Lehal Library

198 Punjab Monarchy and Imperialism province. It was the chief trading centre of northern India to which caravans brought goods from Central Asia and exchanged them for the products of Hindustan. In its narrow, winding streets were business houses trading in all conceivable kinds of goods-silks, muslins, spices, tea, coffee, hides, matchlocks, and other armaments. Because of the wealthy merchants, subsidiary trades such as those of gold- and silversmiths had grown up. Apart from its riches, Amritsar had sanctity in the eyes of the Sikhs. Anyone who aspired to be the leader of the Khalsa and Maharajah of the Punjab had to take Amritsar to make good his title. Amritsar was divided between nearly a dozen families owning different parts of the city. These families had built fortresses in their localities and maintained retinues of armed tax collectors who mulcted the traders and shopkeepers as often as they could. The leading citizens approached Ranjit Singh (who needed little persuasion) to take over the city. The only family of importance which was likely to put up resistance was that of the widow of the Bhangi Sardar who had drunk himself to death at Bhasin three years earlier. The widow, who had the support of the Ramgarhias, occupied the fort of Gobi.ndgarh. Raajit Singh took the city piecemeal, oveJWhelming the Sardars one after another. The Ramgarhias did not come to the help of the Bhangi widow and she surrendered the fort in lieu of a pension for herself and her son. Gobindgarh was a valuable acquisition. With it Ranjit Singh acquired five big cannon, including the massive Zam Zama. 11 He also took in his employ a remarkable soldier called Phula 11 The Zam Zama was made of copper and brass and was cast by the orders ofAhmed Shah Ahdali. It caused havoc in the ranks of the Marathas in the battle of Panipat. ll passed from Afghan hands to the Sukerchakias and from the Sukerchakias through various hands to the Bhangis (see Chapter 8, foomote 51) and came to be known as the Bhangwn-ld-top. It saw service in many of Ranjit Singh's campaigns, and after his death faced the English in Anglo-Sikh wars. Thereafter it was pensioned and put on a pedestal in Lahore's main street. It was immortalized by Kipling as Kim's Gun.