People
Mal Singh and Partap Kaur:
A Family Affair
EMPIRE - FAITH - WAR
In the West, the two World Wars led to women moving away from traditional roles as mothers and housewives, and into the workforce to help the war effort, so forging new identities and expectations.
The saga of a wartime husband and wife duo reveals how one Sikh woman -- like tens of thousands of others -- also not only coped but thrived in her husband's absence a century ago in rural Punjab. Developing new skills and expanding her role, she ultimately helped build the foundations of their family's future ...
Mal Singh was a Ressaidar / Risaldar (Viceroy’s Commissioned Officer) in the Imperial Service Troops, born in the village of Dakha in Ludhiana District, Punjab. Selected to attend King Edward VII’s coronation in England in 1902 he returned to Europe a decade later, this time to fight the Germans during World War One. His story is told by his great-grandson, ‘Citizen Historian’ Vic Singh Shahid.
Upon his return Mal Singh's entrepreneurial spirit led to his building a successful business. But it is the story in the home front while he was away that sowed the seeds of his family's wealth: his wife Partap Kaur's incredible exploits whilst left alone to fend for her family helped create the foundations upon which their family story was built, leading to a son being educated in England and ultimately becoming Principal of the famed Khalsa College, Amritsar.
LIFE BEFORE THE WAR
Mal Singh was able to attend school and was possibly educated up to the 8th grade. According to family tradition, Mal Singh was selected as a representative of the Imperial Service Troops to attend the coronation of King Edward VII in England in 1902.
He married Partap Kaur before the Great War began.
LIFE DURING THE WAR
Not much is known about Mal Singh's life during the Great War. We do know, however, that he fought in Europe against the Germans and rose to become a senior-ranking cavalryman.
Although his regiment remains unknown, it is speculated that he may have been part of the Imperial Service Troops.
On the eve of war in 1914, twenty-nine Sikh and other South Asian states were providing soldiers for the Imperial Service Troops scheme. These totalled 22,479 of whom 7,673 were cavalry, 10,298 infantry and 2,723 transport corps.
During the war, 18,000 Imperial Service soldiers saw service in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Palestine and East Africa.
Mal Singh was fluent in English which helped with his promotion to Ressaidar.
LIFE AFTER THE WAR
Mal Singh survived the war and received a military pension.
He began a brick kiln business in his village, earning enough to build his own house. He was well-known in his local community for his veterinary medical knowledge, which he learnt during his military service.
Mal Singh died of natural causes sometime in the early 1960s when he was in his late 70s.
SARDARNI PARTAP KAUR
While Mal Singh was at war, his wife Partap Kaur, with the help of immediate family, sent their four children (two sons and two daughters) to a boarding school in Jaspalon, near Khanna, Punjab.
Partap Kaur, who is remembered in the family as a brilliant and extremely capable woman, began her own business. She produced butter oil and milk products, which she sold in the village.
As a result, she was able to save almost the equivalent of Mal Singh’s earnings made during the war. They used this money to help build the family home.
Later, they were able to send one of their sons to England to study medicine - he decided to change course and returned home with a PhD in Botany. He later served as Principal of Khalsa College, Amritsar, and at a College in Damdama Sahib.
Most of the remaining family continued to farm. Their descendants are currently spread out through North America, the UK and the Middle East.
[Courtesy: UK Punjab Heritage Association. Edited for sikhchic.com]
September 6, 2016