History of the Punjab, from the Remotest Antiquity to the Present Time

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The Shiatic OL Bomb

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Preface

ba the pages of History there is probably no story at once so grand,

so romantic, and so pregnant with instruction, as that of the British conquest of India and the progress of the British Nation in the East. What deeds of noble daring, what examples of calm resolution and untiring devotion, does it not unfold! Over what fortresses, once deemed impregnable, has not the ‘meteor flag of England’ waved triumphantly! -Through what forbidding mountain passes, what dreary defiles, and what tangled glens have not the notes of her bugles echoed and her bright arms gleamed! In what majestic halls, dainty pavilions, and jewelled domes have not - the strains of her martial music and the cheers of her advancing soldiery resounded !

Tn their submission to her sway, the children of the sun, the founders of the mighty Empires of Kanauj and Ajuddhia, enshrined in the legends of Rama, feel honoured. Before her might the children of the moon, the founders of the dynasties of Indraprastha and Pataliputra, glorified in the legends of Krishna and the Pandavas, bowed their heads. These were the heroes of the age of Hindu chivalry, and they are, to this day, honoured with the title of Rajputs, or the sons of ‘kings. At Britain’s feet lay, equally humbled, the hardy Mahratta, who had so long successfully baffled | the power of the Moghal, and the proud Afghan, who, more than a century before, had challenged the might of the stern Nadir.

But in no part of this great Empire was British rule received with more genuine satisfaction than in the country of the Five Rivers. With a manly and calm resignation, the disciples of Govind, beaten in a fair fight, cheerfully submitted to their conquerors. Unlike the Rajput, the Sikh did not seek glory by tracing back his genealogy to the sun or the moon. Nor, like the enthusiastic Musalman, did he pride himself on the heroic deeds of ancestors who, under the impulse of religion, had subverted the mightiest empires on the face of the earth. Nevertheless he was a Singh of the Guru, an earthborn Singh, or lion of his race. The Sikhs owed their position to the strength of their ownarms. The very land they ruled was, not many generations back, ploughed by their forefathers.

A peculiar race of people, they flourished in a peculiar country. From the remotest antiquity, an interest has attached to the land of the Five Rivers unequalled by that attaching to any other land of this great Peninsula. Placed, as it is, by Nature in a locality which gives it a crowning position, and serving as the gateway to India, every invader from the North has,’by its possession, sought the road to fame. In pre-historic times, it was,.presumably, the Panjdb that was first invaded by the Aryans from their camping ground beyond lv PREFACE.

the snowy ranges of the stupendous Himélayas. Here the holy singers composed their Vedic hymns, the great literary memorial of their settlement in the country. The Brahmins, the Rajputs and the Bannias, who form the sacerdotal, military and mercantile classes of the Hindus, are, alike, the descendants of the fairer race, the Aryans of Bactria. The lower and servile dark-skinned classes represent the people‘they subdued. ,

The Aryan conquerors of the Panjib were, in their turn, sub-, duad by the Scythians, or Tartars, of Turkistan, whose hordes, having overrun parts of Asia, found their way into the regions of the Indus. The Scythic, or Northern, form of Buddhism competed with, the earlier Buddhism of Asoka, famous for his rock and cave edicts. The Scythian influence in’ the Panjéb is a historical fact. Alexander made the Panjab:the classic ground of his conquest, and it was, in the Panjdb, too, that, in after times, the armies of Islam, after, overranning, Asia, Africa and Southern Europe, as far as distant Spain and Gaul, obtained their first footing on Indian soil. For upwards of two centuries did the Hindu masters of the .country baffle the power of the Mahomedan invaders. Mahmid sacked and destroyed the Hindu fanes, broke up their idols, and subjected the land to every conceivable form of misery and dégradation, carrying away thousands of the inhabitants into hopeless slavery- The hordes of the great mercenary Tartar leader, Changez Khan, under his brother, inflicted on the Panjab all the horrors which had | been experienced in Hungary, Russia, and Germany, and even on ‘the shores.of the Baltic, Tamerlane, the world-renowned conqueror, who left to his descendants twenty-seven crowns, and made | Samarkand the mistress of Asia, enriching. her with the spoil of a ' thousand cities, made the Panjéb the’scene’of his military adventures. The knightly Baber, the hardy N&dir, and the Abdali, Ahmad Shah, each in his turn, used the Panjab as the base of warlike operations for conquests beyond its classic rivers. In short, from the time of Alexander to the invasion of Shah Zaman, of unlucky memory, it has served as a bulwark to India against all the invasions

from the North and West.

