Ratnadhwaj Singha, with Tai name Sulikphaa, was the 28th king of the Ahom Kingdom.
15 Facts About Sulikphaa
1.
2.
Sulikphaa was only 14 years of age when Laluksola Borphukan, the Ahom viceroy of Guwahati and Lower Assam, raised him to the throne, after deposing the former king, Sudoiphaa.
3.
Sulikphaa's reign was characterized by the atrocities committed by Laluksola Borphukan, who held the real authority behind the throne, in his name.
4.
Sulikphaa hailed from the Samuguria branch of the Royal Ahom Dynasty.
5.
Sulikphaa was the grandson of Narayan Tipam Raja, who was the younger brother of the former Ahom king Suhung.
6.
Sulikphaa mounted guns on the wall of his compound and lived with great vigilance and caution.
7.
Sulikphaa therefore sent his own envoy Govindram along with a letter addressed to Laluk, in which Laluk was addressed as the King of Assam.
8.
Sulikphaa removed from the royal storehouse the canopy used by the kings for the ceremony of receiving foreign ambassadors.
9.
Sulikphaa was aware that even though he had been recognized as Raja of Assam or king of Assam by the Mughal Subedar of Bengal, it was difficult to declare himself king, as the orthodox section of the Ahom nobility and common people would always consider the descendants of King Sukaphaa the rightful heirs to the throne of Assam.
10.
Sulikphaa knew that Lora Raja was a mere puppet whom he could remove at will, but the other princes of royal blood, all descended from King Sukaphaa, would always be an obstacle to fulfilling his goal of ascending the throne.
11.
Sulikphaa's emissaries, led by one Gidagathi Hazarika of Dakhinpat, instituted a more vigorous search for Gadapani and came upon his wife Jaimati, who they thought must be aware of her husband's refuge.
12.
Sulikphaa was pregnant at the time, and she finally died in the midst of her tortures.
13.
Sulikphaa requested military aid from the Mughal Subedar of Bengal against the Ahom kingdom, but his requests were turned down, as the Mughals lacked enough military force in the region to invade the Ahom kingdom and wage a new war with the Ahoms.
14.
Sulikphaa wandered through the Naga hills, Darrang, Nagaon and Kamrup.
15.
Sulikphaa was only fourteen years old when he was made the king of the Ahom Kingdom by Laluksola Borphukan; thus the real power behind the throne was Laluksola Borphukan.