The Satavahana Dynasty

The Satavahana dynasty started in the mid-1st century and ended in the 3rd century. The dynasty’s origins are unknown, but its first ruler, as per the Puranas, defeated the Kanva dynasty. The Satavahanas restored peace throughout the Deccan area after the Maurya dynasty and fought off foreign invasions. Their battles with the Western Saka Satraps, in particular, lasted a long time. Some historians said that the Satavahanas at first established their control over the world. In western Deccan around Pratishthana, it’s known as the modern Paithan. and dilated from there into the eastern Deccan, western coast, and Andhra.

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Satavahana dynasty origin

The Sunga empire finished around seventy-three BCE. Once Vasudeva Kanva killed their ruler named Devabhuti. The Kanva empire then dominated Magadha for concerning forty-five years. At this point, another dynasty that was powerful, like the Satavahanas, got the throne within the Deccan space. The word “Satavahana” comes from the language Prakrit which implies” driven by seven,” which is associated with the god Sun chariot that seven horses drive. The 1st ruler of the dynasty, Satavahana, was Simuka. The capital of satavahana dynasty is Pratishthana, Amaravati.

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Satavahana dynasty rulers you should know about 

1.Simuka 

In the Satavahana dynasty, Simuka was the founder. He joined the throne just after Ashoka’s death. He built Buddhist and Jain temples during his kingdom.

2.Satakarni I

He is the third king of this empire. He ruled around 70 to 60 BC. He extended his kingdom through military conquest. After Kharavela was dead, Satakarni I conquered Kalinga. In Pataliputra he pushed sungas back. He conquered Madhya Pradesh and ruled there. He got the fame of ‘Lord of Dakshinapatha’ after he annexed the valley of Godavari. The name of his wife was Nayanika. She wrote an inscription named Naneghat. In this, she described the king, Satakarni I, as Dakshinapathapati. He also performed Ashvamedha Yagya and brought Brahmanism back to Deccan, its origin.

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3.Hala 

Hala, the king, prepared Gatha Saptashati.  It’s also known as Gaha Sattasai in the language Prakrit and is a poem collection. The poems are about love. Approximately forty of them are for the Hala. 

4.Gautamiputra Satakarni 

Gautamiputra Satakarni could be called one of the greatest kings of the dynasty of Satavahana. It’s considered that the Satavahanas got out of their dominion in western India and in the region of Upper Deccan. Gautamiputra Satkarni restored the Satavahanas’ fortunes. He claimed to be Brahmana, who had dethroned these Shakas and annihilated many rulers of Kshatriya.

 He’s known to destroy the Kshaharata heritage of Nahapana. Around 800 Nahapana silver coins found had been restored by the king Satavahana. He was a powerful Western Satraps king. His kingdom was from the river Krishna, that’s in the south till Saurashtra and Malwa, then Berar towards Konkan.

He’s known as the Yavanas destroyer, Pahlavas, and Shakas. The restorer of the Satavahanas’ glory in Nasik inscription of his mother Gautami Balashri. He is known as Ekabrahmana, and Khatiya Dapa Manamada. He was given the effluent titles of Maharaja and Rajaraja. He donated his land to Buddhism. 

The Karajika village which is near Pune in Maharashtra was given as grant and is mentioned in Karle inscription. According to the Junagadh inscription of Rudradaman I, he presumably lost parts of the acquired Kshaharata provinces to the Kardamaka against the Shaka Kshatrapas in the latter part of his reign. Gautami Balasri was his mother. Thus, his name was kept Gautamiputra. His son Vasisth Putra Sri Pulamavi succeeded him.

5.Vashishti Putra Pulumavi 

He was Gautamiputra’s immediate successor. Vashishti Putra Pulumayi’s inscriptions and coins have been discovered in Andhra Pradesh. As per the inscriptions present at Junagadh, he married Rudradaman I’s daughter. Due to eastern engagements, Shaka-Kshatrapas were able to recover a few territories and lands.

6.Yajna Sri Satakarni 

He belonged to the Satavahana dynasty. As a king he was able to reclaim Malwa and Konkan against the Shakas. He had a great interest in nautical and trade. It can be seen from the ship design present on coins of his time. Andhra, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Gujarat are the places that have his coin.

7.The Administration of the Satavahana Dynasty 

The Shastras drove the Satavahana Dynasty administration. It has a unique structure which is as follows. 

1. The ruler or the king is known as Rajan
2. People who had names on coins were princes or Rajas 
3. Maharathis had the discretion of giving villages as rewards and had the power of having relations for marriage with the reigning family.
4. Mahatalavara
5. Maha Senapati

We can get some information about the bureaucracy with the help of Gautamiputra Satakarni. It also has information about the capital of Satavahana dynasty and its rulers.

Conclusion

The founder of the Satavahana Dynasty was King Simuka Satavahana. Gautamiputra Satakarni’s reign started the struggle of Satavahana and Saka, this gave Deccan a major political feature. This article is all about the Satavahana dynasty. And this will help students in every competitive exam like UPSC, Railways, SSC, bank, etc. Read the entire article for the facts. You can contact us via mail or call for any further information related to any topic.