Bhai Maharaj Singh (disputed – 5 July 1856[note 1]) was a prominent Sikh saint-soldier (sant-sipahi) turned revolutionary anti-colonial resistance fighter of the early British colonial establishment in Punjab.

[5] He was born as Nihal Singh in Rabbon Uchi village (Raboo, Nagar Maloud; located in present-day Ludhiana district) in the latter half of the 18th century.

[2][11][5] Amardeep Madra argues that the death of his master in this attack may have influenced Maharaj Singh's direction in life towards revolution and confrontation of those he perceived as enemies of the survival of the Sikh state.

[5] His insurrectionary activities began in the aftermath of the First Anglo-Sikh War in 1846, just prior to the complete annexation of the Sikh Empire by the British East India Company.

It is therefore the sacred duty of every citizen to join this holy struggle and get ready to sacrifice everything in order to free our motherland.The British tried to restrict his movement to Naurangabad, thus he started working in secret with around 600 of his acolytes.

[2] At one point, the British tried to promote a rumour that had sprung-up Maharaj Singh had drowned after falling off of his famed black horse whilst crossing the Jhelum River, seemingly in-order to demoralize the Sikh masses who looked up him and saw him as their leader.

[5] He had built a vast web of interconnections between various sections of Punjabi and Sikh society at the time, which he worked hard to maintain by traveling a lot to visit people.

[5] When Maharaj Singh got word of the rebellion launched by Diwan Mulraj Chopra in Multan in April 1848, he escalated his anti-British activities.

[2] He rode a black horse in the battle and attempted to raise the moral of the Sikh forces at-battle, requesting them to put their lives on the line for the defence of their nation.

[10] Maharaj Singh perceived this as a major blow to the freedom struggle and therefore he sent six of his loyal followers on a mission to Lahore where they would be intercepted by Mian Ganesh, who was planned to aid them in their undertaking.

[10] Thus, five or six persons from the mission would always reside near the palace walls where Duleep Singh was kept at with the goal of abducting him and taking him back to fulfill their ultimate plan.

[10] He decided to reside at Sajuwal (located in present-day Batala district) from where he planned to launch offensives against the cantonments at Hoshiarpur, Hajipur, and Jalandhar.

[10] A progeny of the Kangra State's royalty and other important families of the day had committed to supplying the resistance forces with 1,000 matchlockmen, 10,000–20,000 rupees, and nearly 10,000 maunds of grain for the affair.

[12] After these reassurances, Maharaj Singh decided it was time to leave Sajuwal and make way to Hoshiarpur in December 1849, where he had established correspondence with influential families of the locality and attempted to garner the support of the Sikh regiments there.

[10] Around this time, he received intel that designs had been finished for the gathering of almost 4,000 men at Datarpur (located near Hajipur) and similar actions were also finalized in Majha, Malwa and Hazara.

He seems to have the power to foresee the coming events and has the qualities of a great leader whom people would like to obey.Henry Vansittart, who was the Jalandhar deputy commissioner, had been left with a deep impression by Maharaj Singh and thus wanted him to be given special treatment.

His miracles were seen by tens of thousands and are more implicitly believed than those worked by the ancient prophets.He was exiled to Singapore in 1850 by the British authorities due to his anti-colonial, revolutionary activities in Punjab.

[10] By dimensions, the cell was 14 by 15 feet and as per British admission was: "... further rendered dark, dinghy and absolutely unhealthy" (Secret Consultation Papers, 28th Feb 1851, #52-57).

[12][3] During his imprisonment in Singapore, the British had bestowed him with special privileges, such as extra food provisions, the ability to send letters back home to Punjab, and providing him with literature in the form of books.

[5] Maharaj Singh reportedly felt maddened that he had gone from a well-respect rebel leader back home to a frail prisoner who needed help getting around due to poor and failing health.

[12] Due to his poor health, the civil surgeon made a request that Maharaj Singh be allowed to occasional walks in the open environment, but this suggestion was turned down by the authorities citing "security reasons".

[10] Two months prior to his death his condition deteriorated to such a degree that his tongue and neck swelled to such an extent which made eating difficult due to trouble swallowing.

[1][8][2] G. M. Blundel, Governor of the Straits Settlements, sent the following message reporting the death to the colonial office of British India:[3] I have the honour to report to you for the information of the Right Hon'ble the Governor General of India-in-Council, that the State Prisoner, "Bhaie Maharaj Singh" died on the 5th instant.His remains were cremated outside of the prison by his trusted follower and inmate, Khurruck Singh.

[10][12][5] In the aftermath of the Second Anglo-Sikh War, the Sikh resistance against the British simmered down for a variety of reasons: the taking of Duleep Singh out of the country, Jind Kaur residing in Nepal, where she would not reliably be able to guide the rebels back home, and many pro-Sikh independence leaders and prominent figures of the Sikh Empire being held in jails or exiled by the British.

[5] In 1961, a Sikh police officer decided to install a copy of the Guru Granth Sahib permanently at the samadhi after believing a wish of his came true from visiting the shrine.

[1][5][12][3] The work to relocate the shrine began on 12 October 1966 at around 7 p.m.[5][12][3][1] The transportation of the samadhi was a community-led effort, with the local Sikhs carrying pieces of it personally to the new location.

[5] The samadhi was located in front of the Silat Road Sikh Temple for a period of around 30 years, in the area currently occupied by the male shoe storage.

[5] Prominent personalities who have paid respect at the shrine include Lee Kuan Yew, former leader of Singapore, whom was satisfied by the beautification of the memorial site.

[5] Even to the present-day, pilgrims and well-wishers of various ethnic backgrounds visit the location to pay their respects to Maharaj Singh, for healing, and to make wishes that they hope will come true.

[5] The British Library's Indian collection holds items found on Maharaj Singh after he was captured, such as a seal stamp, conch which produces a battle-cry, and personal manuscripts.