Letters from the Maharajah Duleep Singh and his wife Bamba

Born on the 4th September 1838 in Lahore, Pakistan but in 1838 part of the Sikh Empire centred around the Punjab region. Duleep Singh was the youngest son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh (1780-1839) and Rani Jindan Kaur (1817-1863) and was declared maharaja on 16th September 1843, at the age of 5. After the two Anglo-Sikh Wars, Duleep Singh was forced to resign his title in March 1849, aged ten, and the Sikh Empire was annexed by the British. Exiled to the town of Fatehgarh, it was here that he converted to Christianity in 1853. In May 1854 he travelled to England, quickly becoming close to Queen Victoria, and spent the next seven years living in England as a country gentleman. Duleep Singh travelled to India when his mother died in 1963 and on his return to England in 1864, he met and married Bamba Müller in Cairo, Egypt and they lived together at Elveden, Suffolk raising seven children. In 1886, Duleep Singh returned again to India and attempted to position himself as the prophesied head of the Sikh people, but was quickly arrested in Aden. He then moved to Paris and attempted to reclaim his throne, conspiring with Russian and Irish contacts but to no avail. On 20 May 1889, Duleep Singh married Ada Douglas Wetherill and had two more daughters. Before his death in 22 October 1893, he reconciled with Queen Victoria and received a full pardon in 1890. His body was buried next to Bamba at Elveden.

Bamba Müller (1843-1887) the illegitimate daughter of Ludwig Müller and his Ethiopian mistress and placed in the care of missionaries in Cairo by her father. It was here that she met Maharaja Duleep Singh. Duleep Singh wanted a Christian wife of Eastern origin and so negotiated with the missionary school for a suitable candidate. Bamba was recommended and the couple married in Cairo on 7th June 1864, though the final proposal had to be done through an intermediary as Duleep Singh did not speak Arabic, Bamba’s only language. The Singhs moved to Elveden, Suffolk, England where they lived and raised seven children, though their first son died only a month old. Bamba died 16th September 1887 and was buried at Elveden. Her rise from illegitimacy to a life of luxury has been compared to the classic Cinderella fairytale.