PRESENT HEAD OF HOUSE:

PREDECESSORS AND SHORT HISTORY: The ancestors of this family established themselves as military chiefs in Utrein at the turn of the 17th century and rendered military service with the Mughal governors of the Suba. With the decline of central authority during the later years of Emperor Aurangzeb’s reign, the family occupied Pargana Sanaut as independent chiefs, consolidating their power and authority over the entire Magadh region by the 1730's. They established their headquarters at Tikari Fort. After the battle of Buxar, with the British EIC being appointed Diwan by Emperor Shah Alam, the autonomy of the principality became curtailed to that of principal zamindar of Bihar Suba along with the Rajas of Tirhut and Shahabad. Pitambar Singh, the Raja of Tikari lost his Gaddi to his second cousin Mitrajit Singh of the cadet line for siding with Raja Chyet Singh of Benaras against the British EIC. In a subsequent compromise, a small part of Tikari State was carved out with its nucleus at Maksudpur Fort, and Pitambar Singh became the Raja of Maksudpur, whilst Mitrajit Singh was recognized as the Maharaja of Tikari. The estate was located in Bihar, and covered most of the present districts of Gaya, Aurangabad, Jehanabad and Arwal, as wells as parts of the districts of Nalanda and Nawada. Rulers were....

• Malik BIR SINGH, Malik of Utrein, he defeated and killed Maqsud Khan, the Fauzdar of Pargana Sanaut, and occupied Sanaut Garh and established his headquarters at the Qila Maksudpur, he was recognized as the Zamindar of Sanaut by Padshah Muhammad Shah and received a Khillat and Rajgiin 1719; married a daughter of Raja Kanchan Singh, Naib Subedar of Azimabad, and had issue.

  • Raja TRIBHUVAN SINGH (qv)

  • Raja SUNDAR SINGH (qv)

  • Kunwar Chattar Singh, from whom the Zamindars of Sanwara and Jamwara are descended.

• Raja TRIBHUVAN SINGH, during his reign he conquered Pargana Gaya in 1729, the conquest being ratified by decree of Nawab Alivardi Khan Mahabat Jung; he shifted his headquarters to Tikari and built the Fort there; married and had issue, four sons. He died in 1736.

  • Raja FATEH SINGH (qv)

  • Raja BUNIAD SINGH (qv)

  • Kunwar Nehal Singh, married and had issue, three sons.

    • Kunwar Pitamber Singh, he was adopted by Raja Fateh Singh, and succeded as Raja PITAMBAR SINGH Bahadur, Raja of Tikari (qv)

    • Kunwar Chain Singh, he settled at Uttrawan Garh, Maksudpur; married and had issue, two sons.

      • Kunwar (name unknown) Singh, married and had issue.

        • Kunwar Bishun Singh, married and had issue.

          • Raja RAN BAHADUR SINGH, Raja of Tikari (Seven Annas) (see below)

      • Kunwar Ram Singh, married and had issue.

        • Kunwar Bikramajit Singh, married and had issue.

          • Kunwar Kanhaiya Dayal Singh, married and had issue.

            • Kunwar Chote Narain Singh [aka Jung Bahadur Singh], married and had issue.

              • Maharani Vidyavati Kuer, married (as his fourth wife), Lt. Col. (Hon.) Maharaja GOPAL SARAN NARAIN SINGH, Raja of Tikari (Nine Annas) (see below)

    • Kunwar Main Singh

  • Kunwar Bechu Singh, killed in the battle between Alivardi Khan Mahabat Jung, Naib Subedar of Suba Bengal and Raja Sundar Singh

