HISTORY PROJECT

TOPIC: HISTORY AND LEGACY

OF THE MAURYAN EMPIRE
 INDEX
1.Introduction
2.Rise of Mauryan Empire
3.Chandragupta Maurya
4.Bindusara
5.Ashoka
6.Brihadratha
7.Economy
8.Administration
9.Ashoka’s Dhamma
10. Kalinga war impact
11. Ashoka’s legacy
12. Chanakya
13. Downfall of Mauryan Empire
14. Family tree
15. Timeline
16. Conclusion
17. Bibliography
18. Why did you take this topic?
19. Learning takeaways
INTRODUCTION
The Mauryan Empire (322 BCE- 185 BCE)
supplanted the earlier Magadha kingdom to
assume power over large tracts of eastern and
northern India. At its height the empire stretched
over parts of Modern India and almost the entire
Indian subcontinent, barring only the southern
peninsular tip. The Empire came into being when
Chandragupta Maurya stepped into the vacuum
created by Alexander of Macedon’s departure
from the western border of India.
Chandragupta subjugated the border states,
recruited an army, marched upon the Magadha
kingdom killed its tyramical king who was
despised by the populace, and ascended the
throne. He thus founded the Mauryan Dynasty. In
his rise to power, he was aided and counselled by
his chief minister Kautilya (also known as
Chanakya), who wrote the Arthashastra, a
compendium of kingship and governance.
The Buddhist text speaks of the existence of a
Kshatriya clan called Maurya living in the region of
Gorakhpur adjoining Nepalese terrain. But
Brahmanical sources consider Mauryas as Shudra.
The family has also en believed to be associated
with the Nandas, according to the Vishnu Purana,
Chandragupta Maurya was the eldest son of
Maurya.
THE RISE OF THE MAURYAN EMPIRE

