📚 GENERAL STUDIES: HISTORY OF INDIA
🏛 1. Ancient Indian History
📌 Key Topics:
Indus Valley Civilization (3300–1300 BCE)
Cities: Mohenjo-Daro, Harappa, Dholavira
Town planning, drainage, seals, no temples
Vedic Period (1500–600 BCE)
Early Vedic vs Later Vedic society
Rigveda, caste system, rituals
📖 Mahajanapadas & Buddhism/Jainism
16 Mahajanapadas (e.g., Magadha, Kashi, Avanti)
Buddhism: 4 Noble Truths, Eightfold Path, Ashoka
Jainism: 24 Tirthankaras, Mahavira, Triratna
🏯 Mauryan Empire
Chandragupta Maurya, Kautilya’s Arthashastra
Ashoka: Dhamma, Kalinga War, inscriptions
🏰 Post-Mauryan Period
Satavahanas, Kushanas (Kanishka), Sangam Age
✨ Gupta Empire (Golden Age)
Samudragupta, Chandragupta II
Nalanda, decimal system, Aryabhata
🕌 2. Medieval Indian History
🏹 Early Medieval India
Rajputs, Palas, Cholas, Delhi as cultural hub
🏰 Delhi Sultanate (1206–1526)
Slave Dynasty – Qutub-ud-din Aibak
Khiljis – Alauddin Khilji
Tughlaqs – Muhammad bin Tughlaq
Lodis
👑 Mughal Empire (1526–1857)
Babur: First Battle of Panipat
Akbar: Din-i-Ilahi, Mansabdari
Aurangzeb: Expansion, religious orthodoxy
Decline of Mughal Empire
🌾 Bhakti & Sufi Movements
Kabir, Tulsidas, Mirabai
Sufi saints like Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti
🇮🇳 3. Modern Indian History (1707–1947)
📉 Decline of Mughals and Rise of British
Battle of Plassey (1757) and Buxar (1764)
Dual Government in Bengal
Subsidiary Alliance & Doctrine of Lapse
💣 Revolt of 1857
Mangal Pandey, Rani Laxmibai, Bahadur Shah Zafar
Causes & Consequences
🇮🇳 Freedom Struggle
INC Formation (1885): Moderates vs Extremists
Partition of Bengal (1905) & Swadeshi Movement
Gandhian Era:
Champaran (1917), Non-Cooperation (1920), Dandi March (1930)
Quit India Movement (1942)
📝 Constitutional Development
Regulating Act, Pitt’s India Act
1909, 1919, 1935 Acts
Cabinet Mission (1946), Mountbatten Plan, Indian Independence Act (1947)
🎭 4. Art & Culture (Brief Overview)
🎨 Architecture
Rock-cut caves, Stupas (Sanchi), Temples (Khajuraho, Brihadeshwara)
Indo-Islamic (Qutub Minar, Taj Mahal)
🎭 Dance & Music
Classical: Bharatanatyam, Kathak, Odissi, etc.
Folk: Bhangra, Garba, Kalbelia
🗿 Sculptures & Paintings
Gandhara, Mathura, Chola bronze
Ajanta, Bagh, Mughal miniature paintings
📜 Literature
Vedas, Upanishads, Sangam literature