• Raja SUNDAR SINGH, while he was still in his teens, he fought the battle of Chandi Maidan defeating and killing the Mughal Pathan Generals, Himmat Khan and Sher Khan; at the battle of Lodipur, he defeated and killed the Mughal General Faizullah Khan, who was deputed by the Mughal Emperor to bring the Raja to submission; at another battle, fighting with odds heavily against him, he led a confederacy of Raja Kuer Singh of Siris Kutumba, Raja Parwal Singh of Chirkawan, Raja of Ramgarh and Nawab Kamgar Khan of Narhat and defeated Alivardi Khan Mahabat Jung and his general Mustafa Khan; later received an imperial pardon on the intervention of Alivardi Khan and returned the favour by playing a key role in Alivardi Khan’s invasion of Bengal and subsequent ascendance to the Masnad; he conquered most of the Magadh region bringing 12 Parganas under his control and overran large parts of Chotanagpur; fought numerous battles against the invading Maratha armies to defend the Suba of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa; received a Khillat and Rajgi of Raja of Magadh from the Mughal Emperor; he adopted Kunwar Buniad Singh, second son of Raja Tribhuvan Singh; he was assassinated by the captain of his guard, Ghulam Gaus in 1759 while leading an expedition on behalf of Shahzada Ali Gauhar (later Padshah Shah Alam) to conquer Bengal from Nawab Mir Jaffer, the protégé of Robert Clive; married and had issue, as well as adoptive issue. He died 1759.

  • Kunwar Dulha Singh, died in battle at the age of eighteen years.

  • (A) Raja BUNIAD SINGH (qv)

• Raja FATEH SINGH 1759/1763, served at the Court of the Kingdom of Bengal as commander of his brigade stationed for the defence of Murshidabad between 1746 and 1759; returned to Tikari in 1759; married Rani Lagan Kuer and had issue, as well as adoptive issue; he was treacherously executed in 1763 at Munger fort by Nawab Mir Kasim of Bengal; his widow Rani Lagan Kuer adopted Pitambar Singh, son of Nihal Singh.

  • Kunwar Trilok Singh, executed in 1763 at Munger Fort by Nawab Mir Kasim of Bengal.

  • (A) Raja PITAMBAR SINGH Bahadur, founder of Maksudpur.

• Raja BUNIAD SINGH 1763, succeeded by adoption, established the trading town of Buniadganj on the Phalgu river near Gaya; sided with the British to oppose Kamgar Khan of Narhat, a rival who had induced Nawab Mir Kasim and Shehzada Ali Gauhar to plunder Tikari territories, his correspondence with the British General fell in the hands of Nawab Mir Kasim, who invited him to his capital at Munger along with Raja Fateh Singh and Trilok Singh, they were all treacherously imprisoned and executed in 1763 on the eve of the Battle of Buxar; married and had issue.

  • Maharaja MITRAJIT SINGH Bahadur (qv)

• Maharaja MITRAJIT SINGH Bahadur 1763/1840, born 1762, Nawab Mir Kasim of Bengal sent troops from Munger to Tikari to kill the infant Mitrajit after having executed his father, uncle and cousin; on the instructions of the widowed ranis of Tikari, the infant was secreted away from the fort concealed in a basket of cow dung cakes and handed over to Dilil Singh, chief officer of Raja Buniad Singh, who proceeded incognito with his charge to a remote hill fortress in the extreme south of Tikari territories, remaining there for 12 years before handing him over to the British commanding officer at Patna, where he remained under British care;succeeded to be recognized as the Maharaja of Tikari after Raja Pitambar Singh’s rebellion and the Permanent Settlement of 1793, he was was the wealthiest zamindar of Bihar with an annual income of 6,000,000Rs in the year 1820 from which he paid 300,000Rs. as malguzari (annual payment to the British EIC); surrendered several sovereign powers and rights of the Tikari Rajas to the British EIC, accepting corresponding monetary remission in the malguzari; many territories held by feudal vassals and chiefs under Tikari Rajas became separate zamindari estates under the Permanent Settlement; he carved out a large estate (Khan Bahadur Estate) for his muslim son and divided his remaining Raj between his two hindu sons, the older inheriting Tikari Raj Nine Annas, and the younger Tikari Raj Seven Annas; married 1stly, Maharani (name unknown) Kuer, married 2ndly, Naib Rani Barsati Begum from Kashmir, and had issue. He died 1840.

