

Maharaja Bhupinder Singh of Patiala was born October 12th, 1891. During his reign, which lasted from 1900 to 1938, he introduced many social reforms in his region. He founded the State Bank of Patiala, he was also a great patron of sports, leading famous Indian cricket and polo teams. Among his many commitments, he served on the General Staff, occupying various positions during World War I; he represented India at the League of Nations in 1925, and was a representative at the Round Table Conference.
The Maharajah of Patiala was also great patron of Cartier. In 1925 he engaged them to remodel the crown jewels of Patiala, which has been described in Nadelhofer, Cartier, Jewelers Extraordinary, "In purely quantative terms, the biggest commission of all time."