1. Main Features of Early
Medieval Economy
Dr. Rajiv Kumar Jaiswal
Assistant Professor
Dept. of AIHC & Archaeology
VCW, KFI, Rajghat, Varanasi
2. Introduction
• The term ‘Early Medieval’ denotes an intermediate period between the
‘ancient’ and the ‘medieval’. Historians have been long debating the nature of
the society, polity and economy of early medieval India.
• This pd. has often been labelled one of crisis, decline, decay and decadence.
The older histories attributed the decline to the advent of Ghaznavis and
Ghauri more specially as Turks.
• Subsequently, the feudalism school described the period as an age marked by
political fragmentation, the transformation of peasants into serfs and a decline
of urban centres and the money economy. The feudalism hypothesis has been
applied to both north as well as South India.
• The third major interpretative framework for early medieval India suggests that
in many parts of the subcontinent, these centuries were marked by the
formation and proliferation of states at the regional level. This hypothesis can
be connected with the more specific argument that the early medieval period
was one of urban change, but not of urban decay.
3. Cont…..
• The contour of the kingdoms of early medieval India were fluid and are
difficult to define. Kingdom are more easily identified by their nuclear areas
and political centres than by their boundaries. The political narrative of these
centuries reveals some large, relatively long –lived kingdom such as those of
the Cholas, Chalukyas, Rashtrakutas, Pratihara, Pallavas, Chalukyas and Palas,
Pandyas, Hoyasal, Chedi.
• There were also the more numerous short-lived kingdoms which had a much
more modest range of territorial control.
• The period is remarkable for the different of an advanced rural economy and
formation of state system.
• The induction of Brahmanas through landgrants in tribal and forest areas
brought new lands under cultivation and introduced better methods of
agriculture based on improved knowledge of weather conditions.
7. Royal land grants
• Royal grants are a major source for the history of early medieval India and
are central to debates concerning this period. The incidence of grants by
kings to Brahmanas increased significantly during c. 600-1200 AD. The
phenomenon reveals certain general patterns as well as regional
specificities.
• Brahmadeyas: land gifted to Brahmanas and exempted from all type of tax.
• Brahmadeyas had a political dimension. These settlements were created by
royal order, and the right of the Brahmana donees were declared and
confirmed by royal decree.
• Inscriptions of early medieval dynasties bear testimony to the
Brahmanization of royal courts all over the subcontinents. Brahmans
emerged as ideolougues and legitimizers of political power by crafting royal
genealogies linked lineages with epic-puranic tradition and assigned kings a
respectable varna status.
8. Cont…..
• While royal grants to Brahmanas remained a feature throughout the early
medieval period, from about 10th century, there was shift towards donations
to temples. There were also some ‘secular grants’ ex- Military chiefs.
• From the 5th century onwards, land grants inscriptions document the influx
of Brahmana immigrants from the heartland of ‘Madhya-desha’ into the
areas of Maharashtra, Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and Orissa. The
phenomenon of migration intensified in the 8th century. A broad division
that had emerged by the 10th century was that of the:
Panch-Gaudas (the northern group): Sārasvat, Gauda, Kānyakubja, Mithilā
and Utkala.
Panch-Dravidas (group living south of the Vindhyas): Gurjjaras,
Mahārashtriyas, Karnātakās, Trailingas and Dravidas.
9. Cont….
• B. D. Chattopādhyāya has argued persuasively that the major historical
processes operative throughout Indian history, including the early medieval
period, were the expansion of state society through the process of local
state formation, the transformation of tribes into peasants and caste
formation, and cult appropriation and interaction.
• In areas where Brahmadeyas villages were situated close to tribal
communities, the latter were introduced to plough agriculture. Some tribal
groups were absorbed into the fold of caste society; other’s were given the
status of outcaste or untouchables.
• The need to record large number of land transactions was an important
factor in the transformation of the Kāyasthas (scribes) from an occupational
group into a caste.
