RANJIT SINGH, THE SHAWL, AND THE KAUKAB-I IQBĀL-I PUNJĀB

Although Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s rule has been well studied by scholars none up to this point have turned their attention to the cultural capital produced by his court and what this meant in regard to Ranjit Singh’s association with the British and how this configured the colonial relationship. This article challenges basic assumptions about the cordial nature of Ranjit’s kingdom, claimed to be particularly genial towards the British after the Treaty of Lahore in 1809, by focussing in part upon the image of himself that Ranjit wished to portray to the outside world, an image not only of his personal self but also of the products produced by his court in particular the Sikh Kashmiri shawls of the Lahore Darbar and the medal of valour, the Kaukab-i Iqbāl-i Punjāb.