Chapter 2 - New Kings and Kingdoms Extra Questions
Multiple Choice Questions1. Which new dynasty developed in eastern part of the country?
a) Marathas
b) Palas
c) Chahamanas
d) Sikhs
Answer: b) Palas
2. What was the other name of the great lord of a ‘circle’ or region?
a) Maha-mandaleshvara
b) Subordinates
c) All of the above
d) None of these
Answer: a) Maha-mandaleshvara
3. Who were expected to bring gifts for their kings in 17th century?
a) Samantas
b) Overlords
c) Soldiers
d) Peasants
Answer: a) Samantas
4. When were the Samantas declared Maha-samantas?
a) When they gain power and wealth
b) When they provide kings with military support
c) All of the above
d) None of the above
Answer: a) When they gain power and wealth
5. What is the literal meaning of hiranya-garbha?
a) Golden car
b) Golden Dog
c) Golden womb
d) Golden deer
Answer: c) Golden womb
6. What is Vetti?
a) Rent
b) Tax
c) Revenue
d) None of these
Answer: b) Tax
7. What was the use of money collected from taxes?
a) To finance the kings’ establishment
b) Construction of temples and forts
c) Both a) and b)
d) None of these
Answer: c) Both a) and b)
8. In which language was the prashasti found in Gwalior written?
a) French
b) Dutch
c) Greenlandic
d) Sanskrit
Answer: d) Sanskrit
9. Who was Nagabhata?
a) Gupta ruler
b) Chakrayudha
c) Malava
d) Pratihara king
Answer: d) Pratihara king
10. Brahmanas were rewarded by grants of land recorded on
a) copper plate
b) iron plate
c) silver plate
d) none of these
Answer: a) copper plate
11. The person who received the land could collect taxes on
a) betel leaves
b) woven clothes
c) vehicles
d) all of these
Answer: a) all of these
12. Who invaded the Somnath temple in Gujarat?
a) Maharaja Ranjit Singh
b) Peshwa
c) Mahmud Ghazni
d) All of them
Answer: c) Mahmud Ghazni
13. Who ruled in Tamil Nadu?
a) Cholas
b) Chalukyas
c) Sikhs
d) None of these
Answer: a) Cholas
14. Which of these parties were involved in “Tri-partite struggle”?
a) Mughals
b) Gurjara-Pratihara
c) British
d) Awadh
Answer: b) Gurjara-Pratihara
15. Muttaraiyar held power in the delta region of
a) Kaveri
b) Krishna
c) Mahanadi
d) Godavari
Answer: a) Kaveri
16. Who wrote Kitab ul-Hind?
a) Akbar
b) Al-Biruni
c) Aurangzeb
d) None of these
Answer: b) Al-Biruni
17. Who defeated an Afghan ruler - Sultan Muhammad Ghori in 1191?
a) Babur
b) Prithviraja III
c) Al-Biruni
d) None of these
Answer: b) Prithviraja III
18. Who became the King of Chola dynasty in 985?
a) Rajaraja
b) Rajendra I
c) Mahmud of Ghazni
d) None of these
Answer: a) Rajaraja
19. Chola _________ often became the nuclei of settlements which grew around them.
a) Temples
b) Churches
c) Mosque
d) None of these
Answer: a) Temples
20. In the delta region _________ had to be built to prevent flooding and canals had to be constructed to carry water to the fields.
a) embankments
b) dams
c) rivers
d) none of these
Answer: a) embankments
21. What is meaning of ‘ur’?
a) Settlements of magicians
b) Settlements of craftpersons
c) Settlements of peasants
d) none of these
Answer: c) Settlements of peasants
22. What is meaning of ‘nadu’?
a) The larger units of the groups of ‘ur’
b) The larger units of the groups of ‘peasant’
c) The larger units of the groups of ‘fishes’
d) All of these
Answer: a) The larger units of the groups of ‘ur’
