List of monarchs of Punjab

The monarchs of Punjab were the rulers of various kingdoms and republics of the Punjab beginning with the Vedic period and ending after the British empire. Much of native Punjab during the ancient period was ruled by various Tribal republics, such as the Yaudheyas, Madra, Trigarta, Audumbara, Oxydrakoi, Malloi and Gandhara with their leaders and monarchs being largely unknown.
The Ancient Period of Punjab saw the earliest known monarchs date back to the Vedic period. During the early to mid-6th century BCE, Taxila was ruled by King Pukkusati, who was a contemporary of the Achaemenid rulers. However, details regarding subsequent monarchs remain largely unrecorded until the Macedonian invasion of Punjab in the 5th century BCE. Following the death of Alexander the Great, monarchical power shifted to the Mauryan Empire in the 4th century BCE. In the 2nd century BCE, the Indo-Greek kings took over, followed by the Indo-Scythians and Indo-Parthians in the 1st century BCE. These dynasties ruled alongside native dynasties such as the Apracharajas. By the time of Apollonius’ travels through Punjab, power had largely returned to native rulers. The Kushan Empire's monarchs ruled Punjab, but by the 3rd century CE, control passed to the Gadahara and Shilada dynasties. Their rule was eventually disrupted by the Hunnic invasions in the 4th century CE.
The medieval period of Punjab saw the Eastern Punjab come under the rule of the Vardhana dynasty in the 7th century CE, while the Western Punjab was governed by the Taank Kingdom. By the 8th century, the Chach dynasty of Aror was ruling most of the Western Punjab. In the 9th century, the Hindu Shahi dynasty emerged as the rulers, until the Ghaznavids assumed monarchical control in the 11th century. Power then shifted to the Ghorid dynasty, until Muhammad Ghori 's assassination by the House of the Khokhars, paving the way for the establishment of the Delhi Sultanate in the 13th century.
The early modern period in the 16th century saw the rise of the Mughal Empire, which incorporated Punjab, though governance in the region was largely managed by various Sikh misls. Later, Adina Beg emerged as the ruler of Punjab. Following his death, the Sikh Empire consolidated power, ruling the region until the British conquest. During British rule, Punjab was divided into multiple territories, with certain regions governed by princely states.

Pauravas

Porus

Macedonian Empire (326 – 316 BC)

Name	Reign	Succession	Life details
Alexander III "the Great"	326 – 323	Son of Philip II	356 – 10/11 June 323 Conquered the entirety of the Persian Empire; died of illness at Babylon

Northern Satraps

Ruler	Image	Title	Approx. dates	Mentions
Hagamasha		Satrap	1st century BCE	In the archaeological excavations of Sonkh, near Mathura, the earliest coins of the Kshatrapa levels were those of Hagamasha.
Hagana		Satrap	1st century BCE
Rajuvula		Great Satrap	early 1st century BCE
Bhadayasa		Satrap	1st century CE	Possible successor of Rajuvula in Eastern Punjab
Sodasa		Satrap	1st century CE	Son of Rajuvula in Mathura
Kharapallana		Great Satrap	c. CE 130	Great Satrap for Kushan ruler Kanishka I
Vanaspara		Satrap	c. CE 130	Satrap for Kushan ruler Kanishka I

Indo-Parthians (15 BC – 50 AD)

Kushan Empire (50 – 350 AD)

Kujula Kadphises
Vima Takto, alias Soter Megas or "Great Saviour."
Vima Kadphises First great Kushan Emperor
Kanishka the Great
Huvishka
Vasudeva I Last great Kushan Emperor
Kanishka II
Vashishka

;"Little Kushans";

Huns (390 – 550 AD)

Alchon Huns (470 – 550 AD)

Taank Kingdom (550 – 822)

The Taanks were people from a variety of clans forming a kingdom. The rulers of the kingdom are only known from sources of chronicles and minted coins. During this rule, Lahore was said to have been visited by the Chinese pilgrim Hieun Tsang. He described it as a great Brahmin city.
Note: Not listed chronologically.

