History of India

After their origin in Africa, first arrived on the Indian subcontinent between 73,000 and 55,000 years ago. Settled life, which involves the transition from foraging to farming and pastoralism, began in South Asia around 7,000 BCE. At the site of, , presence can be documented of the domestication of wheat and barley, rapidly followed by that of goats, sheep, and cattle. By 4,500 BCE, settled life had become more widely prevalent, and eventually evolved into the, an early civilization of the , contemporaneous with and. It flourished between 2,500 BCE and 1900 BCE in what today is Pakistan and north-western India, and was noted for its urban planning, baked brick houses, elaborate drainage, and water supply.

In the beginning of the second millennium BCE climate change, with, led to the abandonment of the urban centers of the Indus Valley Civilisation. Its population resettled in smaller villages, and, in the north-west, mixed with, who moved into the area in several , also driven by the effects of this climate change. The was marked by the composition of the, large collections of hymns of some of the Aryan tribes, whose postulated religious culture, through synthesis with the preexisting religious cultures of the subcontinent, gave rise to. The, which created a hierarchy of priests, warriors, and free peasants, but which excluded indigenous peoples by labeling their occupations impure, arose later during this period. Towards the end of the period, around the sixth century BCE, a second urbanisation took place with the consolidation of small kingdoms (s) into larger states called. This renewed urbanisation led to the rise of new ascetic or movements, including  and, which challenged the orthodoxy of rituals, and gave rise to new religious concepts.

Most of the Indian subcontinent was conquered by the during the 4th and 3rd centuries BCE. From the 3rd century BCE onwards and  literature in the north and the   in southern India started to flourish. originated in south India in the 3rd century BCE and was exported to foreign countries. During the, various parts of India were ruled by numerous dynasties for the next 1,500 years, among which the stands out. This period, witnessing a religious and intellectual resurgence, is known as the classical or "". During this period, aspects of Indian civilisation, administration, culture, and religion ( and ) spread to much of Asia, while kingdoms in southern India had maritime business links with the Middle East and the. Indian cultural influence spread over many parts of, which led to the establishment of Indianised kingdoms in Southeast Asia.

The most significant event between the 7th and 11th century was the centred on  that lasted for more than two centuries between the, , and. saw the rise of multiple imperial powers from the middle of the fifth century, most notably the, , , , , and Empires. The conquered southern India and successfully invaded parts of Southeast Asia,, the , and  in the 11th century. In the early medieval period, including , influenced the development of mathematics and astronomy in the.

Islamic conquests made limited inroads into modern Afghanistan and as early as the 8th century, and the  was founded in 1206 CE by Central Asian  who ruled a major part of the northern Indian subcontinent in the early 14th century, but declined in the late 14th century. This period also saw the emergence of several powerful Hindu states, notably, , and , as well as , such as. The 15th century saw the advent of. The early modern period began in the 16th century, when the conquered most of the Indian subcontinent, becoming the biggest global economy and manufacturing power, with a nominal GDP that valued a quarter of world GDP, superior than the combination of 's GDP. The Mughals suffered a gradual decline in the early 18th century, which provided opportunities for the, , and  to exercise control over large regions of the Indian subcontinent.

From the mid-18th century to the mid-19th century, large regions of India were gradually annexed by the, a chartered company acting as a sovereign power on behalf of the British government. Dissatisfaction with led to the, which rocked parts of north and central India, and let to the dissolution of the Company. India was afterwards ruled directly by the, in the. After, a nationwide struggle for independence was launched by the , led by , and noted for. The British Indian Empire was partitioned in August 1947 into the and, each gaining its independence.

Paleolithic
expansion from Africa is estimated to have reached the Indian subcontinent approximately two million years ago, and possibly as early as 2.2 millions years before the present. This dating is based on the known presence of  in Indonesia by 1.8 million years before the present, and in East Asia by 1.36 million years before present, as well as the discovery of stone tools made by proto-humans in the, at , and in the Pabbi Hills, all in present-day Pakistan. Although some older discoveries have been claimed, the suggested dates, based on the dating of, has not been independently verified.

The oldest hominini fossil remains in the Indian subcontinent are those of Homo erectus or , from the in central India, and are dated to approximately half a million years ago. Older fossil finds have been claimed, but are considered unreliable. Reviews of archaeological evidence have suggested that occupation of the Indian subcontinent by hominins was sporadic until approximately 700,000 years ago, and was geographically widespread by approximately 250,000 years before the present, from which point onward archaeological evidence of proto-human presence is widely point.

Archaeological evidence has been interpreted to suggest the presence of in the Indian subcontinent 78,000–74,000 years ago, although this interpretation is disputed.

Neolithic
More extensive settlement of the Indian subcontinent occurred the period after the end of the last  approximately 12,000 years ago. The first confirmed semi-permanent settlements appeared 9,000 years ago in the in modern, India. The are pictorial writings believed to date to at least 6,000 BCE, from the  man, indicating the presence of a prehistoric civilisation or settlement in.

Neolithic agricultural cultures sprang up in the Indus Valley region around 5000 BCE, in the lower Gangetic valley around 3000 BCE, represented by the findings (7570–6200 BCE) in,  findings (7000 BCE) in , and  findings (7000–5000 BCE) in ; and later in Southern India, spreading southwards and also northwards into  around 1800 BCE. The first urban civilisation of the region began with the.

Indus Valley Civilisation
The in the  began around 3300 BCE. Along with and, the Indus valley region was one of three early  of the. Of the three, the Indus Valley Civilisation was the most expansive, and at its peak, may have had a population of over five million.

The civilisation was primarily located in modern-day (,, , , ,  states) and  (, , and  provinces), while some sites in Afghanistan are believed to be trading colonies. A total of 1,022 cities and settlements had been found by 2008, mainly in the general region of the Indus and Ghaggar-Hakra Rivers, and their tributaries; of which 616 sites are in India and 406 sites are in Pakistan; of these 96 have been excavated.

The Mature Indus civilisation flourished from about 2600 to 1900 BCE, marking the beginning of urban civilisation on the Indian subcontinent. The civilisation included such as, , , , and  in modern-day India, as well as , , and  in modern-day Pakistan.

Inhabitants of the ancient Indus river valley, the Harappans, developed new techniques in metallurgy and handicraft (carneol products, seal carving), and produced copper, bronze, lead, and tin. The civilisation is noted for its cities built of brick, roadside drainage system, and multi-storeyed houses and is thought to have had some kind of municipal organisation.

Dravidian origins
Linguists hypothesized that Dravidian-speaking people were spread throughout the before a series of Indo-Aryan migrations. In this view, the early is often identified as having been Dravidian. Cultural and linguistic similarities have been cited by researchers, , , and as being strong evidence for a proto-Dravidian origin of the ancient Indus Valley civilisation. Linguist Asko Parpola writes that the Indus script and Harappan language "most likely to have belonged to the Dravidian family". The population of  has been taken by some as the linguistic equivalent of a  population, perhaps indicating that Dravidian languages were formerly much more widespread and were supplanted by the incoming Indo-Aryan languages.

Indo-Aryan migrations (c.1800 – 1500 BCE)
In the 2nd millennium BCE widespread aridification occurred in the Eurasian steppes and south Asia. Water shortage strongly affected south Asia: "This time was one of great upheaval for ecological reasons. Prolonged failure of rains caused acute water shortage in large areas, causing the collapse of sedentary urban cultures in south central Asia, Afghanistan, Iran, and India, and triggering large-scale migrations. Inevitably, the new arrivals came to merge with and dominate the post-urban cultures."

During the of the Indus Valley Civilisation, signs of a  began to emerge, and by around 1700 BCE, most of the cities were abandoned. many scholars believe that drought and a decline in trade with Egypt and Mesopotamia caused the collapse of the Indus Civilisation. The Ghaggar-Hakra system was rain-fed, and water supply depended on the monsoons. The Indus valley climate grew significantly cooler and drier from about 1800 BCE, linked to a general weakening of the at that time. The Indian monsoon declined and aridity increased, with the retracting its reach towards the foothills of the Himalaya, leading to erratic and less extensive floods that made inundation agriculture less sustainable. Aridification reduced the water supply enough to cause the civilisation's demise, and to scatter its population eastward.

On the steppes, the vegetation changed, driving "higher mobility and transition to the nomadic cattle breeding." Indo-Aryan tribes started to enter the Indian subcontinent, leading to new cultures in north-west India.

The Indus Valley Civilisation did not disappear suddenly, and some elements of the Indus Civilisation may have survived, especially in the smaller villages and isolated farms. According to historian "the general picture presented by the late Harappan phase is one of a breakdown of urban networks and an expansion of rural ones". The Indian is attributed to this time, associated in the Doab region with the.

Iron Age - Vedic period (c. 1500 – c. 600 BCE)
The is named after the  culture of north-west India, although other parts of India had a distinct cultural identity during this period. The Vedic culture is described in the texts of, still sacred to Hindus, which were orally composed in. The Vedas are some of the oldest extant texts in India. The Vedic period, lasting from about 1500 to 500 BCE, contributed the foundations of several cultural aspects of the Indian subcontinent. In terms of culture, many regions of the Indian subcontinent transitioned from the to the  in this period.

Vedic society
Historians have analysed the Vedas to posit a Vedic culture in the and the upper. Most historians also consider this period to have encompassed several waves of into the Indian subcontinent from the north-west. The tree and cow were sanctified by the time of the. Many of the concepts of espoused later, like, trace their roots to Vedic antecedents.

