Thanks Khalid for this biography. It at least explains how Billy came to settle in Kheri. And Henry's site mentions Oudh estates, again a point I puzzled over. best Arjun On Tue, 05 Jan 2010 17:02:03 +0530 wrote >Hi Arjan Singh was the son of Jasbir Singh, one of the nine children of Raja Sir Harnam Singh. Raja Harnam SIngh was the younger son of Raja Randhir Singh, the Maharaja of Kapurthala. The line goes like this. Raja Sir Randhir Singh, GCSI,Maharaja of Kapurthala Raja Sir Harnam Singh,KCSI (1851-1930) Jasbir Singh Arjan Singh " Billy" The story is that the rulers of Kapurthala had sided with Ranjit Singh during the Sikh Wars but during the uprising of 1857 ,Maharaja Randhir Singh came with his forces into Awadh and helped british re-gain control over the territory and for this act of loyalty ,Randhir Singh was granted huge lands in districts of Kheri and Bahraich and as a result he became one of the biggest Taluqdars of Oudh ( Awadh ). These land yielded him more revenuce than the whole state of Kapurthala. Randhir Singh had two sons, Kharak Singh & Harnam SIngh- the eldest Kharak Singh succeeded to the Kapurthala throne and died without any issue. Naturally Harnam Singh should have succeeded him as his younger brother but due to the dirty politics in connivance with the bribed british resident and a corrupt Civil Surgeon who declared the Maharani to be pregnant when his( Kharak Singh) husband was on the death bed ,a unrelated child was smuggled into the palace and became heir to the Kapurthala throne with the name of JAGATJIT SINGH. Thus Harnam Singh was deprived of the throne but as a corrective measure the British Govt made Harnam Singh a hereditary Raja, awarded a Knighthood, KCSI, gave administration of his Awadh properties for his lifetime ,an move which was objected by Jagatjit Singh but in vain. Harnam Singh looked after the Kapurthala estates in Oudh and was made to live in Oudh and Jallandhar mostly where he came under the influence of Reverend Golaknath who persuaded him to accept Christainity. More of the unjust deprivation of the Gaddi and the treatment meted out to him by the British ,he was dissappointed and successful persuasion of Golaknath, Harnam Singh became a Christian and later on married a relative of Golaknath, Priscilla. Thus he closed the doors forever of acquiring the throne of Kapurthala. Rajkumari Amrit Kaur(1889-1964) was the daugther of Raja Sir Harnam Singh and thus an aunt of Arjan Singh 'Billy'. With regards Khalid "Arjun.A.R" Correction, Billy was great grandson of HH Randhir Singh, not grand son. Billy was a bachelor. His brother Kunwar Balram Singh and family lived with him part of the time in 'Tiger Haven' close to Dudhwa national park, Lakhimpur Kheri, Uttar Pradesh. A On Tue, 05 Jan 2010 15:25:44 +0530 wrote >Hello everybody, > > Once again a bearer of sad news, though some of you may have heard by now. Kunwar Lt Col 'Billy' Arjan Singh, son of Rajkumar Jasbir Singh, grandson of HH Raja-i-Rajgan Raja Sir RANDHIR SINGH Bahadur, died in Lakhimpur Kheri on the 1st of Jan 2010. He was 94. > A bachelor > > He was one of the last of a vanished breed of amateur conservationist who achieved great things by force of character and iron will. I do not feel up to writing an obituary to this great man, but I might add that he was one of my childhood heroes. > > RIP > > Arjun The information contained in this communication is intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom it is addressed and others authorized to receive it. It may contain confidential or legally privileged information. If you are not the intended recipient you are hereby notified that any disclosure, copying, distribution or taking any action in reliance on the contents of this information is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. If you have received this communication in error, please notify us immediately by responding to this email and then delete it from your system. The firm is neither liable for the proper and complete transmission of the information contained in this communication nor for any delay in its receipt. ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to INDIA-ROYALTY-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message