India’s First Empire

the first india empire was the The Maurya Empire (322–185 BCE). It was the first empire and largest subcontinent.the empire established by Chandragupta Maurya in Magadha (in modern Bihar).

The maurya empire

during the 4th and 3rd centuries BCE most of the  subcontinent was conquered by the Maurya Empire. chandragupta maurya was born on powerful kindom of magda which is  centerd on the lower ganges river.before maurya the kingdom was ruled by a nanda dynasty .In 321 B.C Chandragupta Maurya, with the help of Chanakya, defeated the Magadha king  nanda .claimed the throne.And began the mauryan empire

chandragupta unifies the north india .He moved northwest and seize all the land from magdha to the indus. Around 305 b.c chandragupta start the battle seleucus because seleucus wanted to macedonian control over the Indus Valley .After some year fighting ,however,chandragupta defeated seleucus in 303B.C..,then mauryan empire streched more than 2,000 miles

to win his war maurya army raised by 600,000 soldiers on foot, 30,000 soldiers on horseback, and 9,000 elephants.

Running the maurya empire

Chandragupta relied on an adviser named Kautilya who was a member of the priestly caste.And he he wrote a ruler’s hand –book name “Arthasastra”.  He is widely credited for having played an important role in the establishment of the Maurya Empire. Chanakya continued to serve as an advisor to Chandragupta after the establishment of the Maurya Empire .arthasastra proposed tough-minded policies to hold an empire together. Chandragupta created a highly bureaucratic government. He divided the empire into four provinces, each headed by a royal prince. Each province was then divided into local capital,  the names of the four provincial capitals are tosali ,Ujjain,suvarnagri and taxila whose officials assessed taxes and enforced the law.

Life in the city and country

  Pataliputra was one of the most amazing cities of that time because of its beautiful buildings and royal palaces, but as most of these constructions were made of wood they got damaged over a period of time. Eager to stay at peace with the Indian emperor, Seleucus sent an ambassador, Megasthenes to Chandragupta’s capital .he wrote the descriptions of chandragupta’s palace  with its gold-covered pillars, many fountains, and imposing thrones. The capital city featured beautiful parks and bustling markets.megasthenes also describe the city life of city i.e how they live and how farmers lived.

 Although Chandragupta was a fierce warrior, in 301 B.C., he gave up his throne and converted to Jainism.after the Chandragupta his son ruled in mauryan  empire

Bindusara was the son of the first Mauryan emperor Chandragupta Maurya and his queen Durdhara. During his reign, the empire expanded southwards. Bindusara, just 22 year-old, inherited a large empire and he extended this empire to the southern part of India, He ruled for 32 years and died in 272ECE and was succeeded by his son  Ashoka the great. And  Ashoka  brought the Mauryan Empire to its greatest heights.

ASHOKA THE GREAT

Chandragupta's grandson Ashok Vardhan Maurya, son of Bindusara, was also known as Ashoka or Ashoka The Great. (reign 272- 232 BCE)

Asoka became king of the Mauryan Empire in 269 B.C.

He followed the the rule of his grand father and he expands the his empire  Ashoka, in 260 BCE, set out to achieve something no previous Mauryan emperor had done – fight and win a war with Kalinga (modern-day Odisha). The ensuing Battle of Kalinga was of gigantic proportions with reportedly 100,000 soldiers at war and many more civilians. Legend has it that the nearby river was red with the streaming blood of the soldiers.

 Although victorious, Asoka felt sorrow over the slaughter at Kalinga. As a result, he studied Buddhism and decided to rule by the Buddha’s teaching of “peace to all beings.” Throughout the empire, Asoka erected huge stone pillars inscribed with his new policies. Some edicts guaranteed that Asoka would treat his subjects fairly and humanely

Ashoka thereby sought to live up to his name Ashoka the Great by doing such great things. His life, now the stuff of legend, is recorded in the Asokavardana and his edicts are now famous monuments. Besides this, Ashoka’s contribution to modern-day Indian polity includes the Ashoka Chakra – the round wheel-like symbol located at the center of the modern Indian flag. 

Asoka had extensive roads built so that he could visit the far corners of India. He also improved conditions along these roads to make travel easier for his officials and to improve communication in the vast empire

After a extension in a large empire he died in 232 b.c

 The Gupta Empire Is Established

After 500 years of invasion and turmoil, a strong leader again arose in the northern state of Magadha. His name was Chandra Gupta , but he was no relation to India’s first emperor, Chandragupta Maurya. India’s second empire, the Gupta Empire, oversaw a great flowering of Indian civilization, especially Hindu culture. Chandra Gupta Builds an Empire The first Gupta emperor came to power not through battle but by marrying a daughter of an influential royal family. After his marriage, Chandra Gupta I took the title “Great King of Kings” in A.D. 320. His empire included Magadha and the area north of it, with his power base along the Ganges River. His son, Samudra  Gupta, became king in A.D. 335. Although a lover of the arts, Samudra had a warlike side. He expanded the empire through 40 years of conquest.

Height of the gupta empire

The While village life followed unchanging traditional patterns, the royal court of the third Gupta emperor was a place of excitement and growth. Indians revered Chandra Gupta II for his heroic qualities. He defeated the Shakas— enemies to the west—and added their coastal territory to his empire. This allowed the Guptas to engage in profitable trade with the Mediterranean world. Chandra Gupta II also strengthened his empire through peaceful means by negotiating diplomatic and marriage alliances. He ruled from A.D. 375 to 415. During the reign of the first three Guptas, India experienced a period of great achievement in the arts, religious thought, and science. These will be discussed in Section 2. After Chandra Gupta II died, new invaders threatened northern India. These fierce fighters, called the Hunas, were related to the Huns who invaded the Roman Empire. Over the next 100 years, the Gupta Empire broke into small kingdoms. Many were overrun by the Hunas or other Central Asian nomads. And The Empire ended about 535

Uttari Toran, Northern Gate, Sanchi Stupa built by King Ashoka in 3rd century BC, which contained the relics of Buddha.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurya_Empire

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurya_Empire

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chanakya
http://history-world.org/indian_empire.htm
http://www.culturalindia.net/indian-history/ancient-india/ashoka.html