UPSC Ancient India – Chapter 16: The Gupta Empire – Rulers, Administration and Economy (24 MCQs)

← Back

UPSC Ancient India – Chapter 16: The Gupta Empire – Rulers, Administration and Economy (24 MCQs) – 24 questions, subject: History. Every question has the correct answer with a one-line explanation; tap "Show Answer". Free practice for TNPSC, UPSC, SSC, Bank and RRB exams – Shanmugam IAS Academy, Coimbatore.

Get daily current affairs & exam alerts – follow us YouTube WhatsApp Channel Telegram Channel Facebook Page Instagram
Share with friends & study groups
Link to this page from your website / blog (HTML code)
1.  

Chandragupta I married a princess of the:

Correct Answer: A [Lichchhavis]

Explanation:

Chandragupta I married the Lichchhavi princess Kumaradevi; gold coins show the king and queen together.

2.  

The Prayaga prashasti was composed by:

Correct Answer: C [Harishena]

Explanation:

Harishena, Samudragupta's court poet and minister, composed the Prayaga prashasti on the Allahabad pillar.

3.  

Samudragupta's policy towards the southern kings is described as:

Correct Answer: C [grahana-moksha-anugraha]

Explanation:

The Prayaga prashasti says the twelve southern kings were captured (grahana), released (moksha) and reinstated (anugraha).

4.  

Vishnugopa, defeated by Samudragupta, ruled from:

Correct Answer: B [Kanchi]

Explanation:

The Prayaga prashasti names Vishnugopa of Kanchi, a Pallava ruler, among the twelve southern kings.

5.  

Chandragupta II's daughter Prabhavati Gupta married into the:

Correct Answer: A [Vakataka family]

Explanation:

Prabhavati Gupta married the Vakataka king Rudrasena II, an alliance that secured the Deccan flank.

6.  

The Huna invasion was first repulsed by:

Correct Answer: C [Skandagupta]

Explanation:

Skandagupta checked the first Huna invasion c. 455 CE, as his Bhitari pillar inscription records.

7.  

In Gupta administration, a bhukti was a:

Correct Answer: B [province]

Explanation:

A bhukti was a province under an uparika, divided into vishayas (districts).

8.  

Hiranya in Gupta inscriptions refers to:

Correct Answer: D [a tax paid in cash]

Explanation:

Hiranya was a due paid in cash (hiranya, gold), unlike bhaga, a share of the produce.

9.  

Mihirakula was defeated by:

Correct Answer: D [Yashodharman]

Explanation:

Yashodharman of Mandasor defeated Mihirakula c. 528 CE, as his Mandasor inscriptions record.

10.  

Consider the following statements about the Gupta economy:

1. The Guptas issued gold coins called dinaras.
2. Land was classified as kshetra, khila, aprahata and vasti.
3. Trade with the Roman empire grew sharply in the fifth century.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Correct Answer: B [1 and 2 only]

Explanation:

Dinaras and the land classes are attested in Gupta sources, but Roman trade declined after the third century.

11.  

Assertion (A): Chandragupta II issued silver coins in the Saka style.

Reason (R): He conquered the territories of the Western Kshatrapas in Malwa and Gujarat.

Correct Answer: A [Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A]

Explanation:

His Saka-style silver coins were issued for the former Western Kshatrapa lands he conquered, so R explains A.

12.  

The Mehrauli iron pillar records the deeds of a king named:

Correct Answer: A [Chandra]

Explanation:

The Mehrauli iron pillar inscription praises a king named Chandra, generally identified with Chandragupta II.

13.  

Agrahara grants were made to:

Correct Answer: B [Brahmanas]

Explanation:

Agraharas were land grants, often tax-free, made to Brahmanas, sometimes with fiscal and administrative rights.

14.  

The officer called sandhivigrahika was in charge of:

Correct Answer: D [peace and war]

Explanation:

Sandhi means peace and vigraha war, so the sandhivigrahika was the minister of peace and war.

15.  

The main port of eastern India in the Gupta age was:

Correct Answer: D [Tamralipti]

Explanation:

Tamralipti in Bengal was the main eastern port, linking India with South-East Asia and China.

16.  

The Gupta era begins in:

Correct Answer: B [319–20 CE]

Explanation:

The Gupta era begins in 319-20 CE, probably the year of Chandragupta I's accession.

17.  

Arrange the following in chronological order:

1. Fa-hien's visit
2. Gupta era begins
3. Skandagupta repels the Hunas
4. Samudragupta's campaigns

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

Correct Answer: C [2-4-1-3]

Explanation:

Gupta era 319-20, Samudragupta's campaigns from c. 335, Fa-hien c. 399-414, Skandagupta and the Hunas c. 455.

18.  

According to Fa-hien, most crimes in the Gupta kingdom were punished by:

Correct Answer: D [fines]

Explanation:

Fa-hien wrote that most offenders were only fined, lightly or heavily, according to the crime.

19.  

The Bhitari pillar inscription belongs to:

Correct Answer: B [Skandagupta]

Explanation:

The Bhitari pillar inscription (near Ghazipur) records Skandagupta's victories, including over the Hunas.

20.  

In the Gupta period much of the Tamil country was under the:

Correct Answer: C [Kalabhras]

Explanation:

During the Gupta age much of the Tamil country was under the Kalabhras (c. third to sixth century CE).

21.  
UPSC Prelims 2025

Fa-hien (Faxian), the Chinese pilgrim, travelled to India during the reign of

Correct Answer: B [Chandragupta II]

Explanation:

Fa-hien's pilgrimage (c. 399–414 CE) fell in the reign of the Gupta ruler Chandragupta II (Vikramaditya), and he described the peaceful Gupta realm.

22.  
UPSC Prelims 2020

With reference to the history of India, the terms 'kulyavapa' and 'dronavapa' denote

Correct Answer: A [measurement of land]

Explanation:

Kulyavapa and dronavapa denote land that could be sown with a kulya or drona of seed, i.e. land measures.

23.  
UPSC Prelims 2020

With reference to the period of the Gupta dynasty in ancient India, the towns Ghantasala, Kadura, and Chaul were well known as

Correct Answer: A [ports handling foreign trade]

Explanation:

Ghantasala and Kadura on the Andhra coast and Chaul on the western coast were ports handling foreign trade.

24.  
UPSC Prelims 2019

With reference to forced labour (Vishti) in India during the Gupta period, which one of the following statements is correct?

Correct Answer: A [It was considered a source of income for the State, a sort of tax paid by the people.]

Explanation:

Vishti was forced labour exacted by the state, regarded as a kind of tax paid by the people.

➤ Full notes, maps, tables, a reason for every option and Mains PYQs – U01 · Ancient India (UPSC book, ₹249): www.shanmugamiasacademy.in/study-materials/upsc-ancient-india

📘 U01 · Ancient India – UPSC Civil Services (Prelims & Mains)
Here you get the answer with a one-line explanation. 20 chapters · 443 MCQs incl. UPSC Prelims PYQs with a reason for every option · 100 Mains questions + Mains PYQs · maps, tables, revision cards
Get the book – ₹249 ₹499 →
Score: 0 Answered: 0 / 0