The Pala Dynasty (750 AD – 1150 AD) The Pala empire was founded by Gopala in 750 AD. He unified Bengal and Magadh (Bihar) under his control. Gopala was succeeded by his son Dharamapala in 770 AD. Dharamapala ruled till 810 AD. He revived famous Nalanda University , and set up 200 villages to meet its expenses. Dharampala founded the famous Vikramshila University which became second only to Nalanda in fame. Dharamapala was succeeded by his son Devapala in 810 AD and he ruled for 40 years. Devapala extended his control over Pragjyotishpur (Assam) and Orissa, and also Nepal was under his control. Dharampala’s reign was marked by tripartite struggle between the Palas , the Pratiharas and Rashtrakutas for the control of Kannuj and north India. Dharamapala was defeated by Pratihara king – Vatsaraja , and later by Rashtrakuta king – Dhruv, who also defeated Devapala . Sulaiman , and Arab merchant , visited India in the middle of 9 th century. He c...
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