Ratapat
Bahurpal
Sahajpal
Madanpal

Brahmin dynasty (632 – 712)

Hindu Shahi Kingdom (822 – 1026)

Ruler	Reign	Notes
Kallar	c. 843 CE	Founder of the Hindu Shahi dynasty
Samanta	c. 850 CE
Lalliya	c. 880 CE	Shifted capital to Udabhanda and defeated the Saffarid dynasty
Toramana	c. 903 CE
Bhimadeva	c. 921 CE	Alliance with the Lohara dynasty and defeated the Samanid Empire
Jayapala	c. 964 CE	Resisted the Ghaznavids but committed suicide via Sati
Anandapala	c. 1002 CE	Conquered Lahore but unsuccessfully resisted the Ghaznavids
Trilocanapala	c. 1010 CE
Bhimapala	c. 1021 CE	Last Hindu Shahi monarch

Emirate of Multan (855 – 1010)

Munnabih dynasty (855 – 959)

Muhammad Munabbih III
Asad Qureshi
Hassan II
Ahmed II
Munabbih I
Muhammad Munabbih IV
Munabbih II
Fahad Munabbih
Harun Munabbih

Lodi dynasty (959 – 1010)

Jalam bin Shayban
Hamid ibn Shayban
Nasr ibn Hamid
Abul Fateh Daud ibn Nasr

Ghaznavid Empire (1010 – 1186)

#	Laqab	Personal Name	Reign	Succession right	Notes
1	Yamin ad-Dawlah Abu Qasim Right-hand man of the State	Mahmud	1010–1030	first son of Sabuktigin
2	Jalal ad-Dawlah Dignity of the State	Muhammad	1030 1st reign	second son of Mahmud
3	Shihab ad-Dawlah Star of the State	Masud I	1030–1041	first son of Mahmud	Was overthrown, imprisoned and executed, following the battle of Dandanaqan
—	Jalal ad-Dawlah Dignity of the State	Muhammad	1041 2nd reign	second son of Mahmud	Raised to the throne following the removal of Masud I.
4	Shihab ad-Dawlah Star of the State	Mawdud	1041–1048	son of Masud I	Defeated Muhammad at the battle of Nangrahar and gained the throne.
5	?	Masud II	1048	son of Mawdud
6	Baha ad-Dawlah Splendor of the State	Ali	1048–1049	son of Masud I
7	Izz ad-Dawlah Glory of the State	Abd al-Rashid	1049–1052	fifth son of Mahmud
8	Qiwam ad-Dawlah Support of the State	Toghrul	1052–1053	Turkish mamluk general	Usurped the Ghaznavid throne after massacring Abd al-Rashid and eleven other Ghaznavid princes.
9	Jamal ad-Dawlah Beauty of the state	Farrukh-Zad	1053–1059	son of Masud I
10	Zahir ad-Dawlah Help of the State	Ibrahim	1059–1099	son of Masud I
13	Ala ad-Dawlah Blessing of the State	Mas'ūd III	1099–1115	son of Ibrahim
11	Kamal ad-Dawlah Perfection of the State	Shir-Zad	1115–1116	son of Masud III	Murdered by his younger brother Arslan ibn Mas'ud.
12	Sultan ad-Dawlah Sultan of the state	Arslan-Shah	1116–1117	son of Masud III	Took the throne from his older brother Shirzad, but faced a rebellion from his other brother Bahram Shah, who was supported by the sultan of the Great Seljuq Empire, Ahmad Sanjar.
13	Yamin ad-Dawlah Right-hand man of the state	Bahram Shah	1117–1157	son of Masud III	Under Bahram-Shah, the Ghaznavid empire became a tributary of the Great Seljuq Empire. Bahram was assisted by Ahmad Sanjar, sultan of the Great Seljuq empire, in securing his throne.
14	Muizz ad-Dawlah Honor of the State	Khusrau Shah	1157–1160	son of Bahram-Shah
15	Taj ad-Dawlah Crown of the state	Khusrau Malik	1160–1186	son of Khusrau-Shah

