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{{main|Nanda Empire}} | {{main|Nanda Empire}} | ||
{{See also|Indian campaign of Alexander the Great}} | {{See also|Indian campaign of Alexander the Great}} | ||
The [[Nanda Empire]] (c. 345–322 BCE), at its greatest extent, extended from Bengal in the east, to the [[Punjab region]] in the west and as far south as the [[Vindhya Range]].{{sfn|Mookerji|1988|pp=28–33}} The Nanda dynasty was famed for their great wealth. The [[Nanda dynasty]] built on the foundations laid by their [[Haryanka dynasty|Haryanka]] and [[Shishunaga dynasty|Shishunaga]] predecessors to create the first great empire of [[north India]].{{sfn|Upinder Singh|2008|p=273}} To achieve this objective they built a vast army, consisting of 200,000 [[infantry]], 20,000 [[cavalry]], 2,000 war [[chariot]]s and 3,000 [[war elephant]]s (at the lowest estimates).{{sfn|Mookerji|1988|p=34}}<ref name="Sastri1988p16">{{cite book |editor-last=Sastri |editor-first=K. A. Nilakanta |editor-link=K. A. Nilakanta Sastri |year=1988 |orig-year=First published 1952 |title=Age of the Nandas and Mauryas |edition=2nd |publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]] |page=16 |isbn=978-81-208-0465-4}}</ref | The [[Nanda Empire]] (c. 345–322 BCE), at its greatest extent, extended from Bengal in the east, to the [[Punjab region]] in the west and as far south as the [[Vindhya Range]].{{sfn|Mookerji|1988|pp=28–33}} The Nanda dynasty was famed for their great wealth. The [[Nanda dynasty]] built on the foundations laid by their [[Haryanka dynasty|Haryanka]] and [[Shishunaga dynasty|Shishunaga]] predecessors to create the first great empire of [[north India]].{{sfn|Upinder Singh|2008|p=273}} To achieve this objective they built a vast army, consisting of 200,000 [[infantry]], 20,000 [[cavalry]], 2,000 war [[chariot]]s and 3,000 [[war elephant]]s (at the lowest estimates).{{sfn|Mookerji|1988|p=34}}<ref name="Sastri1988p16">{{cite book |editor-last=Sastri |editor-first=K. A. Nilakanta |editor-link=K. A. Nilakanta Sastri |year=1988 |orig-year=First published 1952 |title=Age of the Nandas and Mauryas |edition=2nd |publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]] |page=16 |isbn=978-81-208-0465-4}}</ref><ref>{{citation |last=Gabriel |first=Richard A. |author-link=Richard A. Gabriel |title=The Great Armies of Antiquity |year=2002 |publisher=Praeger |location=Westport, Conn. [u.a.] |isbn=978-0-275-97809-9 |page=218 |edition=1.udg. |url=https://www.amazon.com/gp/search?index=books&linkCode=qs&keywords=9780275978099 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140105032930/http://www.amazon.com/gp/search?index=books |archive-date=5 January 2014 }}</ref><ref name="Sastri1988p16" /><ref>{{cite book |last1=Raychaudhuri |first1=Hem Chandra |author1-link=Hem Chandra Raychaudhuri |last2=Mukherjee |first2=Bratindra Nath |author2-link=B. N. Mukherjee |year=1996 |orig-year=First published 1923 |title=Political History of Ancient India: From the Accession of Parikshit to the Extinction of the Gupta Dynasty |edition=8th |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |pages=204–210 |isbn=978-0-19-563789-2}}</ref> | ||
==== Maurya Empire ==== | ==== Maurya Empire ==== | ||
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They dominated the political affairs of Sri Lanka for over two centuries through repeated invasions and occupation. They also had continuing trade contacts with the Arabs and the Chinese empire.<ref>''Buddhism, Diplomacy, and Trade: The Realignment of Sino-Indian Relations'' by Tansen Sen p. 229</ref> Rajaraja Chola I and his son Rajendra Chola I gave political unity to the whole of Southern India and established the Chola Empire as a respected sea power.<ref>''History of Asia'' by B.V. Rao p. 297</ref> Under the Cholas, the South India reached new heights of excellence in art, religion and literature. In all of these spheres, the Chola period marked the culmination of movements that had begun in an earlier age under the Pallavas. Monumental architecture in the form of majestic temples and sculpture in stone and bronze reached a finesse never before achieved in India.<ref>''Indian Civilization and Culture'' by Suhas Chatterjee p. 417</ref> | They dominated the political affairs of Sri Lanka for over two centuries through repeated invasions and occupation. They also had continuing trade contacts with the Arabs and the Chinese empire.<ref>''Buddhism, Diplomacy, and Trade: The Realignment of Sino-Indian Relations'' by Tansen Sen p. 229</ref> Rajaraja Chola I and his son Rajendra Chola I gave political unity to the whole of Southern India and established the Chola Empire as a respected sea power.<ref>''History of Asia'' by B.V. Rao p. 297</ref> Under the Cholas, the South India reached new heights of excellence in art, religion and literature. In all of these spheres, the Chola period marked the culmination of movements that had begun in an earlier age under the Pallavas. Monumental architecture in the form of majestic temples and sculpture in stone and bronze reached a finesse never before achieved in India.<ref>''Indian Civilization and Culture'' by Suhas Chatterjee p. 417</ref> | ||
[[File:Ranganathaswamy temple tiruchirappalli.jpg|800px|thumb|centre|[[Ranganathaswamy Temple, Srirangam|Srirangam Ranganathaswamy Temple]] is the world's largest functioning Hindu temple.<ref>https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/5894/</ref> present in [[Tamil Nadu]], [[India]]. The temple is a significant archaeological and epigraphical site, providing a historic window into the early and mid medieval South Indian society and culture. The temple is mentioned in the [[Ramayana]] | [[File:Ranganathaswamy temple tiruchirappalli.jpg|800px|thumb|centre|[[Ranganathaswamy Temple, Srirangam|Srirangam Ranganathaswamy Temple]] is the world's largest functioning Hindu temple.<ref>https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/5894/</ref> present in [[Tamil Nadu]], [[India]]. The temple is a significant archaeological and epigraphical site, providing a historic window into the early and mid medieval South Indian society and culture. The temple is mentioned in the [[Ramayana]]<ref>http://www.valmikiramayan.net/utf8/ayodhya/sarga6/ayodhyaroman6.htm</ref>, [[Mahabharatha]], [[Sangam literature]](500 BCE to the 300 CE<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/art/shangam-literature Sangam literature], Encyclopaedia Britannica</ref>)and Various books. Beyond the ancient textual history, archaeological evidence such as inscriptions refer to this temple, and these stone inscriptions are from late '''100 BCE to 100 CE'''.{{CN|date=September 2023}} Hence, making it one of the oldest surviving active temple complexes in South India.]] | ||
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