Mahendrapala (r. c. 839–854) was the fourth king of the

Pala dynasty The Pāla Empire was the empire ruled by the Pala dynasty, ("protector" in Sanskrit) a medieval Indian dynasty which ruled the kingdom of Gauda. The empire was founded with the election of Gopāla by the chiefs of Gauda in late eighth centu ...

of the

Bengal Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...

region of the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...

. He was the son of Devapala and his queen Mahata.

Reign

Mahendrapala has been mentioned in some Pala records, but earlier, the historians used to believe that these mentions referred to the

Gurjara-Pratihara The Pratihara dynasty, also called the Gurjara-Pratiharas, the Pratiharas of Kannauj or the Imperial Pratiharas, was a prominent medieval Indian dynasty which ruled over the Kingdom of Kannauj. It initially ruled the Gurjaradesa until its vi ...

king

Mahendrapala I Mahendrapala I (IAST: Mahendrapāla; r. 885 – 910) was the Emperor of Aryavarta (ancient name for India, ) and King of Kannauj from 885 until his death in 910 and member of the Pratihara dynasty. He reigned over a vast empire in northern I ...

. However, the discovery of the

Jagjivanpur Jagajjibanpur or Jagajivanpur (in Bengali language, Bengali: জগজ্জীবনপুর) is an archaeological site in Habibpur block of Malda district in West Bengal state in eastern India. This site is located at a distance of 41 km e ...

copper plate charter issued by Mahendrapala made it clear that he was a distinct Pala emperor, who succeeded Devapala. The charter, issued in the 7th year of Mahendrapala's reign (believed to be 854 CE), mentions the construction of a monastery at Nandadirghika Udranga by Mahendrapala's '' mahasenapati'' ("great general") Vajradeva. The grant is dated in his 7th regnal year and issued from the Kuddalakhataka ''jayaskandhavara'' (the camp of victory). Mahendrapala was succeeded by Shurapala I. According to the Jagjivanpur inscription,

Shurapala I Shurapala I (also spelt Surapala) was a 9th-century ruler of the Pala Empire, in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent. He was the fifth Pala emperor. He ruled for at least 12 years. Ancestry Previously, the historians believed that S ...

was Mahendrapala's younger brother and royal envoy. Mahendrapala appears to have retained the Pala control over North Bengal and Bihar. He possibly carried out further campaigns against the Hunas and the Utkalas, and passed his empire intact to his younger brother and successor,

.Bhattacharya, Suresh Chandra, ''Pāla Kings in the Badal Praśasti — A Stock-Taking'', Journal of Ancient Indian History, University of Calcutta
Vol. XXIV
2007-08, pp. 73-82.

References

854 deaths Pala emperors Year of birth unknown Indian Buddhist monarchs {{India-royal-stub

Reign

See also

References