SOAS Research Online

Abstract

The Satavahanas, who are also called Andhrabhrityas in the Puranas, ruled in Dakshinapatha, the Dekkan, for more than three centuries, roughly from the 1st quarter of the 1st cen. B.C. to the 2nd half of the 3rd cen. A.D. Throughout this period we find the Satavahana kings constantly in conflict with their contemporary rivals, the Sakas, who ruled in Gujarat. The earliest capital of the Satavahana Empire known from literary and archaeological sources is Pratishthana, which is identified with the modern Paithana on the upper Godavari. In the Aurangabad district of Hyderabad State. Saks pressure from the west, however, forced them to move southward and eventually gave rise to a second capital at Amaravati, on the southern bank of the which became the permanent seat of the later atavahana kings. The two most important events of the Saka-Satavahana struggle for supremacy in the Dekkan were, the complete destruction of the Kshaharatas or the family of Nahapana by king Gautamiputra Sri Satakarni, and the defeat of the Satavahana King Vashisthiputra Satakarni by Mahakshatrapa Rudradamana of Ujjain. The flourishing trade of the western Indian ports, which are described by the classical geographers as the great commercial centres of India, attracted both the rival powers. Although the conquests of Audradaman considerably weakened the Satavahana Empire yet the reign of Yajnasri Satakarni saw a temporary revival of their power. The dynasty, however, came to as end in the 1st quarter of the 3rd cen. A.D. The present thesis "A Cultural History of the Satavahana Dynasty" is divided into six chapters as follows : (1) Geographical Sketch of the Satavahana Empire. (2) Brief history of the Satavahana Dynasty. (3) Administrative Arrangements. (4) Economic Conditions and Maritime Activities. (5) Art and Architecture. (6) Social and Religious Conditions. Although the thesis is mainly based on literary, epigraphical, numismatic and other sources, particular attention has been paid to the Archaeoloical material available. In order to simplify the history of the period six maps have been included to illustrate important aspects of Satavahana rule in the Dekkan. The thesis is provided with appendices and a complete bibliographical list of the books consulted.