Chamba
Important dates in the history of Chamba.
c.550 AD. Chamba state founded.
1846 AD. British protectorate.
List of Rulers.
Rajas
1690 – 1720 Udai Singh
1720 – 1735 Ugar Singh Regent
1735 – 1748 Dalel Singh
1748 – 1764 Umed Singh
1764 – 1794 Raj Singh
1794 – 1808 Jit Singh
1808 – 1844 Charhat Singh
1844 – 1870 Sri
Singh
1870 - Apr 1873 Gopal Singh
History
Chamba was a State in the
The history of Chamba is known
with some certainty, because of the existence of numerous copperplate records
found there. It was founded in the
mid-sixth century by a Surajbansi Rajput
by the name of Marut, who built the town of
It was conquered by the Mughals,
and was tributary to the Mughal Empire.
However, its remoteness and paucity in terms of resources meant that it
was never worth the invaders’ while to interfere minutely with the internal
administration of the state, which continued to be left very much to its own self-regulation. It also escaped being greatly affected by the
Sikh Empire. The British first became
involved in 1846 AD, and it was declared independent of
There was a short-lived rebellion in 1844 AD when Lakar Shah of Basoli tried to
take over the state, but with British support it was put down and the rightful
heir, Sri Singh was established on the throne.
COINAGE.
Copper paisas were the only coins
struck in the state, which never had a Mughal mint. The first series were minted under Charhat Singh and they bore his regnal years 15, 16 and 17
(1822 to 1824 AD.) and a trident flanked by two “C”s
facing inwards, but no date. Another,
scarcer type, exists which has two “C”s, but both facing
forwards, and no trident. It is
described in the Krause catalogues as a half paisa, but it is equal in weight
to the other paisas of this reign (about 5.7 to
5.8g.) and therefore it is a paisa, all of which normally weigh between
about.4.2 and 6.5g.
The rebel, Lakar Shah also struck paisas, which differed from those of Charhat
Singh by the omission of the trident symbol.
Sri Singh, on his restoration to authority, caused the
coinage of Lakar Shah to be overstruck
with a trident. This type, with or
without the overstrike, is not frequently met with..
Sri Singh also had a series of his own coinage, which
appears as a cruder copy of Charhat Singh’s coinage,
but without the regnal year. This is the
type most frequently encountered, but no Chamba coins
are common.