04 Days Lahore Culture Tour & Wagah Border Flag Lowering Ceremony

Lahore, Urdu Lāhawr, second largest city of Pakistan and the capital of Punjab province. It lies 811 miles (1,305 km) northeast of Karāchi in the upper Indus plain on the Rāvi River, a tributary of the Indus. Little is known of the history of the settlement prior to the Muslim period. Hindu legend attributes the founding of Lahore to Lava, or Lōh, son of Rāma, for whom it is said to have been named Lōhāwar. The city of “Labokla” mentioned in Ptolemy’s 2nd-century Guide to Geography may have been Lahore. The city has had a turbulent history. It was the capital of the Ghaznavid dynasty from 1163 to 1186. A Mongol army sacked Lahore in 1241. During the 14th century, the city was repeatedly attacked by the Mongols until 1398, when it fell under the control of the Turkic conqueror Timur. In 1524 it was captured by the Mughal Bābur’s troops. This marked the beginning of Lahore’s golden age under the Mughal dynasty, when the city was often the place of royal residence. It was greatly expanded during the reign of Shāh Jahān (1628–58) but declined in importance during the reign of his successor, Aurangzeb.