10. Cont…..
• Where established in or near tribal areas, Brahmadeyas functioned as nodes
of reciprocal interaction between Brahmanical and tribal religions and
different sorts of religious syntheses resulted. The cult of Jagannatha in
Orisaa is a good example of the Brahmanization of a tribal deity.
• Krishi-Parāshara: text composed in Bengal area some time between 950-
1100 AD. Written by Parāshar in Sanskrit language. This text deals exclusively
with various aspects of agricultural operations, sowing procedure, seasons,
wind direction and rain fall.
• There was an expansion of irrigation works in the low rainfall areas of north
Gujarāt, Saurāshtra, kutch and south Rājasthān. (in western India rivers,
lakes, wells, tanks and arahatas as sources of water for irrigating field)
11. Temple Economy
The temple in the early medieval period of Indian history played a very
prominent role in the economic history. Temples were repositories of
wealth. The temples amassed huge wealths composed of cash, money,
jewellery, precious stones, bars of gold etc. The temples owned shops and
received donation from various sources. Temple was a city in miniature
having full-fledge staff to manage its affairs. It served the purpose of a
bank, received deposits of donations and endowment which it held as trust
funds. Endowments included assignment of taxes on trade
Deposits in temples were regarded as safe because of their sanctity. Guilds
also showed their interest in the maintenance of temples. Kings also kept
their treasures stored in the temples. Even kings borrowed money from
temples in times of distress.
The temple management committee was known as Gosthi and chief was
known as Gosthika.
12. Urban Processes in Early Medieval India
• The idea of a decline of cities, urban crafts, trade and money in early
medieval times is an important part of the hypothesis of Indian feudalism. R.
S. Sharma has summarized archaeological data from various regions to
substantiate his theory. Urban decline undermined the position of urban-
based artisans and traders, artisans were forced to migrate to rural areas,
traders were not able to pay taxes, the distinction between town and village
became blurred.
• Sharma, hypothesis of urban decline can be questioned on various grounds.
Chattopadhyay has argued that the Early Medieval period saw the decline of
certain urban centres, but there were others that continued to flourish, as
well as some new ones that emerged.
• Xuan zang suggests that cities such as Kaushambi, Shravasti, Vaishali and
Kapilvastu, Patliputra were in decline. But he also mentions flourishing ones
such as Thaneshwar, Varanasi, Kanyakubja, Kanchi, Tanjore, Madurai.
13. Cont…..
The early medieval period represents a second major phase of urban growth in
South india. The hypothesis of urban decay has no validity whatsoever for this
regions. Cities played different, often multiple, roles –as political centres, centres of
manufacturing and trade, and as sacred or ceremonial centres. Market or
commercial centres were known as Nagarams. The nagarams was an urban space,
connected mainly with the production and exchange of commodities, at the local,
inter-regional, or international level.
The Nagaramas seem to have become increasingly important in the Chola pd.
There were significant improvements in craft techniques. Various centres of craft
production can be identified, some showing a continuous growth from the
earlyhistoric period ex: Kanchipura, Tanjore, Gangaikondacholapuram,
Kudamukku, Palaiyarai and Madurai, .
There were close connection between cities, kings and temples in South India. The
magnificent temple at Tanjor and Gangaikondacholapuram were architectural
proclamations of the close connection between the political and religious domains.
16. Cont…..
• The history of Madurai and kanchipuram as political centres, centres of
commodity production (specially textiles), and religious activity goes back to
the early historical period. Kanchipuram, a prominent centre of weaving and
commerce. It was initially connected to the pot of Nirppeyyarru on the
banks of the Palar river. Apart from its economic role, kanchipuram also had
an important cultural significance and was an important centres of
Buddism, Jainism, Vishnuism and Shaivism
• Mamallapuram (modern Mahabalipuram) emerged as its major port outlet.
18. Trade and Commers
Traders of the subcontinent were part of a wider world of trade interaction
that connected Africa, Europe, and various parts of Asia. From 7th cent.
