Empire, Faith and Kinship - Exploring 150 Years of the Anglo-Sikh Relationship | About UKPHA | Sikhs, Heritage, Britain, Exhibition, Which - Empire, Faith and Kinship - Exploring 150 Years of the Anglo-Sikh Relationship

About UKPHA

The UK Punjab Heritage Association (“UKPHA”) is a non-profit voluntary organisation based in Greater London. The Association was founded in 2001 to foster the appreciation of the Punjabi heritage in Britain and encourage the preservation of endangered items of the Punjabi material heritage.

The three principal members of UKPHA are Amandeep Singh Madra, Jeevan Singh Deol and Parmjit Singh. Together this team represents many years of professional experience in the private sector augmented by a powerful scholarly foundation in this field of study.

About the Exhibition

Of the 21 million Sikhs worldwide, almost two million live outside of India. They are scattered in most of the western countries, Europe, the Far East and East African countries but with the biggest concentration, almost 350,000, in Britain.

Although Sikhs form only 2 percent of the Indian population, Sikhs in Britain represent almost a third the Indian migrant communities. Sikhs came to the United Kingdom as part of the general influx of Commonwealth migrants: West Indians from the Caribbean Islands, Bengalis from Bangladesh, Kashmiri and Punjabi Muslims from Pakistan, Gujaratis and Sikhs from India. The largest influx started in the late 1950s and peaked in the 1960s, but the relationship between the Sikhs and the British has established itself over the last two centuries.

This exhibition explores a fascinating relationship that has touched and shaped the lives of millions. Through illustrations and detailed captions, the key events and people concerned are presented in eight sections, from the rise of the Sikh kingdom of Lahore in 1801 to the settling of the Sikh Diaspora in Britain in the twentieth century. Sometimes as friends, other times as foes, the Sikhs and the British have had one of the most rich and intriguing of partnerships.

Sikhs are no strangers to Britain. Indeed, they are justly proud of a shared heritage which pays homage to their role as great participators in the development and prosperity of Britain, a contribution which they are committed to continue into its future.

The United Kingdom Punjab Heritage Association (www.ukpha.org) is proud to present this exhibition which we hope will work towards UKPHA’s wider goal of challenging stereotypes and promoting diversity and cohesion.

The United Kingdom Punjab Heritage Association is proud to present this exhibition which we hope will work towards UKPHA's wider goal of challenging stereotypes and promoting diversity and cohesion.

We invite interested parties to exhibit and tour this exciting new resource in their local communities. Please visit the Download Exhibition section to download the exhibition panels in pdf format.

We are grateful to the institutions and private collections from which the images have been sourced. We would also like to express our gratitude to the Community Development Fund and Heritage Lottery Fund for their support in bringing this project to fruition.

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