Ghurid Empire (1186 – 1206)

Coinage	Titular Name	Personal Name	Reign
	Sultan Shahāb-ud-din Muhammad Ghori	Mu'izz al-Din Muhammad	1173–1206

Delhi Sultanate (1206 – 1526)

Mamluk dynasty (1206 – 1290)

S/N	Name of ruler	Birth Date	Death Date	Beginning of reign	End of reign	Notes
1	Qutbuddin Aibak	1150	14 November 1210	25 June 1206	14 November 1210
2	Aram Shah	unknown	June 1211	December 1210	June 1211	Son of Aibak
3	Iltutmish	unknown	30 April 1236	June 1211	30 April 1236	Son-in-law of Aibak
4	Ruknuddin Firuz	unknown	19 November 1236	April/May 1236	November 1236	Son of Iltutmish
5	Razia Sultan	unknown	15 October 1240	November 1236	20 April 1240	Daughter of Iltutmish
6	Muiz ud din Bahram	9 July 1212	15 May 1242	May 1240	15 May 1242	Son of Iltutmish
7	Ala-ud-Din Masud Shah	unknown	10 June 1246	May 1242	10 June 1246	Son of Ruknuddin Firuz
8	Nasiruddin Mahmud Shah	1229 or 1230	18 February 1266	10 June 1246	18 February 1266	Grandson of Iltutmish
9	Ghiyas ud din Balban	1216	1287	February 1266	1287	Turkish noble in the court of Iltutmish
10	Muiz ud din Qaiqabad	1269	1 February 1290	1287	1 February 1290	Grandson of Balban
11	Shamsuddin Kayumars	1285/1287	13 June 1290	1 February 1290	13 June 1290	Son of Qaiqabad

Khalji dynasty (1290 – 1320)

S/N	Name	Birth date	Death date	Beginning of reign	End of reign	Notes
12	Jalal-ud-din Khalji	1220	19 July 1296	13 June 1290	19 July 1296
–	Ruknuddin Ibrahim	unknown	after 1296	July 1296	November 1296	Son of Jalal-ud-din Khalji. He ruled for a short time, not always indicating his names on the lists.
13	Alauddin Khalji	c. 1266	4 January 1316	November 1296	4 January 1316	Nephew of Jalal-ud-din Khalji
14	Shihabuddin Omar	1310 or 1311	April 1316	5 January 1316	April 1316	Son of Alauddin Khalji
15	Qutbuddin Mubarak Shah	1299	9 July 1320	14 April 1316	1 May 1320	Son of Alauddin Khalji

Outside of the dynasties (1320)

S/N	Name	Birth date	Death date	Beginning of reign	End of reign	Notes
16	Khusrau Khan	unknown	1320	10 July 1320	5 September 1320	He ruled for a short time, not founding a dynasty.

Tughluq dynasty (1320 – 1414)

S/N	Name	Birth date	Death date	Beginning of reign	End of reign	Notes
17	Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq	unknown	1 February 1325	8 September 1320	1 February 1325
18	Muhammad bin Tughluq	c. 1290	20 March 1351	1 February 1325	20 March 1351	Son of Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq
19	Firuz Shah Tughlaq	1309	20 September 1388	23 March 1351	20 September 1388	Son-in-law of Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq
20	Tughluq Khan	unknown	14 March 1389	20 September 1388	14 March 1389	Grandson of Firuz Shah Tughlaq
21	Abu Bakr Shah	unknown	after 1390	15 March 1389	August 1390	Grandson of Firuz Shah Tughlaq
22	Muhammad Shah III	unknown	20 January 1394	31 August 1390	20 January 1394	Son of Firuz Shah Tughlaq
23	Ala ud-din Sikandar Shah	unknown	8 March 1394	22 January 1394	8 March 1394	Son of Nasir ud din Muhammad Shah III
24	Nasir-ud-din Mahmud Shah Tughluq	unknown	February 1413	March 1394	February 1413	Son of Nasir ud din Muhammad Shah III
–	Nasir-ud-din Nusrat Shah Tughluq	unknown	1398 or 1399	January 1395	1398 or 1399	Brother of Tughluq Khan. Mahmud Shah's anti-king, claimant to the throne, sub-ruler.

