PREDECESSORS AND SHORT HISTORY:
A town and district of British India, in the Patna
division of Bengal. The town is on the left bank of the
Little Baghmati river, and has a railway station.
Population in 1901 was 66,244. The town is a collection of
villages that have grown up round the residence of the
Maharaja. This is a magnificent palace, with gardens, a
menagerie and a good library. The district of Darbhanga
extends from the Nepal frontier to the Ganges. It was
constituted in 1875 out of the unwieldy district of
Tirhut. Founded by Mahamahopadhyaya Mahesh Thakur, who
received the Darbhanga raj (which includes large parts of
the modern districts of Darbhanga, Muzaffarpur, Monghyr,
Purnea and Bhagalpur) from the emperor Akbar early in the
16th century. The Maharaja of Darbhanga is the titular
head of the highest sub-caste of the Maithils, viz. the
Srotriyas (those who could recite the Vedas from memory).
The Khandavala dynasty of Raj Darbhanga was governed by
the rule of Primogeniture based on the "Kulachar"
recognized by Privy Council and Supreme Court. Rulers
were...
- Raja MAHESH THAKUR,
Raja of Darbhanga, he was granted title of Raja and
Darbhanga Raj by Akbar, married and had issue. He died
1558.
- Kunwar Ramchandra Thakur
- Raja Gopal Thakur (qv)
- Kunwar Achit Thakur
- Raja Parmanand Thakur (qv)
- Raja Subhankar Thakur (qv)
- Raja GOPAL THAKUR,
Raja of Darbhanga, ruled for a short time only.
- Raja PARMANAND
THAKUR, Raja of Darbhanga, ruled for a short
time only.
- Raja SUBHANKAR
THAKUR, Raja of Darbhanga -/1607, married and
had issue. He died 1607.
- Raja Purushottam Thakur (qv)
- Raja Sundar Thakur (qv)
- Raja Narayan Thakur (qv)
- Raja PURUSHOTTAM
THAKUR, Raja of Darbhanga 1607/1642 (1623),
died sp in 1642 (1623).
- Raja NARAYAN THAKUR, Raja
of
Darbhanga 1623/1642, married and had issue.
- generation,
married and had issue.
- generation,
married and had issue.
- generation,
married and had issue.
- Raja Pratap Singh (see below)
- Raja Madho Singh (see below)
- Raja SUNDAR THAKUR,
Raja of Darbhanga 1642/1662, married and had issue. He
died 1662.
- Raja Mahinath Thakur (qv)
- Raja Nirpat Thakur (qv)
- Raja MAHINATH
THAKUR, Raja of Darbhanga 1662/1684, died sp
1684.
- Raja NIRPAT THAKUR,
Raja of Darbhanga 1684/1700, married and had issue. He
died 1700.
- Raja RAGHU SINGH,
Raja of Darbhanga 1700/1736, he obtained lease of
whole of Sarkar Tirhut including Darbhanga and
Muzaffarpur at an annual rent of Rs.100,000, which was
a huge amount at that time. The annual revenue of
Sarkar Tirhut in 1685 AD was officially returned at
Rs.7,69,287. At one time, during reign of Raja Raghu
Singh, Nawab Mahabat Jung, Nawab Subahdar of Behar,
got jealous of the wealth of Raja Raghu Singh and
imprisoned his family at Patna. Raghu Singh escaped
capture and later succeeded in getting the estate back
along with large grant with Mughal Governor on the
condition that "Do Justice, Relieve Distress, And Put
The Country In Flourishing Condition. This condition
was fulfilled by Raja Raghu Singh and subsequent
Maharajas of Darbhanga. He built a mud fort at Bhawara
near Madhubani; married and had issue. He died 1736.
- Raja BISHNU SINGH,
Raja of Darbhanga 1736/1740, died sp in 1740.
- Raja NARENDRA SINGH,
Raja of Darbhanga 1740/1760, adopted his distant
relative as his successor. He died sp in 1760.
- Raja PRATAP SINGH,
Raja of Darbhanga 1760/1776, built a Rajbari at
Darbhanga and shifted the capital to Darbhanga from
Bhawara. He died 1776.
- Raja MADHO SINGH,
Raja of Darbhanga 1776/1808, received grant of
Dharampur in District of Purnea, Bihar from Shah Alam,
Mughal Emperor of Delhi. Raja Madho Singh had a long
dispute with British Government over revenue payment
and extent of his right over the land; married and had
issue. He died 1808.
- Maharaja Chhatra Singh Bahadur (qv)
- Kunwar Kishan Singh, died sp.
- Maharaja CHHATRA
SINGH Bahadur, Raja of Darbhanga 1808/1839,
he was granted the title of Maharaja Bahadur, as a
personal distinction, he resigned his powers to his
eldest son, but died shortly afterwards; married and
had issue. He died 1839 (#3).
- Raja Rudra Singh (qv)
- Rajkumar Bisdeo Singh
- Raja RUDRA SINGH
, Raja of Darbhanga 1839/1850, married and had issue.
