Mussoorie (Uttarakhand): The talks surrounding inheritance of the Kohinoor diamond by Camila the Queen consort has garnered world wide curiosity in the wake of the passing away of Queen Elizabeth ll. Any talk about Kohinoor, one of the largest cut diamonds in the world, would eventually lead to Mussoorie, the famous hill station in India's Uttarakhand.
By any account, Kohinoor has no lesser bond with Mussoorie considering the high status it has enjoyed as the pride of the hill station's royalty for decades. According to historical accounts, the inheritor of this diamond was the the last Sikh ruler of Punjab, a young boy named Duleep Singh, who was kept in this town by the British for his education. Later, he was taken to England to 'personally hand over the diamond to Queen Victoria.'
Historian Gopal Bhardwaj of Mussoorie says that the history of Maharaja Duleep Singh, the owner of Kohinoor diamond, has an inalienable connection to the hill town. It was when the British had captured the property and wealth of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. They wanted Ranjit Singh's younger heir Duleep Singh to be kept away from Lahore. For this, Maharaja Duleep Singh and his mother and his cousin Naunihal Singh were kept in Mussoorie from 1852 to 1853.
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The British gave education to Duleep Singh at Medak School in Mussoorie, where he was taught about the Christian community. Because, the British wanted to convert him into a Christian, in which they succeeded. It is said that Duleep Singh had a residence at Manor House in Barloganj, Mussoorie, which has been turned into a five star hotel later.
Historian Bhardwaj says that Duleep Singh was fond of sports and he liked to play cricket. For which one Dr. Login constructed the ground of St. George's College, Mussoorie, where Duleep Singh and the officers' children used to play together. He was also very fond of playing flute, and used to perform bands on Mall Road with his musical team. He told that this information is mentioned in the book written by Dr. Login's wife Leela Login.
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Kohinoor, known as the most precious diamond in the world, originally weighed 793 carats but has been reduced to 105.6 carats (21.12 grams). This diamond was found in India in the 14th century in a mining area located in Guntur region of Andhra Pradesh during the reign of Kakatiya dynasty. Once it was used as an eye of a deity in a Hindu temple in Warangal, which was then looted by Malik Kafur, Alauddin Khilji's general. After which this diamond remained with the Mughals. Sikh Maharaja Ranjit Singh acquired the Kohinoor diamond from Lahore and brought it to Punjab. After his death in 1839, the diamond was inherited by his son Duleep Singh.
After the British defeated Duleep Singh in 1849, he signed the Treaty of Lahore with the then Governor General Lord Dalhousie, according to which, Kohinoor had to be handed over to the Queen of England. The Kohinoor diamond is currently installed in the crown of the Queen of Britain, which is stored in the Jewel House of the Tower of London. In February this year, the Queen announced that Camilla Parker would become the Queen Consort when Charles assumed the reins of the monarchy in England, paving the way for inheriting the coveted diamond.
