Gahadavala dynasty

The etymology of the term "Gahadavala" is uncertain. This dynastic name appears only in four inscriptions of the Gahadavalas: three inscriptions issued by Chandradeva's grandson Govindachandra (as a prince), and the Sarnath inscription issued by his wife Kumaradevi.[16] No contemporary inscriptions of the neighbouring dynasties use the term "Gahadavala" to describe the rulers of Kanyakubja or Varanasi.[12] The dynastic name does not appear in contemporary literature, including in the works authored by the Gahadavala courtiers Shriharsha and Lakshmidhara (author of Kṛtya-Kalpataru).[9]

C. V. Vaidya and R. C. Majumdar, who connected the Gahadavalas to the Rashtrakutas, speculated that the dynastic name might have derived from "Gawarmad", a place-name mentioned in a 1076 CE Kannada language inscription.[16] However, the term is not mentioned in the early Gahadavala inscriptions. Therefore, if the dynasty's name has any geographical significance, it points to the newly acquired territories in northern India.[12]

According to the rulers of the Kantit feudal estate, who claimed descent from the Gahadavalas, the term "Gahadavala" derives from the Sanskrit word grahavāra ("overcomer of the evil planet"). Their fanciful legend claims that Yayati's son acquired the title grahavāra after defeating the evil planet (graha) Saturn.[12]

The Gahadavalas are associated with two ancient cities: Kanyakubja and Varanasi. According to the medieval legends, Kanyakubja (Kannauj) was their capital.[23] However, according to Al-Biruni, most of the Kanyakubja city was in ruins by 1030 CE, nearly half a century before the dynasty's founder Chandradeva ascended the throne.[23]

The vast majority of the Gahadavala inscriptions have been discovered in and around Varanasi; only one has been found in the Kanyakubja area.[23] The majority of these inscriptions state that the king made a grant after bathing in the Ganga river at Varanasi.[24] This suggests that the Gahadavala kings mainly lived in and around Varanasi, which was their favoured capital. They probably considered Kanyakubja as a 'capital of honour', since it had been a seat of reputed kingdoms since the Maukhari period.[24][23]

A verse in the 1104 CE Basahi inscription of Madanapala states that his father Chandradeva had made Kanyakubja his capital. However, Madanapala's 1105 CE Kamauli grant omits this verse, although it repeats all the other introductory verses from the Basahi grant.[25] Other than the 1104 CE Basahi inscription, no other inscription describes Kanyakubja as the Gahadavala capital.[23]

Historian Roma Niyogi theorized that Chandradeva temporarily moved his seat from Varanasi to Kanyakubja, because Kanyakubja was reputed as the capital of the earlier imperial powers.[23] However, the Gahadavalas lost Kanyakubja to Ghaznavids somewhere between 1104 CE and 1105 CE, and Madanapala's son Govindachandra had to wage a war to recover it.[26] As a result, the Gahadavalas probably moved their capital back to Varanasi soon after Chandradeva's reign.[23] The writings of the Muslim chroniclers such as Ali ibn al-Athir, Minhaj-i-Siraj, and Hasan Nizami consistently describe Jayachandra as the "Rai of Banaras" (ruler of Varanasi), and make no reference to Kannauj (Kanyakubja) in their description of the Gahadavalas. This further suggests that the Gahadavalas no longer controlled Kanyakaubja by Jayachandra's time.[27]

Vajra Tara, Sarnath, 11th century, Gahadavala Dynasty.

By the last quarter of the 11th century, the north-central India was a troubled territory as a result of Ghaznavid raids and the lack of a strong imperial power. The Gurjara-Pratihara empire had ceased to exist. Their successors, such as the Paramaras and the Kalachuris, had declined in power. In these times of chaos, the first Gahadavala king Chandradeva brought stability to the region by establishing a strong government. The 1104 CE Bashai (or Basahi) inscription of his son Madanapala declares that he saved the distressed earth after the deaths of the Paramara Bhoja and the Kalachuri Karna.[28]

Since the Kalachuris controlled the area around Varanasi before the Gahadavalas, it appears that Chandradeva captured this territory from them.[29] The Kalachuri king defeated by him was probably Karna's successor Yashah-Karna.[30] Chandradeva's inscriptions indicate that he also tried to expand his kingdom in the east, but the Pala chronicle Ramacharitam suggests that his plan was foiled by Ramapala's feudatory Bhimayashas.[31]

Chandradeva was succeeded by Madanapala, who faced invasions from the Muslim Ghaznavid dynasty. He is identified with "Malhi", who was the king of Kannauj (Kanyakubja) according to the medieval Muslim chronicles. Diwan-i-Salman by the contemporary Muslim historian Salman states that Malhi was imprisoned by the Ghaznavids, and released only after the payment of a ransom. The Gahadavala inscriptions indicate that Madanapala's son Govindachandra led the military expeditions during his reign. As a result of these expeditions, the Ghaznavids were forced to conclude a peace treaty with the Gahadavalas.[32] The Kṛtya-Kalpataru, written by his courtier Lakashidhara, suggests that he also killed a Ghaznavid general.[33]

