Chandragupta II and the Fall of the Gupta Empire

At a Glance

• Chandragupta II AD 380 to 412
• Alliance Daughter Prabhavati married a Vakataka
• Title Vikramaditya
• Pilgrim Fa-hsien, AD 399 to 414
• Threat Hunas from the late fifth century
• Exam link UPSC Prelims, Ancient History: Gupta Age and Post-Gupta Kingdoms

Where Does It Fit?

This is the second topic of the category on the Gupta age. The previous topic covered Chandragupta I and Samudragupta, and this one covers the peak and decline. The next topic covers Gupta administration. Previous topic: Rise of the Gupta Empire – Chandragupta I and Samudragupta.

How Did Chandragupta II Raise the Empire to Its Peak?

In short: marriage alliance and conquest took the Guptas west to the Arabian Sea.

The reign of Chandragupta II (AD 380 to 412) saw the high watermark of the Gupta empire. He extended its limits by marriage alliance and conquest. He married his daughter Prabhavati to a Vakataka prince of the brahmana caste who ruled in central India. When the prince died, his young son succeeded and Prabhavati became the virtual ruler. Her land charters, influenced by eastern Gupta writing, show that she promoted her father’s interests, so Chandragupta exercised indirect control over the Vakataka kingdom, a great advantage. With this influence he conquered Mathura from the Kushans. More importantly, he occupied western Malwa and Gujarat, which had been under the Shaka kshatrapas for about four centuries, giving him control of the western coast famed for trade and commerce, and contributing to the prosperity of Malwa and its chief city Ujjain, which seems to have become a second capital. The Shaka background is in Shakas and Parthians.

Who Was the Vikramaditya and What Did the Iron Pillar Say?

The exploits of a king called Chandra are praised in an iron pillar inscription near the Qutb Minar in Delhi. If Chandra is Chandragupta II, he established Gupta authority in the north-west and in much of Bengal, but the eulogy seems exaggerated. Chandragupta II took the title Vikramaditya, first used by an Ujjain ruler in 58-57 BC after victory over the Shaka kshatrapas, who is traditionally called Shakari, enemy of the Shakas; Chandragupta II proved a greater Shakari. His court at Ujjain was adorned by scholars including Kalidasa and Amarasimha. During his reign the Chinese pilgrim Fa-hsien (AD 399 to 414) visited India and wrote a full account of the life of the people. The literary world is in Gupta Literature.

Why Did the Empire Fall?

The successors of Chandragupta II faced an invasion by the Hunas from Central Asia in the second half of the fifth century. Skandagupta took effective measures at first, but his successors were weak. The Hunas excelled in horsemanship and possibly used metal stirrups, and they were excellent archers. By AD 485 the Hunas held eastern Malwa and central India, and Punjab and Rajasthan passed to them. Yashodharman of Malwa, of the Aulikara feudatory family, overthrew Huna power and in AD 532 set up a victory pillar claiming conquest of almost all northern India; his rule was short but a severe blow to the Guptas. The rise of feudatories further undermined the empire. Governors in north Bengal and feudatories in Samatata tended to declare independence, the later Guptas of Magadha rose in Bihar, and the Maukharis rose in Bihar and UP with Kanauj as capital. By AD 550 Bihar and UP were out of Gupta hands. Independent princes in northern Madhya Pradesh issued land grants in their own right, using the Gupta era. The rulers of Valabhi took Gujarat and western Malwa, and after Skandagupta (AD 467) hardly any Gupta coin or inscription is found in western Malwa and Saurashtra. The loss of the west by the end of the fifth century deprived the Guptas of trade revenue. The princes of Thanesar then rose in Haryana and moved towards Kanauj.

The Gupta state may have found it difficult to maintain a large professional army because of land grants for religious and other purposes, which reduced revenue, and income also fell as foreign trade declined. The migration of a silk-weavers’ guild from Gujarat to Malwa in AD 473, and their adoption of non-productive professions, shows weak demand for its cloth. After the middle of the fifth century the Gupta kings tried to maintain the gold currency by reducing its pure gold content, without success. Though the imperial Guptas lingered to the sixth century, the imperial glory had vanished a century earlier. As an analytical point, the empire fell through a mix of external shock and internal weakening of the revenue base, a pattern that links to the changes in From Ancient to Medieval – Agrarian Changes and Rise of Landlords. The post-Gupta rulers are in Pulakeshin II Sources Harshacharita, Hsuan Tsang Nature of rule Feudal,…">Harsha and his Times.

Why Is This Topic Important?

• Peak and decline Frequent Mains question
• Alliance policy Prabhavati
• Causes Multi-factor analysis

What Came Next?

The next topic describes Gupta administration. Next topic: Gupta Administration.

Key People and Terms

• Prabhavati Daughter of Chandragupta II
• Vikramaditya Royal title
• Shakari Enemy of the Shakas
• Hunas Central Asian invaders
• Aulikara Feudatory family of Yashodharman
• Maukhari Dynasty of Kanauj

Exam Corner

Mains Angle

Questions ask about the achievement and decline of the Guptas. These points add depth.

• Policy Marriage and conquest
• Peak Western trade
• Decline Huns and feudatories