Early Vedic society is described in the, the oldest Vedic text, believed to have been compiled during 2nd millennium BCE, in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. At this time, Aryan society consisted of largely tribal and pastoral groups, distinct from the Harappan urbanisation which had been abandoned. The early Indo-Aryan presence probably corresponds, in part, to the in archaeological contexts.

At the end of the Rigvedic period, the Aryan society began to expand from the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent, into the western plain. It became increasingly agricultural and was socially organised around the hierarchy of the four , or social classes. This social structure was characterised both by syncretising with the native cultures of northern India, but also eventually by the excluding of some indigenous peoples by labeling their occupations impure. During this period, many of the previous small tribal units and chiefdoms began to coalesce into.

In the 14th century BCE, the, between the  tribal kingdoms of the , allied with other tribes of the Northwest , guided by the royal sage , and the   king , who defeats other Vedic tribes—leading to the emergence of the , first state level society during the Vedic period.

Janapadas
The in the Indian subcontinent from about 1200 BCE to the 6th century BCE is defined by the rise of s, which are,  and —notably the Iron Age Kingdoms of , , ,.

The was the first state-level society of the Vedic period, corresponding to the beginning of the Iron Age in northwestern India, around 1200–800 BCE, as well as with the composition of the  (the first Indian text to mention iron, as, literally "black metal"). The Kuru state organised the Vedic hymns into collections, and developed the orthodox ritual to uphold the social order. Two key figures of the Kuru state were king and his successor, transforming this realm into the dominant political and cultural power of northern Iron Age India. When the Kuru kingdom declined, the centre of Vedic culture shifted to their eastern neighbours, the kingdom. The archaeological, which flourished in the and western  regions of northern India from about 1100 to 600 BCE, is believed to correspond to the  and Panchala kingdoms.

During the Late Vedic Period, the kingdom of emerged as a new centre of Vedic culture, situated even farther to the East (in what is today Nepal and  state in India); reaching its prominence under the king, whose court provided patronage for  sages and  such as , , and. The later part of this period corresponds with a consolidation of increasingly large states and kingdoms, called , all across Northern India.

Second urbanisation
During the time between 800 and 200 BCE the  movement formed, from which originated and. In the same period, the first were written. After 500 BCE, the so-called "Second urbanisation" started, with new urban settlements arising at the Ganges plain, especially the Central Ganges plain. The foundations for the Second Urbanisation were laid prior to 600 BCE, in the culture of the  and Upper Ganges Plain; although most PGW sites were small farming villages, "several dozen" PGW sites eventually emerged as relatively large settlements that can be characterized as towns, the largest of which were fortified by ditches or moats and embankments made of piled earth with wooden palisades, albeit smaller and simpler than the elaborately fortified large cities which grew after 600 BCE in the  culture.

The Central Ganges Plain, where gained prominence, forming the base of the, was a distinct cultural area, with new states arising after 500 BCE during the so-called "Second urbanisation". It was influenced by the Vedic culture, but differed markedly from the Kuru-Panchala region. It "was the area of the earliest known cultivation of rice in South Asia and by 1800 BCE was the location of an advanced Neolithic population associated with the sites of Chirand and Chechar". In this region, the movements flourished, and Jainism and Buddhism originated.

Buddhism and Jainism
Around 800 BCE to 400 BCE witnessed the composition of the earliest. Upanishads form the theoretical basis of classical Hinduism and are known as (conclusion of the ).

Increasing urbanisation of India in 7th and 6th centuries BCE led to the rise of new ascetic or Srama?a movements which challenged the orthodoxy of rituals. Mahavira (c. 549–477 BCE), proponent of, and (c. 563–483 BCE), founder of  were the most prominent icons of this movement. Srama?a gave rise to the concept of the cycle of birth and death, the concept of, and the concept of liberation. Buddha found a that ameliorated the extreme  found in the  religions.

Around the same time, (the 24th  in Jainism) propagated a theology that was to later become Jainism. However, Jain orthodoxy believes the teachings of the Tirthankaras predates all known time and scholars believe (c. 872 – c. 772 BCE), accorded status as the 23rd Tirthankara, was a historical figure. The Vedas are believed to have documented a few Tirthankaras and an ascetic order similar to the Srama?a movement.

Sanskrit Epics
The Sanskrit epics ' and ' were composed during this period. The Mahabharata remains, today, the longest single poem in the world. Historians formerly postulated an "epic age" as the milieu of these two epic poems, but now recognise that the texts (which are both familiar with each other) went through multiple stages of development over centuries. For instance, the Mahabharata may have been based on a small-scale conflict (possibly about 1000 BCE) which was eventually "transformed into a gigantic epic war by bards and poets". There is no conclusive proof from archaeology as to whether the specific events of the Mahabharata have any historical basis. The existing texts of these epics are believed to belong to the post-Vedic age, between c. 400 BCE and 400 CE.

Mahajanapadas
. The period from c. 600 BCE to c. 300 BCE witnessed the rise of the s, sixteen powerful and vast and  s. These Mahajanapadas evolved and flourished in a belt stretching from  in the northwest to  in the eastern part of the  and included parts of the trans- region. Ancient, like the , make frequent reference to these sixteen great kingdoms and republics—, , , , , , , , , , , (or Machcha), , , , and. This period saw the second major rise of urbanism in India after the.

Early "republics" or, such as s, s, , and had republican governments. Ga?a sanghas, such as, centered in the city of , and the , centered in the city of , existed as early as the 6th century BCE and persisted in some areas until the 4th century CE. The most famous clan amongst the ruling confederate clans of the Vajji Mahajanapada were the.

This period corresponds in an archaeological context to the culture. Especially focused in the Central Ganges plain but also spreading across vast areas of the northern and central Indian subcontinent, this culture is characterized by the emergence of large cities with massive fortifications, significant population growth, increased social stratification, wide-ranging trade networks, construction of public architecture and water channels, specialized craft industries (e.g., ivory and carnelian carving), a system of weights,, and the introduction of writing in the form of and  scripts. The language of the gentry at that time was, while the languages of the general population of northern India are referred to as s.

Many of the sixteen kingdoms had coalesced into four major ones by 500/400 BCE, by the time of. These four were Vatsa, Avanti, Kosala, and Magadha. The life of Gautama Buddha was mainly associated with these four kingdoms.

Early Magadha dynasties
Magadha formed one of the sixteen (: "Great Realms") or. The core of the kingdom was the area of south of the ; its first capital was  (modern Rajgir) then  (modern ). Magadha expanded to include most of Bihar and with the conquest of  and  respectively, followed by much of eastern Uttar Pradesh and Orissa. The ancient kingdom of Magadha is heavily mentioned in and Buddhist texts. It is also mentioned in the, and. The earliest reference to the Magadha people occurs in the where they are found listed along with the s,, and Mujavats. Magadha played an important role in the development of and Buddhism. The Magadha kingdom included republican communities such as the community of Rajakumara. Villages had their own assemblies under their local chiefs called Gramakas. Their administrations were divided into executive, judicial, and military functions.

Early sources, from the Buddhist, the and the Hindu , mentions Magadha being ruled by the  for some 200 years, c. 600–413 BCE. King of the  led an active and expansive policy, conquering Anga in what is now eastern Bihar and. King Bimbisara was overthrown and killed by his son, Prince, who continued the expansionist policy of Magadha. During this period,, the founder of , lived much of his life in Magadha kingdom. He attained enlightenment in, gave his first sermon in and the  was held in. The Haryanka dynasty was overthrown by the. The last Shishunaga ruler, Kalasoka, was assassinated by in 345 BCE, the first of the so-called Nine Nandas, which were Mahapadma and his eight sons.

The, at its greatest extent, extended from in the east, to the  in the west and as far south as the. The Nanda dynasty was famed for their great wealth. The built on the foundations laid by their  and  predecessors to create the first great empire of. To achieve this objective they built a vast army, consisting of 200,000, 20,000 , 2,000 war s and 3,000 s (at the lowest estimates). According to the historian, the size of the Nanda army was even larger, numbering 200,000 infantry, 80,000 cavalry, 8,000 war chariots, and 6,000 war elephants. However, the Nanda Empire did not have the opportunity to see their army face, who invaded north-western India at the time of , since Alexander was forced to confine to the plains of  and , for his forces mutinied at the  and refused to go any further upon encountering Nanda and Gangaridai forces.

Maurya Empire
The Maurya Empire (322–185 BCE) unified most of the Indian subcontinent into one state, and was the. At its greatest extent, the Mauryan Empire stretched to the north up to the natural boundaries of the and to the east into what is now. To the west, it reached beyond modern Pakistan, to the mountains in what is now Afghanistan. The empire was established by assisted by Chanakya  in  (in modern ) when he overthrew the.

Chandragupta rapidly expanded his power westwards across central and western India, and by 317 BCE the empire had fully occupied Northwestern India. The Mauryan Empire then defeated, a and founder of the , during the , thus gained additional territory west of the. Chandragupta's son succeeded to the throne around 297 BCE. By the time he died in c. 272 BCE, a large part of the Indian subcontinent was under Mauryan suzerainty. However, the region of (around modern day ) remained outside Mauryan control, perhaps interfering with their trade with the south.

