The Gupta Empire was an ancient Indian empire which existed from the early 4th century CE to early 6th century CE. At its zenith, from approximately 319 to 467 CE, it covered much of the Indian subcontinent. This period has been considered as the Golden Age of India by some historians, although this characterisation has been disputed by other historians. The ruling dynasty of the empire was founded by Gupta, and the most notable rulers of the dynasty were Chandragupta I, Samudragupta, Chandragupta II and Skandagupta. The 5th-century CE Sanskrit poet Kalidasa credits the Guptas with having conquered about twenty-one kingdoms, both in and outside India, including the kingdoms of Parasikas, the Hunas, the Kambojas, tribes located in the west and east Oxus valleys, the Kinnaras, Kiratas, and others.
Chandragupta I was a king of the Gupta Empire, who ruled in northern and central India. His title Maharajadhiraja suggests that he was the first emperor of the dynasty. It is not certain how he turned his small ancestral kingdom into an empire, although a widely accepted theory among modern historians is that his marriage to the Licchavi princess Kumaradevi helped him extend his political power. Their son Samudragupta further expanded the Gupta empire.
Samudragupta (Gupta script: Sa-mu-dra-gu-pta, was the second emperor of the Gupta Empire of ancient India, and is regarded among the greatest rulers of India. As a son of the Gupta emperor Chandragupta I and the Licchavi princess Kumaradevi, he greatly expanded his dynasty's political and military power.
Ghatotkacha was a pre-imperial Gupta king of northern India. He was a son of the dynasty's founder Gupta, and the father of the dynasty's first emperor Chandragupta I.
Kendujhar District, is an administrative district of Odisha. The district is one of the fifth Scheduled Areas of Odisha. The town of Kendujhar is the district headquarters. The district has three sub-divisions, Anandapur, Champua, and Kendujhar.
There are conflicting theories regarding the original homeland and ancestry of the Gupta dynasty that ruled northern India between 4th and 6th centuries. Modern historians variously theorize that it originated in present-day Uttar Pradesh or Bengal, based on epigraphic, numismatic and literary evidence. The social group (varna) of the dynasty is also a matter of debate, with scholars variously placing them in kshatriya Vaishya, Brahmana, or other categories.
Toramana also called Toramana Shahi Jauvla was a king of the Alchon Huns who ruled in northern India in the late 5th and the early 6th century CE. Toramana consolidated the Alchon power in Punjab, and conquered northern and central India including Eran in Madhya Pradesh. Toramana used the title "Great King of Kings", equivalent to "Emperor", in his inscriptions, such as the Eran boar inscription.
Mi-li-kia-si-kia-po-no, believed to be a Chinese transcription of Mṛgaśikhāvana (Mriga-shikha-vana), was the site of a Buddhist establishment in eastern India. It is mentioned in the writings of the Chinese traveler Yijing, who states that king Che-li-ki-to had constructed a temple for Chinese Buddhist pilgrims near it.
The Naga dynasty ruled parts of north-central India during the 3rd and the 4th centuries, after the decline of the Kushan Empire and before the rise of the Gupta Empire. Its capital was located at Padmavati, which is identified with modern Pawaya in Madhya Pradesh. Modern historians identify it with the family that is called Bharashiva in the records of the Vakataka dynasty.
The Bhanja dynasty is a dynasty that originated in the northern and central regions of modern Odisha before the Gupta Empire became an imperial power. The dynasty, of ancient local Kshatriya lineage as documented by Hermann Kulke, succeeded the Vindhyatabi branch of the Nagas of Padmavati, who ruled from the Keonjhar district of Odisha and included Satrubhanja of the Asanpat inscription. The Bhanj later became feudatories of the Bhauma-Kara dynasty.
Satrubhanja was a king who belonged to the Vindhyatabi branch of Nagavanshi rulers that ruled from Keonjhar district of Odisha in the early 4th century A.D. The era of Satrubhanja belongs to the pre Gupta rise as an imperial power in India when the other ruling Bharasiva Nagas of India joined hands to overthrow the ruling Devaputras of Pataliputra, also otherwise known as Kushan rulers to the modern historians. The Asanapat village dancing Nataraja Shiva inscription in Sanskrit Language with Post Brahmi or early Kalinga script of Satrubhanja provides a great deal of details about his achievements as a conqueror and spiritual man. The inscription is of thirteen lines which is written partly in verse and partly in prose.
The Uchchhakalpa dynasty ruled parts of central India during 5th and 6th centuries. Their territory included north-eastern parts of present-day Madhya Pradesh. Their capital was located at Uchchhakalpa, the present-day Unchehara.
The Gupta era is a historical calendar era that begins from c. 318–319 CE. It was used by the Gupta emperors, as well as their vassals and their successors in present-day northern India and Nepal. It is identical to the Vallabhi era, which was used in the Saurashtra region of western India, although regional differences lead to a slightly different calculation for the conversion of Vallabhi era years to Common Era (CE).
Govindagupta was a Gupta prince of ancient India. He was a son of Chandragupta II and Dhruvadevi, and a brother of Kumaragupta.
Śanakanika Maharaja was a feudatory of Chandragupta II or Vikramaditya of the Gupta Dynasty. Śanakanika Maharaja is known from his record on his gift on a Vaishnavism cave temple at Udayagiri, which is dated 82.
Mahendra was a king of Dakshina Kosala, whose identity is not completely verified, and is mentioned as a king of Dakshinapatha or Southern India. He was one of the many kings who were subjugated, captured and later released by the powerful Gupta emperor Samudragupta on his Dakshinapatha campaign. Mahendra of Kosala was one of the southern kings of Dakshinapatha paying allegiance and tribute to Samudragupta. His dynasty is uncertain, though some historians suggest that he was from the Kosala branch of the Mahameghavahana dynasty. This branch of the Mahameghavahana dynasty is often identified with the Meghas of Kosala, who ruled over Kosala from the 3rd century AD to the 6th century AD.
The Abhira dynasty was a dynasty that ruled over the western Deccan, where it perhaps succeeded the Satavahana dynasty. From 203 CE to roughly 270 or 370, this dynasty formed a vast kingdom. The Abhiras had an extensive empire comprising Maharashtra, Konkan, Gujarat and some part of South Madhya Pradesh.
Achyuta Naga was the last independent ruler of Panchala, in what is now northern India. He was defeated by Samudragupta, a powerful Gupta emperor.
The Chindaka Nagas were a dynasty that ruled over parts of modern-day Odisha and Chhattisgarh. Their kingdom was known as Chakrakota mandala and included the present-day districts of Bastar, Koraput and Kalahandi. They were constantly at war with their neighbours- the Somavamshi dynasty, the Kalachuris of Ratnapura, the Mana dynasty and the Western Chalukya Empire.
