The Feudatory State of Bussahir

Bussahir, also spelt as Bushahr or Bashahr, was a Rajput Princely state in the Punjab Hill State Agency, currently a part of the North Indian state of Himachal Pradesh.  Rana Shamsher Singh of Bussahir (1850-1914) issued the first postal stamps of the state in 1895.

Bussahir came to notice for the first time during the reign of Raja Kehri Singh in the late 17th century. He subdued the Thakurs of surrounding areas and reduced the tributes paid to larger Sirmaur, Garhwal, Mandi and Suket. However, his moment of glory came when he defeated the Tibetan army under General Guldenchhen’s command and forced them to sue for peace. A treaty fixed the boundary between Kinnaur and Tibet. 

“Till the black crow doesn’t run white, till Mansarovar doesn’t go dry, till the whole of snow from above the Kailash doesn’t melt, the Kailash will remain boundary line between Kinnaur and Tibet“

Between 1681-83, Raja Kehri Singh was again in the eye of a conflict. In the Tibetan-Ladakhi-Mughal war that took place, Bussahir sided with Tibet. In return for his war efforts, the Raja received the Hangrang Valley as a gift from the Dalai Lama and a new treaty defining the boundaries that remained in effect till 1962. 

When the Gorkhas attacked in 1803, they occupied a large part of Bussahir and held control till 1815. The expansionist activities of Nepal alarmed the Hill States, and they went to Maharaja Ranjit Singh of Punjab for help. With the help of the Sikh army, the Nepalese were driven back to the east of Sutlej. A later rivalry between the East India Company and Gorkhas resulted in the First Anglo-Nepalese War (1815-16) where the Hill states sided with the British. After the treaty of Sugauli, the Gorkha influence finally ended and the lost territories of Bussahir were reclaimed. 

The British took over the administration of the state while the king remained nominally in charge. After many uneventful decades, Raja Padam Singh acceded to the Dominion of India in 1947. The state joined 20 other hill states to form the state of Himachal Pradesh. The son of Raja Padam Singh, Raja Virbhadra Singh, remained in active politics and became the state’s Chief Minister. 

Stamps of Bussahir

The first postal stamps of Bussahir were issued during the reign of Raja Shamsher Singh in 1895. The stamps were printed locally and were lithographed on laid paper. They were hand-stamped with the initials RS, representing the name of Raghunath Singh, the prince who set up the postal system in the state. The stamps were both gummed and came without gum; and came imperforated as well perforated. The perforations varied greatly and were usually done with a sewing machine. Stamps without a monogram were also printed. The design was based around a central motif of a tiger inside a circle, with 16 different types of borders. 

It is difficult to tell how many stamps were printed for genuine use, and how many were for sale to philatelists. The state issued reprints of its stamps with fake cancellations of Rampur, making it even more difficult.  Used stamps of the state are scarce.