Chandragupta Maurya Biography

Born in 340 BC Chandragupta was the founder of Mauryan Empire in India. He was the first ruler who consolidated almost whole of India and for the first time ruled the unified India. Historian are of different opinion regarding the birth of Chandragupta, some believe him to be from Magadha, as the son of a Nanda Prince, while others connect him to Gandhara. He was the disciple of Chanakya, a teacher in Taxila.

Chanakya saw the prince of Taxila, Ambhi, making treaty with Alexander, and felt very bad and realized the need of an empire that can stand against the foreign invasion. He found child Chandragupta to be very brilliant in military and administrative skills and started tutoring him. Chandragupta with the help of Chanakya, started building the famous Mauryan Empire, and defeated King Dhana Nanda. He formed many other alliances and built a composite army of Yavanas, Kambojas, Shakas, Kiratas, Parasikas and Bahlikas. After defeating Dhana Nanda he acquired his army and territory and used all this in acquiring more territories. His empire extended from Bay of Bengal in the East to Arabian Sea in the West. He entered into an alliance with Seleucus in 305 BC, and as a result he got Western Territories of Southern Afghanistan and parts of Persia. Seleucus sent his ambassador, Megasthenes, to the court of Chandragupta Maurya. Megasthenes wrote an elaborate account of the army and power of the king.

In his last days Chandragupta gave away his throne to his son, Bindusara, and spent his life as an ascetic. He ended his life in self-starvation at Sravenbelagola, a place in Karnataka, leaving behind a mighty Mauryan Empire.