Bindusara was succeeded by, whose reign lasted for around 37 years until his death in about 232 BCE. His campaign against the Kalingans in about 260 BCE, though successful, led to immense loss of life and misery. This filled Ashoka with remorse and led him to shun violence, and subsequently to embrace Buddhism. The empire began to decline after his death and the last Mauryan ruler,, was assassinated by to establish the.

Under Chandragupta Maurya and his successors, internal and external trade, agriculture, and economic activities all thrived and expanded across India thanks to the creation of a single efficient system of finance, administration, and security. The Mauryans built the, one of 's oldest and longest major roads connecting the Indian subcontinent with Central Asia. After the, the Empire experienced nearly half a century of peace and security under Ashoka. Mauryan India also enjoyed an era of social harmony, religious transformation, and expansion of the sciences and of knowledge. Chandragupta Maurya's embrace of increased social and religious renewal and reform across his society, while Ashoka's embrace of  has been said to have been the foundation of the reign of social and political peace and non-violence across all of India. Ashoka sponsored the spreading of Buddhist missionaries into, , , , and.

The  and the are the primary written records of the Mauryan times. Archaeologically, this period falls into the era of. The Mauryan Empire was based on a modern and efficient economy and society. However, the sale of merchandise was closely regulated by the government. Although there was no banking in the Mauryan society, usury was customary. A significant amount of written records on slavery are found, suggesting a prevalence thereof. During this period, a high quality steel called was developed in south India and was later exported to China and Arabia.

Sangam period
During the Sangam period literature flourished from the 3rd century BCE to the 4th century CE. During this period, three Tamil dynasties, collectively known as the of :,  and the  ruled parts of southern India.

The Sangam literature deals with the history, politics, wars, and culture of the Tamil people of this period. The scholars of the Sangam period rose from among the common people who sought the patronage of the Tamil Kings, but who mainly wrote about the common people and their concerns. Unlike Sanskrit writers who were mostly Brahmins, Sangam writers came from diverse classes and social backgrounds and were mostly non-Brahmins. They belonged to different faiths and professions like farmers, artisans, merchants, monks, priests and even princes and quite a few of them were even women.

Around c.?300 BCE – c.?200 CE.,, an anthology of ten mid-length books collection, which is considered part of , were composed; the composition of eight anthologies of poetic works as well as the composition of eighteen minor poetic works ; while , the earliest grammarian work in the  was developed. Also, during Sangam period, two of were composed. composed ', which is a non-religious work, that revolves around, who having lost her husband to a miscarriage of justice at the court of the Pandyan dynasty, wreaks her revenge on his kingdom, and ', composed by , is a to Silappatikaram, and tells the story of the daughter of  and , who became a  Bikkuni.

Classical and early medieval periods (c. 200 BCE – c. 1200 CE)
The time between the Maurya Empire in the 3rd century BCE and the end of the in the 6th century CE is referred to as the "Classical" period of India. It can be divided in various sub-periods, depending on the chosen periodisation. Classical period begins after the decline of the, and the corresponding rise of the and. The (4th–6th century) is regarded as the "Golden Age" of Hinduism, although a host of kingdoms ruled over India in these centuries. Also, the flourished from the 3rd century BCE to the 3rd century CE in southern India. During this period, is estimated to have been the largest in the world, having between one-third and one-quarter of the world's wealth, from 1 CE to 1000 CE.

Shunga Empire
The Shungas originated from, and controlled areas of the central and eastern Indian subcontinent from around 187 to 78 BCE. The dynasty was established by, who overthrew the last. Its capital was, but later emperors, such as , also held court at , modern in Eastern.

Pushyamitra Shunga ruled for 36 years and was succeeded by his son. There were ten Shunga rulers. However, after the death of Agnimitra, the empire rapidly disintegrated; inscriptions and coins indicate that much of northern and central India consisted of small kingdoms and city-states that were independent of any Shunga hegemony. The empire is noted for its numerous wars with both foreign and indigenous powers. They fought battles with the of,  of , the , and possibly the s and.

Art, education, philosophy, and other forms of learning flowered during this period including small terracotta images, larger stone sculptures, and architectural monuments such as the Stupa at, and the renowned Great Stupa at. The Shunga rulers helped to establish the tradition of royal sponsorship of learning and art. The script used by the empire was a variant of and was used to write the. The Shunga Empire played an imperative role in patronising at a time when some of the most important developments in Hindu thought were taking place. This helped the empire flourish and gain power.

Satavahana Empire
The Satavahanas were based from in  as well as   and Prathisthan  in. The territory of the empire covered large parts of India from the 1st century BCE onward. The Satavahanas started out as feudatories to the, but declared independence with its decline.

The Satavahanas are known for their patronage of Hinduism and Buddhism, which resulted in Buddhist monuments from (a ) to. They were one of the first Indian states to issue coins struck with their rulers embossed. They formed a cultural bridge and played a vital role in trade as well as the transfer of ideas and culture to and from the to the southern tip of India.

They had to compete with the and then the  of  to establish their rule. Later, they played a crucial role to protect large part of India against foreign invaders like the, and. In particular, their struggles with the went on for a long time. The notable rulers of the Satavahana Dynasty and  were able to defeat the foreign invaders like the  and to stop their expansion. In the 3rd century CE the empire was split into smaller states.

Trade and travels to India

 * The in  attracted traders from all over the Old World to India. Early writings and Stone Age carvings of  age obtained indicates that India's Southwest coastal port, in Kerala, had established itself as a major spice trade centre from as early as 3,000 BCE, according to .  traders from  arrived in ,  as early as 562 BCE.
 * sailed to India around the 1st century CE. He landed in Muziris in Kerala, India and established Yezh (Seven) ara (half) palligal (churches) or .
 * entered China through the in the 1st or 2nd century CE. The interaction of cultures resulted in several Chinese travellers and monks to enter India. Most notable were, ,  and . These travellers wrote detailed accounts of the Indian subcontinent, which includes the political and social aspects of the region.
 * Hindu and Buddhist religious establishments of Southeast Asia came to be associated with the economic activity and commerce as patrons entrust large funds which would later be used to benefit the local economy by estate management, craftsmanship, promotion of trading activities. Buddhism in particular, travelled alongside the maritime trade, promoting coinage, art, and literacy. Indian merchants involved in spice trade took to Southeast Asia, where spice mixtures and  became popular with the native inhabitants.
 * The followed by trading along the  and the . During the 2nd century BCE Greek and Indian ships met to trade at  ports such as . During the first millennium, the sea routes to India were controlled by the Indians and s that became the maritime trading power of the.

Kushan Empire
The expanded out of what is now Afghanistan into the northwest of the Indian subcontinent under the leadership of their first emperor,, about the middle of the 1st century CE. The Kushans were possibly of  tribe; one of five branches of the  confederation. By the time of his grandson,, the empire spread to encompass much of , and then the northern parts of the at least as far as  and  near  (Banaras).

Emperor Kanishka was a great patron of ; however, as Kushans expanded southward, the deities of their later coinage came to reflect its new majority. They played an important role in the establishment of Buddhism in India and its spread to Central Asia and China.

Historian said about Kanishka:

"He played the part of a second Ashoka in the history of Buddhism."

The empire linked the Indian Ocean maritime trade with the commerce of the through the Indus valley, encouraging long-distance trade, particularly between China and. The Kushans brought new trends to the budding and blossoming and, which reached its peak during Kushan rule.

H.G. Rowlinson commented:

"The Kushan period is a fitting prelude to the Age of the Guptas."

By the 3rd century, their empire in India was disintegrating and their last known great emperor was.

Classical period: Gupta Empire (c. 320 – c. 650 CE)
The Gupta period was noted for cultural creativity, especially in literature, architecture, sculpture, and painting. The Gupta period produced scholars such as, , , , and who made great advancements in many academic fields. The Gupta period marked a watershed of Indian culture: the Guptas performed Vedic sacrifices to legitimise their rule, but they also patronised Buddhism, which continued to provide an alternative to Brahmanical orthodoxy. The military exploits of the first three rulers –, , and – brought much of India under their leadership. Science and political administration reached new heights during the Gupta era. Strong trade ties also made the region an important cultural centre and established it as a base that would influence nearby kingdoms and regions in Burma, Sri Lanka,, and.

The latter Guptas successfully resisted the northwestern kingdoms until the arrival of the, who established themselves in Afghanistan by the first half of the 5th century, with their capital at. However, much of the and southern India were largely unaffected by these events in the north.

Vakataka Empire
The Vaka?aka Empire originated from the in the mid-third century CE. Their state is believed to have extended from the southern edges of and  in the north to the  in the south as well as from the  in the western to the edges of  in the east. They were the most important successors of the in the, contemporaneous with the  in northern India and succeeded by the.

The Vakatakas are noted for having been patrons of the arts, architecture and literature. They led public works and their monuments are a visible legacy. The rock-cut Buddhist viharas and chaityas of (a ) were built under the patronage of Vakataka emperor,.

Kamarupa Kingdom
's 4th-century mentions Kamarupa  and  (Central Assam) as frontier kingdoms of the Gupta Empire. Davaka was later absorbed by Kamarupa, which grew into a large kingdom that spanned from Karatoya river to near present and covered the entire Brahmaputra valley,, parts of  and, at times  and parts of.

