The Sikh Empire was established by Ranjit Singh in 1799. Like other Mughal successor states, the empire emerged in the political context of Mughal decline and subsequent contests for power across the subcontinent.

By the late 1830s, the Sikhs had established themselves as the dominant power in north-west India and Afghanistan. However, the death of Ranjit Singh in 1839 led to political instability in the empire.

Fourth Maharaja of the Sikh Empire, Sher Singh was assassinated by his cousin Ajit Singh Sandhawalia.

Source: Colesworthey Grant, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

The East India Company, desirous of extending its territory into the north-west, initiated hostilities with the Sikhs in 1845. The war centred on a close fought battle at Ferozeshah which the British narrowly won. Territory was ceded by the Sikh Empire including Jammu and Kashmir. The EIC sold Jammu and Kashmir to Gulab Singh, a Dogra Rajput, after the Sikhs signed the Treaty of Lahore in 1846. One-hundred years later, the princely state of Kashmir ruled by the Dogra dynasty would be contested by the Dominion of Pakistan and the Union of India.