INDIANHISTORY- HISTORICAL MONUMENTS
1-indian history dates back to 3000 bc.
2-excavations in punjab and gujarat reveal that the indus valley civilisation was a highly developed urban civilisation.
3-in fact the two cities of harappa and
mohenjodaro, situated on two sides of the river ravi , are known to have been built on a similar plan. but that only meant a new wave of urbanisation was taking place along the ganges around 1500 bc.
4-this has been recorded in the rig veda - the earliest known literary source composed in this period that sheds light on india 's past.
5-the great dynasties
6-by 6th century bc, the magadh rulers dominated the northern plains.
7-it was also the time when new thinking emerged in the form of buddhism and jainism to challenge hindu orthodoxy.
8-the magadh rule was followed by the rule of chandragupta maurya (322-298
b.c.), one of india 's greatest emperors.
9-the mauryan reign peaked under the reign of ashoka the great who extended his empire from the kashmir and peshawar in the north to mysore in the south and orissa in the east. not only was ashoka a great ruler, he was one of the most successful propagators of buddhism in the country.
10-after ashoka's death in 232 b.c. the empire began to disintegrate and the
country was repeatedly raided and plundered by foreign invaders, leaving india disunited and weak for the next 400 years.
11-stability returned with the reign of chandra gupta i (380-412 a.d.). his rule is considered the golden period in indian history when art and culture flourished and the country prospered.
12-unlike the north of india, foreign invasions had little impact on life in south india which also saw the rise and decline of many empires.
13-these included the cholas whose rule extended to sri lanka and south east asia , the pandyas, the cheras, the pallavas and the chalukyas.
14-under the various rulers, arts and craft in the south also saw the emergence of various styles of architecture and some of the grandest architectural accomplishments in the south - the most famous being the exquisitely crafted chola bronzes.
15-these were followed by the hoysala and the vijaynagar empires - among the greatest hindu empires.
16-the muslim invasions
17-the first muslim invasions of the country started with the mahmud of gazni, who plundered the sub-continent for its riches between 1001
and 1025.
18-later mohamed ghori defeated prithviraj chauhan, the tomar ruler of delhi and left it in charge of his deputy, qutub-ud-din, the man who built the qutub minar in delhi .
19-his rule was followed by that of the khilji, tughlaq, sayyid and lodi dynasties. known as the sultanate of delhi, it was during this period that the muslim rulers introduced islamic concepts of society and governance to most of the sub-continent, though the south remained largely untouched.
20-in 1525, babur, a descendant of timur, as well as genghis khan invaded punjab and eventually founded the mughal empire in india .
21-his rule was followed by that of his son humayun. humayun was ousted by afghan chieftain sher shah but resumed power after sher shah's death.
22-sher shah is, however, remembered as the one to build the grand trunk road spanning from peshawar to patna .
23-humayun's reign was followed up by his son akbar who actually consolidated power and extended the empire across north india and parts of south india .
24-one of india 's wisest rulers and most able administrators, akbar's reign is considered to be one of the best the country has known. akbar was succeeded by jahangir, followed by his son shah jahan - best known as the builder of the taj mahal, the red fort and the jama masjid. shah jahan's reign was followed by aurangzeb's.
25-the death of aurangzeb saw the decline of the mughal rule in india .
british rule
26-over the centuries india had always been attractive to traders, and one of the first europeans to come to india was the portuguese trader vasco da gama who landed at calicut , sailing via the cape of good hope in 1498.
27-the portuguese established their colony in goa in the 16th century but they did not expand it though their rule continued till 1961.
28-vasco da gama was followed by the french, the dutch and the english, all of whom were lured by the commercial interests that india offered.
29-by the last quarter of the 18th century the english established themselves as the dominant power in india and they set about making revolutionary changes in the social, political and the economic life of the country.
towards independence
30-the disintegration of the mughal empire, fighting among the maratha
rulers and inability of the various rulers across the country to unite against a common enemy saw the british consolidate their position in the country.
31-however, the 19th century saw a revival of national pride and social reform and the indians began to tire of the suppressive british rule.
32- things reached a flash point in the second half of the 19th century when the first war of independence in 1857 broke out in meerut .
33-it was sparked off by the introduction of a new rifle and cartridge by the british in the army. the cartridges which soldiers had to bite off, allegedly contained pork and beef tallow, which offended the religious sentiments of both hindus and muslims.
34- the soldiers rebelled, reached delhi and proclaimed bahadurshah zafar the sovereign ruler of india . they were eventually overpowered by the british.