Ruled by three dynasties (c. 350–650 CE),  (c. 655–900 CE) and  (c. 900–1100 CE), from their capitals in present-day , Tezpur  and   respectively. All three dynasties claimed their descent from, an immigrant from. In the reign of the Varman king, (c. 600–650 CE), the Chinese traveller  visited the  and recorded his travels. Later, after weakening and disintegration (after the Kamarupa-Palas), the Kamarupa tradition was somewhat extended until c. 1255 CE by the Lunar I (c. 1120–1185 CE) and Lunar II (c. 1155–1255 CE) dynasties. The Kamarupa kingdom came to an end in the middle of the 13th century when the under Sandhya of Kamarupanagara (North Guwahati), moved his capital to Kamatapur (North Bengal) after the invasion of Muslim Turks, and established the.

Pallava Empire
The s, during the 4th to 9th centuries were, alongside the s of the, great patronisers of Sanskrit development in the of the. The Pallava reign saw the first Sanskrit inscriptions in a script called. Early Pallavas had different connexions to n countries. The Pallavas used Dravidian architecture to build some very important Hindu temples and academies in, and other places; their rule saw the rise of great poets. The practice of dedicating temples to different deities came into vogue followed by fine artistic and sculpture style of.

Pallavas reached the height of power during the reign of (571–630 CE) and  (630–668 CE) and dominated the  and northern parts of the  region for about six hundred years until the end of the 9th century.

Kadamba Empire
Kadambas originated from, was founded by in 345 CE which at later times showed the potential of developing into imperial proportions, an indication to which is provided by the titles and epithets assumed by its rulers. King Mayurasharma defeated the armies of possibly with help of some native tribes. The Kadamba fame reached its peak during the rule of, a notable ruler with whom even the kings of of northern India cultivated marital alliances. The Kadambas were contemporaries of the and together they formed the earliest native kingdoms to rule the land with absolute autonomy. The dynasty later continued to rule as a feudatory of larger Kannada empires, the and the  empires, for over five hundred years during which time they branched into minor dynasties known as the,  and.

Empire of Harsha
ruled northern India from 606 to 647 CE. He was the son of and the younger brother of, who were members of the  and ruled , in present-day.

After the downfall of the prior in the middle of the 6th century,  reverted to smaller republics and monarchical states. The power vacuum resulted in the rise of the Vardhanas of Thanesar, who began uniting the republics and monarchies from the Punjab to central India. After the death of Harsha's father and brother, representatives of the empire crowned Harsha emperor at an assembly in April 606 CE, giving him the title of Maharaja when he was merely 16 years old. At the height of his power, his Empire covered much of North and Northwestern India, extended East until, and South until ; and eventually made (in present  state) his capital, and ruled until 647 CE.

The peace and prosperity that prevailed made his court a centre of cosmopolitanism, attracting scholars, artists and religious visitors from far and wide. During this time, Harsha converted to Buddhism from worship. The Chinese traveller visited the court of Harsha and wrote a very favourable account of him, praising his justice and generosity. His biography  ("Deeds of Harsha") written by Sanskrit poet, describes his association with Thanesar, besides mentioning the defence wall, a moat and the palace with a two-storied Dhavalagriha (White Mansion).

Early medieval period (c. 650–1200 CE)
Early began after the end of the  in the 6th century CE. This period also covers the "Late Classical Age" of Hinduism, which began after the end of the, and the collapse of the in the 7th century CE; the beginning of Imperial , leading to the ; and ended in the 13th century with the rise of the  in Northern India and the end of the  with the death of  in 1279 in Southern India; however some aspects of the Classical period continued until the fall of the  in the south around the 17th century.

From the fifth century to the thirteenth, sacrifices declined, and initiatory traditions of,  or more commonly ,  and  expanded in royal courts. This period produced some of India's finest art, considered the epitome of classical development, and the development of the main spiritual and philosophical systems which continued to be in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism.

In the 7th century CE, formulated his school of  philosophy and defended the position on Vedic rituals against Buddhist attacks. Scholars note Bha??a's contribution to the. In the 8th century, travelled across the Indian subcontinent to propagate and spread the doctrine of, which he consolidated; and is credited with unifying the main characteristics of the current thoughts in Hinduism. He was a critic of both Buddhism and Minamsa school of Hinduism; and founded (monasteries), in the four corners of the Indian subcontinent for the spread and development of Advaita Vedanta. While, 's invasion of (modern Pakistan) in 711 CE witnessed further decline of Buddhism. The records many instances of conversion of stupas to mosques such as at.

From the 8th to the 10th century, three dynasties contested for control of northern India: the s of Malwa, the of Bengal, and the  of the Deccan. The would later assume control of the Pala Empire; the Gurjara Pratiharas fragmented into various states, notably the s of Malwa, the s of, the  of , the  of , and the  of , these states were some of the earliest ; while the Rashtrakutas were annexed by the. During this period, the emerged; the Chaulukyas constructed the, ,  and their capital Anhilwara (modern ) was one of the largest cities in the Indian subcontinent, with the population estimated at 100,000 in 1000 CE.

The emerged as a major power during the reign of  and  who successfully  and  in the 11th century. (r. 724 CE–760 CE) was an emperor of the Kashmiri, which exercised influence in northwestern India from 625 CE until 1003, and was followed by. in his credits king Lalitaditya with leading an aggressive military campaign in Northern India and Central Asia.

The dynasty ruled portions of eastern Afghanistan, northern Pakistan, and Kashmir from the mid-7th century to the early 11th century. While in, the rose to power; noted for the advancement of , most notable being  and , as well as being patrons of art and literature.

Chalukya Empire
The ruled large parts of  and  between the 6th and the 12th centuries. During this period, they ruled as three related yet individual dynasties. The earliest dynasty, known as the "Badami Chalukyas", ruled from Vatapi (modern ) from the middle of the 6th century. The Badami Chalukyas began to assert their independence at the decline of the kingdom of  and rapidly rose to prominence during the reign of. The rule of the Chalukyas marks an important milestone in the history of and a golden age in the history of. The political atmosphere in South India shifted from smaller kingdoms to large empires with the ascendancy of Badami Chalukyas. A Southern India-based kingdom took control and consolidated the entire region between the and the  rivers. The rise of this empire saw the birth of efficient administration, overseas trade and commerce and the development of new style of architecture called "Chalukyan architecture". The ruled parts of southern and central India from Badami in Karnataka between 550 and 750, and then again from  between 970 and 1190.

Rashtrakuta Empire
Founded by around 753, the Rashtrakuta Empire ruled from its capital at  for almost two centuries. At its peak, the Rashtrakutas ruled from the Ganges River and Yamuna River doab in the north to Cape Comorin in the south, a fruitful time of political expansion, architectural achievements and famous literary contributions.

The early rulers of this dynasty were Hindu, but the later rulers were strongly influenced by Jainism. and were the most famous of the long line of able administrators produced by the dynasty. Amoghavarsha, who ruled for 64 years, was also an author and wrote, the earliest known Kannada work on poetics. Architecture reached a milestone in the Dravidian style, the finest example of which is seen in the Kailasanath Temple at Ellora. Other important contributions are the Kashivishvanatha temple and the Jain Narayana temple at in Karnataka.

The Arab traveller Suleiman described the Rashtrakuta Empire as one of the four great Empires of the world. The Rashtrakuta period marked the beginning of the golden age of southern Indian mathematics. The great south Indian mathematician lived in the Rashtrakuta Empire and his text had a huge impact on the medieval south Indian mathematicians who lived after him. The Rashtrakuta rulers also patronised men of letters, who wrote in a variety of languages from Sanskrit to the s.

Gurjara-Pratihara Empire
The Gurjara-Pratiharas were instrumental in containing Arab armies moving east of the. defeated the Arab army under Junaid and Tamin during the. Under, the Gurjara-Pratiharas became the most powerful dynasty in northern India. He was succeeded by his son, who ruled briefly before being succeeded by his son,. Under Bhoja and his successor, the Pratihara Empire reached its peak of prosperity and power. By the time of Mahendrapala, the extent of its territory rivalled that of the stretching from the border of  in the west to  in the east and from the  in the north to areas past the  in the south. The expansion triggered a with the  and  empires for control of the. During this period, Imperial Pratihara took the title of dhiraja of  (Great King of Kings of India).

By the 10th century, several feudatories of the empire took advantage of the temporary weakness of the Gurjara-Pratiharas to declare their independence, notably the s of Malwa, the s of, the of , the  of , and the  of.

Pala Empire
The was founded by. It was ruled by a Buddhist dynasty from Bengal in the eastern region of the Indian subcontinent. The Palas reunified Bengal after the fall of 's.

The Palas were followers of the and  schools of Buddhism, they also patronised  and. The Pala, meaning "protector", was used as an ending for the names of all the Pala monarchs. The empire reached its peak under and. Dharmapala is believed to have conquered Kanauj and extended his sway up to the farthest limits of India in the northwest.

The Pala Empire can be considered as the golden era of Bengal in many ways. Dharmapala founded the and revived Nalanda, considered one of the first great universities in recorded history. Nalanda reached its height under the patronage of the Pala Empire. The Palas also built many s. They maintained close cultural and commercial ties with countries of Southeast Asia and. Sea trade added greatly to the prosperity of the Pala Empire. The Arab merchant Suleiman notes the enormity of the Pala army in his memoirs.

