INDUS RIVER VALLEY CIVILIZATION, THE ARYANS, AND THE MAURYAN EMPIRE

Indus River Valley Civilization

About 2500 BC the first Indian civilization arose in the Indus River Valley.
Archaeologists have found remains of impressive cities, but little is known about the civilization
that produced them.
It is clear that this civilization covered a large area and had well-planned cities.
The two main cities of this civilization were Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro.
Roads were laid out in grid patterns and each city was built on a hill with a structure that was a
fortress or temple.
Enormous granaries stored crops that were grown in outlying villages.
House made of bricks had plumbing with baths and chutes that led to sewers.
Most were farmers. They were the first to grow cotton and weave it into cloth.
Merchants traveled far, trading with the city of Sumer.
Around 1750 BC, for unknown reasons, this civilization began to decline. In about 1500 BC,
nomadic warriors called Aryans conquered the Indus Valley.





The Aryans
Although they left almost no archaeological record, the history of the Aryan invaders is
contained in the Vedas.
Aryans were taller and lighter skinned than the people of the Indus Valley.
They may have come from the Caspian and Aral Sea areas.
Elders from one generation to the next passed down the history.
The Aryans developed the caste system.
By 1000 BC the Aryans had conquered many small kingdoms and had an empire that covered
most of the subcontinent. The empire was called Magadha.

The Mauryan Empire (321 BC 185 BC)
In 321 BC Chandragupta Maurya gained power in the Ganges Valley but with his army soon
conquered much of northern India. His descendents moved southward, dominating the Deccan
Plateau.
From about 321 BC to 185 BC, the Maurya Dynasty ruled over the first united Indian empire.
The Maurya dynasty set up an efficient bureaucracy and a strong state government at
Pataliputra. A bureaucracy is a system of managing government through departments that are
run by appointed officials.
Officials collected taxes and oversaw the building of roads and harbors which helped trade to
flourish. Other officials managed government-owned factories and shipyards.
Maurya rules was harsh. Chandragupta was suspicious of his many enemies and had a brutal
secret police force which controlled corruption, crime, and dissent in the empire.
Chandraguptas grandson Asoka ruled differently.
Asoka was horrifed by the brutality of the wars to take over the Deccan Plateau. He rejected
further conquests.
Asoka sent Buddhist missionaries across India. He was also tolerant of other religions.
Asokas rule united his diverse people and brought peace and prosperity. After his death the
empire declined and rival kingdoms once again competed for power.
Achievements
The Maurya Dynasty united much of India for the first time . Peace and prosperity caused trade
to flourish.
The capital city at Pataliputra was one of the largest and richest cities of its time. The capital
had schools and a library; learning was highly advanced.
One of the most lasting contributions of the Maurya Empire was the spread of Buddhism by
missionary activity.


Pataliputra