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History Optional PYQ Master Pack · Model answer

Harsha is described as ‘the lord of the whole of north India’. Determine the extent of his empire and discuss his political relations with Sasanka, Bhaskaravarman and Pulakesin II

  • UPSC 1986
  • Guptas, Vakatakas and Vardhanas

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The title Sakalottarapathanatha conferred on Harsha is a diplomatic claim more than a description of uniform administrative control, and testing it against his actual dealings with Sasanka, Bhaskaravarman and Pulakesin II shows an empire that was real in the Gangetic core but a loose hegemony everywhere else.

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What the full answer covers

  • How Harsha came to the throne
  • Extent of the empire: two rival readings
  • Relations with Sasanka
  • Relations with Bhaskaravarman
  • Relations with Pulakesin II
  • An empire of gradients, not uniformity
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