The Cholas
Medieval Cholas rose to prominence during the middle of the 9th century C.E. and established the greatest empire South India had seen. They successfully united the South India under their rule and through their naval strength extended their influence in the Southeast Asian countries such as Srivijaya. Under and his successors, ,  and  the dynasty became a military, economic and cultural power in South Asia and South-East Asia. Rajendra Chola I's navies went even further, occupying the sea coasts from Burma to Vietnam, the, the (Laccadive) islands, , and the  in Southeast Asia and the Pegu islands. The power of the new empire was proclaimed to the eastern world by the expedition to the which Rajendra Chola I undertook and by the occupation of cities of the maritime empire of  in Southeast Asia, as well as by the repeated embassies to China.

They dominated the political affairs of Sri Lanka for over two centuries through repeated invasions and occupation. They also had continuing trade contacts with the Arabs in the west and with the Chinese empire in the east. and his equally distinguished son Rajendra Chola I gave political unity to the whole of Southern India and established the Chola Empire as a respected sea power. Under the Cholas, the South India reached new heights of excellence in art, religion and literature. In all of these spheres, the Chola period marked the culmination of movements that had begun in an earlier age under the Pallavas. Monumental architecture in the form of majestic temples and sculpture in stone and bronze reached a finesse never before achieved in India.

Western Chalukya Empire
The ruled most of the, , between the 10th and 12th centuries. Vast areas between the in the north and  in the south came under Chalukya control. During this period the other major ruling families of the Deccan, the, the , the and the , were subordinates of the Western Chalukyas and gained their independence only when the power of the Chalukya waned during the latter half of the 12th century.

The Western Chalukyas developed an architectural style known today as a transitional style, an architectural link between the style of the early Chalukya dynasty and that of the later Hoysala empire. Most of its monuments are in the districts bordering the Tungabhadra River in central Karnataka. Well known examples are the at, the  at Kuruvatti, the  at Bagali,  at Haveri, and the  at Itagi. This was an important period in the development of fine arts in Southern India, especially in literature as the Western Chalukya kings encouraged writers in the native language of, and like the philosopher and statesman  and the great mathematician.

Late medieval period (c. 1200 – 1526 CE)
The late is marked by repeated invasions of the Muslim Central Asian nomadic clans;, the rule of the Delhi sultanate, and by the growth of other dynasties and empires, built upon military technology of the Sultanate. The rise of theistic devotional and the advent of  also occurred during this period.

Delhi Sultanate
The was a Muslim  based in Delhi, ruled by several dynasties of, Turko-Indian and  origins. It ruled large parts of the Indian subcontinent from the 13th century to the early 16th century. In the 12th and 13th centuries, Central Asian Turks invaded parts of northern India and established the Delhi Sultanate in the former Hindu holdings. The subsequent of  managed to conquer large areas of northern India, while the  conquered most of central India while forcing the principal Hindu kingdoms of South India to become s. However, they were ultimately unsuccessful in conquering and uniting the Indian subcontinent.

The Sultanate ushered in a period of Indian cultural renaissance. The resulting "Indo-Muslim" fusion of cultures left lasting syncretic monuments in architecture, music, literature, religion, and clothing. It is surmised that the language of was born during the Delhi Sultanate period as a result of the intermingling of the local speakers of Sanskritic s with immigrants speaking, , and  under the Muslim rulers. The Delhi Sultanate is the only Indo-Islamic empire to enthrone one of the few female rulers in India, (1236–1240).

During the Delhi Sultanate, there was a synthesis between Indian civilization and. The latter was a civilization, with a  and  society, and wide-ranging international networks, including social and economic networks, spanning large parts of, leading to escalating circulation of goods, peoples, technologies and ideas. While initially disruptive due to the passing of power from native Indian elites to Turkic Muslim elites, the Delhi Sultanate was responsible for integrating the Indian subcontinent into a growing world system, drawing India into a wider international network, which had a significant impact on Indian culture and society. However, the Delhi Sultanate also caused large-scale destruction and desecration of temples in the Indian subcontinent.

The were successfully repelled by the Delhi Sultanate. A major factor in their success was their Turkic slave army, who were highly skilled in the same style of nomadic  warfare as the, as a result of having similar ic Central Asian roots. It is possible that the Mongol Empire may have expanded into India were it not for the Delhi Sultanate's role in repelling them. By repeatedly repulsing the Mongol raiders, the sultanate saved India from the devastation visited on West and Central Asia, setting the scene for centuries of of fleeing soldiers, learned men, mystics, traders, artists, and artisans from that region into the subcontinent, thereby creating a syncretic Indo-Islamic culture in the north.

A conqueror in Central Asia,  (Tamerlane), attacked the reigning Sultan Nasir-u Din Mehmud of the  Dynasty in the north Indian city of Delhi. The Sultan's army was defeated on 17 December 1398. Timur entered Delhi and the city was sacked, destroyed, and left in ruins after Timur's army had killed and plundered for three days and nights. He ordered the whole city to be sacked except for the s, scholars, and the "other Muslims" (artists); 100,000 war prisoners were put to death in one day. The Sultanate suffered significantly from the sacking of Delhi revived briefly under the Lodi Dynasty, but it was a shadow of the former.

Bhakti movement and Sikhism
The refers to the  devotional trend that emerged in medieval  and later revolutionised in. It originated in the seventh-century south India (now parts of Tamil Nadu and Kerala), and spread northwards. It swept over east and north India from the 15th century onwards, reaching its zenith between the 15th and 17th century CE.
 * The Bhakti movement regionally developed around different gods and goddesses, such as (Vishnu), 1 (Shiva),  (Shakti goddesses), and . The movement was inspired by many poet-saints, who championed a wide range of philosophical positions ranging from theistic  of  to absolute  of.
 * Sikhism is based on the spiritual teachings of, the first Guru, and the ten successive . After the death of the tenth Guru, , the Sikh scripture, , became the literal embodiment of the eternal, impersonal Guru, where the scripture's word serves as the spiritual guide for Sikhs.
 * flourished in the n kingdoms of in,  in , and  in  of the Late medieval period.

Vijayanagara Empire
The Vijayanagara Empire was established in 1336 by and his brother  of, which originated as a political heir of the , , and the. The empire rose to prominence as a culmination of attempts by the south Indian powers to ward off by the end of the 13th century. It lasted until 1646, although its power declined after a major military defeat in 1565 by the combined armies of the. The empire is named after its capital city of, whose ruins surround present day , now a in ,.

In the first two decades after the founding of the empire, Harihara I gained control over most of the area south of the Tungabhadra river and earned the title of Purvapaschima Samudradhishavara ("master of the eastern and western seas"). By 1374 Bukka Raya I, successor to Harihara I, had defeated the chiefdom of, the s of Kondavidu, and the and had gained control over  in the west and the Tungabhadra-  in the north.

With the Vijayanagara Kingdom now imperial in stature,, the second son of Bukka Raya I, further consolidated the kingdom beyond the and brought the whole of South India under the Vijayanagara umbrella. The next ruler,, emerged successful against the of  and undertook important works of fortification and irrigation. Italian traveler Niccolo de Conti wrote of him as the most powerful ruler of India. (called Gajabetekara) succeeded to the throne in 1424 and was possibly the most capable of the rulers. He quelled rebelling feudal lords as well as the of  and  in the south. He invaded the island of and became overlord of the kings of  at  and.

The Vijayanagara Emperors were tolerant of all religions and sects, as writings by foreign visitors show. The kings used titles such as Gobrahamana Pratipalanacharya (literally, "protector of cows and Brahmins") and Hindurayasuratrana (lit, "upholder of Hindu faith") that testified to their intention of protecting Hinduism and yet were at the same time staunchly Islamicate in their court ceremonials and dress. The empire's founders, Harihara I and Bukka Raya I, were devout s (worshippers of ), but made grants to the order of  with  as their patron saint, and designated  (the boar, an  of ) as their. Over one-fourth of the archaeological dig found an "Islamic Quarter" not far from the "Royal Quarter". Nobles from Central Asia's Timurid kingdoms also came to Vijayanagara. The later and  kings were Vaishnava by faith, but worshipped at the feet of Lord Virupaksha (Shiva) at Hampi as well as Lord  (Vishnu) at. A Sanskrit work, Jambavati Kalyanam by King Krishnadevaraya, called Lord Virupaksha Karnata Rajya Raksha Mani ("protective jewel of Karnata Empire"). The kings patronised the saints of the order (philosophy of dualism) of  at.

The empire's legacy includes many monuments spread over South India, the best known of which is the group at Hampi. The previous temple building traditions in South India came together in the Vijayanagara Architecture style. The mingling of all faiths and vernaculars inspired architectural innovation of Hindu temple construction, first in the Deccan and later in the Dravidian idioms using the local granite. South Indian mathematics flourished under the protection of the Vijayanagara Empire in Kerala. The south Indian mathematician founded the famous  in the 14th century which produced a lot of great south Indian mathematicians like,  and  in medieval south India. Efficient administration and vigorous overseas trade brought new technologies such as water management systems for irrigation. The empire's patronage enabled fine arts and literature to reach new heights in Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, and Sanskrit, while Carnatic music evolved into its current form.

Vijayanagara went into decline after the defeat in the (1565). After the death of in the Battle of Talikota,  started the, moved and founded a new capital of Penukonda to replace the destroyed Hampi, and attempted to reconstitute the remains of Vijayanagara Empire. Tirumala abdicated in 1572, dividing the remains of his kingdom to his three sons, and pursued a religious life until his death in 1578. The Aravidu dynasty successors ruled the region but the empire collapsed in 1614, and the final remains ended in 1646, from continued wars with the Bijapur sultanate and others. During this period, more kingdoms in South India became independent and separate from Vijayanagara. These include the, , , , and  – all of which declared independence and went on to have a significant impact on the history of South India in the coming centuries.

