Kings, Farmers and Towns MCQs Quiz Multiple Choice Questions & Answers

1. Who appointed Dhamma Mahamatas ?

1. Bimbisar
2. Samudragupta
3. Asoka
4. Pandava

2. Who composed The Harshcharitra, a biography of Harshavardhana ?

1. Banabhatta
2. Harishena
3. Vidhyasagar
4. Kushanas

3. Who composed the Prayag Prashasti in praise of Samudragupta?

1. Prabhavati Gupta
2. Harisena
3. Kautilya
4. Banabhatta

4. Who deciphered Brahmi and Kharoshtl scripts?

1. James Princep
2. Cunningham
3. Wheelar
4. John Marshall

5. Who founded the Mauryan Empire ?

1. Chandragupta maurya
2. Bindusar
3. Asoka
4. Ajatashatu

6. Who issued the first coins bearing the names of rulers ?

1. Mauryas
2. Guptas
3. Indo- Greeks
4. Satavahanas

7. Who was Dhamma Mahamatta ?

1. Special revenue officers appointed by Asoka for tax collection.
2. Special officers appointed by Asoka for maintaining law and order.
3. Special officers appointed by Asoka to spread the message of Dhamma.
4. Special officers appointed by Asoka to stop the message of Dhamma.

8. Who was Prabhavati Gupta ?

1. Daughter of Chandragupta II
2. Daughter of Chandragupta Murya
3. Daughter of Vakatakas
4. none

9. Who was the court poet of Samudragupta, arguably the most powerful of the Gupta rulers

1. Harishena
2. Kautilya or Chanakya
3. Megasthenes
4. None of the above

10. Who was the owner, master of a household

1. Kalhana
2. Kalidasa
3. Kautilya
4. Gahapati ans; Gahapati

11. Who were a clan of nomadic people living in China ?

1. Greeks
2. Kushanas
3. Aztecs
4. Maya

12. Why is the 6th century BCE often considered a major turning point in Indian history ?

1. Emergence of States, cities and towns ; use of iron
2. Emergence of States, cities and towns ;Dominance of Hinduism
3. Dominance of Hinduism ; use of iron
4. Emergence of Buddhism and Jainism,Extensive use of Copper

13. According to a rock inscription in Sanskrit, composed around second century CE the Sudarshana lake was repaired by a king of the

1. Indo-Greeks
2. Kushanas
3. Satavahanas
4. rudradaman

14. Alexander Cunningham published asset of Asokan inscription in

1. 1874
2. 1875
3. 1876
4. 1877

15. An.............was land granted to a brahamana, who was usually exempted from paying land revenue.

1. Agahara
2. Janapada
3. Panhara
4. Jageer

16. Asoka is mentioned by which titles in his inscriptions ?

1. Asoka, Piyadassi
2. Masattuvan,Asoka
3. Devanampiya, Piyadassi
4. Devaputra, Piyadassi

17. Consider the following statements about the Mauryan Empire:
1. There were 5 major political centres in the Empire.
2. Megasthenes wrote about the Mauryan Empire in his book Indica.
3. Ashoka founded the Mauryan Empire in 321 B.C.
4. Ashoka used his resources to propagate Buddhism.
Which of the above statements is/are correct?

1. 1, 2 and 3
2. 1, 2 and 4
3. 2, 3 and 4
4. 1, 3 and 4

18. Consider the following statements about the Mauryan Empire:
1. There were 5 major political centres in the Empire.
2. Megasthenese wrote about the Mauryan Empire in his book Indica.
3. Asoka founded the Mauryan Empire in 321 B.c.
4. Asoka used his sources to propogate Buddhism.
Which of the above statements is/are correct ?

1. 1,2 & 3
2. 1,2 & 4
3. 2,3 & 4
4. 1,3 & 4

19. Consider the following statements regarding Magadha.
(i) Magadha was the most powerful mahajanapada.
(ii) Initally Pataliputra was the capital of Magadha and later it was shifted to Rajagriha.
(iii) Elephants were found in abundance in the forests of Magadha.
Which of the above statement (s) is /are correct ?

