1
North India witnessed a complex territo-
Magadha, Kingdom of
SUSMITA BASU MAJUMDAR
University of Calcutta, India
The period from the 6th century BCE was
a landmark in the history of north India.
Among the various changes that distinguish
the period from the previous phases are the
transition into the early historic phase, marked
by the formation of territorial states – both
monarchical (rajya) and non-monarchical
(ganarajya/ganasamgha) – the onset of the
second urbanization, and the introduction of
metallic currency and a more complex society.
North India experienced the emergence of
several territorial political entities, known as
mahajanapadas. Among these mahajanapadas
Magadha emerged as the most powerful and
was the first to witness the growth of an empire
in the whole subcontinent. For the reconstruc-
tion of dynastic and/or political history of
the period, the sources to be taken into
consideration are mainly the Buddhist and
Jaina texts and also the Puranic literature,
none being exactly contemporary with the
period of Magadha’s ascendancy. Among
non-indigenous sources are the Achaemenid
inscriptions, the History of Herodotus, and
the Greek accounts of the Macedonian incur-
sion (327–324 BCE). Archaeological artifacts
which contribute to the understanding of this
period include pottery – Black and Red Ware
(BRW) and the lustrous Northern Black Pol-
ished Ware (NBPW, a deluxe pottery) – and
coins (silver and copper punch-marked
coins). Urbanization and the emergence of
many heterodox religious sects like Buddhism,
Jainism, Ajivakism, Lokayata, and Carvaka are
other principal features of this early his-
toric phase.
The Encyclopedia of Empire, First Edition. Edited by John M. MacKenzie.
© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Published 2016 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
DOI: 10.1002/9781118455074.w9781118440643wbeoe133
rial polity during the 6th–5th centuries BCE
when most of these mahajanapadas emerged
in the Ganga valley; very few were located
outside the Ganga plains. There was no single
dominant power in this region during this
period; rather these multiple powers co-
existed. Each territorial unit aspired to
expand its zone of influence at the cost of
weaker ones. Such prominent powers have
been recorded in contemporary and later
texts and constitute 16 mahajanapadas (sho-
dasamahajanapadas). The Anguttaranikaya
provides us with a list of these, apparently
contemporary with the lifetime of the Buddha
(either c.566–486 BCE or the 4th century BCE;
here we have taken the 6th–5th centu-
ries BCE as the life of Buddha.) The Pali
canonical texts of the pre-Mauryan times
(Vinayapitaka, Dighanikaya, Majjhimani-
kaya, Anguttaranikaya, Samyuttanikaya, and
Suttanipata) are useful for the study of the
political history of this period. The 16 maha-
janapadas as mentioned in the Anguttarani-
kaya are as follows: Kasi, with its capital at
Varanasi, located in the area adjoining
Banaras in Uttar Pradesh (UP); Kosala, with
its capital at Sravasti, comprising the present-
day Lucknow, Gonda, Faizabad, and Bahar-
aich areas of UP; Anga, with its capital at
Champa near Bhagalpur, in eastern Bihar;
Magadha, located in southern Bihar with
two capitals, one at Rajagriha-Girivraja
(modern Rajgir) and the other at Pataliputra
(Patna); Vriji, with its capital at Vaisali, mod-
ern Basadh (Mujaffarpur area, Bihar), com-
prising areas of north Bihar; Malla, with its
capital at Pava, modern Pawapuri in Bihar;
Chedi, with its capital at Suktimati, located
in the area around present Jabalpur in Mad-
har Pradesh (MP); Vatsa, with its capital at
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Kausambi (near modern Allahabad, UP),
comprising the territory around Allahabad;
Matsya, with its capital at Bairat, located in
the eastern parts of modern Rajasthan; Sur-
asena, with its capital at Mathura, in UP,
located in the Ganga-Yamuna doab area;
Kuru, with its capital at Hastinapura, located
in the Ganga-Yamuna doab area, in the
region of Delhi-Haryana; Panchala, having
two capitals, one at Ahichhatra (near
Bareilly in UP) and the other at Kampilya,
situated in the present Rohilkhand area;
Asmaka, with its capital at Govardhana
(Potana near Nander in Maharashtra);
Avanti, situated in the Godavari valley (the
only mahajanapada in the Deccan), which
also had two capitals, at Ujjaiyini (modern
Ujjain in MP) and at Mahishmati
(Mandhata, MP), located in the western part
of the present MP; Gandhara, with its capital
at Takshasila (Taxila close to Rawalpindi,
Pakistan), located in the northwestern fron-
tier area of the subcontinent, embracing
areas to both the west and the east of the
river Indus in Pakistan; and Kamboja,
located in the Hazara district of Pakistan.
