Sardar Hari singh Nalwa

Sardar Hari Singh Nalwa (1791–1837) was Commander-in-chief of the Khalsa, the army of the Sikh Empire. He is known for his role in the conquests of Kasur, Sialkot, Attock, Multan, Kashmir, Peshawar and Jamrud.He is also a founder Haripur, Pakistan city.

Hari Singh Nalwa was responsible for expanding the frontier of Sikh Empire to beyond the Indus River right up to the mouth of the Khyber Pass. In 1831, he opposed moves by Ranjit Singh to appoint Kharak Singh as his successor as Maharaja of the Sikh Empire.[citation needed] At the time of his death, the western boundary of the empire was Jamrud.

He served as governor of Kashmir, Peshawar and Hazara. He established a mint on behalf of the Sikh Empire to facilitate revenue collection in Kashmir and Peshawar.

Hari Singh Nalwa was born in Gujranwala, Punjab to Gurdial Singh and Dharam Kaur, who were Uppal , Khatri by caste. After his father died in 1798, he was raised by his mother. In 1801, at age ten, he took Amrit Sanchar and was baptised as a Sikh. At the age of twelve, he began to manage his father's estate and took up horse riding.

In 1804, at the age of fourteen, his mother sent him to the court of Ranjit Singh to resolve a property dispute. Ranjit Singh decided the arbitration in his favour because of his background and aptitude. Hari Singh had explained that his father and grandfather had served under Maha Singh and Charat Singh, the Maharaja's ancestors, and demonstrated his skills as horseman and musketeer.Ranjit Singh gave him a position at the court as a personal attendant.
During a hunt in 1804, a lion attacked him and also killed his horse. His fellow hunters attempted to protect him but he refused their offers and killed the lion by himself with a shield and dagger, thus earning the cognomen Baagh Maar (Lion-killer).Whether he was by that time already serving in the military is unknown but he was commissioned as Sardar, commanding 800 horses and footmen, in that year.
Hari Singh Nalwa died fighting the Pathan forces of Dost Mohammed Khan of Afghanistan. He was cremated in the Jamrud Fort built at the mouth of the Khyber Pass in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Babu Gajju Mall Kapur, a Hindu resident of Peshawar, commemorated his memory by building a memorial in the fort in 1892.

Sikh Warrior Hari Singh Nalwa tops list of “Top Ten World Conquerors” compiled by Billionaires Australia

He lived from 1791-1837 and was the commander-in-chief of the Sikh Empire’s army. His military campaigns throughout the Middle East brought order to turbulent areas and suppressed various uprisings. Despite having much smaller numbers, he defeated armies across India and restored the territories to the Sikhs. Most famously, he became the only man in history to take the Khyber Pass – the mountain path that connects Afghanistan and Pakistan. It is a truly remarkable feat that illustrates his strategic brilliance in battle.