Regional powers
For two and a half centuries from the mid 13th century, politics in Northern India was dominated by the, and in Southern India by the. However, there were other regional powers present as well. After fall of, the ruled much of Eastern ,  and  from 12th CE to 18th CE. The successfully defeated the Delhi Sultanate; and extended their rule from  in the north to  in the south, eventually being absorbed into the expanding Vijayanagara Empire. In the north, the remained the dominant force in Western and Central India. Their power reached its zenith under, who was the of  and head of a powerful Hindu Rajput confederacy in ; during whose time Rajput armies were constantly victorious against the Sultanate armies.

In the south, the, which was established either by a Brahman convert or patronised by a Brahman and from that source it was given the name Bahmani, was the chief rival of the Vijayanagara, and frequently created difficulties for the Vijayanagara. In the early 16th century of the Vijayanagar Empire defeated the last remnant of Bahmani Sultanate power. After which, the Bahmani Sultanate collapsed, resulting it being split into five small. In 1490, declared independence, followed by  and  in the same year;  became independent in 1518 and  in 1528. Although generally rivals, they did ally against the Vijayanagara Empire in 1565, permanently weakening Vijayanagar in the Battle of Talikota.

In the East, the remained a strong regional power to reckon with, associated with a high point in the growth of regional culture and architecture. Under, Gajapatis became an empire stretching from the lower in the north to the  in the south. In, the was a major power for six centuries; led by , the Ahoms decisively defeated the Mughal army at the  during the. Further east in Northeastern India was the, which ruled from their seat of power at and developed a sophisticated Hindu  culture.

Early modern period (c. 1526–1858 CE)
The of Indian history is dated from 1526 CE to 1858 CE, corresponding to the rise and fall of the, during which India's economy expanded, relative peace was maintained and arts were patronized. This period witnessed the further development of ; the growth of and s were able to rule significant regions of India in the waning days of the Mughal empire, which formally came to an end when the  was founded.

Mughal empire
In 1526,, a descendant of  and  from  (modern day Uzbekistan), swept across the  and established the , which at its zenith covered much of. However, his son was defeated by the Afghan warrior  in the year 1540, and Humayun was forced to retreat to. After Sher Shah's death, his son and his Hindu general  had established secular rule in North India from  until 1556. After winning, 's forces defeated Hemu in the on 6 November 1556.

The famous emperor, who was the grandson of Babar, tried to establish a good relationship with the Hindus. Akbar declared "Amari" or non-killing of animals in the holy days of Jainism. He rolled back the  tax for non-Muslims. The Mughal emperors married local royalty, allied themselves with local , and attempted to fuse their Turko-Persian culture with ancient Indian styles, creating a unique and. Akbar married a princess,, and they had a son, , who was part-Mughal and part-Rajput, as were future Mughal emperors. Jahangir more or less followed his father's policy. The Mughal dynasty ruled most of the Indian subcontinent by 1600. The reign of was the golden age of Mughal architecture. He erected several large monuments, the most famous of which is the at Agra, as well as the Moti Masjid, Agra, the Red Fort, the, Delhi, and the Lahore Fort.

It was the, and surpassed to be become the world's largest economic power, controlling 24.4% of the , and the world leader in manufacturing, producing 25% of global industrial output. The economic and demographic upsurge was stimulated by Mughal s that intensified agricultural production, a economy that began moving towards industrial, and a relatively high degree of  for its time.

The Mughal Empire reached the zenith of its territorial expanse during the reign of and also started its terminal decline in his reign due to Maratha military resurgence under. Historian wrote "All seemed to have been gained by Aurangzeb now, but in reality all was lost." He was less tolerant than his predecessors, reintroducing the jizya tax and destroying several historical temples, while at the same time building more Hindu temples than he destroyed, employing significantly more s in his imperial bureaucracy than his predecessors, and opposing bigotry against Hindus and. However, he is often blamed for the erosion of the tolerant syncretic tradition of his predecessors, as well as increasing brutality and centralisation, which may have played a large part in the dynasty's downfall after Aurangzeb, who unlike previous emperors, imposed relatively less pluralistic policies on the general population, which may have inflamed the majority Hindu population.

The empire went into decline thereafter. The Mughals suffered several blows due to invasions from, and. In 1737, the Maratha general of the Maratha Empire invaded and plundered Delhi. Under the general Amir Khan Umrao Al Udat, the Mughal Emperor sent 8,000 troops to drive away the 5,000 Maratha cavalry soldiers. Baji Rao, however, easily routed the novice Mughal general and the rest of the imperial Mughal army fled. In 1737, in the final defeat of Mughal Empire, the commander-in-chief of the Mughal Army, Nizam-ul-mulk, was routed at Bhopal by the Maratha army. This essentially brought an end to the Mughal Empire. While under  ruler, overran the Mughal garrison at Agra and plundered the city taking with them the two great silver doors of the entrance of the famous Taj Mahal; which were then melted down by Suraj Mal in 1763. In 1739,, emperor of Iran, defeated the Mughal army at the. After this victory, Nader captured and sacked Delhi, carrying away many treasures, including the. Mughal rule was further weakened by constant native Indian resistance; led the   against Mughal religious oppression;  s of,  and  revolted; and  , of  Rajputs, fought the Mughals and established the. The was reduced to puppet rulers by 1757. took place under the Muslim provincial government based at to wipe out the s, with 30,000 Sikhs being killed, an offensive that had begun with the Mughals, with the, and lasted several decades under its Muslim successor states.

Maratha Empire
In the early 18th century the extended suzerainty over the Indian subcontinent. Under the Peshwas, the consolidated and ruled over much of South Asia. The Marathas are credited to a large extent for ending in India.

The Maratha kingdom was founded and consolidated by, a aristocrat of the  clan. However, the credit for making the Marathas formidable power nationally goes to Peshwa. Historian K.K. Datta wrote that Bajirao I "may very well be regarded as the second founder of the Maratha Empire".

By the early 18th century, the Maratha Kingdom had transformed itself into the Maratha Empire under the rule of the s (prime ministers). In 1737, the Marathas defeated a Mughal army in their capital, in the. The Marathas continued against the, ,  and the Durrani Empire to further extend their boundaries. By 1760, the domain of the Marathas stretched across most of the Indian subcontinent. The Marathas even discussed abolishing the and placing  on the  imperial throne in.

The empire at its peak stretched from in the south, to  (modern-day,  ) in the north, and  in the east. The Northwestern expansion of the Marathas was stopped after the (1761). However, the within a decade under Peshwa.

Under Madhavrao I, the strongest knights were granted semi-autonomy, creating a confederacy of Maratha states under the s of, the s of and , the s of  and , the s of  and the  of  and. In 1775, the East India Company intervened in a Peshwa family succession struggle in, which led to the , resulting in a Maratha victory. The Marathas remained a major power in India until their defeat in the and s (1805–1818), which resulted in the East India Company controlling most of India.

Sikh Empire
The, ruled by members of the , was a political entity that governed the Northwestern regions of the Indian subcontinent. The empire, based around the, existed from 1799 to 1849. It was forged, on the foundations of the, under the leadership of (1780–1839) from an array of autonomous   of the Sikh Confederacy.

Maharaja Ranjit Singh consolidated many parts of northern India into an empire. He primarily used his that he trained in European military techniques and equipped with modern military technologies. Ranjit Singh proved himself to be a master strategist and selected well-qualified generals for his army. He continuously defeated the Afghan armies and successfully ended the. In stages, he added central Punjab, the provinces of Multan and Kashmir, and the Peshawar Valley to his empire.

At its peak, in the 19th century, the empire extended from the in the west, to  in the north, to  in the south, running along Sutlej river to  in the east. After the death of Ranjit Singh, the empire weakened, leading to conflict with the British East India Company. The hard-fought and  marked the downfall of the Sikh Empire, making it among the last areas of the Indian subcontinent to be conquered by the British.

Other kingdoms
The in southern India expanded to its greatest extent under  and his son  in the later half of the 18th century. Under their rule, Mysore fought series of wars against the Marathas and British or their combined forces. The ended in April 1787, following the finalizing of treaty of Gajendragad, in which, Tipu Sultan was obligated to pay tribute to the Marathas. Concurrently, the took place, where the Mysoreans used the. The (1798–1799) saw the death of Tipu. Mysore's alliance with the French was seen as a threat to the British East India Company, and Mysore was attacked from all four sides. The Nizam of Hyderabad and the Marathas launched an invasion from the north. The British won a decisive victory at the.

Hyderabad was founded by the of  in 1591. Following a brief Mughal rule, Asif Jah, a Mughal official, seized control of Hyderabad and declared himself in 1724. The Nizams lost considerable territory and paid tribute to the Maratha Empire after being routed in multiple battles, such as the. However, the Nizams maintained their sovereignty from 1724 until 1948 through paying tributes to the Marathas, and later, being vessels of the British. became princely state in British India 1798.

