History of Lahore
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The known history of Lahore, a district of modern-day Pakistan, covers thousands of years.
[edit] Ancient history
According to a legend, Lahore was named after King Lav (son of Lord Ram) who ruled Lahore in ancient times. A temple of Lav can still be found in the Lahore fort which however is closed.
[edit] Rule of the Mughals
Lahore came under Muslim rule in 712 CE when Umayyad Muslim Arab army led by Muhammad bin Qasim conquered Punjab, and the present Pakistan from Kashmir to the Arabian Sea. Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni placed it under the rule of his governor, Malik Ayaz. When Sultan Qutb-ud-din Aybak was crowned in 1206 here, he became the first Muslim Sultan of South Asia. From 1524 to 1752 Lahore was part of the Mughal Empire.
During Akbar's rule, Lahore was the capital of the empire from 1584 to 1598. During this time a massive fort, the Lahore Fort, was built on the fundaments of an older fort in the 1560s. This fort was later extended by Jahangir, a Mughal emperor who is now buried in the city. Shah Jahan, his son, was born in Lahore and is famous for building the world-renowned Taj Mahal in India. He, like his father, extended Lahore Fort and built many other structures in the city, showering more affection on his hometown than any other city. The last of the great Mughals, Aurangzeb, ruling from 1658 to 1707, built the city's most famous monuments, the Badshahi Masjid and the Alamgiri Gate next to the Lahore Fort. The Muslim technocrats, bureaucrats, soldiers, traders, scientists, architects, teachers, theologians and sufis flocked from the rest of the Muslim world to Islamic Sultanate in South Asia and many settled in Lahore.
[edit] Sikhs reign and British era
The Sikhs ruled it in the 18th and 19th centuries, making Lahore the capital of Sikh state. However the last bloody Anglo-Sikh war resulted in a British victory thus bringing Lahore under the rule of the British crown.
In 1947 Pakistan gained independence from British colonial rule. At the time of independence, Lahore was heavily affected by large-scale riots between Muslims, Hindus, and Sikhs. The lahore is city of art and classic music.
