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Ram Singh I

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Ram Singh I
Raja of Amber
Reign1667–1688
Coronation10 September 1667
PredecessorJai Singh I
SuccessorBishan Singh
Born1640
Amber, Rajputana
Died30 April 1688 (aged 47–48)
Kohat, Pakhtunkhwa, Mughal Empire
Issue
  • 8 sons and 3 daughters, including:
  • Kunwar Kishan Singh (died 1682)
  • Kunvri Shivanshi (1667–1672)
Names
Ram Singh Bahadur
DynastyKacchwaha
FatherJai Singh I
MotherAnand Kunwar Chauhan [1]
ReligionHinduism

Ram Singh I was the elder son of Jai Singh I and was the ruler of Amber (now part of the Jaipur Municipal Corporation), and head of the Kachwaha Rajput clan. He was also subehdar of Kashmir.

He was commissioned by the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in 1667[2] to invade the Ahom kingdom of present-day Assam,[3] but the loss at the ultimate Battle of Saraighat and the subsequent retreat[4] led to his recall and disgrace.[5]

Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and Ram Singh

When Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj went to Agra in the Mughal court, on 12 May 1666, he was made to stand alongside relatively low-ranking nobles,[6] Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj took offence and stormed out of court and was promptly placed under house arrest. Ram Singh was granted custody of Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and his son.[7]

Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's house arrest situation was precarious. Aurangzeb's court deliberated whether to execute him or keep him as a servant. Jai Singh, having assured Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj of his personal safety, tried to influence Aurangzeb's decision.[8] However, Aurangzeb intended to kill Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and ordered Faulad Khan to transfer Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj from Ram Singh's custody to Radanaza Khan's house. Kunwar Ram Singh refused to deliver over Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj because his father, Jai Singh, had promised Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's safety and that he should be slain first to kill Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Aurangzeb made him to sign security bond for Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.[9]

Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj devised a strategy for emancipation. He ordered the majority of his troops home and urged Ram Singh to withdraw his pledges to the emperor for the safe custody of himself and his son.[10] Shivaji escaped and left Agra on August 17, 1666, by putting himself in one of the enormous baskets and his son Sambhaji in another.

After Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's escape, Ram Singh was accused of assisting Shivaji's escape and was punished, first by being barred from entering court and subsequently by being demoted.[11]

Ahom Campaign

Ram Singh was forced to fight Ahom force with 21 Rajput chiefs, own paid 4,000 soldiers, 1,500 ahadis, 500 artillerymen, and with the reinforcements from Bengal, numbers totalled upto 30,000 infantry, 18,000 turkish cavalry, and 15,000 Koch archers.[12] Ram Singh was eventually defeated and with his troops further reduced he could only helplessly retreat until the governor of Bengal sent some troops to aid him. Ram Singh grew sick of war and finally, in 1676 he was allowed to leave and return to his province. He was later posted in Kohat where he died in 1688.[13]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Jaipur that was: Royal Court and the Seraglio. p. 56.
  2. ^ "Learning of the loss of Kamrup on 19th December 1667, Aurangzeb decided to at once retrieve imperial prestige and regain lost dominion" (Sarkar 1992:211)
  3. ^ "(Aurangzeb) commissioned Ram Singh of Amber, son of the distinguished general Mirza Rajah Jai Singh, and a commander of 4000, to lead an invasion of Assam." (Sarkar 1992:211)
  4. ^ "Weakened by repeated defeats and consequent losses and losing all hopes of recovering imperial grace by defeating the Ahom monarch, Ram Singh left Kamrup in early April 1671 and returned to Rangamati." (Sarkar 1992:227)
  5. ^ "Aurangzeb at once demoted the Rajput general by 2000 and ordered his recall. Accordingly, he made over charge to Abu Nisar Khan and had audience with the Emperor on 25 June 1676." (Sarkar 1992:228)
  6. ^ Gordon, Stewart (1994). Marathas, Marauders, and State Formation in Eighteenth-century India. Oxford University Press. p. 206. ISBN 978-0-19-563386-3.
  7. ^ Jain, Meenakshi (1 January 2011). THE INDIA THEY SAW (VOL-3). Prabhat Prakashan. pp. 299, 300. ISBN 978-81-8430-108-3.
  8. ^ Gordon, Stewart (1 February 2007). The Marathas 1600–1818. Cambridge University Press. p. 76. ISBN 978-0-521-03316-9.
  9. ^ Shivaji and his times : Sarker, Jadunath : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive. 14 January 2022. Retrieved 30 April 2022. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  10. ^ Sarkar, Jadunath (1994). A History of Jaipur: C. 1503–1938. Orient Blackswan. ISBN 978-81-250-0333-5.
  11. ^ Shivaji and his times : Sarker, Jadunath : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive. 14 January 2022. Retrieved 30 April 2022. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  12. ^ S.K. Bhuyan (1957). Lachit Borphukan and his times. Government of Assam in the Department of Historical and Antiquarian Studies. p. 34.
  13. ^ Sarkar, Jadunath (1994). A History of Jaipur:1503-1938. Orient Longman. pp. 146–147. ISBN 9788125003335. Ram Singh was sent to Assam as a punishment for secretly helping Shivaji....He (Ram Singh) had only 8,000 troopers under his standard....The Ahoms, being a nation in arms, mustered 100,000

References

  • Sarkar Jadunath (1984, reprint 1994). A History of Jaipur, New Delhi: Orient Longman, ISBN 81-250-0333-9.
  • Sarkar, J. N. (1992), "Chapter VIII Assam-Mughal Relations", in Barpujari, H. K. (ed.), The Comprehensive History of Assam, vol. 2, Guwahati: Assam Publication Board, pp. 148–256
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