Chandragupta II (Vikramaditya)
Chandragupta II ruled the Gupta Empire from about 375 to 415, the period usually called the golden age of classical India. He was a son of Samudragupta, and there is some evidence that he took the throne after a brother, Ramagupta, was deposed — a later play has Ramagupta agreeing to surrender his queen to a Shaka enemy and Chandragupta going in her place in disguise to kill him, then marrying her himself. He took the title Vikramaditya, sun of valour, which became a byword for the ideal Indian king. His major military achievement was the conquest of the Western Kshatrapas, the Shaka rulers of Gujarat, Malwa and Saurashtra, completed around 409. It gave the empire the western seaports and direct access to the trade with Rome and the Persian Gulf, and his silver coinage in the region imitates the Kshatrapa issues it replaced. He also expanded by marriage, wedding his daughter Prabhavatigupta to the Vakataka king of the Deccan; when she was widowed she ruled as regent for years, which gave the Guptas effective influence over central India. The Chinese Buddhist pilgrim Faxian travelled through his territory between about 399 and 411 and left the only external account. He described a prosperous and orderly country, light taxation, no capital punishment, free hospitals endowed by the wealthy, and the ability to travel without documents — while also noting that untouchables had to strike a warning stick on entering a town. Kalidasa is traditionally placed at his court. The uncorroded iron pillar at Delhi is generally attributed to him.
- Lived: 380 CE – 415 CE
- Nationality: Indian
- Roles: emperor
