Gupta Empire

The decline and fall of the Gupta Empire

therefore coincided with considerable progress in the

outlying regions. Many obscure areas, which were possibly ruled by tribal

chiefs and were timely settled, came into historical limelight. This applied to

the red soil areas of West Bengal, north Orissa and the adjoining areas of

Madhya Pradesh, which formed part of the Chotanagpur plateau and were difficult

to cultivate and settle. It applied more to the jungle areas with alluvial soil

and heavy rainfall in Bangladesh and to the Brahmaputra basin.

Harsha and His Times

Harsha’s Kingdom

The Guptas with their seat of power in

Uttar Pradesh and Bihar ruled over north and western India for about 160 years,

till the middle of the sixth century A D. Then north India again split up into

several kingdoms. The white Hunas established their supremacy over Kashmir,

Panjab and western India from about A.D. 500 onwards. North and western India

passed under the control of about half a dozen feudatories who parceled out

Gupta Empire among themselves. Gradually one of these dynasties ruling at Thanes

in Haryana extended its authority over all the other feudatories. The ruler who

brought it about was Harshavardhana (A.D. 606647).

Harsha made Kanauj the seat of his power

and therefrom extended his authority in all directions. During this period

Pataliputra fell on bad days and Kanauj came in the forefront. How did this

happen? Pataliputra owed its power and importance to trade and commerce and the

widespread use of money. Tolls could be collected from the traders who came to

the city from the east, west, north and south by means of four rivers.

But one money became scarce, trade

declined, and officers and soldiers began to be paid through land grants, the

city lost its importance. Power shifted to military camps (skan idhavaras), and

places of strategic importance, which dominated long stretches of land,

acquired prominence. To this class belonged Kanauj. Situated in Farrukhabad

district of Uttar Pradesh, it shot up into political prominence from the second

half of the sixth century.

Its emergence as a center of political

power from Harsha onwards typifies the advent of the feudal age in north India

just as Pataliputra largely represents the pre feudal order. Fortification of

places m the plains was far more difficult, but Kanauj was situated on an

elevated area, which was easily fortifiable. Located right m the middle of the

doab, it was well fortified in the seventh century. So to exercise control over

both the eastern and western wings of the doab soldiers could be moved by both

land and water routes.