23. What is vellanvagai?
a) vellanvagai land of non-Brahmana peasant proprietors
b) land gifted to Brahmanas
c) land for the maintenance of a school
d) land gifted to temples
Answer: a) vellanvagai land of non-Brahmana peasant proprietors
24. What is brahmadeya?
a) vellanvagai land of non-Brahmana peasant proprietors
b) land gifted to Brahmanas
c) land for the maintenance of a school
d) land gifted to temples
Answer: b) land gifted to Brahmanas
25. What is shalabhoga?
a) vellanvagai land of non-Brahmana peasant proprietors
b) land gifted to Brahmanas
c) land for the maintenance of a school
d) land gifted to temples
Answer: c) land for the maintenance of a school
26. What is tirunamattukkani?
a) vellanvagai land of non-Brahmana peasant proprietors
b) land gifted to Brahmanas
c) land for the maintenance of a school
d) land gifted to temples
Answer: d) land gifted to temples
27. Associations of traders are known as _________
a) nagarams
b) nadu
c) ur
d) none of these
Answer: a) nagarams
Match the following
Answer the following questions
28. Which new dynasties emerged after the 7th century in subcontinent?
Answer: Many new dynasties emerged after the 7th century like:
• Guijara-Pratiharas
• Rashtrakutas
• Palas
• Cholas
• Chahamanas or Chauhan
29. Who were samantas? What service did they provide to the existing kings?
Answer:
• Samantas were big landlords or warrior-chiefs in different regions of the subcontinent.
• Existing kings considered them as their subordinates.
• Services Provided by the Samantas:
→ Samantas brought gifts for their kings or overlords.
→ They remained present at their courts or functions organized by them.
→ They provided them with military support.
30. What did the new dynasties do to gain power?
Answer: To gain power, the new dynasties took new titles and performed religious rituals to become a part of Kshatriyas. They were regarded as the subordinate or Samantas by their overlords and later declared themselves to be Maha - Samantas after gaining power and wealth. The new dynasties also engaged themselves in warfare to assert their power and carve out their kingdoms for themselves.
31. How did Rashtrakutas become powerful?
Answer: The Rashtrakutas in the Deccan were subordinate to the Chalukyas of Karnataka. It was during the mid-eighteenth century when Danti Durga, a Rashtrakuta chief, overthrew his Chalukya overlord and performed a ritual called 'Hiranya - Garbha' with the help of Brahmanas. During this period, it was thought that the sacrificer would be reborn as Kshatriya, even if he was not one by birth. Also they fought against the dynasties of Gurjara-Pratiharas and Palas. Thus, successfully establishing kingdoms in Karnataka and Gujarat respectively.
32. Give another example of samantas establishing their kingdoms.
Answer:
• Men from enterprising families used their military skills to carve out kingdoms.
• The Kadamba Mayurasharman and the Gurjara- Pratihara Harichandra were Brahmanas who gave up their traditional professions and took to arms, successfully establishing kingdoms in Karnataka and Rajasthan respectively.
33. What titles did the new kings adopt?
Answer:
• Many of the new kings adopted high-sounding titles.
• These titles were Maharaja-adhiraja meaning great king, Overlord of kings, Tribhuvana-chakravartin meaning lord of the three worlds and so on.
• However, in spite of such claims, they often shared power with their samantas as well as with associations of peasants, traders and Brahmanas.
34. Give a short note on tax in Cholas.
Answer: The inscriptions of the Cholas who ruled in Tamil Nadu refer to more than 400 terms for different kinds of taxes. The most frequently mentioned tax is vetti, taken not in cash but in the form of forced labour, and kadamai, or land revenue. There were also taxes on thatching the house, the use of a ladder to climb palm trees, a cess on succession to family property, etc.
35. Write a short note on Prashastis.
Answer: Prashastis are a special kind of inscription, meaning “in praise of”. They were composed by learned Brahmans in praise of the rulers, which may not be literally true; but, they tell us how rulers of that time wanted to illustrate themselves.
36. Who were the parties involved in the ‘Tri-partite struggle’.
Answer: The parties involved in the tripartite struggle were Gurjara-Pratihara, Rashtrakuta and Pala dynasties. They fought for centuries for control over Kanauj. Because there were three “parties” in this longdrawn conflict, historians often describe it as the “tripartite struggle”.
37. Why were the temples first targets of the conquerors?
Answer: It was the trend to demonstrate power and resources by building large temples. The rulers often invested a lot in the decoration and maintenance of the temples. So the foreign conquerors made them the target first. The most prominent example of it was the temple of Somnath in Gujarat which was looted several times by Sultan Mahmud of Ghazani who came from Afghanistan. Much of the wealth he carried away was used to create a splendid capital city at Ghazani.