  • Maharaja HIT NARAIN SINGH (by 1st wife), succeeded to nine sixteenths of the estate as his share^(#2)(qv)

  • Raja MOD NARAIN SINGH (by 1st wife), succeeded to seven sixteenths of the estate as his share ^(#2)(qv)

  • Rajkumari (name unknown) (by 1st wife), married Rajkumar Deomardan Singh, son of Raja Fateh Shahi of Husseypur (Hathwa), Saran (later Tamkuhi Raj, Gorakhpur).

  • Rajkumari (name unknown) (by 1st wife), married Rajkumar Arimardan Singh, son of Raja Fateh Shahi of Husseypur (Hathwa), Saran (later Tamkuhi Raj, Gorakhpur).

  • Maharani (name unknown) Kuer (by 1st wife), married the Maharaja of Bettiah.

  • Ihtishamu'd Dowla Mubarizu'l Mulk Raja Khan BAHADUR KHAN Nusrat Jung (by Naib Rani Barsati Begun), he was the favourite son of his father, he became a famous name in muslim astronomy, he retained at his court the leading astronomer, Ghulam Hussain Jaunpuri, who named two of his famous works Jami Bahadur-Khani and Jiz-i-Bahadur-Khani after his patron; he established the first English school at Gaya and worked towards the spread of education in Tikari Raj; married and had issue, later this branch lapsed and the Khan Bahadur Estate was escheated to the EIC Government.

TIKARI RAJ (NINE ANNAS)

• Maharaja HIT NARAIN SINGH 1840/-, he received nine sixteenths of what remained of Tikari Raja from his father; he was granted the title of Maharaja for personal use and a khillat on 10th November 1845 from Lord Harding; he carved out the Solano Estate^(#3) from Arwal Circle of Tikari Raj for his descendants from the second wife, he abdicated and became an ascete, and left the charge of the estate to his first wife, and lived at Chajjubagh, Patna with his Spanish Rani; married 1stly, 30th April 1814, Maharani Indrajit Kuer (qv) of Rusi Zamindari in Saran District, who adopted his nephew, married 2ndly, a lady from the Solano family of Malaga in Spain. He died 1861 at Patna.

• Maharani Indrajit Kuer, she built various public buildings and works, improved the administration of the Raj, built the Tikari temples at Patna and Brindaban (1871), set up the Belkharra Trust (with estates acquired from Sahebzada Himmat Bahadur of Tikari Raj Seven Annas) to support Raj temples and charities; she was sympathetic to the mutineers in 1857 with British intelligence reporting the mounting of 200 cannon on the battlements of Tikari fort; adopted her brother’s son; married (as his first wife, Maharaja HIT NARAIN SINGH (see above), and had adoptive issue. She died at Brindaban in 1878.

  • (A) Maharaja RAM KISHEN SINGH of Rusi Estate (qv)

• Maharaja RAM KISHEN SINGH, succeeded by adoption, recognized as Maharaja of Tikari on 8th May 1873 by the British Government, he spent several lacs of rupees for famine relief in 1874-75, contributed liberally for social causes including funding of the Patna College and the Prince of Wales Patna Hospital; married Maharani Rajrup Kuer (qv), and had issue.

  • Maharani Radheshwari Kuer (qv)

• Maharani Rajrup Kuer, she was groomed in zamindari administration by her mother-in-law, Maharani Indrajit Kuer; she established the Tikari Raj High School and supported numerous social and educational programs and scholarships in the district and beyond; married Maharaj RAM KISHEN SINGH, and had issue (see above). She died in 1884.

• Maharani Radheshwari Kuer 1884/1886, recognized as the Maharani of Tikari, married Babu Ambika Saran Singh, and had issue. She died 1886.

