New Kings & Kingdoms Summary Class 7 History

The Emergence of New Dynasties

• By the seventh century there were big landlords or warrior chiefs in different regions of the subcontinent.

The Rashtrakutas

• The Rashtrakutas in the Deccan were subordinates to the Chalukyas of Karnataka.
• During the mid-eighth century, a Rashtrakuta chief called Dantidurga overthrew his Chalukya overlord.
• Gurjara-Pratihara Harichandra and Kadamba Mayurasharman were Brahmanas successfully established kingdoms in Karnataka and Rajasthan respectively.

Administration in the Kingdoms

• Many of these new kings often shared power with their samantas as well as with associations of peasants, traders and Brahmanas.
• Revenue in the form of land rent was collected from peasants, cattle-keepers and artisans and Traders.

Prashastis and Land Grants

• Prashastis depicted the image that the kings wished to project about themselves. 

• These were composed by learned Brahmanas who were rewarded by grants of land.

Warfare for Wealth

Tripartite Struggle

• Kanauj, a city in the Ganga valley was an important city of the time. 
• For centuries, rulers  belonging to the Gurjara-Pratihara, Rashtrakuta and Pala dynasties fought for control over  Kanauj, called as the “tripartite struggle”.

Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni

• Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni from Afghanistan (ruled from 997 to 1030) raided the subcontinent almost every year and targeted wealthy temples, including Somnath in Gujarat.

Chahamanas or the Chauhans

• The Chahamanas or the Chauhans, who ruled around Delhi and Ajmer, attempted to expand  their control to the west and the east. 
• They were opposed by the Chalukyas of Gujarat and the Gahadavalas of western Uttar Pradesh.

The Cholas

• Cholas were subordinates of the Pallava kings of Kanchipuram. 
• Vijayalaya, of the Chola family from Uraiyur, captured the Kaveri delta from Muttaraiyar in the middle of the ninth century.
• The successors of Vijayalaya conquered neighbouring regions such as the Pandyan and the Pallava territories to the south and north.
• The most powerful Chola ruler was Rajaraja I.

Splendid Temples and Bronze Sculpture

• The big temples of Thanjavur and Gangaikonda-cholapuram, built by Rajaraja and Rajendra, are sculptural and architectural marvels.

Agriculture and Irrigation

• The river Kaveri branches off into several small channels before draining into the Bay of Bengal.  Water from these channels provides the necessary moisture for agriculture, particularly the cultivation of rice.
• Forests were cleared and land was levelled for agriculture in many areas.
• Wells were dug and tanks were constructed to collect rainwater 

The Administration of the Empire

• Settlements of peasants, called ur, became prosperous with the spread of irrigation agriculture.
• Rich landowners handled important offices of the state at the centre.
• Grants of land to Brahmanas were looked after by an assembly or sabha of prominent Brahmana landholders.