Explain the causes and consequences of Anglo - Sikh War.
Answers
Explanation:
After the downfall of the Mughal empire, the Sikhs, taking advantage of the confused situation, carved out independent states of their own in Punjab. It was Ranjit Singh who united these states into a powerful kingdom in the Punjab during the nineteenth century. He established military rule in Punjab. After Ranjit Singh's death, the military set-up exploded and slowly the real power passed into the hands of the Khalsa army.
Ranjit Singh had left an army of 40,000 soldiers. This increased three-fold within five years of his death thus taking the large share of resources of the State. Unable to get their salaries, the soldiers got out of control and often interfered in political decisions. They formed their own panchayats and decided their own actions. The army assumed the role of "king-makers". The history of the Punjab in the years following the death of Ranjit Singh was thus the history of plots and counter plots, murders and assassinations, desertions and treachery -- all undermining the stability of the State.