Mohammad Ali Jinnah (1876-1948) was the first governor general of Pakistan. His great achievement was the organizing of Indian Moslems to demand a separate state, which culminated in the creation of Pakistan, the world's largest Islamic state.

Mohammad Ali Jinnah was born in Karachi, probably on Dec. 25, 1876, although the day is uncertain. His family were merchants and members of the Khoja sect of Moslems. He went to England in 1892 to study law, and after his return in 1896 he practiced in Bombay. He joined the Indian National Congress, giving his support to the moderate faction led by Gopal Krishna Gokhale, whom he greatly admired. Jinnah was also a member of the Moslem League, and he worked for greater Hindu-Moslem unity. He broke with the Congress in 1920 with the advent to leadership of Mahatma Gandhi, whose methods he deplored as unconstitutional and as based on an appeal to the mob...