| Amb | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Princely state of Pakistan | |||||||
| 1849–28 July 1969 | |||||||
 Flag  Coat of arms | |||||||
 Amb state in 1947 withinWest Pakistan | |||||||
| Capital | Darband (now submerged underTarbela Dam) Shergarh (summer residence) | ||||||
| Area | |||||||
| • Coordinates | 34°21′52.582″N72°51′33.959″E / 34.36460611°N 72.85943306°E /34.36460611; 72.85943306 | ||||||
• | 527 km2 (203 sq mi) | ||||||
| • Type | Monarchy | ||||||
| History | |||||||
• Established | 1849 | ||||||
• Submitted toDurrani Rule | 1755 | ||||||
• Disestablished | 28 July 1969 | ||||||
| |||||||
| Today part of | Pakistan · Khyber Pakhtunkhwa | ||||||
 |
| This article is part of the series |
| Former administrative units of Pakistan |
|---|
One-unit provinces |
Amb (Urdu,Hindko:امب) was aprincely state within theHazara Tribal Agency ofNorth-West Frontier Province, British India, ruled by theTanoli tribe. Together with the neighbouring estate ofPhulra, the tract was known as "Feudal Tanawal". Its total area was 203 sq mi (530 km2) while population was 48,656 in 1951.[1][2] The Nawab of AmbMuhammad Farid Khanacceded to Pakistan after theindependence of Pakistan in 1947. Today Amb is a part ofMansehra District ofHazara Division.
Amb came under the British suzerainty after theSecond Anglo-Sikh War, withMir Jehandad Khan providing much assistance to theEast India Company against the Sikhs. The Amb Nawabs also provided military services to theBritish Empire in theSecond Anglo-Afghan War.[3] At the end of December 1947, the Nawab of Amb acceded to Pakistan while retaining internal self-government.[4] Amb continued as aprincely state of Pakistan until 1969, when it was incorporated into the North West Frontier Province (nowKhyber Pakhtunkhwa).
| Image | Titular Name | Personal Name | Date of birth | Nawab From | Nawab Until | Date of death |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Muhammad Anwar Khan Tanoli انور خان تنولی | Anwar Khan Tanoli | 1688 | 1710 | 1730 | 1730 | |
| Muhammad Bahadur Khan Tanoli بہادر خان | Muhammad Bahadur Khan Tanoli | 23 June 1712 | 1730-1740 | 8 August 1755 | 8 August 1755 | |
| Sultan Zaburdust Khan Tanoli صوبہ خان تنولی | Sultan Zaburdust Khan Tanoli | 1 May 1736 | 8 August 1755 | 2 November 1783 | ||
| Haibat Khan Tanoli ہیبت خان | Haibat Khan Tanoli | 6 April 1740 | 1783 | 12 December 1798 | ||
| Nawab Khan Tanoli نواب خان | Nawab Khan Tanoli | 12 April 1792 | 1800-1810 | 13 October 1818 | ||
| Painda Khan Tanoli پائنداخان | Painda Khan | 6 May 1805 | 1818 | 1819-1822 completely Rule ended and hence again conquered and started in 1823 | 12 September 1844 | |
 | Jehandad Khan Tanoli جہانداد خان | Jehandad Khan Tanoli | 6 February 1820 | 1844 | 1868 | |
| Nawab Muhammad Akram Khan Tanoli
| Nawab Muhammad Akram Khan Tanoli | 1859 | 1868 | 1907 | ||
 | Nawab Khan-e-Zaman Khan Tanoli نواب خانِ زمان خان تنولیخانخا | Nawab Khan Zaman Khan Tanoli | 6 November 1880 | 1907 | 12 September 1936 | |
 | Muhammad Farid Khan Tanoli فرید خان | Muhammad Farid Khan Tanoli | 1 January 1904 | 1936 | 17 September 1947 (Alliance with Pakistan but continued rule until 1969) | 28 July 1969 (Rule end due to fighting between the Descendants of Amb State and Pakistan Army occupied integration) |
| Nawab Salahuddin Khan Tanoli صلاح الدین خان | Nawabzada Salahuddin Saeed | 1958 | 1969 | Incumbent | ||
 | This sectionneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.(September 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
The Tanoli submitted to British colonial rule in the 1840s.[5][6][7]
Mir Nawab Khan Tanoli was the ruler of The Tanawal valley and theChief of the Hazara region from circa 1810 until he died in 1818. During his rule, he faced many attacks from theSikh Empire andDurrani Empire, resulting in a significant loss of territory. He was 26 years old, when he was assassinated byAzim Khan on October 13, 1818 in theStratagem of Peshawar.[citation needed]
The main reason for the war is that Mir Nawab Khan defiedDurrani and the other main reason was that, whenAzim Khan's mother was traveling toKashmir viaTanwal, Nawab Khan's soldier collected the taxes from her.Azim Khan then traveled throughTanwal and then Nawab Khan's soldiers collected taxes through Azim Khan as well. After Azim Khan took the complaint to the Afghan court, the Afghan Ruler of that time immediately sent his army.[citation needed]
Nawab Khan Tanoli's sons,Painda Khan andMaddad Khan began the series of rebellion against theSikhs andDurrani, which continued throughout his lifetime.[citation needed]
From about 1813,Painda Khan Tanoli is famed for his staunch rebellion against MaharajaRanjit Singh's governors ofHazara. He was the son ofMir Nawab Khan Tanoli.[citation needed]
From about 1813, Painda Khan Tanoli engaged in a lifelong rebellion against theSikhs, who, realizing the potential dangers of his rebellion, set up forts at strategic locations to keep him in check.Hari Singh Nalwa took this initiative during his governorship. To consolidate his hold on Tanawal and to unite the Tanoli people, Tanoli first had to contend with his major rivals within the tribe itself, that is, the chiefs of the Suba Khani/Pallal Khel section, whom he subdued after a bitter struggle.
