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MILITARY ADMINISTRATION UNDER THE MAURYAS

A Project submitted to –

ARMY INSTITUTE OF LAW, MOHALI

In partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of

degree of B.A.L.L.B.

Submitted to: Submitted by:

Dr Sheetal Kapoor Sanya Shrivastava

Assistant Professor (History) Roll no. 2143

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DECLARATION

It is certified that the project work presented in this report entitled “Military Administration
Under the Maurya’s ” embodies the results of original research work carried out by me. All
the ideas and references have been duly acknowledged.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

In preparation of my assignment, I had to take help and guidance of some respected persons,
who deserve my deepest gratitude. As the completion of this assignment gave me much
pleasure, I would like to show my gratitude towards Dr Sheetal Kapoor for giving me
guidance for assignment throughout numerous consultations. I would also like to extend my
gratitude to all those who have directly and indirectly guided me in writing this assignment.

I would like to thank my family and peers, whose constant encouragement kept me motivated
to work towards the completion of this project. I would also like to extend my gratitude
towards Army Institute of Law, Mohali and Dr. Tejinder Kaur, the Principal, Army Institute
of Law, Mohali for giving me this golden opportunity of making a project on such an
interesting and engaging topic.

Sanya Shrivastava
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INDEX

S.No. Topic Page No.

1 Introduction 4
2 Conquest of Magadha and Foundation of the Mauryan Empire 6
3 Northwest Expansion 7
4 Unification and Military 9
5 Military Administration 10
6 Bibliography 14
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INTRODUCTION

The Maurya Empire was a geographically extensive Iron Age historical power in ancient India,
ruled by the Maurya dynasty from 322-185 BCE. Originating from the kingdom of Magadha
in the Indo-Gangetic Plain (modern Bihar, eastern Uttar Pradesh) in the eastern side of the
Indian subcontinent, the empire had its capital city at Pataliputra (modern Patna). The empire
was the largest to have ever existed in the Indian subcontinent, spanning over 5 million square
kilometres at its zenith under Ashoka.

The name "Maurya" does not occur in Ashoka's inscriptions, or the contemporary Greek
accounts such as Megasthenes's Indica, but it is attested by the following sources:

 The Junagadh rock inscription of Rudradaman (c. 150 CE) prefixes "Maurya" to the
names Chandragupta and Ashoka.
 The Puranas (c. 4th century CE or earlier) use Maurya as a dynastic appellation.[33]
 The Buddhist texts state that Chandragupta belonged to the "Moriya" clan of the
Shakyas, the tribe to which Gautama Buddha belonged.
 The Jain texts state that Chandragupta was the son of a royal superintendent of peacocks
(mayura-poshaka).
 Tamil Sangam literature also designate them as 'moriyar' and mention them after
the Nanda’s
 Kuntala inscription (from the town of Bandanikke, North Mysore ) of 12th century
AD chronologically mention Maurya as one of the dynasties which ruled the region.

The Empire was founded in 322 BCE by Chandragupta Maurya, who had overthrown the
Nanda Dynasty, and rapidly expanded his power, with Chanakya’s help, westward across
central and western India. His expansion took advantage of the disruptions of local powers in
the wake of the withdrawal westward by Alexander the Great’s armies. By 316 BCE, the
empire had fully occupied North-western India, defeating and conquering the satraps left by
Alexander. Chandragupta then defeated the invasion led by Seleucus I, a Macedonian general
from Alexander’s army, and gained additional territory west of the Indus River.

In its time, the Maurya Empire was one of the largest empires of the world. At its greatest
extent, the empire stretched to the north along the natural boundaries of the Himalayas, to the
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east into Assam, to the west into Balochistan (southwest Pakistan and southeast Iran) and into
the Hindu Kush mountains of what is now Afghanistan. The Empire was expanded into India’s
central and southern regions by the emperors Chandragupta and Bindusara, but it excluded a
small portion of unexplored tribal and forested regions near Kalinga (modern Odisha), until it
was conquered by Ashoka. It declined for about 50 years after Ashoka’s rule ended, and it
dissolved in 185 BCE with the foundation of the Shunga Dynasty in Magadha.
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Conquest Of Magadha and Foundation of

The Maurya Empire (C. 321 BCE)

According to several legends, Chanakya travelled to Magadha, a kingdom that was large and
militarily powerful and feared by its neighbours, but was insulted by its king Dhana Nanda,
of the Nanda Dynasty. Chanakya swore revenge and vowed to destroy the Nanda Empire.

The Nanda Empire originated from the region of Magadha in ancient India during the 4th
century BCE, and lasted until between 345-321 BCE. At its greatest extent, the empire ruled
by the Nanda Dynasty extended from Bengal in the east, to the Punjab region in the west, and
as far south as the Vindhya Range. The rulers of this dynasty were famed for the great wealth
that they accumulated.

