Ram Singh was born on 4 January 1865 in Sunam (Sangrur), his ancestral village. He hailed from a military background, and his father was Natha Singh, who had served in the army of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, in Kanwar Nau Nihal Singh’s musahib, and later in the British Indian Army. His grandfather was the famous Sukha Singh Shaheed, who decapitated Massa Ranghar at the Golden Temple. Ram Singh spent his early life at Sunam, where he began his education. However, he had to leave his education halfway to look after the family’s farmlands, as Natha Singh was away at the Lahore Durbar. At a young age, Ram Singh enlisted in the Patiala State Army in keeping with the family tradition. The seventh Maharaja of Patiala, Maharajah Rajinder Singh, was greatly impressed with his dedication to the discipline of soldiership. He learned and adapted quickly to the skills required of an outstanding soldier.

He was 15 years old at that time, but soon realised that if he was to excel as a soldier, he had to move to a bigger stage. One day, while home on leave, Ram Singh heard that the British Indian Army was recruiting in Sunam the following day. He went to the recruiting grounds, and when his turn came, the British recruiting officer asked him his age and his caste, to which Ram Singh replied that he was a Kamboj. The officer told him that only persons belonging to the Jatt community were to be recruited. Ram Singh replied that recruitment should be based on the ability to serve in the army, not on one’s caste. The recruiting officer was impressed but stated that he was following his superior’s orders. However, to show that he was not biased, he told Ram Singh that he would set aside all the instructions from his superiors and recruit him