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92 of non-interference north of Delhi, nothing then came of this.

In 1806 Ranjit Singh crossed the river with a large force to assert his power among the Malwa Sikhs, as those in the Cis-Sutlej states are called, on which the British strengthened their frontier post north of Delhi. Again in 1807 and 1808 he crossed in force, levying tribute as King of all the Sikhs. The Patiala and other chiefs were alarmed. They saw they must either submit to Ranjit Singh or seek the protection of the British. They unanimously declined to accept him as their overlord and threw themselves on the protection of the British, saying that they had always been more or less under the wing of whoever was master of Delhi. The policy of non-interference—of masterly inactivity—had now undergone a change. An English envoy was sent to Lahore armed with an ultimatum, to negotiate a treaty on the condition of the independence of the Malwa Sikhs, and the Sutlej as the