Pratihara War of Succession
| Pratihara War of Succession | ||||||||||
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.png) Map of the Gujara Pratiharas of Kannauj. | ||||||||||
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| Belligerents | ||||||||||
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Mahipala I's Faction Supported by Chandela dynasty |
Bhoja II's Faction Supported by Rashtrakuta Empire | Vinayakapala's Faction | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | ||||||||||
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Mahipala I Harsha |
Bhoja II Krishna II Indra III | Vinayakapala | ||||||||
The Pratihara War of Succession[1][2] (910–914 A.D) was a period of Civil War within the Pratihara dynasty. The conflict emerged between the Pratihara ruler Mahipala I and Bhoja II. In this conflict Mahipala I was supported by the Chandela ruler Harsha while Bhoja II had the support of Rashtrakuta ruler Krishna II and Indra III as representative.[3]
After the death of Mahendrapala I, Mahipala I assecended to the thorne.[4] Bhoja II inspired by Kokkalladeva a local feudatory of Pratiharas, attacked Mahipala I and with the help of Rashtrakutas assecended the throne but as soon as the Rashtrakutas withdrew their support Mahipala I now reinforced by the Chandela ruler Harsha defeated Bhoja II and regained the throne of Pratihara dynasty. Vinayakapala another brother of Mahipala I and Bhoja II was also involved in the war however there is no information about his role in the succession war.[5]
Background
[edit]Mahendrapala is believed to have had more than two wives from whom he had multiple sons. Among them, Bhoja and Vinayakapala were the sons of Dehanagadevi and Mahidevidevi, respectively. In any case, the name of Mahipala's mother cannot be determined with any historical record, but he was probably the heir-apparent of his father Mahendrapala, according to the views of Rajasekhara.[3] With Mahendrapala's death, Kokkalladeva, the old Cedi ruler and probably a former feudatory of Bhoja I, revolted against Mahendrapala's successor. The situation was taken advantage of by Kokkalladeva to promote the claims of Bhoja II. It seems to have been successful and was probably supported by the Rashtrakuta king Krishna II.[3]
War of Succession
[edit]Mahendrapala died circa 910 CE, and his successor, Mahipala, succeeded him to the throne. However, Kokkalladeva, allied with the Rashtrakuta ruler Krishna II, represented by his grandson Indra III, led a campaign against Kannauj.[1] After the defeat of Mahipala, they installed Bhoja II as the ruler of the kingdom. Mahipala left Kannauj and probably took shelter with the Chandellas. Bhoja II ruled for a short time, and after his supporters withdrew, Mahipala tried to regain the throne of Kannauj.[3]
Kokkalladeva had probably died by this time, and the Rashtrakutas could not help him. Mahipala, also called Kshitipala, got the support of the Chandella king Harshadeva, who was an enemy of the ruler of Kannauj.[3]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Ratnawat, Shyam Singh; Sharma, Krishna Gopal (1999). History and Culture of Rajasthan: From Earliest Times Upto 1956 A.D. Centre for Rajasthan Studies, University of Rajasthan. p. 81.
- ^ sandeep majlees bhati. The Gurjara Pratiharas And Their Times by b.n.puri. p. 34.
- ^ a b c d e Praful Kartha. The History Of The Gurjara Pratiharas Baij Nath Puri. p. 80.
- ^ Congress, Indian History (1966). Proceedings. Indian History Congress. p. 79.
- ^ Davidson, Ronald M. (2002-12-18). Indian Esoteric Buddhism: A Social History of the Tantric Movement. Columbia University Press. p. 57. ISBN 978-0-231-50102-6.