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{{Short description|Maharaja of Marwar from 1751 to 1752}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2018}}
{{Use Indian English|date=July 2018}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name = Bakht Singh Rathore
| title = [[Maharaja]] of [[Jodhpur State|Marwar]]
| image = File:Maharaja Bakhat Singh portrait cropped.jpg
| caption = Jodhpur style painting depicting Bhakt Singh practicing archery, circa 1750
| succession = [[Ruler]] of [[Marwar]]
| reign = July 1751 – 21 September 1752
| reign-type = Tenure
| coronation = 8 July 1751
| cor-type =
| predecessor = [[Ram Singh of Marwar|Ram Singh]]
| successor = [[Vijay Singh of Marwar|Vijay Singh]]
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1706|8|16|df=yes}}
| birth_place = Meherangarh, Jodhpur
| death_date = {{death date and age|1752|9|21|1706|8|16|df=y}}
| death_place = Sindholi
| burial_date =
| burial_place =
| consort =
| spouse =
| spouse-type =
| issue =
| full name =
| house = [[Rathore dynasty|Rathore]]
| father = [[Ajit Singh of Marwar|Ajit Singh Rathore]]
| religion = [[Hinduism]]
}}

'''Bakht Singh''' (16 August 1706 – 21 September 1752), also known as '''Bakhat Singh''', was an 18th-century Indian [[Raja]] of the [[Rathore (Rajput clan)|Rathore Clan]]. Born in 1706, he ruled over various domains in the [[Jodhpur State|Jodhpur]] and [[Marwar]] states and was a major political force during his life.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.geni.com/people/Maharaja-Bakht-Singh/6000000009753481732|title=Maharaja Bakht Singh|website=geni_family_tree|date=16 August 1706 |language=en-US|access-date=2017-05-02}}</ref>

== Early life and political ascension ==
[[File:Maharaja Ajit Singh and his son Bakht Singh.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Maharaja Ajit Singh presenting a garland to his son Bakht Singh. c.1751-1752.]]
Bakht Singh was born on 16 August 1706 as the second son of [[Ajit Singh of Marwar|Ajit Singh]], ruler of Marwar. At the time of Bakht's birth, his family was in open revolt against the [[Mughal Empire]] due to an ongoing territorial dispute over [[Gujarat]].<ref>N.S. Bhati, Studies in Marwar History, page 6</ref> His father was pardoned by [[Muhammad Azam Shah]] in 1708, granting the Rathore clan control over the Kingdom of Marwar and the city of [[Jodhpur]].<ref>Munis pp. 316</ref><ref>Richards pp. 180–181</ref>

Bakht Singh had a tall and strong built and was popular amongst the ladies of the Empire. Amongst his admirers was the Empress of the Mughal Empire, who according to the chronicles wanted her husband ([[Ahmad Shah Bahadur]]) to follow Bakht's diet.<ref name=Dhananjaya>{{cite book |title=The House of Marwar|author=Dhananajaya Singh|publisher=Lotus Collection, Roli Books|year=1994|page=104|quote=Bakhta defeated Ram Singh in 1751 and ascended the long coveted gadi. Tall and powerfully built, with an impressive moustache, he was in all appearance at least the quintessential Rathore warrior and counted among his lady admirers the fifteenth Mughal Emperor Ahmad Shah's Empress who, the chronicles loyally record, even urged her husband to follow the same diet as the Rathore.}}</ref> In 1724, Bakht Singh and his elder brother [[Abhai Singh of Marwar|Abhai Singh]] plotted to [[Patricide|kill]] their father and usurp his position as Raja. They succeeded, and Abhai Singh became the Maharaja of the Kingdom of Marwar and Jodhpur.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.geni.com/people/Maharaja-Shri-Ajit-Singh-Rathore-jodhpur/6000000012646522372|title=Maharaja Shri Ajit Singh Rathore jodhpur|website=geni_family_tree|year=1679 |language=en-US|access-date=2017-05-02}}</ref> This abrupt change of leadership sparked a brief civil war among the Rathore in Marwar, during which the brothers employed [[Maratha]] soldiers to fight their enemies.<ref name=":0" /> At this time Marwar was a vassal of the [[Mughal Empire]], which was in constant conflict with the [[Maratha Empire]]. The allowing of [[Maratha]] soldiers onto Mughal territory to solve a domestic dispute effectively estranged the [[Rathore (Rajput clan)|Rathore]]s from the Mughal government.<ref name=":0">Gupta, Bakshi pp. 152–155</ref>