The Panjéb is the home of Sikhism, the religion founded by Nanak, who, instead of detailing and sub-dividing divinity, loftily , invoked the deity as the one and indivisible God, and appealed alike to the mudiah and the pandit. Here Arjun met his famous martyrdom, and here Govind, consummating the dispensation of Nanak, died, declaring his priestly mission to be fulfilled, and the Guruship to rest in the general body of the Khdlsd. Here did the Sikh confederacies rise under their respective warlike leaders, resulting in the establishment of the doctrine that the Army and State of the Khalsa were the substantive power of the Panjéb. Ranjit Singh, of the Sukerchakia misl, then appeared on the scene, and became the

- founder of the Sikh monarchy in the Panjdb; but his descendants |

PREFACE. ; v lacked the political foresight and wisdom that had characterized his policy, and their incapacity lust to the Sikhs a kingdom which it had taken years of toil and persevering energy on the part of Ranjit Singh to establish.

The aggressive policy adopted by the Sikhs towards the paramount Power of India, compelled the latter to take up arms against them. The country was conquered ; but, generosity prevailing over policy, the victors restored to the recognised heir to the throne ‘the territories which they were entitled to hold by right of conquest. The Sikh ministers and Darb4r, however, violated the treaty ; and the AAdsd army, rising up in arms, waged a fierce war to destroy the benefactors of their race, whose clemency alone had saved them from utter annihilation. The violators of the treaty were punished, and the province was absorbed into the British Empire, under the administration of Lord Dalhousie. The conquered nation, whose own acts had invited the conflict which thus terminated in its downfall, was consideratcly, nay, generously, treated by the victors. British statesmen respected the fallen fortunes of the Sikhs, and, by a policy of combined vigour, and conciliation, achieved those great victories of peace which will ever reflect honour on the British name. The names of the famous Lawrences, worthy choice of Lord Dalhousie’s benevolent policy, are inscribed in characters of light on the frontispiece of the History of India, among those of the illustrious British heroes and statesmen to whose energy, talents and diplomatic skill, England owes its possession of her empire. The Lawrences were ably assisted in their task by worthy successors, Sir Robert Montgomery and Sir Donald McLeod, whose names became deservedly great throughout the land. To these and other British statesmen the Panjab owes a debt of undying gratitude for their services to the country ; and their memory will be held in lasting honour, They were the pioneers of the Empire founded by the British, to whose subsequent success in the country they paved the way.

It is the history of a country so situated, thus acquired by the British, and so governed by that nation, that I have attempted to write in the following pages. The want of a complete History of. the Panjéb has long been felt. The familiar and.able works of McGregor, Cunningham, Malcolm, and Prinsep are histories of the Sikhs from the time of Baba Nanak. They treat of the origin of the Sikh nation and sect, their habits and customs, and describe how they rose to ‘political significance and power. The history of the reigning family of Lahore, by Major Carmichael Smyth, describes the part which the Dogra family of Jammu played in the grand crama of the Panjab. It aims at describing the secret history of the Sikh court, and gives a vivid account of the intrigues which ves'tited in the final collapse of.the Sikh monarchy. The works of Qolonel Steinbach, the Panjib adventurer, of Major H. M. L. Lawrence, and Zhe Court and Cump of Ranjit Singh, by Colonel aM PREFACE,

Osborne, all treat of the Sikh period. The learned works known as the Panjdéb Rajds and Panjdb Chiefs, by Sir Lepel Griffin, have been devoted to special subjects. None of these works tells us anything of the pre-Sikh period, much less of the Hindu and pre- Hindu periods. The wars with the British are not fully described, and the account of the second Sikh war and of the annexation of the country by the British is entirely omitted, Nothing is said of the subsequent eventful British period, the obvious reason being that many of the works now extant were compiled about the time of the annexation of the country. Moreover, a perusal of these works discloses a want of uniformity in the accounts they severally give of the Sikh period, especially where the authors, having no access to official records, depended on native sources of information. The Urdu history of the Panj4b ascribed to Rai Kanhia Lal contains little that is original. The diary of Mahar4j& Ranjit Singh, written in Persian by Sohan Lal Suri, would he a useful work of reference, were it not couched in a hyperbolic style and loaded with fiction. It is to supply a manifest want, then, that the present work has been undertaken. The difficulties with which I have had to contend in prosecuting my task have been great. It has proved not only a work of vast magnitude, but one of great delicacy and responsibility. Fully conscious of my own shortcomings, L was nevertheless deeply impressed with the need for such a work in the interests of my countrymen.

