Thetford Punjab festival honours legacy of maharaja

Maharajah Duleep Singh bought the Elveden Estate, near Thetford, more than a century ago

The life of the last Sikh emperor of the Punjab will be marked in the Norfolk town close to where he lived.

The Festival of Thetford & Punjab 2023 commemorates the 130th anniversary of the death of Maharajah Duleep Singh.

The maharajah was exiled to England after his kingdom was annexed by the British in India in the 1840s and made his home at Elveden Hall near Thetford.

Talks, workshops, a Mela, martial arts and a circus are among the attractions taking place from 7 to 9 July.

Duleep Singh was the youngest son of Maharajah Ranjit Singh, who founded the Sikh empire in the Punjab in 1799.

After the deaths of his father and brother, Duleep Singh became ruler of the kingdom at the age of five, but was removed from the throne after Britain annexed the Punjab in 1849.

He arrived in England at the age of 15 and ended up spending the rest of his life in the country.

• The tale of the last Sikh maharajah

Maharajah Duleep Singh later settled at the Elveden Estate, just over the border in Suffolk, with his wife and children, and the family lived in the area for the next century.

His son Prince Frederick donated Thetford's Ancient House Museum to the town and also joined the Norfolk Yeomanry, later serving in World War One.

The maharajah's daughters were active suffragists, supporting the rights for women to vote.

The Festival of Thetford & Punjab 2023, organised by the Essex Cultural Diversity Project, includes events inspired by the life and legacy of the Duleep Singh family.

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