Rani Jind Kaur

Rani Jhindan urf Chandrawati

Maharani Jind Kaur (महारानी जिन्द कौर) (1817 – 1 August 1863), also known as "Maharani Zinda" was the youngest wife of the Maharaja Ranjit Singh, and the mother of the last Maharaja Duleep Singh. She was renowned for her beauty, energy and strength of purpose and was popularly known as Rani Jindan, but her fame is derived chiefly from the fear she engendered in the British in India, who described her as "the Messalina of the Punjab".

Jind Kaur as Regent

After the assassinations of Ranjit Singh's first three successors, Duleep Singh came to power in September 1843 at the age of 5 and Jind Kaur became Regent on her son's behalf. After Sikhs lost the First Anglo-Sikh War she was replaced in December 1846 by a Council of Regency, under the control of a British Resident. However, her power and influence continued and, to counter this, the British imprisoned and exiled her. Over thirteen years passed before she was again permitted to see her son, who had been taken away from India to England.

Born at Chachar, Gujranwala

Jind Kaur was born in Chachar, Gujranwala, the daughter of Manna Singh Aulakh, the overseer of the royal kennels. She had an elder brother, Jawahar Singh and an elder sister, who married Sardar Jawala Singh Padhania, the Chief of Padhana in the Lahore District. Manna Singh extolled Jind Kaur’s beauty and virtues to Maharaja Ranjit Singh, who summoned and married her in 1835 by sending his 'arrow and sword' to the village.

Mother of Maharaja Dalip Singh

On 6 September 1838 she gave birth to her only child, Duleep Singh. On the death of Ranjit Singh in 1839, she did not commit sati with the senior wives as she needed to care for her 10 month old infant. After confiscation of Punjab in 1849, British Government gave her life-long pension.

Cremation site of Maharani Jind Kaur, wife of Maharaja Ranjit Singh

Cremation site of Maharani Jind Kaur, wife of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, Panchvati Ghat, Nashik (Maharashtra)

Maharani Jind Kaur, the youngest wife of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, was indeed cremated near Nashik (Maharashtra), which seems unusual since the Sikh royal family and their traditions were rooted in Punjab. The reason lies in her last years:

After the fall of the Sikh Empire, she was separated from her son, Maharaja Duleep Singh, and imprisoned at different places by the British.

She escaped and went into exile in Nepal, later reuniting with Duleep Singh in Calcutta (Kolkata) in 1861.

When she died in 1863 in Calcutta, her body could not be taken back to Lahore because Punjab was under firm British control, and such an act might have sparked Sikh resistance.

Instead, her remains were taken to Nasik, Maharashtra, a major Hindu-Sikh cremation site at the Godavari river, which was considered sacred.

Later, her ashes were eventually taken to England and then to Amritsar, where they were enshrined in the Samadhi of Maharaja Ranjit Singh along with other queens.

So, she was cremated in Nashik mainly because of British political restrictions and the sacred status of the Godavari river for performing last rites.

ठाकुर देशराज लिखते हैं

महारानी जिन्दा - महाराज रणजीतसिंह की अन्तिम रानी जिन्दा थीं। ये सरदार मल्लसिंह की सुपुत्री थीं। महाराज दिलीप इन्हीं से पैदा हुए थे। पंजाब-हरण के बाद सरकार ने इनकी बड़ी भारी पेन्शन करके इन्हें काशी भेज दिया था। वहां से यह नेपाल को इसलिए भाग गई कि वहां के राजा की मदद से अपने पंजाब को वापस ले लें।

External Links

http://www.sikh-history.com/sikhhist/warriors/jindkaur.html

Page on Wikipedia

Gallery

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  Maharani Jind Kaur
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  Haveli Maharani Jind Kaur (Rani Jindan) in Lahore Fort Now Converted into Sikh Gallery. Maharani Jind Kaur Sandhawalia was born in Chachar, Gujranwala, the daughter of Jagirdar Sardar Manna Singh Aulakh, into an Aulakh Jat family. She was the youngest wife of the Sandhawalia Jat ruler Maharaja Ranjit Singh, and the mother of the last Maharaja of Lahore , Duleep Singh...Source - Jat Kshatriya Culture
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  Cremation site of Maharani Jind Kaur, wife of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, Panchvati ghat, Nashik (Maharashtra)
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  Cremation site of Maharani Jind Kaur, wife of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, Panchvati ghat, Nashik (Maharashtra)

References

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