Tanoli set the tone for regional resistance in Upper Hazara against Sikh rule. In 1828, he created and gifted the smaller neighbouring state ofPhulra to his younger brotherMaddad Khan Tanoli.
Painda Khan briefly took over the valley ofAgror in 1834. Agror was restored to Ata Muhammad Khan, the chief of that area, a descendant of Akhund Ahmed Sad-ud-din.[8][citation needed]
He was the son of Mir Painda Khan Tanoli. In 1852, Jehandad Khan Tanoli was summoned by the President of the Board of Administration about a murder enquiry of two British officers, supposedly on his lands.[citation needed] In fact, this was related to the murder of two British salt tax collectors by some tribesmen in the neighbouringKala Dhaka orBlack Mountain area, which eventually led to the punitiveFirst Black Mountain campaign/expedition of 1852.[citation needed] The Board of Administration President wasSir John Lawrence (later the Lieutenant-Governor of thePunjab), and he visitedHaripur, in Hazara, where he invited many Hazara chiefs to see him on various matters, at a general Durbar.[citation needed][9] Jehandad Khan Tanoli succeeded in establishing his innocence and consolidated his position.[citation needed]
Jahandad Khan Tanoli's relationship withBritish India is summed in the following lines in a letter dated 8 January 1859 from R. Temple, Secretary to the Punjab Chief Commissioner, addressed to the Punjab Financial Commissioner: "'5.[citation needed] The term "Jagir" has never appeared to me applicable in any sense to this [Jehandad Khan's] hereditary domain [Upper Tannowul], for it was never granted as such by the Sikhs or by our Government; we upheld the Khan as we found him in his position as a feudal lord and large proprietor.'
Jehandad's son, Nawab Bahadur Sir Muhammed Akram Khan Tanoli, was given the title ofNawab (Sovereign Ruler) in perpetuity by the British.[citation needed]
The next chief of the Tanoli, a son of Jahandad Khan Tanoli, was Akram Khan TanoliKCSI 68–1907). He was a popular chief. During his tenure, the fort atShergarh was built along with forts in Dogah andShahkot. His rule was a peaceful time for Tanawal. He opposed construction of schools in the state, on advice given by British.[citation needed]
Khan Zaman Khan Tanoli succeeded his father, taking over the reins of power in Tanawal in Amb. He helped the British in carrying out the later Black Mountain (Kala Dhaka/Tor Ghar) expeditions.[citation needed]
Muhammad Farid Khan Tanoli had good relations withMuhammad Ali Jinnah andLiaqat Ali Khan. His contributions to the Pakistan movement have been acknowledged by letters from Jinnah.[4][10] In 1947, he acceded his state to Pakistan by signing theInstrument of Accession in favour of Pakistan. In 1969, the state was incorporated into the North West Frontier Province (nowKhyber-Pakhtunkhwa) and in 1972, the Government of Pakistan ceased to recognise the royal status of the Nawab.[citation needed]
Muhammad Saeed Khan Tanoli, son of Muhammad Farid Khan Tanoli, the last nawab of Amb, studied at theBurn Hall School inAbbottabad (now theArmy Burn Hall College) and theGordon College inRawalpindi.[11] Nawab Saeed Khan Tanoli ruled for a period of three years.
Salahuddin Saeed Khan Tanoli is the present chief of Tanolis and the titular Nawab of Amb.[citation needed] He is the son of Nawab Muhammad Saeed Khan Tanoli. He holds the record as the youngest parliamentarian ever elected to thePakistan National Assembly, and then went on to be elected five times to the Pakistan National Assembly (from 1985 to 1997), a feat achieved by only seven other Pakistani parliamentarians, including the former Pakistani prime minister,Nawaz Sharif.[12]
| Tenure | Chiefs of Tanawal and later Rulers of Amb (Tanawal)[citation needed] |
|---|---|
| 1772–1803 | (Mir) Haibat Khan Tanoli |
| 1803–1809 | (Mir) Hashim Ali Khan Tanoli (son ofMir Haibat Khan Tanoli and brother toMir Nawab Khan Tanoli, following) |
| 1809–1818 | (Mir) Nawab Khan Tanoli |
| 1818–1844 | (Mir) Painda Khan Tanoli,Maddad Khan Tanoli |
| 1844–1868 | NawabJahandad Khan Tanoli – Amb State founded in 1858 by British government recognition |
| 1868–1907 | NawabMuhammad Akram Khan Tanoli |
| 1907–1936 | NawabKhanizaman Khan Tanoli |
| 1936–1969 | Nawab Muhammad Farid Khan Tanoli – Amb State ended and merged with NWFP Pakistan in 1971–72 |
| 1969–Incumbent | Nawabzada Salahuddin Saeed |
