Sikh Misls

The Arabic word misl means 'like'. The Sikh misls were 'alike', in the sense that they were considered equals. The Misls were twelve companies of Sikhs , some numbering a few hundred while others could field tens of thousands of men. Each Sikh was free to join any Misl he chose, and every Misl was free to act in any way it wished in the area under its control. Only matters affecting the community as a whole were they to take orders from the Supreme Commander Nawab Kapur Singh (see picture in Gallary). It is estimated that the total force which the Dhal Khalsa (army of veterans) could put in the field was about seventy thousand Sikhs. The misldhar system was ideally suited to the conditions of the time and worked well under leaders like Nawab Kapur Singh and Jassa Singh Ahluwalia. It combined freedom of action with the discipline of a unified command; it channeled the energies of the fiercely independent Khalsa soldier in the service of a cause which he held dear - the expulsion of hostile foreigners from the Punjab and the fulfilment of the prophecy of Guru Gobind Singh Ji of the establishment of a Sikh state.