Commander of the Dal Khalsa, proclaimed Sultan ul-Qaum in 1761; 1718-1783
Jassa Singh Ahluwalia
Raised at Delhi by Mata Sundari, Jassa Singh Ahluwalia led the Dal Khalsa through the Afghan invasions. Proclaimed Sultan ul-Qaum at Lahore in 1761, he survived the carnage at Kup with twenty-two wounds and founded the house that became the state of Kapurthala.
Early life
He was born at Ahlu near Lahore on 3 May 1718. His father passed away when he was about five, and his mother took him to Delhi, where Mata Sundari cared for him. He returned to Punjab in 1729 with gifts of arms from her and joined Nawab Kapur Singh's band.[EoS]
The Dal Khalsa
He became its leader at the Vaisakhi assembly of 1748. His forces harried Ahmad Shah Durrani, established rakhi, helped reinstall Adina Beg at Lahore in 1758, and freed 2,200 women captives near Amritsar in March 1761. After Sikhs occupied Lahore in September 1761 he was proclaimed king there and a coin was struck in the names of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji and Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji.[EoS]
Kup and after
He commanded at Kup on 5 February 1762 and was badly wounded. Sikhs attacked Sirhind in January 1764 and reoccupied Lahore on 17 April 1765. In 1783 he sat on the throne in the Red Fort at Delhi and gave way when Jassa Singh Ramgarhia objected. He passed away on 20 October 1783, and his cenotaph stands at Gurdwara Baba Atal.[EoS][EoS][EoS]
Images
Jassa Singh Ahluwalia on horseback before his house, with an attendant, dated on Commons to the late 1700s. The source is a social media post, so treat the date with caution.
Unknown, Late 18th century, weakly sourced. Public domain. Source
