Public Administration in Ancient India c9.34

c9.34

In early times, the States were generally small in size. In the Heroic Age, the conquests of the warrior-kings added considerable territories to their dominions. But it seems that the movement towards the forma-tion of extensive kingdoms did not begin until about the eighth or seventh century B.C. Once started, however, the movement steadily grew in strength. Thus we find that the Kingdom of Magadha had its territories augmented under rulers like Bimbisāra, Ajātasatru, and Mahāpadma Nanda, until it became the largest State in Northern India. And its progress did not stop there.