Historians suggest that the conflict arose from a dispute over succession following the death of Kumaragupta. The chronicle mentions that at least several usurpers were involved. These included Kumaragupta's brother Govindagupta, a nephew called Ghatotkachagupta, and one Prakashaditya; gold coins discovered in the course of excavation at Mandasor and elsewhere establish the existence of this latter one. Purugupta was also a pretender, who was Skandagupta's halfbrother. He might have been some of Skandagupta's usurpers.
Skandagupta ascended the throne in the year 136 of the Gupta era (approximately 455–456 CE) after overcoming rivals. As mentioned in the Bhitari pillar inscription, he restored his family's declining fortunes during a time of crisis. The epitaph tells of how, before fighting his enemies, he had spent a night sleeping on the open ground. He then was able to conquer his enemies who had become very strong and prosperous. He then went to see his mother. She was very happy and thus wept tears of joy.
Kumaragupta faced major problems in his later years, as mentioned in the Bhitari inscription. Some historians believe that these problems began after Kumaragupta's death and were related to a succession crisis. Others believe that the problems were due to a Huna invasion, as evidenced by the Junagadh inscription, which speaks of Skandagupta's victory over the Hunas in about 455 CE. It could also be that both events occurred simultaneously, with Skandagupta fighting the Hunas while a succession crisis arose after Kumaragupta's death.
Silver coin of Kumaragupta. Obv: Bust of King Kumaragupta with cap decorated with crescents. Rev:Garuda bird, circled by legend in Brahmi"Parama-bhagavata rajadhiraja Sri Kumaragupta Mahendraditya" ("Most devout King of Kings Kumaragupta Mahendraditya"). Elephant-rider coin of Kumaragupta. Obverse legend: "Kumaragupta, who has destroyed his enemies and protected his client kings, is victorious over his foes". Horseman type coin of Kumaragupta. Circa 415-455 CE.
Skandagupta
Skandagupta was the son of the Gupta emperorKumaragupta I. The name of his mother is not recorded, which has given rise to various theories regarding her status. Some scholars suggest that she may have been a junior queen or belonged to a lower caste, citing a line from the Bhitari pillar inscription as evidence. Others, however, interpret the same inscription as highlighting Skandagupta's reverence for his mother, likening her to Devaki, the mother of Krishna.
Gold coin of Skandagupta, depicting himself on the obverse, Lakshmi on the reverse. The name Skan-da appears vertically under the left arm of the emperor.
Rivals of Skandagupta
Ghatotkachagupta and Prakashaditya
Ghatotkachagupta and Prakashaditya, not much documented but considered to have been the elder sons of Kumaragupta I. Probably Ghatotkachagupta acted as the Governor of Eastern Malwa, but Prakashaditya is mostly known from the gold coins found in some excavations.
Govindagupta
The successor of Chandragupta II was his son Kumaragupta I. Nonetheless, a Basarh clay seal finds Queen Dhruvasvamini as mother of Govindagupta rather than Kumaragupta. From this evidence, it is often considered that there was a possibility of Govindagupta being a governor of Tira-bhukti (Vaishali), and thus the seal focuses on him.
Some historians say that Govindagupta was an interregnum ruler for some time after the death of Chandragupta II (c. 411–414 CE). He was succeeded by Kumaragupta. Other historians have placed him as a governor, regent, or even as a usurper who founded a small kingdom in western Malwa and reigned for a period. Numismatist P. L. Gupta believed in the theory of Govindagupta's independent reign, overthrown later by Kumaragupta. However, the modern historians are in a general agreement that Govindagupta was probably Kumaragupta's younger brother and did not become king.
Purugupta
Purugupta was Kumaragupta I emperor's son and his queen, Anantadevi. He became the king after his half-brother Skandagupta. No inscription was found with the name of Purugupta, but other inscriptions mention him. Kumaragupta III engraved his name in Bhitari silver-copper seal. His other sons named Narasimhagupta and Budhagupta are also known from Nalanda clay sealings. The Sarnath Buddha image inscription further refers that the Kumaragupta II had succeeded him as the king.
