Sikh History on The Streets of London: The Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea

Across London, in England, United Kingdom can be found a wealth of Sikh and Anglo-Sikh history. This paper presents field and desk research to give a Sikh perspective on the artefacts, collections, memorials, and buildings found in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in West London. The places include the Royal Hospital, the National Army Museum, St. Luke’s Church in Chelsea, where artefacts from the Anglo-Sikh Wars and of the Punjab Frontier Force regiments are found. Treasures, jewels, and exquisite fabrics from the Panjab are found at the Victoria and Albert Museum in South Kensington, where the Imperial College campus is also located and associated with prominent Sikh scientist, Dr. Narinder Singh Kapany. Other sites within the borough include the current location of the Khalsa Jatha British Isles, UK and the residences of Maharaja Duleep Singh, Maharani Jindan Kaur, and Princess Indira of Kapurthala. This paper provides an account of sites, artefacts and individuals to give a history of the Sikhs from the height of the Sikh Empire in the first half of the 19th century through to the modern day.