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Gupta Empire

1. The Kushan Power in North India came to an end.
2. In about AD 275, the Gupta dynasty came to power.
3. Sri Gupta founded this dynasty and ruled from AD 275- 300.
4. Ghatotkacha succeeded Sri Gupta.
5. The rise of the Gupta dynasty and is regarded as an important event in Indian history.
6. Under the Gupta kings, India made such a progress in almost every field that it is regarded as the ‘Golden Age’.
7. AD 320 is considered as the establishment of Gupta empire by various historians.

Chandragupta 1 (320 - 335 A.D)

1. Ghatotkacha was succeeded by his son Chandragupta 1(in about AD 320), who assumed the title of Maharajadhiraja.He ruled the regions of Magadha and Kosala.
2. Chandragupta 1 was the first important ruler of this dyansty. He extended the boundaries of his kingdom and adopted the title of ‘ Maharajadhiraj’ or the ‘King or Kings’.
3. handraGupta 1 entered into matrimonial alliance with the famous Lichchavi tribe and married Kumardevi.

Samudragupta (A.D. 335 - 375)

1. Chandragupta 1 was succeeded by his illustrious son Samudragupta one of the ablest kings of ancient India.
2. In the north, he extended his empire upto the Chambal river by defeating theNaga Kings of Mathura, Gwalior and Ahichhatra.He subjugated the kingdoms of Bengal, Assam,Nepal and  the erritories farther west, as well as number of republican clans (gan sangh) including the  Malavas, the yaudheyas, the Arjunyanas, the Abhiras in Punjab and Rajasthan, and several minor ones in Madhya Pradesh.
3. Samudragupta maintained friendly relations with neighbouring states like those of the Sakas, the Kushanas, the Shahis of the Punjab and the king of Sri Lanka, namely, Megha Varman.
4. Samudragupta was a great conqueror and he rightly deserves to be called the ‘Indian Napoleon’. 
5. Harisena was a famous court poet of Samudraguta.The king himself was also a great patron and lover of art and literature as well. He was a great musicians and an expert Veena player. He assumed the titles of Vikramanka and Kaviraja.

Chandragupta II (375-414 AD)

1. Chandragupta II the son and successor of Samudragupta, was another powerful ruler of the Gupta dynasty. He is popularly known as Vikramaditya ( or power of sun) and is often identified with Vikramaditya of Ujjain who patronised the famous Nav Ratnas.
2. His greatest achievement was to destroy the power of the Sakas of Malva, Gujarat and Saurashtra.
3. He defeated Saka ruler Rudra Simha III. It ended the Saka rule from India. He took the title of’Sakari’.

Kumar Gupta I and Skand Gupta :

1. Dhruvaderr’s son Kumar Gupta I Mahendraditya succeeded his father around AD 415. he kept the empire intact.
2. A number of inscrptions shed light on Kumara Gupta’s efficent administration and the deep love that the people had for him. But in the last years of Kumara Gupta I, the peace and prosperity of the empire was distrubed due to internal dissension and external invasions.Among the chief enemies were the new invaders called the Hunas.
3. During the war with the Hunas Kumar Gupta died, and Skanda Gupta (454 - 467) assumed power He succeeded in re - establishing the Gupta empire, and by the end of 455 it was again at peace. But after his death the great days of the Guptas were over. 

Decline :

1. The line of succession after Skanda Gupta is uncertain. Puru Gupta, Budha Gupta succeeded the throne but were not successful. The internal dissension continued.

The Gupta Administration :

1. The period of Imperial Guptas has often been described as the golden age of ancient India.
2. All the powers were concentrated with the king. A council of ministers and several civil officials assisted the king. The king decided all disputes and provided justice to the people. In general, punishments were light and mild.
3. The greater part of income was spent on works of public welfare. Land revenue which was the chief source was generally fixed at one- sixth of the produce.
4. The country was divided into several provinces(bhuktis) which  were further divided into a number of districts(visyas). the local units enjoyed much liberty and independence.
5. The king adopted pompous titles such as ‘parameshvara’, maharajadhiraj’. This implies that they ruled over lesser kings.
6. The royal seal bore the imprint of ‘garuda’

Economy :

• In ancient India, the Guptas issued the largest number of gold coins , which were called ‘ dinaras’in their inscriptions but they were not a common currency. After the conquest of Gujarat, the Guptas issued a good number of silver  coins, mainly for local exchange. Cowries, according to Fa- Hsien, became a common medium of exchange.

