Ancient and Medieval Uttar Pradesh: Civilisation, Cities and Dynasties

Practice questions (16)

Attempt each one before opening the answer. Every explanation names the tempting wrong option as well as the right one, because that is where marks are lost.

1. Which janapada had Kaushambi, on the Yamuna, as its capital?

   1. Kuru, with its capital at Indraprastha in the Jataka accounts
   2. Vatsa, whose ruler Udayana is linked with Kaushambi
   3. Panchala, with its centres at Ahichhatra and Kampilya
   4. Surasena, whose capital was Mathura on the Yamuna
   Show answer

   Answer: B — Vatsa, whose ruler Udayana is linked with Kaushambi

   Kaushambi was the capital of Vatsa, the janapada of the Udayana legend, and it lies on the Yamuna. Surasena's Mathura is also on the Yamuna, which makes it the tempting distractor, but Mathura was Surasena's capital, not Vatsa's. Kuru's Indraprastha lies near modern Delhi, not Kaushambi.

2. Which event is associated with the Buddhist site of Sarnath?

   1. The Buddha's birth at Lumbini, in present-day Nepal
   2. The Buddha's enlightenment at Bodh Gaya in Bihar
   3. The Buddha's first sermon to five disciples
   4. The Buddha's death at Pava, a Malla town
   Show answer

   Answer: C — The Buddha's first sermon to five disciples

   Sarnath, near Varanasi, is where the Buddha gave his first sermon to five disciples. Bodh Gaya is the enlightenment site, which is the tempting distractor because both are Buddhist places of pilgrimage, but Bodh Gaya is in Bihar. Pava was on the route of the Buddha's last journey, yet the parinirvana tradition places his death at Kushinagara.

3. At which place is the Mahaparinirvana temple, with its reclining Buddha, located?

   1. Kushinagara, in Kushinagar district
   2. Kapilavastu, in present-day Nepal
   3. Lumbini, the birthplace of the Buddha
   4. Shravasti, capital of Kosala
   Show answer

   Answer: A — Kushinagara, in Kushinagar district

   The Mahaparinirvana temple at Kushinagara houses a reclining Buddha and marks the place tradition gives for the parinirvana. Kapilavastu and Lumbini are linked with the Buddha's youth and birth, both in Nepal, so they are the tempting distractors. Shravasti is the Kosala capital where he taught for many rainy seasons.

4. Who wrote the Harshacharita, the biography of King Harsha?

   1. Kalidasa, of the Gupta court
   2. Banabhatta, court poet of Harsha
   3. Bilhana, of the Chalukya court
   4. Harishena, of the Samudragupta court
   Show answer

   Answer: B — Banabhatta, court poet of Harsha

   Banabhatta, the court poet of Harsha, wrote the Harshacharita, a biography of the king. Harishena composed the Prayag Prashasti for Samudragupta, which is the tempting distractor because it is also a court panegyric. Kalidasa and Bilhana belong to other courts and other periods.

5. Consider the following statements about Mathura's history and sculpture.
   P. Mathura was the capital of the Surasena janapada.
   Q. The statue of the Kushan emperor Kanishka I is displayed in the Government Museum, Mathura.
   R. The Mathura school of sculpture belongs only to the Gupta period.
   S. Mathura art includes sculpture of the Kushan period.
   Which of the statements are correct?

   1. P and R only, because Mathura was a Surasena city and its school is Gupta
   2. Q and R only, because the Kanishka statue is Gupta and the school is Gupta
   3. P, Q and S only, covering the capital, the museum and the Kushan sculpture
   4. R and S only, because the Kushan work is not part of the Mathura school
   Show answer

   Answer: C — P, Q and S only, covering the capital, the museum and the Kushan sculpture

   P, Q and S are correct: Mathura was Surasena's capital, the Kanishka I statue is in the Government Museum, and the Mathura school includes Kushan work. R is false because the school's work spans roughly the 2nd century BCE to the 12th century CE, across the Kushan and Gupta periods. The tempting distractor is R, because Gupta art is the better-known period.

6. Which option correctly pairs each dynasty with its principal centre in present-day Uttar Pradesh?
   (I) Gahadavala
   (II) Sharqi
   (III) Lodi
   (IV) Mughal, whose imperial capital was Fatehpur Sikri from about 1571 to 1585.

