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Maruyan coup d'état
| Maruyan coup d'état | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Decline of the Mauryan Empire | |||||||||
 Maurya Empire after the death of Ashoka the Great | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
| Mauryan Empire |
Satavahana dynasty Bhoja tribe Rashtrika tribe | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
| Brihadratha Maurya X |
Pushyamitra Shunga Simuka Satavahana | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| Unknown | Unknown | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| Unknown | Unknown | ||||||||
| Assissination of Brihadratha Maurya | |||||||||
Brihadratha Maurya, the last emperor of the Maurya dynasty, was assassinated in 185 BCE by his general, Pushyamitra Shunga with help of the Satavahanas, who then seized power and founded the Shunga Empire. According to Bāṇabhaṭṭa's Harshacharita, Pushyamitra orchestrated a public display of the Mauryan army before Brihadratha, under the guise of showcasing its strength. In the midst of this parade, he killed the emperor in front of his troops and declared himself the new ruler. While the Satavahanas led the tribes of the Deccan to revolt against the Mauryans and gaining a sphere of influence on whole Deccan.
Background[edit | edit source]
After Ashoka's death, the Mauryan Empire quickly disintegrated. Dasharatha was able to maintain control over Magadha, but other areas such as Kashmir, Gandhara, Vidarbha, and Kalinga declared their independence. Greek references to Sophagasenus ruling the northwest, indicate yet another decline in territorial control. Southern neighbors such as the Satavahanas also repudiated their vestigial dependency. The core remained with Dasharatha, but imperial unity was fading away very quickly after Ashoka's death. According to the Jain texts these territories were recovered by Samprati.[1]
Battle[edit | edit source]
In 185 BCE, Brihadratha Maurya, the final ruler of the Mauryan dynasty, was overthrown by his commander-in-chief, Pushyamitra Shunga, who went on to establish the Shunga Empire. As described in Harshacharita, a later literary account by the poet Bāṇabhaṭṭa, Pushyamitra arranged a grand military parade under the pretense of showcasing the army's strength. During the event, he assassinated Brihadratha in front of the assembled troops, effectively seizing the throne. This dramatic coup marked the collapse of the Mauryan Empire, bringing an end to a dynasty that had lasted for nearly 137 years.[2][3][4][5]
... Pushyamitra equipped a fourfold army, and intending to destroy the Buddhist religion, he went to the Kukkutarama (in Pataliputra). ... Pushyamitra therefore destroyed the sangharama, killed the monks there, and departed. ... After some time, he arrived in Sakala, and proclaimed that he would give a ... reward to whoever brought him the head of a Buddhist monk.[6]
Satavahanas, Bhojas and Rashtrika[edit | edit source]
While overthrowing the Mauryan Empire, Simuka gained the support of "servant Āndhras" like himself, and powerful western groups such as the Rathikas and Bhojas. After he deposed the Mauryan dynasty, he took the royal title of rāya, and gave the title of maha-rathi to prominent Rathika leaders, perhaps to signify their new status as feudatories of Simuka. He also consolidated marriages into alliances with those groups.[7][8]
Reference[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Smith, Vincent A. (1999). The Early History of India. Atlantic Publishers & Dist. p. 193. ISBN 978-81-7156-618-1.
- ↑ Thapar, Romila (2013-10-14). The Past Before Us. Harvard University Press. p. 236. ISBN 978-0-674-72651-2.
- ↑ A Comprehensive History of India: The Mauryas & Satavahanas. Orient Longmans. 1957.
- ↑ Lahiri, B. Indigenous States of Northern India (Circa 200 B.C. to 320 A.D). pp. 24–25.
- ↑ Stadtner, Donald (1979). Śuṅga Capital from Vidiśā". Artibus Asiae.
- ↑ John S. Strong (1989). The Legend of King Aśoka: A Study and Translation of the Aśokāvadāna. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 293. ISBN 978-81-208-0616-0. Retrieved 30 October 2012.
- ↑ Sastri, K. A. Nilakanta Ed (1957). The Mauryas And Satavahanas.
- ↑ Sastri, K. a Nilakanta (1957). Comprehensive History Of India Vol.2 (mauryas And Satavahanas).