Syed Ameer Ali, Order of the Star of India, was an Indian/British Indian jurist hailing from the state of Oudh from where his father moved and settled down in the Bengal Presidency.
He was a prominent political leader, and author of a number of influential books on Muslim history and the modern development of Islam, he is credited for his contributions to the Law of India, particularly Muslim Personal Law, as well as the development of political philosophy for Muslims, during the British Raj.
Ameer Ali was a signatory to the 1906 Petition to the Viceroy and was thus a founding member of the All India Muslim League. He played a key role in securing separate electorates for the Muslims in British India and promoting the cause of the Khilafat Movement.
His family took advantage of the educational facilities provided by the British government but was otherwise shunned by the Muslim community.
With the assistance of his British teachers and supported by several competitive scholarships, he achieved outstanding examination results, graduating from Calcutta University in 1867, and gaining an MA degree with Honours in history in 1868.
The LLB degree followed quickly in 1869. He then began legal practice in Calcutta. By this time, he was already one of the few outstanding Muslim achievers of his generation.
After moving to London, where he stayed between 1869 and 1873, he joined the Inner Temple (professional associations for barristers and judges) and made contacts with some people of London.
He founded the political organisation, Central National Muhammedan Association, in Calcutta in 1877. This association later spread nationwide with 34 branches from Madras to Karachi.
This made him the first Muslim leader to put into practice the need for such an organisation due to the belief that efforts directed through an organisation would be more effective than those originating from an individual leader.
Syed Ameer Ali established the London Muslim League in 1908This organisation was an independent body and not a branch of the All India Muslim League.
Syed Ameer Ali believed that the Muslims as a downtrodden nation could get more benefit from loyalty to the British rather than from any opposition to them.
For this reason, he called upon his followers to devote their energy and attention to popularising English education among Muslims. This perception and consequent activism have been known as the Aligarh Movement.