Chanakya encouraged the young Chandragupta Maurya and his army to take over the throne
of Magadha. Using his intelligence network, Chandragupta gathered many young men from
across Magadha and other provinces, who were upset over the corrupt and oppressive rule of
King Dhana, as well as the resources necessary for his army to fight a long series of battles.
These men included the former general of Taxila, accomplished students of Chanakya, the
representative of King Porus of Kakayee, his son Malayketu, and the rulers of small states.

Maurya devised a strategy to invade Pataliputra, the capital of the Nanda Empire. A battle
was announced and the Magadhan army was drawn from the city to a distant battlefield in
order to engage Maurya’s forces. Meanwhile, Maurya’s general and spies bribed the Nanda’s
corrupt general, and created an atmosphere of civil war in the kingdom, which culminated in
the death of the heir to the throne.

Upon the civil unrest in the kingdom, Nanda resigned and disappeared into exile. Chanakya
contacted the prime minister, Rakshasa, and convinced him that his loyalty was to Magadha,
not to the Nanda Dynasty, and that he should remain in office. Chanakya reiterated that
choosing to resist would start a war that would severely affect Magadha and destroy the city.
Rakshasa accepted Chanakya’s reasoning, and Chandragupta Maurya was legitimately
installed as the new King of Magadha in 321 BCE, at the age of 21. Rakshasa became
Chandragupta’s chief advisor, and Chanakya assumed the position of an elder statesman.
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Northwest Expansion

With his new seat of power in Magadha, Chandragupta Maurya defeated the remaining
Macedonian satraps, and consolidated his reign of the new Maurya Empire. He rapidly
expanded his power westward across central and western India, taking advantage of the
disruptions of local powers in the wake of the withdrawal westward by Alexander the Great’s
Greek armies. By 320 BCE, the empire had fully occupied North-western India.
Chandragupta Maurya would become the first emperor to unify India into one state, creating
one of the world’s largest empires in its time, and the largest ever in the Indian subcontinent.

The Maurya Empire c. 320 BCE. The Maurya Empire when it was first founded by
Chandragupta Maurya c. 320 BCE, after conquering the Nanda Empire when he was only
about 20 years old.

As a young prince, Ashoka (r. 272-232 BCE) was a brilliant commander who crushed revolts
in Ujjain and Taxila. As monarch, he was ambitious and aggressive, reasserting the Empire’s
superiority in southern and western India. But it was his conquest of Kalinga (262-261 BCE)
that proved to be the pivotal event of his life. Although Ashoka’s army succeeded in
overwhelming Kalinga forces of royal soldiers and civilian units, an estimated 100,000
soldiers and civilians were killed in the furious warfare, including over 10,000 of Ashoka’s
own men. Hundreds of thousands of people were adversely affected by the destruction and
fallout of war. When he personally witnessed the devastation, Ashoka began feeling remorse.
Although the annexation of Kalinga was completed, Ashoka embraced the teachings of
Buddhism, and renounced war and violence. He sent out missionaries to travel around Asia
and spread Buddhism to other countries.

Extent of the Maurya Empire was at its height in 265 BCE. Ashoka the Great extended into
Kalinga during the Kalinga War c. 265 BCE, and established superiority over the southern
kingdoms.
As ruler, Ashoka implemented principles of ahimsa (the principle of “to not injure”) by
banning hunting and violent sports activities, and ending indentured and forced labour (many
thousands of people in war-ravaged Kalinga had been forced into hard labour and servitude).
While he maintained a large and powerful army to keep the peace, Ashoka expanded friendly
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relations with states across Asia and Europe, and sponsored Buddhist missions. He undertook
a massive public works building campaign across the country. Among these works were the
construction of stupas, or Buddhist religious structures, containing relics. One notable stupa
created during the reign of Ashoka was The Great Stupa, which stands in Sanchi, India. Over
40 years of peace, harmony, and prosperity made Ashoka one of the most successful and
famous monarchs in Indian history. He remains an idealized figure of inspiration in modern
India.

Employing a carefully organized bureaucratic system, the Maurya Empire was able to
maintain security and political unity across large parts of western and southern Asia. This
included a common economic system supporting stable agriculture in its vast landholdings, as
well as successful trade and commerce. Through this centralized authority, which included a
powerful military, the rulers of the empire bound together the previously fractured regions of
the Indian Subcontinent.
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Unification and Military

Chandragupta Maurya, the founder of the Maurya Empire, ruled from 324-297 BCE, before
voluntarily abdicating in favour of his son, Bindusara, who ruled from 297 BCE until his
death in 272 BCE. This led to a war of succession in which Bindusara’s son, Ashoka,
defeated his brother, Susima, and rose to the throne in 268 BCE, eventually becoming the
greatest ruler of the Maurya Dynasty.

