Firoz Tughlaq, the last prominent ruler of the Tughlaq dynasty

                            Firuz Shah Tughlaq's tomb in Delhi / Image credit

Firuz Shah Tughlaq (1309 – 1388 CE) was the third ruler of the Tughlaq dynasty of the famed Delhi Sultanate. He succeeded to the throne in 1351 after the demise of his cousin Muhammad-bin-Tughlaq who had become second Tughlaq sultan in 1325 AD. During his rule of 37 years, Firuz tried to bring a semblance of prosperity to his empire which had fallen into confusion and chaos during the rule of his predecessor due to the latter’s eccentric policies.

The early six years of his reign are documented in the Tarikh-i-Firuz Shahi, a contemporary account by medieval historian Ziauddin Barani. Another contemporary chronicle, also known as Tarikh-i-Firuz Shahi, written by Shams Siraj Afif, gives a detailed account of his reign.

He is credited with the founding of the cities of Jaunpur in 1359 (Uttar Pradesh), Hissar and Fatehabad (Haryana), Firozpur (Punjab). Jaunpur was named after Muhammad bin Tughluq who was known by the name of Juna Khan before his accession to the throne. Firozabad, the fifth city of Delhi, was also built by Feroz Shah Tughlaq. However, only the fortress and its crumbling remains in the forms of Jama Masjid (Friday mosque), a baoli (step-well), and a palace topped by a polished sandstone Ashoka Pillar brought by the Sultan from Ambala are found.

When the forth storey of Qutab Minar in Delhi was struck by lightning in 1370, Firoz replaced it with two more storeys, 

Firuz Shah Tughlaq was a religious bigot and this prevented him from being just to his non–Muslim subjects by imposing Jizya tax on them. 

He had prohibited Muslim women from worshipping the graves of saints. 

He is known to have as many as 180,000 slaves. According to Shams Siraj Afif, their rise brought disaster to the Tughlaqs. They annihilated Firuz's sons and played roles in destroying the Tughlaq dynasty. Firuz's eunuch named Malik Sarwar founded the  Sharqi dynasty of Jaunpur.   

Firuz died in 1388, aged eighty-two. 

Kamran Mirza, the Mughal prince

Kamran Mirza was the second son of Babur, the first Mughal emperor, who had appointed him to the position of governorship of Lahore during his rule. 

He had captured Bikaner’s famous Junagarh Fort, albeit for a day, which had otherwise remained unconquered in history. He tried to enlist the support of Sur ruler Islam Shah Sur against his brother Humayun but was rebuffed. He died in 1557 near Mecca to which he was on his way to perform the Hajj after being blinded on the order of Humayun.

Kamran Mirza is known to have built a baradari (a typical Mughal pavilion) at Lahore, one of the oldest Mughal structures.

 

Charaka, Master of Indian Medical science

An alumnus of the famed centre of learning Taxila (presently in the Punjab province of Pakistan) in ancient India, Charaka was the author of Charaka Samahita (Compendium of Charaka), basic textbook of Indian medicine.

Pandyan Dynasty of Sangam Age

Pandyas were one of the three major ruling dynasties of the Tamil Country during the Sangam period (between the 3rd century B.C. and 3rd century A.D.) It was in their court at Madurai that the great literary assemblies (Sangams) of the Tamil poets were held. Pandyas find mention in the edicts of the Mauyran Emperor Asoka and have been referred to in the Ramayana and the Mahabharata.  

The early history of the Pandyas is shrouded in obscurity. Palyagasalai Mudukudumi was the earliest known Pandyan ruler who has been described in the Sangam epics as a great conqueror, a performer of many sacrifices and a patron of poets. Aryappadaikadanda Nedunjhelian who, himself, was a poet of great merit, was the next important ruler of the dynasty. 

