Vigrahapala I

Vigrahapala was a 9th-century ruler of the Pala dynasty, in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent. He was the sixth Pala emperor. He reigned for a brief period before becoming an ascetic. Vigrahapala was a grandson of Dharmapala's younger brother Vakapala and son of Jayapala. He was succeeded by his son, Narayanapala.

This article is about the Pala dynasty ruler. For the Naddula Chahamana dynasty ruler, see Vigrahapala (Chahamana dynasty).

Vigrahapala
Pala Emperor
Reign830 - 855 CE
PredecessorGopala II
SuccessorNarayanapala
SpouseLajjadevi of Chedi[1]
IssueNarayanapala
DynastyPala
FatherJayapala

Ancestry

Previously, the historians believed that Shurapala and Vigrahapala were the two names of the same person. However, the discovery of a copper plate in 1970 in the Mirzapur district conclusively established that these two were cousins. They either ruled simultaneously (perhaps over different territories) or in rapid succession.[2]: 32–37  If they ruled in succession, it seems more likely that Shurapala preceded Vigrahapala, since Vigrahapala I and his descendants ruled in unbroken succession. Vigrahapala either dethroned Shurapala, or replaced him peacefully in absence of any direct heir to the throne.[3]

The information about him and his ancestors is found in the Bhagalpur copper-plate inscription of his son, Narayanapala.[4]

Reign

Based on the different interpretations of the various epigraphs and historical records, the different historians estimate Vigrahapala's reign as follows:[2]: 32–37 

Historian Estimate of Gopala's reign
RC Majumdar (1971) 850-853 (along with Shurapala I)
AM Chowdhury (1967) 861-866 (along with Shurapala I)
BP Sinha (1977) 860-865 (along with Shurapala I)
DC Sircar (1975–76) 858-60

Vigrahapala was of peaceful disposition, and abdicated the throne in favour of his son Narayanpala.[5]

See also

References
  1. Mishra, Vijayakanta (1979). Cultural Heritage of Mithila. Mithila Prakasana. p. 39.
  2. Susan L. Huntington (1 January 1984). The "Påala-Sena" Schools of Sculpture. Brill Archive. ISBN 90-04-06856-2.
  3. Dilip Kumar Ganguly (1 January 1994). Ancient India, History and Archaeology. Abhinav Publications. p. 29. ISBN 978-81-7017-304-5.
  4. George E. Somers (1 January 1977). Dynastic History Of Magadha. Abhinav Publications. pp. 188–. ISBN 978-81-7017-059-4.
  5. The Cambridge Shorter History of India. CUP Archive. pp. 144–. GGKEY:2W0QHXZ7K40.
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