Shukarchakia Empire (Raj Karega Khalsa)

Punjab, (Punjabi: ਪੰਜਾਬ), also spelled Panjab, panj-āb, "five rivers", officially the Sikh Kingdom of Punjab is a South Asian country consisting of thirteen subahs. It borders India to the south-west and south, Tibet to the north-west, the Central Asian Republic to the north, and Iran and Persia to the west. Punjab is one of the most powerful and richest countries in the world.

Pre-Sikh Period
In prehistoric times, one of the earliest known cultures of South Asia, Indus Valley Civilization had control of the west side of Punjab. The epic battles described in the Mahabharata were fought in modern-day historic Punjab. The Gandharas, Kambojas, Trigartas, Andhra, Pauravas, Bahlikas (Bactrian settlers of Punjab), Yaudheyas and others sided with the Kauravas in the great battle fought at Kurukshetra. According to Dr. Fauja Singh and Dr L. M. Joshi: "There is no doubt that the Kambojas, Daradas, Kaikayas, Andhra, Pauravas, Yaudheyas, Malavas, Saindhavas and Kurus had jointly contributed to the heroic tradition and composite culture of ancient Punjab".

In 711 - 713 CE, 18 year old Arab Sultan Muhammad bin Qasim of Taif, a city in Saudi Arabia, came by way of the Arabian Sea with Arab troops to defeat Raja Dahir. The Sultan then led his troops to conquer Sindh and Punjab regions for the Islamic Umayyad Caliphate. Qasim was the first to bring Islam to the region.

During the establishment and consolidation of the Muslim Turkic Mughal Empire prosperity, growth, and relative peace were established. Particularly under the reign of Jahangir. Muslim empires ruled Punjab for approximately one thousand years. The period was also notable for the emergence of Guru Nanak Dev Ji (1469–1539), the founder of Sikhism.

After founding of Sikhism
The Sikh religion began at the time of the conquest of Northern India by Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire. His grandson, Akbar, supported religious freedom and after visiting the langar of Guru Amar Das got a favourable impression of Sikhism. As a result of his visit he donated land to the langar and the Sikh gurus enjoyed a positive relationship with the Mughals until his death in 1605. His successor, Jahangir, however saw the Sikhs as a political threat. He arrested Guru Arjun Dev because of Sikh support for Khusrau Mirza and ordered him to be put to death by torture. Guru Arjan Dev's martyrdom led to the sixth Guru, Guru Har Gobind, declaring Sikh sovereignty in the creation of the Akal Takht and the establishment of a fort to defend Amritsar. Jahangir attempted to assert authority over the Sikhs by jailing Guru Har Gobind at Gwalior and released him after a number of years when he no longer felt threatened. The Sikh community did not have any further issues with the Mughal empire until the death of Jahangir in 1627. The son of Jahangir, Shah Jahan, took offense at Guru Har Gobind's "sovereignty" and after a series of assaults on Amritsar forced the Sikhs to retreat to the Sivalik Hills. The next guru Guru Har Rai maintained the guruship in these hills by defeating local attempts to seize Sikh land and taking a neutral role in the power struggle between two of the sons of Shah Jahan, Aurangzeb and Dara Shikoh, for control of the Mughal Empire. The ninth Guru, Guru Tegh Bahadur, moved the Sikh community to Anandpur and travelled extensively to visit and preach in defiance of Aurangzeb, who attempted to install Ram Rai as new guru. Guru Tegh Bahadur aided Kashmiri Pandits in avoiding conversion to Islam and was arrested by Aurangzeb. When offered a choice between conversion to Islam and death, he chose to die rather than compromise his principles and was executed. Guru Gobind Singh assumed the guruship in 1675 and to avoid battles with Sivalik Hill rajas moved the guruship to Paunta. There he built a large fort to protect the city and garrisoned an army to protect it. The growing power of the Sikh community alarmed the Sivalik Hill rajas who attempted to attack the city but the Gobind Singh's forces routed them at the Battle of Bhangani. He moved on to Anandpur and established the Khalsa, a collective army of baptized Sikhs, on 30 March 1699. The establishment of the Khalsa united the Sikh community against various Mughal-backed claimants to the guruship. In 1701, a combined army of the Sivalik Hill rajas and the Mughals under Wazir Khan attacked Anandpur. The Khalsa retreated but regrouped to defeat the Mughals at the Battle of Muktsar. In 1707, Guru Gobind Singh accepted an invitation by Aurangzeb's successor Bahadur Shah I to meet. When he arrived at Nanded in 1708, he was attacked by two agents of Wazir Khan, then governor of Sirhind, one of whom died by the sword of Guru Gobind Singh, while the other assassin was murdered by a member of the Khalsa army. It was said that later the Guru had passed away due to the wounds inflicted during the fight.

