French General Jean Francois Allard bust to be installed in Amritsar

Punjab Art and Culture

Published on: 27-Oct-18
2593 views

Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh directed the Tourism & Cultural Affairs department to finalize the modalities for installation of the bust of legendary French General Jean Francois Allard, who headed the cavalry ‘Fauj-e-Khas’ of Sher-e-Punjab Maharaja Ranjit Singh, in Amritsar.

Highlights :

The directive came during a meeting with a French delegation comprising Henri Prevost Allard, the deputy mayor of Saint Tropez in charge of Tourism & lineal descendant of General Allard, as well as Council president of Sikhs de France Ranjit Singh.
Notably, Henri Allard is the fourth generation of General Allard’s lineage.
It may be recalled that the bust of Maharaja Ranjit Singh was installed at Saint Tropez, the birth place of General Allard, in 2016 to promote a sense of goodwill, bonhomie and friendship between the two sides.
The initiative, said the Chief Minister, would help inculcate in the younger generation the knowledge of late General’s courage.
A befitting tribute to the great military strategist, the bust would serve as a link in further strengthening the close ties between Saint Tropez and Punjab, and between France and India.
The visiting delegation extended an invitation to the Chief Minister to be the Guest of honour at the annual gathering to be held at Saint Tropez in June next year, to propagate the rich legacy of India-French military history.
The Chief Minister presented to the delegation members his book ‘The Last Sunset’, which chronicles the rise and fall of the Sikh Empire besides the events leading upto Anglo Sikh Wars and the exile of Maharaj Duleep Singh.
He also asked them to bring awareness amongst France’s younger generation on how the Punjabis held General Allard in high esteem due to his valiant deeds and enormous contribution in raising Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s army, which ultimately resulted in the creation of the vast Sikh empire.

Jean-Francois Allard :

Jean-Francois Allard (1785 - 1839) was a French soldier and adventurer.Born in Saint Tropez, he became a soldier and was twice injured while serving in Napoleon's army.
He was awarded the Legion d' honneur and promoted to Captain of the 7th Hussars. After Waterloo, he drifted around and went to Persia where he visited Abbas Mirza to propose his services.
He was promised the position of a Colonel, but never actually received the troops corresponding to his function.
In 1820, Allard left for Punjab, where he in 1822 entered the service of the Maharaja Ranjit Singh.
He was commissioned to raise a corps of dragoons and lancers. On completion, Allard was awarded the rank of general, and became the leader of the European officer corps in the Maharaja's service.
In June 1834, Allard returned to France on leave, but returned 18 months later. He continued to serve the Maharaja until his death in 1839.
Another European taking service in the Punjab with Allard in 1822 was the Italian Jean-Baptiste Ventura. They were joined four years later by the Neapolitan Paolo Di Avitabile and the Frenchman Claude August Court. A Spaniard, Oms, also served with them for a while.
Allard was awarded the Legion d' Honneur by Napoleon Bonaparte, and the Bright Star of the Punjab by Ranjit Singh.
Allard was also an amateur numismatist and contributed greatly to the early study of Ancient Indian coins.