Transcript Chapter 3, Section 4: Ancient Indian Dynasties and Empires

Rise of the Mauryan Empire
Remember: Geography kept out invaders,
but left did not unify India.
Rulers under the Magadha kingdom were
the first to unity India.
Next kingdom to come to power was the
Mauryans.
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Chandragupta Maurya established this empire
that lasted about 150 years.
Chandragupta Maurya
Made Patalipura into a beautiful city (located near
the Ganges River)
Raised an army of 600,000 soldiers who were
equipped with thousands of chariots and
elephants.
Army united northern India
Established a rigid bureaucracy to carry out his
commands.
Standardized weights and measurements;
established standards for physicians
Asoka
(came to power around 270 B.C.)
Chandragupta’s grandson
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Even greater ruler
Fought bloody wars to increase the size of his
kingdom.
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Enlarged the Empire until it included all of India except
the southern tip of the subcontinent. (AKA—the first
imperial dynasty to hold nearly all of India)
Became a Buddhist when he was sick of all the
bloodshed
Spread the faith of Buddhism and reversed many
of the polices of those before him.
Asoka’s Empire
How did he unite a diverse empire?
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Improved living conditions
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Planted trees
Wells were dug
Rest houses along trade routes
Animal rightist—passed laws to those who were
cruel to animals and built animal hospitals
After his death, the empire began to split apart due
to quarrelling of his sons.
Gupta Rulers (300 to 550 A.D.)
New dynasty emerged to do the decline of
Buddhism and growth of Hinduism.
Around 300 A.D.—Gupta family came to
power
Chandra Gupta I—founder
 Empire spread due to conquest and
intermarriage
 Empire included all of northern India
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Gupta Rule
Indian civilization flourished
Favored Hinduism but allowed Buddhism; however
Hinduism is the dominant religion
“Golden Age”early years of Gupta rule where the
Indian civilization flourished
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Chandra Gupta II
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Progress made in the arts
Gupta political system was less centralized than the
Mauryans’ government and gave much power to the
local rulers.
Skanda Gupta—last Gupta king who drained the treasury
due to costly wars.