The greatest Tamil epic Silappadigaram (the Jewelled Anklet) says that Nedunjelian had ordered, without trial, the execution of Kovalan (the hero of  Silappadigaram), who was accused by a court jeweler of theft of the anklets of the queen of  Nedunjelian. Later when the king came to realize Kovalam’s innocence, he was filled with remorse and died of shock on the throne itself. Kannagi, wife of Kovalam, unleashed a curse of destruction upon the city of Madurai. The city became engulfed in fire.

After Nedunjhelian, many later Pandayan rulers are mentioned by the Sangam literature. However, nothing substantial about them can be said with certainty. 

The kings of the Pandyas had sent several embassies to the Roman emperors Augustus and Trajan.  According to Greek geographer Strabo, an embassy sent by a Pandyan king  was met by Augustus at Athens about 20 B.C. 

Kumara Gupta I

Chandragupta II was succeeded by his son Kumara Gupta I (c. 415-455 AD), who like his grandfather Samudragupta, performed the Vedic horse sacrifice (Ashvamedha). 

In his last years, the Gupta empire suffered a severe blow in the form of attack by the Hunas, the barbaric tribes from Central Asia. The Hunas were finally defeated by his son Skanda Gupta. 

Chandragupta-II (Chandragupta Vikramaditya) (c 376-415)

Chandragupta II succeeded to the Gupta throne after his father Samudra Gupta from whom he inherited a large empire. It is believed that before Chandragupta II his elder brother Ram Gupta ruled the Gupta empire and was forced to conclude dishonourable peace treaty with the Sakas who had ruled in the parts of western India for over 200 years.  

According to the drama Devichandraguptam of Vishakhadatta, Ram Gupta was badly defeated by a Saka chieftain and forced him to agree  to surrender his queen Druvadevi to the Sakas. This angered Chandragupta II who killed his brother and married his widow.  

However, Ram Gupta’s historicity is in the realm of doubt. 

Vikramaditya (“Sun of Valour”) was one of the titles of Chandragupta II. He is probably the king eulogized in the inscription on the iron pillar in the Qūwat al-Islām mosque of Meharauli in Delhi.

It was Chandra Gupta II who soon after AD 388 finally subjugated the Shakas. This made him the lord of all Northern India. His control over much of the Northern Deccan was due to the  marriage of his daughter Prabhavati with Rudrasena II, king of the Vakatakas, who ruled an area comprising modern Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and north-western Telangana. When Rudrasena died young, his widow acted as regent for her sons. Prabhavati’s charters suggest that during her regency Gupta influence in the Vakataka court had increased.

Ancient India culture reached its climax during the reign of Chandragupta II. Kalidasa, the greatest of India’s poets and dramatists, and the famed astronomer Varahamihira were patronized by him. Faxian (Fa-hsien), a Chinese Buddhist monk who spent six years (405–411) in India during his reign, attest the prosperity and happiness of the Gupta empire.

 

Samudragupta

Samudra Gupta was the second ruler of the famed Gupta Empire and one of Indian history’s greatest military minds. 

 Allahabad Pillar | Wikimedia Commons

Samudra Gupta (reigned c.330 – c.380) was the second ruler of the Gupta dynasty, the golden period of Hinduism. He was appointed by his father Chandra Gupta I to succeed him. The coins of an obscure prince, Kacha, suggest that his accession to the throne did not go unchallenged.  

A detailed record of Samudragupta’s reign is preserved in the Allahabad pillar inscription composed by his court poet and minister Harisena. The inscription is engraved on a pillar erected by Asoka six centuries before him. In the inscription he is mentioned to have "violently uprooted" no less than nine kings of Northern India, and to have annexed their kingdoms to his own. 

Samudra Gupta possessed domains from Assam to the borders of Punjab. He performed Ashvamedha Yajna. This was the first Ashvamedha after Pushyamitra Sunga, the founder of the Sunga dynasty, performed this sacrifice after usurping the Mauryan throne.

Samudra Gupta is known to have granted permission to the Sri Lankan king Meghavarna to build a Buddhist monastery at Bodhgaya. He was a patron of poetic arts and a poet himself. This earned him the title of Kaviraja from Harisena.