Rajyavardhana
| Rajyavardhana | |
|---|---|
| 5th Vardhana King | |
| Reign | c. 605 – c. 606 CE |
| Predecessor | Prabhakarvardhana |
| Mother | Yasomati |
Rajyavardhana, also known as Rajya Vardhan, was the eldest son of
Contemporary information regarding the life of Rajyavardhana is limited in scope and utility. He is mentioned by Xuanzang, the Chinese traveller, and in Harshacharita, a seventh-century CE work by the poet and bard Bāṇabhaṭṭa. Neither offer impartial accounts and they differ in substantive details.[1] The military historian Kaushik Roy describes Harshacharita as "historical fiction" but with a factually correct foundation.[2]
Rajyavardhana was the elder of two sons of Prabhakarvardhana and his queen,
The marriage alliance of Grahavarman and Rajyashri had strengthened ties between the families to a point that
Rajyavardhana's success was against an advance guard of his enemy. He died later in 606 as he made his way onwards to press an action at Kannauj itself. He was perhaps murdered by Shashanka, who may have invited him to a meeting with treachery in mind, although the only sources for this claim are Bāṇabhaṭṭa and Xuanzang, who both had reasons to write unfavourably of Shashanka.[1][2][4]
Harsha succeeded Rajyavardhana as ruler of Thanesar and vowed to avenge his brother's death.[2]
References
Citations
- ^ a b c d Majumdar (1977), pp. 249–251
- ^ a b c d e f g Roy (2013), pp. 21–22
- ^ Allan, Haig & Dodwell (1934), p. 105
- ^ Sengupta (2011), p. 35
Bibliography
- Allan, J.; Haig, T. Wolseley; Dodwell, H. H., eds. (1934), The Cambridge Shorter History of India, Cambridge University Press
- ISBN 978-8-12080-436-4
- Roy, Kaushik (2013), "Bana", in Coetzee, Daniel; Eysturlid, Lee W. (eds.), Philosophers of War: The Evolution of History's Greatest Military Thinkers, ABC-CLIO, ISBN 978-0-313-07033-4
- Sengupta, Nitish K. (2011), Land of Two Rivers: A History of Bengal from the Mahabharata to Mujib, Penguin Books India, ISBN 978-0-14341-678-4
Further reading
- F. W. Thomas. Royal Asiatic Society.