The Varman dynasty of Kannauj was a dynasty that ruled

Kannauj Kannauj ( Hindustani pronunciation: ənːɔːd͡ʒ is a city, administrative headquarters and a municipal board or Nagar Palika Parishad in Kannauj district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The city's name is a corrupted form of the class ...

and the surrounding areas from the mid 7th century to the late 8th century.Map of the territory of the Varman dynasty in It was founded by

Yashovarman Yashovarman (IAST: Yaśovarman) was a medieval Indian ruler of Kannauj, who founded the Varman dynasty of Kannauj. There are few sources that provide information of his life, although he was indubitably a powerful man. Life Yashovarman was ki ...

, who filled the

power vacuum In political science and political history, the term power vacuum, also known as a power void, is an analogy between a physical vacuum to the political condition "when someone in a place of power, has lost control of something and no one has repla ...

created after emperor

Harshavardhana Harshavardhana (IAST Harṣa-vardhana; c. 590–647 CE) was a Pushyabhuti emperor who ruled northern India from 606 to 647 CE. He was the son of Prabhakaravardhana who had defeated the Alchon Huna invaders, and the younger brother of Rajyava ...

's death.

History

Establishment

The city of

had previously been ruled by emperor

, who died without an heir and thus created a power vacuum. This lasted for around a century before Yashovarman emerged as its ruler.

Alexander Cunningham Major General Sir Alexander Cunningham (23 January 1814 – 28 November 1893) was a British Army engineer with the Bengal Engineer Group who later took an interest in the history and archaeology of India. In 1861, he was appointed to the newly ...

, an archaeologist of the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

period, speculated on possible rulers of Kannauj during the period between Harsha and Yashovarman but there is little evidence to support his claims. Much of information on him is derived from the ''

Gaudavaho ''Gaudavaho'' ("Slaying of the Gauda king") is an 8th-century Prakrit-language epic poem by Vakpati-raja. It narrates the exploits of the poet's patron, king Yashovarman, who ruled in northern India. The poem deifies the king as an incarnation of ...

'' (''Slaying of the king of Gauda''), a Prakrit-language poem written by his court poet Vakpati. According to the

Jain Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...

chronicles, Yashovarman had a son named

Āma Āma was a medieval Indian king who ruled Kannauj and surrounding areas during the 8th and the 9th centuries. According to the Jain chronicles, he was the son and successor of Yashovarman. Jain account The Jain chronicle ''Bappabhatti-Suri-C ...

, who succeeded him as the king of Kannauj during 749-753 CE.

Expansion

The dynasty reached its greatest extent and zenith of prosperity only under its founder,

. The ''Gaudavaho'' depicts Yashovarman as conquering large swathes of northern India — including

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Be ...

Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

, the western

Deccan The large Deccan Plateau in South India, southern India is located between the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats, and is loosely defined as the peninsular region between these ranges that is south of the Narmada river. To the north, it is bou ...

Indus Valley The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayan river of South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in Western Tibet, flows northwest through the disputed region of Kashmir, ...

and

Kashmir Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...

— before returning in triumph to Kannauj. However,

Kalhana Kalhana ( sa, कल्हण, translit=kalhaṇa) was the author of ''Rajatarangini'' (''River of Kings''), an account of the history of Kashmir. He wrote the work in Sanskrit between 1148 and 1149. All information regarding his life has to be d ...

, a Kashmiri court chronicler who lived around the 12th century CE, gives a very different story in his ''

Rajatarangini ''Rajatarangini'' ("The River of Kings") is a metrical legendary and historical chronicle of the north-western part of India, particularly the kings of Kashmir. It was written in Sanskrit by Kashmiri historian Kalhana in the 12th century CE. The ...

'', depicting Yashovarman as a ruler who was among those defeated by

Lalitaditya Muktapida Lalitaditya alias Muktapida (IAST: Lalitāditya Muktāpīḍa; r. c. 724 CE–760 CE) was a powerful ruler of the Karkota dynasty of Kashmir region in the Indian subcontinent. The 12th-century chronicler Kalhana characterizes Lalitaditya as a ...

, a very powerful

Karkota The Karkota Dynasty (c. 625 − 855 CE) ruled over the Kashmir valley and some northern parts of the Indian subcontinent during 7th and 8th centuries. Their rule saw a period of political expansion, economic prosperity and emergence of Kashmir ...

ruler of

. Although R. C. Majumdar is among those who are wary of the ancient accounts of conquests, he believes that Yashovarman was "unquestionably the most powerful king n the regionabout this time."

Decline

's successors did not expand the kingdom and were all weak kings, who did not pay much attention to administration. They are considered as unsuccessful rulers.Rama Shankar Tripathi (1964). History of Kanauj: To the Moslem Conquest. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 211

Dunduka Dunduka was a ruler of the state of Kannauj in North India during the early 8th century CE. Early life Dunduka was the son and successor of Āma, the king of Kannauj and surrounding areas during the late 8th century CE. Āma, his father, had lost ...

, and

Bhoja Bhoja (reigned c. 1010–1055 CE) was an Indian king from the Paramara dynasty. His kingdom was centered around the Malwa region in central India, where his capital Dhara-nagara (modern Dhar) was located. Bhoja fought wars with nearly all h ...

are considered as insignificant rulers, who achieved nothing of importance and reigned for 15-20 years. The last king,

was probably defeated by the Ayudhas, who established a new dynasty.

List of rulers

* Suryavarman (c. 710-725 CE), whose daughter Vasati married the Panduvamshi king Harshagupta of Dakshina Kosala. *

(c. 725–752 CE), founder of dynasty *

(ruled till 770 CE), last ruler of dynasty

References

{{reflist States and territories established in the 7th century States and territories disestablished in the 8th century Empires and kingdoms of India Dynasties of India Former empires in Asia