He died 1850.
- Raja Maheshwar Singhr Bahadur (qv)
- Rajkumar Ganeshwar Singh [aka Babu Ghunpat]
- Rajkumar Nitreshwar Singh, married and had issue.
- Babu Ekradeswar Singh
- Babu Janeswar Singhm, married Musammat Janeswari
Babuain. He died sp on 18th April 1906.
- Rajkumar Gopeshwar Singh
- generation (one
of above), married and had issue.
- Babu (name unknown), married and had issue.
- Babu Madheshwar Singh, Deputy Magistrate
- Raja MAHESHWAR
SINGH Bahadur, Raja of Darbhanga 1850/1860,
married and had issue. He died 20th October 1860.
- Raja Lachmeshwar Singh Bahadur (qv)
- Hon. Maharajadhiraja Sir Rameshwar Singh
Bahadur (qv)
- Raja LACHMESHWAR
SINGH Bahadur, Raja of Darbhanga 1860/1898,
born 25th September 1858, educated by an English
tutor, succeeded to the Raj after attaining his
majority, he served as a member of the legislative
council of the viceroy with conspicuous ability and
moderation of view. As representative of the
landowners of Berar and Bengal he took an important
part in the discussion on the Bengal Tenancy Bill. He
entirely devoted himself to public work and was
recognized as one of the greatest nobles and
philanthropists of India at that time, and as a
tribute to him, his statue was installed in Calcutta
in 1904 at Dalhousie Square. He died sp on
17th December 1898 (#4).
 Hon. Maharajadhiraja Sir RAMESHWAR SINGH
Bahadur, Maharaja of Darbhanga 1898/1929,
born 16th January 1860 (#5),
K.C.I.E. [cr.1902], G.C.I.E. [cr.1915] (#5), K.B.E.
(civil)[cr.1918], Raja Bahadur [cr.1886], Maharaja
Bahadur (personal) [cr.1898], Maharaja Bahadur
(hereditary) [cr.1907], Maharajadhiraja (hereditary)
[cr.1920], 17th in succession from the founder of the
House, the premier territorial noble of Bihar,
educated by an English tutor, appointed to the Indian
Civil Service in 1878, serving as assistant magistrate
successively at Darbhanga, Chhapra and Bhagalpur, he
was exempted from attendance at the civil courts, and
was appointed a member of the legislative council of
Bengal, MLC of Bengal 1885, Member of Council of
Governor General of India in 1899 and 1904, President
of Bihar Landholder's Association, President of All
India Landholder's Association, President of Bharat
Dharma Mahamandal, Member of Council of State, Trustee
of Victoria Memorial, Calcutta, President of Hindu
University Society, M.E.C. of Bihar and Orissa, Member
of Indian Police Commission 1902/1903, awarded the
Kaiser-i-Hind medal in 1900, married 1stly, 1877,
married 2ndly, 1901, and had issue. He died 3rd July
1929 (#6).
- Maharajkumari (name
unknown), born 1905.
- Col. Honourable Maharajadhiraja Sir Kameshwar
Singh Bahadur (qv)
- Raja Vishweshwar Singh Bahadur, born 1908, in
1938, he was granted the estate of Rajnagar, the
title of Raja and a pension of 30,000Rs which was
later raised to 48,000Rs; he married and had issue,
three sons.
- Babu Saheb Jeeveshwar Singh, became an ascetic
later in life and renounced worldy possessions,
married twice and had issue, seven daughters. He
died 1988.
- Babu Saheb Yajneshwar Singh, mentally unstable
and was overlooked in the succession, married and
had issue, three sons.
- Kumar Ratneshwar Singh, presently contesting
the succession to the title.
- Kumar Rashmeshwar Singh, died.
- Kumar Rajneshwar Singh
- Maharajadhiraja Subheshwar Singh Bahadur
(qv)
- Col. Honourable
Maharajadhiraja Sir KAMESHWAR SINGH Bahadur
K.C.I.E., LL.D., D.Litt., Maharaja of Darbhanga
1929/1962, born 28th November 1907 (#7),
Member of the Council of State 1933/1946, Member of
the Constituent Assembly 1947/1950, Member of the
Provisional Parliament 1950/1951 and the Rajya Sabha
1952/1958 and 1960/1962, married 1stly, Maharani
Rajlakshmi Devi, died sp in 1976, married 2ndly, 1935,
Maharani Kameshwari Priya Sahiba, died 28th October
1940 (#8), married 3rdly,
1945, Maharani Kamasundari alias Maharani Kalyani
Devi. He died sp on 8th November 1962 (#7) or 2nd
October 1962 (#2).
- Maharajadhiraja
SUBHESHWAR SINGH Bahadur, Maharaja of
Darbhanga 1962/2006, born about 1945, Indian Nation
proprietor, appointed head of the Shrotriya Brahmins,
who are the leaders of Maithili Brahmins; married and
had issue, two sons. He died 2006.
- Kumar Kapileshwar Singh, presently contesting the
succession to the title; married Kumarani Kavita
Kumari.
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