  • Lt. Col. (Hon.) Maharaja GOPAL SARAN NARAIN SINGH (qv)

• Lt. Col. (Hon.) Maharaja GOPAL SARAN NARAIN SINGH 1886/1958, born 1883, received the charge of the estate from the Court of Wards in 1904, educated at St. Georges School, Mussourie and by private British tutors, first Indian prince to motor race in France and England and several other early Grand Prix races in Europe at the turn of the century; noted big game hunter of the time; volunteered for active service as Lieutenant at the break of WWI, was special dispatch officer to Field Marshall Haig and saw action in the trenches in France while serving with the Corps Signal Company, decorated and promoted to Captain during the war; joined the Indian freedom movement as a member of the Indian National Congress and contested elections under 1919 Govt of India Act, twice defeating Maharajadhiraj Sir Rameshwar Singh of Darbhanga, the breakaway Swaraj Party of Motilal Nehru and CR Das was founded during the All India Gaya Congress 1922 at his Gaya residence (The White House); married 1stly, 1902, Maharani (name unknown) Kuer, died sp 1923, sister of Raja Indrajit Pratap Shahi of Tamkuhi Raj, Gorakhpur, married 2ndly, 2nd May 1909 in Lucknow, Maharani Sita Devi [née Elsie Thompson], born 2nd August 1883 in Sydney, Australia, died sp 21st November 1967 in Australia, daughter of James Thompson (she received a perpetual annuity starting in May 1913 of 36,000Rs p.a., 37 villages of Aurangabad Circle, from the Maharaja), married 3rdly, 1912, Kumar Rani Sayeeda Khatoon, the Maharaja transferred the Aurangabad Circle of Tikari Raj, (forming the Kumar Rani Tikari Estate which had an annual income of 1,200,000Rs by 1946) to her and their sons, she died in 1972 in Karachi, Pakistan; married 4thly, 1919, Maharani Vidyavati Kuer, daughter of Kumar Chote Narain Singh [aka. Jung Bahadur Singh of Uttrawan Garh, Maksudpur (collateral branch, great-great grandson of Kunwar Chain Singh, see above)], and had issue, four sons and one daughter; he transferred the remaining Tikari Raj Nine Annas (with an annual income of 1,000,000Rs in 1930) to Rani Bhuvneshwari Kuer of Tikari Raj Seven Annas in 1930 in lieu of a lifetime annuity. He died in 1958.

  • Maj. Maharajkumar Amar Singh (by third wife), born 1910, volunteered for active service in World War II, he served with the 14th Cavalry Regimen and saw extensive action on the Burma front; later settled in Hazaribagh and worked as a professional big game hunter with the shikar outfitter S.A.H.A.A. (Tootoo) Imam; married 1stly (sep'd.), Begum Sultan Jahan, sister of Nawab Arif Khan, married 2ndly (sep'd.), Kumar Rani Nargis (née Kapadia), married 3rdly, Rani Ramkali Devi, (she married 2ndly, 1973, Major John Wakefield), and had issue. He died in 1968.

    • Rajkumar Moinuddin Tikari (by Begum Sultan Jahan)

    • Rajkumar Jaffry Tikari [Jeff Tikari] (by Begum Sultan Jahan)

    • Rajkumar Shuja Tikari (by Begum Sultan Jahan)

    • Rajkumar Ghalib Tikari (by Kumar Rani Nargis)

    • Rajkumari Juli Tikari (by Kumar Rani Nargis)

    • Rajkumari Lakshmi Tikari (Mrs. Lakshmi Sinclair)(by Rani Ramkali Devi)

    • Rajkumari Anjali Tikari (by Rani Ramkali Devi)

    • Rajkumari Geeta Tikari (by Rani Ramkali Devi)

    • Rajkumar Balbir Tikari (by Rani Ramkali Devi)

  • Maharajkumar Fateh Singh Tikari [Prince George Tikari] (by third wife), married Maharajkumari Jagatbir Kaur [Princess Beryl], died 11th February 2008 in Patna (she married 2ndly, her brother in law, Maharajkumar Sumair Singh Tikari, see below), daughter of HH Maharaja Sir Ranbir Singh of Jind, and had issue, three children.

