Ajay Kumar at 19:31, 23 July 2023

2023-07-23T19:31:48Z

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{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2016}}
{{Use Indian English|date=September 2016}}
{{Infobox royalty
|name = Amar Singh
|image =
|caption =
|succession1 = [[Maharaja]] of [[Jagdishpur estate|Jagdishpur]]
|successor1 = Raja Shriniwas Prasad Singh
|predecessor1 = [[Kunwar Singh]]
|house = [[Ujjainiya]]
|birth_date =
|death_date = 1859
|birth_name =
|birth_place = [[Jagdispur]], [[Bihar]]
|death_place =
|father = Raja Sahebzada Singh
|mother = Rani Panchratan Kunwari Devi Singh
|nickname =
}}
'''Babu Amar Singh''' was a revolutionary in the [[Indian Rebellion of 1857]] and the brother of [[Babu Kunwar Singh]], the [[zamindar]] of [[Jagdishpur estate|Jagdishpur]].<ref>{{cite journal | title=Kunwar Singh's failure in 1857 | author=S. Purushottam Kumar | journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress |volume = 44| year=1983 | pages=360–369|jstor = 44139859}}</ref>

==Early life==

Amar Singh was the second son of Sahebzada Singh born much after his older brother. He was described as being tall, of fair complexion and having a mole on the right side of his nose.<ref name=Dutta1957>{{cite book | url=https://archive.org/details/dli.bengal.10689.13066 | title=Biography of Kunwar Singh and Amar Singh | author= Kalikinkar Datta | publisher= K.P. Jayaswal Research Institute | year=1957 | pages= [https://archive.org/details/dli.bengal.10689.13066/page/n45 25]–45}}</ref> He was a fond huntsman and enjoyed hunting big game including elephants, bears and wolves. He was also a deeply religious person and had the [[Mahabharata]] recited to him every night.<ref name=Dutta1957 /> He was initially reluctant to join the rebellion but agreed to do so on the insistence of his brother and the commander-in-chief, [[Hare Krishna Singh]].

==Role in the 1857 rebellion==
[[File:Defence-of-Arrah-House.png|thumb|Picture of the [[Siege of Arrah]] in which Babu Amar Singh was part of the attacking forces]]

Babu Amar Singh originally assisted in his brothers campaign including the infamous [[Siege of Arrah]].<ref name=Dutta1957 />

After the death of Babu Kunwar Singh on 26 April 1858, Babu Amar Singh became the chief of the army and despite heavy odds, continued the struggle and for a considerable time ran a parallel government in the district of [[Shahabad district|Shahabad]]. Four days after the death of his brother, he heard reports about British tax collectors in [[Arrah]]. He subsequently led an attack on them and defeated them.<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1UggIjEuBaAC&dq=amar+singh+jagdispur&pg=PT67 | title=Indian Revolutionaries 1757-1961 (Vol-1): A Comprehensive Study, 1757-1961, Volume 1 | publisher=Prabhat Prakashan | date=1999 | accessdate=8 January 2019 | author=Srikrishan 'Sarala' | pages=80–83| isbn=9788187100164 }}</ref> He was assisted by his commander-in-chief, [[Hare Krishna Singh]].<ref>{{cite journal | author=P. Kumar | title=Hare Krishna Singh-The Prime-Mover of 1857 in Bihar | journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress | year=1982 | volume= 43 | pages= 610–617|jstor = 44141296}}</ref>

A soldier who served Amar Singh and was captured in 1858 gave some details about his forces.<ref name=Majumdar1963>{{cite book | url=https://archive.org/details/sepoymutiny1857 | title=The Sepoy Mutiny and the Revolt of 1857 | author= R.C. Majumdar | publisher=Firma K.L. Mukhopadhay | year=1963 | pages= [https://archive.org/details/sepoymutiny1857/page/n103 84]}}</ref> He stated that after Amar Singh retreated into the hills, he had around 400 cavalry-men and six guns. The guns were obtained from a mechanic in Calcutta who served Amar Singh directly. The force also had cannon balls that were manufactured in Jagdispur with lead they obtained from raids on British boats. Amar Singh was also planning to join his force with fellow rebel leader [[Nana Sahib]].<ref name=Majumdar1963 />

One 6 June 1858, Amar Singh and his force of 2000 sepoys and 500 ''sawars'' arrived in the village of [[Gahmar]] in [[Ghazipur district|Ghazipur]] near the border with Bihar.<ref name="Downs2002">{{cite journal | title=Rural Insurgency During the Indian Revolt of 1857-59: Meghar Singh and the Uprising of the Sakarwars | author= Troy Downs | journal=South Asia Research |volume = 22| issue=2 | year=2002 | pages= 123–143| doi=10.1177/026272800202200202 | s2cid= 145242596 }}</ref> The [[Sakarwar]] [[Rajput]] rebels from this region, under the leadership of [[Meghar Singh Sakarwar|Meghar Singh]], were keen for Amar Singh's support and a letter was composed in a village requesting his help. Amar Singh accepted their request.<ref name="Downs2002" /> Meghar Singh personally presented Amar Singh with a ''nazrana'' or gift worth Rs 20,000. They exchanged supplies and Amar Singh left Gahmar on 10 June.<ref name="Downs2002" /> Among the motivations for this alliance were the marital ties shared between the Sakarwars and the Ujjainiyas.

In October 1859, after subsequent [[guerilla warfare|guerilla]] skirmishes with the British, Amar Singh fled with other rebel leaders to the [[Nepal]] [[Terai]]. He presumably went into hiding after this and disappeared before being captured later that same year and dying in prison.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://bhojpur.bih.nic.in/d_history.htm |title=D History |accessdate=2012-08-15 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120614200657/http://bhojpur.bih.nic.in/d_history.htm |archivedate=14 June 2012 }} History of [[Bhojpur district, Bihar|Bhojpur]]</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Kunwar}}
[[Category:Revolutionaries of the Indian Rebellion of 1857]]
[[Category:Rajput monarchs]]

Babu Amar Singh - Revision history

Ajay Kumar at 19:31, 23 July 2023