History Master - Quick Revision

History Master - Quick Revision

One-Liners

  1. Harappan civilization ⇒ “Town-planning & drainage” = Indus Valley gift.
  2. Rig-Veda ⇒ oldest text, 1028 hymns, compiled c.1500 BCE.
  3. 6th-c. BC ⇒ birth of Buddhism, Jainism & 16 Mahajanapadas.
  4. Maurya empire ⇒ first pan-India empire; Kautilya wrote Arthashastra.
  5. Ashoka’s 13th rock edict ⇒ earliest royal reference to “Dhamma-vijaya”.
  6. Gupta era ⇒ “Golden Age”–Nalanda, Kalidasa, Aryabhatta zero.
  7. Harshavardhan ⇒ moved capital Kanyakubja (Kannauj); Chinese pilgrim Hiuen-Tsang.
  8. Tripartite struggle ⇒ Gurjara-Pratihara, Rashtrakuta, Pala for Kannauj.
  9. Rajput age ⇒ Prithviraj Chauhan lost 2nd Tarain (1192) to Muhammad Ghori.
  10. Qutub Minar ⇒ started by Qutb-ud-din Aibak, finished Iltutmish.
  11. Raziyya Sultan ⇒ only woman ruler of Delhi Sultanate.
  12. Dīwan-i-riyāsat & shahna-i-mandi ⇒ Alauddin Khalji’s market-control.
  13. Amir Khusrau ⇒ “Parrot of India”, tarana & khayal pioneer.
  14. Muhammad-bin-Tughlaq ⇒ token currency & capital shift (Delhi-Daulatabad).
  15. Battle of Plassey (1757) ⇒ British political rule begins in India.
  16. Regulating Act 1773 ⇒ first Parliamentary control over Company.
  17. 1857 revolt ⇒ began 29 May Meerut; ended 1858 Gwalior.
  18. Dadabhai Naoroji ⇒ “Drain Theory” in Poverty & Un-British Rule.
  19. Gandhi ⇒ Rowlatt Satyagraha 1919, Non-Coop 1920, Dandi 1930, Quit India 1942.
  20. 15 Aug 1947 ⇒ Indian Independence; 26 Jan 1950 Republic.

Formulas/Rules

Formula Use
“M.G.R.S.V.D.M.” Mughal sequence—M.Babur, Humayun, Sher Shah, Akbar, Jahangir, Shah Jahan, Aurangzeb
“V-P-S” for Delhi Sultan dynasties Mamluk (Slave), Khilji, Tughlaq, Sayyid, Lodi
“1858-1905-1919-1935” Key Govt. Acts—Crown takeover (1858), Partition (1905), Mont-Ford reforms (1919), Provincial autonomy (1935)
“Quit-1942, Mount-1946, Freedom-1947” Cripps → Quit India → Cabinet Mission → Independence
“G-B-N-P-T” for Governor-Generals Hastings → Wellesley → Bentinck → Dalhousie → Canning
“V-I-T-T-J-S-N” Ancient foreign travellers—Megasthenes, Fa-Hien, Hiuen-Tsang, Itsing, Al-Biruni, Ibn Battuta, Nicolo Conti
“3-6-9-12” Buddhist councils—Rajgriha 3c BC, Vaishali 4c BC, Pataliputra 3c BC, Kashmir/Kundalavana 1c AD
“L-D-D-L-D” Five-year plans—1st Light (1951), 2nd Heavy (56), 3rd Agriculture (61), 3-yr holiday, 4th Growth (69)
“CRIPPS-QUIT-CABINET” 1942 Cripps offer → rejected → Aug 42 Quit India → 46 Cabinet Mission

Memory Tricks

  1. SULTANATE ⇒ S-lave, K-hilji, T-ughlaq, S-ayyid, L-odi dynasties (first letters).
  2. “Akbar’s NAV-RATNA” ⇒ Todal-Tansen-Birbal-Man Singh-Abul Fazl etc. (count 9 on fingers).
  3. “G-2-B-3” ⇒ Great Britain got 3 Presidencies—Bombay, Bengal, Madras.
  4. “VSC” for 1930-34 movements—V: Civil Disobedience, S: Salt, C: Round Table Conferences.
  5. “RIP-PNS” for modern governors of RBI, Planning Commission, Finance Commission—Rao-Iyengar-Patel-Nehru-Sukumar.

Common Errors

Error Correct
Mahavira was founder of Jainism 24th Tirthankar; first Rishabhanath
Ashoka fought Kalinga war in 261 AD 261 BC
First Battle of Panipat 1526 – Babur vs Hemu Babur vs Ibrahim Lodi
Simon Commission came in 1927; Congress supported Congress boycotted
Indian National Congress founded by Gandhi A.O.Hume, 1885

5 Quick MCQs

1. Who among the following composed ‘Ain-i-Akbari’?Abul Fazl
2. The city of Jaunpur was founded by which Sultan?Firoz Shah Tughlaq
3. Which act allowed separate electorates for Muslims for the first time?Indian Councils Act 1909 (Morley-Minto)
4. The Dandi March covered how many miles?240 miles (390 km)
5. Who was the Viceroy at the time of Jallianwala Bagh massacre?Lord Chelmsford