   1. I-Mathura, II-Jaunpur, III-Agra, IV-Fatehpur Sikri
   2. I-Kannauj, II-Jaunpur, III-Agra, IV-Fatehpur Sikri
   3. I-Kannauj, II-Agra, III-Jaunpur, IV-Fatehpur Sikri
   4. I-Kannauj, II-Jaunpur, III-Fatehpur Sikri, IV-Agra
   Show answer

   Answer: B — I-Kannauj, II-Jaunpur, III-Agra, IV-Fatehpur Sikri

   Gahadavalas ruled from Kannauj and Varanasi, Sharqis from Jaunpur, Lodis from Agra, and the Mughal imperial capital was Fatehpur Sikri from about 1571 to 1585. The Mathura pairing fails at once because Mathura was never a Gahadavala capital. The tempting distractor swaps Agra and Fatehpur Sikri, but Akbar's capital was Fatehpur Sikri, not the Lodi city of Agra.

7. Arrange these events in chronological order.
   P. Hafiz Rahmat Khan is killed at Miranpur Katra.
   Q. The Awadh treaty cedes the Ceded Provinces to the Company.
   R. The Bara Imambara at Lucknow is completed.
   S. Chait Singh of Benares is removed after his revolt.

   1. Q, R, S, P
   2. S, P, R, Q
   3. P, S, R, Q
   4. P, R, S, Q
   Show answer

   Answer: C — P, S, R, Q

   The order is P (1774), S (1781), R (1784), Q (1801). The Miranpur Katra battle came first, Chait Singh's removal followed in 1781, the Bara Imambara was completed in 1784, and the Awadh treaty ceded the Ceded Provinces in 1801. The tempting distractor is P, R, S, Q, which puts the imambara before the Benares revolt; the revolt is the earlier event.

8. Harsha, who ruled from about 606 to 647 CE, made which city his imperial capital?

   1. Mathura, the Surasena capital on the Yamuna
   2. Shravasti, the Kosala capital on the West Rapti
   3. Ayodhya, known in the janapada age as Saketa
   4. Kanyakubja, modern Kannauj
   Show answer

   Answer: D — Kanyakubja, modern Kannauj

   Harsha eventually made Kanyakubja, modern Kannauj, his imperial capital. Shravasti and Saketa were Kosala's centres in the janapada age, centuries earlier, which is why they are the tempting distractors. Mathura was Surasena's capital and was not Harsha's seat.

9. Which dynasty ruled from Jaunpur in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, founded by Malik Sarwar in 1394?

   1. Sharqi, the dynasty of Malik Sarwar
   2. Gahadavala, whose capitals were Kannauj and Varanasi
   3. Lodi, whose Sultan shifted the capital to Agra
   4. Tughluq, under which Firuz Shah named the city after his cousin
   Show answer

   Answer: A — Sharqi, the dynasty of Malik Sarwar

   The Sharqi dynasty was founded by Malik Sarwar, who was appointed governor of Jaunpur in 1394. The Tughluq option is the tempting distractor: Firuz Shah Tughluq is credited with naming Jaunpur, but he did not found the Sharqi dynasty, which was an independent line from Jaunpur.

10. The table lists four janapadas with their capitals and their fate in the sources of the period.
    
    Janapada | Capital | Fate
    Kashi | Varanasi | Merged into Kosala, later Magadha
    Kosala | Saketa, Shravasti | Annexed by Magadha
    Surasena | Mathura | Annexed by Magadha
    Malla | Kushinagara, Pava | Annexed by Magadha after the Buddha's death
    
    Which janapada in the table had a capital at the site of the Buddha's parinirvana?

    1. Kashi, whose capital was Varanasi
    2. Kosala, whose capitals were Saketa and Shravasti
    3. Malla, with Kushinagara, the parinirvana site
    4. Surasena, whose capital was Mathura
    Show answer

    Answer: C — Malla, with Kushinagara, the parinirvana site

    Kushinagara, one of the Malla capitals, is the site tradition gives for the parinirvana, so Malla is correct. Kosala's Shravasti is the tempting distractor because the Buddha taught there, but the parinirvana was at Kushinagara. The table shows the fate of each janapada, which the answer does not need.

