History Ch- 2

Era of Regional Empire

Introduction

• Indian feudalism was the defining feature behind the emergence of these regional kingdoms.• The practice of donating lands was not only restricted to the petty lords but was also

extended to the Brahmin priests and Buddhist monks for religious purposes.

• These grants were recorded on copper plates and were handed over to those who received the land.

• These grants were largely given by the kings, members of the royal families, etc. As a result of these profusely made land grants, this period gave rise to big landlords or chieftains who came to be known as samantas or subordinates.

• They were not only expected to bring valuable gifts for their kings or overlords but also to remain present at their courts and provide military assistance to them.

• In due course of time, the samantas acquired power and wealth and proclaimed themselves as maha-samanta, maha-mandaleshvara (the great lord of a region or ‘circle’).

• They were always in the look out for the opportunity to free themselves from their overlords and to establish their own kingdoms, for example, the emergence of the Rashtrakutas in the Deccan.

The Rashtrakutas

• The Rashtrakutas were subordinate to the Chalukyas of Karnataka. However, Dantivarman I or Dantidurga, a Rashtrakuta chief, overthrew the rule of Kirtivarman, a Chalukyan king, and laid the foundation of the Rashtrakuta kingdom in Deccan.

• Dantidurga was not a Kshatriya by birth. In order to seek a separate caste identity for himself as a Kshatriya, he performed a ritual known as hiranya-garbha (literally, the golden womb) with the help of Brahmanas

• . His successor Krishna I was a great conqueror. He established the Rashtrakutas as the dominant power in the Deccan.

• Amoghavarsha I was one of the greatest rulers of the Rashtrakuta dynasty. During the 64 years of his rule, there were many rebellions in the empire. Instead of war, he was more inclined towards peace, religion and literature.

• He was a great builder who built the Rashtrakuta capital, the city of Manyakhet or Malkhednear present-day Solapur (in Maharashtra).

• The Rashtrakutas dominated Deccan for almost 200 years. They not only left their mark in the political field but also in the field of administration, art and culture.

Regional Kingdoms of Early Medieval Period of India

Palas

• The Pala Empire was established by Gopala in Eastern India, probably in 750 CE. He not only unified Bengal but also established its supremacy by annexing Magadha (Bihar).

• Devapala was the last powerful Pala ruler. He extended his dominions by conquering Pragjyotishpur (Assam), part of Odisha and part of modern Nepal.

• The death of Devapala and his weak successors caused the disintegration of the empire.

• The Palas played a significant role in reviving cultural and religious traditions.

• According to the Tibetan chronicles, Pala rulers were great patrons of Buddhist learning and religion.

The Pratiharas

• The rise of the Gurjara-Pratiharas (also known as Pratiharas) was the important feature of the early medieval period of India.

• The Pratiharas gave up their traditional occupation and rose to the prominence, by using their military skills, in Rajasthan.

• Nagabhatta I was the earliest prominent king of the Gurjara-Pratihara dynasty.

• The Pratiharas became powerful under the leadership of Mihira Bhoja. He was the real founder of the Pratihara Empire. He rebuilt the empire and recovered Kanaujwhich remained the capital of the Pratiharas for almost a century.

• Mihira Bhoja was a devotee of Vishnu. He adopted the title of ‘Adivaraha’.

• The Pratiharas were great patrons of learning and literature.

• The Pratiharas ruled North India from the early ninth to the middle of the tenth century.

• Repeated defeats at the hands the Rashtrakuta kings led to the downfall of the Pratiharas.

Administration of the Kingdoms

• Many kings of the newly emerged kingdoms adopted elaborate titles such as maharaja-adhiraja, tribhuvana-chakravartin, etc.

• Despite of such claims, the new kings often shared their power not only with the samantas but also with associations of Brahmanas, peasants and even traders.

• In each of these states, peasants, artisans, cattle-keepers were often compelled to surrender a certain part of their produce.

• Sometimes these resources were claimed as ‘rent’ due to overlord who asserted that he was the owner of the land.

• Revenue was even collected from the traders.

• These resources were utilised to finance the king’s establishment, for the constructions of temples as well as forts. They were also used to fight wars.

• Members of influential families were recruited to collect revenue. These positions were often hereditary. This was true about the army as well.

• In many instances, close relatives of the king held these positions.

• Prashastis were composed by learned Brahmanas. They occasionally helped king in the administration. Details contained in

Prashastis may not be literally true but they give us information about how kings wanted to depict themselves.

Tripartite Struggle

• Kanauj was the symbol of sovereignty and a centre of political developments in North India.

• Kanauj, due to its location, became an important centre of trade and commerce. The fertile region of Gangetic valley fostered agriculture.

• The new kingdoms that emerged were equally interested in acquiring control over Kanauj.

• The struggle between three major empires to establish their supremacy over Kanauj is termed as the tripartite struggle by the historians.

• These three empires were the Rashtrakutas, the Palas and the Pratiharas.

• Control over Kanauj, in turn, was of great help to imply the control over the upper Gangetic valley and its rich resources.

• However, the constant struggle weakened the three dynasties and led to their ultimate decline.

Tripartite Struggle

The Rajputs

• The Rajputs dominated the history of North India from the eighth to the twelfth century CE.

• Historians have divergent views about their origin.

• One Rajput clan which left its mark is the Chauhan or the Chahamanarulers.

• The Chauhans arose as vassals of the Gurjara-Pratiharas. PrithvirajChauhan was the famous ruler of Ajmer.

