Canberra, 16 May 2021 The Southern Peninsula of the Indian sub-continent, lying to the south of the Rivers Narmada and Mahanadi can be divided into five principal parts—Dravid, Carnatic, Telangana, Gondwana and Maharashtra. The territorial extent of each of these parts is normally defined based on the spread of the language that is spoken in […]
Continue readingPart 42 THE RAJPUT CLANS Section II: Early Rajput Kingdoms
Canberra, 2 August 2015 The second half of 8th century saw two critical developments in the Indian political scenario, which were to have profound influence on the next thousand years of political growth in the sub-continent. The first was the rise of regionalisation. During this period, a large number of regional kingdoms, of varying sizes, […]
Continue readingPart 42 THE RAJPUT CLANS Section I: The Origins
Canberra, 7 July 2015 The death of Emperor Harsha Vardhana, and a little later the early Islamic invasions, stirred the affairs of North India. Internecine wars with kings and clan leaders of limited merit and vision scrambling for power, created a sense of disquiet and instability. In fact instability dominated North India across the great […]
Continue readingIndian History Part 32 Chalukyas of Badami Section V: DECLINE AND FALL
Singapore, 14 October 2014 Vinayaditya came to power after the death of his father, the great Vikramaditya I, and ruled an empire that was at peace with its neighbours. The focus of his rule was on building the kingdom back to its glory and to bring back the prosperity that was an acknowledged part of […]
Continue readingIndian History Part 30 Section III: THE GAHADAVALAS OF KANAUJ
Canberra, 3 July 2014 Kanauj, Harsha-Vardhana’s famous capital, was also known as Gadhipur and there are disparate evidences that indicate Rashtrakuta rule of Kanauj and surrounding areas around the 10th/11th century. An inscription found in Badaun that is attributed to the Rashtrakuta king Lakhanapala who ruled around 1201, states in part, ‘…the city of Badaun, […]
Continue readingIndian History Part 30 Section II THE RASHTRAKUTAS –SECONDARY BRANCHES
Canberra, 25 June 2014 The extent of the power of the Rashtrakutas is demonstrated through the large spread of their kingdom and the number of off-shoot dynasties that they spawned. Taken together, the Rashtrakuta kingdoms covered almost the entire sub-continent at some time or the other, barring a few smaller kingdoms in the far-south and […]
Continue readingPart 29 A DESCEND INTO ANARCHY: KANAUJ, KASHMIR AND SIND
Canberra, 25 May 2014 Harsha-Vardhana’s death removed the last vestiges of restraint that had held back the disruptive forces that were knocking on the walls of the Empire. In an amazingly short span of time numerous petty states with volatile and flexible borders, ruled by ambitious and ruthless kings or chiefs were created—the entire region […]
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