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Chapter 2. New Kings And Kingdoms

 chapter - Review:

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• By the 7th century, there were big landlords or warrior chiefs in different regions of the subcontinent.
• Existing kings often acknowledged them as their samantas or subordinates.
• They were expected to bring gifts for their kings or overlords and provide them with military support.
• The main ruling dynasties were Gurjara-Pratiharas, Palas, Rashtrakutas and Chahamans in North India and the Chola, Pandyas and
• Chalukyas in South India.
• The kings at apex adopted big titles like Maharaja-adhiraja.
• The kings shared power with their samanras, and with an association of peasants, traders and Brahmanas.
• Resources were obtained from the producers who were persuaded to surrender part of what they produced.
• These resources were used to finance the king’s establishment and construct temples and forts.
• Functionaries for collecting revenue were recruited from influential families.
• Prashashtis tells us how rulers wanted to depict themselves as valiant and victorious warriors.
• The kings often rewarded Brahmanas by grants of land. These were recorded on copper plates, which were given to those who received the land.
• For centuries Gurjara-Pratihara, Rashtrakuta and Pala’s dynasties fought for control over Kannauj.
• The long drawn conflict is known as a tripartite struggle as three parties were involved in it.
• Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni raided the subcontinent seventeen times between AD 1000—AD 1025. His sole purpose was to plunder the wealth of India. He looted temples like Somnath, Gujarat, Mahmud entrusted a scholar named al-Biruni to write an account of the subcontinent.
• Other kings engaged in warfare were Chauhan, who ruled over the region around Delhi and Ajmer.
• Chauhans were engaged in conflict with Chalukyas of Gujarat and the Gahadavalas of western UR
  Prithviraj III was a popular Chauhan ruler who defeated Afghan ruler Ghori in 1191 but lost to him in 1192.
• Cholas were from a small family of Uraiyur. The successors of Vijayalaya conquered neighbouring regions and the kingdom grew in size and power.
• Rajaraja I was considered the most powerful Chola ruler and expanded control over most of these areas.
• His son Rajendra I, conquered Sri Lanka and countries of Southeast Asia.
• Cholas were big temple builders. Two famous temples were in Thanjavur and Gangaikondacholapuram.
• Agriculture was well developed along with various methods of irrigation.
• Settlements of peasants called or became prosperous with the spread of irrigation in agriculture. The village council and the Nadu performed several administrative functions
• Association of traders known as nagarams also performed administrative functions in the town.
• Inscriptions also mention about sabha. The Sabha had separate committees to look after irrigation works, gardens, temples, etc.

Chapter 2. New Kings And Kingdoms

Exercise - Question:

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Que: Match the following

Gurjara-Pratiharas	Western Deccan
Rashtrakutas	Gujarat and Rajasthan
Palas	Bengal
Cholas	Tamil Nadu

Ans: 

Gurjara-Pratiharas	Western Deccan
Rashtrakutas	Bengal
Palas	Gujarat and Rajasthan
Cholas	Tamil Nadu

Que: Who were the parties involved in the “tripartite struggle”?

Ans: The gurjana-pratiharas, Rashtrakuta and palas dynasties were invilved in the "tripartite struggle"over the occupation of city of kaunaj i ganga valley.

Que: What were the qualifications necessary to become a member of a committee of the sabha in the Chola Empire?

Ans: According to the uttaramerur inscription the following qualification were nessessary to become a member of a communitee of the sabha in chola empire:

(i) A person should own land from which revenue was collected.

(ii) He shuld been their own home.

(iii) he ned between 25 and 70 years.

(iv) He shuld have been knowledge of vedas

(v) He required to be well revsed in the administrative matters and honest.

Que: What were the two major cities under the control of the Chahamanas?

Ans: The chahamanas ocntrolled Indraprathaand and Kanauj.

Que: How did the Rashtrakutas become powerful?

Ans: (i) In the mid-8th  century, Dantidurga, a Rashtrakuta chief, killed his Chalukyan king.

Que: What did the new dynasties do to gain acceptance?

Ans: The new dynesties performed hloy retual with the help of brahmans in order to gain acceptamce. for example, hiranya-garbha ritual performanceby low cate

Que: What kind of irrigation works were developed in the Tamil region?

Ans:

(i) In the delta region canals were constructed to carry water to the fields.       

(ii) In some areas, wells were dug.                                             

(iii) In other places, huge tanks were constructed to collect rainwater. 

Que: What were the activities associated with Chola temples?

