New kings and kingdoms with notes || Class 7 Chapter 2 History ||
Chapter
2, Class 7
New
Kings and Kingdoms
The Emergence of new dynasties
1. By the 7th century there
were big landlords (जमींदार) or warrior (योद्धा) chiefs in different regions of the
subcontinent.
3.
They
brought gifts for their kings and also provide military support.
4.
After gaining more power and wealth (धन-दौलत), they declared themselves to be maha-samanta, maha-mandaleshvara.
6.
E.g.
Rashtrakutas were subordinate to the Chalukyas of Karnataka.
7.
Dantidurga
(Rashtrakuta chief) performed hiranya-garbha (golden womb) with the help of Brahmanas & said “rebirth” of
the Kshatriya, even if he was not one by birth.
8. Other example was, the Kadamba
Mayurasharman and the Gurjara- Pratihara Harichandra were Brahmanas who gave up
their traditional professions and took to arms, successfully establishing
kingdoms in Karnataka and Rajasthan with the help of military skills.
Administrations in the Kingdoms
1. Many kings adopted high titles like maharaja-adhiraja
(great king,
overlord [अधिपति] of kings), tribhuvana-chakravartin
(lord of the
three worlds).
2.
Kings
also shared power with their samantas as well as with associations of peasants (किसान), traders (व्यापारी) and Brahmanas.
3.
Tax
was also collected in two types
4.
Vetti
– It is in the form of forced labour not in cash form
5.
Kadamai
– It is taken in the form of land revenue.
6.
Revenue
was also collected from traders.
7.
These
taxes were used to finance the king’s establishment, as well as for the
construction of temples and forts (क़िला).
8. It was also used in fight wars; in
turn they acquired (प्राप्त करना) wealth in the form of plunder (लूट).
Prashastis
and Land Grants
1.
Prashastis contain details
about the rulers & wanted to depict (दर्शाना) themselves like valiant (शूरवीर), victorious (विजेता) warriors (योद्धा).
4.
These were recorded
on copper plates, which were given to those who received the land
Warfare for Wealth
1.
Many kings tried to
control other areas.
2. One such area was the city of Kanauj in the Ganga valley.
3. Rulers like the Gurjara-Pratihara, Rashtrakuta and Pala
dynasties fought with each other for control over Kanauj.
4. It included three “parties” so that it is called “tripartite
struggle”.
5. Rulers also tried to show their powers by building large
temples.
7. Best example is Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni, Afghanistan.
8. He ruled from 997 to 1030, and extended (विस्तृत करना) control over parts of Central Asia, Iran and the north-western
part of the subcontinent.
11. He said to Al-Biruni to write a book & was known as the Kitab ul-Hind.
12. Other kings like Chahamanas (Chauhans) who ruled over the region
around Delhi and Ajmer.
13. They tried to expand their control on the Chalukyas of Gujarat
and the Gahadavalas of western Uttar Pradesh.
14.
The best-known
Chahamana ruler was Prithviraja III (1168-1192), who defeated (हराना) an Afghan ruler named Sultan
Muhammad Ghori in 1191, but lost to him the very next year, in 1192.
A Closer Look: The Cholas
From Uraiyur to Thanjavur
1.
Muttaraiyar held power in the Kaveri
delta & were subordinate (अधीन) to the Pallava kings of
Kanchipuram.
2. Vijayalaya
(family of the Cholas from Uraiyur) captured (कबज़ा करना)
the delta from the
Muttaraiyar in the middle of the 9th century.
3. He
built the town of Thanjavur and a temple for
goddess Nishumbhasudini there.
4. The
successors of Vijayalaya conquered (जीतना) neighbouring regions
and the kingdom grew in size and power.
5. The
Pandyan and the Pallava territories to the south
and north were made part of this kingdom.
6. Rajaraja
I, considered the most powerful Chola ruler, became king in 985 and expanded
control over most of these areas.
7.
Rajaraja’s son Rajendra I continued
his policies and even raided the Ganga valley, Sri Lanka and countries of
Southeast Asia, developing a navy for these expeditions (आक्रमण).
Splendid Temples and Bronze
Sculpture
1.
The
big temples of Thanjavur and Gangaikondacholapuram, built by Rajaraja and
Rajendra.
2. The bronze images were the most attractive
in the temple.
3. Chola bronze images are considered amongst
the finest in the world.
4.
While
most images were of deities (देवता or देवी), sometimes images were made of devotees (भक्त) as well.
Agriculture and Irrigation
4. In the delta region embankments (बांध) had to be built to prevent (रोकना) flooding (बाढ़) and canals had to be constructed to carry water to the fields.
5. In many areas two crops were grown in a
year.
6. In many cases it was necessary to water
crops artificially.
7. A variety of methods were used for
irrigation.
9.
In
other places huge tanks were constructed to collect rainwater.
The Administration of the Empire
1.
Settlements
of peasants, known as ur.
2. Groups of such villages formed larger units
called nadu.
3. The village council and the nadu performed task
like justice and collecting taxes.
4. Nadu was supervised (संचालन करना) by the Vellala caste (Rich peasants) which
supervised under the central Chola government.
5. The Chola kings gave some rich landowners
titles like muvendavelan (a peasant serving three kings), araiyar (chief), etc.
as markers of respect.
6.
Associations
of traders known as nagarams also performed administrative functions in towns.
Requirements of Members of sabha
1. All those who wish to become members of the
sabha should be owners of land from which land revenue is collected.
2.
They
should have their own homes.
3.
They
should be between 35 and 70 years of age.
4.
They
should have knowledge of the Vedas.
5.
They
should be the knowledge in administrative matters and honest.
6.
If anyone
has been a member of any committee in the last three years, he cannot become a
member of another committee.
7. Anyone who has not submitted his accounts,
and those of his relatives, cannot contest the elections.
Types of Land
2. Brahmadeya land gifted to Brahmanas
3. Shalabhoga land for the maintenance
of a school
4. Devadana, tirunamattukkani
land gifted to temples
5.
Pallichchhandam
land donated to Jaina institutions
China under the Tang dynasty
1.
In
China, an empire was established under the Tang dynasty, which remained in
power for about 300 years (from the 7th to the 10th centuries)
& its capital, Xi’an
2.
The
Tang empire was administered by a bureaucracy recruited (भरती करना) through an examination, till 1911.
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