Hammir Singh

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Hammir Singh
Rana of Mewar
Rana of Mewar
Reign1326–1364
PredecessorAri Singh
SuccessorKshetra Singh
Born1301
Died1378 (aged 76–77)
SpouseSongari
DynastySisodia
FatherAri Singh
MotherUrmila
Sisodia Rajputs of Mewar II
(1326–1884)
Hammir Singh (1326–1364)
Kshetra Singh (1364–1382)
Lakha Singh (1382–1421)
Mokal Singh (1421–1433)
Rana Kumbha (1433–1468)
Udai Singh I (1468–1473)
Rana Raimal (1473–1508)
Rana Sanga (1508–1527)
Ratan Singh II (1528–1531)
Vikramaditya Singh (1531–1536)
Vanvir Singh (1536–1540)
Udai Singh II (1540–1572)
Pratap Singh I (1572–1597)
Amar Singh I (1597–1620)
Karan Singh II (1620–1628)
Jagat Singh I (1628–1652)
Raj Singh I (1652–1680)
Jai Singh (1680–1698)
Amar Singh II (1698–1710)
Sangram Singh II (1710–1734)
Jagat Singh II (1734–1751)
Pratap Singh II (1751–1754)
Raj Singh II (1754–1762)
Ari Singh II (1762–1772)
Hamir Singh II (1772–1778)
Bhim Singh (1778–1828)
Jawan Singh (1828–1838)
Sardar Singh (1828–1842)
Swarup Singh (1842–1861)
Shambhu Singh (1861–1874)
Sajjan Singh (1874–1884)
Fateh Singh (1884–1930)
Bhupal Singh (1930–1955)
Bhagwant Singh (1955–1971)

Rana Hammir (1314–78), or Hammir, was a 14th-century Hindu ruler of Mewar in present-day Rajasthan, India.[1] Following an invasion by the Delhi sultanate at the turn of the 13th century, the ruling Guhila dynasty had been displaced from Mewar. Hammir Singh, who was a scion of the cadet branch of the Guhila dynasty, regained control of the region, re-established the dynasty after defeating the Tughlaq dynasty, and became the first of his dynasty to use the royal title 'Rana' instead of 'Rawal'. Hammir also became the progenitor of the Sisodia clan, a branch of the Guhila dynasty, to which every succeeding Maharana of Mewar has belonged. Mewar during Rana Hammirs reign, was one of the few ethnic Indian states that had withstood the Turkic invasions. According to John Darwin "Only in Mewar and in Vijaynagar had Hindu states withstood the deluge".[2]

He built the Annapoorna Mata temple located in the Chittor Fort in Chittorgarh, Rajasthan.

Legendary account in bardic chronicles[edit]

Rana Hammir (not to be confused with Hammir of Ranthambore), the 14th century ruler of Mewar in present-day Rajasthan, was the first ruler using the title Rana before his name. He belonged to the Guhilot dynasty.[citation needed] After an invasion by the Delhi sultanate at the turn of the 13th century, the ruling Guhilot dynasty had been removed from Mewar. Rana Hammir belonged to a cadet branch of that clan; however regained control of the region, re-established the dynasty and also became the propounder of the Sisodia clan, a branch of the Guhila dynasty, to which every succeeding Maharana of Mewar belonged.[citation needed]

The Paternal Uncle of Rawal Ratan Singh and Brother of Rawal Samar Singh of Mewar, by name Laksha or Lakshman Singh, joined Rawal Ratan Singh against invasion of Delhi Sultan Alauddin Khilji.Lakshman Singh was Thakur of Sisoda village. He died along with his seven sons performed saka (fighting to death), while their women committed jauhar (self-immolation in preference to becoming enemy captives). Laksha was descended in direct patrician lineage from Bappa Rawal and hence belonged to the Gehlot (Guhilot) clan. Laksha came from the village of Sisoda near the town of Nathdwara and thus his children came to be known as Sisodia. Laksha had nine (or eight) sons, of whom the eldest, Ari, married Urmila, a pretty lady from the nearby village of Unnava, who belonged to a poor Rajput family of the Chandana clan. Rana Hammir was the only child of this couple.[citation needed]

Both Laksha and Ari died while defending Chittor under leadership of Rawal Ratan Singh and left behind young Hammir. He was almost an infant, however grew up under the guidance of his uncle Ajay (who himself fought in the same war), the second son of Laksha. Rana Hammir gave his uncle an initial proof of his bravery when, at a young age, he killed a treacherous King of Kantaliya named Munja Balecha (Chauhan of Bali State) who was causing chaos in the nearby area. It is said that this event impressed his uncle that he immediately bestowed on Hammir with the claims of rulership.[3][page needed]

The Khaljis had allocated their newly acquired territories to the administration of Maldev, ruler of the nearby state of Jalore, who had associated with them during the war years. In a requirement to settle and co-opt the citizens of the land to his rule, Maldev arranged for the marriage of his widowed daughter Songari with Rana Hammir, the scion of an impoverished cadet branch of the erstwhile ruling dynasty. Rana Hammir Singh thus re-established the state of Mewar in 1326 and engineered a coup d'état against his father-in-law. The dynasty thus founded by Hammir came to be known as Sisodia after the mountain village where Rana Hammir belonged.[citation needed]

Conflict against the Tughluq dynasty[edit]

The Rajput bardic chroniclers such as Nainsi (17th century) claim that amid the turmoil caused by the end of the Khalji dynasty in Delhi, Hammir Singh gained control of Mewar. He evicted Maldev's son Jaiza, the Chauhan vassal of the Delhi Sultantate, from Mewar. Jaiza fled to Delhi, prompting the Delhi Sultan Muhammad bin Tughluq to march against Hammir Singh. According to Muhnot Nainsi, Hammir Singh defeated Tughluq near the Singoli village, in the Battle of Singoli and imprisoned the Sultan. He then released the Sultan three months later, after the Sultanate ceded to him Ajmer, Ranthambor, Nagaur and Sooespur; and paid 50 million rupees and 1000 elephants as ransom.[4]

A 1438 Jain temple inscription attests that Rana Hammir Singh forces defeated a Muslim army; this army may have been led by a general of Muhammad bin Tughluq. It is possible that subsequently, Muhammad bin Tughluq and his successors did not assert their authority in the present-day Rajasthan, and Hammir Singh's authority was recognized by other Rajput chiefs, making Mewar practically independent of the Delhi Sultanate till Pashah Jehangir and Rana Amar Singh,son of Maharana Pratap came to terms in 1615.[4]

In popular culture[edit]

Rana Hamir is a 1925 Indian silent film about the monarch by Baburao Painter.[5]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. Sen, Sailendra (2013). A Textbook of Medieval Indian History. Primus Books. pp. 116–117. ISBN 978-9-38060-734-4.
  2. After Tamerlane: The Rise and Fall of Global Empires, 1400-2000 By John Darwin
  3. The Rajputs of Rajputana: a glimpse of medieval Rajasthan by M. S. Naravane ISBN 81-7648-118-1
  4. 4.0 4.1 R. C. Majumdar, ed. (1960). The History and Culture of the Indian People: The Delhi Sultante (2nd ed.). Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. p. 70.
  5. Ashish Rajadhyaksha; Paul Willemen (10 July 2014). Encyclopedia of Indian Cinema. Taylor & Francis. p. 43. ISBN 978-1-135-94325-7.