The story behind the date
Read a little.
Explore a world.
Twelve ways into the past, with sources, chronological milestones, and maps to continue the journey.
Cities, conflicts and transitions
The Indus Civilization
Discover Harappan urban planning, exchange and the limits of an undeciphered written record.
c. 261 BCEAshoka and the Kalinga War
Read the Kalinga conquest through Ashoka’s edicts, the human cost of warfare and the remembered landscape of Dhauli.
21 April 1526The First Battle of Panipat
Understand the 1526 battle between Babur and Ibrahim Lodi and why a victory did not instantly secure an empire.
23 June 1757The Battle of Plassey
Explore the 1757 confrontation in Bengal, political alliances and the Company’s later acquisition of revenue power.
1857–1858The Revolt of 1857
Follow the uprising from Meerut to Delhi, its varied participants and the shift from Company to Crown government.
August 1947Independence and Partition, 1947
Read independence and Partition together: the new dominions, boundary decisions and the human consequences of displacement.
Dynasties and political worlds
The Maurya Empire
Trace Mauryan state formation, Pataliputra, Ashoka’s inscriptions and the limits of an imperial map.
c. 320–550 CEThe Gupta Empire
Where was the Gupta Empire located, who were the Gupta rulers, and when was the Gupta period? A sourced guide to the Gupta dynasty with maps from 320 to 500 CE.
Medieval southern IndiaThe Chola Dynasty
Read Chola history through living temple complexes, royal patronage and southern regional connections.
1206–1526 CEThe Delhi Sultanate
Follow changing ruling houses, urban capitals and the sources behind the Delhi Sultanate’s history.
From 1526 CEThe Mughal Empire
Explore Mughal political institutions, royal architecture and the changing relationship between court and region.
17th–early 19th centuries CEMaratha Swarajya and Expansion
Trace Shivaji Maharaj’s coronation, connected forts and the later expansion of Maratha power.