State
Maurya empire
ancient Indian empire (322–184 BCE)
- This boundary
- 322–185 BCE
- Founded
- 322 BCE
- Ended
- 185 BCE
- Capital
- Pataliputra, Patna
- Government
- absolute monarchy
- Languages
- Prakrit
- Religion
- Hinduism, Buddhism
- Preceded by
- Nanda EmpireMahajanapada
- Succeeded by
- Shunga Empire
Overview
The Maurya Empire was a geographically extensive Iron Age historical power in South Asia with its power base in Magadha. Founded by Chandragupta Maurya around c. 320 BCE, it existed in loose-knit fashion until 185 BCE. The primary sources for the written records of the Mauryan times are partial records of the lost history of Megasthenes in Roman texts of several centuries later; and the Edicts of Ashoka. Archaeologically, the period of Mauryan rule in South Asia falls into the era of Northern Black Polished Ware (NBPW).
All rulers (9)
- Chandragupta Maurya321–297 BCE
- Bindusara297–273 BCE
- Ashoka268–232 BCE
- Dasaratha Maurya232–224 BCE
- Samprati224–215 BCE
- Salisuka215–202 BCE
- Devavarman202–195 BCE
- Satadhanvan195–187 BCE
- Brihadratha Maurya187–180 BCE
Records (3)
- 305–303 BCE — Seleucid–Mauryan WarWar
- 262–261 BCE — Kalinga WarWar
- 186 BCE — Demetrius I's invasion of IndiaInvasion
Facts from Wikidata (CC0), HCED (CC0) and Cliopatria (CC BY 4.0); overview excerpted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).