Major Political Powers - Palas, Pratiharas AND Rashtrakutas PDF

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Many dynasties arose after the Gupta Empire's demise in the sixth century A.D., including the Maukhris of Kanauj and the Pushpbhutis of Thanesar. After the death of his brother-in-law, the Maukhri ruler of Kanauj, Harshavardhana, a member of the Thanesar family of Pushpbhutis, became ruler of Kanauj...

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MAJOR POLITICAL POWERS : PALAS, PRATIHARAS AND RASHTRAKUTAS Many dynasties arose after the Gupta Empire's demise in the sixth century A.D., including the Maukhris of Kanauj and the Pushpbhutis of Thanesar. After the death of his brother-inlaw, the Maukhri ruler of Kanauj, Harshavardhana, a member of the Thanesar family of Pushpbhutis, became ruler of Kanauj. Though Kanauj's political fortunes fluctuated frequently, it was the imperial centre of North Indian politics for several centuries after Harhavardhana established it as the capital of his empire. In other words, the balance of political power was being shifted from the East to the West. Kanauj replaced Pataliputra as the political centre of North India, a shift that occurred during the reigns of both the Mauryas and Guptas. We will focus primarily on the political history of North India's major regional powers in this unit. We'll get into the nitty-gritty of how various historians have conceptualised the process of polity formation. First, it is important to know the history of these regions and their rulers, and the battles they won and lost in early mediaeval times. Let's take a look at Bengal first. The Maurya and Gupta dynasties had previously ruled Bengal. A significant role for Bengal in Indian political history was unknown for long stretches of its early history, even after the fall of the Guptas. Between the years of 606 and 637 A.D., Sasanka was the first significant ruler of Bengal. He is regarded as the first king of Bengal to have been recorded in the region's history. In addition, he was the first in this region to extend his political control to areas outside of Bengal's borders. His capital, Karnasuvarna (near Murshidabad), had become the capital of the Bengali Empire, and he may have extended his rule to Orissa. Even though Kanauj was ruled by the Maukhari dynasty at the time, he made a move towards it. The success of Sasanka's military exploits led to a rise in hostility between him and Thanesar's rulers. Despite his best efforts, Harshavardhana, the future king of Thanesar, was unable to overthrow Sasanka. After the death of Sasanka, Harsha was able to take over the empire. After the death of Sasanka, Bengal's political fortunes took a turn for the worse. Yasovarman of Kanauj and Laitaditya of Kashmir, and perhaps the king of Kamrupa, were the first to attack it. There was a decrease in central authority and an increase in independent chiefs as the result of this change. Because of the general anarchy, it appears that the chiefs chose a person named Gopala to rule the entire kingdom. One of Bengal's most important rulers, Gopala, consolidated his rule and brought stability and prosperity to his homeland. However, it is widely accepted that he ascended to the throne sometime in the second half of the 8th century A.D. Dharmpala, his son, took the throne after his father's death in 780 A.D. Dharmpala, according to R.C. Majumdar, was one of the greatest Bengali kings of all time, and he elevated the state's reputation to new heights. During the famous three-way struggle to establish control over Northern India, Dharmpala played an extremely important role in the Palas, Pratiharas, and Rashtrakutas. Actually, for some time, he held the highest position in the region of North India. RC Majumdar claims that Dharmpala spent his entire life in military campaigns, according to his sources. After being defeated by the Pratiharas and Rashtrakutas, he went on to establish an empire that encompassed a large portion of Northern India. Most information about his reign comes from copper plate inscriptions found in Khalimpur, which are located there. Dharmpala is well-known not only for his military exploits, but also for his support of Buddhism. Many Buddhist monasteries were