Before the Mauryan Empire, the Indian subcontinent was fragmented into hundreds of
kingdoms. These were ruled by powerful regional chieftains with small armies that engaged
in internecine warfare. The Mauryan Army eliminated regional chieftains, private armies, and
even gangs of bandits, who sought to impose their own supremacy in small areas.

The Mauryan Army, the largest standing military force of its time, supported the expansion
and defence of the empire. According to scholars, the empire wielded 600,000 infantry,
30,000 cavalry, and 9,000 war elephants, while a vast espionage system collected intelligence
for both internal and external security purposes. Although Emperor Ashoka renounced
offensive warfare and expansionism, he maintained this standing army to protect the empire
from external threats and maintain stability and peace across Western and Southern Asia.
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MILITARY ADMINISTRATION UNDER THE MAURYAN EMPIRE

Chandragupta governed a true monarchical imperial state. The king ruled with the help of a
small body of elder statesmen, the mantri-parisad, that functioned as advisors. These included
the great councilor, or mantrin; the purohita, or chief priest; the treasurer, or sannidhatr; the
chief tax collector, samahartr; the minister of military affairs, sandhivigrahika; the senapati,
or chief military advisor or general; and the chief secretary, or mahaksapatalika. Below this
council, the state was governed on a day-to-day basis through powerful individuals, called
superintendents, who oversaw various government departments. The military system itself
was controlled by high-ranking civilian superintendents who oversaw the operations of state
armories, where all military equipment and weapons were manufactured, as well as supply
depots, cavalry, elephants, chariot corps, and infantry, including provisions, training, and
general combat readiness. According to Megasthenes, the Seleucid ambassador to Ashoka’s
court, the imperial army was run by a committee of thirty of these superintendents, while
each branch or department-infantry, cavalry, elephants, chariots, navy, commissariat, and so
on-was run by a committee of five men. It is likely that these committees reported directly to
the chief military man, the Senapati, who then reported to the king.

There were six types of troops in the Mauryan imperial army: the kshatriya, or troops of the
hereditary warrior class who formed the spine of the professional army; mercenaries and
freebooters hired as individuals seeking military adventure; troops provided by corporations
or guilds; troops supplied by subordinate allies; deserters from the enemy; and wild forest and
hill tribesmen used in the same manner as the French and British used Native American tribes
in their wars in North America. The troops of the corporations are little understood and may
have been units maintained by guilds to guard their caravan routes and trade stations. Such
units were later found in the armies of medieval Europe. The imperial armies were not
conscript armies. In Vedic times, war fighting was the responsibility of all members of the
tribe. By the time of the Maurya’s, whatever sort of conscription had once existed earlier had
disappeared, and the imperial armies comprised professional warrior aristocrats and other
professionals fed, equipped, trained, paid, and otherwise maintained at great cost to the state.

The Mauryan army was quite large. Classical sources (Pliny) state that the size of the army of
the last Nanda king was 200,000 infantry, 20,000 cavalry, 2,000 chariots, and 3,000 elephants
when it was overwhelmed by Chandragupta’s force of 600,000 infantry, 30,000 cavalry, and
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9,000 elephants. When Alexander confronted Porus on the banks of the Hydaspes, he faced
an army of 30,000-foot, 4,000 cavalry, 300 chariots, and 200 war elephants, an army of
considerable size to be deployed by a minor king of a minor state in the Jhelum region. Less
than a year later, Alexander confronted the army of the Malavas state, another minor regional
entity, and faced an army of 80,000 well-equipped infantry, 10,000 cavalry, and 800 chariots.
Even accounting for the exaggeration common in ancient accounts, it is by no means unlikely
that these armies were this large. The population of India during this period was somewhere
between 120,000,000 and 180,000,000 people. Even excluding the lower social orders, the
Mauryan empire possessed an enormous manpower pool. Moreover, India was rich in gold
and metals and the skills to produce weapons in great quantities in state armories. The
Ganges plain and other areas farther north were excellent for breeding mounts for the cavalry.
Whatever the true size of the imperial armies, they are all recorded as smaller than those said
to have existed during the later medieval and Muslim periods of Indian history.

