier. In 1848, when stationed at Pind Dadan Khan, Bishan Singh was ordered to move his troops to assist Herbert Edwardes, the British resident`s assistant at Bannu, who was then marching against Diwan Mul Raj at Multan. A few months after, his troops revolted and joined the insurrectionists, but Bishan Singh sided with the British and joined Lord Gough`s camp. For this he was rewarded with a pension by the British government.

BUDDH SINGH MAN (d. 1856), son of Mana Singh, entered the service of Maharaja Ranjit Singh in 1816 as a khidmatgar (attendant). He rose to the command of 30 horse, and was given a.jagir worth 17,000 rupees. Later, he was promoted a colonel in General Court`s brigade. According to British records, he commanded four regiments of infantry, one regiment of cavalry, and two troops of artillery. He remained on active duty during Maharaja Sher Singh`s reign, but because of his relationship with Atar Singh Sandhanvalia, a confirmed opponent of the Maharaja, he was reduced in rank.

FIVE YEARS IN INDIA, by Henry Edward Fane, aide-de-camp to his uncle, General Sir Henry Fane, commander-in-chief of the army of the East India Company during late 1830`s, is "a narrative of [the author`s] travels in the Presidency of Bengal, a visit to the court of Runjeet Singh, a residence in the Himalayan mountains, an account of the late expedition to Cabul and Afghanistan, voyage down the Indus, and journey overland to England." Fane had kept an immaculate journal of his travels from the time his regiment got orders to move to Ceylon in June/ July 1835, till he arrived at Falmouth, England, in April 1840.His actual stay in India was of three and a half years, from August 1836, when he arrived at Calcutta, to the end of 1839, when he commenced his journey homeward. The travelogue was published in two volumes, under one cover, by Henry Colburn, London, in 1842.

FORD, MATTHEW WILLIAM (d. 1841), an Englishman who started his career in 1804 as an ensign in a West India regiment. He successively served with the 7th Foot, the 70th Foot, the 1st Royal Scots and the 22nd Light Dragoons. In 1823, he was appointed paymaster to the 16th Foot. While stationed at Karnal in 1837, he embezzled large sums of money and deserted the British troops. He came to Lahore towards the end of the year and joined the Sikh army as a battalion commander on Rs 800 per month, later commuted for jagir of three villages near Rawalpindi.