History

Ancient and Medieval Indian Rulers

3,431 Questions

Ancient and medieval Indian rulers cover dynasties, major empires, administrative reforms, and historical monuments. This is a highly scored area in history sections of competitive exams. Practice these questions to strengthen your history foundation.

Maratha administrationGupta dynastyAncient kingdomsMedieval income sourcesRashtrakuta empire

Ancient and Medieval Indian Rulers Questions

Multiple choice

Which of the following statements is/are true?

  1. Prithvi Raj II, commonly known as Prithviraj Chauhan (1149-1192 CE), was a king of the Hindu Kshatriya Chauhan (Chauhamana) dynasty.
  2. Prithviraj Chauhan defeated the Muslim ruler Shahabuddin Muhammad Ghori in a battle in 1191.

  1. Only 1

  2. Only 2

  3. Both of these

  4. Neither of these
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Statement 1 is wrong: Prithvi Raj III, commonly known as Prithviraj Chauhan (1149-1192 CE), was a king of the Hindu Kshatriya Chauhan (Chauhamana) dynasty. Statement 2 is correct: Prithviraj Chauhan defeated the Muslim ruler Shahabuddin Muhammad Ghori in the First Battle of Tarain in 1191.

Multiple choice

Which of the following statements is/are correct?

  1. The most remarkable king of the Magadhan kingdom was Srenika.
  2. The capital of Bimbisara's kingdom was Rajgir.

  1. Only 1

  2. Only 2

  3. Both of these

  4. Neither of these
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Statement 1 is correct: The most remarkable king of the Magadha kingdom was Srenika or Bimbisara (558 BC—491 BC). Statement 2 is incorrect: The capital of Bimbisara's kingdom was Girivraja. The modern town of Rajgir in the Patna district was built by Bimbisara. He had named it Rajagriha or the king's house.

Multiple choice

The term 'pativedakas', during the Maurya period, referred to

  1. religious texts

  2. revenue officials

  3. unit of administration

  4. spies
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

The Mauryas divided their dominions into provinces subdivided into districts called ahara, vishya and pardesh. The secret emissaries who enquired into and superintended all that went in the empire were called pativedakas.

Multiple choice

Read the following facts.

  1. The Greeks called him Amitrochates.
  2. During his reign, the empire expanded southwards.
  3. He conquered the Highland of Deccan. The above given facts refer to

  1. Ashoka

  2. Bindusara

  3. Chandragupta Maurya

  4. Sushima
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Bindusara was the second Mauryan emperor (Born 320 BC, ruled: 298 - 272 BC) after Chandragupta Maurya the Great. During his reign, the empire expanded southwards. The Greeks called him Amitrochates - the Greek transliteration for the Sanskrit word 'Amitraghata'. Bindusara conquered the Highland of Deccan during his reign of 28 years and was succeeded his son Ashoka in 273 BC.

Multiple choice

Which of the following statements is/are true in relation to the Mauryan Empire?

  1. The chief sources of their revenue were the bhaga and the bali.
  2. The bali was the king's share of the produce of the soil; the bhaga was an extra impost levied on special tracts for the subsistence of certain officials.

  1. Only 1

  2. Only 2

  3. Both of these

  4. Neither of these
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The chief sources of revenue were the bhaga and the bali. The bhaga was the king's share of the produce of the soil, which was normally fixed at one-sixth, though in special cases it was raised to one-fourth or reduced to one-eighth. Bali was an extra impost levied on special tracts for the subsistence of certain officials.

Multiple choice

Which of the following statements is/are correct in relation to the Satvahanas?

  1. Satavahanas ruled over large area of modern western and southern India.
  2. Satavahana kings ruled much of Deccan plateau from 50 B.C. to 250 A.D.
  3. Satakarni I, belonging to the Satavahana family in present day Andhra Pradesh founded the Satavahana dynasty after defeating the Mauryan rule in the Deccan.
  4. Buddhism flourished throughout the period and the rulers were also devoted to Vedic ritualism.