There was not a passage ¢4 histury before the advent of the British which did not strike me with emotion, or which did not, as we come down from that period of insecurity and spoliation to the period of profound and unbroken peace enjoyed during the British period, disclose the truth that India, under the benign rule of England, has changed from a waste land, full of thorns and brambles, to a verdant garden, resplendent with bright and fragrant flowers. I felt impelled to narrate to my countrymen the story of the land of their birth, from the remotest antiquity to recent times, based on historical truth, and free frum party spirit or sectarian prejudice. Colonel Gurwood, in his celebrated work, The Despaiches of the Duke of Wellington, has said: “The great end of history is the exact illustration of events as they occurred, and there should neither be exaggeration nor concealment, to suit angry feelings or personal disappointment. History should contain ‘the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but truth.’ ” TI have endeavoured to act on this motto, and to narrate the facts in their true colours, no matter to what particular nation or creed they related. My difficulties have been twofold. This being a provincial history, much of my material had, in the first instance, to be collated from voluminous works on India, which could not be done without extensive reading, and, secondly$ in order to test the truth of my authorities, I had to compare.the various accounts given. The result has been that only such accounts have, to the best of my belief, been

PREFACE, vi incorporated in this book as, after the exercise of due diligence and caution, were found to be supported by concurrent testimony, or as seemed to receive corroboration from works which may be accepted as authorities on the subject of Indian history. ;

My task, however, in spite of its difficulties, and the years of toil bestowed on it, has been to me a labour of love; and, now that it is at an end, I feel that the time employed on it could not have been devoted to a worthier purpose. [ have brought the history of the Panjab down tothe present time, in the hope that it may find readers among the friends of civilization and of English progress generally, as well as among students, and at the same time I venture to hope that the learned public may find in it a succinct and comprehensive history of this country.

It has not been thought necessary to append references to historical facts in every. instance, ns this would have swelled the work with footnotes. Nuneroua works of Oriental history have been consulted ; but my acknowledgments are chiefly due to those of Sir William Jones, Briggs’ celebrated translation of Ferishta, Six H. M. Eliiot’s Historians of India, the History of India, by the Honorable Mountstuart Elphinstone ; the works of Murray, Taylor, Marshman, Mill, Talboys Wheeler, Keene, Fraser and MacFarlane. For the ancient portions of the history, I am indebted to the excellent works of Dr. Hunter, General Cunningham, McCrindle, Dunker, Thomas i‘aurice, Ludlow, Tavernier, and the Rev. Mr. Hunter. In writing the Mahomedan period, the Akbarndma of Sheikh Abul Fazl, the Tabakdi-i-Akbari of Moulana Nizdm-ud-din Ahmad, the Ain-i-Akbari, by. Professor Blochmann, the Syrul-Muta Akhirin, of Mir Gholam Husein Khan, translated by Briggs, the Hadikatul Akddim of Murtaz4 Husein, the Bhadshahnama of Mulla Abdul Hamid, of L&hore, the [kbdlndma Jahdngtri of Mutamid Khan, the Alamgir< ndma of Mahomed Kazim, and the Moasir-i-Alamgiri of Mahomed S&ki, were also consulted, For the portion relating to the Sikhs, [ am obliged to the works of Sir John Malcolm, McGregor, Cunningham, Prinsep, Smyth, to the Panjdb Rdjds and Panjdb Chiefs, by Sir Lepel Griffin, Dr. Honighbergher’s Thirty-five Years in the Easi, Moorcroft’s Travels, Burne’s’ Travels, to the narrative of journeys by Masson and Victor Jacquemont, and to Dr. Trumpp’s translation of the Adi Granth. For the aceount of the Sikh wars and the Mutiny, I am chiefly indebted to the History of the Panjab by Thornton, Nolan’s British Empire, Kaye's Sepoy War, The Crisis of the Panjab by Frederick Cooper, and The Panjéb and Delhi in 1857, by the Rev. J.Cave-Brown. The chapter on the trade and industries of the Panjab LI owe to official reports, especially to the excellent works of Mr. Baden-Powell. In describing the aborigines of the Panjéb and the customs of the Hindus, and for the statistical portion of the history , I could not have done without consulting the able official reports drawn up by Mr. Denzil J. Ibbetsot. I have also to thank many viii PREFACE.

