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Baron Charles Hügel (1795–1870), Travels in Kashmir and the Panjab, Containing a Particular Account of the Government and Character of the Sikhs, London: John Petheram, 71 Chancery Lane, 1845

xvi, [1], 423 pp.; with engraved frontispiece portrait of Baron Hügel by James Cochran, additional engraved title-page vignette Method of Crossing Rivers in the Panjab, 4 black and white glyphographed plates, and a map of Punjab by John Arrowsmith; publisher’s original dark green cloth, covers blind-blocked with elaborate neo-Rococo borders, gilt vignette of tortoise and scroll on upper board with the motto “Paulatim” and series title Geography and Statistics of Asia, gilt spine title, all edges speckled red
10.25 x 6.5 in (26 x 16.5 cm)

Signed with a presentation inscription by Major Jervis to the front pastedown.

FROM RANJIT SINGH TO QUEEN VICTORIA: BARON HÜGEL’S PUNJAB, ARROWSMITH’S MAP, AND THE FALL OF EMPIRE

A compelling firsthand account of early 19th-century Sikh dominion, paired with the earliest and most authoritative British map of the empire at its zenith—this copy retaining the original John Arrowsmith folding map issued with the first edition.

This is the first English edition of Baron Charles Hügel’s celebrated travelogue—an indispensable narrative of early 19th-century Northwestern India, including Kashmir, Lahore, and the Punjab, originally published in German as Kaschmir und das Reich der Siek (1840–1841). A distinguished Austrian botanist, explorer, and diplomat, Hügel journeyed through the region between 1835 and 1836, and his observations remain a cornerstone of early Sikh historiography and Himalayan ethnography.

The volume is particularly valuable for its insights into the governance of the Sikh Empire under Maharaja Ranjit Singh and includes vivid descriptions of cultural life in Kashmir and its surrounding hill states. Hügel’s scientific approach to geography and anthropology is complemented by his poetic sensibility, producing one of the more refined examples of European travel literature in the subcontinent. The translation by Major T. B. Jervis, F.R.S., and the inclusion of a Map of Punjab by John Arrowsmith and illustrations, reflect its formal inclusion in the Memoirs of the Geography and Statistics of Asia series published under the patronage of the East India Company.

The engraved frontispiece by James Cochran is a finely executed likeness of Hügel, dated 15 November 1835. The additional illustrated title page and the decorative dedication leaf underscore the publisher’s effort to frame this work both as a scientific and literary achievement. Copies retaining the original publisher’s cloth binding and series gilt crest are increasingly scarce.

This book comes along with the finely engraved and hand-coloured 1849 map by John Arrowsmith titled:

Map of the Punjab, Kashmir, Iskardu & Ladhak; Comprising the Dominions of Ranjeet Singh. Compiled from original documents, particularly from the detailed M.S. map of Baron Charles Hugel, to whom it is dedicated, offers a comprehensive depiction of the Sikh Empire at the height of its territorial expanse under Maharaja Ranjit Singh (1780–1839), encompassing present-day northern India and Pakistan—including Punjab, Kashmir, Iskardu (Skardu), and Ladhak (Ladakh). It provides a detailed and politically sensitive rendering of the region’s geography on the cusp of a major colonial transformation, just prior to the British annexation of Punjab following the Second Anglo-Sikh War.

Arrowsmith’s map is distinguished not only by its accuracy and aesthetic clarity but also by its scholarly underpinnings. It is primarily based on the manuscript map compiled by Austrian statesman, explorer, and polymath Baron Charles von Hügel (1795–1870), who undertook an extensive five-year scientific tour of Asia beginning in 1831. Motivated by personal heartbreak, von Hügel's travels led him deep into the Sikh territories, where he met Maharaja Ranjit Singh and documented his observations in the celebrated four-volume work Kashmir and the Realm of the Sikh. His account, widely read and admired across Europe, earned him the Royal Geographical Society’s Patron's Medal and significantly informed Western understanding of the region. Arrowsmith, recognising the reliability and richness of von Hügel’s work, dedicated this map to him—underscoring the collaborative and empirical nature of 19th-century cartographic production.

The map captures a region whose cohesion was rapidly unravelling. Following the death of Maharaja Ranjit Singh—revered as the ‘Lion of Punjab’ and celebrated both for his military acumen and his remarkably secular governance—the Sikh Empire was beset by internal instability. A succession of short-lived and often mysteriously deceased rulers created a power vacuum that the East India Company eagerly exploited. By 1849, the very year of this map’s publication, the Company had annexed the Punjab, ending Sikh sovereignty and placing the region under a British lieutenant governor in Lahore. This moment of geopolitical shift likely explains Arrowsmith’s timing in issuing the map—capturing both a vanished empire and a newly redrawn imperial frontier.

Beyond its historical significance, the map’s physical characteristics reflect the finest standards of mid-19th-century cartography. Its clear demarcation of political boundaries, major routes, and topographical features make it an indispensable artefact for those studying the decline of indigenous empires and the ascendancy of colonial power.

Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s empire, which at its height extended into Kashmir, Afghanistan, Tibet, and western China, remains a defining chapter in the subcontinent’s history. Among the many legacies of his reign is the famed Koh-i-Noor diamond, seized from the deposed Afghan Emir Shuja Shah Durrani and willed by Ranjit Singh to a Hindu temple. However, following annexation, British authorities ignored his wishes, and the diamond was transferred to Queen Victoria—becoming emblematic of the shifting fortunes of empire. In this context, Arrowsmith’s 1849 map is not merely a geographic document but a poignant record of political upheaval, cultural transition, and imperial ambition.

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