Sayyid dynasty (1414 – 1451)

S/N	Name	Birth date	Death date	Beginning of reign	End of reign	Notes
25	Khizr Khan	1361	20 May 1421	28 May 1414	20 May 1421
26	Mubarak Shah	1378	19 February 1434	21 May 1421	19 February 1434	Son of Khizr Khan
27	Muhammad Shah	1379	January 1445	February 1434	January 1445	Grandson of Khizr Khan
28	Alam Shah	unknown	July 1478	January 1445	19 April 1451	Son of Muhammad Shah

Lodi dynasty (1451 – 1526)

S/N	Name	Birth date	Death date	Beginning of reign	End of reign	Notes
29	Bahlul Lodi	1420	12 July 1489	19 April 1451	12 July 1489
30	Sikandar Lodi	17 July 1458	21 November 1517	17 July 1489	21 November 1517	Son of Bahlul Lodi
31	Ibrahim Lodi	1480	21 April 1526	November 1517	21 April 1526	Son of Sikandar Lodi

Chiefs of Pothohar

House of Khokhars

Ruler	Reign	Note
Nusrat Khokhar	?? ‐ 1394	died fighting the Timurid forces
Shaikha Khokhar	1394 - 1420
Jasrat Khokhar	1420 - 1442	Had capital at Sialkot

House of Gakhars

Ruler	Reign	Note
Kaigohar Gakhar	unknown	Built Pharwala Fort
Jhanda Khan Ghakkar	unknown - c.1493	Established city of Rawalpindi
Polakh Khan Gakhar	unknown	Father of Hathi Khan Gakhar
Tatar Khan Ghakkar	unknown - 1519	Made alliance with Babur
Hathi Khan Gakkar	1519 - 1526
Sarang Khan Gakhar	1526 - 1545	Died fighting against Sher Shah Suri at Rawat
Adam Khan Gakhar	1546 - 1555	Under Mughal Empire
Kamal Khan Gakhar	1555 - 1566
Mubarak Khan Gakhar	Unknown
Said Khan Gakhar	1563 - 1597	founded Saidpur village
Nazar Khan Gakhar	Unknown	Commander of 500
Miran Shah Ghazi Gakhar	Unknown	Founder of Mirpur
Allah Quli Khan Gakhar	1681 - 1705
Muqarrab Khan Gakhar	1705 - 1767	Last effective ruler of Pothohar

Langah Sultanate (1445 – 1540)

Titular Name	Personal Name	Reign
Sultan Qutbu'd-Din	Rai Sahra Langah	1445–1469
Sultan Husseyn I	Husseyn Shah Langah	1469–1498
Sultan Mahmud I	Budha Khan Langah	1498–1518
Sultan Husseyn II	Husseyn Langah	1518–1526
Sultan Mahmud II	Mahmud Khan Langah	1426–1540

Mughal Empire (1526 – 1799)

