PRE-INDEPENDENCE ERA
Mughals (1580s–1750s)
Kashmir did not witness direct Mughal rule till the reign of Mughal badshah (emperor) Akbar the Great, who took control of Kashmir and added it to his Kabul Subah in 1586. Shah Jahan carved it out as a separate subah (imperial top-level province), with seat at Srinagar. During successive Mughal emperors many celebrated gardens, mosques and palaces were constructed.
Religious intolerance and discriminatory taxation reappeared when Mughal emperor Aurangzeb ascended to the throne in 1658 CE. After his death, the influence of the Mughal Empire declined. In 1700 CE, a servant of a wealthy Kashmir merchant brought Moi Muqqadas (the heir of the Prophet), a relic of Muhammad, to the valley. The relic was housed in the Hazratbal Shrine on the banks of Dal Lake. Nadir Shah’s invasion of India in 1738 CE further weakened Mughal control over Kashmir. The image towards left showcases the Shalimar Bagh in Srinagar; the Mughals built several charbagh-style gardens all over the Kashmir valley.
Durrani Empire (1752–1819)
Taking advantage of the declining Mughal Empire, the Afghan Durrani Empire under Ahmad Shah Durrani (Photograph towards Right) took control of Kashmir in 1752. In the mid-1750s the Afghan-appointed governor of Kashmir, [56] Sukh Jiwan Mal, rebelled against the Durrani Empire before being defeated in 1762. After Mal’s defeat, the Durrani engaged in the oppression of the remaining Hindu population through forced conversions, killings, and forced labor. Repression by the Durrani extended to all classes, regardless of religion, and a heavy tax burden was levied on the Kashmiri populace.
A number of Afghan governors administrated the region on behalf of the Durrani Empire. During the Durrani rule in Kashmir, income from the region constituted a large part of the Durrani Empire’s revenue. The empire controlled Kashmir until 1819, after which the region was annexed by the Sikh Empire.
Sikh rule (1820–1846)
After four centuries of Muslim rule, Kashmir fell to the conquering armies of the Sikhs under Ranjit Singh of Punjab after the Battle of Shopian in 1819. One of the most significant events during this period was the treaty between Maharaja Ranjit Singh and the ruler of Jammu & Kashmir, which paved the way for the expansion of the Sikh Empire into the region.The treaty was signed in 1819 between Maharaja Ranjit Singh and the ruler of Jammu & Kashmir, Raja Gulab Singh. The treaty granted the Sikhs control over the territory of Jammu, while Raja Gulab Singh retained control over the rest of the region. The treaty also required Raja Gulab Singh to pay a large sum of money to the Sikhs as a tribute.
The treaty was followed by a series of battles fought by General Zorawar Singh and Gulab Singh, who were key figures in the expansion of the Sikh Empire into Jammu & Kashmir. They played significant roles in the military campaigns and territorial acquisitions in the region of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh during the 19th century. Succeeding paras provides an overview of their battles and the subsequent expansion beyond Ladakh.
Battle of Reasi (1822) – General Zorawar Singh, a trusted commander under Maharaja Ranjit Singh, led an expedition to the mountainous region of Reasi, located in present-day Jammu and Kashmir. He successfully defeated the local Rajput rulers and extended the influence of the Sikh Empire in the area.
Conquest of Kishtwar (1821-1823) – Zorawar Singh undertook multiple campaigns to bring the region of Kishtwar, situated east of Jammu, under Sikh control. The Dogra ruler Gulab Singh, who was serving under Zorawar Singh, played a crucial role in these campaigns.
Capture of Ladakh (1834-1842) – Zorawar Singh’s most prominent military campaign was the conquest of Ladakh. In 1834, he led a Sikh army through treacherous mountain passes and captured Leh, the capital of Ladakh. However, due to logistical challenges and harsh weather conditions, the Sikhs faced resistance from local forces and were forced to withdraw temporarily. Zorawar Singh returned in 1841 and finally conquered Ladakh, making it a part of the Sikh Empire.