11. Under the 1801 Awadh treaty, which of these territories was ceded to the East India Company?

    1. Benares, which was already under British control before 1801
    2. Gorakhpur, part of the Ceded Provinces
    3. Lucknow, the seat of the nawab, which stayed with Awadh
    4. Faizabad division, which stayed with Awadh until 1856
    Show answer

    Answer: B — Gorakhpur, part of the Ceded Provinces

    Gorakhpur, with the Rohilkhand division and several central districts, was ceded under the 1801 treaty. Lucknow and Faizabad remained with Awadh until its annexation in 1856. Benares is the tempting distractor, because it was British before 1801, not ceded by that treaty.

12. B.B. Lal's 1950–52 excavation at Hastinapur identified which pottery in the second period of occupation, usually dated to about 1100–800 BCE?

    1. Black and Red Ware, found in many early settlements
    2. Ochre Coloured Pottery, the earliest layer at the site
    3. Painted Grey Ware, grey pottery with painted designs
    4. Northern Black Polished Ware, the glossy later pottery
    Show answer

    Answer: C — Painted Grey Ware, grey pottery with painted designs

    Lal's Hastinapur sequence has Ochre Coloured Pottery in the earliest period, then a gap, then Painted Grey Ware in the second period, usually dated to about 1100–800 BCE. Ochre Coloured Pottery, the tempting distractor, is the earlier layer rather than the second, and Northern Black Polished Ware is later, so neither is the key.

13. Alamgirpur, a Harappan-related site in Meerut district, lies on which river?

    1. Hindon, a tributary of the Yamuna
    2. Yamuna, which flows past Delhi
    3. Ghaghara, the river of eastern Uttar Pradesh
    4. Gomti, which flows through Lucknow
    Show answer

    Answer: A — Hindon, a tributary of the Yamuna

    Alamgirpur is on the Hindon, which joins the Yamuna in the western Doab. The Yamuna is the tempting distractor because the site lies in its general region, but the settlement is on the Hindon itself. The Ghaghara and Gomti are eastern rivers and do not apply.

14. Which Maratha leader received a third of Chhatrasal's realm after he was called to Bundelkhand's aid in 1729?

    1. Balaji Vishwanath, a Peshwa of the Maratha state
    2. Shahu I, the Maratha king at Satara
    3. Madhav Rao I, a later Peshwa
    4. Bajirao I, the Peshwa who answered his call
    Show answer

    Answer: D — Bajirao I, the Peshwa who answered his call

    Chhatrasal appealed to Peshwa Bajirao I, who arrived in March 1729. Before his death Chhatrasal gave Bajirao a third of his realm. Balaji Vishwanath and Madhav Rao I were also Peshwas, which is why they are plausible distractors, but neither is the figure of 1729.

15. Consider the following statements about the Gupta temples of Uttar Pradesh.
    P. The Dashavatara temple at Deogarh is in Lalitpur district on the Betwa river.
    Q. The brick temple at Bhitargaon is in Kanpur Nagar district.
    R. The Bhitargaon temple is built of stone.
    S. The Dashavatara temple is dated to the twelfth century.
    Which statements are correct?

    1. P and Q only
    2. Q and R only
    3. R and S only
    4. P, Q and S only
    Show answer

    Answer: A — P and Q only

    P and Q are correct: Deogarh's Dashavatara temple is in Lalitpur district on the Betwa, and Bhitargaon is in Kanpur Nagar. R is false because Bhitargaon is a brick temple with terracotta panels. S is false because the Dashavatara temple is dated to about the early sixth century, not the twelfth; the twelfth-century Chandela and Gahadavala work is the tempting confusion.

16. Which of these was NOT the capital of a mahajanapada in present-day Uttar Pradesh?

    1. Kaushambi, the capital of the Vatsa janapada on the Yamuna
    2. Mathura, the capital of the Surasena janapada in Braj
    3. Ahichhatra, a major centre of the northern Panchala janapada
    4. Pataliputra, the capital of Magadha in Bihar
    Show answer

    Answer: D — Pataliputra, the capital of Magadha in Bihar

    Kaushambi, Mathura and Ahichhatra were capitals or centres of janapadas in what is now Uttar Pradesh. Pataliputra was Magadha's capital, and Magadha lies in present-day Bihar, which makes it the answer. The tempting distractor is Ahichhatra, which many students forget is in Bareilly district.