Indian History

Jwalamukhi Temple, Kangra, Himachal Pradesh / Image Credit 25th January 2026 is the 56th Statehood Day of Himachal Pradesh. Read about the history of Himachal Pradesh . After coming into the control of many dynasties including those of Mauryas ,  Guptas and Harshavardhana , the territory of Himachal Pradesh was divided into small principalities headed by chieftains. Some of these small kingdoms were ruled by Rajput chieftains. These principalities were invaded by the Muslim armies at regular intervals. At the beginning of the 11th century, Mahmud Ghaznavi had launched a military campaign against Kangra Fort (now located in the state of Himachal Pradesh) and captured it.  In 1365, Tughlaq Sultan Feroz Shah plundered Nagarkot in Himachal Pradesh compelling the ruler of Nagarkot to pay tributes. During this military campaign, Feroz Shah Tughlaq collected 1300 Sanskrit manuscripts from the Jawalamukhi temple library. Arizuddin Khan translated them into Persian under the ...

Bindusar / AI Generated  After a rule of 24 years, Chandragupta Maurya , the first Mauryan Emperor, was succeeded by his son Bindusara who ruled from around 297 BCE to 273 BCE. According to the 12th century CE Jain text Parishishtaparvan by Hemachandra (court poet of Jayasimha Siddharaja , the Chalukya ruler of Anhilwara ), Bindusara's mother was Durdhara . The Greek historian Athenaeus calls him Amitrochates (Sanskrit Amitraghata “Slayer of Foes” or Amitrakhada “Devourer of Foes”). It is not known how he got the title of Amitrochates.  Bindusara was the father of Asoka, the greatest ruler of India. The Jain scholar Hemachandra and the Tibetan historian Taranatha mention that Chanakya , also known as Kautilya , was also prime minster of Bindusara.  Bindusara maintained friendly relations with the Hellenic world that had been established in the later days of his father. According to Athenaeus, Bindusara requested the Syrian king Antiochus I “to present him sweet wine, ...

AI Generated Sivaga-sindamani or Civaka Cintamani is a famous epic in Tamil. Written in elegant and ornate style, it is third most popular epic after Silappadigaram (the jeweled Anklet) and Manimegalai .  Attributed to the Madurai based Jaina monk Tiruttakkadevar in the 10th century AD, the epic describes the heroics of the hero Sivaga or Jivaka , a superman who excels in every art form from archery to the curing of snake bite. The hero wins a new bride for his harem with every feat. After his many heroic deeds, Jivaka embraces the Jaina faith and becomes an ascetic. Sivaga-sindamani, which means "fabulous gem", is also known as Mana nool or "Book of Marriages". 

Michael Madhusudan Dutt, famous Bengali epic poet and playwright, was born on 25th January in 1824 at Sagardari village in undivided Bengal’s Jessore district. He knew several European languages ─ English, Latin, Greek, French and Italian. He had taught himself Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, and Hebrew. He also knew Persian. Madhusudan Dutt had converted to Christianity.  One of the greatest poets of the Bengali language, Dutt wrote his magnum opus Meghnadbadh Kavya (The Slaying of Meghnada) in 1861. Meghnadbadh Kavya is based on an episode from the Ramayana in which Meghnad (also known as Indrajit), son of Ravana, is killed by Rama's brother Lakshmana.   Dutt introduced in Bengali poetry amitrakshar chanda , or what is known as Blank Verse. The celebrated epic Meghnad Badh Kavya was written in blank verse. In 1860, he had used amitrakshar in his work Padmabati. He also replaced deva mahima , or praise for the divinity, with humanism. He had introduced the sonnet, or chaturdas...

1556-  Second Mughal emperor Humayun died in accident on the 24th January, 1556. 1950- On 24 January 1950, Constituent Assembly in India adopts the Indian national anthem from a song written and composed by Rabindranath Tagore. The first stanza of the song Bharoto Bhagyo Bidhata was adopted by the Constituent Assembly of India as the National Anthem on 24 January 1950.

In 1311 AD , Delhi Sultanate ruler Alauddin Khilji conquered the strategic Jalore Fort in Rajasthan after a long siege, defeating the Chauhan ruler Kanhadadeva . The battle, detailed in the 15th-century epic Kanhadade Prabandha , resulted in the death of Kanhadadeva and his son Viram Dev . Founded by Kirtipala in 1181 , Chahamanas (Chauhans) of Jalore was an Indian dynasty which ruled the area around Javalipura (present-day Jalore in Rajasthan). Chahamanas (Chauhans) of Jalore were the offshoots of the Chahamanas of Naddula who in turn were offshoot s of Chahamanas of Shakambhari to which belonged the famed Chauhan ruler Prithvi Raj Chauhan who was defeated in the Second Battle of Tarain in 1192 . In 1228 or 1229 Iltutmish, the Slave Sultan of Delhi Sultanate, besieged Jalore. The Chauhan ruler Udayasimha was defeated but was allowed to continue as a ruler of Jalor on agreeing to pay a tribute. The most powerful king of the dynasty was Kanhadadeva (reigned 1304-1311). He was the c...

Rama Raya being killed in the Battle of Talikota “Never perhaps in the history of world has such havoc been wrought and wrought so suddenly, on so splendid a city; teeming with a wealthy and industrious population in the full plenitude of prosperity one day and on the next day seized, pillaged and reduced to ruins amid scenes of savage massacre and horrors beggaring description.” The city mentioned in the above quote is Hampi , capital of the powerful Hindu Kingdom of Vijayanagara . The famous Battle of Talikota , also known as that of Rakkasagi–Tangadagi , was fought between between Vijayanagara empire and the Muslim Sultanates of Deccan on 23 January 1565. Though the origin of the Vijayanagar Empire is in the realm of debate, it can be said with certainty that its foundation in 1336 within a few years of Alauddin Khilji’ s eunuch general Malik Kafur’s raids in south India was a culmination of the political and cultural movement against the Muslim ideas and forces of Delhi Sultanate...