The Karrani dynasty (Pashto: د کرلاڼيو واکمني, Bengali: কররানী) was founded in 1564 by Taj Khan Karrani, an ethnic Pashtun from the Karlani tribe. It was the last dynasty to rule the Sultanate of Bengal.
Taj Khan was formerly an employee of the Sur Emperor Sher Shah Suri. From 1562 to 1564, Taj Khan captured south-eastern Bihar and west Bengal, and with his assassination of the last Muhammed Shahi ruler, he seized all of Bengal. The capital was at Sonargaon. Taj Khan was followed by Sulaiman Khan Karrani, who shifted the seat of government from Gaurr to Tanda in 1565. In 1568, Sulaiman Khan annexed Orissa to the Karrani sultanate permanently. Nominally he accepted sovereignty of the Mughal Emperor Akbar, and his prime minister Lodi Khan placated the Mughals with gifts and banqueting. Sulaiman Khan's authority extended from Koch Bihar to Puri, and from Son River to Brahmaputra River.
On 25 September 1574, the Mughal general Munim Khan captured the Karrani capital Tanda. The Battle of Tukaroi fought on 3 March 1575 forced Daud Khan Karrani, the last Karrani ruler, to withdraw to Orissa. The battle led to the Treaty of Katak in which Daud ceded the whole of Bengal and Bihar, retaining only Orissa. The treaty eventually failed after the death of Munim Khan who died at the age of 80 in October 1575. Daud Khan took the opportunity and invaded Bengal, declaring independence from Akbar. The Mughal onslaught against the Karrani sultanate ended with the Battle of Rajmahal on 12 July 1576, led by the Mughal general Khan Jahan I. Daud Khan was executed. However, the Pashtuns and the local landlords known as Baro Bhuyans led by Isa Khan continued to resist the Mughal invasion. Later in 1612 during the reign of Jahangir, Bengal was finally integrated as a Mughal province.
- Eaton, Richard (1996). The Rise of Islam and the Bengal Frontier, 1204-1760. University of California Press. p. 140. ISBN 9780520205079. Retrieved October 8, 2012.
- Sengupta, Nitish (2011). Land of Two Rivers: A History of Bengal from the Mahabharata to Mujib. Penguin Books India. p. 126. ISBN 9780143416784. Retrieved October 8, 2012.
- Hasan, Perween (2007). Sultans and Mosques: The Early Muslim Architecture of Bangladesh. I.B.Tauris. p. 18. ISBN 978-1-84511-381-0.
Daud, Sulayman's son took over he started striking his own coins and had his own name read in the khutba, acts tantamount to official declaration of independence ... Daud Khan Karrani was defeated and killed in Rajmahal in 1576 ... However, the zamindars of East Bengal, known as the Baro Bhuiyans, were able to operate as local chieftains ... continuing to defy the Mughals. It was only in 1612, during the reign of Jahangir, that all of Bengal was firmly integrated as a Mughal province.