Bhupinder Singh of Patiala

Bhupinder Singh
Maharaja of Patiala (more)
Bhupinder Singh, c. 1911
Maharaja of Patiala
Reign	8 November 1900 – 23 March 1938
Predecessor	Rajinder Singh
Successor	Yadavindra Singh
Minister of State	See list Liaqat Hayat Khan
Born	(1891-10-12)12 October 1891 Moti Bagh Palace, Patiala, Patiala State, Punjab Province, British India
Died	23 March 1938(1938-03-23) (aged 46) Patiala, Patiala State, Punjab Province, British India
Spouse	5
Issue Detail	Estimated at 88
Dynasty	Phulkian
Father	Rajinder Singh
Mother	Jasmer Kaur Mansahia
Religion	Sikhism
Cricket information
Domestic team information
Years	Team
	Hindus
	Marylebone Cricket Club
Career statistics
Competition FC Matches 27 Runs scored 643 Batting average 17.37 100s/50s 0/1 Top score 83 Balls bowled 72 Wickets 2 Bowling average 5 wickets in innings 0 10 wickets in match 0 Best bowling 2-40 Catches/stumpings 4/0
Source: ESPNcricinfo

Maharaja Sir Bhupinder Singh, GCSI GCIE GCVO GBE (12 October 1891 – 23 March 1938) was an Indian royal and cricket player. He was the ruling Maharaja of the princely state of Patiala in British India from 1900 to 1938. He was born in a Sidhu royal Jat Sikh family. During his reign, Singh was most noted for his extravagance, contributions to sports, and for being an ally to the British Raj.

Early life and background

Bhupinder Singh was born on 12 October 1891 family in Moti Bagh Palace, Patiala. Singh was born into the Jat Sikh Phulkian dynasty. He was educated at Aitchison College in Lahore.

At the age of 9, he succeeded as Maharaja of Patiala State upon the death of his father, Maharaja Rajinder Singh, on 9 November 1900. Rajinder Singh had died in a riding accident, and Singh's mother, Jasmer Kaur, had died some years prior to 1900 due to tuberculosis. A Council of Regency ruled in his name until he took partial powers shortly before his 18th birthday on 1 October 1909, and was invested with full powers by the Viceroy of India, the 4th Earl of Minto, on 3 November 1910.

Reign

Inspecting a BL 12-inch Railway Howitzer in France, August 1918

Administration and diplomacy

He represented India at the League of Nations in 1925, was chancellor of the Chamber of Princes for 10 years between 1926 and 1938, and was a representative at the Round Table Conference.

He was well known for the construction of buildings with bold architectural designs in Patiala, including Kali Temple, Patiala, and Chail View Palace in the summer retreat of Kandaghat along with Chail Palace and Oak Over and Cedar Lodge in Shimla which now houses the Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab State Guest House respectively. He had a unique monorail system built in Patiala known as Patiala State Monorail Trainways. Singh founded the State Bank of Patiala in 1917.

Military support

Singh served on the General Staff in France, Belgium, Italy and Palestine in the First World War as an honorary lieutenant-colonel, and was promoted honorary major general in 1918 and honorary lieutenant-general in 1931. He was awarded 43 medals during the First World War. Most of the buildings of the Chail Military School were donated by Singh to the Government of India.

Sports

Singh was noted both as a sportsman and a patron of sports. He was captain of the Indian cricket team that visited England in 1911, and played in 27 first-class cricket matches between 1915 and 1937. For the season of 1926/27, he played as member of the Marylebone Cricket Club. He was selected as the captain of India on its first Test tour of England in 1932, but dropped out for reasons of health two weeks before departure and the Maharaja of Porbandar took over.

Singh was a co-founder of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), the national sports administration body for cricket in India, and the donated the Ranji Trophy in honour of Kumar Shri Ranjitsinhji, Jam Sahib of Nawanagar. Singh's cricket and polo teams, Patiala XI and Patiala Tigers, were among the best in India.

