Jaswan Explained

Conventional Long Name:Jaswan State
Common Name:Jaswan doon
Nation:British India
Status Text:Princely State
Year Start:1170
Event Start:Foundation of the state
Year End:1815
Event End:Annexation by the Sikh Empire
P1:Kangra State
S1:Sikh Empire
Flag P1:Flag of Kangra state.png
Flag S1:Sikh Empire flag.svg
Image Map Caption:Detail of Jaswan (Jaswal) from a map of the various Hill States of the Punjab Hills region, copied in 1852
Today:Himachal Pradesh, India

Jaswan was a precolonial Indian state in modern-day Himachal Pradesh, commanded by the Jaswal Rajput clan. It was founded in 1170 AD by Raja Purab Chand, a cadet of the Katoch lineage, ancient royal family of Kangra.[1]

History

Early history

According to legend Jaswan state was founded in 1170 by Raja Purab Chand from the Kangra royal family.[1]

Sikh Empire and British Raj

In 1815, Maharaja Ranjit Singh ordered all his available forces to assemble at Sialkot. The raja of Jaswan, Ummed Singh (1800–1849), failed to obey the summons and was fined a sum beyond his means. The raja was forced to relinquish his state to the Sikh emperor, and accepted a jagir of 21 villages and 12,000 Rs per annum. In 1848, he joined the Sikh in an unsuccessful revolt against the British. His palaces were plundered and razed to the ground, and his territory annexed. He was stripped of his title and exiled to Almora, where he died a year later.[2] In 1877, the jagir in Jaswan, along with several other former properties in Rajpura and Amb, was restored to Ummed's grandson Ran Singh (b. 1833), who also later acquired the jagir of Ramkot in Jammu upon marriage to a granddaughter of Maharaja Gulab Singh.[2]

The titles claimed by the princes, however, were still denied any recognition until Raghunath Singh (b. 1852) was granted the title of raja due to his Katoch lineage and marriages to two of the daughters of Maharaja Ranbir Singh of Jammu and Kashmir. The title could not be passed on through inheritance, and he could not administer his jagir. Raghunath Singh died in 1918, after which Laxman Singh succeeded him.[2]

External links

30.484°N 76.594°W

Notes and References

  1. Book: Jerath . Ashok . Dogra Legends of Art and Culture . 1998 . Indus Publishing Company . 978-8173870828 . 20–22 . 13 September 2019 .
  2. Web site: History of Una. National Informatics Centre . 13 September 2019 .