{ "id": "ep39pxa7e4", "slug": "charat-singh", "title": "Charat Singh", "updated": "2026-10-25", "topic_path": [ { "id": "society", "label": "Society and history", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society" }, { "id": "society.history", "label": "History and archaeology", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.history" }, { "id": "society.history.asia", "label": "Asian history", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.history.asia" }, { "id": "society.history.asia.india", "label": "India and South Asia", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.history.asia.india" }, { "id": "society.history.asia.india.sikh", "label": "Sikh history and the Sikh Empire (1469 to 1849)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.history.asia.india.sikh" }, { "id": "society.history.asia.india.sikh.eighteenth-century-khalsa-and-misls", "label": "Eighteenth-century Khalsa and misls", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.history.asia.india.sikh.eighteenth-century-khalsa-and-misls" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.asia.t1000.society.history.asia.india", "label": "Asia (other) · 1000 to 1799: India and South Asia", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t1000.society.history.asia.india", "path": [ { "id": "geo.asia", "label": "Asia (other)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t1000", "label": "Asia (other) · 1000 to 1799", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t1000" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t1000.society", "label": "Society and history", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t1000.society" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t1000.society.history", "label": "History and archaeology", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t1000.society.history" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t1000.society.history.asia", "label": "Asian history", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t1000.society.history.asia" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t1000.society.history.asia.india", "label": "India and South Asia", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t1000.society.history.asia.india" } ] } ], "excerpt": "Charat Singh (ਚੜਤ ਸਿੰਘ), also romanised as Charhat Singh, was a Sikh misldar who founded the Sukerchakia Misl, with its capital at Gujranwala, and was the grandfather of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.", "snippet": "Charat Singh (ਚੜਤ ਸਿੰਘ), also romanised as Charhat Singh, was a Sikh misldar who founded the Sukerchakia Misl, with its capital at Gujranwala, and was the grandfather of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.", "node": "society.history.asia.india.sikh.eighteenth-century-khalsa-and-misls", "markdown": "# Charat Singh\n\n**Charat Singh** (ਚੜਤ ਸਿੰਘ), also romanised as Charhat Singh, was a Sikh misldar, the founder of the [Sukerchakia Misl](https://www.edgepedia.org/sukerchakia-misl) (A Sikh warrior confederacy or territorial clan-state), with its capital at [Gujranwala](https://www.edgepedia.org/gujranwala) in what is now Pakistan.[1](https://sikhinstitute.org/ranjitsingh/ances.html) He was the father of [Mahan Singh](https://www.edgepedia.org/mahan-singh) and the grandfather of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the builder of the Sikh Empire of the Punjab.[2](https://sukerchakia.com/our-ancestors/) His own dates are uncertain: serious accounts give his birth between about 1721 and 1733, and place his death in the Jammu campaign of 1770, 1772, or 1774, where he was fatally wounded by the bursting of his own matchlock.[3](https://sridarbarsahibsriamritsar.com/sikh-history/bhai-charat-singh/)\n\n| Fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Founder of | Sukerchakia Misl, capital at Gujranwala[1](https://sikhinstitute.org/ranjitsingh/ances.html) |\n| Parent | Sardar Naudh Singh, who died in 1752[1](https://sikhinstitute.org/ranjitsingh/ances.html) |\n| Son and heir | Sardar Mahan Singh[2](https://sukerchakia.com/our-ancestors/) |\n| Principal seat | Gujranwala[1](https://sikhinstitute.org/ranjitsingh/ances.html) • [2](https://sukerchakia.com/our-ancestors/) |\n| Death | Fatally wounded in the Jammu campaign by the bursting of his own matchlock; dated 1770, 1772, or 1774 in various accounts[5](https://sukerchakia.com/charath-singh/) • [4](https://sikhvichardhara.com/history/bhai-charat-singh/) |\n| Dates of birth | Given variously as about 1721, 1732, or 1733[3](https://sridarbarsahibsriamritsar.com/sikh-history/bhai-charat-singh/) |\n\n## Origins and family\n\nCharat Singh was the eldest son of Sardar Naudh Singh Sandhu, who died in 1752.[3](https://sridarbarsahibsriamritsar.com/sikh-history/bhai-charat-singh/) • [6](https://www.dawn.com/news/1815017) On his father's death Charat Singh took over the leadership of the band.[6](https://www.dawn.com/news/1815017) \n\n## Career\n\nHe is given as the founder of the Sukarchakia Misl with its capital at Gujranwala.