Alliance between Gupta Empire and Vakataka Kingdom: Map & History
The Gupta Empire was an Indian empire during the classical period of the Indian subcontinent which existed from the mid 3rd century to mid 6th century CE.
Wikipedia Encyclopedic Compendium
Historiographical synthesis & structured realm registry
The Gupta Empire was an Indian empire during the classical period of the Indian subcontinent which existed from the mid 3rd century to mid 6th century CE. At its peak, the dynasty ruled over an empire that spanned much of the northern Indian subcontinent. This period has been considered as the Golden Age of India by some historians, although this characterisation has been disputed by others. The ruling dynasty of the empire was founded by Gupta.
Modern Countries Once Part of Alliance between Gupta Empire and Vakataka Kingdom
At its mapped extent, Alliance between Gupta Empire and Vakataka Kingdom covered territory in 4 present-day countries. The period shown is when the mapped borders include that country, and the note says how much of it.
- Bangladesh347–554 CE · most
- India324–554 CE · most
- Pakistan347–489 CE · most
- Nepal347–489 CE · a small part
States and Provinces
- Uttar Pradesh, India
- Punjab, Pakistan
- Andhra Pradesh, India
- Maharashtra, India
- Dadra and Nagar Haveli, India
- Rajasthan, India
- Haryana, India
- Madhya Pradesh, India
- West Bengal, India
- Bihar, India
- Karnataka, India
- Orissa, India
- Punjab, India
- Sind, Pakistan
- Dhaka, Bangladesh
- Rajshahi, Bangladesh
- Jammu and Kashmir, India
- Tamil Nadu, India
Largest Present-Day Cities in Its Territory
Each opens on the live map inside Alliance between Gupta Empire and Vakataka Kingdom's borders of that time.
Derived by testing mapped cities against this polity's dated territorial polygons, so the list is indicative and follows the borders in the source dataset.
Alliance between Gupta Empire and Vakataka Kingdom in Depth
History
Gupta (Gupta script: gu-pta, fl. late 3rd century CE) is the earliest known king of the Gupta dynasty. Different historians variously date the beginning of his reign from the mid-to-late 3rd century CE. Gupta founded the Gupta Empire c. 240-280 CE, and was succeeded by his son, Ghatotkacha, c. 280-319 CE, followed by Ghatotkacha's son, Chandragupta I, c. 319-335 CE. "Che-li-ki-to", the name of a king mentioned by the 7th century Chinese Buddhist monk Yijing, is believed to be a transcription of "Shri-Gupta" (IAST: Śrigupta), "Shri" being an honorific prefix. According to Yijing, this king built a temple for Chinese Buddhist pilgrims near "Mi-li-kia-si-kia-po-no" (believed to be a transcription of Mṛgaśikhāvana).
Military
In contrast to the Maurya Empire, the Guptas introduced several military innovations to Indian warfare. Chief among these was the use of siege engines, heavy cavalry archers and heavy sword cavalry. Heavy cavalry formed the core of the Gupta Army and were supported by the traditional Indian Army elements of war elephants and light infantry.
The utilisation of horse archers in the Gupta period is evidenced on the coinage of Chandragupta II, Kumaragupta I and Prakasaditya (postulated to be Purugupta) that depicts the kings as horse-archers.
There is a paucity of contemporary sources detailing the tactical operations of the Imperial Gupta Army. The best extant information comes from the Sanskrit mahakavya (epic poem) Raghuvaṃśa written by the Classical Sanskrit writer and dramatist Kalidasa.
Legacy and innovations
Indian mathematics flourished in the Gupta Empire. The Indian numerals which were the first positional base 10 numeral systems in the world originated from Gupta India. The Surya Siddhanta contains the Sine table. Aryabhata wrote the Aryabhatiya, making significant contributions to mathematics including developing a Place value system, an approximation of π of 4 decimal places, trigonometric functions, and Squared triangular numbers. Varāhamihira wrote the Pancha Siddhanta developing various formulas relating sine and cosine functions. Yativṛṣabha made contributions on units of measurement. Virahanka described Fibonacci numbers.
Indian astronomy also saw progress in this era.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Gupta Empire (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Alliance between Gupta Empire and Vakataka Kingdom: Key Facts
| Capital | Pataliputra |
|---|---|
| Official language | Sanskrit |
| Form of government | monarchy |
| Founded | 320 CE |
| Dissolved | 550 CE |
Preceded by
- Mahameghavahana dynasty
- Kanva dynasty
- Bharshiva dynasty
- Western Satraps
Succeeded by
- Gurjara-Pratihara
- Pala Empire
- Rashtrakuta dynasty
- Hephthalites
- Empire of Harsha
Facts from Wikidata Q11774 (CC0).
Alliance between Gupta Empire and Vakataka Kingdom Timeline
Key historical inflections from foundation to peak territorial expansion
Expansion to peak recorded area of 2,882,950 km² in 463 CE.
Alliance between Gupta Empire and Vakataka Kingdom: Frequently Asked Questions
When did the Alliance between Gupta Empire and Vakataka Kingdom exist?
The Alliance between Gupta Empire and Vakataka Kingdom is dated to 324 CE – 554 CE, in the Classical Antiquity era.
What was the capital of the Alliance between Gupta Empire and Vakataka Kingdom?
The capital of the Alliance between Gupta Empire and Vakataka Kingdom was ubl.
How large was the Alliance between Gupta Empire and Vakataka Kingdom at its peak?
At its peak in 463 AD the Alliance between Gupta Empire and Vakataka Kingdom covered about 2,882,950 km².