Society and Religion :

• The brahamanas became richer because of land grants, and claimed many privileges.
• There was a great increase in the number of castes and sub- castes with the large scales absorption of foreigners and  tribals.    
• The position of ‘Shudras’ improves slightly.
• Women’s position declined. Formal education and inheritance of property was not allowed to women.
• By the sixth century, vishnu became a member of the trinity of gods along with Siva and Brahma.
• Religious toleration was, however, prevalent.
• The Shakti cult (Mother Goddess) gave rise to worship goddesses like Lakshmi, Paravati, Durga.

Fa-Hien and His Account of India :

• Fa-Hien was a great scholar, He left China in A.D. 399. His purposes was to visit the holy places of the Buddha. He visited Mathura, Kashi, Nalanda and Kapilvastu.
• He collected many Buddhist books. He stayed at Patliputra for more than three years. He wrote about Gupta Empire.
• Buddhists and Hindus lived in peace.
• Higher education was given importance during the Gupta period.
• Nalanda was an important centre for Buddhist learning Indian as well as foreign students flocked to these centres for advanced studies.
• People were vegetarian and followed the principle of Ahimsa.

Literature

• This period is particularly renowned for advancement in literature. Sanskrit once again became popular.
• The Guptas made it their court language and even the Buddhist scholars preferred Sanskrit to Pali.
• Kalidas, the greatest poet dramatist, enriched the Sanskrit language. His plays Abhijanashakuntalam, Vikramorvashi and Malvikagnimitra are the gems of Sanskrit literature. Abhijanashakuntalam has been transfered into several languages of the world. He also wrote an epic Raghuvamsa and lyrics Ritusamhara and Meghaduta.
• Panchtantra, a wonderful collection of animal fables was also written during this period.

Science and Technology

• Great progress was also made in the fields of astronomy, mathematics and astrology.
• Aryabhatta, the famous astronomer and mathematician of this period, wrote in detail about the solar and lunar eclipses and discovered that the earth spins on the axis and revolves around the sun.
• Varahamihira was another astronomer who has thrown light on various aspects  of botany, geography, etc. In his book Brihat Samhita.
• Great physicians like Brahmagupta, Vagbhatta and Dhanvantari also adorned this era.
• The Iron pillar at Mehrauli testifies the advancement the field of technology during the Gupta period.

Architecture

• The Gupta period  lso saw great advancement in the field of architecture.
• In the history of temple architecture, the Gupta period was in a formative and creative age. The importance styles were Nagara and Dravida.
• A large number of beautiful temples with the Shikhanand were built during this period.
• The walls of the Ajanta Caves are covered with beautiful fresco-paintings  (Bodhistava) which till this date look fresh, as if they have been painted recently.
• The rock cut architecture of the period is represented by the two conventional types – the chaitya and the vihara. They are mostly found at Ajanta, Ellora and Bagh.
• For the first time in the Gupta period we get images of Vishnu, Shiva and some other Hindu gods.
• The university at Nalanda was set up in the fifth century, and its earliest structrue, made of brick, belongs to this period.

Trade and Commerce:-

• Trade with the countries of South-East Asia such as Burma Java, Cambodia, etc., was carried through Tamralipti and other sea-ports on the east coast of India
• India had also established trade relations with the countries of the west, sepcially the Roman empire. Sea-ports on the west coast, such as Broach, Combay and Sopara, handled trade with the western countries.
• India goods were taken to Africa, Arabia, Iran and Mediterranean lands from the ports of the Malabar coast, such as Calicut and Cochin.

Reasons For Decline:-

• Chandragupta II had successors who were weak, inefficient and incapable of keeping the kingdom  under their control.
• Land grants in lieu of cash proved to be a set back for the empire as this made the officials strong.
• When the kings were weak, the governors of provinces revolted and broke away.
• The attacks by the Hunas, a nomadic tribe from Central Asia weakened the empire and led to its decline.