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Pathania is the name of a branch of the Tomara gotra of Chandravanshi Rajputs, who claim a mythological descent from Arjuna, the hero of the Mahabharata. They mostly live in and around Himachal Pradesh, in North India. They established the kingdom of Nurpur in Himachal Pradesh during the 11th century and ruled there until 1849.
Brief history
Rana Jethpal (1100?), the younger brother of King Anangapal II of Delhi, sought to conquer Jallandhar Doab (Bist Doab). After crossing the Beas River, he captured the fort of Bhet, and for this reason became known as Rana Bhet. Later, he came upon the city of Pathankot (possibly ancient Pratisthana), and following the tradition of Rajputs, in which the king almost always took his name from the name of the country where he exercised his dominion, he came to be known as a Pathania Rajput, instead of a Tomara.
The kingdom of Nurpur had its capital at Pathankot, now a district of Punjab, India. The kingdom included a large tract on the plains of the Punjab; also the whole of the present Nurpur Tahsil of Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh, with the addition of Shahpurkandi, now in Gurdaspur, and also a small tract to the west of the Ravi, called Lakhanpur, now in Jammu & Kashmir State. The kingdom was bounded on the north by Kangra and Chamba, on the south by the Punjab plains, and on the west by the Ravi river. The capital was at Pathankot, which was known as Paithan in the medieval times. The rule of Pathanias reached its pinnacle during the reign of Raja Jagat Singh. All through their history the Pathania clan rebelled against the foreign invaders, both Muslims and the British. Although sometimes the Pathania kings held the high offices of Generals known as Mansabdar (Army Commander, reserved for Hindu and Muslim princes of note) in the Mughal military and captured many a kingdom for the Mughal emperor in Hindustan and beyond the Indus up till Uzbekistan yet repeatedly they rebelled against the forces of the Mughals and other foreign invaders. The most popular uprising was by Wazir Ram Singh Pathania who led a rebellion against British Raj and was subsequently defeated by British after a hard fought battle . He was deported to Rangoon where he died in the imprisonment. Local still sing ballads in his memory and a statue commemorating him exists on the Pathankot-Dalhousie road.
==Rebellion of Ram Singh (1845-1849)==
In 1845 after the death of Raja Veer Singh, ruler of Nurpur, the natives wanted to place his son Jaswant on the Gaddi/throne. Minister Sham Singh escorted Jaswant from Chamba to a Camp at Kushinagar near Nurpur. However, the British objected to Jaswant as new King (since Jaswant was minor), and took over the administration of this small princely state. Sham Singh along with other minister approached British officers to recognize the jurisdiction of Jaswant. The delegation led by Sham was mocked and insulted by the British officials. Ram Singh son of Minister Sham was teenager at that time when he learnt about his father’s insult at the hands of British he was furious. In defiance to British Raj he declared Jaswant as new King and appointed himself as his new leader. On the early morning of 15 Aug 1845 in a fierce battle he evicted British troops stationed at fort of ‘Shahpur Kandi’.
Ram Singh organized his main defenses around the hilly terrain of ‘Kumni da Pail’ area. This is from where he led guerrilla raids to frustrate British troops. When army contingent under General Wheeler was sent by then Punjab Lt Governor to capture Ram Singh dead or alive he shifted his defenses further deeper into hills of ‘Dallah di Dhar’. Here in major battle with troops of 51 Sikh Local Infantry in Jan 1849 Ram Singh Pathania’s men inflicted heavy causalities on Bristish troops. Following words are inscribed on the grave of British officer killed in action:-
“In the sacred memory of Lt John Peal, 51 Sikh Local Infantry. He succumbed on the 17th Jan 1849 to wounds received in action near Dallah on 16 Jan 1849 when engaged with insurgents under Ram Singh while gallantly leading his men. This tablet is placed in his memory by the officers 51st Sikh F.F” Such was the intensity of Ram Singh’s campaign that to date locals sing ballad admiring his courage ‘Killa Pathania Khoob Ladayya, Ballay Pathania Khoob Ladayya, Dallay di Dharara Dafale jo Bajadi, Kumni Bajjay Tamur…..’. Every year on 17 Aug , a fair honoring his name is held at Dhaula Dhar, near Shahpurkandi, Pathankot, where sword and armour of the braveheart, Ram Singh Pathania is displayed.
References
- The Princely and Noble Families of the Former Indian Empire: Himachal Pradesh V. 1 by Mark Brentnall, Indus Publishing, p. 352
- Wooden Temples of Himachal Pradesh By Mian Goverdhan Singh, Indus Publishing, p. 39
- The Princely and Noble Families of the Former Indian Empire: Himachal Pradesh V. 1 By Mark Brentnall, Indus Publishing, p. 351
- Dogra Legends of Art & Culture by Ashok Jerath, Indus Publishing, p.62, 211-216