• He was also known as Rai Pithora. The valiant

ruler led resistance against Muhammad Ghori

but was defeated in the Second Battle of Tarain.

Prithivraj Chauhan in Second Battle of Tarain

Case Study-The Cholas

• The Cholas became prominent in the ninth century. The Chola Empire included the large portion of South India.

• Vijayalaya, the founder of the Chola Empire was a Pallava feudatory in the middle of the 9th century CE.

• He captured Tanjavur from Mutthurayaras, a contemporary ruling family and made it his capital.

• There he built a temple to commemorate his accession.

• The successors of Vijayalaya annexed neighbouring territories and expanded the kingdom in size and power.

Rajaraja I

• The Chola power reached its highest point of glory under Rajaraja I and his son Rajendra I. Rajaraja I began his aggressive policy of territorial conquests by destroying the Chera navy and attacked Quilon (present-day Kollam).

• Further, the defeat of the Pandyan king brought Madurai under his control.

• The invasion of Sri Lanka helped him to conquer its northern part. His military achievements also include one of his naval expeditions against Maldives.

• He then overran the Eastern Chalukyas of Vengi.

Rajendra I

• Rajaraja I was succeeded by his son Rajendra I. He was another important ruler of the Choladynasty. He continued his father’s policy of expansion.

• During his rule, the whole of Sri Lanka was annexed and made part of the Chola Empire. He reasserted the Chola supremacy over the Chera and the Pandyan countries.

• One of the remarkable expeditions of Rajendra I was to Bengal.

• The Chola armies crossed river Ganga and defeated the local rulers. To commemorate this successful campaign, he took the title of Gangaikondachola meaning the Chola king who conquered the river Ganga.

• He founded a new capital called Gangaikondacholapuram meaning the city of the Chola king who conquered the river Ganga.

• The greatest of the achievements of Rajendra I was his naval expedition to Sri Vijaya (present-day Indonesia).

• The expedition was undertaken to clear the hindrance caused by Sri Vijaya to Indian traders and to increase trade with China.

• A number of places such as Kadaram (Kedah), Malay Peninsula and Sumatra were occupied.

• The successors of Rajendra I tried to preserve the Chola Empire. But, they continuously fought against each other and weakened themselves.

• Rajendra III was the last Chola ruler who was defeated by the Pandyan king Jatavarman SundaraPandya II and thus, the Chola Empire merged in the Pandya kingdom.

Provincial administration

• The Chola Empire was divided into a number of provinces known as mandalams for the sake of the administrative convenience.

• Each mandalam was divided into valanadus (districts) and then the districts were divided into a group of villages known as nadus.

• The large townships formed a separate administrative unit called taniyur.

• Mandalams were put under the charge of a governor who usually belonged to the royal families.

Mandalam

Valanadu

Nadu

Large Township –

Taniyur

Mandalams were governed usually belonged to the royal

families

Rural administration

• There are a number of inscriptions throwing light on the rural government of the CholaEmpire.

• Their rural administration had three types of assemblies, namely, the ur, the sabha or mahasabha and the nagaram.

• The ur was a general assembly of common villages, which included land holders of all classes of people.

• The sabha was restricted to the villages with Brahmin settlements where land belonged to the Brahmins.

• They often received land grants known as brahmadeya, which were rent free.

• The nagaram was an assembly found in important trade centres catering to the needs and interests of traders and merchants.

• This remarkable self-government system which existed during the Chola period worked in other villages as well to some extent. The degree of autonomy enjoyed at the village level was very noteworthy.

Agriculture and irrigation

• Agricultural prosperity depends on the available water supply.

• The Cholas paid attention to the irrigation system.

• Rivers such as the Kaveri were utilised for irrigation purpose.

• Embankments were built to prevent flooding and many canals, dams, tanks and wells were constructed.

Revenue system

• Land revenue was the important source of state income. Revenue was collected in cash or in kind.

• The residential part of the village (called ur nattam) and other lands such as lands belonging to the temples, tanks, channels passing through the villages, etc. were exempted from taxes. Besides land revenue, other sources of public income were tolls, variety of professional taxes, house tax, taxes on mines and forests, plunder of the neighbouring territories, etc. along with trade and commerce.

Temple Architecture

• The period of Chola Empire marks a glorious period in the history of South Indian temple architecture. The style of architecture that was at its peak during the time of Cholas is called Dravida. The Temple of Kailasanath at Kanchipuram, the Brihadeshvara Temple at Tanjavurbuilt by Rajaraja I, theTemple at Gangaikondacholapuram are some of the finest examples of

temple architecture under the Cholas.

Sculptures

• The art of sculpture achieved a high standard in south India during the Chola period. The sculpture at the Brihadeshvara Temple, Tanjavur can be regarded as the most matured example of Chola workmanship. The Chola craftsperson excelled at making of bronze images. We can find images of deities and even of devotees. The bronze dancing figure of Lord Shiva, called Nataraja, exhibits the great artistic skills in bronze casting and making idols.

Inscriptions

• The Chola inscriptions stand as source of interesting information as they give a vivid picture about donation of land, titles, their conquests and important events, genealogies, etc.

• The copper plate inscriptions are broad sheets of copper on which the information engraved or embossed. They are tied together with a thick ring crowned by the seal of the dynasty.

• The Chola inscriptions are also of a great help to study the social, economic and political life of the Chola Empire. For instance, inscriptions of Uttaramerur in Chingleput district, Tamil Nadu, provide details of the local self-government and village assemblies.