Kalinga War

The Kalinga War was fought between the Maurya Empire with Ashoka and Raja Ananta Padmanabha of the state of Kalinga, a feudal republic located on the coast of the present-day Indian state of Odisha and northern parts of Andhra Pradesh. The Kalinga war, the only major war Ashoka fought after his accession to throne, is one of the major and bloodiest battles in world history. Kalinga, then an Independent region put up a stiff resistance against brutal strength of Ashoka and fought bravely till the end. But despite being tough, they were outnumbered against Ashoka's armies. The bloodshed of this war is said to have prompted Ashoka to adopt Buddhism. However, he retained Kalinga after its conquest and incorporated it into the Maurya Empire.

Background

The main reasons for invading Kalinga were both political and economic. Kalinga is then said to be a glorious and prosperous region consisting of freedom loving and artistic skilled people. The Kalinga Kingdom, also known as the "Utkala" were the first from the Bharata (present day India) who traveled offshore to South East for Trade. They use to follow open culture and uniform civil code. Since the time of Ashoka's father, King Bindusara, the Mauryan Empire based in Magadha was following a policy of territorial expansion. Kalinga was under Magadha control during the Nanda rule, but regained independence with the beginning of the rule of the Mauryas. That was considered a great setback for the traditional policy of territorial expansion of the Magadhan emperors and was considered to be a loss of political prestige for the Mauryas merely imperative to reduce Kalinga to complete subjection. To this task Ashoka must have set himself as soon as he felt he was securely established on the throne.

Kalinga

Kalinga may refer to:

See also

Kalinga (province)

Kalinga (Ilocano: Probinsya ti Kalinga and Filipino: Lalawigan ng Kalinga), Tagalog pronunciation: [kɐˈliŋɐ]) is a landlocked province in the Philippines in the Cordillera Administrative Region of Luzon.

Its capital is Tabuk and borders Mountain Province to the south, Abra to the west, Isabela to the east, Cagayan to the northeast, and Apayao to the north.

Kalinga and Apayao are the result of the 1995 partitioning of the former province of Kalinga-Apayao; which was seen as a way to better service the respective needs of the various indigenous peoples in the area.

Geography

The topography of Kalinga province is rugged and sloping, with mountain peaks ranging from 1,500 to 2,500 metres (4,900 to 8,200 ft) in elevation. The province’s western side is characterised by sharp, crested, interlinking peaks of steep slopes, isolated flatlands, plateaus and valleys. The eastern lands are mainly of rolling and gradually sloping foothills.

Large swaths of the province's lowlands are open grassland suitable for pasture, while the highlands have extensive areas of tropical rainforest. In higher elevations to the west, particularly in the mountains of Balbalan, lie some of the most intact pine forests of Luzon island. Rizal and Tabuk with their flatlands are the biggest rice producers. Next in rice production are the mountainous area, and of note are the rice terraces of Balbalan, Lubuagan, Pasil, Pinukpuk, Tinglayan, and Tanudan.

Kalinga (India)

Kalinga was an early republic in central East India that comprised almost whole Odisha and also some parts of Andhra Pradesh and Chattisgarh. It was a rich and fertile land that extended from the Damodar River/Ganges to the Godavari River and from Bay of Bengal to the Amarkantak range in the west. The region was scene of the bloody Kalinga War fought by Ashoka of the Maurya Empire approximately 265 BCE.

History

The core area of the historical Kalinga now forms the sea shore of Orissa and Andhra region of Andhra Pradesh, up to river Godavari state in India.

Kalinga is mentioned as "Calingae" in Megasthenes' Indica:

The Kalinga alphabet derived from Brahmi was used for writing.

Kalinga was a powerful kingdom during the Mauryan era. The kingdom fell when emperor Ashoka led a war against the republic, leading to its bloody defeat in the Kalinga War. It seems to have gained independence soon by the time of king Kharavela.

Pre-Mauryan

Mahapadma Nanda the ruler of Magadha is presumed to have conquered Kalinga during his reign around c. 350 BCE. The Hathigumpha inscriptions mentions the suzerainty of the Nandas in the Kalinga region. The inscriptions also mention irrigation projects undertaken by the Nanda kings in the state during their reign.