1. I and II
2. II and III
3. I and III
4. II only

20. Directions - There are two statements one labelled as Assertion & the other labelled as Reason (R) .Each question has 4 option A,B,C,D select the one correct answer.
Assertion : Patanjali attests that during the Mauryan times,new cults and superstitions were introduced for the sake of money.
Reason (R) : The treasury needed to be adequately filled to meet any unforeseen economic crisis in the kingdom.

1. Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.
2. A and R are true but R is not correct explanation of A
3. A is true but R is false
4. A is false but R is true

21. Harishena was a court poet of

1. Chandragupta Maurya
2. Samudragupta
3. Asoka
4. Chandragupta II

22. How many Mahajanapadas were there?

1. 17
2. 14
3. 18
4. 16

23. Magadha is present day..............state.

1. Karanataka
2. Patna
3. Orissa
4. Bihar

24. Megasthenes mentions a committee with six subcommittees of military of which the fifth looked after

1. chariots
2. foot soldiers
3. transport
4. horses

25. Name the languages in which the Asokan inscriptions were written.

1. Prakrit, Aramaic & Greek
2. Pali, Prakrit & Greek
3. Pali, Sanskrit & Aramaic
4. Pali, Sanskrit & Greek

26. One of the political center mentioned is Asokan inscriptions Suvarnagiri is also known as

1. the golden mountain
2. gold
3. golden home
4. golden dome

27. Pataliputra is present day.............state.

1. Karanataka
2. Patna
3. Orissa
4. Bihar

28. Sangam is a literature of ...........................language.

1. Tamil
2. malayalam
3. Sanskrit
4. Marathi

29. The Arthashastra was composed by

1. Megasthenes
2. Kautilya or Chanakya
3. Chandragupta Maurya
4. None of the above

30. The earliest capital of Magadha was Rajagaha which means

1. house of the king
2. house of the people
3. house of the animals
4. None of the above

31. The early Tamil Sangam literature mentions slaves known as

1. adimai
2. pannai
3. vellalar
4. uzhavar

32. The first issue of Epigraphia Indica was published in

1. 1885
2. 1886
3. 1887
4. 1888

33. The Greek ambassador to the court of Chandragupta Maurya is

1. Megasthenes
2. Kautilya or Chanakya
3. Chandragupta Maurya
4. None of the above

34. The Prakrit name of Rajagaha is present day..............in Bihar.

1. Rajgir
2. Patna
3. Orissa
4. Rajasthan

35. The Prayaga Prashasti was composed in

1. Sanskrit
2. Pali
3. Prakrit
4. Brahmi

36. The term Sovanika was used in ancient india as reference to

1. carpenter
2. goldsmith
3. potter
4. sculptor

37. Ventures of which of the following traders were risky but highly profitable ?

1. Peddlers
2. Seafarers
3. Merchants with caravans of bullock carts and pack-animals
4. All of the above

38. What are big rocks kept on the burial in the central and south India called ?

1. Northern Black Polished Ware
2. Pillars
3. Boulders
4. Megaliths

39. What is James prinsep's contribution in the development of the Indian epigraphy ?

1. He deciphered the Brahmi script used in most of the Asokan inscriptions.
2. He deciphered the Kharoshti script used in most of the Asokan inscriptions.
3. Both a & b
4. None of these

40. What is known as study of coins ?

1. Yaudheyadas
2. Cicsoinismatics
3. Numismatics
4. Periplus

41. What were the guilds of the merchants and craftsmen called?

1. Shrenis
2. Ur
3. Adimai
4. Uzhavar

42. Which of the following is not one of the main features of Asoka's dhamma?

1. Respect the elders and be generous to the Brahmins.
2. Consider your religion superior to the other religions.
3. Gahapati should respect members of the family,relatives,servants, the poor and the slaves.
4. Follow non violence

43. Which of these was the most powerful Mahajanapada from 6th to 4th century BCE ?

1. Kuru
2. Magadha
3. Panehala
4. Ciandhra

44. Which was the first capital of Magadha?

1. Pataliputra
2. Kalinga
3. Rajagaha
4. None of the above