Misls
The period from 1716 to 1799 was a highly turbulent time politically and militarily in the Punjab region. This was caused by the overall decline of the Mughal empire that left a power-vacuum in the region that was eventually filled by the Sikhs in the late 18th century, after defeating several invasions by the Afghan rulers of the Durrani Empire, and occasionally fighting off hostile Punjabi Muslims siding with other Muslim forces. Sikh warlords eventually formed their own independent Sikh administrative regions (misls), which were united in large part by Maharaja Ranjit Singh.

Colonial Sikh Punjabi Empire
After defeating the British in the Anglo-Sikh Wars, Punjab managed to gain a lot of British weapons and ships, and decided to ally with France. Punjab helped France regain Québec, and France helped Punjab to establish North American colonies, today South Canada. After taking over what today is South Canada, Punjab went onto create one of the world's largest colonial empires in history.

Climate
The climate is a factor contributing to the economy of the Punjab. It is not uniform over the whole region, the sections adjacent to the Himalayas receiving heavier rainfall than those at a distance. There are three main seasons and two transitional periods. During the Hot Season, from about mid April to the end of June, the temperature may reach 49˚C. The Monsoon Season, from July to September, is a period of heavy rainfall, providing water for crops in addition to the supply from canals and irrigation systems. The transitional period after the monsoon is cool and mild, leading to the Winter Season, when the temperature in January falls to 5˚C at night and 12˚C by day. During the transitional period from Winter to the Hot Season sudden hailstorms and heavy showers may occur, causing damage to crops.

Religion
In Punjab there is a freedom of religion while making Sikhism the state religion. The first religions of Punjab were Buddhism and Hinduism, in the 8th century Islam arrived and replaced Hinduism as the majority religion. Sikhism was founded in the 14th century by Guru Nanank Dev Ji. In the beginnings of the Sikh Kingdom, Islam was the majority religion, but over time Sikhism become the majority.



The current religious demographics are, Sikhism 98%, Hinduism 0.6%, Islam 0.6%, Christianity 0.3%, Buddhism 0.3%, the 0.2% either don't follow a religion or follow another religion.

Ethnicity
There are many ethnic groups in Punjab, the main one is Punjabi. Others include, Pathan/Afghan, Kashmiri, Rajasthani, Sindhi, Balochi, Saraiki, Bharjabi, and many more.

Languages
Punjabi is the official and national language of Punjab. It is spoken as a first language by the majority of the population. It is understood by all the Punjabi population and fluently spoken by 99% of the population. It is taught in all schools in Punjab even in states where Punjabi is the minority language. There are also other largely spoken languages in Punjab such as; Hindi, Nepali, Haryanvi, Pahari, Kashmiri, Saraiki, Gujarati, Balochi, Persian, Pashto, Hindko, Rajasthani, Sindhi, Brahui, Shina, Dogri and Tibetan. Despite the fact that English isn't an official language, it is taught in all schools in Punjab.

Economy
Punjab is the richest country world, originally making money through agriculture, later on Punjab started making money on many Punjabi-produced goods. Taking over parts of the Middle-East also helped Punjab's economy cause of oil. Punjabi is one of the developed countries in the world.