His elder son, Maharaja Yadavindra Singh and younger son Raja Bhalindra Singh both played first-class cricket, Yuvraj also played in one Test for India, in 1934. Raja Bhalindra Singh, later served as President of Indian Olympic Association.

Extravagance

Singh is largely noted and remembered for his extravagance. During his life Singh developed a reputation for being a generous host, throwing lavish parties, and entertaining doctors, artists and people of repute from around the world. He was noted for collecting various items, including cars, jewels, medals, paintings, watches, wines, and spending sprees in Europe.

In 1925, he made the largest ever single order to Cartier till date for jewelry worth ₹1,000 million (equivalent to ₹210 billion, US$2.7 billion or €2.6 billion in 2023). One of wives, Maharani Bakhtawar Kaur, presented Queen Mary of the United Kingdom with a necklace on behalf of the Ladies of India during the Delhi Durbar of 1911. He was also known for an exceptional collection of medals, believed to be the world's largest at the time. Singh also owned a fleet of 44 Rolls-Royce cars. Singh was also the first man in India to own an aircraft, which he bought from the United Kingdom in 1910. For his aircraft he had an airstrip at Patiala built.

Personal life

A group photograph of Bhupinder Singh, the Maharaja of Patiala (reg. 1900–1938) with the cricketer Sir Ranjitsinhji Vibhaji Jadeja, known as Ranji, and other guests and servants. Patiala, circa 1910

Singh married ten times and had numerous consorts. From those unions, he sired 88 children, of which 52 survived to adulthood. Singh died on 23 March 1938.

Wives and consorts

Singh's wives included:

• Maharani Sri Bakhtawar Kaur Sahiba (1892–1960). Daughter of Sardar Gurnam Singh, Sardar Bahadur of Sangrur, OBI. Married Bhupinder Singh in 1908.
• Maharani Vimala Kaur Sahiba (original name Dhan Kaur) of Ubbewal (1906–1992). Married Maharaja Bhupinder Singh 1920. OBI.
• Maharani Yashoda Devi.

Children

Singh's children included:

• Yadavindra Singh (1914-1974). Yadvindra became the Maharaja on 23 March 1938. He was last Maharaja of Patiala, agreeing to the incorporation of Patiala state into the newly independent India on 5 May 1948.
• Bhalindra Singh (1919-1992). He was a noted sports administrator.
• Bhavenesh Kumari (died 2023). She was a notable lawyer and Supreme Court of India advocate.

Notable descendants

Through his children, Singh has many notable descendants, including

• Amarinder Singh. Amarinder, Singh's grandson, served as the Chief Minister of Punjab from 2002 to 2007, and again from 2017 to 2021.
• Randhir Singh. Randhir is a prominent sports administrator who was a member of the International Olympic Committee, is serving as the Acting President of the Olympic Council of Asia, and is a former Olympic-level sports shooter.

