Maharaja of Patiala
Encyclopedia
Maharaja
Mahārāja is a Sanskrit title for a "great king" or "high king". The female equivalent title Maharani denotes either the wife of a Maharaja or, in states where that was customary, a woman ruling in her own right. The widow of a Maharaja is known as a Rajamata...
in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and the ruler of the princely state
Princely state
A Princely State was a nominally sovereign entitity of British rule in India that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule such as suzerainty or paramountcy.-British relationship with the Princely States:India under the British Raj ...
of Patiala in Punjab
Punjab region
The Punjab , also spelled Panjab |water]]s"), is a geographical region straddling the border between Pakistan and India which includes Punjab province in Pakistan and the states of the Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh and some northern parts of the National Capital Territory of Delhi...
. The first Maharaja of Patiala was Baba Ala Singh (1695–1765), who was granted the title by Ahmed Shah Abdali of Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
in 1764.
The Maharajas of Patiala were awarded 17 gun salutes.
Following is the list of Maharajas of Patiala in order of their accession to the throne:
- Baba Ala Singh
- Maharaja Amar Singh
- Maharaja Sahib Singh
- Maharaja Karam Singh
- Maharaja Narendra Singh
- Maharaja Mahendra Singh
- Maharaja Rajinder Singh
- Maharaja Bhupinder SinghMaharaja Bhupinder SinghMaharaja Bhupinder Singh, GCSI, GCIE, GCVO, GBE was the ruling Maharaja of the princely state of Patiala from 1900 to 1938.- Biography :...
- MaharajaMaharajaMahārāja is a Sanskrit title for a "great king" or "high king". The female equivalent title Maharani denotes either the wife of a Maharaja or, in states where that was customary, a woman ruling in her own right. The widow of a Maharaja is known as a Rajamata...
Yadavindra Singh - MaharajaMaharajaMahārāja is a Sanskrit title for a "great king" or "high king". The female equivalent title Maharani denotes either the wife of a Maharaja or, in states where that was customary, a woman ruling in her own right. The widow of a Maharaja is known as a Rajamata...
Amarinder SinghAmarinder SinghCaptain Amarinder Singh . He served as the Chief Minister of Punjab from 2002 to 2007 and presently serves as the President of Punjab PCC. He currently resides in New Moti Bagh Palace, Patiala.-Personal life:...
The most famous Maharaja of Patiala was Maharaja Bhupinder Singh
Maharaja Bhupinder Singh
Maharaja Bhupinder Singh, GCSI, GCIE, GCVO, GBE was the ruling Maharaja of the princely state of Patiala from 1900 to 1938.- Biography :...
(12 October 1891 – 23 March 1938). He is perhaps best known for his extravagance, and for being a cricketer
Cricketer
A cricketer is a person who plays the sport of cricket. Official and long-established cricket publications prefer the traditional word "cricketer" over the rarely used term "cricket player"....
. His polo and cricket teams were one of the best in India Two of his sons, Maharajadhiraj Yadavindra Singh and Raja Bhalindra Singh
Bhalindra Singh
Raja Bhalindra Singh was an Indian first class cricketer and Maharajkumar of Patiala. His father was Maharaja Bhupinder Singh and his brother Yuvraj of Patiala played Test cricket for India....
, both played first-class cricket. Yuvraj played in one Test
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
for India, in 1934.
Maharaja of Patiala was also known as the owner of the highest cricket ground in Chail
Chail
Chail is a hill station in Himachal Pradesh, India. It once served as the summer capital of His Highness Maharaja Adhiraj Bhupinder Singh of Patiala .-Overview:...
and the first Indian to own a car and an aircraft. He is said to own an aircraft in 1911, the Wright brothers' model-B craft
Wright Model B
|-See also:-References:* * * * * * -External links:* *...
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Maharaja of Patiala was also considered as leader of the Sikhs and masses of Punjab before independence. When during rainy season a seasonal river bordering the city of Patiala overflows, the incumbent Maharaja offers a traditional Nath, an ornament worn by women in their nose to the river following prayers made by priests. This was last practised in 1993 when the river developed a breach and flooded Patiala.
Yuvraj Yadavindra Singh became the maharaja on 23 March 1938. He was to be the first maharaja, agreeing to the incorporation of Patiala into the newly independent India on 5 May 1948, becoming Rajpramukh
Rajpramukh
Rajpramukh was an administrative title in India which existed from India's independence in 1947 until 1956. Rajpramukhs were the appointed governors of certain of India's provinces and states....
of the new Indian state of Patiala and East Punjab States Union
Patiala and East Punjab States Union
The Patiala and East Punjab States Union was a state of India from 1948-56. It was created by combining eight princely states: Patiala, Jind, Nabha, Kapurthala, Faridkot, Kalsia, Malerkotla and Nalagarh. The state was inaugurated on July 15, 1948 and formally became a state of India in 1950. The...
.
The present Maharaja is His Highness Capt. Amarinder Singh
Amarinder Singh
Captain Amarinder Singh . He served as the Chief Minister of Punjab from 2002 to 2007 and presently serves as the President of Punjab PCC. He currently resides in New Moti Bagh Palace, Patiala.-Personal life:...
. Heir to the throne is Yuvraj Raninder Singh
Raninder Singh
Yuvraj Raninder Singh an Indian politician from Punjab, India, and son of Captain Amarinder Singh of Patiala who served as Chief Minister of Punjab from 2002 to 2007, he is the titular Heir Apparent to the title of Maharaja of Patiala...
.