Diwan Hari Chand
Diwan Hari Chand was a Khatri general from the prominent family of the Dewans of Eminabad, who were chiefs in service of Maharaja Gulab Singh of Jammu. Hari Chand's military leadership secured Dogra rule across the western Himalayas. In 1842 he marshaled an army that lifted the siege of Leh, routed the Tibetans at Tangtse and Chushul, and negotiated the Treaty of Chushul, which firmly established Ladakh under Gulab Singh’s suzerainty. Over the next decade he defended the frontiers of the newly formed princely state of Jammu & Kashmir—quelling rebellions in Hazara, Gilgit and Chilas. In 1857 he led the Jammu contingent at the Siege of Delhi, where he succumbed to cholera. Hari Chand remains one of the foremost military architects of mid-19th-century Dogra expansion.
Early life
Diwan Hari Chand was born into a prominent Khatri family in the early 19th century. He was the second son of Diwan Amir Chand, who had served as the chief minister to Raja Gulab Singh of Jammu. Raised in an environment of administration and warfare, young Hari Chand was groomed for public service. By 1836, Maharaja Gulab Singh, then a vassal of the Sikh Empire, entrusted Hari Chand with command of the Jammu troops. This appointment marked the start of Hari Chand’s rise to prominence. He would spend the next two decades as one of Gulab Singh’s most trusted generals, playing a key role in expanding and consolidating Dogra rule.Military career
In 1840–1841, Hari Chand was deputed by Gulab Singh to subdue the restive Khari and Khariali districts in the Jammu region. He first besieged Sarai Aurangabad, which was then being held by the troops of Maharaja Kharak Singh, and captured it. Hari Chand then went to Qila Sukhchainpur, where Surat Singh, a loyalist of the Maharaja, conceded the fort. Meanwhile, 100 soldiers sent to besiege Kot Qandhari fort had succeeded in occupying it. Hari Chand then proceeded towards Mangla Fort, a fort which was difficult to take because of its construction and surroundings. He asked Rai Dhanpat, the defender of the fort, to surrender but the latter refused. The Diwan then besieged the fort and participated in the skirmishing, where seven soldiers of his and 23 opponents died. The defenders retreated to the fort, while the besiegers plundered the nearby tower and burnt it.Hari Chand then had breastworks built which surrounded the fort on all four directions. He deployed his commanders at different locations around the fort. Fighting continued for 15 days with many attempts made to breach the fort. Then a contingent put up ladders and pushed their breastworks towards the fort walls. The defenders were using the bastion near a spring as their day outpost, and would take water from there for the night outpost. One of the commanders attacked this bastion and burnt it to cut off the defenders' water supply. The defenders were offered safe passage if they would surrender, and they finally did. Hari Chand awarded 50,000 rupees to the soldiers and promoted many officers. Maharaja Gulab Singh endowed Diwan Hari Chand with many unspecified awards after the victory.
By the early 1840s, Diwan Hari Chand had become central to Gulab Singh’s military endeavors, often leading expeditions at the frontiers of the expanding Dogra domain. His responsibilities grew as the Dogra kingdom pushed its boundaries northwards into the Himalayas and westwards towards the Indus, reaching as far as Chilas and Yasin in Dardistan. Hari Chand’s early exploits set the stage for his most famous campaign: the conquest of Ladakh during the Dogra–Tibetan war and the defense of this remote high-altitude region against Tibetan intervention.
Conquest of Ladakh
Background
Ladakh, a Himalayan kingdom, first came under Dogra attack in 1834 when General Zorawar Singh – another of Gulab Singh’s commanders – led a force to invade the country. After fierce fighting over several years, Zorawar Singh subdued Ladakh, and by 1840 the territory was annexed to the Sikh Empire under Raja Gulab Singh. The Ladakhi Namgyal dynasty’s king was deposed or reduced to a vassal, and the Dogras imposed tribute and suzerainty over the region. However, Ladakh’s subjugation remained tenuous; local revolts erupted frequently and were suppressed by Zorawar Singh in successive expeditions up to 1840.In 1841, sensing an opportunity, Zorawar Singh pressed beyond Ladakh into western Tibet, aiming to extend Dogra control over the lucrative trans-Himalayan trade. This bold incursion provoked a strong Tibetan response. Zorawar Singh was met by superior forces near Mansarovar and was killed in battle on 12 December 1841, in the midst of a harsh winter storm. His death led to a dramatic reversal: the Dogra garrisons in Tibet and Ladakh were weakened, and a combined Tibetan-Ladakhi counterattack swiftly materialized. By early 1842, the Tibetans, joined by rebelling Ladakhi nobles, advanced into Ladakh, recapturing territory and even threatening Leh, the capital. Contemporary accounts note a Sino-Tibetan army had laid siege to Leh, determined to reclaim Ladakh and add it to the Qing dominions.