Portrait	Titular Name	Birth Name	Birth	Reign	Death
1	Babur	Zahir Ud-Din Muhammad Ghazi	14 February 1483 Andijan, Uzbekistan	20 April 1526 – 26 December 1530	26 December 1530 Agra, India
2	Humayun	Nasir Ud-Din Baig Muhammad Khan	6 March 1508 Kabul, Afghanistan	22 February 1555 – 27 January 1556	27 January 1556 Delhi, India
3	Akbar	Abu'l Fath Jalal Ud-Din Muhammad	15 October 1542 Umerkot, Pakistan	11 February 1556 – 27 October 1605	27 October 1605 Agra, India
4	Jahangir	Nur Ud-Din Baig Muhammad khan Salim	31 August 1569 Agra, India	3 November 1605 – 28 October 1627	28 October 1627 Jammu and Kashmir, India
5	Shah Jahan	Shahab Ud-Din Muhammad Khurram	5 January 1592 Lahore, Pakistan	19 January 1628 – 31 July 1658	22 January 1666 Agra, India
6	Aurangzeb Alamgir	Muhi Ud-Din Muhammad	3 November 1618 Gujarat, India	31 July 1658 – 3 March 1707	3 March 1707 Ahmednagar, India
7	Azam Shah	Qutb Ud-Din Muhammad	28 June 1653 Burhanpur, India	14 March 1707 – 20 June 1707	20 June 1707 Agra, India
8	Bahadur Shah Shah Alam	Abul-Nasr Sayyid Qutb-ud-din Mirza Muhammad Muazzam	14 October 1643 Burhanpur, India	19 June 1707 – 27 February 1712	27 February 1712 Lahore, Pakistan
9	Jahandar Shah	Mu'izz-ud-Din Beg Muhammad Khan Bahādur	9 May 1661 Deccan, India	27 February 1712 – 11 February 1713	12 February 1713 Delhi, India
10	Farrukhsiyar	Abu'l Muzaffar Muīn-ud-Dīn Muhammad Shāh Farrukhsiyar Alim Akbar Sāni Wālā Shān Pādshāh-i-bahr-u-bar Puppet King Under the Sayyids of Barha	20 August 1685 Aurangabad, India	11 January 1713 – 28 February 1719	19 April 1719 Delhi, India
11	Rafi ud-Darajat	Abu'l Barakat Shams-ud-Din Muhammad Rafi ud-Darajat Padshah Ghazi Shahanshah-i-Bahr-u-Bar Puppet King Under the Sayyids of Barha	1 December 1699	28 February 1719 – 6 June 1719	6 June 1719 Agra, India
12	Shah Jahan II	Rafi-ud-Din Muhammad Rafi-ud-Daulah Puppet King Under the Sayyids of Barha	5 January 1696	6 June 1719 – 17 September 1719	18 September 1719 Agra, India
13	Muhammad Shah	Nasir-ud-Din Muḥammad Shah Roshan Akhtar Bahadur Ghazi Puppet King Under the Sayyids of Barha	7 August 1702 Ghazni, Afghanistan	27 September 1719 – 26 April 1748	26 April 1748 Delhi, India
14	Ahmad Shah Bahadur	Abu-Nasir Mujahid ud-din Muhammad Ahmad Shah Bahadur Ghazi	23 December 1725 Delhi, India	29 April 1748 – 2 June 1754	1 January 1775 Delhi, India
15	Alamgir II	Aziz Ud-Din Muhammad	6 June 1699 Burhanpur, India	3 June 1754 – 29 November 1759	29 November 1759 Kotla Fateh Shah, India
16	Shah Jahan III	Muhi Ul-Millat	1711	10 December 1759 – 10 October 1760	1772
17	Shah Alam II	Abdu'llah Jalal ud-din Abu'l Muzaffar Ham ud-din Muhammad 'Mirza Ali Gauhar	25 June 1728 Delhi, India	10 October 1760 – 31 July 1788	19 November 1806 Delhi, India
18	Shah Jahan IV	Bidar Bakht Mahmud Shah Bahadur Jahan Shah	1749 Delhi, India	31 July 1788 – 11 October 1788	1790 Delhi, India
19	Shah Alam II	Abdu'llah Jalal ud-din Abu'l Muzaffar Ham ud-din Muhammad 'Mirza Ali Gauhar Puppet King under the Maratha Empire	25 June 1728 Delhi, India	16 October 1788 – 19 November 1806	19 November 1806 Delhi, India
20	Akbar Shah II	Sultan Ibn Sultan Sahib al-Mufazi Wali Ni'mat Haqiqi Khudavand Mujazi Abu Nasir Mu'in al-Din Muhammad Akbar Shah Pad-Shah Ghazi Puppet King under the East India Company	22 April 1760 Mukundpur, India	19 November 1806 – 28 September 1837	28 September 1837 Delhi, India

Sur Empire (1540 – 1556)