kind friends who have assisted me by lending me rare books, or with their advice. Dewdn Ram Nath most courteously allowed me the use of his learned father Dew4n Amar Nath’s manuscript history, called the Khdlsd Dewan, in Persian, I had also the privilege of using Moulvi Din Muhammad’s History.of the Panjab, in manuscript, which was lent me by his son, Munshi Ghulam Farid Khan, Extra Assistant Commissioner. In sketching the British Period, the official reports were consulted as well as my own notes.

A few words are here necessary regarding the arrangement of the work, Although particular care has been taken to narrate every important fact that [ was able to ascertain relating to the Panjab, I have omitted nothing which was likely to be of interest to the student of history. Though care has been taken to avoid entering into the broad subject of Indian history, many events have had to be mentioned for the sake of their historical value, and the intense interest attaching to them. For instance, while describing the events which occurred in the Panj4b.in connection with the invasion of Nadir Shah, or Ahmad Shah, I found it impossible to omit mention of the more important account of the sack of Delhi and the massacre of its inhabitants. Delhi, although the ancient capital of Hindost4n, forms now an integral part of this province, and I have treated it as a Panjab city. Hence, whatever of interest took place there, has been mentioned ; for, as it was the capital of the Mahomedan Empire of India, the incidents at the Court materially affected

- the welfare of the Panj&b and its people. The History of the Panjab would have lost much of its interest if no mention, however brief, of the political condition of the.empire, of which it formed a component part at various periods, had been made, Some events, although, strictly speaking, not relating to the Panj4b, had to be noticed, to render the narrative complete, for without them the link between connected series of important occurrences would have been missing. For instance, while describing the exploits of Mahmud of Ghazni on the frontier of the Panjib, [ could not see my way to omit mention of his more important victories at Somnath, so celebrated in history, and read with equal interest everywhere. A full life has been given of celebrated sovereigns, conquerors and other personages known tq Indian history, who played a conspicuous part, in Panjab politics, such as Alexander the Great, Akber, Nadir, Jahdngir and the Empress Nur Jahan. A full life of Mahar4j4 Ranjit Singh, of modern fame, and a fuller account of his interesting reign than has ever yet been published, have been’ given. The lives of the Sikh Gurus, and an account of the Sikh misds will, it is hoped, be found to contain much new and important matter. They will give the reader an idea of the manner in which the Sikh religion and power developed in the Panjéb. . The reign of each Mahomedan King has been separately treated, with special reference to the events of the Panjéb and the political changes and condition of

PREFACE. ix the people in that country at various times. The origin of the people has been traced, so far as was consistent with the objects of this work and the religious notions of the people, and their remarkable customs and usages have been described. I have, in short, attempted to trace the Panjabi, from the time when he lived a primitive life, to that in which he claims the highest privileges that could be legitimately conferred upen him ; from an age of barbarism to am age of enlightenment, when he shares, with the rest of the Crown’s subjects, the benefits and blessings of a civilized Government.

The magnitude of the scheme must be my plea for the brief manner in which I have treated of general subjects, for, had I ventured to deal with them fully, the work would have swelled to an enormous extent, and it was not intended to make it an encyclopedia. I have, in short, endeavoured so to treat of each subject as to bring the work. within the compass and scope of a provincial history.

