Synopsis First published in 1963, this is the standard and well-established book in its subject. It is accessible to a general, non-scholarly audience, while being based on scholarly archival research. Volume 2 continues Khushwant Singh’s history of the Sikhs, taking up the thread at the death of Maharaja Ranjit Singh in 1839, and focusing on the continuing Sikh Struggle for survival as a separate community. The development of religious, sociological, and political movements under British expansionism and the threat of Muslim domination are explored. The author chronicles the years following Indian independence, marked by the demand for a distinct Sikh state, and presents the events leading up to and following 'Operation Blue Star' when the Indian army entered the Golden Temple in 1984.