Unfolding the Story of Maharaja Duleep Singh

Maharaja Duleep Singh's Biography 

© Royal Collection Trust

Duleep Singh was born on September 1837 in Lahore, India. He became the Maharaja of Sikh Empire at the very young age of five in the year 1843. Duleep’s father was Ranjit Singh, the Sikh Empire’s first Maharaja and known as a mighty “Lion of Lahore,” who led Punjab for almost five decades. On the other hand, his mother was Maharind Jind Kaur. She was the regent of Duleep, who was the new Maharaja in 1843 that needed more time to learn about being a ruler. Since he was still young to take over the foreign affairs, his mother was the one who took care of everything. He spent his final years in the UK on October 21, 1893.

The Devastating Story of Maharaja Duleep in His Younger Years

When Duleep Singh was too young to rule, he didn’t have complete control over his people. The power was in the hands of her mother’s brother Jawahir Singh. Although Duleep was born into a royal family, his life wasn’t majestic as movies portray it. 

Let’s go back to his early years as a young ruler…

Since Duleep’s father died, he and his mother lived in Jammu, ruled by Gulab Singh with the help of Vazier (prime minister) Raja Dhian Singh. When he was only five years old in 1843, the assassination of his brother Maharaja Sher Singh and Vazier Singh happened. Despite being young, he was the only son left of Ranjit Singh to take over the ruling of the Sikh Empire. 

During Duleep’s rule and his mother as Regent, the entire Sikh army became stronger and gained power. However, the First Anglo-Sikh War in 1845 took place. British defeated the powerful Sikh Empire, the first defeat of an eight-year-old Maharaja Duleep Singh. 

During the peace treaty, they retained Maharaja Duleep as nominal ruler, except that his mother was to be exiled and to be replaced with a Council of Regency. That was quite devastating as he was not allowed to visit Jind Kaur in prison, nor could he for more than thirteen years. In that time, the Sikh Empire lost its power and territory to Britain. 

In 1848, The second Sikh War occurred when there was an anti-British outbreak at Hazara and Multan that led to widespread Sikh risings. Another defeat for Duleep at only ten years old. He was thus deposed and lost his crown. Dr John Login watched over him and sent him from Lahore to Fatehgarh. He didn’t have complete freedom as he was restricted from meeting his fellow Indians. After he lost his throne, he became a puppet under British rule. They closely supervised  his every move at that time so he would be culturally anglicised. The British tried to depose all his Sikh cultural background and customs to replace them with English culture. 

Duleep Singh wasn’t in good health. Despite his young age, he had extreme and devastating experiences of this British colonisation that could have contributed to his illness. He often needed to recuperate at the Landour station in Lower Himalaya, which was luxuriously decorated to house him.

Duleep’s Conversion To Christianity 

Dr Login treated Duleep like his own son. He began to share Christian texts with him, and Duleep’s closest childhood friends were both English Anglican Missionaries. 

In 1853, before Duleep was 15 years old, he was converted to Christianity, approved by the Governor-General Lord Dalhousie under the tutelage of Bhajan Lal. His conversion was known as the first Indian prince's accession to Christianity. 

The Exile of Duleep Singh 

In late 1854, he was forced to leave India and sent to England. At first, he thought this was only temporary, as his guardian Dr John Login told him. When he went to England, he had the impression that he only needed to complete his education and then return to a landed estate in Dehradun afterwards. All those things were empty promises. He stayed in England for almost the rest of his life. 

The Lavish Life in The Menzies Castle 

In exchange for Duleep’s freedom and obedience to the British government, he was given a £25,000 yearly pension or £2,500,000 in today's value. It was a steep price for Maharaja Duleep Singh, who should have been ruling over the entire Sikh empire. He accepted the offer for a while and stayed at the Castle Menzies in Perthshire, Scotland, which Dr Login leased. 

During Duleep's stay in England, the British “took good care” of him and showered him with honours, parties, and feasts. Queen Victoria and her husband, Prince Albert, were fond of him. He eventually became the royal muse. Prince Albert photographed him, while Queen Victoria herself sketched him. Along with this, the royal court artist made Duleep’s portrait, sealing his position in the Victorian court. 

Although the British seemed a “good cop,” their lavish treatment of Duleep was just another tactic to win over the Sikh empire. Despite the comfortable life Duleep encountered in England, he wanted to get out. 

When Duleep was 19 years old, he asked and insisted on being in charge of his household. British granted his wish and gave him a raise in his pension. 

Duleep’s Stirring Reunion with His Mother 

Duleep never forgot his mother, who was exiled to Kathmandu, Nepal. He wanted to see her again, so he wrote a letter urging her to join him in England. However, the British betrayed him multiple times. They intercepted the letter, but Duleep did not give up. 

