As Hitler rose to power, Catherine was living in Germany with her partner, Lina Schäfer.
A princess of Indian descent, openly devoted to another woman, watching as the country around her descended into fascism.
During the rise of Hitler, an Indian princess was living in Germany.
She would risk everything to save Jewish families from the Gestapo.
She also loved another woman...
Princess Catherine Duleep Singh was one of the daughters of the last Maharaja of the Punjab.
Born into royalty, dispossession and exile, her life would take her from the courtly circles of Britain to the terrifying heart of Nazi Germany.
Princess Sophia Duleep Singh went from royal ward to radical suffragette, fighting alongside Emmeline Pankhurst after witnessing racism in colonial India.
Princess Catherine Duleep Singh became known as the “Indian Schindler” for helping Jewish families escape Nazi Germany.
The princesses the British Empire tried to erase…
One became a suffragette revolutionary.
One helped Jewish families escape the Gestapo.
One called herself the “Queen of Punjab”.
And two vanished into the margins of history.
Known by some as the “Indian Schindler”, Catherine used her position, resources and courage to rescue Jewish families from the Gestapo.
Her story is one of resistance, loyalty and extraordinary moral courage.
In this new Empire mini-series, @willdalrymple.bsky.social and @anitaanand.bsky.social explore the extraordinary lives of the Duleep Singh sisters, the daughters of the last Maharaja of the Punjab.
Listen to the complete series now by signing up at:
empirepoduk.com
They were the daughters of the last Maharaja of the Punjab, heirs to a kingdom swallowed by the British Empire and raised in the shadow of Queen Victoria.
But each of them would rebel against the world they were born into.
Princess Bamba Duleep Singh rejected British high society, embraced Indian revolutionaries and survived Partition as one of Lahore’s last Sikh residents.
Princesses Irene and Pauline were shunned, forgotten and caught in the family’s darkest chapter.
In Episode 2 of this extraordinary mini-series, @willdalrymple.bsky.social and @anitaanand.bsky.social uncover the hidden life of Princess Catherine Duleep Singh, one of the remarkable daughters of the last Maharaja of the Punjab.
Tune in here 👇
linktr.ee/empirepoduk
empirepoduk.com
Listen to the Empire podcast with William Dalrymple and Anita Anand. Explore colonial history, revolutions and global power through storytelling.