=== Siege of Ahmedabad ===
In 1730 a taxation depute against Sarbuland Khan (Nawab of Gujarat) resulted in Abhai Singh laying [[siege]] to the city of [[Ahmedabad]].<ref name=":1">[[History of Ahmedabad#CITEREFGoogle Books2015|''Google Books'' 2015]], pp. 256–257.</ref> Bakht Singh personally led the storming of the city, the Marwar army lost 120 soldiers and 700 were injured while Sarbuland Khan lost his son in the cannonade and most of his men were slaughtered along with high ranking Mughal Mansabdars (nobles), some ranking as high as 3,000. Sarbuland Khan surrendered after three days of fighting, after which the Mughal emperor was forced to make Abhai Singh the lord of Ahmedabad and the governor of Gujarat.<ref>Visheshwar Sarup Bhargava,"Marwar and the Mughal emperors (A. D. 1526–1748)", page 153</ref> Bakht Singh was commended for his bravery during the battle.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" />

== Lordship ==
[[File:3 Maharaja Bakhat Singh rejoices during Holi. Attributed here to 'Artist 3', Nagaur c. 1748–50; 44.1 x 65.1 cm.Mehrangarh Museum Trust.jpg|thumb|Bakhat Singh rejoices during Holi, Nagaur c. 1748–50; 44.1 x 65.1 cm. Mehrangarh Museum Trust]]
By 1739, Bakht Singh had been appointed lord of [[Nagaur]]. Seeking to expand his influence, he attempted to force concessions from the [[Bikaner State]], calling on his brother for support. The Raja of Bikaner sent a letter to [[Jai Singh II]], the powerful Maharaja of the [[Jaipur State|Kingdom of Jaipur]], requesting assistance. Jai Singh sent a letter to Abhai Singh asking for leniency to be shown to Bikaner, a request Abhai sharply refuted.<ref name=":0" /> Seeking to end the conflict, Jai Singh dispatched his minister Vidyadhar to Bakht Singh. Bakht agreed to withdraw his men from the conflict if he were paid by Jaipur and given the town of [[Merta City|Merta]]. This was done, and with Bakht Singh now removed as a threat, Jai Singh was able to force Abhai to make peace. Unable to face Jaipur alone, Abhai Singh was forced to sign a treaty with Jai Singh. The Kingdom of Marwar was forced to pay 1 lakh (100000) [[rupee]]s to the Mughals, 20 lakh (2000000) to Jaipur, give up hostages, and was prohibited from sending emissaries to the Mughal court without the express approval of Jai Singh.<ref name=":0" /> The latter condition effectively made Marwar a vassal of Jaipur, as Abhai could no longer request aid from the Mughal government. The treaty enraged many members of the Rathore clan, most of whom felt that Bakht Singh was responsible for the disaster.<ref name=":0" />

=== Battle of Gangwana ===
{{Main|Battle of Gangwana}}
In 1741, Abhai Singh began to gather his forces in Jodhpur in preparation for a [[Revanchism|war of revenge]] against Jaipur. Jai Singh detected these movements and gathered his army (of 40000-100000 men) to invade Marwar.<ref name=":2">Sarkar pp. 200</ref> As the Jaipur army advanced, Bakht Singh arrived at Merta, the forward camp for the Rathore and Marwar army. He entered the Raja's [[Durbar (court)|durbar]], where he was chastised by his fellow Rathors for his betrayal.<ref name=":0" /> Bhakt accepted his wrongdoing, and promised to lead his personal cavalry contingent (of 1000 men) against the oncoming Jaipur.<ref name=":0" />

In the ensuing [[Battle of Gangwana]] Bakht Singh and his cavalry of 1000 soldiers succeeded in inflicting heavy casualties on the Jaipur army.<ref name=":2" /> Over 12,000 Rajputs and Mughals were killed, losses so high that Jai Singh ended the campaign and was forced to accept a mediated peace with Abhai Singh. Bakht Singh, wounded by both a bullet and an arrow during the fighting, was once again praised for his valor.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2" /> Jai Singh never recovered from shock suffered from losses of this battle and died 2 years later.

