Nagendra Sharma
Amar Singh Thapa was another example of astonishing courage and valor. But in his case, he is said to have inherited these noble traits from his father who also had been a bold and daring warrior. The saying “Like father, like son” fits the father and son duo appropriately because his father had also breathed his last while engaged in a battle.
At the time, king Prithivi Narayan Shah was engaged in expanding his kingdom and unifying the then warring principalities of Nepal. In the process, the Gorkha soldiers had extended the boundaries of their kingdom from the river Teesta in the east to the river Sutlej in the west.
Amar Singh led his soldiers as far west as Garhwal in present-day Uttarakhand in India and Kangra in Punjab, also in present-day India.
There then, were very many tiny independent states. There were also castles belonging to them. Amar Singh collected the tiny places and had planned an attack on Kaangda. Since then, a war was occurring between Nepal and the Britishers so Amar Singh couldn’t add Kaangda to our territory yet. He was told to stay prepared for the battle and our opponents were much stronger with a great many army. They also had uncountable arms and weapons. What’s more, the Britishers were much sly, clever and artful. They knew how to conspire during times of a feud. Amar Singh Thapa was familiar with this fact and was busy arranging the kingdoms he had conquered. It is not just enough winning over countries, you also need to make them ready and Amar Singh knew this well.
At the time of war, the Britishers set their claws on Nepal from five various locations. In the West was a commander, General Actorlony who also was exceptionally sly and cunning. He wished to tempt Nepal by luring or attracting them with greed and lust. This way many other states in the West had been at his hands. He had attempted to keep warmth with Amar Singh Thapa. But he would never get trapped with greed and sacrifice the welfare of the nation, he was just not the type. Amar would keep on battling for his nation even if a drop of blood ran through his veins. That’s why Amar Singh would do anything to defend and safeguard his country even with placing his life on a bet and being present in the battlefield. Actorlony was battled by both Amar Singh and Sardar Bhakti Thapa. There were tons of blood that spilt also killing many soldiers at both ends. Due to the limited number of their army men, they also had to vacate some of the forts and castes but also drove away Britishers from many for. The Britisher’s army were more than the double of our size. Still we Nepalese kept on defending our land with much bravery knowing their army was much larger and equipped with more arms. Even our enemies were influenced by our irrepressible zeal and unmatched courage.
The treatment the Nepalese army had shown the enemies were not harsh and what real heroes do was perform true duty. That’s why all have spoken praises of our army. Historian Princep has also spoken highly and greatly of the warmth expressed by Amar Singh Thapa for he would never ever cheat on anyone.
General Actorlony had acquired the small states at the banks of Satjal by tempting them with greed. Like this, the British kept on adding their warriors making the army even much stronger. But still, the Nepalese army combated with extraordinary bravery and no less courage and might. They never cheated. They would stand at the battlefield and perform what they were assigned to do. The Britishers had challenged them likeliness of war and we still confronted them with zeal and zest. But the Britishers would keep conspiring on the insides. Another thing was the battlefield was located far away from Kathmandu. The Nepalese didn’t expand their army. On the other hand, the Britisher’s army had kept on multiplying. Again, the British attacked from all five destinations at once. Although this had happened, Amar Singh and his friend Bhakti Thapa strived hard to stop the British. Bhakti Thapa breathed his last. Amar Singh also had to leave the Deugadh’s fort. Amar Singh, in the end was at the Malau fort. As the Britisher’s army were one too many, he also had to leave the said fort for the food supply there had run out. They also had women there who would accompany men to the battlefield. They would perform battling and if their husband died, she would be enflamed through the Sati tradition. This way, the Nepalese didn’t fight for a greater designation or reward but for the country. Although Amar Singh always fought with bravery, he couldn’t stay on in the fort of Malau. He had surrendered but still, his courage was appreciated. Amar Singh had battled to the best of his abilities. Actorlony had told him earlier to give up. If Amar Singh had given up, he was lured with greed of possessing a small state. But he had refused. Amar Singh felt doing damage to his nation and providing benefit to the outsiders for one’s own personal self-interest was a highly disgusting act.
Amar Singh then came back to Kathmandu. Then there were possibilities of a treaty between the Britishers and the Nepalese. In the treaty, the condition was Nepal was to let go of all the states they had acquired. The treaty just lacked the King’s signature. Amar Singh was in Kathmandu in the midst of it all and didn’t like the very possibility of a treaty coming to exist. He felt it would be better off to again battle the enemies and avoiding the treaty. What Amar Singh wanted was acceptable to his brothers and officials. Amongst the officials, Amar Singh had great influence and the King trusted him fully so the treaty was unsigned and it was decided they would go to war again. Accordingly, they battled yet again but Nepal was defeated. After that, the treaty took place and Nepal had to lose all the states they had won. This displeased and pained Amar Singh Thapa. He couldn’t tolerate what happened. Amar felt the states they gained victory over should continue to be theirs. On the other hand, Amar was aghast and tensed that the almost final treaty was cancelled and on his insistence, the war again occurred and they were defeated. As a result, Amar Singh decided to meditate and lose his life and headed to Gosaikunda. The tendency to claim the credit for success to oneself and to blame others for failures was something that we do not see in the character of Amar Singh Thapa.
Amar Singh Thapa was a legendary patriot. To add honor to his nation, he was ready to cease life. To him, his nation was more valuable than his own life. He was loyal to the King. For him, following the King’s instruction was the main duty. The King also found him trustworthy. Likewise, Amar Singh Thapa was a great warrior, patriot and literally worshipped the King. He added to Nepal’s honorable respect. Amar proved he was a mighty warrior. After getting defeated through the British and being compelled to be present in a treaty, he proceeded to Gosaikunda to perform penance unable to handle the unsuccessful state and feeling responsible in that, he still showed true sincerity. Amar Singh has been immortal for all the sincerity, valor and patriotism he had portrayed. He is a gem of an icon. Even today, we need true patriots like Amar Singh Thapa. We need to learn quite a few lessons from Amar. Today, the democratic system has been set up for our nation. This system has made an environment where every citizen through his own field offers advancement to the nation and its progress and makes a contribution for it. The life history of people like Amar Singh Thapa inspires us to add to the prestige and glory of our nation and its advancement.