Annexation of Sind
Annexation of Sind 1843
Since 18th century, Sind was being ruled by some Baluchi chiefs collectively known as “Amirs of Sind“. The East India Company, because of the strategic positions of the Ports of Sind had tried its hand as early as 1775 to open a factory out there. But they abandoned it in 1792.
In 1809, during the times of Lord Minto, an embassy was sent to these Amirs which resulted in the “Treaty of Eternal friendship” of 1809. Once becoming the friends of English, the Amirs stopped allowing French to the Ports of Sind. The British were able to renew this treaty in 1820 and now the foolish Amirs excluded the Americans also from Sind.
The story of winning Sind starts from a dispatch of Charles James Napier to Sind.
Charles James Napier, a 60 year old British lion was appointed as Major General in the command of the army of the Bombay Presidency. By this time, Lord Auckland had been recalled and Lord Ellenborough, who loved military pomp, had his tastes gratified by sending him to “cure” the Muslim insurrections in this region. The loosely governed Sind, which was repeatedly targeted by the Sikhs in past, fell in the Battle of Miani & Battle of Dobo, wherein in which 3000 British troops defeated 12,000 Baluchis
in 1843 under Charles Napier.
The Amirs of Sind, their kith and kin were taken prisoners, and then these broken-hearted and miserable men were sent to Burma in exile. Whole of Sind was annexed to British Empire in 1843.
- Napier’s sent a one word telegram which was a pun after this battle. The message in the telegram was a Latin word “peccavi“ means “I have sinned“. The meaning of this wordplay was “I have Sind” J
