Zorawar Singh Kahluria Zorawar Singh Kahluria ( Dogri : ज़ोरावर सिंह कहलुरिया ) ( 1786 - 1841 ) was born in a village of Kahlur State ( also called Bilaspur from its capital ) in modern Himachal Pradesh , India . In reference to his legacy of conquests in the Himalayas including Ladakh , Tibet , Baltistan and Iskardu as General and Wazir ( prime minister ) , he has been refereed to by historians as " Conqueror of Ladakh " and the " Napoleon of India " . He was born to in a Hindu Dogra Rajput family of Kahluria clan , they migrated to the Jammu region where , on coming of age , Zorawar took up service under Raja Jaswant Singhhindu raj of Marmathi ( modern Doda district ) . In 1817 he joined the army of Maharaja Ranjit Singh , as the state of Doda had become part of the Sikh Empire after a campaign against its Afghan rulers . Zorawar Singh was employed by the ambitious Maharaja Gulab Singh of Jammu and was placed under the commandant of the Reasi fort ( Bhimgarh fort ) . While delivering a routine message to the Maharaja , Zorawar told him of the financial waste occurring in the fort administration and boldly presented his own scheme to effect savings . Gulab Singh was impressed by Zorawar ’ s sincerity and appointed him commandant of Reasi . As promised , the Rajput youth fulfilled his task and his grateful ruler made him commissariat officer of all forts north of Jammu . He was later made governor of Kishtwar and was given the title of " Wazir " ( prime minister ) . Like Kashmir , the Kingdom of Kishtwar was formed by a river valley ( the Chenab flowing from Himachal Pradesh as the Chandrabhaga ) — - the kingdom ' s ancient name was Kashtavat and it remained under Hindu rulers until the 17th Century when Raja Gairat Singh converted to Islam and received the title of " Raja Sa ’ adat Yar Khan " from the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb . Some of the people had also converted with their king but many remained true to their ancestral faith . Even though it was a newly conquered region Zorawar had no trouble in keeping the peace ; many of the local Rajputs were recruited into his army . In 1835 the nearby region of Paddar was taken from Chamba ( now in Himachal Pradesh ) in the course of a battle . Paddar later became known for its sapphire mines . But this was a mere sideshow to General Zorawar Singh ’ s more famous expeditions , on which he had already embarked in the previous year . The Ladakh campaigns . To the east of Kishtwar and Kashmir are the snow - clad mountains of the upper Himalayas — the rivers of Zanskar Gorge , Suru River , and Drass rise from these snows , and flow across the plateau of Ladakh into the Indus River . Several petty principalities in this region were tributary to the Gyalpo ( King ) of Ladakh . In 1834 one of these , the Raja of Timbus , sought Zorawar ’ s help against the Gyalpo . Meanwhile the Rajput general had been burning to distinguish himself by expanding the territory of Raja Gulab Singh — also at that time , according to the Gulabnama , Kishtwar went through a drought that caused a loss of revenue and forced Zorawar to extract money through war . The Rajputs of Jammu and Himachal have traditionally excelled in mountain fighting ; therefore Zorawar had no trouble in crossing the mountain ranges and entering Ladakh through the source of the Suru River where his 5000 men defeated an army of local Botis . After moving to Kargil and subduing the landlords along the way Zorawar received the submission of the Ladakhis — however Tsepal Namgyal , the Gyalpo ( ruler ) , sent his general Banko Kahlon by a roundabout route to cut off Zorawar ’ s communications . The astute general doubled back to Kartse where he sheltered his troops through the winter . In the spring of 1835 he defeated the large Ladakhi army of Banko Kahlon and marched his victorious troops towards Leh . The Gyalpo now agreed to pay 50 , 000 rupees as war - indemnity and 20 , 000 rupees as an annual tribute . Alarmed at the gains of the Dogras the Punjabi governor of Kashmir , Mehan Singh , incited the Ladakhi chieftains to rebel but Zorawar quickly marched back to the Himalayan valleys and subdued the rebels , now forcing the Raja of Zanskar to also pay a separate tribute to Jammu . But in 1836 Mehan Singh , who was in correspondence with the Lahore durbar , this time instigated the Gyalpo to revolt — Zorawar force - marched his army in ten days to surprise the Ladakhis and forced them to submit . He now built a fort outside Leh and placed there a garrison of 300 men under Dalel Singh — the Gyalpo was deposed to an estate and a Ladakhi general , Ngorub Stanzin , was made King . But the latter did not prove to be loyal hence the Gyalpo was restored to his throne in 1838 . Baltistan campaign . To the nor west of Ladakh , and to the north of Kashmir , lies the region of Baltistan . Muhammad Shah , the son of the ruler of Skardu , Raja Ahmad Shah , fled to Leh and sought the aid of the Gyalpo and Zorawar against his father . But some of the Ladakhi nobles allowed Ahmad Shah to imprison his son and sought his aid in a general rebellion against the Dogras . After defeating the Ladakhi rebels Zorawar invaded Baltistan in the winter of 1841 , adding a large contingent of Ladakhis to his army . The advance brigade of 5 , 000 under Nidhan Singh lost its way in the cold and snow and was surrounded by the enemy ; many soldiers perished from the cold . Then Mehta Basti Ram , a prominent Rajput from Kishtwar , established contact with the main force . On their arrival the Botis of Skardu were defeated and forced to flee . They were chased to the fort of Skardu which was invested by Zorawar for a few days . One night the Dogras scaled the steep mountain behind the fort and after some fighting