Harsha was the son of Prabhakaravardhana who had defeated the Alchon Hun invaders, and the younger brother of Rajyavardhana, a king of Thanesar, present-day Haryana.
18 Facts About Harsha
2.
Harsha eventually made Kanauj his capital, and ruled till 647 CE.
3.
Harsha was defeated by the Emperor Pulakeshin II of the Chalukya dynasty in the Battle of Narmada, when he tried to expand his empire into the southern peninsula of India.
4.
The Chinese traveller Xuanzang visited the court of Harsha and wrote a very favourable account of him, praising his justice and generosity.
5.
Much of the information about Harsha's youth comes from the account of Banabhatta.
6.
Harsha was the second son of Prabhakarvardhana, king of Thanesar.
7.
Harsha rescued his sister when she was about to immolate herself.
8.
Harsha established an empire that brought all of northern India under his control.
9.
The Chinese traveller Xuanzang visited the court of Harsha, and wrote a very favourable account of him, praising his justice and generosity.
10.
In 648, Tang dynasty emperor Tang Taizong sent Wang Xuance to India in response to emperor Harsha having sent an ambassador to China.
11.
However once in India he discovered Harsha had died and the new king Aluonashun attacked Wang and his 30 mounted subordinates.
12.
Harsha had a friendly relations with King of Kamrup, Bhaskarvarman and sent his envoy in the court of Chinese King, formed friendly relations.
13.
Harsha's seals describe his ancestors as sun-worshippers, his elder brother as a Buddhist, and himself as a Shaivite.
14.
Xuanzang states that Harsha banned animal slaughter for food, and built monasteries at the places visited by Gautama Buddha.
15.
Harsha erected several thousand 100-feet high stupas on the banks of the Ganges river, and built well-maintained hospices for travellers and poor people on highways across India.
16.
Harsha organized an annual assembly of global scholars, and bestowed charitable alms on them.
17.
Sohoni, Harsha was personally a Shaivite and his patronage to Buddhists misled Xuanzang to portray him as a Buddhist.
18.
Harsha is widely believed to be the author of three Sanskrit plays Ratnavali, Nagananda and Priyadarsika.