The Sikh Empire

The Sikh Empire was the last great Indian state to fall to the British. It grew out of the Punjab in 1799, when a young chief named Ranjit Singh took Lahore, and it lasted until 1849, when the East India Company annexed it after two hard wars. At its height it stretched from the Khyber Pass to the Sutlej River and from the Sindh desert to the mountains of Ladakh and Gilgit. This post explains how the empire began, how Ranjit Singh ran it, and why it broke apart so quickly after his death.

Our old post on this topic was short and had a few mixed up details. We have rewritten it in plain English and checked the main facts against standard history references.

Before the Empire: The Misls

The roots of Sikh power go back to the early eighteenth century. After the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb died in 1707, Mughal control over the Punjab weakened. Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh Guru, had already created the Khalsa, a community of committed Sikhs ready to fight. You can read more about the decline of the Mughals in our post on the Mughal Empire.

A first Sikh state under Banda Singh Bahadur did not last long. By the middle of the century, however, a group of twelve Sikh confederacies, called misls, controlled much of central and eastern Punjab. Their combined forces, known as the Dal Khalsa, fought both Mughal governors and the Afghan armies of Ahmad Shah Abdali. Each misl held its own towns and lands, and the chiefs often fought among themselves as well.

The Rise of Ranjit Singh

Ranjit Singh was born in 1780 into the ruling family of the Sukerchakia misl. As a small child he caught smallpox, which left his face marked and cost him the sight of his left eye. He became chief while still a boy and soon showed rare skill in war and diplomacy.

In 1799 he captured Lahore from a group of three Sikh chiefs who had held it since 1765. The Afghan ruler Zaman Shah, who still claimed the Punjab, then confirmed him as master of the city. Ranjit Singh moved his capital from Gujranwala to Lahore, and that move is taken as the start of the Sikh Empire.

On 12 April 1801, close to the spring festival of Vaisakhi, he was formally crowned Maharaja of Punjab. The ceremony was led by Sahib Singh Bedi, a descendant of Guru Nanak. Our post on Baisakhi and the Sikh New Year explains why this season matters so much to Sikhs.

How the Sikh Empire Grew

Ranjit Singh first united the Sikh lands. He took Amritsar in 1802, and by about 1812 most of the other misls had been brought under his rule. In 1809 he signed the Treaty of Amritsar with the British. It fixed the Sutlej River as his eastern border and kept the two powers at peace for decades.

With the east secure, he turned north and west:

• Multan fell in 1818, ending Afghan influence east of the Indus.
• Kashmir was annexed in 1819 after the battle of Shopian.
• Peshawar paid tribute from 1823 and was formally annexed in 1834.
• Ladakh was conquered from 1834 by Zorawar Singh, a general sent by the Dogra chief Gulab Singh, a vassal of Lahore.

The most famous commander of these years was Hari Singh Nalwa. He fought in campaigns at Kasur, Sialkot, Attock, Multan, Kashmir and Peshawar, and pushed the frontier to the mouth of the Khyber Pass. He was killed in 1837 at the Battle of Jamrud, the last major clash with the Afghans. Jamrud then marked the empire’s western edge.

Life at the Lahore Court

The government of the empire was called the Lahore Darbar. Ranjit Singh named his state Sarkar Khalsa and struck coins called Nanakshahi, in the name of Guru Nanak rather than his own.

His court was mixed in faith. His prime minister, Dhian Singh, was a Hindu Dogra. His foreign minister, Fakir Azizuddin, was a Muslim. His finance minister, Dina Nath, was a Hindu Brahmin. Many of his soldiers were Sikhs, but the army also included Hindus, Muslims and a few European officers.

Ranjit Singh was a devout Sikh. He paid for the marble work and gilding of the Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar, which is why it is known today as the Golden Temple. He also gave gifts to other gurdwaras, including Takht Sri Patna Sahib and Hazur Sahib at Nanded. See our post on the Golden Temple to learn more about the shrine.

The Khalsa Army

Ranjit Singh knew that the British and the Afghans both had modern, disciplined armies. So he rebuilt his own forces along European lines. He hired foreign officers, including the Frenchman Jean Francois Allard and the Italian Jean Baptiste Ventura, to train infantry and cavalry in drill and formation. He also built up strong artillery. He took care not to recruit British officers, as he did not trust British aims in India.