Titles

• 1891–1900: Sri Yuvaraja Sahib Bhupinder Singhji
• 1900–1911: His Highness Farzand-i-Khas-i-Daulat-i-Inglishia, Mansur-i-Zaman, Amir ul-Umara, Maharajadhiraja Raj Rajeshwar, 108 Sri Maharaja-i-Rajgan, Maharaja Bhupinder Singh, Mahendra Bahadur, Yadu Vansha Vatans Bhatti Kul Bushan, Maharaja of Patiala
• 1911–1914: His Highness Farzand-i-Khas-i-Daulat-i-Inglishia, Mansur-i-Zaman, Amir ul-Umara, Maharajadhiraja Raj Rajeshwar, 108 Sri Maharaja-i-Rajgan, Maharaja Sir Bhupinder Singh, Mahendra Bahadur, Maharaja of Patiala, GCIE
• 1914–1918: Lieutenant-Colonel His Highness Farzand-i-Khas-i-Daulat-i-Inglishia, Mansur-i-Zaman, Amir ul-Umara, Maharajadhiraja Raj Rajeshwar, 108 Sri Maharaja-i-Rajgan, Maharaja Sir Bhupinder Singh, Mahendra Bahadur, Maharaja of Patiala, GCIE
• 1918–1921: Major-General His Highness Farzand-i-Khas-i-Daulat-i-Inglishia, Mansur-i-Zaman, Amir ul-Umara, Maharajadhiraja Raj Rajeshwar, 108 Sri Maharaja-i-Rajgan, Maharaja Sir Bhupinder Singh, Mahendra Bahadur, Maharaja of Patiala, GCIE, GBE
• 1921–1922: Major-General His Highness Farzand-i-Khas-i-Daulat-i-Inglishia, Mansur-i-Zaman, Amir ul-Umara, Maharajadhiraja Raj Rajeshwar, 108 Sri Maharaja-i-Rajgan, Maharaja Sir Bhupinder Singh, Mahendra Bahadur, Maharaja of Patiala, GCSI, GCIE, GBE
• 1922–1931: Major-General His Highness Farzand-i-Khas-i-Daulat-i-Inglishia, Mansur-i-Zaman, Amir ul-Umara, Maharajadhiraja Raj Rajeshwar, 108 Sri Maharaja-i-Rajgan, Maharaja Sir Bhupinder Singh, Mahendra Bahadur, Maharaja of Patiala, GCSI, GCIE, GCVO, GBE
• 1931–1935: Lieutenant-General His Highness Farzand-i-Khas-i-Daulat-i-Inglishia, Mansur-i-Zaman, Amir ul-Umara, Maharajadhiraja Raj Rajeshwar, 108 Sri Maharaja-i-Rajgan, Maharaja Sir Bhupinder Singh, Mahendra Bahadur, Maharaja of Patiala, GCSI, GCIE, GCVO, GBE
• 1935–1938: Lieutenant-General His Highness Farzand-i-Khas-i-Daulat-i-Inglishia, Mansur-i-Zaman, Amir ul-Umara, Maharajadhiraja Raj Rajeshwar, 108 Sri Maharaja-i-Rajgan, Maharaja Sir Bhupinder Singh, Mahendra Bahadur, Maharaja of Patiala, GCSI, GCIE, GCVO, GBE, GCSG

Honours

Maharaja Bhupinder Singh

(ribbon bar, as it would look today)

British

• Delhi Durbar Gold Medal – 1903
• Delhi Durbar Gold Medal – 1911
• King George V Coronation Medal – 1911
• Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire (GCIE) – 1911
• 1914 Star
• British War Medal – 1918
• Victory Medal – 1918
• Mentioned in dispatches – 1919
• Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire (GBE) – 1918
• Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India (GCSI) – for war services, New Year Honours 1921
• Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO) – 1922
• King George V Silver Jubilee Medal – 1935
• King George VI Coronation Medal – 1937

Foreign

• Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown of Italy – 1918
• Grand Cordon of the Order of the Nile of Egypt – 1918
• Grand Cordon of the Order of Leopold of Belgium – 1918
• Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown of Romania – 1922
• Grand Cross of the Order of the Redeemer of Greece – 1926
• Grand Cross of the Order of Charles III of Spain – 1928
• Grand Cross of the Order of the White Lion of Czechoslovakia – 1930
• Grand Cross of the Legion d'Honneur of France – 1930 (Grand Officer – 1918)
• Grand Cross of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus of Italy – 1935
• Grand Cross of the Order of St Gregory the Great of the Vatican – 1935
• Grand Cross of the Order of Dannebrog of Denmark

Other

• A Unani College, namely 'Bhupinder Tibbi College' was after his name at Patiala
• The Maharaja Bhupinder Singh Punjab Sports University was named after him in recognition of his contribution to the promotion of sports.

External links

• CricketArchive profile of Bhupinder Singh
• The Maharja's Travel to Vienna, Austria
• Maharaja of Patiala
• Genealogy of the rulers of Patiala
• Article in Tribune on the Myth of Bhupinder's role in building Chail