Modern and ancient history together make up 4–8 questions in SSC, railway and State PSC papers, and the same handful of dates and battles keep coming back. Master these 20 History facts — from Harappa to Quit India — and you will recognise most of them on exam day.
1 The Harappan Civilisation was first excavated at Harappa (1921, Daya Ram Sahni); Mohenjo-daro followed in 1922 (R.D. Banerji).
2 The Great Bath is at Mohenjo-daro; the Harappan dockyard is at Lothal (Gujarat).
3 The Rigveda is the oldest Veda; the Gayatri Mantra appears in its third Mandala.
4 Gautama Buddha: born at Lumbini, enlightened at Bodh Gaya, first sermon at Sarnath, died at Kushinagar.
5 Mahavira was the 24th Tirthankara of Jainism; Rishabhanatha was the first.
6 Chandragupta Maurya founded the Mauryan Empire (c. 321 BCE) with the help of Chanakya (Kautilya).
7 Ashoka turned to Buddhism after the Kalinga War (c. 261 BCE); his Sarnath Lion Capital is India's National Emblem.
8 The Gupta period is called the 'Golden Age'; Kalidasa is linked to the court of Chandragupta II, and Aryabhata wrote the Aryabhatiya (499 CE).
9 Battles of Tarain: Prithviraj Chauhan defeated Muhammad Ghori in 1191 but lost to him in 1192.
10 The Delhi Sultanate began in 1206 with Qutb-ud-din Aibak (Slave/Mamluk dynasty).
11 First Battle of Panipat (1526): Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi and founded the Mughal Empire.
12 Akbar introduced the Mansabdari system and founded Din-i-Ilahi (1582).
13 Battle of Plassey (1757): Robert Clive defeated Siraj-ud-Daulah; the Battle of Buxar (1764) confirmed British power in Bengal.
14 The Revolt of 1857 began at Meerut on May 10, 1857; Bahadur Shah Zafar was declared its leader.
15 The Indian National Congress was founded in December 1885 in Bombay by A.O. Hume; W.C. Bonnerjee presided over the first session.
16 Partition of Bengal (1905) under Lord Curzon triggered the Swadeshi Movement; it was annulled in 1911.
17 Jallianwala Bagh massacre: April 13, 1919, Amritsar, ordered by Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer.
18 Non-Cooperation Movement began in 1920 and was withdrawn after the Chauri Chaura incident (February 1922).
19 Dandi March (Salt Satyagraha): March 12 – April 6, 1930, from Sabarmati Ashram to Dandi.
20 Quit India Movement was launched on August 8, 1942 at Gowalia Tank, Bombay, with the call 'Do or Die'.
🎯 How to Use This List
- ✅ Build a timeline — write the 20 dates in order on one page and revise it weekly.
- ✅ Learn pairs: Tarain 1191/1192, Plassey 1757/Buxar 1764, Bengal partition 1905/1911.
- ✅ Link places to events — Meerut → 1857, Chauri Chaura → end of Non-Cooperation, Dandi → salt.
📚 Related Reading
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→ Practice Daily MCQsNote: Facts checked against NCERT History textbooks (Classes 6–12).