By the 1830s the Khalsa army was one of the strongest forces in Asia. It allowed the empire to hold a long and difficult frontier, and it later gave the British their toughest fights in India.

The Kohinoor Diamond

Ranjit Singh gathered great wealth. The most famous item in his treasury was the Kohinoor diamond, which he obtained from the exiled Afghan king Shah Shuja Durrani. The stone stayed with the Sikh rulers until the British took it in 1849. It later became part of the British Crown Jewels.

Decline After 1839

Ranjit Singh died in 1839, and the empire he built soon fell into crisis. His son Kharak Singh ruled only briefly. His grandson Nau Nihal Singh was fatally hurt when an archway fell on him as he returned from his father’s cremation. Chand Kaur and Sher Singh followed, but court plots and murders meant that no ruler lasted long.

In 1843 the young Duleep Singh, still a child, was placed on the throne, with his mother Jind Kaur acting as regent. Real power now lay with rival nobles and with the army, which had grown restless. Historians still debate how far British agents encouraged these divisions.

The Two Anglo Sikh Wars

The First Anglo Sikh War began in late 1845, when the Sikh army crossed the Sutlej after a large British military buildup along the border. Heavy battles followed at Mudki, Ferozeshah and Sobraon. The Sikhs lost, and the Treaty of Lahore in 1846 imposed a large fine. Unable to pay it in full, Lahore gave up Kashmir and Hazara. The British then sold Kashmir to Gulab Singh under a second Treaty of Amritsar, creating the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir.

The Second Anglo Sikh War broke out in 1848 after a revolt in Multan spread across the Punjab. The Sikhs fought well at Ramnagar and Chillianwala, but they were decisively beaten at Gujrat in 1849. The Sikh leaders surrendered near Rawalpindi in March.

At the end of March 1849 the British read a proclamation at Lahore ending the Sikh state, and the Punjab was formally annexed in early April. Duleep Singh lost his throne and his property, including the Kohinoor. He was sent away from the Punjab, later settled in England, and died in Paris in 1893.

Legacy of the Sikh Empire

The Sikh Empire lasted only fifty years, but it left a deep mark. It showed that a regional Indian power could build a modern army and hold off both Afghan and British pressure for decades. The British later followed Ranjit Singh’s frontier policy of holding the Khyber Pass. In Punjab, Ranjit Singh is still remembered as Sher e Punjab, the Lion of Punjab. For the region’s wider story, read our post on the history and geography of Punjab.

Key Dates at a Glance

• 1780: Ranjit Singh is born.
• 1799: Ranjit Singh takes Lahore.
• 1801: Coronation as Maharaja of Punjab.
• 1809: Treaty of Amritsar fixes the Sutlej border.
• 1818 and 1819: Multan and Kashmir taken.
• 1834: Peshawar annexed.
• 1839: Death of Ranjit Singh.
• 1845 to 1846: First Anglo Sikh War.
• 1848 to 1849: Second Anglo Sikh War and annexation.

What We Changed From the Old Post

We rewrote the post in plain English and added clear sections on the misls, Ranjit Singh, the court, the army, the wars and the legacy.

We corrected how Lahore was taken: Ranjit Singh captured it from Sikh chiefs, and the Afghan ruler then confirmed him. We replaced the old border description with the sourced one and dropped the claim that the empire had only four provinces.

We added the Treaty of Amritsar, the main conquests, Hari Singh Nalwa, the Kohinoor, the rulers after 1839 and both Anglo Sikh wars.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who founded the Sikh Empire?

Maharaja Ranjit Singh founded it when he took Lahore in 1799. He was crowned Maharaja of Punjab in 1801.

What was the capital of the Sikh Empire?

Lahore, which is now in Pakistan, was the capital and the seat of the Lahore Darbar.

When did the Sikh Empire end?

It ended in 1849, when the British annexed the Punjab after the Second Anglo Sikh War.

Who was the last ruler of the Sikh Empire?

Maharaja Duleep Singh, the youngest son of Ranjit Singh, was the last ruler.