A map illustrating the rise and expansion of the

Mauryan Empire, the first Pan- Indian Empire that
covered most of the India and parts of present-day
Iran. Chandragupta Maurya, the first ruler seized the
opportunity created by the power vacuum of
Alexander the Great’s death to consolidate and expand
the territory, while three generations later, Emperor
Ashoka turned to Buddhism and left his mark on
history by inscribing numerous edicts ( encouraging
peace and non-violence) in stone
 CHANDRAGUPTA MAURYA
(324/321 - 297BCE)
The Mauryan Dynasty was founded by
Chandragupta Maurya with the assistance of
Chanakya/Kautilya. Justin a greek writer says that
Chandragupta Maurya overran the whole of India
with an army of 600,000. He liberated North-
Western India from the Thraldum of Seleucus,
who ruled over the area west of the Indus. In the
war with the Greek Viceroy, Chandragupta sees to
have come out victorious. Eventually, there was
peace between the two and in return for 500
elephants. Scleucus gave him Eastern Afghanistan,
Baluchistan and the area west of Indus.
He was the chief architect of the Mauryan Empire
who first established himself in Punjab and then
moved eastwards to gain control over the
Magadha Region. Chandragupta built a vast
Empire that included Bihar, good portions of
Orissa and Bengal, western and north western
India and the Deccan. Leaving Kerala, Tamil Nadu
and parts of North- Eastern India, the Mauryan
ruled over the whole subcontinent.
According to Jain texts, Chandragupta Maurya
adopted Jainism and went to the hills of
Shravanbela Gola (near Mysore) and committed
Sallekhana (death by slow starvation).
 BINDUSARA
(297 – 273 BCE)
Also known as Amitrochates(destroyer of foes) by
the Greek scholars while the Mahabhaasya refers
to him as Amitraghata(killer of enemies). The
Ajivika sect mentions a fortune teller who
prophesized about his son’s (Ashoka) future
greatness.
Bindusara conquered the land between the
Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal. The Tibetan
monk who wrote a 17th century history of
Buddhism, Taranatha states that one of
Bindusara’s lords, Chanakya destroyed thenobles
and kings of 16 towns and made him master of all
territory between the Eastern and the Western
seas.
As per the greek source, he had diplomatic ties
with western kings. According to Strabo,
Antiochus (Syrian king) sent Deimachus as an
ambassador to Bindusara’s court. It is believed
that Bindusara joined the Ajivika sect. Under his
rule, almost the entire subcontinent (as far as
Karnataka) was under the Mauryan Empire.
 SAMRAT ASHOKA
(268 – 232 BCE)
There was a four year succession conflict after the
death of Bindusara in 273 BCE. Bindusara wanted
his son Sushima to succeed him. With the help of
a minister called Radhagupta and after killing his
99 brothers, Ashoka (son of Bindusara) acquired
the throne. Ashoka had been the Viceroy of Taxila
and Ujjain (cities that mainly handled commercial
activities) during the reign of Bindusara.
Ashoka was one of the Greatest kings of all times
and is regarded as the first ruler to maintain direct
contact with his people through his inscriptions.
During Ashoka’s reign, the Mauryan Empire
covered the whole territory from Hindu kush to
Bengal and extended over Afghanistan,
Baluchistan and the whole of India including
Kashmir and the valleys of Nepal except a small
portion in the far South which was occupied by
the Cholas and Pandyas according to the rock
edict 13 and by Keralputras and Satyaputras as
per the rock edict 2.
He developed diplomatic relations with his
contemporaries in Syria, Egypt, Macedonia, Libya
and Alexander of Eripus, all these are mentioned
in the edicts of Ashoka.
 BRIHADRATHA
The Mauryan Empire declined after Ashoka’s reign
and later kings ruled only for short period.
The Empire weakened and came to an end when
the last Mauryan King, Brihadratha was
assassinated by his military commander
Pushyamitra Sunga (in 187 BCE).
 ECONOMY
Trade and enterprise were public - private affairs,
the state could own and engage in business just
like ordinary citizens could. The royal revenue was
drawn from taxes. Additionally the king owned
timber land, forest land, hunting groves and
manufacturing facilities and their surplus was sold
off. The state had monopoly over coinage, mining,
salt production, arms manufacturing and boat
building.
Farmers comprised the largest part of the
population and agriculture was taxed. Trades
people were organised into guilds that held both
executive and judicial authority and also
functional as banks. Craftspeople engaged in a
particular industry, tended to live together. Goods
could not be sold at a place where they were
produced, they had to be brought to specific
markets.
Tolls were collected for road and river crossings
and goods sold within the kingdom were taxed, as
were imports and exports. Barter was prevalent,
as were gold, bronze and copper coins. Money
was lent on interest against promisory notes. The
main road that ran through the entire kingdom
and connected it to the western greek world was
still maintained and well patrolled, with pillars
and sign posts marking the distances and by-
roads. Ships sailed down the Ganges and its
tributaries, and to foreign shores such as Sri
Lanka, China and the African and the Arabian
harbours, and the state took care to destroy the
pirates.
 ADMINISTRATION
The king was the head of the state and controlled
the military, executive, judiciary and legislature.
He took advice from a council comprising the
chief minister, the treasurer, the general and
other ministers. The kingdom was divided into
provinces under governors, who were often royal
princes. Provinces ere composed of towns and
villages under their own district and village
administrators. It was a large bureaucracy that
the king employed. Like today, the rings in the
civil services were clearly defined, and those at
the top were far renowned from the lower
grades.
There were departments to govern, look after and
control almost every aspect of social life.
Industrial art, manufacturing facilities, general
trade and commerce, foreigners, births and
deaths, commercial taxes, land and irrigation,
agriculture, forests, metal boundaries, mines,
roads and public buildings. The high ranking
officers were expected to go on inspection tours.
The empire also had a large spy network and
maintained a large standing army. The king’s army
was not really distanced even after the third
Mauryan King, Ashoka, gave up war. Next to the
farmers, it was soldiers who formed the bulk of
the population. Soldiers were expected to only
fight and were not required to render any other
service to the king. When there was no war, they
could ensure themselves in whatever manner
they caught fancy. There were separate
departments for the infantry, cavalry, navy,
chariots, elephants and logistics. Soldiers not only
drew their salary from the exchequer but were
also provided with arms and equipment at the
state’s expense. We have description of some of
the arms that these soldiers carried: foot soldiers
carried man – length bows (and arrows), or hide
bucklers, javelins and broadswords. The cavalry
rode bareback and used lances and bucklers.
 ASHOKA’S DHAMMA

