Sawai Man Singh II of Jaipur: Life and Legend

Kanwar Rajpal Singh, R.P. Singh

Description

Sawai Man Singh II of Jaipur: Life and Legend is the story of how fate catapulted Kanwar Mor Mukut Singh of Isarda to the throne of Jaipur, a state that he ruled as Sawai Man Singh II for twenty-seven years before its merger with independent India. From being a ruler to serving as India's ambassador in Spain, he lived through a period of Indian history marked with glory and upheavals. Flamboyant, debonair and elegant, he had two overriding passions - polo and his third wife, Maharani Gayatri Devi. His polo team ravaged England in 1933, winning all major tournaments - a feat yet unparalleled. His romance with Gayatri Devi, the stunningly beautiful princess from Cooch Behar, is the stuff of legend. Sawai Man Singh's dream was to die 'in a polo field, in the midst of a chukka, with my friends around me, my pony under me, my polo stick in my hand, and my boots on'. On 24 June 1970 at Cirencester, England, his dream was fulfilled, plunging the world in grief.

Sujets

• Lettres et linguistique
• Maharajá
• Regalía
• Non Fiction (song)
• Biography
• Gayatri Devi
• Royalty
• Maharaja
• Autobiography
• Redevance
• Râja
• Polo
• Rajput
• Jaipur
• Rajasthan

Informations

• Publié par: Roli Books
• Date de parution: 01 décembre 2005
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9789351940586
• Langue: English

Extrait

ROLI BOOKS
This digital edition published in 2014
First published in 2005 by The Lotus Collection An Imprint of Roli Books Pvt. Ltd M-75, Greater Kailash- II Market New Delhi 110 048 Phone: ++91 (011) 40682000 Email: [e-mail] Website: www.rolibooks.com
Copyright © Maj. R.P. Singh, Kanwar Rajpal Singh, 2005
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in a retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic, mechanical, print reproduction, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of Roli Books. Any unauthorized distribution of this e-book may be considered a direct infringement of copyright and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.
eISBN: 978-93-5194-058-6
Editor: Dipa Chaudhuri Cover Design: Arati Subramanyam
All rights reserved. This e-book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise circulated, without the publisher’s prior consent, in any form or cover other than that in which it is published.
MAN SINGH ASSUMED RULING POWERS AS THE 39TH RULER OF JAIPUR ON 14 MARCH 1931, ON THE STRENGTH OF ARTICLE8 OF THE TREATY OF 1818 BETWEEN THE EAST INDIA COMPANY AND HIS HIGHNESS MAHARAJA SAWAI JAGAT SINGH, THE 35TH RULER OF JAIPUR, WHICH READS AS UNDER:
THE MAHARAJA AND HIS HEIRS AND SUCCESSORS SHALL REMAIN ABSOLUTE RULERS OF THEIR TERRITORY AND THEIR DEPENDENTS ACCORDING TO LONG ESTABLISHED USAGE.
CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
FOREWORD
PROLOGUE
Palace Intrigues and Adoptions
Training to be King
Life in Jaipur
As Maharaja
The Most Beautiful Woman
The Sikar Rebellion
The Third Marriage
Wartime
Independence and the Aftermath
Life in Free India
Ambassador to Spain
The Last Phase
Postscript
APPENDIX : The History of the Kachhwahas
BIBLIOGRAPHY
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

W e owe profound gratitude to HH Rajmata Gayatri Devi of Jaipur for all the hours she spared to talk about the late HH Sawai Man Singh II. Special thanks are also due to HH Brigadier Sawai Bhawani Singh, MVC, of Jaipur for kindly writing the Foreword for this book, HH Padmani Devi of Jaipur, Princess Diya Kumari and Maharaja Narendra Singh, for providing invaluable information and allowing us access to all papers at City Palace, as well as to the HH Sawai Man Singh II Museum Trust.
Profound thanks are due to HH Gaj Singh of Jodhpur for sparing his valuable time to provide interesting insights into those times.
Thanks are also due to Chand Baisa, the late HH’s favourite sister, Gopal Narayan Bahura, Major Sumer Singh Naila, Thakur Mohan Singh Kanota, Pratap Singh Pachkodia, Thakurani Sneh Govind Singh, Laxman Singh Barwara, Yogendra Sahai, Suraj Kumawat, and Shailendra Kr. Singhal.
Finally, we must thank Cheryl D’ Souza, Rashmi Sharma and Florence Santos for their help in preparing the manuscript,and their advice and judgment in the selection of the material.
FOREWORD

