Empire · since 1947 · Middle East & South Asia
Pakistan
Pakistan was created on 14 August 1947 as a homeland for the Muslims of British India, the goal of Muhammad Ali Jinnah and the Muslim League. It began in two wings, West and East Pakistan, separated by about 1,600 km of Indian territory, and partition brought mass migration and violence.
War with India over Kashmir broke out at once and recurred in 1965. Pakistan became an Islamic republic in 1956 but was often ruled by the army, under Ayub Khan, Yahya Khan and later Zia-ul-Haq. Resentment in the Bengali-speaking east over political and economic domination led to a brutal war in 1971 and, with Indian help, the independence of Bangladesh. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and later his daughter Benazir led civilian governments between periods of military rule.
- Years
- since 1947
- Capital
- Karachi; Rawalpindi (interim, 1959–1967); Islamabad from 1967
- Greatest extent
- 1960, about 943,700 km²
- Region
- Middle East & South Asia
Including East Pakistan, now Bangladesh, and excluding Pakistan-administered Kashmir
Legacy
Pakistan became a nuclear power in 1998, and its unresolved dispute with India over Kashmir remains one of the world's most dangerous rivalries.
Rulers
- Muhammad Ali Jinnah 1947–1948
Founder, the Quaid-i-Azam, and first governor-general
- Liaquat Ali Khan 1947–1951
First prime minister; assassinated
- Ayub Khan 1958–1969
First military ruler
- Zulfikar Ali Bhutto 1971–1977
President, then prime minister; executed in 1979
- Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq 1977–1988
Military ruler who promoted Islamisation
- Benazir Bhutto 1988–1990, 1993–1996
First woman elected to lead the government of a Muslim-majority country
Realms on the map
- Islamic Republic of Pakistan since 1947