Govindachandra succeeded his father as the Gahadavala king sometime during 1109-1114 CE. The Gahadavalas became the most prominent power of northern India as a result of his military conquests and diplomatic relations.[34] His adoption of the Kalachuri titles and coinage indicate that he defeated a Kalachuri king, probably Yashah-Karna or his successor Gaya-Karna.[35]

As a prince, Govindachandra appears to have repulsed a Pala invasion, sometime before 1109 CE. The Pala-Gahadavala conflict halted for a few decades as a result of his marriage with Kumaradevi, a relative of the Pala monarch Ramapala.[36] Epigraphic evidence suggests that there was a revival of the Pala-Gahadavala rivalry in the 1140s CE, during the reign of Govindachandra and the Pala monarch Madanapala (not to be confused with Govindachandra's father). Although the identity of the aggressor is not certain, the conflict seems to have happened over control of present-day western Bihar. Both Pala and Gahadavala inscriptions were issued in this area during this period.[37]

South Asia
1175 CE

KARAKHANID
KHANATE

QARA KHITAI

GHURID
EMPIRE

KUMAON

CHAULUKYAS

CHAHAMANAS

LATE
GHAZNAVIDS

PARAMARAS

WESTERN
CHALUKYAS

KAKATIYAS

SHILA-
HARAS

CHOLAS

CHERAS

PANDYAS

KADAMBAS

HOYSALAS

GAHADAVALAS

GUHILAS

KACHCHAPA-
GHATAS

CHANDELAS

KALACHURIS
(TRIPURI)

KALACHURIS
(RATNAPURA)

SENAS

CHEROS

NAGVANSIS

KAMARUPAS

EASTERN
GANGAS

GUGE

MARYUL

LOHA-
RAS

SOOMRA
EMIRATE

MAKRAN
SULTANATE

 

◁ ▷

The Gahadavalas and main South Asian polities in 1175, on the eve of the Ghurid Empire invasion of the subcontinent.[38][39]

The last extant inscription of Govindachandra is dated 1154 CE, and the earliest available inscription of his successor Vijayachandra is dated 1168 CE. Such a long gap is unusual for the dynasty, and may indicate troubled times arising out of an external invasion or a war of succession after Govindachandra's death.[40] Vijayachandra faced a Ghaznavid invasion, which he seems to have repulsed sometime before 1164 CE.[41] His focus on guarding the western frontiers against the Ghaznavids may have led to the neglect of the kingdom's eastern border, which later resulted in a Sena invasion.[42]

Jayachandra, the last powerful king of the dynasty, faced a Ghurid invasion under Muhammad of Ghor and his slave commander Qutbuddin Aibak. He was defeated and killed at the Battle of Chandawar in 1194. According to the contemporary Muslim historian Hasan Nizami, the Ghurids then sacked Varanasi, where they destroyed a large number of temples. After Jayachandra's death, several local feudatory chiefs offered their allegiance to the Ghurids.[43] A legendary account in Prithviraj Raso states that Jayachandra allied with the Ghurids against Prithviraj Chauhan, who had eloped with his daughter Samyukta. However, such legends are not supported by historical evidence.[44]

Jayachandra's son Harishchandra succeeded him on the Gahadavala throne. According to one theory, he was a Ghurid vassal. However, in an 1197 CE Kotwa inscription, he assumes the titles of a sovereign.[45] According to historian Roma Niyogi, it is possible that he controlled Kanyakubja, as no contemporary Muslim historians mention that the Ghurids captured the city at that time. Firishta (16th century) was the earliest writer to claim that the Muslims captured Kannauj in the 1190s, but his account can be ignored as inaccurate because he flourished around four centuries later, in the 16th century.[46] Harishchandra may have also retained Varanasi.[47]

Meanwhile, the control of the region around Etawah appears to have been usurped by Jayachandra nephew Ajayasimha. The 13th century chronicler Minhaj al-Siraj Juzjani refers to a victory achieved by the Delhi Sultanate ruler Iltutmish (r. 1211-1236) at Chandawar; Ajayasimha was probably Iltutmish's enemy in this battle.[48]

The ultimate fate of Harishchandra is not known, but he was probably defeated by the Delhi Sultanate under Iltutmish. A 1237 inscription issued during the reign of one Adakkamalla of Gahadavala family was found in Nagod State (present-day Satna district of Madhya Pradesh). Adakkamalla may have been the successor of Harishchandra.[49] Another possibility is that Adakkamalla was from a different branch of the family that ruled a small fief. Nothing is known about Adakkamalla's successors.[50]

The bardic chronicles of Rajputana claim that the Rathore rulers of Jodhpur State descended from the family of the Gahadavala ruler Jayachandra.[9] For example, according to Prithviraj Raso, Rathore was an epithet of Jayachandra (Jaichand).[51] The rulers of the Manda feudal estate, who described themselves as Rathore, traced their ancestry to Jayachandra's alleged brother Manikyachandra (Manik Chand). These claims are of later origin, and their historical veracity is doubtful.[52]

A Muslim account claims that the Bundelas were descendants of Gaharwar Rajput (Gahadavala) men from Khangar concubines.[53] The rulers of Bijaipur-Kantit feudal estate near Mirzapur also described themselves as Gahrwars, and claimed descent from the Gahadavalas.[16]