[1](https://sikhinstitute.org/ranjitsingh/ances.html) Which confederacy he broke away from is reported differently: one account says he broke away from the Faizullapuria Misl to acquire territory for himself,[4](https://sikhvichardhara.com/history/bhai-charat-singh/) while another account says he split from the Singhpuria Misl to establish the Sukerchakia Misl in Gujranwala in 1752,[2](https://sukerchakia.com/our-ancestors/) and a further account likewise says he formalized the misl after splitting from the Singhpura Misl and claimed the Gujranwala region as his zone of influence.[6](https://www.dawn.com/news/1815017)\n\nHe then extended his territory. He captured Wazirabad.[2](https://sukerchakia.com/our-ancestors/) With the cooperation of other local misls he took over Pind Dadan Khan and, ultimately, Wazirabad.[6](https://www.dawn.com/news/1815017) • [5](https://sukerchakia.com/charath-singh/) He also occupied a large portion of the Dhanni and Pothohar areas, took Pind Dadan Khan and built a fort there.[5](https://sukerchakia.com/charath-singh/)\n\n## Political influence\n\nCharat Singh's lasting institution was the Sukerchakia Misl itself, with its capital at Gujranwala.[1](https://sikhinstitute.org/ranjitsingh/ances.html) The Gujranwala base he claimed became the hereditary principality of his line: his son Mahan Singh succeeded him as its chief.[1](https://sikhinstitute.org/ranjitsingh/ances.html)\n\n## Death and successors\n\nCharat Singh died in the Jammu campaign. The campaign arose from a succession dispute in Jammu: Ranjit Deo, its ruler, tried to pass over his elder son Brij Raj Deo, who secured the active support of Charhat Singh and of the Kanhaiyas, while Ranjit Deo enlisted the support of the Bhangis; the rival armies marched into Jammu.[3](https://sridarbarsahibsriamritsar.com/sikh-history/bhai-charat-singh/) During the preparations for battle a matchlock exploded and killed Charat Singh.[4](https://sikhvichardhara.com/history/bhai-charat-singh/) The year of this campaign is given as 1770 in one account[5](https://sukerchakia.com/charath-singh/) and as 1774 in others.[4](https://sikhvichardhara.com/history/bhai-charat-singh/) His son Mahan Singh succeeded him as chief of the Sukerchakia Misl.[1](https://sikhinstitute.org/ranjitsingh/ances.html)\n\n## Historians' assessment\n\nHis birth is placed at about 1721 by one account,[2](https://sukerchakia.com/our-ancestors/) at 1732 by another,[1](https://sikhinstitute.org/ranjitsingh/ances.html) and at 1733 in the alternative dating of a third.[3](https://sridarbarsahibsriamritsar.com/sikh-history/bhai-charat-singh/) His death is placed in 1770,[5](https://sukerchakia.com/charath-singh/) 1772,[2](https://sukerchakia.com/our-ancestors/) or 1774.[4](https://sikhvichardhara.com/history/bhai-charat-singh/) The confederacy he separated from is likewise given as the Faizullapuria Misl in one account[4](https://sikhvichardhara.com/history/bhai-charat-singh/) and as the Singhpuria (Singhpura) Misl in others.[2](https://sukerchakia.com/our-ancestors/) • [6](https://www.dawn.com/news/1815017)\n\n## Legacy\n\nCharat Singh is remembered chiefly as the founder of the house of [Ranjit Singh](https://www.edgepedia.org/ranjit-singh): the Sukerchakia Misl he organized at Gujranwala passed to his son Mahan Singh and then to his grandson Ranjit Singh.[1](https://sikhinstitute.org/ranjitsingh/ances.html) • [6](https://www.dawn.com/news/1815017) He is also identified as the figure who formalized the misl and claimed the Gujranwala region.[6](https://www.dawn.com/news/1815017)\n\n## References\n\n1. Genealogy of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, Institute of Sikh Studies, Chandigarh. https://sikhinstitute.org/ranjitsingh/ances.html\n2. Our Ancestors, Sukerchakia. https://sukerchakia.com/our-ancestors/\n3. Sardar Charat Singh, Darbar Sahib heritage site. https://sridarbarsahibsriamritsar.com/sikh-history/bhai-charat-singh/\n4. Bhai Charat Singh, Sikh Vichardhara. https://sikhvichardhara.com/history/bhai-charat-singh/\n5. Charhat Singh, Sukerchakia. https://sukerchakia.com/charath-singh/\n6. Harking back: Magnificent maharaja and his 'thug' connection, Dawn. https://www.dawn.com/news/1815017\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › History and archaeology › Asian history › India and South Asia › Sikh history and the Sikh Empire (1469 to 1849) › Eighteenth-century Khalsa and misls*\n\n*Initially written Sep 23, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Sep 30, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/charat-singh", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/charat-singh.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"Charat Singh\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/charat-singh. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[Charat Singh](https://www.edgepedia.org/charat-singh)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/charat-singh](https://www.edgepedia.org/charat-singh). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"Charat Singh\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/charat-singh. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "Charat Singh, also romanised as Charhat Singh, was a Sikh misldar who founded the Sukerchakia Misl, with its capital at Gujranwala, and was the grandfather of Maharaja Ranjit Singh." }