captured the small fort on its crest . From this position the next day they began firing down at the main fort and forced the Raja to surrender . Zorawar built a fort on the banks of the Indus where he placed a contingent of his soldiers . After placing Muhammad Shah on the throne for an annual tribute of 7000 rupees , a Dogra contingent under Wazir Lakhpat advanced westwards , conquered the fort of Astor and took its Darad Raja prisoner . However this Raja was tributary to Mehan Singh , the Punjabi Sikh governor of Kashmir , who was alarmed at the Dogra conquests since they only expanded the kingdom of Gulab Singh while not bringing any benefit to the Lahore durbar . His complaint at Lahore was forwarded to Raja Gulab Singh at Jammu and he ordered the Darad Raja to be released . Tibet expedition . Zorawar Singh turned his energies eastward , towards Tibet . As he had done in Ladakh , so too in the newly conquered Baltistan , Zorawar recruited the Baltis in his army , which now had men from the Jammu hills , Kishtwar , and Ladakh . This five or six thousand strong army was divided into three columns that marched parallel into the unknown land of Tibet in May , 1841 . One column under the Ladakhi prince , Nono Sungnam , followed the course of the Indus River to its source . Another column of 300 men , under Ghulam Khan , marched along the mountains leading up to the Kailas Range and thus south of the Indus . Zorawar himself led 3 , 000 men along the plateau region where the vast and picturesque Pangong Lake is located . Sweeping all resistance before them , the three columns passed the Mansarovar Lake and converged at Gartok , defeating the small Tibetan force stationed there . The enemy commander fled to Taklakot but Zorawar stormed that fort on 6 September 1841 . Envoys from Tibet now came to him as did agents of the Maharaja of Nepal , whose kingdom was only fifteen miles from Taklakot . The fall of Taklakot finds mention in the report of the Chinese Imperial Resident , Meng Pao , at Lhasa : " " On my arrival at Taklakot a force of only about 1 , 000 local troops could be mustered , which was divided and stationed as guards at different posts . A guard post was quickly established at a strategic pass near Taklakot to stop the invaders , but these local troops were not brave enough to fight off the Shen - Pa ( Dogras ) and fled at the approach of the invaders . The distance between Central Tibet and Taklakot is several thousand li … because of the cowardice of the local troops ; our forces had to withdraw to the foot of the Tsa Mountain near the Mayum Pass . Reinforcements are essential in order to withstand these violent and unruly invaders " " . Zorawar and his men now went on pilgrimage to Mansarovar and Mount Kailash . He had extended his communication and supply line over 450 miles of inhospitable terrain by building small forts and pickets along the way . The fort Chi - T ’ ang was built near Taklakot , where Mehta Basti Ram was put in command of 500 men , with 8 or 9 cannon . With the onset of winter all the passes were blocked and roads snowed in . The supplies for the Dogra army over such a long distance failed despite Zorawar ’ s meticulous preparations . As the intense cold , coupled with the rain , snow and lightning continued for weeks upon weeks , many of the soldiers lost their fingers and toes to frostbite . Others starved to death , while some burnt the wooden stock of their muskets to warm themselves . The Tibetans and their Chinese allies regrouped and advanced to give battle , bypassing the Dogra fort of Chi - T ’ ang . Zorawar and his men met them at the Battle of To - yo on 12 December 1841 — - in the early exchange of fire the Rajput general was wounded in his right shoulder but he grabbed a sword in his left hand . The Tibetan horsemen then charged the Dogra position and one of them thrust his lance in Zorawar Singh ’ s chest . The Sino - Tibetan force then mopped up the other garrisons of the Dogras and advanced on Ladakh , now determined to conquer it and add it to the Imperial Chinese dominions . However the force under Mehta Basti Ram stood a siege for several weeks at Chi - T ’ ang before escaping with 240 men across the Himalayas to the British post of Almora . Within Ladakh the Sino - Tibetan army laid siege to Leh , when reinforcements under Diwan Hari Chand and Wazir Ratnu came from Jammu and repulsed them . The Tibetan fortifications at Drangtse were flooded when the Dogras dammed up the river . On open ground , the Chinese and Tibetans were chased to Chushul . The climactic Battle of Chushul ( August , 1842 ) was fought and won by the Dogras who executed the enemy general to avenge the death of Zorawar Singh . The Treaty of Chushul . “ On this auspicious occasion , the second day of the month Asuj in the year 1899 we — - the officers of Lhasa , viz . firstly , Kalon Sukan , and secondly Bakshi Sapju , commander of the forces of the Empire of China , on the one hand , and Dewan Hari Chand and Wazir Ratnu , on behalf of Raja Gulab Singh , on the other — - agree together and swear before God that the friendship between Raja Gulab Singh and the Emperor of China and Lama Guru Sahib Lassa will be kept and observed till eternity ; for the traffic in shawl , pasham , and tea . We will observe our pledge to God , Gayatri , and Pasi . Wazir Mian Khusal Chu is witness . ” Estimate . Zorawar Singh ’ s great military endeavors were balanced by a life of modesty and restraint . He was so honest that he would transfer to his master any gifts or tribute that came to him . This honest Rajput did not leave behind either vast properties or deep coffers for his descendants - — only a legacy of military achievement that caused the historians to term him as the “ Napoleon of India ” .