Government College University, Lahore as a college, is older than any other college or university in Pakistan. Under the British Raj the college was opened on January 1, 1864 in a portion of the Palace of Raja Dhyan Singh Haveli. The institution was affiliated with Calcutta University for examination. Along with the establishment of the college, Gottlieb Wilhelm Leitner (professor of Arabic and Mohammedan Law at King's College in London) was nominated as principal of college. He later was instrumental in the foundation of Punjab University, Lahore in 1882. The first class consisted of 9 students, all of whom matriculated from Calcutta University. In April 1871, the college moved to its present site. In 1996, it received autonomous status; on September 9, 2002, it became a university.