However, it is worth mentioning that the list
of mahajanapadas given in the Mahabharata
varies to some extent from the above-
mentioned list.
Most of the mahajanapadas were monar-
chical, though some were non-monarchical
ganarajyas or ganasamghas. Among the
16 mahajanapadas, the monarchical states
of Kosala, Kasi, Avanti, and Magadha, along
with the non-monarchical (ganasamgha)
mahajanapada of the Vrijis or Vajjis, attained
political prominence during the Buddha’s
time, obviously by eclipsing other contempo-
rary powers. Kosala too became powerful,
defeating and annexing Kasi and reducing
the number of political contestants. Vatsa
and Avanti, as ardent rivals, were also
initially involved in the struggle for political
pre-eminence, but all were gradually
overshadowed by Magadha which ultimately
rose to considerable prominence.
The rise of Magadha depended on several
factors including its strategic location and its
control over the nodal point in the Ganges
river system. It was endowed with both over-
land and riverine communications, and a
strong agricultural base which supported the
diversified and specialized craftsmen, provid-
ing impetus to commerce as well. Besides this,
it possessed extremely rich mineral deposits,
particularly iron ore. The growing use of iron
technology not only resulted in improved craft
production but contributed immensely to the
manufacture of excellent weapons, which
enhanced the military power of the mahajana-
pada. Anther factor was the natural location of
the first capital at Rajagriha, naturally secured
by five hills surrounding around it, which
made it impregnable and strengthened the
position of Magadha in war. The availability
of elephants and their use in the Magadhan
army contributed to its territorial expansion
and consolidation of power.
Magadha in south Bihar figures for the first
time in later Vedic literature where it was
viewed as an impure land. The earliest chief
is named Pramaganda, from whom the region
of Magadha derived its name. Magadha com-
prised the area of south Bihar around present-
day Gaya-Rajgir, centered on the capital Raja-
griha-Girivraja. Even in the early days of the
mahajanapadas, Magadha seems to have been
overshadowed by its immediate eastern
neighbor, Anga. Subsequently, in Magadha
there arose three consecutive ruling dynasties
which contributed to the making of Magadha
as a formidable polity: the Haryanka, the
Saisunaga, and the Nanda. It was with the
accession of Bimbisara, a scion of the Har-
yanka family (kula) to the throne that
Magadha started to emerge from erstwhile
political obscurity.
Bimbisara, who came to power in the sec-
ond half of the 6th century BCE, made a

number of matrimonial alliances with prom-
inent powers including the Madra, the
Kosala, and the Vriji ganarajya, to strengthen
his political position. It was Bimbisara’s per-
sistent efforts which defeated Brahmadatta,
the ruler of the southeastern kingdom of
Anga which he annexed, and which brought
Magadha into prominence almost on a par
with Kosala and Avanti. The conquest of
Anga gave Magadha access to the routes to
the Ganges delta, thus facilitating better con-
tact with the eastern coast. Bimbisara
appointed Ajatasatru as the administrator of
the newly conquered territory of Anga, which
inaugurated Magadhan expansion to the east.
Bimbisara’s marriage to the Kosalan princess
brought as dowry the village of Kasi on the
Ganges, which gave Magadha access to
another strategic port. This is the first known
instance of Magadha’s control over a territory
to the west of Magadha. Thus, Bimbisara
added Anga and a part of Kasi to the
Magadha dominions. The Buddhist text
Mahavagga mentions that Bimbisara’s
dominions embraced 80 000 townships.
During his time we find an organized polity
with a system of administration which was
characterized by regular resource mobiliza-
tion through revenue demands. He not only
created a hierarchy in the administrative
machinery by appointing ministers and allo-
cating them specific duties but also sought
ministerial advice from time to time. Land
revenue assessment was done on a standard
basis from the village upward. The regular
taxes included bali, a tax on cultivated land,
and bhaga, a share of the produce; among
other taxes imposed were kara (direct tax)
and sulka (tolls or customs dues). With regu-
lar taxation the state now came to establish its
claim over a large portion of the land, and the
king as head of state symbolically became
its owner.