    • Rajkumar Rajbir Singh Tikari [Reggie Tikari], married Princess Pearl of Jind, and has issue.

    • Rajkumar Ranbir Singh Tikari [Ronnie Tikari]

    • Rajkumar Raghubir Singh Tikari [Robin Tikari], married and has issue.

      • Kunwar Varun Singh Tikari

  • Maharajkumar Vijay Singh [Prince Viji Tikari] (by third wife), volunteered for active service in World War II, served under Field Marshall Montgomery in the Desert War in Egypt, and was killed sp in action during the Battle of El Alamein in 1942.

  • Maharajkumar Sumair Singh Tikari [Prince Bobby Tikari] (by third wife), married 1stly, Begum Sultan Jahan (former wife of his elder brother, see above), married 2ndly, Maharajkumari Jagatbir Kaur [Princess Beryl] (former wife of his elder brother, see above), and had issue, three daughters. He died 2008.

    • Rajkumari Ishrat Tikari (by Begum Sultan Jahan)

    • Rajkumari Nusrat (Dolly) Tikari (by Begum Sultan Jahan)

    • Rajkumari Shaila Tikari (by Maharajkumari Jagatbir Kaur)

  • Rani Umeshwari Kuer, (by fourth wife) married 12th March 1930 in Calcutta, Raja Bahadur Raghuvanshmani Prasad Narain Singh of Amawan Raj, son of Rani Bhuvneshwari Kuer of Tikari Raj Seven Annas and had issue (see below). She died in her sleep on 18th February 2011.

TIKARI RAJ (SEVEN ANNAS)

• Raja MOD NARAIN SINGH, he received seven sixteenths as his share of what remained of the Tikari Raj from his father, he established his separate administration, and was recognized as Raja with title and a khillat; married 1stly, 1816, Rani Aswamedh Kuer (qv), daughter of the Maharaja of Benaras, married 2ndly, Rani Sunit Kuer, died sp 1873, married 3rdly, Naib Rani Bairati Begum, from a muslim family and had issue (by his third wife); he carved out the Belkharra Estate in 1851, comprising 89 villages of Belkharra Mahaal and 21 villages of Dakhner Mahaal, for his children from his third wife and left his estate to his two hindu Ranis.

  • Sahebzadi Sharifun Nissa, she died sp 1842.

  • Sahebzada Ekbal Bahadur, born 1842, he was granted the Dakhner Mahaal (to be administered by Dewan Hurmat Ali of Tikari Raj Seven Annas during his minority) by patta on the 3rd Pous 1258 F.S. (22/12/1850) and later received six sixteenths share of Belkharra Mahaal; married Sahebzada Begum, died 1875 in Mecca. He died sp 15th August 1867.

  • Sahebzada Himmat Bahadur, received six sixteenths share of Belkharra Mahaal, which was later acquired by Maharani Indrajit Kuer of Tikari Raj Nine Annas; married and had issue.

  • Sahebzadi Bismilla Begum, she received a quarter share (4 sixteenths) in the Belkharra Mahaal which was later acquired by R. Solano of the Spanish Solano Estate family of Arwal (Tikari Raj Nine Annas); married and had issue, one son.

    • Mirza Jalal-uddin Bakt Bahadur (Munna Saheb), he received through deed of gift (by Sahebzada Begum), the estates of Sahebzada Ekbal Bahadur (Dakhner Mahaal and six sixteenths of Belkharra Mahaal), which the government sued for and took possession of, on 22nd June 1879 through escheat and made them Government Estates.

