History -The Rise and the Decline of Guptas (Extra Question)

History -The Rise and the Decline of Guptas (Extra Question) 

1. Who was the court poet of Samudragupta?

 Banabhatta

2. Name the inscription that provides information on the reign of Chandragupta I. 

Mehrauli Iron Pillar inscription 

3. Name the Chinese traveller who visited India during the reign of Chandragupta II. 

Fa-hsien 

4. What information do we get about the Gupta’s from their coins? 

 The Gupta coins inform us about the titles and the sacrifices carried out by the Gupta rulers. 

5.  Name the Gupta ruler who was known as Maharajadhiraja. 

Chandragupta I was known as Maharajadhiraja. 

6. How did Chandragupta I consolidated his place as a ruler? 

 Chandragupta I consolidated his place as a ruler through matrimonial alliance.

7. The reign of which empire is called the Golden Age of Indian history?

 Gupta Empire

8. Write short notes on Harsha- The ruler of Kanauj.

Harsha was the ruler of Kanauj. He tried to expand his rule beyond the river Narmada. His successive efforts were foiled by the Chalukya ruler Pulakeshin II. He is regarded as most successful Chalukya ruler. He is credited for performing Ashvamedha sacrifice several times.

9. Write short notes on Chandragupta I .

Chandragupta I was born in 305 A.D. He married a Lichchhavi princess named Kumaradevi. Through this matrimonial alliance, he gained enormous power and used it to his great advantage. He launched a series of military expansions, pushing the kingdom's boundaries westward. By 320 A.D., he proclaimed himself Maharaj-adhiraja. Many historians consider 320 A.D. was the beginning of the Gupta dynasty.

10. Explain the new developments in the field of administration after the Gupta period.

During the Gupta period, there were some new developments in the administrative field. Kings adopted numerous measures to win the support of powerful men such as:

• Some important administrative posts now became hereditary. For example, the poet Harishena was a maha-danda-nayaka, or chief judicial officer, like his father.

• At times, one person held many offices. For instance, besides being a maha-danda-nayaka, Harishena was a kumar-amatya, and asandhi- vigrahika.

• Besides, important men probably had a say in local administration.

11.  Mention an important source of information about Samudragupta.An important source of information about Samudragupta is a long inscription in the form of poem written in Sanskrit by his court poet, Harisena nearly 1700 years ago.

12. What is the reason of the Gupta period called the Golden Age of Indian history?During the reign of the Gupta Empire, there was all around prosperity in India. This period also witnessed significant developments in the field of science, arts and literature. Hence, this period is also called the Golden Age of Indian history.

13. Who laid the foundation the Gupta Empire?  Sri Gupta laid the foundation the Gupta dynasty. 

14. . Who is considered the first important ruler of the Gupta Empire? Chandragupta I was the first important ruler of the Gupta Empire.

15. What was Samudragupta also known as? Samudragupta was also known as Kaviraja. 

16. Name the horse sacrifice performed by Samudragupta. Asvamedha

17. Who laid the foundation of the Nalanda University?Kumaragupta laid the foundation of the Nalanda University. 

18. Name ruler who succeeded Kumaragupta.  Skandagupta

19. What led to the destabilization of Gupta Empire? 

 The rise of the feudatories led to the destabilization of Gupta Empire. 

20.  Who governed the Vishayas? 

 Vishayapatis governed the Vishayas.

21. Who was the first ruler of the Pushpabhuti dynasty? 

Prabhakaravardhana was the first ruler of Pushpabhuti dynasty. 

22. Name the important sources that help to reconstruct the history of Harshavardhana era.  Harshacharita and the travellogues of Hsuan Tsang are the important sources that help to reconstruct the history of Harshavardhana era.

23. Name the plays written by Harshavardhana. 

 Ratnavali, Nagananda and Priyardarshika 

24. Why did Harshavardhana drove out Sasanka from Kanauj? 

Sasanka killed Harshavardhana’s brother and brother-in-law therefore, to take revenge of the assassinations Harsha drove out Sasanka from Kanauj.

25. Why did Hsuan Tsang visit India? 

The Chinese traveller Hsuan Tsang visited India to study Buddhist texts at Nalanda University. 

25. Name the religion supported by Harsha in his later life. 

Buddhism 

26. Why did Harshavardhana organize religious assembly at Kanauj? 

 Harshavardhana organized religious assembly at Kanauj to publicise the principles of Mahayana Buddhism.