The Ramgarhia community is an Indo Aryan ethnic tribe of the Punjab region in South Asia.
They are named after Sardar Jassa Singh Ramgarhia who was the leader of the Ramgarhia Misl
History of the Ramgarhia Misl
The founder of the Ramgarhia Misl was Jassa Singh Ramgarhia of Guga village near Amritsar. Jassa Singh Ramgarhia was the grandson of Giani Hardas Singh Bhambhra who was the resident of Suringh which is situated about nineteen miles east of Khem Karan, in the present district of Amritsar.
Hardas Singh was initiated into the Khalsa faith by Guru Gobind Singh Ji himself from whose hands he took Amrit/pahul (the Sikh baptismal oath) and fought some battles at Guru Ji’s side. Later he joined the forces of Banda Bahadur and took part in almost every religious battle under his flag against the Mughal Empire. In 1716 AD, he died in a skirmish.
After him his son, Sardar Bhagwan Singh became the head of the family, and with 200 followers entered the Imperial Mughal forces under the Governor of Lahore.
Owing to his ability he rose to be a distinguished officer. He died fighting for his master in 1739 at Lahore, when Nadir Shah invaded India and the Governor resisted him ineffectually. He had five sons. Baron Jassa Singh, the eldest, now became the head of the family. He was appointed a Risaldar by the Governor of Lahore, and the following villages were given to hitaram : Jagir Valla, Verka, Sultanwind, Tung and Chabba (all of these are now in the Amritsar district).
On the death of Khan Bahadur, the Governor of Lahore, in 1746, Baron Jassa Singh, together with his followers, joined his Sikh brethren at Amritsar.
Katra Ramgarhian
The Ramgarhian Katra is the greatest of all the Katras and covers over an area extending over 3 gates of the city. This is one more proof of the fact that the Ramgarhia forces appointed to guard the temple were more numerous than those of any other Misl. This Katra constitutes one fourth of the city. It is till known by that old name and the signboards with the inscription (Katra Ramgarhian) are put up by the Municipality on its boundaries. In this way the memory of this great house is kept to this day.
Later Baron Jassa Singh and his brothers joined the forces of Nand Singh Sanghania. The younger brother of Sardar Jassa Singh was at this time killed in action with the Afghans near Majitha. After the terrible blow dealt to the Sikhs by Abdali, in the Battle of Ghallughara('Holocaust'), in which 17,000 Sikhs fell, the three brothers, Jassa Singh, Mali Singh and Tara Singh Ramgarhia, with Jai Singh Kanhaiya (Leader of the Kanhaiya Misl), were reduced to the necessity of hiding in jungles and subsisting on whatever chance threw in their way. They had, however, the temerity to visit Amritsar to bathe in the sacred tank, and pillaged the suburbs of the city. When attacked by the Shah's troops they fired off their matchlocks and fled to the jungles. After the departure of Ahmad Shah, Jassa Singh with his brothers Mali Singh and Tara Singh, and Jai Singh Kanhaiya emerged from their jungle retreat, and collecting their followers ravaged the country far and wide, building forts and establishing military outposts.
When Khawaja Obed, the Governor of Lahore, attacked the Sikh fort at Gujranwala, he was opposed by the united forces of the Ramgarhias and Kanhaiyas and the guns, ammunition and treasure left by the Governor were equally divided by the Barons of the two Misls.Victory and continued occupation of LahoreThe Afghan prince and his guardian, seeing that all their attempts to disperse the Sikhs had failed, and that the number of the insurgents was daily increasing by thousands, and realising that the forces at their own disposal, however well armed and disciplined, were not strong enough to stand before them, considered it prudent to evacuate Lahore and retire towards the Chenab. They retreated in the night, unknown even to their own Hindustani troops, whom they distrusted, and in such haste that the royal family fell into the hands of the enemy, though they were subsequently released. This took place about the middle of 1758. The triumphant Sikhs occupied Lahore under their celebrated leader, Baron Jassa Singh Ramgarhia