38. Who were the parties involved in the ‘Tri-partite struggle’.
Answer: The parties involved in the tripartite struggle were Gurjara-Pratihara, Rashtrakuta and Pala dynasties. They fought for centuries for control over Kanauj. Because there were three “parties” in this longdrawn conflict, historians often describe it as the “tripartite struggle”.
39. How did Cholas rise to the power? Trace out the Rajaraja I in this rise.
Answer: After the decline of the Sangam period, the Cholas became feudatories in Uraiyur. They became prominent in the ninth century and established an empire comprising the major portion of South India. It was under Rajaraja I and his son Rajendra I that the Chola power reached its highest point of glory.
40. What were the qualifications necessary to become a member of committee of the Sabha in the Chola empire?
Answer: To become a member of a committee of the sabha in the Chola Empire, the following qualifications were necessary:
• The members should be owners of land from which land revenue is collected.
• They should have their own homes.
• They should be between 35 and 70 years of age.
• They should have knowledge of the Vedas.
• They should be well-versed in administrative matters and should be honest.
• They should not be members of any other committee in the last three years.
• Anyone who has not submitted his accounts, as well as those of his relatives, cannot contest the elections.
41. What is Ur?
Answer: Settlements of peasants were called ur.
42. What is Nadu?
Answer: The larger units of the groups were called ‘Ur’ were called Nadu.
43. What is Sabha?
Answer: An assembly of Brahmin landowners.
44. What is Nagaram?
Answer: Association of traders.
45. What is Brahmadeya?
Answer: Land gifted to brahmanas by kings.
46. How were resources used in the period 7th to 12th centuries?
Answer: The resources were used in the following ways:
• To finance the king’s establishment.
• In the construction of temples and forts.
• To fight wars, which were in turn expected to lead to the acquisition of wealth in the form of plunder.
• To access to land as well as trade routes.
47. How were Brahmanas rewarded?
Answer: Kings often rewarded Brahmanas with grants of land. These were recorded on copper plates. The plates were given to those who received the land.
48. Who was Mahmud Ghazni? How did he expand his kingdom?
Answer:
• Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni ruled from 997 to 1030 A.D.
• He extended control over parts of Central Asia, Iran and the north-western part of the subcontinent.
• He raided the subcontinent almost every year—his targets were wealthy temples including Somnath, Gujarat.
• He used most of the wealth to create a splendid capital city at Ghazni.
• He was interested in finding out more about the people he conquered.
• He entrusted a scholar named al-Biruni to write an account of the subcontinent.
• This Arabic work, known as the Kitab al-Hind, remains an important source for historians. He consulted Sanskrit scholars to prepare this account.
49. Describe the variety of irrigation methods used in the Tamil region.
Answer: The variety of irrigation methods used in the Tamil region were:
• Wells were dug
• Huge tanks were constructed to collect rain water
• Canals were constructed
50. Who looked after the Brahmadeya?
Answer: Each brahmadeya was looked after by an assembly or sabha of prominent Brahmana landholders. These assemblies worked very efficiently. Their decisions were recorded in detail in inscriptions, often on the stone walls of temples. Associations of traders known as nagarams also occasionally performed administrative functions in towns.
51. Mention the types of land in Cholas.
Answer:
• Vellanvagai - Land of non-Brahmana peasant proprietors
• Brahmadeya - Land gifted to Brahmanas
• Shalabhoga - Land for the maintenance of a school
• Devadana, tirunamattukkani - Land gifted to temples
• Pallichchhandam - Land donated to Jaina institutions
Fill in the blanks:
52. Prithviraja III defeated Mahmud Ghori.
53. Al-Biruni wrote Kitab al-Hind.
54. Gurjara-Pratiharas, Rashtrakulas and Palas fought the Tripartite struggle.
55. Temple at Thanjavur was for goddess Nishumbhasudini.
56. Group of ur formed larger units called nadu.
57. Most of the Brahmadeya land was in Kaveri valley.
58. Brahmanas were rewarded by grants of land recorded copper plates.
59. Mahmud Ghazni invaded the Somnath temple in Gujarat.
60. Rajaraja became the King of Chola dynasty in 985.
61. In the delta region embankments had to be built to prevent flooding and canals had to be constructed to carry water to the fields.
62. Associations of traders are known as nagarams.
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