Tripartite Struggle
| Tripartite Struggle | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 The formations of South Asia, late eighth century CE[1] | ||||||||||
| ||||||||||
| Belligerents | ||||||||||
| Pratihara Empire |
Rashtrakuta Empire | |||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | ||||||||||
|
Vatsaraja Nagabhata II |
Dhruva Dharavarsha Govinda III |
Dharmapala Indrayudha Chakrayudha | ||||||||
The Tripartite Struggle, also known as The Kannauj Triangle Wars, for control of northern India took place in the ninth century, among the
Rashtrakuta Empire.[3]
: 20
Epigraphist
Amoghavarsha I, both belonging to the Rashtrakuta dynasty which states that Dantidurga (r. 735–756 CE) performed a religious ceremony at Ujjayani, and the king of Gurjara-desha (Gurjara country) acted as his door-keeper (pratihara),[4][5] suggesting that the Rashtrakuta king had subdued the Gurjara-Pratihara king who was ruling Avanti at that time.[6]
On the other hand, the conflict between the Pala Empire of
Mihir Bhoja
, and the city remained their capital until the fall of the dynasty in 1036 CE.
| History of India |
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| Timeline |
History
Not much is known about the kingdom of the Kannauj after
Harsha's death in 647 AD resulting in great confusion due to the absence of his heirs. Kannauj came for a short period under the hands of Arunasva who attacked Wang Hstian-tse who came to the court of king Harsha as an ambassador of the Chinese emperor Tai-Tsung. However, Wang Hstian-tse succeeded in capturing Arunasva who was taken back to China to spend his days in attendance on the Tang Emperor. About AD 730, Yashovarman established a kingdom at Kannauj. His invasion of Gauda formed the subject of the Prakrit poem Gaudavaho
(Slaying of the king of Gauda), composed by his courtier Vakpatiraja in the 8th century.
After Yashovarman, three kings — Vijrayudha, Indrayudha, and Chakrayudha — ruled over Kannauj between the close of the 8th century until the 820s. Taking advantage of the weakness of these Ayudha rulers and attracted by the immense strategic and economic potentialities of the kingdom of Kannauj, the Gurjara-Pratiharas of Bhinmal (Rajasthan), the Palas of Bengal and Bihar and the Rashtrakutas of the Manyakheta (Karnataka) fought against each other. This tripartite struggle for Kannauj lingered for almost two centuries and ultimately ended in favour of the Gurjara-Pratihara ruler Nagabhata II who made the city the capital of the Gurjara-Pratihara state, which ruled for nearly three centuries[citation needed].
Advent of Pala Empire
Dharmapala defeated Indraraja (or Indrayudha), the ruler of
Avanti, Gandhara and Kira (Kangra Valley).[7][8] These kings accepted the installation of Chakrayudha on the Kannauj throne, while "bowing down respectfully with their diadems trembling".[9] Some historians have speculated that all these kingdoms might have been the vassal states of the Pala empire but maintained their autonomy.[10]
: 39
Vatsaraja and Dhruva
Pratihara king
Dharmapala of the Pala Empire re-occupied Kanyakubja, but he was also defeated by Dhruva.[3]: 20 After Dhruva returned to his Kingdom, Dharmapala recaptured Kannauj and placed his vassal Chakrayudha on the throne.[11]: 53–55 Dharmapala became the most powerful ruler in North India, and declared himself as Uttarapathasvamin ("Lord of Northern India"). [12]
Nagabhata II and Govinda III
The Rashtrakutas power was weakened by a war of succession after Dhruva’s death in 793 CE. Vatsaraja's son
Vindhyas and Malwa
was incorporated in the Rashtrakuta domain.
After the departure of Govinda III, Dharamapala re established his authority over North India and remained the dominant ruler in North India till the end of his life,[7]: 43–45 his son Devapala, and grandsons Mahendrapala and Shurapala I also maintained Pala dominance over North India and Kannauj until c865 CE.[18][19][3][7]: 20
Prathihara Capital and the End of the Struggle
Prathihara king
Mihir Bhoja, grandson son of Nagabhata II, who's initial attempt to conquer Kannauj was defeated by Devapala, later defeated the Pala empire during the reign of Narayanapala,[3]: 21 and made Kannauj the Prathihara capital. During the rule of King Mahendrapala I, son of Mihir Bhoja, the Pratihara empire reached it's zenith, however the empire then slowly began to weaken from it’s constant struggle against the Arabs to the west, the Palas to the east and Rashtrakutas to the south of their domain.[20]: 19–20 Rhastrakuta King Indra III occupied Kannauj from 914 – 916 CE[3]: 21 Mahmud of Ghazni sacked the city in 1018 CE, however, Kannauj remained under Pratihara dynasty control until the death of King Yashpala in 1036 CE.[21][22]
References
- ISBN 978-93-5345-160-8.
- ISBN 9788184245684.
- ^ ISBN 9789380607344.
- ^ V. B. Mishra 1966, p. 18.
- ^ Baij Nath Puri 1957, pp. 10–11.
- ^ Rama Shankar Tripathi 1959, p. 226-227.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-14-341678-4.
- ISBN 978-81-7017-059-4.
Dharmapāla after defeating Indrāyudha and capturing Kanuaj made it over to Cakrāyudha, who was a vassal king of Kanuaj subordinate to Dharmapāla.... Dharmapāla was thus acknowledged paramount ruler of almost whole of North India as the Bhojas of Berar, Kīra (Kangra district), Gandhāra (West Punjab), Pañcāla (Ramnagar area of U.P.), Kuru (eastern Punjab), Madra (Central Punjab), Avanti (Malwa), Yadus (Mathura or Dwarka or Siṁhapura in the Punjab), Matsya (a part of northeast Rajputana) were his vassals.
- ^ Pramode Lal Paul (1939). The Early History of Bengal (PDF). Indian History. Indian Research Institute. p. 38. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 March 2014. Retrieved 28 March 2014.
- ISBN 90-04-06856-2.
- ^ ISBN 978-81-208-1991-7.
- OCLC 1000593117.
- ^ Rama Shankar Tripathi 1964, p. 233.
- ISBN 8129108909.
- OCLC 7796041.
- ISBN 81-86782-12-5.
- ^ A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th century by Upinder Singh p.569
- ^ Bhattacharya, Suresh Chandra, Pāla Kings in the Badal Praśasti — A Stock-Taking, Journal of Ancient Indian History, University of Calcutta, Vol. XXIV, 2007-08, pp. 73-82.
- ^ Badal Pillar Inscription, verse 5, Epigraphia Indica, II p 160.
- ISBN 978-81-241-1064-5.}
- ISBN 9788170170464.
- ISBN 9788120819979.
- ISBN 9788120804364