Top 10 Most Powerful Kings of India

10. Harsha Vardhana 

Harsha (c. 590–647 CE), also known as Harshavardhana, was an Indian emperor who ruled North India from 606 to 647 CE. He was the son of Prabhakarvardhana who defeated the Huna invaders, and the younger brother of Rajyavardhana, a king of Thanesar, present-day Haryana. At the height of Harsha’s power, his Empire covered much of North and Northwestern India, extended East till Kamarupa, and South until Narmada River; and eventually made Kannauj his capital, and ruled till 647 CE.

9. Pulakesin II 

Pulkesin II (610–642 CE) is the most celebrated ruler of the Chalukyas of Badami. He defeated the Kadamabas of the Banavasi, Alupas of modern Southern Karnataka, Maurya of Konkan and after a naval war captured Island of Elephanta from the Mauryas of Konkan. He also defeated the Kosala, Kalinga, etc. in the east. In down south, he defeated Mahendravarman-I. This was the time when Harsha was a major power in Northern India. Pulkesin II and Harsha engaged in a battle at the banks of the Narmada. This was a decisive battle in which Harsha lost a big part of his elephant army and had to retreat.

8. Alauddin Khalji 

Ala-ud-din was a very ambitious and shrewd warrior. To materialize his vision to rule most territories of the country, he set out a conquest. During his conquest, he looted many states in the north. His strong support during his conquest was his brother Ulugh Khan, Nusrat Khan, Zafar Khan, and his brother-in-law, Alp Khan. Ala-ud-Din's army captured Anhilwara. He plundered Gujarat. He captured Ranthambhor and Chittorgarh. He captured Malwa and annexed Ujjain, Mandu, Dhar, and Chanderi. He was the first Muslim ruler to invade South India. He conquered Devgiri, Telangana, Hoysala and Pandya kingdom.

7. Krishna Deva Raya

Krishna Deva Raya was an emperor of the Vijayanagara Empire who reigned from 1509–1529. He is the third ruler of the Tuluva Dynasty. Presiding over the empire at its zenith, he is regarded as an icon by many Indians. He earned the titles Kannada Rajya Rama Ramana, Andhra Bhoja and Mooru Rayara Ganda. He won all the wars he fought and expanded his kingdom. He defeated the king of Orissa and also the Sultan of Bijapur. He defeated the Bahamani ruler Ismail Adil Shah to put an end to the Muslim dominance in Southern India. He occupied the forts of Kondavidu, Udayagir, Kondapalli, Bezawada, Rajahmundry, Khammam, and Warangal. He invaded Bidar and Gulbarga. He attacked Kalinga and captured Cuttack. His empire extended from Cuttack in eastern India to Goa in the west and Raichur Dobe in the north to Kanyakumari in the south.

6. Samudragupta

Samudragupta was the ‘King of Kings’ because he politically unified India and brought it under his power. His brilliant leadership and valiant victories earned him the title of ‘Napoleon of India’. He attacked the neighboring kingdoms of Shichchhatra (Rohilkhand) and Padmavati (in Central India). He conquered the whole of West Bengal, some Kingdoms in Nepal and he made Assam pay him tribute. He absorbed some Tribal states like the Malvas, the Yaudheyas, the Arjunayanas, the Abhiras, and the Maduras. He proceeded with great vigor and defeated Pithapuram’s Mahendragiri, Kanchi’s Vishnugupta, Mantaraja of Kurala, Mahendra of Khosla and many more till he reached the river, Krishna. His territories extended from the Himalayas in the north to the river Narmada in the south and from the Brahmaputra River in the east to the Yamuna River in the west. He defeated the Naga kings in the north and humbled as many as twelve princes in the south. He fought every battle with smart strategy and great valor. It is said that his fit body was covered with the marks of a hundred wounds caused by the blows of battle axes, arrows, spears, pikes, barbed darts, swords, lances, javelins, iron arrows and many other weapons!

5. Akbar the Great

Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar was the greatest Muslim ruler of Indian History.  A strong personality and a successful general, Akbar gradually enlarged the Mughal Empire. His power and influence, however, extended over the entire country because of Mughal military, political, cultural, and economic dominance. He occupied Jaunpur, Gondwana, and Gwalior. He annexed the Malwa Kingdom. He extended his hold over Kabul, Kashmir, Sind, Baluchistan, and Kandahar. Later he conquered Gujarat, Bengal, and Orissa. Having consolidated his authority in the north, Akbar turned south of the Vindhyas and took Khandesh, Ahmadnagar, Bijapur, Golconda Berar, and Bidar. Under him, the Mughal Empire extended over the whole of the northern and central India, including parts of the Deccan. When Akbar just took over the throne the Mughal Empire had only a part of Punjab. Since Akbar re-established Mughal rule, some historians hold the opinion that Akbar, and not Babur, was the real founder of the Mughal Empire in India.

4. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj

Shivaji is considered the real founder of the Maratha Kingdom whose capital was Raigarh. Shivaji had established a new Hindu kingdom in Maharashtra. Afzal tried to kill Sivaji but he was killed by Sivaji through his Baghanakha. Then the Maratha troops inflicted a severe defeat on the Bijapur army and secured large booty consisting of the whole artillery, ammunition, war elephants, horses, camels and lakhs of rupees. He captured the forts of Chakan, Kondana, Singarh, and Purandhar. He conquered Javali by murdering its ruler Chandra Rao who was on the side of Bijapur. He considerably increased his area secured from Torna and Javali. Afzal tried to kill Shivaji but he was killed by Shivaji through his Baghanakha. Then the Maratha troops inflicted a severe defeat on the Bijapur army and secured large booty consisting of the whole artillery, ammunition, war elephants, horses, camels and lakhs of rupees. Shivaji’s army marched towards the Konkan and Kolhapur, seizing Panhala fort, and defeating Bijapuri forces. He also plundered the English factory at Rajapur and capturing four of the factories. He took Poona by defeating Shayasta Khan. Shivaji attacked and sacked Surat. He captured Jinji, Vellore and the adjoining territories. He was able to bring under his control a vast territory in Madras, Carnatic and in the Mysore region.

3. Samrat Chandragupta Maurya

Chandragupta Maurya was the founder of the largest-ever empire on the Indian subcontinent, the Maurya Empire. He was the first ruler to unite the whole of India. He liberated the states of Greek Strapas by defeating Greek generals one by one. He conquered Sind and Punjab. He uprooted the Nanda Dynasty from Magadha. He defeated Seleucus Nikator and annexed Kabul, Kandahar, Baluchistan, and Herat. He conquered Saurashtra, Kathiawar, Avanti, and Konkan of Maharashtra. He conquered most of the South Indian Kingdoms. Chandragupta made himself the master of the entire Indo-Gangetic plains and beyond, as far as the Hindukush.

2. Raja Raja Chola the Great

Rajaraja I was a Chola emperor who ruled over the Chola kingdom of medieval Tamil Nadu (parts of southern India), parts of northern India, two-thirds of Sri Lankan territory, Maldives and parts of East Asia, between 985 and 1014 CE. During his reign, the Cholas expanded beyond the Kaveri delta with their domains stretching from Sri Lanka the south to Kalinga in the north. Rajaraja also launched several naval campaigns on the ports of South East Asia. The Pandayas, the Cheras and the Sinhalas made an alliance against the Chola but they all were defeated by Rajaraja. He destroyed his arch-rival the Cheras and the Pandyas. He conquered Sri Lanka and annexed Chalukayan territories. With his superior naval forces, he invaded Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines. He was the greatest South Indian King. He was one of few invaders from India.

1. Ashoka the Great

Devanampriya Priyadarsi Chakravartin Samrat Ashoka was the greatest ruler of Indian History and one of the top 10 world's greatest ruler of all time. No any ruler in Indian Subcontinent stands with Ashoka in power and greatness. He was the finest warrior of the whole history. There is two phases of his life: - Chanda Ashoka (Ashoka the Devil) and Dhamma Ashoka (Ashoka the Angel). He successfully suppressed several revolts. When Sushima was not able to handle Taxila, Ashoka went there and controlled the situation. Later he was appointed viceroy of Ujjain when he suppressed a revolt also there. In the war of succession, he killed his 99 evil step-brothers whom he saw as a threat to Maurya dynasty. Afterwards, he fought the Kalinga War, one of the bloodiest and deadly wars in human history. The battlefield was full of bones and flesh of dead and half-dead soldiers, nobles and citizens. Daya river flowing along with the site colored red of blood. This was the most horrific war of Ancient India. A war like that had not happened for centuries. It transformed Ashoka the Great's character. He evolved from Devil to Angel. Ashoka the Great is an ideal icon for all Kings.