Maharaja Balwant Singh of Benares

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Balwant Singh Sahib Bahadur (1711–1770), also known as Maharaja Balwant Singh, was the ruler of Benares State in northern India. Balwant Singh came from the Narayan dynasty. He succeeded his father Raja Mansaram Singh as Raja of Kaswar and Maharaja of Benares in 1738. Mansaram Singh was the son of Raja Manoranjan Singh, a ruler of Banaras region and resident of Gangapur village. Leading a much more martial life, he built a fort and established a capital at Gangapur, but later moved to Ramnagar. He expelled Nawab Fazl Ali Khan from present-day Ghazipur and Ballia districts, and added the area to his domains. In 1751, he expelled the representative of the Nawab of Awadh in an attempt to carve out a principality at Benares. He had defeated the forces of Nawab during a fierce direct fight with the help of large numbers of artillery guns, cavalry and traditional army of Bhumihar community when the Nawab invaded his domain in March 1752. He continued his guerrilla fight and ultimately the Nawab...

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