The Katoch dynasty and the kingdom of Trigarta

The Katoch are one of the oldest ruling families in the western Himalaya. They ruled Trigarta — the Kangra valley and its neighbours — and their name is tied above all to Kangra Fort, the great rock fortress above the meeting of the Banganga and Patal rivers.

Origins

The dynasty traces itself to the ancient kingdom of Trigarta, mentioned in the Mahabharata and in Panini's grammar. The family seat was Nagarkot, the hill on which Kangra Fort stands, and the temple inside the fort — Ambika Devi (Brajeshwari) — was famous enough for its wealth to draw raiders from the plains. Mahmud of Ghazni sacked it in 1009, and it was plundered again in the 14th century.

Mughal centuries

Under the Mughals the Katoch kept their lands but lost the fort. After a long siege, Jahangir's forces took Kangra Fort in 1620, and an imperial garrison held it for over a century and a half while the Katoch rajas ruled from Tira Sujanpur and other towns nearby.

Sansar Chand

The most powerful Katoch ruler was Sansar Chand II (reigned 1775–1823). He recovered Kangra Fort in 1786 and for two decades dominated the hill states from Sujanpur Tira, where his court supported the flowering of Kangra-style miniature painting. His expansion alarmed his neighbours, who invited the Gurkhas into the hills; the Gurkhas besieged him, and to escape them he called in Maharaja Ranjit Singh. The Sikhs relieved the siege but kept Kangra Fort for themselves in 1809, ending Katoch supremacy.

After 1846

When the British took the Kangra hills after the First Anglo-Sikh War in 1846, the Katoch were left as landholders rather than rulers. The family survives today, and the title is still used.

Sources

• Wikipedia — Katoch
• Wikipedia — Kangra Fort
• Wikipedia — Sansar Chand II