The tactical organization of the Mauryan army may have been influenced somewhat by the
Chinese innovation of combining several combat arms within a single tactical unit and
training it to fight together, employing their arms in concert. Indian armies of this period had
within them a basic unit called the patti, a mixed platoon comprising one elephant carrying
three archers or spearman and a mahout, three horse cavalrymen armed with javelins, round
buckler, and spear, and five infantry soldiers armed with shield and broadsword or bow. This
twelve-man unit when assembled in three units formed a senamukha, or “company.” Three of
these formed together comprised a gulma, or “battalion.” Units were added in multiples of
three, forming an aksauhini, or “army,” comprised of 21,870 patti. Sources also speak of
military units formed around multiples of ten, and there were no doubt units of single arms
that could be employed individually or in concert with other arms. The Arthasastra mentions
a unit called the samavyuha, or “battle array,” that was about the size of a Roman legion
(5,000 men). This unit comprised five subunits joined together, each subunit containing 45
chariots, 45 elephants, 225 cavalry, and 675 infantrymen each. It goes without saying that
managing such units in battle required a high degree of tactical sophistication.

The military equipment of the Mauryan imperial army was essentially the same as it had been
for the previous 500 years. The Indian bow was made of bamboo and was between five and
six feet long and fi red a long cane arrow with a metal or bone tip. Nearchus, the Cretan
chronicler who accompanied Alexander into India, noted that the bowman had to rest the bow
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on the ground and steady it with his left foot in order to draw it full length. The arrow fi red
from the bamboo bow could penetrate any armor. At the Hydaspes the battle took place over
muddy ground, which prevented the archers from steadying their bows in this manner,
rendering them useless. The composite bow, or sarnga, was also used but probably far less so
and not by cavalry. When Alexander’s Asian cavalry archers at the Hydaspes attacked the
Indian cavalry with bow and arrow, the Indian cavalry took heavy losses and had no means of
returning fi re. It is unlikely that the Indian cavalry ever became proficient with the bow,
relying completely on the lance and javelin, the weapons of light cavalry. If the Mauryan
army possessed heavy cavalry, they appear to have done so in small numbers.

Infantrymen carried a long, narrow shield made of raw ox hide stretched over a wooden or
wicker frame that protected almost the entire body, unlike the small round buckler carried by
the cavalry. Armed with spear, bow, and javelin, the infantry tended mostly to be of the light
variety. Heavy infantry carried the nistrimsa, or long, two-handed slashing sword, while
others were armed with iron maces, dagger axes, battle axes, and clubs. A special long lance,
the tomara, was carried by infantry mounted on the backs of elephants and was used to
counter any enemy infantry that had fought its way through the elephant’s infantry screen to
attack the animal itself. What evidence we have suggests that from Vedic times until the
coming of the Greeks, only slight use was made of body armour, and most of that was of the
leather or textile variety. With Alexander’s invasion, however, the use of metal and lamellar
armour became more widespread, as did the use of scale plate armour for horses and
elephants. The helmet did not come into wide use until well after the Common Era, and for
most of the ancient period the Indian soldier relied mostly on the thick folds of his turban to
protect his head.

By the Mauryan period the Indians possessed most of the ancient world’s siege and artillery
equipment, including catapults, ballistas, battering rams, and other siege engines. A
distinguishing characteristic of Indian siege and artillery practice was a heavy reliance on
incendiary devices, such as fire arrows, pitch pots, and fireballs. There was even a manual
instructing how to equip birds and monkeys with the ability to carry fire inside buildings and
onto rooftops. This was not surprising in a country whose military fortifications and buildings
were made mostly of wood. Fire was such a constant threat to Indian towns that thousands of
water containers and buckets were required to be kept full and placed outside dwellings at all
times to extinguish fi res. All citizens were required by law to assist in fighting fi res, and it
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was required that people sleep in the room nearest the street exit to escape fi re more easily
and to be quickly available to help in fighting them. So serious was the concern for fi re that
the punishment for arson was death by burning alive.

The Arthashastra declares that a good army can march two yojanas a day and that a bad army
can only manage one. This is a rate of march for an effective army of about ten miles a day,
considerably below what the armies of the Near East could manage during the same period. It
is likely that the Mauryan army followed the old Vedic practice of agreeing with the enemy
as to the location of a battlefield in advance. Under these conditions, tactical surprise was
likely to have been a rare event. Much of the advice offered by the Arthashastra, at least from
the tactical perspective, seems to be of the same variety as that proffered by Sun-Tsu, more a
set of maxims designed to make the commander think than a set of rules to be applied in
certain circumstances. That is why, to the Western mind, such maxims often appear obvious.
Hints of a tactical system appear, however, in the suggestion that whether the attack is from
the centre, right, or left, it should always be led by the strongest troops. The weakest troops
are to be kept in reserve. But the reserve is very important. The king should always station
himself with the reserve to exploit any enemy failure, and a king should “never fight without
a reserve.”
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BIBLIOGRAPHY

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m
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 https://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/india/history-mauryan-admin.htmL
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