Eastern Ganga Kingdom: Map & History
The Eastern Ganga dynasty were a large medieval era dynasty that reigned from Kalinga from as early as the 5th century to the mid 20th century.
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The Eastern Ganga dynasty were a large medieval era dynasty that reigned from Kalinga from as early as the 5th century to the mid 20th century. They are known as "Eastern Gangas" to distinguish them from the Western Gangas who ruled over Karnataka. The territory ruled by the dynasty consisted of the whole of the modern-day Indian state of Odisha, as well as major parts of north Andhra Pradesh, parts of Chhattisgarh and some southern districts of West Bengal. Eastern Gangas ruled much of the modern region of Odisha in three different phases by the passage of time, known as Early Eastern Gangas (493–1077), Imperial Eastern Gangas (1077–1436) and Khemundi Gangas (1436–1947). Odia language became the official and court language of Eastern Gangas. The early rulers of the dynasty ruled from Dantapura, the capital was later moved to Kalinganagara, and ultimately to Kataka and then to Paralakhemundi.
Modern Countries Once Part of Eastern Ganga Kingdom
At its mapped extent, Eastern Ganga Kingdom covered territory in 1 present-day country. The period shown is when the mapped borders include that country, and the note says how much of it.
States and Provinces
Largest Present-Day Cities in Its Territory
Each opens on the live map inside Eastern Ganga 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.
Eastern Ganga Kingdom in Depth
History
After the fall of Mahameghavahana dynasty, Kalinga was divided into different kingdoms under feudatory chiefs. Each of these chiefs bore the title Kalingadhipathi (Lord of Kalinga). The beginnings of what became the Eastern Ganga dynasty came about when Indravarma I defeated the Vishnukundin king, Indrabhattaraka and established his rule over the region with Kalinganagara (or Mukhalingam) as his capital, and Dantapuram as a secondary capital. The Ganga kings assumed various titles viz. Trikalingadhipathi or Sakala Kalingadhipathi (Lord of three Kalinga or all three Kalingas namely Kalinga proper (South), Utkala (North), and Dakshina Kosala (West)).
Mukhalingam near Srikakulam of Andhra Pradesh bordering Odisha has been identified as Kalinganagara, the capital of the early Eastern Gangas.
Administration and Military system
The Government of the Ganga empire was monarchial. The empire was divided into several provinces known as Maha mandalas each being governed by a governor called a Mahamandalika. Each Mahamandala is divided into several mandalas. Again these mandalas were subdivided into units called Visayas which were like modern day districts and were ruled by a Visayapati. At local government level, every village or grama was a self governing unit. The Gramas were led by a Gramika. There were different village officials such as Karanika (accountant), Dandapani (police officer), Gramavatta (village watchman).
The Ganga military system also had a royal navy at the time of Chodaganga. The Ganga empire had large number of fortified cities and flourishing ports.
Culture
The Gangas were Shaivites and had constructed many temples dedicated to lord Shiva, the group of Shiva temples in Mukhalingam built by Kamarnaba deva, Chateswar Temple, Meghesvara Templke, Nagnath Temple built by Anangabhima Deva III.
Emperor Chodaganga deva embraced Srivaishnavism under the influence of Ramanuja and styles himself Paramavaishnava in his Sindurapura grant.
Legacy
By successfully defeating the invasion attempts of Muslim invaders, the Eastern Ganga Empire is attributed to have served as the conservatory of the Hindu religion, art and culture at a time when India's indigenous civilization was endangered through the large scale massacre of Hindus, plundering of cities, desecration and destruction of temples and forcible conversions of the Hindu populace. The Ganga Empire also harbored the fleeing culture and art from other parts of India.
The Eastern Gangas were great patrons of religion and the arts, and the temples of the Ganga period rank among the masterpieces of Kalinga and Hindu architecture.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Eastern Ganga dynasty (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Eastern Ganga Kingdom: Key Facts
| Founded | 1078 |
|---|---|
| Dissolved | 1434 |
Succeeded by
- Gajapati Empire
Facts from Wikidata Q250515 (CC0).
Eastern Ganga Kingdom Map Over Time
Dated world maps on which Eastern Ganga Kingdom appears, with the other states of the time.
Eastern Ganga Kingdom Timeline
Key historical inflections from foundation to peak territorial expansion
Expansion to peak recorded area of 205,867 km² in 1276 CE.
Eastern Ganga Kingdom: Frequently Asked Questions
When did the Eastern Ganga Kingdom exist?
The Eastern Ganga Kingdom is dated to 1056 CE – 1351 CE, in the High & Late Middle Ages era.
What was the capital of the Eastern Ganga Kingdom?
The capital of the Eastern Ganga Kingdom was Kalinganagara, Dantapura, Kataka, Paralakhemundi.
How large was the Eastern Ganga Kingdom at its peak?
At its peak in 1276 AD the Eastern Ganga Kingdom covered about 205,867 km².
How did the map of the Eastern Ganga Kingdom change over time?
The Eastern Ganga Kingdom appears on 3 dated world maps in the atlas, from 1100 CE to 1300 CE. Each shows its borders in that year next to the other states of the time.
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