1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Pertab Singh

PERTAB (or Partab) SINGH, Sir, maharaja of Idar (1844–), native Indian soldier and statesman, belonging to the Rahtor Rajputs of the Jodha class, was born in 1844, being the son of Maharaja Takht Singh, ruler of Marwar (or Jodhpur). In 1878 and again in 1879 he was chief minister of Jodhpur. In the following year he accompanied the British mission to Afghanistan, and on his return he carried out many judicious reforms and administered Jodhpur with remarkable success. He visited England to take part in the celebration of the 1887 Jubilee of Queen Victoria’s reign He served on the staffs of Sir William Lockhart and General Elles in the Tirah and Momand expeditions in 1897–98, was slightly wounded, was mentioned in despatches, and promoted to the rank of full colonel. He won the reputation of being one of the keenest sportsmen and the best riders that even Rajputana has produced. When it was decided to send a force from India to China in 1900 to relieve the foreign embassies besieged in Peking, Sir Pertab Singh at once offered the services of the Jodhpur Lancers, and himself accompanied them. His father rendered good services to the British government in the Mutiny, and Pertab Singh always cherished the memory of the protection given to Jodhpur by the East India Company in 1818. His services to the empire in India were universally recognized. From Queen Victoria he received the honour of knighthood and the Bath and the Star of India; from King Edward VII. the distinction of “aide-de-camp”; and the university of Cambridge gave him the degree of LL.D. From his own state of Jodhpur he obtained the title of Maharaja-Dhiraj In 1901 he succeeded to the rulership of the state of Idar.