founded by him, but it was the Vikramshila University, which he founded, that brought him the most attention. Devapala, the son of Dharmpala, ruled for about 40 years after his father's death. According to R.C. Majumdar, his fame had spread to the Indian Archipelago's far-flung islands. A powerful king, Devapala, also emerged. Devapala was the last of the Pala dynasty's powerful rulers. Vigrahapala, who ruled for only a short time after him, was his successor. Vigrahapala is said to have preferred a life of abstinence to a career in the military. His successor Narayanapala saw the end of the Palas' illustrious rule, which had been established by the Palas. Dharmpala and Devapala, two of the Pala kings, achieved notoriety and renown as a result of their victories in the infamous Tripartite conflict. The Pratiharas, Palas, and Rashtrakutas were engaged in a war to take control of Kanauj, the imperial capital, and the rest of northern India. Pratihara king Vatsaraja, who ruled Rajputana and Central India at the same time as the Palas, had established a powerful monarchy in Bengal. During this time, the Palas were expanding to the west. Toward the east, the Pratiharas were extending their empire. As a result, there was bound to be a conflict between the two powers. The Palas seemed to have extended their empire at least as far as Allahabad by the time of the first encounter between the two. At the time, it's not clear who the Pala king was. Gopala or Dharmpala could have been the culprit. Rashtrakuta rulers, who had already established their supremacy in the Deccan, were attempting to extend their control over North India at the same time. Dhruva, the Rashtrakuta king, crossed the Vindhyas and defeated Vatsaraja, the Pratihara king, before going on to defeat Dharmpala. The Tripartite struggle for supremacy between the Palas, Pratiharas, and Rashtrakutas began with this encounter in the Ganga Yamuna doab. Dhruva's death sparked chaos in the Rashtrakuta kingdom, despite the fact that the Rashtrakutas had achieved total victory in the beginning. Twelve South Indian kings had formed an alliance against Dhruva's eldest son, Govinda III. With this development, both Palas and Pratiharas took advantage of the time off. Dharmpala was the quicker of the two to recover. Suzerainty was recognised by nearly all of North India's most important states because of this. He was able to seize control of Kanauj and install his own candidate as king. At Kanauj, he convened a large imperial assembly attended by many vassal kings. Consecrated himself as the overlord of Northern India in this gathering. This was the period when Dharmpala's suzerainty was recognised in the Central Punjab region, and it may have even reached the Sindhu and Kangra valleys, as well as the East Punjab region, Jaipur, Malwa, and possibly Berar.. According to his imperial assembly's guest list, he had a large number of vassal chiefs present. In the wake of this event, Bengal emerged from the obscurity of North India and became a dominant force in the region. An empire stretching from North India to the East to Central India was established by King of Bengal. Given the ever-changing nature of political control during this period, this situation could not last long. Nagabhatta, the son and successor of Vatsaraja, led the Pratiharas in their recovery from the adversity they had been in. When Nagabhatta fought and defeated Dharmpala's nominee for the throne of Kanauj, it led to an all-out war between the two of them. During a

