Chandragupta Maurya Facts For Kids
Chandragupta Maurya was an ancient Indian emperor who founded the Maurya Empire, unifying much of the Indian subcontinent and establishing a centralized government.
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Chandragupta Maurya โ photo 1
Possible extent of Nanda Empire, c. 325 BCE.
![There are no contemporary records of Chandragupta's military conquests and the reach of his empire. The extent is deduced from Greek and Roman historians and religious Indian texts, all written centuries after his death. Based on these, Chandragupta's empire was extensive,[1][4][5] here conceptualized at c. 303 BCE as a network of core areas and trade- and communication-networks.[a][b]](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c6/Chandragupta_Maurya_Empire_303_BCE_2.png/960px-Chandragupta_Maurya_Empire_303_BCE_2.png)
There are no contemporary records of Chandragupta's military conquests and the reach of his empire. The extent is deduced from Greek and Roman historians and religious Indian texts, all written centuries after his death. Based on these, Chandragupta's empire was extensive,[1][4][5] here conceptualized at c. 303 BCE as a network of core areas and trade- and communication-networks.[a][b]
![Traditional representation of extent of Chandragupta Maurya's empire c. 303 BCE, as a solid mass of territory.[c][b] Some maps include all of Gedrosia, e.g., south-east Iran.](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/70/Chandragupta_Maurya_Empire_303_BCE_1.png/960px-Chandragupta_Maurya_Empire_303_BCE_1.png)
Traditional representation of extent of Chandragupta Maurya's empire c. 303 BCE, as a solid mass of territory.[c][b] Some maps include all of Gedrosia, e.g., south-east Iran.
![7th-century Bhadrabahu inscription at Shravanabelagola (Sanskrit, Purvahale Kannada script). This is the oldest inscription at the site, and it mentions Bhadrabahu and Prabhacandra. Lewis Rice and Digambara Jains interpret Prabhacandra to be Chandragupta Maurya, while others such as J F Fleet, V. R. Ramachandra Dikshitar, and Svetambara Jains state this interpretation is wrong.[33][21][22]](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/7th-century_Bhadrabahu_Sanskrit_inscription%2C_Purvahale_Kannada_script%2C_Shravanabelgola_Karnataka.jpg/960px-7th-century_Bhadrabahu_Sanskrit_inscription%2C_Purvahale_Kannada_script%2C_Shravanabelgola_Karnataka.jpg)
7th-century Bhadrabahu inscription at Shravanabelagola (Sanskrit, Purvahale Kannada script). This is the oldest inscription at the site, and it mentions Bhadrabahu and Prabhacandra. Lewis Rice and Digambara Jains interpret Prabhacandra to be Chandragupta Maurya, while others such as J F Fleet, V. R. Ramachandra Dikshitar, and Svetambara Jains state this interpretation is wrong.[33][21][22]
Late Vedic era map showing the boundaries of ฤryฤvarta with Janapadas in northern India. Beginning of Iron Age kingdoms in IndiaโKuru, Panchala, Kosala, Videha.
Chandragupta's guru was Chanakya, with whom he studied as a child and with whose counsel he built the Empire. This image is a 1915 attempt at depicting Chanakya.
Malan Range and limit of ceded territory according to Tarn (1922)
![1,300-year-old Shravanabelagola relief shows death of Chandragupta after taking the vow of Sallekhana. Some consider it about the legend of his arrival with Bhadrabahu.[33][21][22]](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cc/Jain_Inscription.jpg/960px-Jain_Inscription.jpg)
1,300-year-old Shravanabelagola relief shows death of Chandragupta after taking the vow of Sallekhana. Some consider it about the legend of his arrival with Bhadrabahu.[33][21][22]