B orn on 21 August 1911, Kanwar Mor Mukut Singh was the second son of Thakur Sawai Singh of Isarda. Chosen for adoption by Maharaja Sawai Madho Singh II on 24 March 1921, he was named Sawai Man Singh II.
Sawai Man Singh II was the right choice as heir to the throne of Jaipur, as he showed great promise from the time of adoption, and later proved worthy of the throne to the fullest as an able ruler, statesman, and administrator, to become a legend in his lifetime. The death of his adoptive father, the then ruler of Jaipur, Maharaja Sawai Madho Singh II in 1922, however, left him vulnerable to challenges at the tender age of eleven.
Since Sawai Man Singh II was a minor at the time of accession, the period from 1922 to 1931 was administered by a European President under the Regency Council.
He received his initial education at Mayo College, Ajmer, and after a short stint was sent abroad for further studies. He received his military training at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, England. He was the first and the last Indian prince to serve in the King’s Life Guards—this will remain a permanent and indeed a rare distinction. After his return to Jaipur in October 1930, he was invested with the full ruling powers of a maharaja in March 1931.
The many reforms and developments in almost all fields achieved during the period of Maharaja Sawai Ram Singh II gained momentum during my father’s time, and several prominent educational centres, administrative buildings, the Sanganer Airport, and more, were established in his time.
My father rendered valuable service in World War II, and actively visited the warfronts as a Liaison Officer of the Indian State Force. Needless to say, his visits to the front were an immense morale booster for the forces. The Jaipur State Force, that is, the Sawai Man Guards—the unit that was raised and trained by my father himself—rendered commendable service in World War II. The other Jaipur State Forces which also rendered commendable service were the Kachhwaha Horse, First and Second Battalions, and the Transport Corps.
My father held the rank of Captain in the British Army, and that of Lieutenant General in the Indian Army. He invested the positions he held with dignity and distinction, and performed his duties with earnestness and devotion. He was a tough taskmaster and a strict disciplinarian when it came to discharging duties and responsibilities. He was known for his unfailing punctuality, his eye for detail, his immaculate habits and impeccable nature.
Immediately after his accession, my father got very deeply involved in the development of Jaipur, and the uplift of the people.
1947 and 1949 were eventful years in his life. In 1947, the Silver Jubilee of his accession to the throne was celebrated with great pomp and show. On 30 March 1949, he took oath as the Rajpramukh of Rajasthan in the presence of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.
In 1962, he was elected as a member of the Rajya Sabha and also appointed Ambassador to Spain.
An internationally renowned polo player, he led the Jaipur Polo Team from victory to victory, and established a record by winning all the tournaments in which his team played. In 1957, his team topped up the Victory Crown by winning the World Gold Cup Championship in Deauville, France.
Destiny, however, would soon take a ruthless turn. On 24 June 1970, he died after a fall from his pony during a game of polo in Cirencester Park in England. The news of his sudden and tragic death came as a rude shock to all of us, to the world, leaving us stunned with a sense of an irreparable loss.
In the field of sports, not only was he an internationally acclaimed polo player, but he was also outstanding in hockey, cricket, football and tennis. At Mayo College, he won the Viceroy’s Medal, awarded to the most outstanding sportsman.
He married thrice: the first marriage, in 1924, was with Marudhar Kanwar, the daughter of Maharaja Sardar Singh of Jodhpur; the second marriage, in 1932, was with Kishore Kanwar, the daughter of Maharaja Sumer Singh, also of Jodhpur. The two Maharanis were related to each other as aunt and niece. The third marriage, in 1940, was with Shrimati Gayatri Devi, daughter of the Late Maharaja Bahadur of Cooch Behar. She is presently the Rajmata Saheba of Jaipur.
My father was a dignified prince with a charming personality, and was loved and revered by all his people.
Jaipur and its people were his life and he gave them both his very best.
I am so proud of my late father

Brig. Sawai Bhawani Singh, MVC, of Jaipur 2005
PROLOGUE

JAIPUR, 29 MARCH 1949
A despondent V.P. Menon, the co-architect of the merger of kingdoms with India along with Heera Lal Shastri, the chief minister designate of the United States of Great Rajputana, drove back to Ram Bagh Palace from Sanganer Airport at 6 p.m., after a day-long wait. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, India’s home minister was to have reached Jaipur by air for the swearing-in of the new government of Rajputana, the next day.
After Menon reached the Ram Bagh Palace, a frantic message was sent to Delhi. Delhi sent back word that Sardar Patel had left Delhi at 11 a.m. There was no further information, and the aircraft was incommunicado.
An anguished Menon queried, ‘What if Patel has died?’ After a pause he said, ‘I will go to Delhi and get Jawaharlal Nehru to inaugurate Rajputana if required, but the event will not be postponed.’ Menon had orchestrated the tortuous negotiations and understood the importance of the occasion and the consequences involved. The call was too close.
To their eternal relief, Patel arrived at Ram Bagh Palace at ten minutes past midnight. Apparently, his aircraft had developed a snag and had been forced to land near Alwar. A car had been commandeered to complete the journey to Jaipur.
On arrival, he immediately called a meeting of the prominent four in the Congress echelon—Heera Lal Shastri, Jai Narayan Vyas, Manik Lal Verma, and Gokul Bhai Bhatt—to take stock of the situation and make plans. It had already been agreed that the former two would join the new Cabinet while the latter two would handle the organization.
CITY PALACE, 30 MARCH 1949, 9.00 A.M.
There was an air of festivity in City Palace. In the Sharbata (hall of audience with the king) were gathered the who’s who of royalty in Rajputana, the prominent members of the Congress, including the powerful four, and other dignitaries. This was the first time since City Palace had come into existence that men without turbans had been permitted entry and accorded the status of guests. For the apprehensive rulers, the mood was sombre. The excitement was affected, and the strain was showing. They might as well have been at a funeral.
Menon was awaiting Patel, when the agitated voice of Manik Lal Verma was heard. Verma was apparently unhappy with his seat in the second row. Sir V.T. Krishnamachari, the prime minister of Jaipur and the master of ceremonies, tried to pacify Verma. Heera Lal Shastri, the chi