After Maharaja Ranjit Singh (the king of Punjab, who never let British invade Punjab) died in 1839, his 5-year old son, Duleep Singh, was declared the king.
British waged wars against Punjab and made it a part of British India.
Duleep Singh was separated from his mother, taught the English ways and eventually sent to England; he is known as the first foreign settler from Punjab.
Meanwhile, British recruited people from Punjab in various jobs and the less-skilled were sent to other countries that were a part of the British empire.
Sikhs, most of whom lived in Punjab, were recruited in large numbers in the British Indian Army because of their proven valour.
Their recruitments especially surged after ‘The Great Battle of Saragarhi’ in 1897 and they got to stay in Europe & Africa because Sikh regiments fought for the British during WWI & WWII.
These temporary visits led to contacts overseas; e.g. a Gurudwara (place of worship) built in 1911 in Britain suggests there was a social network forming among the small Sikh population abroad.
In 1947-48, Punjab was divided into East & West Punjab (Pakistan & India), leading to exodus of hundreds of thousands from both sides of the divide.
Populations on both sides suffered massive losses of land & commerce and had to start afresh from refugee camps.
This misfortune coincided with massive labour requirements that emerged in Britain for post WWII regeneration & industrial expansion work starting 1950.
Hundreds of families did everything possible to raise money, enough for their travel to Britain.
In due course of time, new avenues (Australia, Canada etc.) for migrants opened up and thousands of families settled abroad.
The second big wave of migration happened in the late 1970s till early-1990s, when Punjab went through a period of militancy & violence.
There was a heavy loss of life & property and people from Punjab went abroad for safety and better lives.
By this time, the Punjabi Diaspora had become a model for good quality life – an aspiration that continues to cascade from one generation to the next.
