Sikh state

Theological underpinnings Guru Nanak established Sikhism as a religious movement, whereby its followers were called to interact with the Divine directly live in the real-world through their own efforts. There was a prevailing Sikh belief in the mid-16th century that Guru Nanak was the master of both spirituality and temporality (din and dunia) but that he allowed Babur to have stewardship over political affairs. The Mughals had established their rule in India by 1526. However, the Mughals were seen as going against this bestowal when they executed Guru Arjan (in 1606) and Guru Tegh Bahadur (in 1675). The Khalsa was a marker of the Sikhs being a separate Quom (nation), which Walker Connor (1993) explains allowed for the development of a national identity of some sorts "that joins people, in the sub- conscious conviction of its members, from all its non-members in a most vital way". Establishment of the first Sikh rule In 1708 shortly prior to his death, Guru Gobind Singh ordered a group of Khalsa Sikhs to attack Sirhind, kill Wazir Khan, and re-establish Khalsa-rule after the downfall of Anandpur and Paonta in 1704. By the 18th century, groups of Sikhs had coalesced into bands known as jathas, which were based upon various personal, regional, and kinship-ties. The later Sikh Empire also had a number of forts. After the oppressive anti-Sikh government policy failed to get rid of the Sikh threat, the Mughal government decided to try pacifying the Sikhs by granting them an official jagir (estate) grant. The rebellion was eventually crushed by a Mughal force in 1741 under Azimullah Khan and the Sikhs retreated to the Lakhi Jungle. According to Hari Ram Gupta, Daranat Shah was Baba Deep Singh. By the 1770s, there were more than sixty Sikh states that had been established between the Indus and Yamuna rivers. Sirhind had been attacked by the Sikhs four times in the 18th century. After the last attack known as the Battle of Sirhind in 13–14 January 1764, the cis-Sutlej tract became dominated by Sikhs after its Afghan governor, Zain Khan Sirhindi, was killed by a coalition of Sikh forces of both the Buddha Dal and Taruna Dal divisions of the Dal Khalsa military of the Sikh Confederacy. The victory of the Sikhs ended foreign Afghan-rule over the region. These new Sikh chiefdoms engaged in nation-building, such as by establishing new settlements, improving trade, patronizing artists and writers, and developing relations with other powers of the subcontinent. The onset of Sikh monarchical-rule also led to the weakening of the authority of the Akal Takht and the ending of collective-decision making in the form of the Sarbat Khalsa. == Administration ==

Parganas, 'ilaqa, and ''ta'alluqa'' administrative divisions of Sikh polities tended to much smaller scale in-size compared to the Mughal administrative system and more numerous. An example of this is the Gujranwala district, which consisted of twenty-six ta'alluqas during Sikh-rule but three or four parganas during Mughal-rule. An explanation of this is when Sikhs occupied formerly Mughal-controlled territory, they divvied up the Mughal parganas amongst the Sikh sardars. A subdivision of a pargana or ''ta'alluqa was a tappa or topes''. Sikh-rule over Kashmir led to the establishment of four new Kashmiri parganas. The Mughal pargana was comparable in-nature to the Sikh ta'alluqa. At the ta'alluqa-level, the Mughal office of the 'amil was comparable to the Sikh office of the kardar. The basis of revenue administration came from the positions of the muqaddam, chaudhari, and the qanungo. The Sikh polities did not made radical changes to the pre-existing system but rather made slight changes, which do make them discernible from their predecessors. Whilst in main areas during the Mughal-period the zabt method was predominant, during Sikh-rule it was the ghallabakhshi and kankut that were dominant. However, the most dominant systems of assessment and collection during Sikh-rule were the batai and kankut, however the zabt method was employed in some areas. Outside of main areas, older methods continued unabated for the most part. The ijara practice became popularized during Sikh-rule but this method led to lower shares of produce being received by the state due to lower rates of assessment. The jagirs bestowed by Sikh states were similar to the mansabdari jagirs that were granted by the Mughals. The dharmarth grants issued by Sikh states were similar to the ''madad-i-ma'ash grants of the Mughals. A key difference however was the proportion of revenue alienated by the way of jagir was much smaller during Sikh-rule in-comparison to Mughal-rule. However, the proportion of revenue alienated by the way of dharmarth'' was much larger during Sikh-rule compared to the predecessor Mughals. Another difference was that the proportion of hereditary jagirs was larger during Sikh-rule. The three classes in-relation to land tenures was the same between Mughal and Sikh-rule: • Peasant proprietor – the most important position • Superior owner (zamindar or ''ta'alluqdar'') • Tenant During Sikh-rule, the position of the peasant proprietor improved in-relation to the ta'alluqdar whilst the position of the tenant improved in-relation to the other two classes above it. Sikh ruling classes received a relatively smaller share of surplus land revenue in-comparison to their Mughal counterparts, with the revenue during Sikh-rule being distributed to many sardars and rajas (with both being relatively equal in importance). Thus, the peasant proprietor and tenant classes were able to enjoy much of the produce they produced. During the reign of Ranjit Singh of Lahore State, there were no instances of agricultural crises. == List of historical Sikh states and dynasties ==

The following list enumerates historical Sikh states, empires, and dynasties in chronological order, ordered by their establishment year: == See also ==