Gahadavala dynasty

The Gahadavala dynasty (IAST: Gāhaḍavālas) also Gahadavalas of Kannauj was a Rajput dynasty that ruled parts of the present-day Indian states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, during 11th and 12th centuries. Their capital was located at Banaras (now Varanasi) in the Gangetic plains, and for a brief period, they also controlled Kannauj. Chandradeva, the first monarch of the dynasty, established a sovereign kingdom sometime before 1090 CE, after the decline of the Kalachuri power. The kingdom reached its zenith under his grandson Govindachandra who annexed some of the Kalachuri territories, warded off Ghaznavid raids, and also fought the Palas. In 1194 CE, Govindachandra's grandson Jayachandra was defeated by the Ghurids, which effectively ended the dynasty's imperial power. The kingdom completely ceased to exist when Jayachandra's successors were defeated by the Delhi Sultanate Mamluk dynasty ruler Iltutmish (r. 1211–1236). Chandradeva, the first monarch of the dynasty, was a son of Mahichandra and a grandson of Yashovigraha. The Gahadavala inscriptions state that Yashovigraha "seized the earth and made her fond of the king's sceptre (or justice)". He did not bear any royal titles, so it appears that he was a petty chief with some military victories to his credit. He probably served a prominent king, possibly the 11th century Kalachuri king Karna. His son Mahichandra (alias Mahitala or Mahiyala) bore the feudatory title nṛpa, and is said to have defeated several enemies. He may have been a Kalachuri vassal. According to the 1093 CE and 1100 CE Chandrawati inscriptions, the Gahadavalas occupied Kanyakubja after the descendants of Devapala had been destroyed. This Devapala can be identified as the mid-10th century Gurjara-Pratihara king of Kanyakubja. Chandradeva probably started his career as a feudatory, but declared independence sometime before 1089 CE. The sudden rise of the Gahadavalas has led to speculation that they descended from an earlier royal house.