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Discover India and more Indian History with cheap flights to India, it is a both beautiful and bamboozling place, where holy cows bask on heavenly beaches next to modern hotels, and ancient temples sit perfectly at home beside shiny offices. Glittering trains pass through rural villages where life hasn’t changed for hundreds of years, and through it, all teem one-sixth of the world’s population. India is vast, varied, and, above all, unforgettably beautiful.

One of the oldest civilizations in the world is the civilization of India. Like China, it is one of the founding civilizations in human history, and it has had a profound impact on our lives for thousands of years. While it is not easy, to sum up, the history of a country going back thousands of years, it will go through a brief history of this amazing land. INDIA’S history goes back almost six thousand years and has passed through many different stages and societies and invasions from outside.

Pre-History of India

The first settlements in India began to appear about 9,000 years ago, and throughout the early part of the history of the country, it has been a mysterious land, but also a very spiritual one. Throughout pre-history, the country has been a strong civilization as well, even being the only civilization to beat back both the Mongols and Alexander the Great during its history.

The earliest civilization was in the Indus Valley (now in Pakistan), with its well-planned city-states of Harappa and Moheniodaro, which lasted from 3250 to 1500 B.C.
At that point, the Aryans came in from the North and spread through large parts of India bringing with them their culture and religious beliefs, including the Hindu Religion.


In 567 B.C., Gautama Buddha was born, who was the founder of the Buddhist Religion.  Also at around this time, Mahavira lived, who started the Jain Religion.


Two hundred years later, in the 4th century B.C., Emperor Ashoka, one of the greatest leaders of all of India’s history, led the Mauryan Empire to take over almost all of what is now modern India. The country united under Asoka the Great, during a time that was called India’s Golden Age. It was during this time that India made great advances in mathematics, art, language, astronomy, and religion. In fact, both Hinduism and Buddhism came from India around this time.

They were followed by the Guptas in the north, while in the south part of India several different Hindu empires, the Cholas, the Pandyas, and the Cheras spread and grew, trading with Europe and other parts of Asia till the end of the 1100s.
Christianity entered India at about the same time as it came to Europe.  Legend has it that St.  Thomas the Apostle arrived in India in 52 A.D.
Even earlier than that people of the Jewish Religion arrived on India’s shores.


In approximately the 7th century A.D., a group of Zoroastrians, or Parsees, landed in Gujarat and became part of the large mix of religions in India today, each of which adds its important and distinctive flavour.

In the 15th century, the Sikh Religion was growing in Punjab, in northern India.

In 1192, Mohammed of Ghori, a ruler from Afghanistan, came into India and captured several places in the north including Delhi.  When he went home he left one of his generals in charge who became the first Sultan of Delhi.  During this time Islam, the Muslim religion, was introduced into India.

The Dehli Sultanate gradually took control of more and more of North India over the next 200 years, till Timur, who was called “Timur the Lame” or “Tamberlane” came from Turkey in 1398 to attack India.  He and his army stole all the valuables that they could carry and left again, and after that, the Delhi Sultanate was never so strong again.  Soon the Moghuls, who were from Iran, came in and took control in the north.


In the meantime in the south, in 1336, the Hindu Vijayanagar Empire was set up and became very strong.

Europe Arrives

The country was able to keep itself an independent nation for a long period of time, but by the 16th century, the countries of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, France, and Portugal began to establish themselves around India, greatly disrupting the country and held territories in India and made friends and enemies among India’s rulers as they got more involved. By 1856, the entire country became part of the British East India Company and finally made it one of their colonies, essentially making it part of the British Empire. From this point on, for almost 100 years, the country would be under the direct rule of the British Empire. The country tried to fight against Britain in India’s First War of Independence, but they were not successful.

Indian History, Colonial

Independence

The citizens of India would continually try and push Britain out of their land for the first part of the 20th century. However, it was not until the legendary figure of Mahatma Gandhi came along and led millions of India towards independence through non-violent civil disobedience. Through this action, India gained its independence on August 15, 1947, along with the region of Pakistan. In 1950, the country became a republic and created its own constitution.

The Growing Giant

While India gained its independence, it still had problems with its neighbours. It got into a dispute with China in 1962 that resulted in the Sino-India War, and the country has gone to war with Pakistan in 1947, 1965, 1971, and 1999. However, the country is also a member of the United Nations and it is also one of the few nuclear nations in the world. In addition, the country has transformed itself through economic reforms and is now becoming a superpower along with China. Currently, the country has one of the fastest-growing economies on Earth and it is expected that India will be one of the major countries of the 21st century, along the lines of how Russia and the United States dominated the 20th century.

One thing is clear, this country, which has been around in one form or another for thousands of years, shows no signs of slowing down, or going away.

India is an eternally popular destination and indeed a mini-universe by itself, promising to leave you mesmerized. So come and discover it with us, where you can sit back, relax, and enjoy the sights & sounds of India. With cheap flights to India made easily available from all UK cities like London, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Manchester, and many others there are great flight deals to India available with Air India, Qatar Airways, Etihad Airways, Emirates, Virgin Atlantic, British Airways, and many more. Book your cheap ticket to India with Oceans Travel.

Check out more History, and travel blogs on Oceans Travel.

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