highlights
King Martand of Pudukotti, a small princely state in South India, fell in love with an English girl and married her.
This Australian girl fell into the king’s heart at first sight.
The British rule at that time was that no king should marry an English woman for the first time.
Do you know which king in India was the first to marry a white lady from abroad? He was the king of a very small state. The kingdom which you have hardly heard of, but after this marriage, this king got involved in such a historical story that he will always be remembered. The first king to marry an English woman was Martand of Pudukotti, a small princely state in South India.
There was a lot of uproar over this marriage. The British got angry. The king had to abdicate the throne. He had to accept the punishment of exile but he did not leave his queen and thus proved how much he really loved the British queen. According to British law, he was punished by being removed from the throne. Spent his entire life outside the country. In fact, the British had then made a rule that Indian kings should not marry any foreign English woman.
Raja Martand’s love story became an example of dedication and loyalty towards his wife and not succumbing to the pressure of the British. Raja Martanda Tondian Bahadur was the ruler of Pudukotti, a small princely state of South India. His heart fell on an Australian woman. When Raja went to visit Australia, he met the beautiful Australian girl Molly Pink and her mother in the hotel there.
This girl fell in the king’s heart at the very first sight. They got married but then faced many difficulties. Had to give up the throne. Had to go and settle in France. But he did not come under any pressure from the British. He was not ready to leave his English wife under any circumstances. Raja Tondian’s English queen was very beautiful. Tall height and gorgeous figure.
The British wanted the king to marry a native woman for the first time.
The British rule at that time was that no king should marry an English woman for the first time. If an English woman becomes the first queen, then her children will become the heir. She would consider herself equal to the British rulers. This will create new types of problems. Therefore, the British always asked the Maharajas to marry an Indian woman first. So that problems do not arise on the issue of succession.
Raja Martand was a 40 year old attractive bachelor man. He had decided that he would not marry any woman from his country.
Even before, the engagement had to be broken under British pressure.
In 1915, Raja Martand was an attractive bachelor of 40 years. He had decided that he would not marry any woman from his country. First he liked an American woman. He got engaged to her but due to British pressure it had to be broken.
Saw it for the first time in the hotel and fell in love
When Raja Martand met Molly Fink for the first time in his hotel in Australia, he fell in love with her. Mauli belonged to a prosperous family. Father was a barrister. She was beautiful and also intelligent. Both started loving each other.
The British did not even allow the wedding card to be printed
Mauli’s mother also liked Martand. When Raja proposed marriage, Mauli’s mother had no objection. Both of them came to Pudukotti state together. He got married there. There was a lot of happiness in the princely state. The British did not even allow this wedding card to be printed. Hurdles in marriage. Even after this the king got married.
Molly Pink was both beautiful and intelligent. After leaving India, she gave birth to a son in Australia. Then Raja and Molly went to France and settled forever.
The British also had objections to printing wedding cards of kings with foreign women. Same thing happened in the case of Raja Martand also. The British refused to accept this marriage. Pudukotti was certainly a small princely state but was a close ally of the East India Company.
Then the British tried to poison the queen
When the king’s Australian wife became pregnant after marriage. Who knows who poisoned him in the court? It was believed that this work was done by the British as part of a conspiracy.
The king had to give up his throne
The opposition from the British was so much that the king had to go abroad with him. The first child was born in Australia itself. The king had to give up his throne. Inheritance was given to younger brother. The British later refused to accept Martand and Mauli’s son as the rightful heir.
The British later refused to accept Martand and Mauli’s son as the rightful heir.
Martand started living in France with his wife and son.
In 1920, Martand started living in Cannes, France with his wife and son. He became a special part of the society there. He was the pride of the parties there. The king had immense wealth. Besides, he used to get a lot of money as annual pension from his own state. Big personalities were his friends in France.
Even the last rites were not allowed to take place in India
Martand died in 1928. Then his wife Mauli wanted that her husband’s cremation should at least take place in their princely state Pudukotti in India, but the British did not allow that either. Then the king was cremated in London according to Hindu customs. Even today there is a monument to the king in London.
When King Martand died, his wife Mauli asked for permission to be cremated in India but the British authorities did not allow it. The last rites were performed with full rituals in London. The king’s monument is still safe in London.
King’s son became an American citizen
After the death of the king, Molly initially lived in France. After this she came to live in London. Due to legal problems, Raja’s son became an American citizen. Molly died in Kansas in 1967.
bad experience with son
King Martand’s son’s name was Martand Sidney Tondiman. After differences with his mother, he went to America. Took citizenship there. But in America he was sentenced to one year imprisonment in 1945 on a theft charge. However, Shah Pahlavi of Iran and top leaders of Cuba were his friends. The situation became such that America took away his citizenship. Although it was given to him again, he returned to Europe in 1948. When his mother died, he inherited all her property and became a very rich man. His life began to be spent in great luxuries. On January 20, 1984, he died of a heart attack in a luxurious hotel in Florence, Italy.
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Tags: Love, love marriage, Love Stories, Love Story, royal wedding
FIRST PUBLISHED: April 11, 2024, 10:48 IST