State of Patiala
1763–1947
Coat of arms of Patiala
Coat of arms
CapitalPatiala
Common languagesPunjabi (official)
Religion
Sikh
GovernmentAbsolute monarchy
Maharaja 
• 1707 - 1765
Ala Singh
• 1938 - 1947
Yadavindra Singh
History 
• Established
1763
• Disestablished
1947
Area
• Total
15,389 km2 (5,942 sq mi)
Population
• 1881[1]
1,467,433
• 1891[1]
1,583,521
• 1901[1]
1,596,692
CurrencyRupee And Paisa
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Mughal Empire
Durrani Empire
Phulkian Misl
East India Company
Sikh Empire
PEPSU
Republic of India
Today part ofIndia
Pakistan

Patiala State was a self-governing princely state in British India, and one of the Phulkian States, that acceded to the Union of India upon Indian independence and partition in 1947. The state was founded by Sidhu Jat Sikhs. Patiala State was the largest and most important princely state in the Punjab Province.[2] The state's ruler, the Maharaja of Patiala, was entitled to a 17-gun salute and held precedence over all other princes in the Punjab Province during the British Raj.[3]

Etymology

The state's name came from the name of its principal city and capital, Patiala, which itself comes from the roots patti and ala. The word patti means "strip of land" in Punjabi, and 'ala' comes from the name of the founder of the city and Patiala state, Ala Singh, thus meaning ‘the land of Ala Singh’ [4]

1946 map of India showing the various states; Patiala is found in the middle of eastern Punjab

History

In 1764, the Sikh confederation captured the fortress of Sirhind.

Rulers and titles

Main article: Maharaja of Patiala

Maharajas

Raja-e Rajgan

Maharaja-e Rajgan

Demographics

Religious groups in Patiala State (British Punjab province era)
Religious
group
1901[5] 1911[6][7] 1921[8] 1931[9] 1941[10]
Pop. % Pop. % Pop. % Pop. % Pop. %
Hinduism [a] 880,490 55.14% 563,940 40.06% 642,055 42.81% 623,597 38.36% 597,488 30.86%
Islam 357,334 22.38% 307,384 21.84% 330,341 22.03% 363,920 22.39% 436,539 22.55%
Sikhism 355,649 22.27% 532,292 37.81% 522,675 34.85% 632,972 38.94% 896,021 46.28%
Jainism 2,877 0.18% 3,282 0.23% 3,249 0.22% 3,578 0.22% 3,101 0.16%
Christianity 316 0.02% 739 0.05% 1,395 0.09% 1,449 0.09% 1,592 0.08%
Zoroastrianism 26 0% 22 0% 21 0% 2 0% 21 0%
Buddhism 0 0% 0 0% 3 0% 2 0% 3 0%
Judaism 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 12 0%
Others 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 1,482 0.08%
Total population 1,596,692 100% 1,407,659 100% 1,499,739 100% 1,625,520 100% 1,936,259 100%
Note: British Punjab province era district borders are not an exact match in the present-day due to various bifurcations to district borders — which since created new districts — throughout the historic Punjab Province region during the post-independence era that have taken into account population increases.

Gallery

See also

Notes

  1. ^ 1931-1941: Including Ad-Dharmis

References

  1. ^ a b c Imperial gazetteer of India. Vol. XX Pardi to Pusad. 1908. pp. 40, 42.
  2. ^ Bond, J. W.; Wright, Arnold (2006). Indian States: A Biographical, Historical, and Administrative Survey. New Delhi: Asian Educational Services. pp. 232–242. ISBN 978-81-206-1965-4.
  3. ^ Punjab District and State Gazetteers: Part A]. Punjab Government Press: Punjab Government Press. 1900. p. 51.
  4. ^ Kaur, Roopam Jasmeet; Idris, Mohammad (2011). "The Development of Education in Patiala District (1948-2001): A Gendered Analysis". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 72: 1460–1470. JSTOR 44145757.
  5. ^ "Census of India 1901. [Vol. 17A]. Imperial tables, I-VIII, X-XV, XVII and XVIII for the Punjab, with the native states under the political control of the Punjab Government, and for the North-west Frontier Province". 1901. p. 34. JSTOR saoa.crl.25363739. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
  6. ^ "Census of India 1911. Vol. 14, Punjab. Pt. 2, Tables". 1911. p. 27. JSTOR saoa.crl.25393788. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
  7. ^ Kaul, Harikishan (1911). "Census Of India 1911 Punjab Vol XIV Part II". p. 27. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
  8. ^ "Census of India 1921. Vol. 15, Punjab and Delhi. Pt. 2, Tables". 1921. p. 29. JSTOR saoa.crl.25430165. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
  9. ^ "Census of India 1931. Vol. 17, Punjab. Pt. 2, Tables". 1931. p. 277. JSTOR saoa.crl.25793242. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
  10. ^ "Census of India, 1941. Vol. 6, Punjab". 1941. p. 42. JSTOR saoa.crl.28215541. Retrieved 30 March 2024.


Further reading

31°07′N 77°38′E / 31.117°N 77.633°E / 31.117; 77.633