The had become the de facto rulers of  following the decline of Mughal Empire. However, their rule was interrupted by Marathas who carried out from 1741 to 1748, as a result of which Bengal became a tributary state of Marathas. On 23 June 1757,, the last independent Nawab of Bengal was betrayed in the by. He lost to the British, who took over the charge of Bengal in 1757, installed Mir Jafar on the Masnad (throne) and established itself to a political power in Bengal. In 1765 the system of Dual Government was established, in which the Nawabs ruled on behalf of the British and were mere puppets to the British. In 1772 the system was abolished and Bengal was brought under direct control of the British. In 1793, when the Nizamat (governorship) of the Nawab was also taken away from them, they remained as the mere pensioners of the.

In the 18th century the whole of was virtually subdued by the Marathas. The distracted the Marathas from 1807 to 1809, but afterwards Maratha domination of Rajputana resumed. In 1817, the British went to war with the s, raiders who were based in Maratha territory, which quickly became the, and the British government offered its protection to the Rajput rulers from the Pindaris and the Marathas. By the end of 1818 similar treaties had been executed between the other Rajput states and Britain. The Maratha ruler of  gave up the district of  to the British, and Maratha influence in Rajasthan came to an end. Most of the Rajput princes remained loyal to Britain in the, and few political changes were made in Rajputana until Indian independence in 1947. The contained more than 20 princely states, most notable being, ,  and.

After the fall of the, many became vassals in a subsidiary alliance with the British, to form the largest bloc of princely states in the , in terms of territory and population. With the decline of the, after the in 1846, under the terms of the , the British government sold Kashmir to Maharaja  and the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, the second largest princely state in British India, was created by the. While in Eastern and Northeastern India, the Hindu and Buddhist states of, and  were annexed by the British and made vassal princely state.

After the fall of the, states emerged in Southern India; and managed to weather invasions and flourished until the , where they were defeated by the British East India Company forces. Around the 18th century, the was formed by  rulers.

European exploration
In 1498, a Portuguese fleet under successfully discovered a new sea route from Europe to India, which paved the way for direct Indo-European commerce. The Portuguese soon set up trading posts in, , and. After their conquest in Goa, the Portuguese instituted the, where new Indian converts and non-Christians were punished for suspected heresy against Christianity, and were condemned to be burnt. Goa became the main Portuguese base until it was.

The next to arrive, with their main base in. They established ports in. However, their expansion into India was halted, after their defeat in the by the, during the. The Dutch never recovered from the defeat and no longer posed a large colonial threat to India.

The internal conflicts among Indian kingdoms gave opportunities to the European traders to gradually establish political influence and appropriate lands. Following the Dutch, the —who set up in the west coast port of in 1619—and the French both established trading outposts in India. Although these continental European powers controlled various coastal regions of southern and eastern India during the ensuing century, they eventually lost all their territories in India to the British, with the exception of the French outposts of and, and the Portuguese colonies of ,.

East India Company rule in India
The ("the Company") was founded in 1600, as The Company of Merchants of London Trading into the East Indies. It gained a foothold in India with the establishment of a in  on the Eastern coast of India in 1611 and the grant of the rights to establish a factory in  in 1612 by the Mughal emperor Jahangir. In 1640, after receiving similar permission from the farther south, a second factory was established in  on the southeastern coast. island, not far from Surat, a former Portuguese outpost gifted to as  in the marriage of  to, was leased by the Company in 1668. Two decades later, the Company established a presence on the eastern coast as well; far up that coast, in the delta, a factory was set up in Calcutta. Since, during this time other companies—established by the, , , and —were similarly expanding in the region, the English Company's unremarkable beginnings on offered no clues to what would become a lengthy presence on the.

The Company's victory under in the 1757  and another victory in the 1764  (in Bihar), consolidated the Company's power, and forced emperor  to appoint it the , or revenue collector, of, Bihar, and. The Company thus became the de facto ruler of large areas of the by 1773. It also proceeded by degrees to expand its dominions around Bombay and Madras. The (1766–99) and the  (1772–1818) left it in control of large areas of India south of the. With the defeat of the, no native power represented a threat for the Company any longer.

The expansion of the Company's power chiefly took two forms. The first of these was the outright annexation of Indian states and subsequent direct governance of the underlying regions, which collectively came to comprise. The annexed regions included the (comprising, , and the ) (1801), Delhi (1803), Assam ( 1828), and  (1843). ,, and , were annexed after the in 1849–56 (Period of tenure of Marquess of Dalhousie Governor General); however, Kashmir was immediately sold under the  (1850) to the  of , and thereby became a princely state. In 1854 was annexed, and the state of  two years later.

The second form of asserting power involved treaties in which Indian rulers acknowledged the Company's in return for limited internal. Since the Company operated under financial constraints, it had to set up political underpinnings for its rule. The most important such support came from the s with Indian princes during the first 75 years of Company rule. In the early 19th century, the territories of these princes accounted for two-thirds of India. When an Indian ruler, who was able to secure his territory, wanted to enter such an alliance, the Company welcomed it as an economical method of indirect rule, which did not involve the economic costs of direct administration or the political costs of gaining the support of alien subjects.

In return, the Company undertook the "defense of these subordinate allies and treated them with traditional respect and marks of honor." Subsidiary alliances created the, of the Hindu s and the Muslim s. Prominent among the princely states were:  (1791),  (1794),  (1795),  (1798),  (1799),  (1815),  (1819),  and  (1819),  (1818), and  (1833).

Indian indenture system
The Indian indenture system was an ongoing system of indenture, a form of debt bondage, by which 3.5 million Indians were transported to various colonies of European powers to provide labour for the (mainly sugar) plantations. It started from the end of slavery in 1833 and continued until 1920. This resulted in the development of large, which spread from the Indian Ocean (i.e. and ) to Pacific Ocean (i.e. ), as well as the growth of  and  population.

Rebellion of 1857 and its consequences
The Indian rebellion of 1857 was a large-scale rebellion by soldiers employed by the British East India Company in northern and central India against the Company's rule. The spark that led to the mutiny was the issue of new gunpowder cartridges for the, which was insensitive to local religious prohibition; key mutineer being. In addition, the underlying grievances over British taxation, the ethnic gulf between the British officers and their Indian troops, and land annexations played a significant role in the rebellion. Within weeks after Pandey's mutiny, dozens of units of the Indian army joined peasant armies in widespread rebellion. The rebel soldiers were later joined by Indian nobility, many of whom had lost titles and domains under the, and felt that the Company had interfered with a traditional system of inheritance. Rebel leaders such as and the  belonged to this group.

After the outbreak of the mutiny in, the rebels very quickly reached. The rebels had also captured large tracts of the and  (Oudh). Most notably in Awadh, the rebellion took on the attributes of a patriotic revolt against British presence. However, the British East India Company mobilised rapidly, with the assistance of friendly. But, it took the British remainder of 1857 and the better part of 1858 to suppress the rebellion. Due to the rebels being poorly equipped and no outside support or funding, they were brutally subdued by the British.

In the aftermath, all power was transferred from the British East India Company to the, which began to administer most of India as a number of provinces. The Crown controlled the Company's lands directly and had considerable indirect influence over the rest of India, which consisted of the Princely states ruled by local royal families. There were officially 565 princely states in 1947, but only 21 had actual state governments, and only three were large (Mysore, Hyderabad, and Kashmir). They were absorbed into the independent nation in 1947–48.

British Raj (1858–1947)
After 1857, the colonial government strengthened and expanded its infrastructure via the court system, legal procedures, and statutes. The came into being. In education, had made schooling a priority for the Raj in his famous minute of February 1835 and succeeded in implementing the use of English as the medium of instruction. By 1890 some 60,000 Indians had matriculated. The Indian economy grew at about 1% per year from 1880 to 1920, and the population also grew at 1%. However, from 1910s Indian private industry began to grow significantly. India built a modern railway system in the late 19th century which was the fourth largest in the world. The British Raj invested heavily in infrastructure, including canals and irrigation systems in addition to railways, telegraphy, roads and ports. However, historians have been bitterly divided on issues of economic history, with the Nationalist school arguing that India was poorer at the end of British rule than at the beginning and that impoverishment occurred because of the British.

In 1905,  into a largely Hindu western half and "Eastern Bengal and Assam", a largely Muslim eastern half. The British goal was said to be for efficient administration but the people of Bengal were outraged at the apparent "divide and rule" strategy. It also marked the beginning of the organised anti-colonial movement. When the Liberal party in Britain came to power in 1906, he was removed. Bengal was reunified in 1911. The new Viceroy Gilbert Minto and the new Secretary of State for India consulted with Congress leaders on political reforms. The provided for Indian membership of the provincial executive councils as well as the Viceroy's executive council. The Imperial Legislative Council was enlarged from 25 to 60 members and separate communal representation for Muslims was established in a dramatic step towards representative and responsible government. Several socio-religious organisations came into being at that time. Muslims set up the in 1906. It was not a mass party but was designed to protect the interests of the aristocratic Muslims. It was internally divided by conflicting loyalties to Islam, the British, and India, and by distrust of Hindus. The and  (RSS) sought to represent Hindu interests though the latter always claimed it to be a "cultural" organisation. Sikhs founded the in 1920. However, the largest and oldest political party, founded in 1885, attempted to keep a distance from the socio-religious movements and identity politics.

Indian Renaissance
The refers to a social reform movement during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in the  of the Indian subcontinent during the period of  dominated by. Historian describes the renaissance as having started with reformer and humanitarian  (1775–1833), and ended with Asia's first Nobel laureate  (1861–1941). Nineteenth-century Bengal was a unique blend of religious and social reformers, scholars, literary giants, journalists, patriotic orators, and scientists, all merging to form the image of a renaissance, and marked the transition from the 'medieval' to the 'modern'.

