Babu Veer Kunwar Singh is one of the leaders of the Indian Rebellion of 1857 who belonged to the royal house of Ujjaini Jagdispur, currently part of Bhojpur district, Bihar state, India. He was the main organizer of the struggle against the British in Bihar.
Early life
Babu Kunwar Singh was born in November 1777 to Raja Shahabzada Singh and Rani Panchratan Devi at Jagdispur in Shahabad (now Bhojpur) district of Bihar state. Belongs to the ujjain Rajput community, Ujjains are considered to be the head of the parmar Rajput as they are the direct descendants of the Great Raja Bhoja and the Great King Vikramaditya Of ujjain (madhya Pradesh).
In the early thirteenth century, the Ujjainia Paramar Rajputs (descendants of the great Raja Bhoja and Vikramaditya Parmar) from Dhar, Malwa (Ujjain) came to the eastern part (Gaya) of India to perform Pind Daan to their ancestors, and pleased them and won. the fertile banks of the Ganges in western Bihar (Shahabad district). They were locally known as Ujjain/ujjaini (Ujjainia) Rajputs because of their place of origin, Ujjain.
Marriage
Veer kunwar singh married the daughter of Raja Fateh Naraiyan Singh (Mewari sisodiya Rajput), a wealthy zamindar of Gaya district, Bihar and a descendant of Maharana Pratap of Mewar.
War
He was an expert in the art of guerrilla warfare. He was the first Indian warrior after Shivaji to prove the effectiveness of warfare. His tactics left the British embarrassed.
Indian Rebellion of 1857
Kunwar Singh led the rebellion in Bihar. He took command of the soldiers who mutinied at Danapur on 5 July 1857. Five days later he occupied Arrah, the district headquarters. Major Vincent Eyre relieved the city on 3 August, defeated Kunwar Singh’s army and destroyed Jagdishpur. Kunwar Singh left his ancestral village and reached Lucknow in December 1857.
Kunwar Singh was nearly eighty and in failing health when he was called upon to take up arms. He fought brilliantly and harassed the British forces for almost a year and remained invincible till the end. During the rebellion, his army had to cross the Ganges River. Douglas’s army began firing on their boat. One of the bullets shattered Kunwar Singh’s left wrist. Kunwar Singh felt that his hand had become useless and that there was an additional risk of infection due to the bullet shot.
He drew his sword, cut off his left arm near the elbow, and offered it to Ganza. Kunwar Singh took command of the troops who mutinied at Danapur on 5 July. Two days later he occupied Arrah, the district headquarters. Major Vincent Eyre relieved the city on 3 August, defeated Kunwar Singh’s troops and destroyed Jagdispur. Kunwar Singh left his ancestral village and reached Lucknow in December 1857.
In March 1858 he captured Azamgarh. However, he soon had to leave the place. Pursued by Brigadier Douglas, he retreated to his home at Ara in Bihar. On 23 April, Kunwar Singh was victorious at Jagdispur over a force led by Captain Le Grand.
On April 26, 1858, he died in his village. The mantle of the old chief now fell to his brother Amar Singh, who, in spite of great odds, continued to fight and for a considerable time held a parallel government in the Shahabad district. In October 1859, Amar Singh joined the rebel leaders in the Nepal Terai.
Legacy
At the age of 80, during the first Indian War of Independence (1857), he actively led a select group of armed soldiers against the troops under the command of the British East India Company.
To honor his memory and his contribution to the Indian freedom movement, the Republic of India issued a commemorative stamp on 23 April 1966. Named after him, the Government of Bihar established the Veer Kunwar Singh University at Arrah in 1992.
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