Ans:

(i) Temples were nuclei of settlements which grew around them.                 

(ii) The temples were centres of craft production.                                 

(iii) The produce of the land owned by temple went into maintaing-priest, garland makes, cooks, sweepers, musician, dancers etc.                                 

(iv) Temples were the places of social, economic, cultural and religious activities. 

(v) Bronze images were also made in Chola temples.        

Que: Look at Map 1 once more and find out whether there were any kingdoms in the state in which you live.

Ans: The answer may vary as per the students’ state where they live. So the students should answer this question on the basis of their individual study of the Map.

Que: Contrast the ‘elections’ in Uttaramerur with present day panchayat election?

Ans: The system of election in Uttaramerur was quite different from that of the present day panchayat elections. In the Uttaramerur election, the names of the persons eligible to be members of the committees were written on small tickets of palm leaves. The tickets were put into an earthenware pot. Thereafter a young boy was asked to take out the tickets, one by one for each committee. But the present day panchayat members are elected through a general election.

The names of the total members are printed with a symbol allotted to them on a paper called ballot paper. The voter put a stamp over their choice and drops it in a ballot box. Votes are counted and the winners’ name is declared by the Returning Officer. Every procedure is organized by a statutory body.

Que: Compare the temple shown in this chapter with any present-day temple in your neighbourhood, highlighting any similarities and differences that you notice.

Ans:

Que: Find out more about taxes that are collected at present. Are these in cash, kind, or labour services?

Ans:

Taxes collected at present.

• Land tax
• Income tax
• Wealth tax
• Sale tax
• Property tax
• Excise tax
• VAT (value-added tax)
• Service tax
• Education cess {tax)
• Tax on electricity
• Water tax

These taxes are generally in cash

Chapter 2. New Kings And Kingdoms

Additional - Question:

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Que: Who was Dantidurga?

Ans: Dantidurga was a Rashtrakuta chief who turned out to be a kshatriya after performing a ritual known as hiranya-garbha.

Que: What was called ‘rent’?

Ans: Resources obtained from the producers were called ‘rent’.

Que: Who paid revenue?

Ans: The traders paid revenue

Que: What were ‘prashastis’?

Ans: Prashastis were the details depicting the rule and personality of the rulers

Que: Who were the writers of Prashastis?

Ans: The learned brahmanas were the writers of the Prashastis.

Que: Who was Kalhana?

Ans: Kalhana was a great Sanskrit poet from Kashmir.

Que: What was ‘tripartite struggle’?     

Ans: The tripartite sruggle was a long drawn conflict among the rulers of Gurjara- Pratihara, Rashtrakuta and Pala dynasties for control over Kanauj.

Que: Who wrote Kitab al-Hind?

Ans: A great Arab poet al-Baruni wrote Kitab al-Hind

Que: Who was Prithviraja in ?

Ans: Prithviraja III was afamous Chauhan ruler of Delhi and surrounding regions during 1168-1192.

Que: Who destroyed the temple of Somnath?

Ans: Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni, a ruler of Afghanistan, destroyed the temple of Somnath.

Que: Why are the temples of Thanjavur and Gangaikonda-cholapuram famous for?

Ans: These temples are famous for their architectural and sculptural marvels.

Que: What was called as ‘ur’?

Ans: The settlements of peaseants were called as ‘ur’.

Que: What were called ‘nadu’?

Ans: The larger units of the groups of ‘ur’ were called ‘nadu’.

Que: What was known as ‘brahmadeya’?

Ans: The land gifted to Brahmanas was called as ‘brahmadeya’.

Que: Define ‘nagarams’.

Ans: ‘Nagarams’ were the associationa of traders

Que: What was ‘sabha’?

Ans: An assembly of prominent Brahmanas that looked after brahmadeya was called ‘sabha’.

Que: Trace out the emergence of the new class of rulers. 

Ans: During the seventh century a new class of rulers emerged. They were the subordinates or samantas under the influence of big landlords or warriors. Later they themselves gained power and wealth and declared themselves to be maha- samantas, maha-mandaleshvara (the great lord of a circle or region)

Que: Who was Dantidurga? How did he became a kshatriya?

Ans: Dantidurga was a Rashtrakuta chief in Deccan. Initially, Rashtrakutas were subordinate to the Chalukyas of Karnataka. Dantidurga, in the mid-eighth century, overthrew his Chalukya overlord and performed a ritual known as ‘hiranya-garbha’. It was thought to lead to the rebirth of the sacrificer as a kshatriya, even if he was not one by birth.

