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Medieval India

Prelims · Medieval India · 12 questions

Early medieval kingdoms (c. 700–1200)

Every UPSC Prelims question on this topic, 2016–2026, newest first. Tap an option to check yourself; the answer and explanation open below it.

Early medieval kingdoms (c. 700–1200) questions per year: 2016: 0, 2017: 1, 2018: 0, 2019: 0, 2020: 3, 2021: 0, 2022: 1, 2023: 1, 2024: 0, 2025: 2, 2026: 0 Asked in 5 of 11 years · most in 2020 (3)

UPSC syllabus: “History of India and Indian National Movement.” See the full syllabus →

Consider the following pairs:

KingDynasty
1.NannukaChandela
2.JayashaktiParamara
3.Nagabhata IIGurjara-Pratihara
4.BhojaRashtrakuta

How many pairs given above are correctly matched?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (b) Only two pairs

Only pairs 1 and 3 are correct: Nannuka began the Chandela line and Nagabhata II was a Gurjara-Pratihara king. Jayashakti was another Chandela ruler, not a Paramara, and the famous Bhoja was a Pratihara king, not a Rashtrakuta.

  • ✓ 1. Nannuka is the first ruler in the standard list of Chandela kings (early 9th century), the dynasty of Jejakabhukti (Bundelkhand) that built the Khajuraho temples.
  • ✗ 2. Jayashakti, with his brother Vijayashakti, appears in the same Chandela list, after Vakpati. He is not a Paramara.
  • ✓ 3. Nagabhata II was a Gurjara-Pratihara king who captured Kannauj in the early 9th century, before Bhoja made the Pratiharas the strongest power of north India.
  • ✗ 4. Bhoja is the celebrated Pratihara king in NCERT, not a Rashtrakuta. The Rashtrakutas of the Deccan began with Dantidurga in the mid-8th century.

Remember · Chandela: Nannuka, Vakpati, Jayashakti. Gurjara-Pratihara: Nagabhata I and II, Bhoja. Rashtrakuta: Dantidurga.

📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 7 Exploring Society: India and Beyond (Part 2), Ch 3 (practise this chapter) · Class 7 Exploring Society: India and Beyond (Part 2), Ch 3 (practise this chapter)

Sources

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

The Prime Minister recently inaugurated the new Circuit House near Somnath Temple at Veraval. Which of the following statements are correct regarding Somnath Temple?

  1. 1.Somnath Temple is one of the Jyotirlinga shrines.
  2. 2.A description of Somnath Temple was given by Al-Biruni.
  3. 3.Pran Pratishtha of Somnath Temple (installation of the present day temple) was done by President S. Radhakrishnan.

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

Answer & explanation

Answer: (a) 1 and 2 only

Statements 1 and 2 are correct; statement 3 is not. The present Somnath temple was consecrated on 11 May 1951 by Dr Rajendra Prasad, the then President, not by S. Radhakrishnan.

  • ✓ 1. Somnath, at Prabhas Patan near Veraval in Gujarat, is revered as the first of the twelve Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva.
  • ✓ 2. Al-Biruni, the scholar who came to Ghazni after Mahmud took Khwarizm and who travelled with Mahmud's army, wrote about the shivalinga worshipped at Somnath and about its destruction by Mahmud; NCERT quotes him on this.
  • ✗ 3. The temple rebuilt after independence was consecrated on 11 May 1951, with President Rajendra Prasad performing the installation ceremony.

Remember · Somnath: first of the 12 Jyotirlingas, raided by Mahmud of Ghazni in 1026, described by Al-Biruni; present temple installed by President Rajendra Prasad on 11 May 1951.

📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 7 Exploring Society: India and Beyond (Part 2), Ch 4 (practise this chapter) · Class 7 Exploring Society: India and Beyond (Part 2), Ch 4 (practise this chapter) · Class 12 Themes in Indian History, Part II, Ch 1 (practise this chapter)

Sources

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

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