During this period, Bengal witnessed an awakening that is in some way similar to the. This movement questioned existing orthodoxies, particularly with respect to women, marriage, the system, the, and religion. One of the earliest s that emerged during this time was the movement, which espoused  and  as the common denominators of civil conduct among upper caste educated Hindus. It played an important role in reawakening Indian minds and intellect across the Indian subcontinent.

Famines
During and the,  were some of the worst ever recorded. These famines, often resulting from crop failures due to which were exacerbated by the destructive policies of the colonial government, included the  in which 6.1 million to 10.3 million people died, the  where up to 10 million people died, the  in which 1.25 to 10 million people died, and the  where up to 3.8 million people died. The in the mid-19th century killed 10 million people in India. Despite persistent diseases and famines, the population of the Indian subcontinent, which stood at up to 200 million in 1750, had reached 389 million by 1941.

World War I
During, over 800,000 volunteered for the army, and more than 400,000 volunteered for non-combat roles, compared with the pre-war annual recruitment of about 15,000 men. The Army saw action on the within a month of the start of the war at the. After a year of front-line duty, sickness and casualties had reduced the Indian Corps to the point where it had to be withdrawn. Nearly 700,000 Indians fought the Turks in the Mesopotamian campaign. Indian formations were also sent to East Africa, Egypt, and Gallipoli.

Indian Army and fought during the 's  in 1915, at  in 1916 and to  in 1917. India units and after the  they became the major force in the  during the  and in the ' advance to  and on to. Other divisions remained in India guarding the and fulfilling internal security obligations.

One million Indian troops served abroad during the war. In total, 74,187 died, and another 67,000 were wounded. The roughly 90,000 soldiers who lost their lives fighting in World War I and the are commemorated by the.

World War II
officially declared war on in September 1939. The British Raj, as part of the, sent over two and a half million volunteer soldiers to fight under British command against the. Additionally, several Indian Princely States provided large donations to support the Allied campaign during the War. India also provided the base for American operations in support of China in the.

Indians fought with distinction throughout the world, including in the, , against the Italians in , in against the , in the. Indians also aided in liberating British colonies such as Singapore and Hong Kong after the Japanese surrender in August 1945. Over 87,000 soldiers from the subcontinent died in World War II.

The, denounced Nazi Germany but would not fight it or anyone else until India was independent. Congress launched the in August 1942, refusing to co-operate in any way with the government until independence was granted. The government was ready for this move. It immediately arrested over 60,000 national and local Congress leaders. The rejected the Quit India movement and worked closely with the Raj authorities.

(also called Netaji) broke with Congress and tried to form a military alliance with Germany or Japan to gain independence. The Germans assisted Bose in the formation of the ; however, it was Japan that helped him revamp the (INA), after the  under  was dissolved. The INA fought under Japanese direction, mostly in Burma. Bose also headed the (or ), a government-in-exile based in Singapore. The government of had its own currency, court, and civil code; and in the eyes of some Indians its existence gave a greater legitimacy to the independence struggle against the British.

By 1942, neighbouring was invaded by Japan, which by then had already captured the Indian territory of. Japan gave nominal control of the islands to the on 21 October 1943, and in the following March, the  with the help of Japan crossed into India and advanced as far as  in. This advance on the mainland of the Indian subcontinent reached its farthest point on Indian territory, retreating from the in June and from  on 3 July 1944.

The region of Bengal in British India. An estimated 2.1–3 million died from the famine, frequently characterised as "man-made", asserting that wartime policies and 's animosity and racism toward Indians exacerbated the crisis.

Indian independence movement (1885–1947)
The numbers of British in India were small, yet they were able to rule 52% of the Indian subcontinent directly and exercise considerable leverage over the that accounted for 48% of the area.

One of the most important events of the 19th century was the rise of Indian nationalism, leading Indians to seek first "self-rule" and later "complete independence". However, historians are divided over the causes of its rise. Probable reasons include a "clash of interests of the Indian people with British interests", "racial discriminations", and "the revelation of India's past".

The first step toward Indian self-rule was the appointment of s to advise the British in 1861 and the first Indian was appointed in 1909. Provincial Councils with Indian members were also set up. The councillors' participation was subsequently widened into legislative councils. The British built a large, with the senior officers all British and many of the troops from small minority groups such as s from Nepal and. The civil service was increasingly filled with natives at the lower levels, with the British holding the more senior positions.

, an Indian nationalist leader, declared as the destiny of the nation. His popular sentence "Swaraj is my birthright, and I shall have it" became the source of inspiration for Indians. Tilak was backed by rising public leaders like and, who held the same point of view, notably they advocated the  involving the boycott of all imported items and the use of Indian-made goods; the triumvirate were popularly known as. Under them, India's three big provinces –, and  shaped the demand of the people and India's nationalism. In 1907, the Congress was split into two factions: The radicals, led by Tilak, advocated civil agitation and direct revolution to overthrow the British Empire and the abandonment of all things British. The moderates, led by leaders like and, on the other hand, wanted reform within the framework of British rule.

The further increased the. The disenfranchisement lead some to take violent action.

The British themselves adopted a "carrot and stick" approach in recognition of India's support during the First World War and in response to renewed nationalist demands. The means of achieving the proposed measure were later enshrined in the, which introduced the principle of a dual mode of administration, or diarchy, in which elected Indian legislators and appointed British officials shared power. In 1919, Colonel ordered his troops to fire their weapons on peaceful protestors, including unarmed women and children, resulting in the ; which led to the  of 1920–22. The massacre was a decisive episode towards the end of British rule in India.

From 1920 leaders such as began highly popular mass movements to campaign against the British Raj using largely peaceful methods. The Gandhi-led independence movement opposed the British rule using non-violent methods like, and. However, against the British rule took place throughout the Indian subcontinent and some others adopted a militant approach like the, founded by , ,  and others, that sought to overthrow British rule by armed struggle. The was a major success in this regard.

After World War II (c. 1946 – 1947)
In January 1946, a number of mutinies broke out in the armed services, starting with that of RAF servicemen frustrated with their slow repatriation to Britain. The mutinies came to a head with in  in February 1946, followed by others in, , and. The mutinies were rapidly suppressed. Also in early 1946, new elections were called and Congress candidates won in eight of the eleven provinces.

Late in 1946, the Labour government decided to end British rule of India, and in early 1947 Britain announced its intention of transferring power no later than June 1948 and participating in the formation of an.

Along with the desire for independence, tensions between Hindus and Muslims had also been developing over the years. The Muslims had always been a minority within the Indian subcontinent, and the prospect of an exclusively Hindu government made them wary of independence; they were as inclined to mistrust Hindu rule as they were to resist the foreign Raj, although Gandhi called for unity between the two groups in an astonishing display of leadership.

Muslim League leader proclaimed 16 August 1946 as, with the stated goal of highlighting, peacefully, the demand for a Muslim homeland in British India, which resulted in the outbreak of the cycle of violence that would be later called the "". The communal violence spread to (where Muslims were attacked by Hindus), to  in Bengal (where Hindus were targeted by Muslims), in  in the  (where Muslims were attacked by Hindus), and on to  in March 1947 in which Hindus were attacked or driven out by Muslims.

Independence and partition (c. 1947–present)
In August 1947, the British Indian Empire was into the  and. In particular, the partition of and  led to rioting between Hindus, Muslims, and Sikhs in these provinces and spread to other nearby regions, leaving some 500,000 dead. Also, this period saw one of the largest mass migrations ever recorded in modern history, with a total of 12 million Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims moving between the newly created nations of India and Pakistan (which gained independence on 15 and 14 August 1947 respectively). In 1971,, formerly and , seceded from Pakistan.

Historiography
In recent decades there have been four main schools of in how historians study India: Cambridge, Nationalist, Marxist, and subaltern. The once common "Orientalist" approach, with its image of a sensuous, inscrutable, and wholly spiritual India, has died out in serious scholarship.

The "", led by Anil Seal, Gordon Johnson, Richard Gordon, and David A. Washbrook, downplays ideology. However, this school of historiography is criticised for western bias or.

The Nationalist school has focused on Congress, Gandhi, Nehru and high level politics. It highlighted the Mutiny of 1857 as a war of liberation, and Gandhi's 'Quit India' begun in 1942, as defining historical events. This school of historiography has received criticism for.

The Marxists have focused on studies of economic development, landownership, and class conflict in precolonial India and of deindustrialisation during the colonial period. The Marxists portrayed Gandhi's movement as a device of the bourgeois elite to harness popular, potentially revolutionary forces for its own ends. Again, the Marxists are accused of being "too much" ideologically influenced.

The "subaltern school", was begun in the 1980s by and. It focuses attention away from the elites and politicians to "history from below", looking at the peasants using folklore, poetry, riddles, proverbs, songs, oral history and methods inspired by anthropology. It focuses on the colonial era before 1947 and typically emphasises caste and downplays class, to the annoyance of the Marxist school.

More recently, Hindu nationalists have created a version of history to support their demands for ("Hinduness") in Indian society. This school of thought is still in the process of development. In March 2012,, professor of Comparative Religion and Indian Studies at , authored in her book "India: A Sacred Geography", that idea of India dates to a much earlier time than the British or the Mughals and it wasn't just a cluster of regional identities and it wasn't ethnic or racial.