NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS

 

NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS

 

•        By the end of the third century, the powerful empires established by the Kushanas in the North and the Satavahanas in the Deccan had came to an end.

•        Then Guptas ruled for next two centuries on India.

SOURCES-Information about the Gupta Period is available from both archaeological and literary sources

 

•        ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOURCES

•        The most important archaeological source is the Allahabad Pillar Inscription.

•        Temples, paintings and coins are some other archaeological sources.

•        LITERARY SOURCES

•        The work of Kalidasa

The account of Fa-Hien, Hiuen Tsang, and It-Sing.

SAMUDRAGUPTA

 

•        Son of Chandragupta I, was the greatest ruler.

•        Main source- the Allahabad Pillar Inscription or the Prayag Prashasti.

•        It lists the region conquered by the king. It also mention the ancestors of the king.

•        The Prashasti was composed by Samudragupta’s court poet, HARISENA.

THE PRAYAG PRASHASTI

 

•        The word Prashasti comes from Sanskrit and means in praise of. Court poets often wrote account in which they listed the achievements of the King and praised him. They then engraved such accounts on pillars so that the people could read them. The pillar inscription of Samudragupta is one such Prashasti. They describe the kind hearted nature of the King.

•        In the North Samudragupta defeated 4 powerful Kings and numerous smaller Kings. All these territories were administered directly.

•        Samudragupta defeated 12 rulers of the Deccan and the far South. It was also known as Dakshinapath .These kingdoms were not annexed. The rulers only had to pay an annual tribute and except Samudragupta is there overlord.

•        He defeated many kingdoms of the East such as Nepal, Assam and Bengal. The rulers had to accept his suzerainty and pay him a tribute.

•        Samudragupta also defeated for his tribes of the Vindhya region. These rulers offered tributes and gifts to the King.

Chandragupta II and Later Gupta’s

•        He was the son of Samudragupta. He was also known as Vikramaditya. He defeated the Shakas at took control of the port of Broach , Cambay and Sopara. He was a patron of art and literature. The ‘navratnas’ or ‘ the 9 gems’ lived in his court first stop poet kalidasa was one of them.

•        Fa Hien came to India during Chandragupta reigning period and has written about many other poets, Philosophers and writers. He had also written about the life of the common people.

•        Later gupta’s after the Chandragupta 2, Kumaragupta and Sakandagupta were the powerful Gupta rulers.

•        During the reign of Sakandagupta, the empire was threatened by the Hunas, the nomadic tribe men of the Central Asia. They ended the rule of the dynasty.

 

Post Gupta- After the end of the Gupta. Many kingdoms became powerful in both North and the South. The Kingdom of Harsha was dominant in the North. The Chalukyas ruled in the Deccan. The Pallavas were very powerful in the South.

 

Harshavardhana

•        The breakup of the Gupta empire was followed by a different period of disorder. Small kingdoms fought against one another, finally Harshavardhana conquered the kingdoms and established a powerful empire.

Sources

•        Sources to know about Harsha and the development during his reign from 2 main sources first Harshacharita, the biography of the King written in Sanskrit by his court poet, Banabhatta. The book list the military and cultural achievements of Harsha. The other is the account of Hiuen Tsang, who visited India during his reign. He spent 8 years in the court of Harsha. He had written in detail about the developments. During these years, beside these sources, some archaeological sources were  also found- inscriptions and coins of this time.

Military campaigns

•        Capital of Harsha’s empire was Kannauj. Regions conquered by Harsha- Punjab, Eastern Rajasthan and the whole of the Ganga Valley, up to Assam. He attacked Chalukyan king, Pulakeshin II, but was defeated.

•        Harsha did not annex all the territories that he conquered. He allowed some Kings, whom he defeated, to continue ruling. They accepted Harsha as there overlord and paid him an annual tribute. They also gave him money and soldiers whenever he needed them.

 

Harsha - Patron of Art and Foreign Account

 

•        He was a good writer himself. He wrote 3 plays in Sanskrit- Ratnavali, Priyadarshika and Nagananda.

•        Scholars such as Banabhatta, Subandhu and Dandin lived in his court.

•        Earlier he was a worshiper of Shiva but later he became a Buddhist. He gave money to the University of Nalanda. This University prospered and became famous center of learning. Hiuen Tsang spend many years studying Buddhist texts at Nalanda University.

•        Foreign account

•        Hiuen Tsang Informs us that agriculture was the main occupation of the people in villages. Traders and craftsmen lived in towns. People were simple, honest and very hospitable. Most of the peoples are vegetarian and avoided even a onion and garlic. People are having a rigid caste system. Peop

•         

•        le were divided into numerous caste and subcaste. Untouchables were considered impure.

CHALUKYAS, PULAKESHIN, AND PALLAVAS

 

•        The Chalukyas

•        After the decline of satavahanas many small kingdoms arose in the Deccan. They were succeeded by the Chalukyas and their capital was Vatapi

•        Pulakeshin II

•        He was the most famous Chalukyan ruler main source to get information about him was prashasti of his court poet,  Ravikirti. He inform us that the King defeated Harsha and checked his advance into the Deccan. He also raided the territories of the Pallavas.

•        Hiuen Tsang, during his stay in India visited the court of Pulakeshin II.

•        He was impressed by his administration however chalukyas became weak after the  death of the Pulakeshin II and the Rashtrakutas replaced them.

•        Pallavas

•        Mahendra varman I and Narsimhavarman I  were the two powerful rulers of this dynasty. Narasimhavarman I defeated Pulakeshin II and captured Vatapi.

•        After his victory, he was named as Vatapikonda or the Conqueror of Vatapi. Continuous military conflicts weakend the pallavas. Their role was ended by the cholas in the 9th century.

 

Administration and Revenue

 

•        The King was the head of the administration and Council of Ministers assisted him.

•        Empire was divided into provinces or bhuktis which were taken care by Prince. The provinces were further divided into districts or vishayas. The ayukta administer the districts. Village was the lowest administrative unit. It was look after by the elders of the village.

Now, we will learn about the revenue

•        Agriculture was the main occupation of the people.

•        Much of the revenue came from the land.

•        There were numerous officers to collect the revenue.

•        Merchants and Craftsman also paid taxes

•        Collected money was used to ensure good administration, give grants and donation and maintain the army.

New features

 

•        The administration became decentralized. Local officers were independent of central control. They took decision on their own. In the region of pallavas, there were 2 local assemblies Ur and Sabha. There were also several sub-committees which look after the routine matters of the village such as digging wells, making roads, constructing temples etc.

•        Some administrative positions became hereditary. On many occasions the son succeed to the post help his father.

•        Officers came to be paid in land grants instead of cash. The officers were expected to collect revenue from his land. Whenever there was a weak ruler at the center, they broke away from his control and declared themselves independent.