That a competent English scholar would have done more justice to the work, I freely admit. Iam neither unconscious of my own shortcomings, and of (the) many defects in the work which I have ventured to lay before the public, nor, in spite of the care bestowed on the work, am [in a position to claim for it the credit of being a complete history of the Panjab. It is possible that some mistakes have crept in, for which I ask the indulgence of the learned reader. It is possible, too, that more discerning eyes will find imperfections in my work that are invisible to mine; but, in the words of Mill, “I shall yet appeal from the sentence of him who’ shall judge of me solely by what I have not done. An equitable and truly useful decision would be grounded upon an accurate estimation of what I have done, and what I have not done, taken together.” If that eminent historian of India, with all his great literary talents, thought the plea applied to his case, it will, @ fortort, have application to the case of one like myself, who has no pretensions whatever to systematic scholarship. And if I am asking the learned reader to approve of my labours in a field of some difficulty, I do so, not because I am sanguine of their worth, but because I have so much confidence in his indulgence. My reason ‘for attempting the work istsimply this: Since no one of higher qualifications had thought of such a work, I conceived that I might make an attempt, however imperfect, to supply what I considered a want, with no ostentatious object, but with a view solely to awakening interest, and inducing more competent persons to complete what I might have left incomplete, and to accomplish what I was not in a position fully to execute.

And now, my dear countrymen, before I close this review, let me say 4 few words to you, words which I feel you will do well to take to heart. When you have read my history, will you put it x PREFACE, on the shelf of forgetfulness, as many books of entertainment are read and put aside after the curiosity excited by them is over? Or will you elect to treat it like some fiction, or some Indian tale, which so many of our young men read for the sake of, amusement, and to pass the time ? I sincerely hope and trust that you will not do this, for such is not the object of my work. Let me hope that you will weigh carefully and calmly the facts narrated to you; that you will exercise due diligence ; and then that, in order to draw conclusions, you will appeal to your reason, your conscience and your good taste. Do not think that the Panjab of to-day is the Panjéb of forty years back. Do not forget, what the condition of your country was forty years ago, or to appreciate heartily the manifold blessings of British rule and the influence of British civilization on your country. It was all very well for Lord Macaulay, in his unrivalled essays on Clive and Warren Hastings, to paint in glowing terms the magnificence and grardeur of the Moghal Court and of its ministers and grandees. Truly has he said that “the innumerable retinues and gorgeous decorations which surrounded the throne of Delhi, dazzled even eyes which were accustomed to the pomp of Versailles. Some of the great Viceroys, who held - their posts by virtue of commissions from the Moghal, ruled as many subjects as the king of France or the Emperor of Germany.

Even the deputies of these deputies might well rank, as to extent of paotaa and amount of revenue, with the Grand Duke of Tuscany or the Elector of Saxony.” It has been a misfortune to our generation that Lord Macaulay did not write a History of India, for it ‘would have been a work in which he would have taken the most genuine interest. Had the great essayist taken up his pen to write a history of this country, he would not, in all human probability, have omitted to lay before the world the other side of the picture. He would have informed us whence the wealth had come which enabled the Imperial Court to maintain its State, or the Viceroys of Provinces to decorate their palaces and entertain a countless host of retainers, and what means were employed in accumulating these vast treasures for the Imperial Exchequer. Did it ever reach the royal ear how a poor old woman had passed the night even half a mile from the Imperial palace? Was it ever known whether she was oppressed by the Imperial servants, or by a wealthy lord, or by an official exercising authority ?. Did it matter at all if she passed her night in groans and lamentations, in hunger and privation ? Was o lamp lit in her dark, small room to solace her hours of affliction? Did the grand Signor ever care to see what was assing in the cottage of a poor peasant, a short distance from the mperial city, through the grinding tyranny of those whom he had putin authority ? Exceptions, of course, there are ; and our country can point with pride to names like those of Asoka, Bikramajit and Akber, brilliant examples of royal enlightenment and munificence,

PREFACE. xi under whom India prospered, and whose example was worthily followed by some others. To the memory of these kings every respect is justly due. Their great names have been handed down to posterity,as benefactors of their people and country. But monarchs of this description have been so few that they can be counted on one’s fingers.