Instead of sending a letter, he sent a human to relay his message. Unfortunately, Victoria’s people hindered the messengers from reaching Jind Kaur. He realised he didn’t have any choice but to go there himself. 

He escaped the British authorities and moved closer to his mother by posing as a participant in a tiger hunt in Bengal. Then, channelling all the ingenuity she had instilled in him, he slyly concealed his letter from his guardian, Dr Login, and sent it to the British Resident in Kathmandu. 

His plans to send the letter were successful as he received an update about her mother and learned about her grim condition. Gone were the days when Jind was known as steadfast and courageous. The characteristic fire in her was slowly dying. When the British heard the news, they allowed her to return to England on January 16, 1861, with his son, Duleep Singh, as she was not considered a threat anymore. Soon after, Maharani Jind died in 1863 at the young age of 46. 

A Long Stay in Elveden 

Elveden, a country estate covering 17,000 acres (69 km2) near Thetford in Norfolk and Suffolk, was purchased by Maharaja Duleep Singh in 1863. He loved his time at Elveden Hall and in the neighbourhood, where he also worked to restore the local church, school, and several small cottages. He renovated the neglected estate into a thriving game preserve, where he became known as England's fourth-best shot.

They renovated his home to resemble an oriental palace, and he lived there as a British aristocrat. After his death, the British sold Maharaja Duleep Singh's estate to settle his debt.

Duleep Singh Was Reconverted to Sikhism 

Duleep Singh married Bamba Müller in Cairo in 1864 and moved to Elveden Hall in Suffolk. As a result of his disappointment and resentment toward the British, he reconverted to Sikhism after moving back to India in 1886.

He was eager to return to India and learn more about Sikhism while in exile. Before this, he had been prevented by his handlers from contacting his cousin Sardar Thakar Singh Sandhawalia, who had emigrated to England from Amritsar on September 28, 1884, accompanied by his sons Narinder Singh and Gurdit Singh and a Sikh priest.  A list of Sir Duleep Singh's Indian property was also in his possession. All of this grew his devotion to Sikhism.

The British government decided in 1886 to prevent him from returning to India and practising Sikhism. Despite warnings from the India Office, he left for "home" on March 30, 1886. He was picked up and taken into custody in Aden, which was then a part of the Aden Settlement and the first location where the Viceroy of India's authority extended. Even though Sardar Thakar Singh Sandhawalia, who had previously planned the Pahaul ceremony in Bombay, attempted to prevent him from holding an informal re-conversion ceremony in Aden, it went ahead anyway. Eventually, Sir Duleep had to go back to Europe.

The Bloodline of Duleep Singh 

© Royal Collection Trust

Sir Duleep Singh had two marriages; the first was to Bamba Müller in Alexandria, and the second was to Ada Douglas Wetherill in 1889. He had a total of eight children.

He became a father to seven children with Maharani Bamba. Their male heir, born in 1865, passed away the following year.

Duleep Singh’s children with Maharani Bamba were: 

• Prince Victor Albert Jay Duleep Singh
• Prince Frederick Victor Duleep Singh
• Princess Bamba Sofia Jindan Duleep Singh
• Princess Catherine Hilda Duleep Singh
• Princess Sophia Alexandra Duleep Singh
• Prince Albert Edward Alexander Duleep Singh

© Royal Collection Trust

Duleep Singh’s children with Wetherill were: 

• Princess Pauline Alexandra Duleep Singh
• Princess Ada Irene Beryl Duleep Singh

Unfortunately, none of Duleep’s children had legitimate issues, which ended the Sikh royalty. 

The Death of The Sikh Empire’s Last King 

© Royal Collection Trust

Duleep was a nomad throughout his troubled life, moving between India and England at the behest of the British Empire. He ultimately passed away in his modest hotel room in Paris on October 22, 1893, at 55. One would like to think that his life under British rule was over and done for good, but it was not the end yet. 

On top of everything else that went wrong in Duleep Singh's short life, he died in a manner unfit for a king: he was penniless and in debt to numerous people when he passed away alone in a Paris hotel room. After all, Duleep Singh's extravagant lifestyle of sprawling estates, recreational hunting, and elaborate parties had ended by the time of his death. The British still had one more betrayal in store for him.

After Duleep passed away, his family expressed a strong desire to bring his body back to India, a wish he had previously expressed while he was still alive. However, the British refused, fearing that his return would spark an uprising. Instead, they followed Christian burial customs in burying his body next to that of Maharani Bamba. 

Duleep Singh was born in the territory that is now the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, but he was the last Maharajah of the Sikh Empire. His hometown of Lahore, Punjab, was the capital of the Sikh Empire at the time of his birth. However, the British allocated this portion of Punjab to Pakistan after the 1947 partition of India. The Maharajah's loss of influence in his territory thus persisted even after his death.