Ranjit Singh

Ranjit Singh (13 November 1780 – 27 June 1839) was the founder and first Maharaja of the Sikh Empire, which came to power in the Punjab from the 16th-19th century. The capital was at Gujranwala, later moved to Lahore. Ranjit Singh first came to fame around the year 1798 when he took advantage of the Durrani Empire turmoil in the Punjab region and captured the city of Lahore expelling the Afghan Muslim army garrison in the city. He then expanded further towards Punjab, fighting the Afghan Empire garrison and conquered many cities through his general, Hari Singh Nalwa. At its height, the Sikh Empire stretched from Jamrud in the west, Amritsar in the east, Multan in the south and Srinagar in the north.

After Ranjit Singh's death, his successors were weak and divided, thus the entire Punjab region fell to the British East India Company, and was conquered by the British Empire later to become part of British Raj.

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Category:1780 births
Category:1839 deaths
Category:Punjabi people