Royals and Rebels : The Rise and Fall of the Sikh Empire

"In late-eighteenth-century India, the glory of the Mughal emperors was fading, and ambitious newcomers seized power, changing the political map forever. Enter the legendary Maharajah Ranjit Singh, whose Sikh Empire stretched throughout northwestern India into Afghanistan and Tibet. Priya Atwal shines fresh light on this long-lost kingdom, looking beyond its founding father to restore the queens and princes to the story of this empire's spectacular rise and fall. She brings to life a self-made ruling family, inventively fusing Sikh, Mughal and European ideas of power, but eventually succumbing to gendered family politics, as the Sikh Empire fell to its great rival in the new India: the British. Royals and Rebels is a fascinating tale of family, royalty and the fluidity of power, set in a dramatic global era when new stars rose and upstart empires clashed"--Publisher's description Cover Half-title Title Copyright Contents Maps List of Illustrations Acknowledgements Introduction 1. To Be a Sikh King 2. New Dynasty, New Empire 3. All the World's a Stage 4. After the Lion: Writing the Story of Ranjit Singh's Heirs 5. The Boy-King, the Rebel Queen and the British Empire Conclusion Appendices: Queens of the Sikh Empire Notes Bibliography Index Illustrations Priya Atwal shines a fresh light on the long-lost kingdom, the Sikh Empire, that fused Sikh, Mighal and European ideas of power but ultimately fell to its great rival in the new India, the British The incredible history of the Sikh dynasty that rose between waning Mughals and encroaching Brits, and the women, men and boys who forged its legacy.