  1. 1, 2, 3 and 4

  2. Only 1, 2 and 3

  3. Only 1, 2 and 4

  4. Only 1 and 4
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

It was King Simuka, belonging to the Satavahana family in present day Andhra Pradesh who founded the Satavahana dynasty after defeating the Mauryan rule in the Deccan.

Multiple choice

Which of the following claims is made in the Hathigumpha inscription?

  1. Kharavela of Kalinga defeated Pushyamitra Sunga

  2. Pushyamitra Sunga defeated Brihadrata

  3. Construction of the Sudarshan lake of Kathiawar by Pushyagupta

  4. Conquest of Kalinga by Ashoka
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

After the overthrow of Brihadrata, Pushyamitra Sunga waged a few wars to consolidate his position. Evidence shows that Pushyamitra Sunga defeated the Yavanas. This is confirmed by Patanjali's Mahabashva. And the claim made in the Hathigumpha inscription that Kharavela of Kalinga defeated Pushyamitra Sunga cannot be sustained because Kharavela ruled in the second half of the first century B.C.

Multiple choice

Which of the following rulers of the Gupta Empire do the given statements refer to?

  1. During the last days of his reign, the Gupta Empire was threatened by the invasion of the White Huns.
  2. He issued new coins with images of Lord Kartikeya.

  1. Chandragupta Vikramaditya

  2. Kumaragupta I

  3. Skandagupta

  4. Samudragupta
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Kumaragupta I (Mahendraditya) was the ruler of the Gupta Empire from 415-455 CE. He retained, intact, the vast empire, which extended from North Bengal to Kathiawar and from the Himalayas to the Narmada. However during the last days of his reign, the Gupta Empire was threatened by the rebellion of Pushyamitras of central India and invasion of the White Huns. However, Kumaragupta was successful in defeating both threats and performed Ashvamedha Yajna (horse sacrifice) to celebrate his victory. He issued new coins with images of Lord Kartikeya. Note: It is statement 2 which helps a student to arrive at the right answer as the reign of Skandagupta (which is a distracter here) too witnessed threats from the Huns.

Multiple choice

Which of the following statements is/are correct?

  1. Prabhakar Vardhan was the first king of the Vardhana dynasty with his capital at Thaneswar.
  2. After Prabhakar Vardhan's death in 606 CE, his eldest son, Harshavardhana, ascended the throne.

  1. Only 1

  2. Only 2

  3. Both of these

  4. Neither of these
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Prabhakar Vardhan was the first king of the Vardhana dynasty with his capital at Thaneswar. After Prabhakar Vardhan's death in 606 CE, his eldest son, Rajyavardhana, ascended the throne. With the commencement of the 7th century, Harshavardhana (606-647 A.D.) ascended the throne of Thaneshwar and Kannauj on the death of his elder brother, Rajyavardhana. By 612 Harshavardhana consolidated his kingdom in northern India.

Multiple choice

Which of the following taxes was/were not collected during the Gupta period?

  1. Bhoga
  2. Uparikara
  3. Klipta

  1. Only 2 and 3

  2. Only 2

  3. Only 3

  4. None of these
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

In the Gupta Empire, a number of taxes had to be paid to the king. These were: Bhaga (1/6th of produce); Bhoga (taxes in kind fruits, wood, flowers, etc.); Kara (periodic tax on farmers); Uparikara (extra taxes); Udianga (probably water tax); Sulka (modern customs tax); Klipta and Upaklipta (purchase and sales taxes).

Multiple choice

Who among the following Gupta rulers founded the city of Nalanda?

  1. Srigupta

  2. Chandragupta II

  3. Skandagupta

  4. Kumaraguta
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Nalanda (Rajagriha, Bihar) was founded by Kumaragupta (A.D. 450) and was famous for its tests. There was free education. It had 10,000 students, 1,500 teachers and 300 classrooms, and a big three-storey library. I-Tsing (A.D. 675) records a donation by Sri Gupta, for the University.