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| Home » Indian Political History » History of Pakistan |
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History of Pakistan |
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Located in South Asia, Pakistan is one of the most populated Muslim nations in the world. Pakistan shares its borders with Iran, Afghanistan, India and China. Once a part of erstwhile British India, Pakistan has been through numerous political changes. History of Pakistan has been influenced by the umpteen tribes who have invaded this country for centuries. Be it the Greeks, the Arabs or the Afghans, all the invaders have marked significant dent in the culture and society of Pakistan. Pakistan got liberated from the British rule on 14th August 1947 (a day before India's independence) and has been through significant periods of military as well as democratic rule.
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Military has played a pivotal role in the administration of Pakistan and it is even believed that the economic growth of the country has got its pace due to the initiatives taken time to time by the armed forces. Pakistan was officially founded in the year 1947 and was referred as the Dominion of Pakistan. There is one name in history of Pakistan under whose leadership the country was formed and he was Mohammad Ali Jinnah, leader of the Muslim League. Pakistan is the home of some of the earliest know civilizations that existed on earth.
Some of the historic sites in Pakistan, like Harappa and Mohenjodaro used to be the towns of Indus Valley Civilization during the period of 2500 BC to 1500 BC. The Indus region of the country was the prime center where cultures flourished during that time. For years that followed several empires ruled the provinces of Punjab, Sindh, Northwest Frontier and Balochistan. Some of the most noted empires to rule the provinces were Achaemenid Persian empire, Greek empire under Alexander, Mauryan empire, Ghaznavid empire and Mughal empire. From time to time these empires left their huge impact on the culture and lifestyle of people of the country. History of Pakistan saw the decline and rise of many empires, which were followed by the fiercest of battles where umpteen soldiers gave away their lives.
The decline of Mughal empire during the early 18th century induced a number of forces into action who captured a major portion of the country's terrain. The Afghans, Sikhs and the people from Balochistan took control over many provinces in Pakistan during that time. Soon Pakistan also came under the ascendancy of the British East India Company. Pakistan witnessed a major armed struggle against the British rule in 1857, when Sepoy Mutiny broke in the whole of British India. The next decades witnessed the rise of the Indian National Congress and their unarmed freedom movement led by a host of leaders including Mahatma Gandhi. The history of Pakistan as a Muslim nation started to take its shape when Mohammad Ali Jinnah embraced the Two Nation Theory, which was finally adopted by the Muslim League during the Lahore Resolution in the year 1940.
Pakistan got its much awaited independence from the British rule on 14th August 1947 and had its regions on the eastern and northwestern borders of India. The partition of India into two nations saw significant amount of blood shed when large masses of Hindus traveled from Pakistan to India and millions of Muslims moved from Pakistan to India. As a consequence of partition, both India and Pakistan saw communal riots that took innumerable lives. Pakistan went on to war with India during 1948 on the issue of intrusion in the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan for the second time got engaged in war with India during 1965. A revolution started in East Pakistan under the Awami League party led by Sheik Mujibur Rehman. East Pakistan got liberated from the rule of Pakistan regime and formed a separate nation Bangladesh during 1971 after India and Pakistan got engaged in a war. Since then Pakistan has been through many phases of political instability influenced by the military coupes. General Ayub Khan, General Yahaya Khan and in the recent times general Pervez Musharaf took the reins of the Pakistani government to bring stability to the political and economical situation of the country.
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