Ashoka was a great proponent of Buddhism. He

converted to Buddhism and during his reign,
Buddhism went outside India. His children
Mahendra(son) and Sanghamitra(daughter) were
sent to Sri Lanka to propagate Buddhism. Ashoka
appointed Dharma Mahamattas to propagate
Dharma among various social groups including
women (in the 14th year of his reign). During his
second Dharmayatra tour (in the 21st year of his
reign), he visited Lumbini the birthplace of
Buddha. He banned animal sacrifice and regulated
the slaughter of animals for food and established
Dharmashalas, hospitals and sarias throughout his
kingdom.
 KALINGA WAR IMPACT
After his succession to the throne, Ashoka fought
only one major war called the Kalinga war. In this
war, 100,000 people were killed and 150,000
people were taken as prisoners. The war brought
to the Brahamana priests and Buddhist monks
great suffering, which caused Ashoka much grief
and remorse. So, he abandoned the policy of
physical occupation in favour of a policy of
cultural conquest, meaning Bherighosha was
replaced by Dhammaghosha (mentioned in the
13th major Rock Edict). After the Kalinga War, he
tried to conquer the foreign domains ideologically
rather than by military conquest.
 ASHOKA’S LEGACY
Ashoka is considered a great missionary ruler in
the history of Ancient India and also of the world.
Some of his path breaking achievements is given
below-
Political unification of the country:
He bound the whole country together by one
Dhamma, one language and practically one script
of Brahmi which is used in most of his inscriptions.
Policy of peace and non-aggression:
Ashoka is known for his policy of peace, non-
conquest and non-aggression. Most of his
inscriptions promoted peace and non-violence.
Spread of tolerance and respect:
He adopted and preached tolerance in religious
sphere as well as in case of scripts and languages.
He did not try to force his religious faith on his
subjects instead he gave donations to non-
buddhist sects as well (such as donating Barbara
caves to Ajivika sect).
Promotion of cultural contacts:
Apart from bringing in the innovative changes in
his administration, he also promoted cultural
contacts between India and the outer world too.
It wouldn’t be exaggeration if Ashoka is
considered the first global cultural ambassador of
India.
 CHANAKYA
He was traditionally identified as “Kautilya” or
“Vishnugupta” who authored the ancient Indian
political treatise, “The Arthashastra”, a text dated
to roughly between the 4th century BCE and 3rd
century CE. As such, he is considered the pioneer
of the field of political science and economics in
India, and his work is thought of as an important
precursor to classical economics. His works were
lost near the end of the Gupta Empire in the 6th
century CE and not rediscovered until the early
20th century.
Chanakya served as a chief advisor to both the
emperors, Chandragupta and his son Bindusara.
 DOWNFALL OF MAURYAN EMPIRE
About 50 years after Ashoka’s death, the Mauryan
king was killed by his general-in-chief,
Pushyamitra, who founded the Shunga Dynasty.
Scholars give several reasons for the empire’s
downfall, the major one being its size and its weak
rulers after Ashoka. Border states had started
asserting their Independence right after Ashoka’s
death. The empire started shrinking after
Ashoka’s successors. By the time, Pushyamitra
seized the throne, the mighty Mauryan empire
was a fraction of its size, reduced to only a three-
city states of Pataliputra, Ayodhya and Vidisha
and some parts of Punjab.
 FAMILY TREE
Chandragupta Maurya
Bindusara Amitraghata
Ashoka the Great

Tivala Kunala
Dashratha Samprati
Shalishuka
Devavarman
Shatadhanvan
Brihadratha
 TIMELINE
- 322 BCE: Chandragupta Maurya conquers the
Nanda Empire, founding Maurya Dynasty.
- 317-316 BCE: Chandragupta Maurya conquers the
Northwest of the Indian subcontinent.
- 305-303 BCE: Chandragupta Maurya gains territory
by defeating the Seleucid Empire.
- 298-269 BCE: Reign of Bindusara, Chandragupta’s
son. He conquers parts of Deccan, southern India.
- 269-232 BCE: The Mauryan Empire reaches its
height under Ashoka, Chandragupta’s grandson.
- 261 BCE: Ashoka conquers the kingdom of kalinga.
- 250 BCE: Ashoka builds Buddhist stupas and erects
pillars bearing inscriptions.
- 184 BCE: The Empire collapses when Brihadratha,
the last emperor, is killed by Pushyamitra Shunga,
a Mauryan general and the founder of the Shunga
empire.
 CONCLUSION
The Mauryan Empire saw the establishment of
the first Empire in the history of Indian continent.
As a large Empire required new startegies of
governance, the complex system of
administration were set up under the Maurya
which became fundamental of succeeding politics.
Chandragupta followed by Bindusara and finally
the money economy inherited by the Ashoka
were the three most successful monarchs to rule
this great Dynasty. However, after the death of
Ashoka, the dynasty began to decline. The
Puranas mention the name of later Mauryan
rulers and clarifies their relatively shorter duration
of reign. The empire soon became weaker. It
came to an end with the last king Brihadratha
being assassinated.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY
- www.wikipedia.org
- makeuseof.com
- nationalgeographic.com
- worldhistory.org
- metmuseum.org
- Khanacademy.org
- newworldencyclopedia.org
- mapsofindia.com
THANK YOU