On the death of his patron Apa Khande Rao in 1797, Thomas declared independence from the Marathas. He quickly took possession of
Rohtak and
Hisar and made
Hansi his capital. During his short period of rule, he established a mint in Hansi and released rupees of his own kingdom. His area of control included area from
Ghaggar river in the north to
Beri in south and from
Meham in the east to
Bhadra in west. He rebuilt the
Asigarh Fort at Hansi, which was in a ruined state and built defensive walls and fortifications. He divided his area of control into 4 small
parganas. He raised an army of eight battalions of infantry comprising 6000 men, fifty pieces of cannon, 1000 cavalry, including the
Jats who made up two battalions of Infantry and one-fourth of his cavalry (paid pensions to them and encouraged them to settle in Haryana, colonisation of land through pensions to
sipahis contributed to Haryana becoming a stable military labour market in the 1790s), 1500
Rohilla Muslims and 2000 soldiers guarding his several forts. He styled himself as the
Raja of Hansi and he also liked to introduce himself as
Raja from Tipperary. He marched on the kingdoms of
Jaipur,
Bikaner and
Udaipur and was sometimes victorious. George told his biographer,
William Francklin, "I established my capital, rebuilt the walls long since decayed, and repaired the fortifications (of the 12th century fort of
Prithiviraj Chauhan). As it had been long deserted, at first I found difficulty in providing for inhabitants. But by decrees, I selected between five and six thousand persons to whom I allowed every lawful indulgence. I established a mint and coined my own rupees, which I made current in my army and country; as from the commencement of my career at Jhajhar I had resolved to establish independence. I employed workmen and artificers of all kinds. I cast my own artillery, commenced making muskets, matchlocks and powder and in short, made the best preparations for carrying on an offensive and defensive war." Between 1798 and 1801, he built
Jahaj Kothi (c. 1796) and Jahaj Pul at
Hisar, Haryana which was his residence, which was also used by
James Skinner after George's defeat. He ruled the area independently up to 1801, when he was driven out by the
Sikhs. At Hansi, he was finally defeated and captured by Patiala's army under General Sahib Singh and had his guns, throne and crown stripped off him. Here he abandoned all his conquests and retired east into British territory. ==Death==