Chandragupta

Chandragupta (Chandragupta Maurya) , fl. c.321 BC-c.298 BC, Indian emperor, founder of the Maurya dynasty and grandfather of Asoka . He conquered the Magadha kingdom (in modern Bihar and Jharkhand) and eventually controlled all India N of the Vindhya Hills. In c.305, Chandragupta, with a huge army, defeated Seleucus I (Nicator) who had invaded NW India in an attempt to regain Alexander the Great's Indian provinces. Seleucus had to yield parts of Afghanistan to Chandragupta, and some sort of marriage alliance followed. From Megasthenes, a Seleucid envoy at the court of Chandragupta, comes much of the information about the period. The emperor dwelt in an enormous, ornate palace at Pataliputra (Patna) and administered a highly bureaucratic government. He was advised by Kautilya (also called Chanakya), a very able but unscrupulous Brahman, to whom is attributed the Arthasastra, a guide to statecraft. Chandragupta established a vast secret service system and, fearing assassination, rarely left his palace. Jain tradition says that he abdicated his throne, became a Jain monk, and fasted to death.

Chandragupta Founder of the Maurya Empire in India (r. c.321–297 bc) and grandfather of Ashoka. He seized the throne of Magadha and defeated Seleucus, gaining dominion over most of n India and part of Afghanistan. His reign was characterized by religious tolerance. He established a vast bureaucracy and secret service based at Patna. He abdicated and, it is thought, became a Jain monk before dying.

Chandragupta Maurya (c.325–297 BC) Indian emperor. He founded the Mauryan empire, the first empire in India to extend over most of the subcontinent. From his capital at Paliputra he expanded westwards across the River Indus, annexing provinces deep into Afghanistan from Alexander's Greek successors. The empire continued to expand after his death, but ended in 185 BC.