Shewa, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Shewa is a town and Union Council of Swabi District in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. It holds an altitude of 340 metres (1118 feet).

The present Shewa village situated in the Swabi district of the Pukhtoonkhwa province of Pakistan is actually the erstwhile Khanate of Shewa. Shewa Khanate was ruled by the Khans of Shewa belonging to the Khadarzai branch of the Yousafzai tribe of Pukhtoons. Shewa has a glorious history and is a part of the Indus civilisation. About Ranighat, the ruins of a castle built by some Rani (princess) as the legend has it, has a history that dates back before Christ. Shewa is also the home to Yousaf Khan Sherbano, the Romeo and Juliet of the Pukhtoonkhwa, and Nawakali the adjoining area of Shewa is the home town of the great warrior Capt. Colonel Sher Khan (Nishan0e-Haider) who received the highest military award of gallantry from Pakistan army and the only one to receive it so far from Pukhtoonkhwa.

The Khan family of Shewa has produced great politicians, generals, civil servants and professionals over time. The Sikh army of Ranjit Singh met the most stiff resistance by Mishkar Khan the then Khan of Shewa, and was hailed as a lion, who chases the Sikhs like a lion chases his prey, as narrated by Hari Singh Nalwa the sikh general of Ranjit singh, to his master. Ranjit Singh offered him a huge state for ending up the resistance but he refused and received martyrdom while fighting, along with his ten brothers. Khan Sher Mohammad Khan was a prominent civil servant and political agent in the British era, his younger brothers Khan Fateh Mohammad Khan was the first G.M of Pakistan railways and the country's one of the most brilliant Federal ministers for communication in Ayub Khan's cabinet later, with other portfolios in between and after. He had strong relations with the King of England, Shah of Iran, Emperor of Japan, King Abdullah of Jordon and President Kennedy of USA. F M Khan donated a part of his estate for the social services in Shewa. Khan Sultan Mohammad khan of Shewa was a prominent lawyer of Pakistan, the President of the Peshawar High court Bar association and the first person to represent Pakistan in the UNO. He decided to contest the elections for the presidential elections in Pakistan but later backed off his decision for Fatimah Jinnah's honour. Air Vice Marshal Yousaf Khan, Taimur Khan (A high official in the Pakistan Air Force), Dr.Latif Khan (A prominent surgeon in the UK) and Khanzada Umer Farooq Khan (The NA candidate for PPP) also belong to the Shewa family. Usman Khan Shewa is pursuing his doctorate from Austria presently, whereas Amir Khan Shewa is managing an organisation in Uganda. Khanzada Mohammad Shahzad Khan sahib(The present Khan of Shewa) attended the Aitchison College Lahore, and is a London educated lawyer, he is an excellent horseman and takes interest in hunting. He is presently a practicing lawyer in the Lahore High court, Pakistan.