I have recounted to you the history of the Great Moghal before he had sunk to the condition of a pensioner and: a puppet. What does it disclose ?. Corruption, degradation and treachery stalked openly through the land. Confusion and disorder of every kind ran riot over the length and breadth of the empire. The country was desolate, and vice, cruelty, extravagance and profligacy overspread its surface. Strife became chronic, and anarchy reared its head everywhere. The money which enabled the Moghal and his Omerahs to embellish their palaces, was wrung from helpless people in the interior of the country. The land was farmed out to

contractors who exercised arbitrary power to satisfy their cupidity ; and these had, in their turn, to disgorge to the Imperial Treasury a portion of their plunder, if they could not bribe the officers who had access to the throne. Murders of the most horrible type, robberies of a most outrageous and shocking character, were the order of the day. Honour, justice and position were bought and sold. The rulers of the land were sunk in voluptuousness and pollution of the most revolting description, and immersed in an abyss of enfeebling debauchery. They had, in most instances, thrown themselves into the arms of vile panders and parasites, who were slaves of their own sensual appetites. Barbers and fiddlers, pimps, eunuchs and mountebanks, acquired considerable fortunes, and usurped the functions and prerogatives of royalty. Sometimes a puppet king was set up to suit the private ends of the Omerahs. He was either an’ inexperienced youth, picked up at random from the innermost recesses of the zandnd, who was absorbed in the pleasures of the seraglio, and to whom affairs of State were disagreeable interruptions, or a crippled old man, on the brink of the grave, respectable only in his feebleness. The money squeezed out of the poor raiyat was wasted in expensive feasts, pageants and shows ; in glittering trappings for horses, or in richly caparisoned housings of costly elephants—in short, in folzy and pomp of every conceivable description, not to mention the sumptuous salaries and allowances of a multitudinous host of idle attendants, bands of singers, musicians, dancing girls, and crowds of sycophants and impostors. The court of the king was a hotbed of intrigue. The ministers were divided, and party spirit ran high. Viceroys and satraps of differ-. ent provinces, farmers of revenue and others in power, sought to build up a sovereign rule for themselves on the basis of plunder and ‘blackmail. The Government was rapacious, tyrannical and hated to a degree. Intestine broils and commotions, incessant bloodshed xit PREFACE.

and anarchy, at length undermined the great house of Tymir. The court of Lahore, when no longer guided by the genius of Ranjit Singh, fell into a state even worse than that of the corrupt Court at Delhi subsequent to the period of Bahddur Shah, the successor of Aurangzeb. De mortuis nil nisi bonum is doubtless an excellent sentiment ; but the truth must be told, and told, too, in all its nakedness, that the lesson of history may be learned with profit. Fiat justitia, ruat celum/ The empire founded by the genius of Baber collapsed, and the throne reared by Ranjit on the ruins of Moghal greatness fell, too, in its turn. Where are now the mighty potentates before. whom the greatest lords of the land trembled ? Where is the Grand Moghal, who, seated on the peacock throne, exacted prostration from the chiefs of the most ancient dynasties of India ? Where is his band of tall and brilliantly clad heralds ‘with golden staves in their hands, who made the famous Sewaji . bow before Aurangzeb, calling out loudly on each step, as the ‘Mahratta advanced to the royal presence to pay him homage : “Lo, the Asylum of the Universe ! Jo, the Lord of the Nations ! lo, the conqueror of the world! Shah in Shah Badshah saldmat!” All have crumbled into dust, and nothing remains but the memory of their good or evil deeds! A humane nation from the far West, unrivalled among the nations of the world for its benevolence and sympathy with mankind, has been destined by the mysterious decree of Providence to rule over this vast empire, to vindicate its honour, to shelter God’s people, to protect the weak, to punish the tyrant, to do away with the darkness of ignorance, to diffuse the light of learning, and to. fulfil its great mission in the world, which is the good of the nations committed by God to its care. The tremendous hurricanes that.swept over India, shattered to pieces its sacred temples and stately palaces, destroying its hopes and spreading misery and desolation around, have happily all passed away, and a cheering breeze, accompanied by refreshing showers from the West, has brought on its wings, for the parched land of India, its fertilizing influence and the sweet fragrance of blossom and flower. Once more has the withered tree of hope gathered new life and become laden with sweet fruit. The Hindu, in his ‘pagoda, utters his “ Ram, Ram!” bowing with the utmost humility betore his Devatas ; the Mahomedan, if his mosque, with his face turned towards Mecca, repeats his “ Allah, Allah!’ with all the fervour of a true Musalman ; and the Sikh, in his Gurudodra, reverentially waves the chowri of peacock plumes over the Granth, his holy book, and invokes the spirit of the “ Wah Guru” to help him in his worldly affairs. What an age of peace and concord is ours! The ages of Naushrvan, the just, and Harun-ul-Rashid, the magnificent, celebrated in the chistory of the East, are not to be compared with it. ‘