Onwards, the Arabs swiftly expanded their political dominion into Northern
Africa, Mediterranean region, central Asia and Sindh. Their strategic
conquests in Egypt, Persia and Sindh gave them strategic control over Indian
Ocean trade. Arab traders emerge as lead players in trade along the overland
as well as the Maritime routes that connected Europe and India.
Texts such as the 9th cent Ahbar as-Sin wa’l-Hind describe the long maritime
journeys made by Arab traders from ports in Oman to Quilon ( Kollam) in
Kerala and onto China.
India’s maritime networks were strongly oriented eastwards, towards China
and South East Asia. Sril lanka was an important hub of Indian Ocean trade.
19. Cont…..
• India’s trade with South East Asia and China grew in the early medieval
period. Sino-Indian trade links in early medieval times can be devided into
three phases:
i. 7th -9th cent. – saw a continuation of earlier demand for Buddhist rituals
items.
ii. 9th -10th cent. – there was a decline in overland trade between India and
China due to disturbed political conditions in central Asia and Myanmar
iii. Late 10th cent. – both tributary and commercial relations were revived,
and overland and maritime trade grew significantly.
• Xuan zang mentions silk among the most popular materials for clothing in
India. One of the Sanskrit words for silk is Kausheya.
20. Travel route fo Xuanzang,
Xuanzang travelled China to
India, through Trade routes
21. Cont…..
• Many trade routes intersected at ports on the eastern coast of south India,
Mahabalipuarm developed the Pallavas and Nagapattanam became
prominent in the chola pd. Kaveripattanam too was important.
• Quilon (Kollam) was an important port town on the western coast, and there
is inscriptional evidence of an agreement between the Manigramam guild,
foreign traders, and the king regarding various issues and such as taxes,
warehouses, and the protection of merchants and their merchandise at this
Port.
• Chola kings promoted trade in various ways. They built protected mercantile
towns, which emerged as important centres of trade. Some of the Chola
military expeditions –such as those to Sri Lanka in the 1080 CE and against
port in the Malaysian peninsula and Indonesian island in 1025 CE and the
1070 CE were probably aimed at controlling important trade sectors.
22.
23. • As Chola power waned in the 12th centry, the merchant guilds of South
India became increasingly independent and less dependant on royal
support. Trading carvans moved around with armed protection.
Merchant guilds jointly fixed tolls and cesses, and made joint donations
to temples.
24. Cont….
John S. Deyell has convincingly shown that money was not scarce in early
medieval India, nor were states of the time suffering from a financial crisis.
There was a reduction of coin types and a decline in the aesthetic quality of
coins, but not in the volume of coins in circulation. Deyell argues that north
India experienced a sustained shortage of silver in 1000 CE (and in some
places as early as 750 CE), and that this made it necessary for rulers to dilute
the silver content of their coins.
Chola gold coins was known as
Kalanju
25. Cont…..
• Item of Export:
Luxury goods as well as foodgrains, pulses, salt, oil, ghee, coconut, betel
leaf, arecanut, spices, textiles, pottery, animals, sandal wood, fragrances
(camphor, musk, aloe, and Saffron), ivory, pearl, percious and semi precious
stones, diamond, leather, medicinal plants, Indian iron and steel, dyes, Sugar
cane.
The early medieval pd saw migrations of several communities involved in
trade. Among the earliest such movements were those of Arabs and Persian
traders, who settled along the Konkan, Gujarat and Malabar, coast. A Jewish
community took root in the Malabar area
26. Concluding remark’s
The Early medieval pd was marked by a proliferation and expansion of states
in various pars of the subcontinent. Land grants to Brahmanas played an
important role in the legitimation of political power and had a significant
impact on agrarian relations. There was agrarian expansion in various parts of
the subcontinent and rural societies became stratified.
This was not a period of urban decay. This is most evident from south India,
where urban crafts, cities, trade and trade guilds flourished.
Trade links between the Indian subcontinent, China, and South-East Asia
expanded significantly.
Temples functioned not only as sacred spaces, but also as the core of urban
centres and as political symbols.
During 600-1200 CE, the developments at the political, social, economic and
cultural levels crystallized into distinct regional formations and patterns.