Bimbisara’s successor, Ajatasatru, born of
the Kosalan princess, pursued aggressive
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designs with greater intensity and came into
conflict with Kosala soon after his accession.
He is said to have killed his own father and
caused his mother to die of grief. He strength-
ened his position and also the capital city by
takinsg measures to fortify Pataligama,
located on the confluence of the Ganga, the
Son, and the Ghaghra. Pataligama was ini-
tially a riverine port of commercial signifi-
cance, an exchange center of goods brought
from nearby production centers. Prasenajit,
the ruler of Kasi, was also antagonized due
to the loss of his sister (the wife of Bimbisara),
but the political contest soon came to an end
with another matrimonial alliance being con-
tracted between Magadha and Kosala. Prase-
najit got his daughter Vajira married to
Ajatasatru. The Magadhan control over Kasi
was retained after this marriage. Soon after
this, Prasenajit himself faced a rebellion by
his son Vidudabha in Kosala who took advan-
tage of the absence of his father in the capital
and, with the support of the commander-in-
chief, Digha Charayana, captured the throne
of Kosala. Prasenajit set out for Rajagriha in
order to seek help from Ajatasatru, but he
died of exposure outside the gates of Raja-
griha. Kosala was subsequently annexed to
Magadha.
Bimbisara had married Chellana the prin-
cess of Vaishali of the Vriji confederacy, but
in the time of Ajatasatru Magadha gave
up the previous policy of befriending the
Vrijis and engaged in a protracted conflict
with them. According to Sumangala-vilasini
(Buddhaghosha’s commentary), Ajatasatru
waged a war against the Lichchavis/Vrijis
over a breach of trust regarding a mine of pre-
cious gems or some fragrant material near a
port of the Ganges over which a condomin-
ium was exercised by Ajatasatru and his
northern neighbors. According to the Maha-
vagga, two ministers of Ajatasatru, Sunidha
and Vassakara, were entrusted with the work
of building the fortress at Patalagrama as a
4
preparatory measure for attacking the Vrijis.
The Jaina Nirayavali Sutra mentions that
when Ajatasatru decided to attack Chetaka
of Vaisali, the Vaisalians sought help from
the nine Lichchavi, nine Mallaki clans, and
the 18 ganarajyas and Kasi and Kosala. This
marks a sort of confederacy of 36 non-
monarchical clans to offer a combined resist-
ance to monarchical Magadha. Raychaudhuri
(1996) describes this event thus: “The flames
fused together into one big conflagration.”
However, the conquest of the Vriji ganasan-
gha was a long affair and Ajatasatru was
helped by his able minister Vassakara, who
framed the policy of conquest by creating a
rift in the confederacy. In this war, two new
weapons were used – the mahasilakantaka
and the rathamusala, the former a large-sized
catapult for hurling rocks and the latter a club
attached to a chariot.
Magadha thus eclipsed the Kosala and Vriji
mahajanapadas, both to the north of the
Ganga. These territories were incorporated
into the expanding Magadhan realm. Avanti,
too, finally conquered and annexed its arch-
rival, the mahajanapada of Vatsa; the process
led to a reduction in the number of principal
contestants from five to two. Ajatasatru died
in c.461 BCE and was succeeded by Udayin or
Udayibhadra. Before his succession to the
throne of Magadha, Udayin also acted
as the viceroy for his father at Champa.
With the conquest of Kosala and the Lichcha-
vis, the adversaries of Magadha to the north of
the Ganga, there was a need to shift the capital
northward for a proper control of affairs. This
justifies the shifting of the Magadhan capital
by Udayin from Rajagriha to Pataliputra, also
a riverine trade center.
Udayin was succeeded by four kings of the
same dynasty, who were not so prominent
and could not leave a significant mark on
the history of Magadha. The people of
Magadha were tired of parricides and the
internal strife in the Haryanka family, and
this led to the final change in the political sce-
nario where in Sisunaga the Magadhan
administrator in Varanasi took the reins of
the kingdom into his hands.
