The Awards of the Indian “Princely” States: a Survey in a Broad Historical Context
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THE AWARDS OF THE INDIAN “PRINCELY” STATES: A SURVEY IN A BROAD HISTORICAL CONTEXT ED HAYNES Although their exact number may be debated, there common. What is shown here is merely a small sampling, existed in India before 1947 some 568 semi-independent from a number of states, of this delightfully diverse and states, each with its own ruler and its own administration. exotic aspect of South Asian phaleristics. While these rulers and their states functioned under the overarching doctrine of British “Paramountcy” and with Orders close and often vexing imperial supervision of their affairs, but they were, at least in the eyes of their subjects, It was in the area of orders that British policy clashed with the only relevant governments of everyday life. While the wishes of the rulers in the clearest and most intense the rulers of these states were to their people what fully fashion. Growing out of an imagined late medieval, amounted to kings, by whatever titles were used locally, chivalric, and intensely Christian environment, the British British imperial ideology demanded that they be termed had always struggled with the transplantation of orders “princes” as a result the concept of the Indian “Princely” outside of Europe and so did states such as the Ottoman State has been enshrined in the dominant historical and Japanese empires as they had created their own narrative. Since we are stuck with the term, I shall just orders late in the nineteenth century. As the Indian Princes use the term Princes, without quotation marks, hereafter. created multi-class orders, complete with collars and grand cross sashes and breast stars (but stopping short, Moreover, as far as the British rulers of India were at least officially, of creating robes for their orders as had concerned, the King-Emperor in London was the sole been done in Nepal), the British began to chafe at what “fount of honor.” However nice this may have sounded they saw as a systematic and conscious trespass onto the to the British, many of the Princes contended that as the King-Emperor’s authority. To the British, a breast star King-Emperor had the right to honor his subjects, so meant knighthood and they monitored the development they had the equal right to honor theirs and contrived of these Princely awards closely to avoid any hint of that to create their own systems of honors and awards. This or any designs that seemed to copy too closely British (or resulted in an ongoing policy struggle between the British, other European) models. who wished that state awards would just disappear, and the rulers who asserted this as a facet of their inherent In this regard a particular problem was the western desert right as rulers and, indeed, as a part of their duty to their State of Bikaner. The dominant Bikaner ruler, Maharaja people. Whether they liked the situation or not, British Ganga Singh (1880-1943, ruled 1887-1943) was policymakers accepted the fact (if not the inherent right) respected and trusted by the British (for example, he was that the most senior rulers were going to issue their one of the Indian representatives to the Versailles Peace own awards to their subjects and if the British desired Conference). He was also one of the most aggressive the support of the Princes in the face of the rising tide creators and bestowers of awards. In 1937, to mark his of the Indian struggle for freedom they would simply golden jubilee on the throne, Ganga Singh created the have to tolerate these “splashes” from the “fount of Order of the Star of Honour in six classes. In 1944, his son honor.” When India and Pakistan attained their separate and successor, Maharaja Sadul Singh (1902-1950, ruled independence in 1947, for the states it was a moment of 1943-1950) created the Order of the Vikram Star in five lost independence and forced merger into one of the two classes to recognize services to the state. The first class new nations. While complete merger was long in coming had a sash and sash badge, worn over the shoulder, and (and, to some degree, has yet to take place completely, a breast star (Figure 1). And, probably in 1947, shortly at least locally), the phaleristic autonomy of these states before India’s independence and Bikaner’s integration began a slide toward extinction as of 1947. into India, he created the Order of the Sadul Star in five classes. Collecting and studying these awards is somewhat simplified by the existence of good reference material Elsewhere, complexity may have served as a disguise (cited in the bibliography), although finding medals with for the existence of an order. After a nine-year struggle ribbons intact is quite difficult. In some ways, the ribbons with the Government of India, being told “no” and then are rarer than the medals, and the medals are by no means trying another proposal, the central Indian State of Indore Vol. 65, No. 5 (September-October 2014) 29 Figure 1: First Class breast star of the Order of the Vikram Star. (Holkar) created the Order of the Ahilya Holkar Saltanat (also known in the correspondence as the “Holkar Order Figure 3: Commander of the Military of Merit”). This order was an intricate interlocking set of Division of the Order of Merit of Patiala. awards and titles, with at least four classes, four divisions, 22 titles, and two medals. It is no wonder the British were His collection, displayed in Patiala today, deserves its often confused and one is left pondering if this wasn’t reputation as an international phaleristic pilgrimage site. the intent of Maharaja Tukoji Rao III (1890-1978, ruled All-in-all, he created four orders: (1) the Order of the 1903-1926). One example of this perplexing order is the Holy Saint, as a single-class order with collar, sash and Order of Ahliya Holkar Saltanat, Class III silver medal sash badge, and breast star for Sikhs only; (2) the Order of the 2nd Class, Muntazin Bahadur (Figure 2). of Krishna, a similar single-class order was for Hindus. (there seems to have been no parallel order for Muslims); (3) the Order of Merit existed in four classes and both military and civil divisions; as an example, Figure 3 illustrates the Order of Merit, 3rd Class (Commander) Military Division; (4).The Nishan-i-Phul, or Royal Family Order (the British truly disliked the Princes’ use of the word “royal” or creating family orders) was in six classes plus a special collar for the ruler; at Figure 4 is Figure 2: Class III silver medal of the 2nd Class of the Order of Ahliya Holkar Saltanat. A lover of all the good things in life, including medals, Maharaja Bhupinder Singh (1891-1938, ruled 1900-1938) of the Punjab State of Patiala was an especially avid creator and collector of awards (both as a recipient and as a famous phaleristic hobbyist and much beloved customer of London auction houses during the Depression). Figure 4: Commander of the Royal Family Order of Patiala. 30 JOMSA the Royal Family Order, 3rd Class (Commander). Decorations and Commendation Medals Figure 7: Bronze Household Medal of Patiala. Figure 5: Bikaner Public Service Medal. British Kaisar-i-Hind Medal (also awarded for public and humanitarian services), which Ganga Singh had received Medals for service were better than orders, as far as the in gold for his efforts at famine relief in 1900. His son, British were concerned, and they were prepared to tolerate Maharaja Sadul Singh, was forced to redesign the medal them so long as the maharajas did not seem to be copying after his famous father’s death in 1943. Further south, imperial awards. Predictably, the limits of this policy were the State of Mysore tested similar limits when Maharaja challenged. Maharaja Ganga Singh of Bikaner created the Sri Jaya Chamaraja Wadiyar XI Bahadur (1919-1974, Public Service Medal in three classes, gold, silver (Figure ruled 1940-1974) created (it was probably his creation) 5) and bronze. The design was clearly derived from the the Mysore Public Service Medal in a single gold class (Figure 6). Awards that were restricted to the palace were easier for the British to accept. For example, Maharaja Bhupinder Singh of Patiala created a Household Medal in silver and bronze (Figure 7) classes. Decorations for gallantry were a particular problem. As far as the British were concerned, such honors came from the King-Emperor alone. As far as the rulers were concerned, they had a right to reward their subjects for bravery and at least Bahawalpur, Bikaner, Gwalior (Scindia), and Patiala did so. Campaign Medals As with gallantry decorations, campaign medals were seen by British officials as something that came to the Indian Army (including the subordinate States’ Forces) from London and not from the rulers of the individual States. There were few challenges to this policy before World War I, if for no other reason than the fact that the same British campaign medals that were awarded to the British or Indian Armies were made available to the Figure 6: Mysore Public Service Medal. States’ Forces. Vol. 65, No. 5 (September-October 2014) 31.