Durrani and Maratha invasions

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In 1752 Ahmad Shah Durrani captured Multan, the city which was also his birthplace,[70] and the city's walls were rebuilt in 1756 by Nawab Ali
Mohammad Khan Khakwani,[46] who also built the Ali Muhammad Khan Mosque in 1757. In 1758, the Marathas under Raghunathrao briefly
seized Multan,[71][72] appointing Adina Beg Khan as the Nawab of Punjab, though the city was recaptured by Durrani in 1760. After repeated
invasions following the collapse of the Mughal Empire, Multan was reduced from being one of the world's most important early-modern
commercial centres, to a regional trading city.[68]

Sikh empire

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In 1772, Ahmed Shah Durrani's son Timur Shah lost Multan to Sikh forces.[48] However, Multan's association with Sikhism predates this, as the
founder of the Sikh religion, Guru Nanak, is said to have visited the city during one of his journeys.[73]

The city had reverted to Afghan rule under the suzerainty of Nawab Muzaffar Khan in 1778.[74] In 1817, Ranjit Singh sent a body of troops to
Multan under the command of Diwan Bhiwani Das to receive from Nawab Muzaffar Khan the tribute he owed to the Sikh Darbar. In 1818, the
armies of Kharak Singh and Misr Diwan Chand lay around Multan without making much initial headway, until Ranjit Singh dispatched the
massive Zamzama cannon, which quickly led to disintegration of the Multan's defences.[75] Misr Diwan Chand led Sikh armies to a decisive victory
over Muzaffar Khan. Muzzafar Khan and seven of his sons were killed before the Multan fort finally fell on 2 March 1818 in the Battle of Multan.
[76][77]

The conquest of Multan established Ranjit Singh's superiority over the Afghans and ended their influence in this part of the Punjab. [78] Diwan
Sawan Mal Chopra was appointed to govern the city, remaining in his post for the following 25 years.[78] Following the Sikh conquest, Multan
declined in importance as a trading post,[68] however the population of Multan rose from approximately 40,000 in 1827 to 60,000 by 1831.
[78]
Sawan Mal adopted a policy of low taxation which generated immense land revenues for the state treasury.[79] Following the death of Ranjit
Singh, he ceased paying tribute to a successor and instead maintained alliances of convenience with selected Sikh aristocrats. [79] He was
assassinated in 1844, and succeeded by his son Diwan Mulraj Chopra, who unlike his father was seen as a despotic ruler by the local inhabitants.
[79]

1848 Multan Revolt

The 1848 Multan Revolt and subsequent Siege of Multan began on 19 April 1848 when local Sikhs loyal to Diwan Mulraj Chopra murdered two
emissaries of the British Raj, Vans Agnew and Lieutenant Anderson.[80] The two British visitors were in Multan to attend a ceremony for Sardar
Kahan Singh, who had been selected by the British East India Company to replace Diwan Mulraj Chopra as ruler of Multan.[81]

Rebellion engulfed the Multan region under the leadership of Mulraj Chopra and Sher Singh Attariwalla.[80] The Multan Revolt triggered the start
of the Second Anglo-Sikh War,[81] during which the sajjada nashin of the Shrine of Bahauddin Zakariya sided with the British to help defeat the
Sikh rebels.[82] The revolt eventually resulted in the fall of the Sikh Empire in 1849.[83]

British Raj

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Multan's Ghanta Ghar dates from the British colonial period, and was built in the Indo-Saracenic style.

By December 1848, the British had captured portions of Multan city's outskirts, and destroyed the Multan Fort while bombarding the city.[84] In
January 1849, the British had amassed a force of 12,000 to conquer Multan.[80] On 22 January 1849, the British had breached the walls of the
Multan Fort, leading to the surrender of Mulraj and his forces to the British.[80] The British conquest of the Sikh Empire was completed in
February 1849, after the British victory at the Battle of Gujrat. Between the 1890s and 1920s, the British laid a vast network of canals in the
Multan region, and throughout much of central and Southern Punjab province. [85] Thousands of "Canal Towns" and villages were built according
to standardized plans throughout the newly irrigated swathes of land.[85]

After independence of 1947

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Multan lost its very important position as soon as the British stronghold over the sub-continent grew stronger and stronger. Although peace
prevailed in the region but no real progress was made. After independence was achieved in 1947, Multan had become less significant politically.
Though it was still 3rd largest district and division of the country but city and the large population of South Punjab region lacked self governance.
The site of the Old Fort was in ruins. Thorny bushes and ditches were in plenty whispering the awful tale of its ruination. Majority of the roads
were unmetalled and the sewerage system too defective to explain.[86]

The predominantly Muslim population supported Muslim League and Pakistan Movement.[87] After the independence of Pakistan in 1947, the
minority Hindus and Sikhs migrated to India en masse, while some Muslim refugees from the newly independent Republic of India settled in the
city. Today, it is one of the country's six largest urban centres and remains an important settlement in the Southern Punjab.[86]

Geography

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Topography

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Multan is located in Punjab, and covers an area of 560 square kilometres (220 sq mi). The nearest important cities are Dera Ghazi
Khan and Bahawalpur. Multan is located near few rivers of central Pakistan. The Sutlej River separates it from Bahawalpur and the Chenab
River from Muzaffar Garh. The area around the city is a flat, alluvial plain surrounded by orchards and deserts that is also used for mango farms.

Multan is surrounded by Sulaiman mountain range which is the extension of Southern Hindu Kush mountain range of Pakistan and Afghanistan.
The most well-known peak of the Sulaiman mountains is the twin-peaked Takht-e-Sulaiman or "Throne of Prophet Solomon" at 3,487 metres
(11,440 ft).