The Saisunaga dynasty ruled over
Magadha from c.413 to 345 BCE. The principal
event during Sisunaga’s reign was the victory
of Magadha over Avanti. With the overpow-
ering of Avanti, there were few challengers to
Magadha’s political primacy. The Puranas
mention a few successors of Sisunaga
(Kalasoka, Kakavarna, Nandivardhana, Pan-
chamaka, etc.) but it is difficult to suggest a
reliable chronology of their rules and the
principal events of their reigns.
The Saisunagas were supplanted by
the very formidable Nanda dynasty in
Magadha, who were non-Kshatriyas and of
humble origin. The Puranas described the
first Nanda king being of sudra origin (sudra-
garbhodbhava), while the Jaina Parisishtapar-
van describes him as the son of a barber
(napitaputra). The founder of the line, Maha-
padmananda (or Mahapadmapati, also called
Ugrasena) is portrayed as a person devoid of
any pedigree and a violent usurper of the
throne. To the previous conquests of the
Magadhans, Nandas added the regions of
Kalinga and Asmaka. Under Mahapadama,
Magadha’s conquest of Kalinga marks the
first Magadhan penetration toward the south.
Kalinga acted as a corridor between northern
India and the peninsular south.
The Puranas refer to the rule of nine Nanda
kings who could have been brothers or sons of
Mahapadama Nanda. Other than Mahapa-
dama, only the last ruler of the Nanda
dynasty, Dhanananda, is definitely known
from the accounts of Alexander’s historians.
A contemporary of Alexander, he is called
Agrammes (Sanskrit Augrasainya, i.e., a son
of Ugrasena). His kingdom is mentioned as
that of Gangaridae and Prasioi, with its capi-
tal at Palibothra. Their control over the
Ganga valley must have enabled the Nanda

kings to extract considerable resources from
the agrarian sector. This was a major pre-
requisite for their commanding a large army,
the estimates of which are given by Greek wri-
ters as consisting of 20 000 cavalry, 200 000
infantry, 2000 chariots, and 3000 elephants.
Even allowing for exaggeration, the vast size
of the Magadhan army is apparent. Mahapa-
dama Nanda was succeeded by his eight sons
who were possibly kings in succession.
Although Mahapadama Nanda left to his
sons a huge realm, a large and efficient army,
immense resources, and an efficient adminis-
trative system, Nanda rule soon came to an
end, in c.324 BCE, when Chandragupta
Maurya overthrew the last Nanda king.
The importance of the period under
review is seen in the emergence of earliest
coinage in northern India. These were silver
and copper punch-marked coins. Each
mahajanapada had its own coinage, which
seems to have been introduced around 600
BCE; the subsequent territorial expansion of
Magadha paved the way for a uniform cur-
rency used almost all over the subcontinent
and even beyond. Finally, with the rise of
Magadha as a superpower, we find the begin-
ning of a common silver currency bearing
five punches and of a fixed weight standard
called karshapana, which later gave the
name of the coinage too. The unification of
the smaller regions into a large composite
political framework is distinctly visible in
the uniform and stable monetary pattern
that evolved over the centuries. The exten-
sive Nanda conquests made Magadha the
5
most formidable power in the entire Ganga
valley, if not the whole of north India. This
possibly set the stage for the subsequent
Magadhan expansion to a virtually pan-
Indian realm under the Mauryas.
SEE ALSO: Mauryan Empire; Nanda Empire
REFERENCE
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FURTHER READING
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hoe and Ruprecht.
Bhattacharyya, N. N. 1996. Indian Religious Histo-
riography, 2nd ed. New Delhi: Manohar.
Chakravarti, R. 2012. Exploring Early India up to
c. AD 1300. New Delhi: Macmillan.
Gupta, P. L. 1969. Coins. New Delhi: National
Book Trust.
Kosambi, D. D. 1956. An Introduction to the Study
of Indian History. Bombay: People’s Publish-
ing House.
Roy, K. 1994. The Emergence of Monarchy in North
India, Eighth–Fourth Centuries BC. New Delhi:
Oxford University Press.
Singh, U. 2009. A History of Ancient and Early
Medieval India, From the Stone Age to the
12th Century. Delhi: Pearson.
Thapar, R. 2002. The Penguin History of Early
India: From the Origins to AD 1300. New Delhi:
Penguin.