| Raja Shri Man Singh Ji Saheb (Man Singh I) | | Print | |
Raja Shri Man Singh Ji Saheb (Man Singh I)Raja Shri Man Singh Ji Saheb (Man Singh I) was the Kacchwaha Rajah Saheb of Amber, a state later known as Jaipur. He was a trusted general of the Mughal Emperor Akbar, who included him among the Navaratnas, or the nine gems of the royal court. He was a devotee of Shri Krishna, and not a follower of Akbar's religion, Din-i-Ilahi. Early days Raja Man Singh’s LifeMan Singh entered the Mughal Imperial Service in 1562 A.D at an early age of twelve. He received military training under the guidance of Emperor Akbar and became proficient in Mughal technique of warfare. Man Singh along with his father Bhagwant Das took prominent part in the siege and conquest of Ranthambore by Akbar early in 1569. Man Singh along with other Mughal generals like Shah Quit Khan, Mahram Murat Khan conquered and looted the territories of Dungarpur (74 miles from Ahmedabad) in April, 1573 A.D. When Akbar started for the Eastern Provinces in order to suppress the rebellion of Daud Khan in the closing months of 1574 A.D he took with him a galaxy of trusted generals of whom Abul Fazi has named nineteen and amongst them the names of Raja Bhagwant Das and Man Singh occupy the first and the second place. Raja Shri Man Singh's role in Akbar's courtRaja Man Singh received the title of Mirza Raja and the mansab (rank) of 5000 after from Akbar. 0n August 26, 1605 A.D, Man Singh became a mansabdar of 7,000, a commander of 7,000 cavalry in the Mughal forces, which was the maximum command for anyone other than a son of the Mughal emperor and the guardian of Khusrau, the eldest son of Jahangir. Akbar called him "Farzand" (son). He fought many important campaigns for Akbar. Man Singh led the Mughal army in the well-known battle of Haldighati fought in 1576 A.D between the Mughal Empire and Maharana Pratap. In 1580 A.D some prominent Muslim officers of Akbar, displeased with his liberal religious policies, started to conspire against him. In Bihar and Bengal they declared Mirza Hakim, Akbar's stepbrother and Governor of Kabul, to be the emperor. Akbar sent armies to Bihar and Bengal to crush this rebellion, while he himself started towards Kabul; Man Singh was with him. Man Singh brought many talented men with him when he returned from Kabul. Some of their descendants still live in Jaipur. In 1585 A.D some Afghan tribes rose against the Mughal empire. The "Yusufzai" and "Mandar" tribes were the main ones among them. Akbar sent an army under Zain Khan, Hakim Abul Fateh and Raja Birbal to control these revolting tribes. However they failed to control the revolting Afghans and Raja Birbal, friend of Akbar and one of his Navratnas was also killed in the battle with Afghans. Akbar then sent Raja Todar Mal to crush the revolt and called Raja Man Singh to help Todar Mal. Man Singh decisively defeated five Major tribes of Afghans including "Yusufzai" and "Mandar" tribes. The flag of Amber was changed from "Katchanar" (green climber in white base) to "Pachranga" (five coloured) to commemorate this victory. This flag continued in use until accession of Jaipur state in India. This permanently crushed the revolt and the area remained peaceful thereafter. Raja Man Singh and his father Raja Bhagwant Das are reputed to have brought the technology of cannon production from Kabul and Lahore to Amber. In 1588 A.D Man Singh was appointed Governor of Bihar. In 1590 A.D, he defeated the "Qatlu Khan Lohani" and Nasir Khan of Orissa, who went against Mughal Empire, and then Orissa was annexed to the Mughal Empire and included in Bengal "Subah" (Province). On March 17, 1594 A.D Raja Man Singh was appointed Subahdar (Governor) of Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa. He made his headquarters in Rohtas, in Bihar. He built a Haveli (Palatial House) in Rohtas Fort. During his tenure as Governor Man Singh further expanded the Mughal Empire by defeating and subduing the old kingdoms of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. He defeated the Raja of Jessore, now part of Bangladesh, and brought the famous idol of "Shila Devi" to Amber. The temple of this goddess is still present in Amber fort. During Navratris lakhs of people gather here. Raja Man Singh served three successive terms as Governor of this area, in 1594-98 A.D, 1601-1605 A.D, 1605-1606 A.D. Raja Shri