• Rani Aswamedh Kuer, daughter of the Maharaja of Benares, she inherited half the estates of Tikari Raj Seven Annas from her husband Raja Mod Narain Singh and the other half from Rani Sunit Kuer; through two separate deeds, dated 31st August 1872 and 5th April 1873, she transferred the entire Tikari Raj Seven Annas to Kumar Ran Bahadur Singh (qv) (next reversionary heir of Raja Mod Narain Singh, being of the collateral branch from Uttrawan Garh, Maksudpur), she married (as his first wife), Raja MOD NARAIN SINGH (see above). She died sp.

• Raja RAN BAHADUR SINGH 1873/1889, great-grandson of Kunwar Chain Singh, recognized as Raja in 1888 with title and Khillat, married Rani Rameshwar Kuer (Dulhin Saheba)(qv), and had issue, one son (who predeceased him); he nominated his granddaughter as heir under a will dated 23rd March 1888. He died 31st March 1889 in Calcutta.

  • Rajkumar Narain Singh, married and had issue, one daughter. He died vp.

    • Rajkumari Ratan Kuer (Nanko Saheba) (qv)

• Rani Ratan Kuer (Nanko Saheba), she married the Zamindar of Salemgarh in Gorakhpur, and had issue, one daughter.

  • Rani Bhuvneshwari Kuer (Baccha Saheb) (qv)

• Rani Rameshwar Kuer (Dulhin Saheba), she ruled as regent of Tikari Raj Seven Annas and served as guardian during the minority of her then infant great grand daughter, Rani Bhuvneshwari Kuer; cleared large debts on the Raj and ran an efficient purdah administration, married Raja Ran Bahadur Singh, and had issue (see above).

• Rani Bhuvneshwari Kuer (Baccha Saheb), born 2nd July 1884, she was recognized as Rani of Tikari Raj Seven Annas and remained owner of the Raj in her own right till the vesting of the zamindari into the State of Bihar; in the 1920’s she was reputed to be the second richest woman in India, after the Begum of Bhopal; received through deed of gift in 1930 the Tikari Raj Nine Annas from Capt. Maharaja Gopal Saran Narain Singh; married Raja Bahadur Harihar Prasad Narain Singh of Amawan Raj, and had issue, five sons and five daughters; she converted the Tikari Raj Estates into Trusts (under Tikari Raj General Trust) with a hope to preserving the inheritance. She died in 1967.

  • Rajkumari Savatri Singh, married Kunwar Parmeshwari Nandan Singh of Dorra Estate, and had issue, two sons and three daughters.

    • Kumari Hemprabha Sinha, married Shri Shivaji Sinha (IPS) and had issue.

      • Rani Nalini Singh, married Raja AJAI SINGH Bahadur of Maksudpur, and has issue.

    • Kumar Dr. Baidehi Ballabh Prasad Singh, married and has issue.

    • Kumari Usha Singh

    • Justice Kumar Shashank K. Singh

    • Kumari Pranu Singh

  • Rajkumari Devki Devi, married Justice Bhuneshwar Dhari Singh of Dharahra Estate, and had issue.

  • Rajkumari Tripursundari Devi, married Kunwar Lal Bihari Saran Singh of Mahadipur Estate, and had issue.

  • Raja Bahadur Raghuvanshmani Prasad Narain Singh, married 12th March 1930 in Calcutta, Rani Umeshwari Kuer, died 18th February 2011, daughter of Capt. Maharaja Gopal Saran Narain Singh of Tikari Raj Nine Annas (see above), and his fourth wife, Maharani Vidyavati Kuer, and had issue.

  • Rajkumari Kanak Bihari Devi, married Raja Jasjit Singh of Tajpur Estate, Bijnor, and had issue.

  • Rajkumar Raghvendra Prasad Narain Singh, married and had issue.

  • Rajkumar Awadhendra Prasad Narain Singh, married and had issue.

  • Rajkumari Kanak Kishori Devi, married Raja Mahesh Nandan Singh of Seohar Estate, and had issue.

  • Rajkumar Kaushlendra Prasad Narain Singh, married and had issue.

  • Rajkumar Awadheshwari Prasad Narain Singh, married and had issue.