Chandragupta II.
Chandragupta II ruled in the northern Indian Gupta Empire from about AD 375-413/15; he was known as Vikramaditya ( " world conqueror "). During his long reign, India experienced a political- military, economic and cultural heyday. Chandragupta II ranks as a great patron of the arts, which both in the architecture (see Gupta temple ) and in the visual arts in numerous sculptures manifests ( Sanchi, Sarnath and others). In the context of the royal court also had numerous poets, including the famous Kalidasa.
Descent
Chandragupta II was the son of King Samudragupta (reigned about 335-375 ) and the grandson of Chandragupta I (r. about 320-335 ), which is generally regarded as the founder of the Gupta dynasty. His son was Kumaragupta I (r. about 415-455 ).
Biography
In the biography of Chandragupta mix historical reports and fabulous stories, all of which were passed down orally for centuries before they were eventually written down in medieval India.
After the death of Samudragupta first inherited his older brother Ramagupta the throne; this also seized Dhruvaswaminis, the fiancée of Chandragupta. After a defeat against the Saka rulers Rudrasimha III. (reigned about 388-395 ) demanded that the publication Dhruvaswaminis, whereupon Chandragupta decided to self - dressed as a woman - to ride to the Saka - yard, where he killed Rudrasimha. ( According to other reports, he is said to have defeated Rudrasimha and the Sakas in battle. ) Shortly thereafter, Chandragupta then also got rid of his brother and married Ramagupta Dhruvaswamini who was the mother of his son and successor Kumaragupta I..
Another marriage with the Naga princess Kuberanaga is also preserved; Prabhavatigupta, a daughter of this union, married Rudrasena II (r. 380-385 or 385-390 ), a King of Vakataka Dynasty, but which already died a short time later. Prabhavatigupta took over the regency for her two under-age sons, however, divided the dominion of the Vakatakas quasi for a period of about 20 years in fact in the Gupta Empire one that stands out in this period from the Indus to the Ganges, that is, over the whole north India, and to the south stretched up to the Deccan Plateau. The main cities at that time were Pataliputra (today's Patna ), Prayaga (today Allahabad ) and Avantika ( Ujjain today ).
Kalidasa reports that Chandragupta, he calls only when his nickname Vikramaditya, after his victory over the Sakas in several campaigns in northwestern India defeated the Parasikas ( Persian ), Hunas ( Huns ) and Kambojas. The names of conquered peoples at the foot of the Himalayas are: Mlecchas, Yavanas and Tusharas.