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Summary
Ancient India Class 10

Last class revision (5:08 PM)

Chalukyas (5:34 PM)

  • There are 3 branches of Chalukya- Chalukyas of Badami/Vatapi, Chalukyas of Vengi(Eastern Chalukyas), and Chalukyas of Kalyan/Western Chalukyas.
  • All of these branches were related to each other.
  • Badami Chalukya:
  • The earliest known ruler of Badami Chalukyas was Jaysimha.
  • The other rulers were Pulakeshin-I, Kritivarman, and Mangalesh.
  • The greatest ruler of the dynasty was Pulakeshin-II(contemporary to Harshavardhan).
  • Pulakeshin-II:
  • Information about Pulakeshin-II mainly comes from the Aihole inscription written by the court poet of Pulakeshin-II Ravikriti.
  • Chalukya's kingdom reached its zenith during his reign.
  • He is most famous for stopping Harshvardhan on the banks of river Narmada.
  • Later he defeated Pallava king Mahendravarman, however, he was defeated by Narasimhavarman.
  • Son of Pulakeshin-II,  Vikramaditya-I attacked Kanchi and this led to the decline of the power of Pallavas.
  • This victory was however shortlived, the last Chalukya ruler Kritivarman-II was defeated by Dantidurga(founder of the Rashtrakuta empire).
  • Significance of Badami Chalukyas:
  • Chalukya rulers patronized Hinduism but remained tolerant of Buddhism and Jainism.
  • Along with Sanskrit, Kannada and Telugu literature also prospered.
  • They were the great builders of temples, for example, the Vesara style of architecture which is a combination of Nagara and Dravida styles flourished during this period.
  • The temples of Pattadakal are part of the UNESCO world heritage sites.

Tripartite struggle/ Kannauj Triangle (6:03 PM)

  • A Series of wars occurred among 3 kingdoms where the city of Kannauj was popularly known as the Tripartite struggle/ Kannauj Triangle.
  • These 3 kingdoms were Rashtrakutas, Palas, and Pratiharas.
  • At the end of the struggle, Pratiharas emerged victorious, however, Pratihara's kingdom gradually declined.

MCQ discussion related to Previous classes (6:07 PM)

Rashtrakutas empire (8th-10th century) (7:06 PM)

  • They claimed themself to be descendent of Satyaki.
  • Their mother tongue was Kannada and initially, they were feudatories of Chalukyas.
  • The empire was founded by Danditdurga in 735 AD.
  • Krishna-I started the construction of the Kailash temple at Ellora.
  • Some other important kings were Govind-I, Govind-II, Govind-III, and Druv.
  • The greatest king of the dynasty was Amoghavarsha.
  • Amoghavarsha(814-878 AD):
  • He is often called Ashoka of the south because of his focus on peace and prosperity.
  • He set up a new capital at Manyakheta.
  • He converted to Jainism under a Jain monk Jinasena.
  • An Arab merchant Suleiman called him one of the 4 greatest kings of the world along with the kings of Baghdad, China, and Constantinople.
  • Significance of Rashtrakutas:
  • They patronized both Kannada and Sanskrit languages.
  • Amoghavarsha himself was a great poet who wrote Kavirajamarga in Kannada.
  • The greatest poet of Kannada literature Pampa lived during this period.
  • Pampa is most famous for his work Vikramarjuna Vijaya.
  • In architecture, both Ellora and Elephanta cave architecture were constructed during this time.
  • They also maintained trade relationships with Arab merchants.

Palas (8-10th century) (7:22 PM)

  • There was anarchy in Bengal after the death of Harshavardhan.
  • In 750 AD Gopal founded the Pala dynasty.
  • This period is often called the golden age of Bengali literature.
  • Some of the notable rulers were, Dharmapala, who founded Vikramshila university at Bhagalpur, Bihar.
  • Devpala is considered one of the greatest kings who defeated Rastrakutas, he was a Buddhist who build many monasteries and temples in Magadha.
  • The king of Java, Balputradev sent an ambassador to his court.
  • The last powerful king was Rampala.
  • Snadhyakar Nandin wrote Ramcharitra which is written in Shlesha and significances one statement with more than one meaning, this book tells the story of lord Ram and Pala king Rampala.
  • Significance of the Pala Dynasty:
  • They patronized Nalanda and Vikramshila university.
  • They started miniature painting in India.
  • They are considered the last patron of Buddhism in India.

Pratiharas (7:38 PM)

  • The term Pratihara means doorkeeper.
  • The ruler considered the epic hero Laxman as their hero.
  • It was founded by Nagbhatta in about 730 AD.
  • He was able to resist attacks from Arabs.
  • Some notable rulers were Vatsaraj and Nagbhatta-II.
  • Mihir Bhoja(836-885 AD) is considered the greater ruler of the dynasty.
  • Initially, he was defeated by Rashtrakutas and Palas, but later he was very successful and emerged victorious in Kannauj.
  • He was an ardent follower of Vaishnavism and took the title of Adivaraha.
  • He was called king Baura by an Arab traveller Al-Masudi.
  • By the 11th century the might of Pratihara declined and later because of attacks by Mahmud of Ghazni, the dynasty came to end.

The Ancient syllabus is over.