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Campaigns of Samudragupta
| Wars of Samudragupta | |||||||||
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   Utkala Ganjam Vizagapatam Godavari Krishna Nellore Prayaga Magadh N. Sakas W. Sakas Vakatakas Samudragupta's military campaign in the South (Eastern Deccan Region along the Bay of Bengal), North and West with boundaries.[1] | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
| Gupta Empire |
Kingdoms:
Kingdoms:
Tribal Kingdoms:
Kingdoms:
Foreign Kingdoms Kingdoms:
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
| Samudragupta (WIA)[lower-alpha 1] |
Achyuta Naga   Nagasena Ganapati Naga Kota ruler (POW) Mahendra (POW) Vyagharaja (POW) Mantraja (POW) Mahendragiri (POW) Svamidatta (POW) Damana (POW) Vishnugopa (POW) Nilaraja (POW) Hastivarman (POW) Ugrasena (POW) Kubera (POW) Dhananjaya (POW) Rudradeva † Matila † Nagadatta † Chandravarman † Balavarman † | ||||||||
The Conquests and Campaigns of Samudragupta, or the Wars of Samudragupta were a number of conflicts fought between the mid 4th c. CE and late 4th c. CE throughout the various parts of the present day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Nepal. The campaigns resulted in the unification of the Ganga valley[7] and the fall of several independent kingdoms, republics and tribes to the Gupta realm.
Samudragupta's Allahabad Prashasti records his campaigns in detail, said to have been written by Harisena. Samudragupta first launched his First Aryavarta Campaign against the local rulers of the Ganga valley and completely uprooted them, the states of Achyuta, Ganapati Naga and Nagasena suffered the cause. The ruler of Kota dynasty was captured by the army of Samudragupta and was forced to accept the Gupta suzerainty.
Samudragupta after consolidating his power in the Ganga valley, moved to suppress the Southern Kings, who were captured, liberated and reinstalled back to their thrones. Samudragupta in the Dakshinpatha campaign, defeated 11 kings of South India, and annexed them into Gupta Empire as tributary states.
After finishing off with his Dakshinpatha campaign, Samudragupta launched his final campaign of Aryavarta, where he defeated 9 kings and annexed them into Gupta Empire under direct administration. Thus, a 'war of extermination' against the Aryavarta kings was started by Samudragupta which was violent and bloody.
By the end of his reign, Samudragupta was able to gain control over almost whole of the Indian subcontinent, extending from modern day Punjab in the west to Assam in the east and from the foothills of Himalayas in the north to the Vindhyas in the south with the allegiance of Southern Kings along the eastern coast of India.
Aims of Samudragupta's Conquests
Various Scholars have interpreted the objectives and aims of Samudragupta to launch such offensive campaign throughout the Subcontinent. According to SR Goyel, Samudragupta was inspired by the Hindu ideals of Universal Ruler which was very popular during the Gupta age.[8] According to BG Gokhale, the reason might have been religious. Samudragupta might have been influenced from the Nāgas performing the Vedic Ashvamedha Sacrifice, and he sought to perform it after his victory over Nagas.[8] Buddha Prakash states that, the Dakshinpatha campaign was led under economic considerations, as the demand of trade and commerce between India and Southeast Asia was rising, it became important for Samudragupta to secure few ports for the Empire.[8] Chattopadhyaya accepts this theory.[9]
Moreover, Tej Ram Sharma concludes that, Samudragupta was eager to conquer lands of Bharatvarsha and to be the 'Universal Monarch' after completing the Ashwamedha Sacrifice which is even evident from his coinage.[10]
- ↑ Schwartzberg, Joseph E. (1978). A Historical atlas of South Asia. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. p. 145, map XIV.1 (j); p.25. ISBN 0226742210. Archived from the original on 24 February 2021. Retrieved 12 February 2022.
- ↑ Goyel, SR (1967). History of the Imperial Guptas. Central book Depot, pg 128
- ↑ R. C. Majumdar 1981, p. 23, 27.
- ↑ Ashvini Agrawal 1989, p. 128.
- ↑ K. Chakrabarti 1996, p. 185.
- ↑ V.R. Ramachandra 1993, p. 81-82.
- ↑ Goyala, Śrīrāma (1967). A History of the Imperial Guptas. Central Book Depot. p. 128.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Sharma, Tej Ram (1989). A Political History of the Imperial Guptas: From Gupta to Skandagupta. Concept Publishing Company. p. 74. ISBN 978-81-7022-251-4.
- ↑ Sharma, Tej Ram (1989). A Political History of the Imperial Guptas: From Gupta to Skandagupta. Concept Publishing Company. pp. 20–21. ISBN 978-81-7022-251-4.
- ↑ Sharma, Tej Ram (1989). A Political History of the Imperial Guptas: From Gupta to Skandagupta. Concept Publishing Company. p. 75. ISBN 978-81-7022-251-4.
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