mention the factors that enabled Magadha a powerful kingdom
Answers
The Magadha Empire was the most powerful Kingdom in Ancient India.
It had powerful kings like Bimbisara, Ajatasatru, Dhana Nanda, Chandragupta
Maurya, etc.
This rise of Magadha Imperialism is unique in Indian history. The political history of India from the earliest times till the present day is an endless story of struggle between the forces of concentration and decentralization.
In the sixth century B.C., India obtainable the chronic symptom of disintegration. The Aryan India in the North was divided into, sixteen countless kingdoms and a number of republican, autonomous states.
Out of the mix of political atoms, four empires
viz., Avanti, Vatsa, Kosala and Magadha, Magadha
Empire rose into prominence by aggrandizing
upon other weaker states. They entered into a four-power battle for imperial reign
which ended in the ultimate victory of Magadha
Kingdom over
them. It is the first successful attempt for grand and dynastic unification of
India in the period of recorded history.
One of the
main factors behind the rise of Magadhan Control was her economic solvency and
growing prosperity. Magadha had a vast population which could be employed in
agriculture, mining and for manning her army. The Sudras and the non-Aryans
could be employed in clearing up the forest and reclaim surplus land for undeveloped.
The surplus populace could easily live on the yield of the surplus land. The
Magadhan lands were very fertile due to its location between the Ganges and the
Son. In the 4th Century B.C. that the Magadhan lands yielded
multiple crops round the year. People of Magadhan Empire became prosperous due
to fertility of the land and the government became automatically rich and
powerful.
The formation of the largest state in India during this period was the work of several enterprising and ambitious rulers such as Bimbisara, Ajatashatru and Mahapadma Nanda. They employed all the mean in their power, fair and foul, to enlarge their kingdoms and to strengthen their states. This, however, was not the only reason for the expansion of Magadhan kingdom.
Their were some other factors that enabled Magadha a powerful kingdom. These factors are as follows.
1) Magadha enjoyed an advantageous geographical position in the age of iron, because richest iron deposits were situated not far away from Rajgir, the earliest capital of Magadha. The ready availability of the rich iron ores in the neighbourhood enabled the Magadha princes to equip themselves with effective weapons which were not easily available to their rivals.
2) The two capitals of Magadha, the first at Rajgir and the second at Pataliputra, were situated at very strategic points. Rajgir was surrounded by a group of five hills, and so it was impregnable in those days when there was no easy means of storming citadels such as cannons. In the 5th century BC, the Magadhan Kings shifted their capital from Rajgir to Pataliputra, which occupied a pivotal position commanding communication on all the sides. Pataliputra was situated at confluence of the Ganges, the Gandak and the Son, and a fourth river called the Ghaghra, joined the Ganges not far from Pataliputra.
3) In the pre-industrial days, when communication was difficult, the army could move north, west, south and east by following the courses of rivers.
4) Magadha was at the center of the mid-Gangetic plains, the Ganges provided a means of transport and agricultural facilities.
5) The favourable environmental factors that were conducive to agriculture helped Magadha to become a very powerful empire. The alluvium, once cleared of forests proved immensely fertile.