Treaty of Chushul (1842) – After the conquest of Ladakh, Zorawar Singh attempted to expand further into Tibet. However, his forces were met with strong opposition from Tibetan armies. In the Battle of Chushul, Zorawar Singh was outnumbered and killed and his army was defeated. Following this defeat, the Sikhs signed the Treaty of Chushul, which secured the release of their captured soldiers but marked the end of their military campaigns in Tibet. The photograph towards left showcases the portrait of Sher-e-Punjab Maharaja Ranjit Singh.
Gulab Singh’s Expansion – After the defeat of Zorawar Singh, Gulab Singh emerged as a prominent regional power in the region. He made efforts to consolidate his control over Jammu and Kashmir and expanded the Dogra Kingdom through various treaties and agreements. The Treaty of Amritsar in 1846, signed between Gulab Singh and the British East India Company, resulted in the acquisition of territories that included Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh.
General Zorawar Singh led several successful military campaigns in the region, conquering the areas of Ladakh and Baltistan, which were previously under the control of Tibet.
Gulab Singh, meanwhile, consolidated his hold over the region of Jammu and expanded his territory into the Kashmir Valley. He also played a key role in the First Anglo-Sikh War, fighting on the side of the British against the Sikhs.
Following the war, the British recognised Gulab Singh as the ruler of Jammu & Kashmir and he was granted the title of Maharaja by the British government. Under his rule, Jammu & Kashmir saw significant economic and cultural development, including the construction of roads and other infrastructure and the establishment of a modern administrative system.
The legacy of the Sikh Empire’s expansion into the region and the battles fought by General Zorawar Singh and Gulab Singh continue to shape the history and identity of the region. Kashmir became the second highest revenue earner for the Sikh empire. During this time Kashmiri shawls became known worldwide, attracting many buyers especially in the west. Earlier, in 1780, after the death of Ranjit Deo, the kingdom of Jammu (to the south of the Kashmir valley) was also captured by the Sikhs and made a tributary. Ranjit Deo’s grandnephew, Gulab Singh, subsequently sought service at the court of Ranjit Singh, distinguished himself in later campaigns and got appointed as the Raja of Jammu in 1820.
The photograph towards right showcases the portrait of General Zorawar Singh.
Princely State of Jammu & Kashmir (Dogra Rule, 1846–1947)
In 1845, the First Anglo-Sikh War broke out and Gulab Singh “contrived to hold himself aloof till the battle of Sobraon (1846), when he appeared as a useful mediator and the trusted advisor of Sir Henry Lawrence. Two treaties were concluded. By the first the State of Lahore (i.e. West Punjab) handed over to the British, as equivalent for (rupees) ten million of indemnity, the hill countries between Beas and Indus; by the second the British made over to Gulab Singh for (Rupees) 7.5 million all the hilly or mountainous country situated to the east of Indus and west of Ravi” (i.e the Vale of Kashmir).
The Treaty of Amritsar freed Gulab Singh from obligations towards the Sikhs and made him the Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir. The Dogra’s loyalty came in handy to the British during the revolt of 1857 which challenged British rule in India. Dogras refused to provide sanctuary to mutineers, allowed English women and children to seek asylum in Kashmir and sent Kashmiri troops to fight on behalf of the British. British in return rewarded them by securing the succession of Dogra rule in Kashmir. Soon after Gulab Singh’s death in 1857, his son, Ranbir Singh, added the emirates of Hunza, Gilgit and Nagar to the kingdom.
The Princely State of Jammu and Kashmir was constituted between 1820 and 1858. It combined disparate regions, religions and ethnicities: to the east, Ladakh was ethnically and culturally Tibetan and its inhabitants practiced Buddhism; to the south, Jammu had a mixed population of Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs; in the heavily populated central Kashmir valley, the population was overwhelmingly Sunni Muslim, however, there was also a small but influential Hindu minority, the Kashmiri brahmins or pandits; to the northeast, sparsely populated Baltistan had a population ethnically related to Ladakh, but which practised Shi’a Islam; to the north, also sparsely populated, Gilgit Agency, was an area of diverse, mostly Shi’a groups and, to the west, Punch was Muslim, but of different ethnicity than the Kashmir valley. The photograph towards left showcases the Portrait of Maharaja Gulab Singh in 1847, a year after signing the Treaty of Amritsar.