EmperorHarshavardhana, better known asHarsha, lived from 590 to 647 CE and was the third ruler of the VardhanaEmpire, the last great empire in ancientIndiabefore the Islamic Invasion. He ruled from 606 CE to 647 CE. After Harshavardhana’sdeath, however, the Vardhana dynasty came to an end and its empire dissolved.

India, the land beyond the Indus river, has seen many rulers who dreamt of conquering the vast country and rule from the Himalayas in the north to Deccan in south, from the mountains of Kandhar in the west to Assam in the east, yet very few have been able to subdue history according to their will. Harshavardhana was one such ruler. His empiremay not be as large as the great Mauryan's, yet he deserves special mention. After the fall of greatGupta Empirein the middle of the 6th century CE, under whom India saw its own golden age, it was Harshavardhana who unified most of northern India and ruled for four decades from his capital Kannauj.