Man Singh's FamilyRaja Shri Man Singh was the son of Rani Sa Bhagawati Ji Sahiba at Amber and his father was Raja Bhagwant Das of Amber. He was born on Sunday, December 21, 1550 A.D. He was about eight years younger than Mughal Emperor Akbar who was born on November 23, 1542 A.D and about ten years younger than Rana Pratap who was born on May 9, 1540 A.D. Raja Bharmal, the first Rajput ruler to marry his daughter to a Mughal, was Man Singh I's grandfather. Raja Shri Man Singh’s son Mirza Raja Bhau Singh was his heir. It is believed his son Jagat Singh I received education from Goswami Tulsidas and Man Singh himself used to attend his religious lectures. Last Days of Raja Man Singh’s LifePrince Salim disobeyed royal orders and became infamous for torture. He had Abul Fazal murdered. Akbar tried hard to reform him. Salim had a son, Khusrau. Two of Akbar's sons, Murad and Danial, died in his lifetime. The royal court was divided into two factions, one favouring Khusrau and the other Salim to be the next emperor. Raja Man Singh and Mirza Ajij Koka were in Khusrau's favour. In 1605 A.D, when Akbar fell ill, he appointed Salim to be his heir. Though Man Singh opposed Salim's accession to the throne during Akbar's lifetime, he never opposed Jahangir after his coronation. After Akbar's death, Jahangir (Salim) became emperor. Man Singh was initially sent as Subahdar of Bengal on November 10, 1605 A.D for a short period, but soon he was replaced by Qutb-ud-Din Khan Koka on September 2, 1606 A.D. The Raja Man Singh was not longer a distinguished commander of the Mughal Emperor as he had been during the reign of Akbar. He was not given independent command in the south and hence he had no opportunity to show his initiative and drive in this comaign. Raja Man Singh played a secondary role in the Mughal expedition to the South though he remained in the Deccan for over five years until his death. He died a natural death on 6th July, 1614 A.D at Elichpur in the south after short illness. His direct descendants became known as the Rajawats who had the privilege to the throne of Amber and subsequently Jaipur. Why was Raja Man Singh Popular?Raja Man Singh was a devotee of Shri Krishna. He had constructed a lot of temples at Vrindavan, Amber, Amber Fort, Benaras, Allahabad and various other places. Raja Man Singh was a brave warrior and a successful general. He was at his best in the field of battle. He was the hero of the battle of Haldighati which at once gave him recognition as one of the foremost commanders of the Mughal Empire. Raja Man Singh was a distinguished noble in the court of Akbar and rendered highly valuable service for the consolidation of the Mughal imperial authority. He was one of the main pillars on which rested the edifice of the Mughal State. The contributions of the Kachhwaha Raja were fully appreciated by Akbar and the latter conferred on him the titles of Tarzand (son) and ‘Mirza Raja’. The Emperor was not satisfied with conferring such titles alone but he rightly thought that the services of Raja Man Singh were of supreme importance. Therefore, as it has already been pointed out. Emperor Akbar boldly took a step which no other Muslim king had done so far. Raja Man Singh was raised to 7000 mansab which was an honor reserved for the princes of the blood – royal. Raja Man Singh's palace at Gwalior FortThe palace of Raja Man Singh is known as Man Mandir Palace or Chitta Mandir and even Palace of Paintings. Raja Man Singh built Man Singh Palace is located within the Gwalior Fort. Gwalior Fort has six palaces enclosed in it and Man Singh Palace is one of those beautiful palaces. Man Singh palace is decoratively tiled and painted with the pictures of peacocks, elephants and even ducks. This palace is a four storey impressive building. Rooms of this palace are spacious. Some rooms were used for musical concerts, which have fine screens for royal ladies to listen to music. Two floors are underground which have circular cells that were used as prisons. Emperor Aurangzeb killed his brother Murad in this underground prison and so it got historical importance. Man Singh Palace also has Jauhar Kund. Following the Rajput tradition, queens use to perform self-immolation in this Jauhar Kund after their husbands were killed on the battlefield. This article is contributed by Alhad
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