battle with Dharmpala, Nagabhatta was the victor. In the aftermath of this victory, Nagabhatta gained control of a large portion of Dharmpala's territory. Dharmpala probably enlisted the help of Rashtrakuta king Govinda III to halt Nagabhatta's advances in this situation. As a response to this or on his own, Govinda III launched a military campaign in northern India. As a result, Nagabhatta, who was powerless to resist, was forced to flee. The Rashtrakutas overran his territory and then moved north. He had established an empire that stretched from the South to the North, but internal dissensions within it thwarted his efforts. Dharmpala came out on top in this situation. He appears to have reclaimed a large portion of his empire. His son, Devapala, became the undisputed ruler of a large part of North India at the time of his death in 815 A.D. Dravidas and Gurjaras and Hunas are alleged to have been defeated by him, and Utkala and Kamarupa are said to have been conquered. An epic poem written for a court of Emperor Ashoka depicted his empire as encompassing all of India, stretching from Himalayas to Vindhyas and from Bay of Bengal to Arabian Sea. In our previous discussion, we noted that the Palas' power began to wane after the reign of Devapala. The Palas ruled as a regional power in Eastern India from this point on. Kalachuris, Chandellas and Rashtrakutas regularly invaded and occasionally raided their territory, which they occasionally conquered. Late in the 10th century, the Kambojas occupied North and West Bengal. This allowed the Kalachuris to advance as far as Mithila against the Palas. Rajendra Chola, the Chola king, and a Chalukya king all invaded Pala territories at the same time. During the reign of Mahipala I, king of the Palas, he successfully defended his kingdom against the Kalachuris, Cholas, and Chalukyas, as well as the Kambojas. There were several independent chiefs in South and West Bengal, who were not under the Palas' control. Mahipala's son Nayapala and his son Vigrahapala III continued to wage war against the Kalachuris of Tripuri, despite Mahipala's death in battle. During the reign of Mahipala II, Vigrahapala III's son, the country went through many upheavals. Some of the lords of the vassal realms rebuked him. However, these vassals defeated Mahipala II and killed him. It was an official from Kaivarta caste who established control over North Bengal. Divya Brothers Surapala II and Ramapala fled to Magadha for safety. Ramapala took over after Surapala II's death, but by this point, nearly all of Bengal was no longer under the control of the Palas. Varman kings ruled over East Bengal, while the Kaivarta chief, Divya, ruled over the North Bengal region. They were ruled by various independent chiefs who may or may not have acknowledged the Palas' authority over Bengal. In order to reclaim North Bengal, Ramapala enlisted the help and support of a large number of chiefs, who helped him defeat and kill the son of Divya. The Varman ruler of East Bengal was also forced to submit to Ramapala's authority by Ramapala himself. Kamarupa and the Gahadavalas were also conquered by him. The politics of Orissa were also a subject of his interest. As a result, Ramapala was able to restore the Pala kingdom's power and prestige to a large degree. Kumarapala and Madanapala, his two sons, ruled the Pala dynasty until it disintegrated. The Senas, a new dynasty in West Bengal, arose while Madanapala was defending his kingdom from invasions. Vijayasena, who defeated Madanapala and conquered Bengal, was the dynasty's first notable ruler. While the Pala king still ruled over a portion of Magadha, the Assamese and Mithila regions were conquered by him. Ballalasena, the son of

Vijayasena, succeeded his father as king. He succeeded Ballalasena, a powerful king and scholar, with his son Lakshmanasena. An illustrious military career was enjoyed by Lakshmanasena, whose reign began in 1178 AD. The Gahadavalas fought against him, but he was able to advance as far as Banaras and Allahabad, as well as a large portion of Bihar. Scholar and poet patron, Lakshmanasena was also a well-educated man. Sena dynasty ended with him, and Bengal was handed over to the Turkish rulers of Delhi. Political developments in Orissa, an important regional kingdom with a distinct regional tradition, will now be examined. It is well known that Sasanka conquered Orissa. Harsha seized control of Orissa after the death of Sasanka. During the Sailodbhava dynasty's reign, around the middle of the seventh century A.D., Sainyabhit Madhavavarman, the ruler, declared his country's independence. The Sailodbhava dynasty ruled over Kongoda, a region extending from Chilka Lake to Mahendragiri Mountain in the Ganjam district of India. This dynasty remained Sasanka's feudatory after he conquered Orissa. You may be wondering how to make sense of all these dynastic accounts, battles, victories, and defeats after reading this brief summary of early mediaeval political events in North India. Because history is more than just a list of political events, it's important to understand how political and economic systems change over time. These snippets of dynastic histories of the various regions, then, are of no use to a modern historian. Well, as BD. Chattopadhyay points out, "Even the seemingly bewildering variety in details of the political history of early mediaeval India—the absurdly long genealogies, the inflated records... of microscopic kingdoms, the rapidity of the rise and fall... are ultimately manifestations of the way in which the polity evolved in the period and thus is worthy, not so much of cataloguation but of serious analysis."...