Civil Services (Prelims) Examination Special
Quick Revision Notes

History

Abdul Rahim Khan-i-Khanan: He lived during the reign of Akbar. He translated Babur’s Memoirs from Turkish to Persian.

Abdussamad: He was honoured with the award of “zariqalam” by Akbar.

Ages, Chronological order of: Palaeolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic, Chalcolithic

Agrahara: Tax-free villages granted to the learned Brahmanas in ancient India were known as Agrahara.

Akot: is a town, about 42 km from Akola, from where a stone idol of Lord Adinath, the first Jain Teerthankara, was found in 1993.

Alien Powers in India, chronological sequence of: Indo-Greeks, Scythians, Kushanas, Huns.

Amarasimha: was one of the nine gems in the court of the legendary Vikramaditya. His work Amarkosha occupies a dominant position in Sanskrit lexicography.

Amoghavarsha-I: was the long ruling Rashtrakuta king (A.D. 814-78). He represented the height of development of his dynasty.

Asanga: was a Buddhist philosopher. He was the originator of Buddhist Yogachara idealism.

Ashvaghosha: was the spiritual adviser of Kanishka (the Kushan emperor) who took a leading part in the Fourth Buddhist Council at Srinagar which was presided by Vasumitra. He was a renowned Mahayana Sanskrit scholar and author of Sariputra-prakarana and Buddha Charitam. He was the greatest literary figure at Kanishka’s court.

Atisa Dipankara: was the most famous teacher of Vikramasila university founded in A.D. 810 by king Dharmapala of Pala dynasty.

Battle of San Thomas: This battle during the Carnatic Wars (1746-61) definitely proved for the first time the superiority of European arms and discipline over the traditional Indian methods of warfare.

Battle of Waihand: was fought between Mahmud Ghaznavi and Anandpala.

Bhaskaravarman: was the king of Kamarupa (Upper Assam). He was a contemporary of king Sasanka of Gauda and was his arch-enemy. Bhaskaravarman was the eastern ally of king Harsha.

Bilhana: was a Sanskrit historian and poet born in Kashmir. He left Kashmir about A.D. 1065 and became the court poet at Kalyana where he wrote an epic, Vikramadeva-charita to celebrate the reign of Vikramaditya-VI, the Chalukya king of Kalyana.

Blue Water Policy: The “Blue Water” policy is attributed to Don Francisco de Almeida, the first Viceroy of the Portuguese possessions in India. His “Blue Water” policy was to be powerful at the sea instead of building fortresses on Indian land.

Boghaz Koi inscriptions: are important in Indian history because inscriptions of the fourteenth century B.C. discovered here mention the names of Vedic gods and goddesses.

Brahmagupta: (598-660) of Ujjain, was a great mathematician of his time.

Brahui: is a language of Baluchistan. Linguistically, it is Dravidian.

Busa Munda Revolt: occurred in Bihar.

Catching the butterflies and setting them free: was the prominent feature of the foreign policy of Samudragupta.

Chandernagore: was a French possession before its merger with India.

Charvaka: is known as the greatest of the materialistic philosophers of ancient India.

Chauth: was a tax levied by Marathas—a contribution exacted by a military leader, which was justified by the exigencies of the situation.

Coinage in Ancient India: Coins in ancient India were made of metal—copper, silver, gold, or lead. Nishka and Satamana in the Vedic texts were taken to be names of coins, but they seem to be only prestige objects. Coins made of metal first appeared in the age of Gautama Buddha. The earliest were made largely of silver though a few copper coins also appear. Coins made of burnt clay belong to the Kushan period i.e., the first three Christian centuries.

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