== Later life ==
[[File:Above-Maharaja-Bakhat-Singh-at-the-Jharokha-Window-of-the-Bakhat-Singh-Mahal- 59024 2.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Maharaja Bakht Singh at the Jharokha window of the [[Bakhat Singh Mahal]], [[Nagaur]]]]
On 29 June 1741, Bakht Singh was offered [[Gujarat]] by the Mughal Emperor. The [[Mughals]] hoped that Bakht Singh could become its governor and counter the rising power of the [[Marathas]]. Before accepting, Singh sent his spies to Gujarat and upon learning of the hopeless situation, declined the offer.<ref>{{Cite book|first=Jadunath|last=Sarkar|title=Fall of the Mughal Empire |volume=2|publisher=Orient BlackSwan|year=2007|pages=214|url=http://www.new.dli.ernet.in/handle/2015/69726|archive-url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.69726|archive-date=23 January 2017}}</ref>

On 17 June 1749, Abhai Singh died, with his eldest son [[Ram Singh of Marwar|Ram Singh]] succeeding him. Bakht Singh (his uncle) disagreed with this [[primogeniture]] and rose up in revolt. Bakht Singh emerged triumphant in the [[battle of Luniawas]], becoming the Maharaja of Marwar and Jodhpur in July 1751. Bakht Singh's first step as a ruler was to raise an army in [[Ajmer]] and to start fortifying his holdings to protect [[Marwar]] from external threats like the [[Mughals]], [[Marathas]] and [[Afghans]]. In May 1752 Jayapa Sindhia and Ram Singh attacked Ajmer, sacked it and massacred the populace. Upon learning of the invasion, Bakht Singh marched with his army and camped 8 miles away from Ajmer. He waited till July and then attacked Jayapa. Bakht Singh blocked the surrounding paths and placed his guns on a hill, he then bombarded the Marathas, upon receiving heavy casualties, the Marathas fled along with the army of Ram Singh. Bakht Singh died a sudden death on 21 September 1752.<ref>{{Cite book|first=Jadunath|last=Sarkar|title=Fall of the Mughal Empire Vol 2|publisher=Orient BlackSwan; First edition|year=2007|isbn=|pages=102|url=}}</ref> According to Persian historians, he died by [[cholera]] while Vir Vinod claims that he was poisoned by [[Madho Singh I]].<ref>Rajasthan Through the Ages
By R.K. Gupta, S.R. Bakshi pg.156</ref><ref>[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.43007/page/n223/mode/1up Fall Of The Mughal Empire- Vol. I (4Th Edn.), Volume 1 By Jadunath Sarkar pg.199–200]</ref> His son [[Vijay Singh of Marwar|Vijay Singh]] inherited his titles. The Rathore civil war between [[Vijay Singh of Marwar|Vijay Singh]] and [[Ram Singh of Marwar|Ram Singh]] that would follow after Bakht Singh's death ultimately led to the downfall of the Rathore clan.<ref>''Jodhpur and the Later Mughals, AD 1707–1752'', by R. S. Sangwan. Published by Pragati Publications, 2006.</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.geni.com/people/Maharaja-Bijay-Singh/6000000009753625320|title=Maharaja Bijay Singh|website=geni_family_tree|language=en-US|access-date=2017-05-02}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Rulers of Marwar]]

== Bibliography ==
* R.K Gupta, S.R Bakshi (2008). ''Rajasthan Through the Ages, Vol 4, Jaipur Rulers and Administration.'' Sarup & Sons. {{ISBN|9788176258418}}.
* ''Jodhpur and the Later Mughals, AD 1707–1752'', by R. S. Sangwan. Published by Pragati Publications, 2006.
* [[Sir Jadunath Sarkar]] (1994). ''A History of Jaipur 1503–1938''. Orient Longman. {{ISBN|81-250-0333-9}}.
* Faruqui, Munis D. (2012). ''The Princes of the Mughal Empire, 1504–1719''. Cambridge University Press. p. 316. {{ISBN|978-1-107-02217-1}}.
* [https://books.google.com/books/about/Gazetteer_of_the_Bombay_Presidency_Ahmed.html?id=EL4IAAAAQAAJ G''azetteer of the Bombay Presidency: Ahmedabad'']. ''Google Books 2015 (Public Domain text)''. 7 January 2015. pp. 248–262. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
* [[John F. Richards|Richards, John F.]] (1995). [https://books.google.com/books?id=HHyVh29gy4QC&pg=PA180 ''The Mughal Empire''] (Reprinted ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 180–181. {{ISBN|978-0-52156-603-2}}.

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Bakhat Singh of Marwar}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bakht Singh}}
[[Category:1706 births]]
[[Category:1752 deaths]]
[[Category:Monarchs of Marwar]]
[[Category:Subahdars of Gujarat]]
[[Category:Indian warriors]]
[[Category:18th-century Mughal Empire people]]

Bakht Singh of Marwar - Revision history

Ramesh at 06:25, 16 October 2025