Shamas Khan
Shamas Khan (1778 – 18 July 1837) or Sardar Shams Khan was a Kashmiri chieftain and governor of Poonch who led a revolt against Sikh and Dogra rule during the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.[1][2][3]
Shams Khan | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1778 Poonch, Afghan Empire |
| Died | 1737 Poonch, Khalsa Kingdom |
| Allegiance | Khalsa Kingdom (1820s — 1837) |
| Battles / wars | 1837 Poonch Revolt  |
| Children | Murad Khan Kala Khan Beroli Khan |
Early life
[edit]Shamas Khan was born to Sher Mast Khan in a village called Tat or Degwar Maldyalan in the Poonch district of Azad Kashmir.[4]
Historians are not clear weather Shamas Khan was a Maldial or Sudhan and his origin is disputed,[5][4] in a folk epic composed in Pahadi language he is mentioned to belong to Maldial (Maldial) tribe,[6][7][5][8] although with the British records of the 19th century linking him to the Sudhan tribe.[9][10][11]
Background
[edit]The forces of Zorawar Singh and Labh Singh still engaged the remaining rebels in Bagh despite Gulab's retreat and defeated the rebels they encountered. After his retreat, Gulab concluded that the report was a ploy by Shams, and news of the forces under Zorawar and Labh defeating the rebels arrived to him. Shams hiding place was then exposed to the Dogras, which led to an ambush at night, where he was beheaded, alongside his nephew Rajwali. As a result, the remnants of the rebellion which were concentrated in Bagh also collapsed as the main leader of the rebels was now dead.[12]
The heads of Shams and his nephew were later put in two cages of iron at the very top of the Adha Dek pass. As all ring leaders were now either dead or captured, any remaining insurgents now in hiding, alongside no remaining resistance, the conflict was concluded and Gulab withdrew his forces.
References
[edit]- ^ Mirzā, Shafqat Tanvīr (1992). Resistance Themes in Punjabi Literature. Sang-e-Meel Publications. p. 77. ISBN 978-969-35-0101-8.
- ^ Ram, Kirpa (1977). Gulabnama of Diwan Kirpa Ram: A History of Maharaja Gulab Singh of Jammu & Kashmir. Light & Life Publishers. p. 159.
- ^ TAREKHAY DOGRA. pp. 336–346.
- ^ a b Grewal, Brigadier J. S. (2022-08-01). Poonch: India’s Invincible Citadel. Lancer Publishers. p. 92. ISBN 978-81-7062-345-8.
- ^ a b Saraf, Muhammad Yusuf (1977). Kashmiris Fight for Freedom: 1819-1946 (PDF). University of California: Ferozsons. p. 89.
A controversy has been raging since some time as to whether Shamas Khan was a Sudhan or a Maldyal? The only folk-lore available on the subject speaks of him as a Maldyal. The forts mentioned in the folk-lore as having been captured by him are also located at Bagh and its sur-roundings. Again, Malli and Sabaz Ali, both Sudhans, are the only persons, mentioned in the folk-lore as having been skinned alive.
- ^ Mirzā, Shafqat Tanvīr (1992). Resistance Themes in Punjabi Literature. Sang-e-Meel Publications. p. 83. ISBN 978-969-35-0101-8.
Sham Khan is a hero of a folk epic composed in the Pahadi dialect of the Punjabi language. Shams Khan belonged to the Maldial tribe. When he maybe was have young, been Kashmir was controlled by the Sikhs through the Dogras Gulab Singh and Udham Singh.
- ^ Bawa, Satinder Singh (1974). The Jammu Fox: A Biography of Maharaja Gulab Singh of Kashmir, 1792-1857. Southern Illinois University Press. p. 189. ISBN 978-0-8093-0652-7.
"O, Raja," said Shams, "Poonch is my land and I am a warrior of the Maldyal tribe." And Gulab Singh bestowed on him a robe of honor, a horse, and a pair of gold bangles. Then Shams Khan daringly demanded,...
- ^
- چغتائى, محمّد صدّيق خان . سردار شمس خان ملديال شهيد : تاريخ پونچھ کا درخشاں کردار [Sardar Shams K̲h̲ān Maldiyāl Shahīd : tārīk̲h̲-i Pūnch kā darak̲h̲shān̲ kirdār] (1st ed.). نيشنل انسٹٹيوٹ آف کشمير اسٹڈيز. p. 7.
- "Martyrdom Day Of Sardar Shams Khan Muldayal Celebrates Like Every Year On August 24th - Daily Parliament Times". dailyparliamenttimes.com. 2023-08-25. Retrieved 2025-07-25.
- ^ Bawa, Satinder Singh (1966). Gulab Singh of Jammu, Ladakh, and Kashmir, 1792-1846. University of Wisconsin--Madison. p. 28.
In 1837 the Raja suppressed a rebellion in Poonch under Shams-ud-Din Khan Sudan, who was a relative of the...
- ^ Sukhdev Singh Charak (1977) [original in 1876]. English Translation Of Gulabnama Of Diwan Kirpa Ram Persian History Of The Maharaja Gulab Singh Sukhdev Singh Charak. p. 158.
Shamash one of the head-men of the Sudhun tribe when it submitted to the Dogras...
- ^ Smyth, G. Carmichael (1847). The History Of Reigning Family Of Lahore. p. 206.
One of the head-men of the Sudhun tribe when it submitted to the Dogras, was Shumass Khan.
- ^ Kirpa Ram, Diwan (1876). Gulabnama of Diwan Kirpa Ram. p. 162.
This talk is only a white lie and an evident falsehood. I am sure it is one of the contrivances of that imposter". The Diwan himself traversed all the way on foot with the object of making inquiries about that incident. When he approached Wazir Zorawar Singh Kahluria and others, he saw the enemy gone to dogs, and victory fallen to the lot of the imperial troops.