Hari Chand's Campaign of 1842
Upon learning of the disaster, Gulab Singh – who was away assisting the British in the First Anglo-Afghan War – acted decisively to retrieve the situation. He dispatched Diwan Hari Chand, then stationed in the Hazara region, to lead a relief army to Ladakh. At this time, Hari Chand was fighting against the Hakim of Darband along the Attock river to recapture the fort of Amb. The Purabiya battalion serving Maharaja Sher Singh relieved the Diwan. Hari Chand met Raja Gulab Singh at Balakot and received approval for his Ladakh campaign. Hari Chand hurried north from Hasan Abdal and reached Haripur within one day and night of marching. From there, he traveled with Raja Dhian Singh to Jammu. After five or six days, Hari Chand left Jammu and arrived at Mirpur, where he stayed for 15 days while the troops were being armed. He had a total of 6,000 soldiers. They departed from Mirpur and arrived at Uri in Kashmir valley, where they were hosted for 15 days by the Nazim of the area.Battle of Kargil Fort
Hari Chand was accompanied by Wazir Ratnu, who left for Ladakh one day before the Diwan. Hari Chand travelled via Ganderbal and Gagangir to Sonamarg within six days. From there, he marched via Dras to Kargil. When he arrived in Kargil, he was informed about the ongoing siege of Kargil Fort, where two siege towers had been erected to close the road. Hari Chand sent 3,000 soldiers and a cannon there by way of Kohi fort, and his remaining forces deployed in front of the siege towers. The fort had been besieged by Bahadur Khan. Hari Chand's soldiers fired their muskets and zamburaks at the besiegers. The besieged soldiers inside the fort also arrived and the three contingents were now fighting together. The fighting continued for six hours, and then the three groups launched a coordinated attack. 200 enemy soldiers died and 4,000 of them drowned while trying to cross the Suru river. The two siege towers were burnt and 20 rupees each were awarded to the soldiers.After leaving Kargil fort, the Diwan's army skirmished with two enemy commanders with some success. After a few days, the army reached the town of Khalatse located on the Indus River. The opposing forces had demolished the bridge on the river, so a new bridge was built. Because the riverbank wasn't broad enough for the large army to cross, it was split into two parts. One contingent under Wazir Ratnu marched along the river towards Bazgoo, the other crossed the mountains to reach the same town. The two groups regrouped at Thasgam, where an enemy army approached them but then withdrew. The army then reached Leh, and their approach made the Tibetans lift the siege of Leh. The defending commanders were awarded 500 rupees each, while injured soldiers were awarded 20 rupees each. After six days, 1,000 soldiers led by Jawahir Singh were sent towards Zanskar; and 500 soldiers led by Naraina were sent towards Nubra.
Upon hearing this news, 1,000 Tibetan soldiers were dispatched towards Leh. Pushed back after a skirmish, this group sheltered at a gompa. The Diwan left Leh with all of his army, except one platoon, and moved towards this location. Two days later, he besieged the gompa. Cannon fire continuously targeted the gompa, and the nearby stream used to source water was cut off. After four days, the defenders surrendered. Wazir Ratnu took them to Ladakh, while Hari Chand stayed at the gompa for four days to restore the local inhabitants, then left for Leh. During a later battle, 100 Tibetan soldiers were killed and 400 were captured. A few of them fled to their commanders, who then marched with 5,000 soldiers and a cannon, and encamped from Leh. The Diwan dispatched his commanders towards their position. His army, except 100 soldiers left behind to defend the city, marched and arrived opposite this position. The Tibetans made a night attack but were beaten back and sheltered in a new camp.
The Diwan's forces besieged the new camp and fighting continued for eight days, till 300 soldiers and a commander were killed by enemy gunfire. The besiegers panicked, but they were reassured by the Diwan and resumed their siege. Four days later, the Diwan noticed a stream flowing into the camp and had it flooded. The new camp was located at Tangtse, on the western end of Pangong Lake. The Tibetans had 3,000 soldiers, but their camp and trenches had been flooded. The besieged soldiers abandoned their camp. Their commander was beheaded in retaliation for Zorawar Singh's death. The other enemy commanders were captured, their weapons were taken but the soldiers were set free. The Diwan left for Leh while Wazir Ratnu accompanied the captured Tibetan commanders. The Battle of Chushul was fought sometime after 10 August in Chushul, which was the final battle of the war.
Contemporary Sikh and Ladakhi chronicles laud Hari Chand’s leadership in this campaign. One account records Diwan Hari Chand had reconquered the whole of Ladakh, driving the Tibetans back “in the direction of Shyok” and destroying the last enemy detachment at Drangtse. By the end of summer 1842, Ladakh was securely back in Dogra hands, largely due to Hari Chand’s resolute generalship.