Development of the Mauryan Empire Prior to Alexander, Republics along the Ganges River dominated, vied for power Magadha Republic was one of the most dominant until…

Development of the Mauryan Empire Intrusions of Persians (520 B.C.E.) and Alexander (327 B.C.E.) Persians established Indus satrapy Alexander’s withdrawal left a political vacuum Maurya Empire filled that vacuum

Development of the Mauryan Empire Chandragupta Maurya The founder of the Mauryan empire Overthrew the Magadha kingdom in 321 B.C.E. Conquered the Greek state in Bactria, Selecuid control of Indus Chandragupta's empire embraced all of northern India

Impact of the Caste System The caste system in India dictates your roll in life – you were born to it, couldn’t do anything to move up or down. Brahmans belong to the highest caste. These are the priests and scholars.

Impact of the Caste System The Kshatriyas are soldiers and warriors. The Vaishyas are merchants and professionals such as carpenters and artisans.

Impact of the Caste System The Sudra are the second lowest caste – they are the laborers and the servants. The lowest caste is the Untouchables. These are extremely poor people who work the filthy jobs – cleaning up the streets, carting away the dead. This would be outlawed later.

Ashoka Maurya Ashoka Maurya (reigned 268-232 B.C.E.) Chandragupta's grandson, The high point of the Mauryan empire Conquered the kingdom of Kalinga, 260 B.C.E. Ruled through tightly organized bureaucracy

Ashoka Maurya Ashoka Maurya Also established capital at Pataliputra Policies of encouraging agriculture and trade Converted to Buddhism Established a tolerant rule of righteousness Sent out missionaries to Sri Lanka, SE Asia, Central Asia

Ashoka Maurya Decline of the Mauryan Empire Ashoka died in 232 B.C.E. Suffered from acute financial and economic difficulties High cost for maintaining army and bureaucrats Debasing the currency, not an effective resolution The empire collapsed by 185 B.C.E.

Gupta Dynasty The Gupta Dynasty After Mauryans, India was controlled by regional kingdoms The Gupta state rose to power in place of the Mauryans in 320 CE (AD) to 550

Gupta Dynasty Chandra Gupta founded the new dynasty Gupta dynasty was relatively decentralized Officially supported revival of Hinduism as state faith Era seen as the Golden Age of Hinduism

Gupta Dynasty Gupta decline Invasion of White Huns weakened the empire After 5th century C.E., Gupta dynasty ruled in name only Large regional kingdoms dominated political life in India

Buddhism Buddhism and Hinduism were the two major religions during this time Reminders of Buddhism: The word comes from 'budhi', 'to awaken'. It has its origins about 2,500 years ago when Siddhartha Gotama, known as the Buddha, was himself awakened (enlightened) at the age of 35.

Buddhism Buddhism continued: Buddhism goes beyond religion and is more of a philosophy or 'way of life'. It is a philosophy because philosophy 'means love of wisdom' and the Buddhist path can be summed up as: (1) to lead a moral life (2) to be mindful and aware of thoughts and actions (3) to develop wisdom understanding.

Hinduism Hinduism: The caste system comes from Hinduism Multiple gods, the top three called the Hindu Trinity Shiva Krishna Vishnu

Gupta Declines Guptan Dynasty Decline Lacked strong central government Provinces only owed tribute, tax, respect to central ruler Provincial rulers viewed emperor as related to gods

Gupta Empire Declines Gupta Empire Decline continued Relied on provincial rule, type of feudalism But local areas largely self- governing Regional leaders often stronger than emperor

Gupta Empire Declines Indian Empires Collapse Civil war between regional leaders Invasions by Central Asian nomads including White Huns Beaten off by Guptas but seriously weakened empire Continued raids by Huns, Central Asians kept empire in turmoil Large scale migrations from Northern India to Southern parts Dynasty ceased to exist; attempted revival failed Regional states broke off, constant warfare follows

Major Developments Major Developments Spread of bureaucracy - to successfully implement the actions of an organization of any size Roads were created to connect major cities Spread of Buddhism under the Mauryan

Major Developments Major Developments: Gupta empire had India’s Golden Age Spread of literature, astronomy, medicine, and mathematics Also had gold coins for money

Major Developments Major Developments: Believed the Earth was round in astronomy Math – modern numbers, zero, decimals, value of pi Medical improvements included surgery and the first plastic surgery