Que: How was the financial position controlled in these states?  

Ans: These states were closely associated with peasants, traders, and Brahmanas. The resources were obtained from peasants, cattle-keepers, and artisans who were the producers. They were compelled to surrender part of what they produced. The traders had to pay revenue. The functionaries for collecting revenue were generally from influential families or from the close relatives of the kings.

Que: Write a note on ‘Prashastis’.

Ans: Prashastis, often written by learned Brahmanas, were details of the functioning of a king. They may not be literally true. They tell us how rulers wanted to depict themselves—as valiant, victorious warriors etc. Brahmanas were rewarded by grants of land which were recorded on copper plates.

Que: Who was Kalhana? Why was he famous for?

Ans: Kalhana was a great Sanskrit poet who wrote a long Sanskrit poem depicting the ruler of Kashmir. He used a variety of sources, including inscriptions, documents, eyewitness accounts. He was different from the writers of Prashastis for he was often critical about rulers and their policies.

Que: Why were the temples first targets of the conquerors?  

Ans: It was the trend to demonstrate power and resources by building large temples. The rulers often invested a lot in the decoration and maintenance of the temples. So the foreign conquerors made them target first. The most prominent example of it was the temple 6f Somnath in Gujarat looted several times by Sultan Mahmud of Ghazani who came from Afghanistan. Much of the wealth he carried away was used to create a splendid capital city at Ghazani.

Que: Who was Prithvirqja III? Who defeated him?

Ans: Prithviraja III (1168-1192) was a Chahamanas, later known as Chauhan ruler. He ruled over the regions around Delhi and Ajmer. He defeated Sultan Muhammad Ghori, an Afghan conqueror in 1191. But only one year after it in 1192 he was defeated by Ghori. It was the end of his rule and life both.

Que: What was the role of temples during Chola kingdom? 

Ans: The Chola rulers like Rajaraja and Rajendra built two great temples of Thanjavur and Ganaikonda-cholapuram respectively. Temples were the nuclei of settlements during this period. They were the centres of craft production and also controlled the financial aspects related to them. Hence they were not only the religious centres but also the hub of economic, social, and cultural life as well.

Que: Describe the irrigation system of the Chola kingdom.  

Ans: The irrigation system during the Chola ruler was much improved. A variety of methods were applied to it. Many wells were dug; huge tanks were also constructed to collect water. The kings themselves took interest in organizing labour and resources and extensive planning.

Que: What was the system of election of committee members for Sabha?

Ans: The Sabha had separate committees to manage the works of irrigation and other works of gardens, temples, etc. The members of each committee were elected through a strict process. Names of eligible candidates were written on small tickets of palm leaf. The tickets were put into an earthenware pot. A young boy was asked to take out the tickets one by one for each committee.

Que: Write a note on Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni  

Ans: Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni was a ruler of Afghanistan from 997 to 1030. He was an ambitious king and so made all efforts to extend his control over far off regions. He extended his control over parts of Central Asia, Iran, and the north­western part of the subcontinent. Almost every year he raided the subcontinent targeting wealthy temples. The temple of Somnath in Gujarat was the worst victim of his raids. Much of the wealth he carried away was used to create a splendid capital city at Ghazni. Ghazni was fond of knowing more about the people he conquered. He entrusted a scholar named al-Biruni to write an account of the subcontinent. The al- Biruni’s account, an Arabic work titled as Kitab al-Hind, is still an important source for historians.

Que: How did the Cholas rise to power? Trace out the role of Rajaraja I in this rise.

Ans: Cholas belonged to a minor chiefly family known as Muttaraiyar that held power in the Kaveri delta. They worked as subordinate to the Pallava kings of Kanchipuram. Vijayalaya, a member of the ancient chiefly family of the Cholas from Uraiyur, captured the delta from the Muttaraiyar in the middle of the ninth century. ‘Hie town of Thanjavur and the temple for goddess Nishmbhasudini are some of his great creations. Vijayalaya’s successors conquered neighboring regions and the kingdom grew in size and power.

The Pandyan and the Pallava territories to the south and north were made part of this kingdom.Rajaraja I was the most powerful Chola ruler. He became king in 985 and expanded control over most of these areas. He was well known for the reorganization of the administration of his empire. His son Rajendra I continued his policies an even raided the Ganga valley, Sri Lanka and contries of Southeast Asia, developing a navy for these expeditions. The big temples of Thanjavur and Gangaikonda-cholapuram built by them are architectural marvels.