The western regions of Pakistan became part of Achaemenid Empire around 517 BCE.[44] In 326 BCE, Alexander the Great conquered the region by defeating various local rulers, most notably, the King Porus, at Jhelum.[45] It was followed by the Maurya Empire, founded by Chandragupta Maurya and extended by Ashoka the Great, until 185 BCE.[46][47][48] The Indo-Greek Kingdom founded by Demetrius of Bactria (180–165 BCE) included Gandhara and Punjab and reached its greatest extent under Menander (165–150 BCE), prospering the Greco-Buddhist culture in the region.[49][50][51] Taxila had one of the earliest universities and centres of higher education in the world, which was established during the late Vedic period in the 6th century BCE.[52] The ancient university was documented by the invading forces of Alexander the Great and was also recorded by Chinese pilgrims in the 4th or 5th century CE.[53][54][55] At its zenith, the Rai dynasty (489–632 CE) ruled Sindh and the surrounding territories.[56] Medieval period The Arab conqueror Muhammad ibn Qasim conquered Sindh and some regions of Punjab in 711 CE.[46][57] The Pakistan government's official chronology claims this as the time when the foundation of Pakistan was laid.[58] The early medieval period (642–1219 CE) witnessed the spread of Islam in the region.[59] Before the arrival of Islam beginning in the 8th century, the region of Pakistan was home to a diverse plethora of faiths, including Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Zoroastrianism.[60][61] During this period, Sufi missionaries played a pivotal role in converting a majority of the regional population to Islam.[62] Upon the defeat of the Turk and Hindu Shahi dynasties which governed the Kabul Valley, Gandhara, and western Punjab in the 7th to 11th centuries CE, several successive Muslim empires ruled over the region, including the Ghaznavid Empire (975–1187 CE), the Ghorid Kingdom, and the Delhi Sultanate (1206–1526 CE).[63] The Lodi dynasty, the last of the Delhi Sultanate, was replaced by the Mughal Empire (1526–1857 CE).[64] Makli Necropolis, a UNESCO World Heritage Site rose to prominence as a major funerary site during the Samma dynasty[65] The Mughals introduced Persian literature and high culture, establishing the roots of Indo-Persian culture in the region.[66] In the region of modern-day Pakistan, key cities during the Mughal period were Multan, Lahore, Peshawar and Thatta,[67] which were chosen as the site of impressive Mughal buildings.[68] In the early 16th century, the region remained under the Mughal Empire.[69] In the 18th century, the slow disintegration of the Mughal Empire was hastened by the emergence of the rival powers like the Maratha Empire and later the Sikh Empire, as well as invasions by Nader Shah from Iran in 1739 and the Durrani Empire of Afghanistan in 1759.[10][70] The growing political power of the British in Bengal had not yet reached the territories of modern Pakistan.[71] Colonial rule Main articles: British India, British Raj, Aligarh Movement, and Two-nation theory Sir Syed Ahmad Khan (1817–1898), whose vision formed the basis of Pakistan.[72][73][74]Muhammad Ali Jinnah (1876–1948) served as Pakistan's first Governor-General and the leader of the Pakistan Movement.[75] None of modern Pakistan was under British rule until 1839 when Karachi, a small fishing village governed by Talpurs of Sindh with a mud fort guarding the harbour, was taken,[76][77] and used as an enclave with a port and military base for the First Afghan War that ensued.[78] The remainder of Sindh was acquired in 1843,[79] and subsequently, through a series of wars and treaties, the East India Company, and later, after the post-Sepoy Mutiny (1857–1858), direct rule by Queen Victoria of the British Empire, acquired most of the region.[80] Key conflicts included those against the Baloch Talpur dynasty, resolved by the Battle of Miani (1843) in Sindh,[81] the Anglo-Sikh Wars (1845–1849),[82] and the Anglo–Afghan Wars (1839–1919).[83] By 1893, all modern Pakistan was part of the British Indian Empire, and remained so until independence in 1947.[84] Under British rule, modern Pakistan was primarily divided into the Sind Division, Punjab Province, and the Baluchistan Agency. The region also included various princely states, with the largest being