S. n.	Picture	Name	Birth date	Death date	Reign	Notes
1st		Sher Shah Suri	1472 or 1486	22 May 1545	6 April 1538/17 May 1540 — 22 May 1545
2nd		Islam Shah Suri	1507	22 November 1554	26 May 1545 — 22 November 1554	Son of Sher Shah Suri.
3rd		Firuz Shah Suri	4 May 1542	1554	1554	Son of Islam Shah Suri.
4th		Muhammad Adil Shah	unknown	1557	1554 — 1555	Son-in-law of Sher Shah Suri.
5th		Ibrahim Shah Suri	unknown	1567/1568	1555	Brother-in-law of Sher Shah Suri.
6th		Sikandar Shah Suri	unknown	1559	1555 — 22 June 1555	Brother-in-law of Sher Shah Suri.
7th		Adil Shah Suri	unknown	April 1557	22 June 1555 — 1556	Brother of Sikandar Shah Suri.

Sial State (1723 – 1818)

Walidad Khan Sial 1723 – 1747
Inayatullah Khan Sial 1747 – 1787
Kabir Khan Sial 1787 – 1798
Ahmad Khan Sial 1798 – 1818

Sardars of Dera Ghazi Khan (1738 – 1779)

Mahmud Khan Gujjar
Barkhurdar Khan Gujjar

[Misls]

Bhangi Misl (1716 – 1802)

Chhajja Singh Dhillon
Bhuma Singh Dhillon
Hari Singh Dhillon
Jhanda Singh Dhillon
Ganda Singh Dhillon
Charhat Singh Dhillon
Desu Singh Dhillon
Gulab Singh Dhillon
Gurdit Singh Dhillon

Singhpuria Misl (1733 – 1816)

Kapur Singh 1733 – 1753
Khushal Singh 1753 – 1795
Buddh Singh 1795 – 1816

Ramgarhia Misl (1748 – 1808)

Name	Portrait	Reign	Ref.
Jassa Singh Ramgarhia		1748 – 1803
Jodh Singh Ramgarhia		1803 – 1808

Dallewalia Misl (1748 – 1807)

Gulab Singh Khatri 1748 – 1759
Gurdiyal Singh 1759 – 1764
Tara Singh Ghaiba 1764 – 1807

Nakai Misl (1748 – 1810)

Heera Singh Sandhu Nakai
Sardar Nar Singh Nakai
Ran Singh Nakai
Bhagwan Singh Nakai
Gyan Singh Nakai
Kahan Singh Nakai.

Chattha State (1750 – 1797)

Nur Muhammad Chattha 1750 – 1765
Pir Muhammad Chattha 1765 – 1780
Ahmad Khan Chattha 1765 – 1780
Ghulam Muhammad Chattha 1780 – 1790
Jan Muhammad Chattha 1790 – 1797

Nawabs of Mankera (1772 – 1839)

Sarbuland Khan Sadozai 1772 – 1815
Hafiz Ahmed Khan Sadozai 1815 – 1839

Princely states">Punjab States Agency">Princely states

Chamba State (550 – 1948)

Raja Yugakar Verman
Raja Vidagdha Verman
Raja Dodaka Verman
Raja Vichitra Verman
Raja Dhariya Verman
Raja Salavahana Verman
Raja Soma Varman
Raja Asata Varman
Raja Jasata Verman
Raja Dhala Verman
Raja Udayan Varman
Raja Anand Verman
Raja Ganesa Verman
Raja Pratap Singh Verman,
Raja Vir Vahnu Verman
Raja Balbhadra Verman as Chamba.
1690 - 1720 Udai Singh
1720 - 1735 Ugar Singh
1735 - 1794 Raj Singh
1794 - 1808 Jit Singh
1808 - 1844 Charhat Singh
1844 - 1870 Shri Singh
1870 - Apr 1873 Gopal Singh
17 Apr 1873 – 22 Jan 1904 Sham Singh
22 Jan 1904 – 22 Sep 1919 Bhuri Singh
22 Sep 1919 - 7 Dec 1935 Ram Singh
7 Dec 1935 – 15 Aug 1947 Tikka Lakshman Singh