Nalanda clay seal of Vishnugupta. The seal states that Vishnugupta was son of Kumaragupta III, and grandson of Purugupta.
Prelude
Legitimacy of Skandagupta
It has been put forth by A.L. Basham that Skandagupta's mother was not the Chief Queen and a social rank inferior to this chief one. He misunderstood one line in the Bhitari Pillar inscription as an evidence of his contention that Skandagupta was "elevated to Aryan status" through the panegyrics of bards. P.L. Gupta supports it also as Skandagupta's mother's name being missing from the inscription as implying shame over her low rank.
Early analysts, such as Dr. Fleet, believed that the bards only praised Skandagupta's great deeds. However, current research shows that Skandagupta is shown to be humble as opposed to any suggestion concerning his mother. It is impossible with regards to the traditionally courtly poetry meant at praising kings that the text would even imply something negative about his lineage.
गीतैश्च स्तुतिभिश्च वृत्तकथनैः यं हेपयत्यार्यता ।
Translation:Whom (his innate) nobility causes to blush by reason of the narrations of his exploits by means of songs and eulogies".
The author of the inscription seems to have been inspired by the following verse of Kalidasa.
तस्याभवत्सूनुरुदारशीलः शिलः शिलापट्टविशालवक्षाः । जितारिपक्षोऽपि शिलीमुखैर्यः शालीनतामब्रजदीड्यमानः॥
Translation: "His son was Śila, of high character, whose chest was broad like a slab of stone. Though he had conquered the ranks of his enemies by means of sharp arrows, he felt shy on account of his modesty, when he was eulogised ".
This claim of the mother of Skandagupta being of lower status comes from a wrong understanding of the text. In detail, an analysis of the inscription reveals that it stresses humility about Skandagupta and not on his mother's social status.
The name of Skandagupta does not occur in the list of the Gupta kings' genealogy, which might be due to the fact that the Bhitari Seal only contains a list of the reigning kings, without providing any complete account of all the rulers. Moreover, Skandagupta's mother may not have been a Mahadevi; hence, he could not inherit the throne. Hence, it is possible that he had to wrest it away from other opponents, such as Purugupta and, possibly, more.
The Bhitari Pillar inscription reports that nearly the Gupta Empire was brought on the verge of collapse due to civil war. Nevertheless, Skandagupta emerged victorious over his enemies and reached the throne. The inscription, in comparison, juxtaposes Skandagupta and Krishna, drawing a parallelism between them since Krishna returned to his mother, Devaki, after defeating all his enemies and Skandagupta similarly did the same. Some hint at this comparison being made just because Skandagupta's mother is also named Devaki, but most probably, it was done to highlight the same rise in status both Devaki and the mother of Skandagupta have experienced after their sons' victories had brought them respect and power.
The situation also explains the rise of other independent rulers during this time. After the death of Kumaragupta I, it is likely that there was a power struggle which led to the rise of Govindagupta and Ghatotkachagupta who may have declared their independence. Other kings, such as Prakashaditya and Purugupta, also emerged around this time. The civil war weakened central authority, and these regional leaders were able to assert their independence. However, Skandagupta defeated his rivals and reasserted control within a year of his father's death.
Aftermath
The Indo-Hephthalites, also known as the White Huns, invaded India from the northwest under Skandagupta's reign and advanced to the Indus River. Skandagupta defeated them in battle, of course, with great slaughter of the Huns. These were not merely raiders; the date of the invasion is uncertain, but it was probably early in Skandagupta's reign, or even under his father Kumaragupta, who had found time for the building of temples like this one. The inscriptions of Junagadh and Bhitari mention the victory of Skandagupta over these invaders, probably referring to the Huns. There is also a 7th-century Sanskrit text and a story in Kathasaritsagara that narrate Skandagupta's victory. The victory of Skandagupta over the Huna invasion was a turning point in establishing the stability of the Gupta Empire.
