McLeod Ganj

The region finds references in ancient Hindu scriptures such as Rig Veda and Mahabharata. There are mentions of the region by Pāṇini in 4th century BC and by Chinese traveler Heun Tsangduring the reign of king Harshavardhana in 7th century AD.The indigenous people of the Dharamshala area (and the surrounding region) are the Gaddis, a predominantly Hindu group who traditionally lived a nomadic or semi-nomadic transhumant lifestyle.^[6]

The region was subject to attacks from Mahmud of Ghazni in 1009 and Firuz Shah Tughlaq in 1360. In 1566, Akbar captured the region and brought it under the Mughal rule. As the mughal rule disintegrated, Sikh chieftain Jai Singh brought the region to his control and gave it to Sansar Chand of Katoch dynasty, legitimate Rajput prince in 1785. Gurkhas invaded and captured the region in 1806 before being defeated by Ranjit Singh in 1809. The Katoch dynasty was reduced to status of jagirdars under the treaty of Jawalamukhi signed between Chand and Singh in 1810. Post the death of Chand, Ranjit singh annexed the region into the Sikh empire.