35-but there was no looking back for the indians who wanted social reform and freedom.
36-the indian national congress was set up and educated indians started formulating strategies to assert their birthright to independence.
37-the anti-british sentiment became a mass movement with the arrival of mohandas karamchand gandhi who devised a unique strategy for india 's freedom struggle based on non- violence and civil disobedience.
38-he conceived and led the non- cooperation movement in 1922, the salt satyagraha in 1930 and the quit india movement in 1942.
39-all of which pushed the british into
agreeing to transfer power on august 15, 1947, the day that is now celebrated as india 's independence day.
40-today, india is the world's largest democracy with a federal form of government.
historical monuments
41-the ancient monuments and archaeological sites and remains act,
1958 defines an ‘ ancient monument ’ as follows:-
42-ancient monument means any structure, erection or monument, or
any tumulus or place of interment, or any cave, rock-sculpture, inscription or monolith which is of historical, archaeological or artistic interest and which has been in existence for not less than 100 years and includes—
1.remains of an ancient monument,
2.site of an ancient monument,
3.such portion of land adjoining the site of an ancient monument as may be required for fencing or covering in or otherwise preserving such monument,
4.the means of access to, and convenient inspection of, an ancient monument;
43-archaeological site and remains are defined as follows:
44-archaeological site and remains means any area which contains or is reasonably believed to contain ruins or relics of historical or archaeological importance which have been in existence for not less than one hundred years, and includes—
1.such portion of land adjoining the area as may be required for
fencing or covering in or otherwise preserving it, and
2.the means of access to, and convenient inspection of the area
45-protection of monuments
46-the archaeological survey of india (asi) under the provisions of the amasr act, 1958 protects monuments, sites and remains of national importance by giving a two-month’s notice for inviting objections, if any in this regard.
47-after the specified two-month’s period, and after scrutinizing the objections, if any, received in this regard, the asi makes decision to bring a monument under its protection.
48-there are at present more than 3650 ancient monuments and archaeological sites and remains of national importance.
49-these monuments belong to different periods, ranging from the prehistoric period to the colonial period and are located in different geographical settings.
50-they include temples, mosques, tombs, churches, cemeteries, forts, palaces, step-wells, rock-cut caves, and secular architecture as well as ancient mounds and sites which represent the
remains of ancient habitation.
51-these monuments and sites are maintained and preserved through various circles of the asi spread all over the country.
52-the circles look after the research on these monuments and conservation activities, while the science branch with its headquarters at dehradun carries out chemical preservation and the horticulture branch with its headquarters at agra is entrusted with the laying out gardens and environmental development conservation and preservation
53-thearchaeological survey of india (asi), as an attached office under the department of culture, ministry of tourism and culture, is the premier organization for the archaeological researches and protection of the cultural heritage of the nation.
54-maintenance of ancient monuments and archaeological sites and remains of national importance is the prime concern of the asi.
55-besides it regulate all archaeological activities in the country as per the provisions of the ancient monuments and archaeological sites and remains act, 1958.
56-it also regulates antiquities and art treasure act, 1972. for the maintenance of ancient monuments and archaeological sites and remains of national importance the entire country is divided into 24 circles.
57-the organization has a large work force of trained archaeologists, conservators, epigraphist, architects and scientists for conducting archaeological research projects through its excavation
branches, prehistory branch, epigraphy branches, science branch, horticulture branch, building survey project, temple survey projects and underwater archaeology wing.
58-structural conservation :
59-although there have been references of conservation of structures way back in the early historic period as evidenced at junagadh, gujarat, it was done on structures that were beneficial to the
contemporary society.
60-even the dawn of vision for the need to preserve monuments for its worth as a monument, mainly credited to the british was not less haphazard in the earlier times.
61-the earlier attempts to give a legal framework for preventing vandalism were the with as little intervention as possible but without altering or modifying in any way the authenticity of their original character.
62-to ensure the stability as well as proper conservation of our cultural heritage, there is a need to give more thrust to the scientific research in conservation options must be based on a preliminary investigation which includes
the knowledge of physical nature of the object (constituent materials, architectural characteristics, production techniques, state of decay) and of the factors which induce or could induced its decay.
63-in other words, as in the case of medical study the field of conservation therapy to be based on a correct diagnosis.
64-the role of scientific discipline is vital to both these steps of conservation activities. accordingly, a specific objective of scientific research activities in conservation being carried out by the science branch is aimed to study.
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