Mehtab Kaur
Maharani Mehtab Kaur (c. 1782 – 1813) was the first wife of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the founder of the Sikh Empire. She was the mother of Ranjit's reputed son, Maharaja Sher Singh, who briefly became the ruler of the Sikh Empire from 1841 until his death in 1843.
| Mehtab Kaur | |
|---|---|
| Maharani Sahiba | |
Maharani Mehtab Kaur by Rattan Singh c.1810 | |
| Maharani consort of the Sikh Empire | |
| Tenure | c. 1801 – 1813 |
| Sardarni of Sukerchakia Misl | |
| Tenure | April 1792 – 11 April 1801 |
| Predecessor | Raj Kaur |
| Successor | Position abolished |
| Born | 1782 Batala, Kanhaiya Misl, Sikh Confederacy (present-day Punjab, India |
| Died | 1813 (aged 30–31) Amritsar, Sikh Empire (present-day Punjab, India) |
| Spouse | |
| Issue | Ishar Singh Maharaja Sher Singh Tara Singh |
| House | Kanhaiya (by birth) Sukerchakia (by marriage) |
| Father | Gurbaksh Singh Kanhaiya |
| Mother | Sada Kaur |
| Religion | Sikhism |
Mehtab Kaur was the only daughter of Sada Kaur and Gurbaksh Singh Kanhaiya. She was betrothed to a six-year-old Ranjit Singh at the age of four.
Mehtab Kaur was the senior-most of Ranjit Singh's wives and according to historian Jean-Marie Lafont, the only one to bear the title of Maharani (high queen) while his other wives bore the lesser title of Rani (queen). After her death, the title was held by Ranjit's second wife and mother of his heir apparent Maharaja Kharak Singh, Datar Kaur. After her death the title was passed down to Ranjit's youngest widow Jind Kaur, who served as regent of the Sikh Empire (after Sher Singh's death) from 1843 till 1846 and was the mother of Maharaja Duleep Singh.