Kunwar Nau Nihal Singh was the third Maharaja of the Sikh Empire. He was the grandson of Sher-e-Singh Maharaja Ranjit Singh and the son of Maharaja Kharak Singh and Maharani Chand Kaur. He was also called Bhanwar Singh and Kunwar Sa which means respect. His reign started with dethrone of his father Maharaja Kharah Singh and ended with his death at the age of 19 on the day of his father’s funeral.
After the death of Lion of Punjab Maharaja Ranjit Singh Kharak Singh became king but was unable to keep control of the various factions within the kingdom. Prince Nau Nihal took control of the state himself.
Also Read:Maharaja Kharak Singh: Eldest Son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh
Nau Nihal Singh was set to succeed Kharak Singh as Emperor after his passing. On his way back after his father's cremation, however, stones fell from above as he was going through the gate of the Hazuri Bagh, killing his companion and wounding the prince, who was then carried into the fort by the vizier Dhian Singh. Even his mother, who was pounding on the fort gates with her fists in a fever of agitation, was not permitted into the fort.
Eyewitnesses described his initial injuries as being small blows to the head which knocked him unconscious. Later, when his mother and friends were allowed into the fort, Nau Nihal Singh was dead, his head having been smashed in, possibly with a rock. It is unclear whether the building's collapse was accidental or deliberate and who was responsible. He died at the age of 19.
Also Read:Maharaja Duleep Singh : Last King Of Sikh Raj
His mother, Maharani Chand Kaur, succeeded to the throne of the Sikh Empire in 1841. Sher Singh, the stepbrother of her husband Kharak Singh and the second son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh Sher-e-Panjab, was challenged because Sahib Kaur, Singh's widow, was pregnant and she should act as regent for the unborn child who would inherit her husband's throne. Sahib Kaur, the widow of Nau Nihal Singh, gave birth to a stillborn son in July 1841. Any chances Chand Kaur had of having her claims accepted were dashed by this. However, courtly intrigue persisted. The Dowager Maharani's maids were replaced by hill women from Dhian Singh's own country.
Also Read:Maharaja Sher Singh: Sikh Sovereign
The latter attempted to kill her by poisoning her food, but on June 11, 1842, she was finally put to death by having her head bashed in with wooden pikes from the kitchen (other accounts claim a stone was dropped from a balcony and crushed her skull).
In the complex of Tarn Taran Sahib, one of the holiest Sikh shrines in the Majha Region of the Punjab Kingdom, he also commanded the building of a bunga (tower).
Also Read: Akali Baba Phoola Singh : A Warrior
