History

Multan, is one of the oldest cities in South Asia. Its modern name comes from its old Sanskrit name Mūlasthān . It has seen a lot of warfare because of its location on a major invasion route between South Asia and Central Asia. It is famous for its Sufi shrines. It was also famous for its money-lenders.

Multan was ruled by various Hindu empires for over 1000 years. It is believed to have been visited by Alexander the Great. It is said that when Alexander was fighting for the city, a poisoned arrow struck him, making him ill- and eventually leading to his death. The exact place where Alexander was hit by the arrow can be seen in the old city premises. It is believed to be the same city as "Maii-us-than", where Alexander's forces stormed the citadel after seeing their king injured and unconscious on the field of battle. Multan was part of the Mauryan Empire and the Gupta that ruled much of northern India. In the mid 5th century, the city was attacked by a group of nomads led by Torman. These nomads were successful in taking the city, but did not stay, and the long-standing Hindu rule over the city was reestablished. The noted Chinese traveler Huen Tsang visited Multan in 641 AD.

During the Hindu period, Multan was known as the city of gold for its large and wealthy temples. The Sun temple, Suraj Mandir, was considered one of the largest and wealthiest temples in the entire sub-continent. Numerous historians have written about this extremely large Hindu temple that housed over 6,000 people within it. Other famous sites included the Suraj Kund ("pool of the Sun") and Mandir Parhaidpuri. Prahlad from whom the temple took its name is interesting "Prahlad" son of Raja Harankishab who held sway over this country condemned the gods and forbade the paying of homage in their name. His son Prahlad Bhagat refused to obey, whereupon the father ordered a pillar of gold to be heated with fire so that Prahlad might be bound to it. When the twilight came and the servants attempted to bind Prahiad to the pillar, it burst in two and out sprang the god Vishnu in the form of a man-lion who laid the King across his knees and ripped him open with his claws. The temple is situated close to the shrine of Bahawal Huk. Currently its roof and surrounding building have been damaged but the pillar is no more. The Idol was shifted from temple to a new place near old fruit maket. Now it is at Haridwar, where it was brought in 1947 by Narayan Das Baba.

In the 7th century, Multan had its first experience with Muslim armies. Armies led by Muhalib launched numerous raids from Persia into India. However, they did not come to conquer, and seemed only to be exploring the area. However, only a few decades later, Muhammad bin Qasim would come on behalf of the Arabs, and take Multan along with Sind. Following bin Qasim's conquest, the city was securely under Muslim rule, although it was in effect an independent state.

With the turn of the millennium, the city was attacked twice by Mahmud of Ghazni who destroyed the Sun Mandir. After Muhammad Ghuri's victories in India, and his establishment of a capital in Delhi, Multan was made a part of his empire. However, the rise of the Mongols would again give it some independence, albeit requiring it to be vigilant against Mongol raids from Central Asia.

Under the Mughal Empire, Multan enjoyed over 200 years of peace, and became known as Dar al-Aman (Abode of Peace). This time was the most prosperous of times for Multan in recent years. The Khakwani Nawabs of Multan gave it a lot of financial stability and growth to the local farming sector. It was at this time that Multan was ruled by Nawab Ali Mohammad Khan Khakwani. As governor of Multan, he built the famous Mosque Ali Mohammad Khan in 1757 which remains to this day. Many buildings were constructed in this time, and agricultural production grew rapidly. The Khakwani Nawabs of Multan at this time were paying homage to the Afghan king but due to lack of power in Delhi and Kabul they had a free reign and pretty much were absolute rulers of Multan. Multan at that time included areas which are part of Vehari, Bahawalpur, and DG khan districts. The decline of the Mughal Empire was not as devastating for Multan as it was for other cities. The city escaped the destruction brought upon India by the armies of Nadir Shah, but it was ruled from Kabul by numerous Afghan dynasties for a while.

Multan witnessed difficult times as Mughal rule declined. After Ahmed Shah Abdalis's dynasty went into decline, it was ruled locally by the Pashtun Khakwani and Sadozai chieftains. The Sadozais having gained the favor of the king and having the Khakwani Nawab removed. This period saw the rise of Sikh power and frequent clashes took place between the Muslims and Sikhs. The Sikhs attacked Multan killed the Sadozai Nawab and took over the city. The Khakwanis had moved out of the city at that time and lived in small walled cities around main Multan.

The Sikhs led many expeditions against Multan. Sardar Hari Singh Bhangi, along with Hira Singh, attacked Multan for the first time around 1763. The Sikhs plundered many villages, set the houses of the Muslims on fire and demolished many mosques. His sons Jhanda Singh and Ganda Singh attacked again in 1764 and looted Multan and its suburbs. However attempts to take the Multan fort failed and they retreated after collecting several million rupees from the ruler Muzaffar Khan Saddozai.

In the 19th century, the Sikh ruler Ranjit Singh conquered Multan. The ruler of Multan Muzaffar Khan Saddozai was defeated and killed. The death of Muzaffar Khan was in fact the death of Muslim rule in Multan. After capturing the Fort, the Sikh soldiers were let loose to arson and debauchery, which Latif recorded as follows: "The city and Fort were now given up to be plundered by the Sikh troops. Great were the ravages committed by the Sikhs on this occasion. About 400 to 500 houses in the Fort were razed to the ground and their owners deprived of all they had. Precious stones, jewellery, shawls and other valuables belonging to the Nawab were confiscated by the state and kept carefully packed by Diwan Ram Diyal for inspection of the Maharaja. In the town many houses were set on fire and nothing was left with the inhabitants that was worth having. Hundreds were killed in the city, and indeed there was hardly a soul who escaped both loss and violence". Diwan Sawan Mall took over and known to be one of the most able and powerful Sikh rulers of his time. He amassed enormous wealth and became a threat to the Sovereign. His sons Dewan Mulraj and Karan Narain were well looked after. The first son Mulraj became the Governor of Multan, after his father had been assassinated. His younger brother rose to being a General of the highest order under Maharaja Ranjit Singh and was awarded titles of Sardar (High Noble), Bakshi ( Benevolent) by the Maharaja. However, Sikh rule would not last long, as the British were eventually provoked into checking the Sikh strength in Punjab. After a long and bloody battle, Multan was made part of the British Raj. During this time, Sardar Karan Narain's son became an icon during the British Raj and was awarded titles 'Rai Bahadur' and Knighted 'Sir' by Her Majesty. The British built some rail routes to the city, but its industrial capacity was never developed.

Upon Pakistan's independence in 1947, Multan became part of the Punjab province. It initially lacked industry, hospitals and universities. Since then, there has been some industrial growth, and the city's population is continually growing. But the old city continues to be in a dilapidated state, and many monuments wear the effects of the warfare that has visited the city.