Early history Archaeological discoveries show that Kannauj was inhabited by the
Painted Grey Ware and
Northern Black Polished Ware cultures, –600 BCE and –200 BCE, respectively. During the
Vedic period, it was the capital city of the
Panchala Kingdom during the reign of king Vajrayudha. in meditation, painted by
Raja Ravi Varma Under the names of Kuśasthala and Kanyakubja, it is mentioned as a well-known town in the Hindu epics, the
Mahabharata and the
Ramayana, and by the grammarian
Patanjali (). Also according to the Hindu epics, Kannauj or Kanyakubja was the capital of
Amavasu the son of
Pururavas and an ancestor of Rigvedic sage
Vishwamitra. The
early Buddhist literature mentions Kannauj as Kannakujja, and refers to its location on the trade route from
Mathura to
Varanasi and
Rajgir. Kannauj may have been known to the Greco-Roman civilization under the name of Kanagoja or Kanogiza, which appears in
Geography by
Ptolemy (). It was also visited by the Chinese Buddhist travellers
Faxian and
Xuanzang in the fifth and seventh centuries CE, respectively. s of Kannauj under Maharaja Isanavarman, circa 535-553 CE of the
Vardhana dynasty, circa 606–647 CE of Kannauj -style 'seated goddess' coin of
Gahadavala dynasty of Kannauj (r. c. 1114-1155 CE) During the decline of the Gupta Empire in the 6th century, the
Maukhari dynasty of Kannauj – who had served as vassal rulers under the Guptas - took advantage of the weakening of central authority, broke away and established control over large areas of northern India. Under the Maukharis, Kannauj continued to grow in importance and prosperity. It became the greatest city of Northern India under Emperor
Harsha (r. 606 to 647 CE) of the
Vardhana dynasty, who made it his capital. Chinese pilgrim
Xuanzang visited India during the reign of Harsha, and described Kannauj as a large, prosperous city with many Buddhist monasteries. Harsha died with no heir, resulting in a power vacuum until Maharaja
Yashovarman seized power as the ruler of Kannauj. s: the
Rashtrakutas of
Deccan, the Gurjara Pratiharas of
Malwa, and the
Palas of
Bengal. There were initial struggles but ultimately the Gurjara Pratiharas succeeded in retaining the city. Taking advantage of the chaos, the Rastrakuta ruler
Dhruva Dharavarsha (r. 780–793 CE) surged northwards, defeated Vatsaraja, and took Kannauj for himself, completing the furthest northern expansion by a South Indian ruler. When the Rashtrakuta ruler Dhruva Dharavarsha advanced back to the south, Dharampala was left in control of Kannauj for some time. The struggle between the two northern dynasties of Palas and Gurjara Pratiharas continued: the Pala's vassal
Chakrayudha (Dharmapala's nominee for Ujjain) was defeated by the Pratihara
Nagabhata II (r. 805–833 CE), and Kannauj was again occupied by the Gurjara Pratiharas. Dharmapala tried to take control of Kannauj but was defeated badly at
Moongher by the Gurjara Pratiharas. The city later came under the
Gahadavala dynasty, and under the rule of
Govindachandra, the city reached "unprecedented glory". Kannauj was also the main place of war in the
Tripartite struggle between the
Gurjara-Pratihara, the
Palas and the
Rashtrakutas. Kannauj was clearly the wealthiest city in early Medieval India at large and the country all around Kannauj was called
Āryāvarta. It seems likely that Kannauj and
Madhyadesha was the place of origin of the majority of migrating Brahmins throughout the medieval centuries. In 1010 A.D.,
Mahmud of Ghazni saw Kannauj as a "City which raised its head to skies which in strength and structure might justly boast to have no equals". Sultan
Mahmud of Ghazni captured Kanauj in 1018.
Chandradeva founded the
Gahadvala dynasty with its capital at Kannauj around 1090. His grandson
Govindachandra "raised Kannauj to unprecedented glory."
Muhammad Ghori advanced against the city, and in the
Battle of Chandwar of 1193 killed
Jayachandra.
Alberuni has referred to "Kannoj" as the key geographical point to explain marching distances to other Indian cities. The "glory of Imperial Kannauj" ended with
Iltutmish's conquest.
Sher Shah Suri defeated
Humayun at the
Battle of Kannauj on 17 May 1540. Famous Pir-e-Kamil, Hazrat Pir Shah Jewna Al-Naqvi Al-Bokhari was also born in Kannauj in 1493 in the reign of the
Delhi Sultanate Sultan Sikandar Lodi (r. 1489-1517). He was a descendant of
Jalaluddin Surkh-Posh Bukhari and his father Syed Sadar-ud-din Shah Kabeer Naqvi Al Bukhari was a great saint and was also among the advisors of Sultan Sikandar Lodhi.
Shah Jewna migrated to
Shah Jeewna (a town named after him) now in Pakistan. Shah Jewna’s colonized towns in Kannauj :- Siray-e-Miran, Bibiyan Jalalpur, Makhdumpur, Lal Pur (associated with the name of Saint Sayyed Jalaluddin Haider Surkh Posh Bukhari or Lal Bukhari). His descendants still present in various parts of India and Pakistan.
Colonial period from 1802 During early English rule in India, the city was spelled
Cannodge by them. The
Nawab Hakim Mehndi Ali Khan has been constantly associated with the development of city of Kannauj by the travellers and writers of the period. A ghat (
Mehndighat), a Sarai (for the free stay of travellers and merchants) and various metalled roads were built by the Nawab which also bear his name. Different spellings that are used to refer to Kannauj, apart from the official Kannauj, are
Cannodge,
Kannauj,
Kannoj,
Kinnouge,
Qannauj and
Qannawj. The British who visited Kannauj in the later part of 19th century mostly referred to it as
Kanauj (notice the single "n").
George Forster spells it Kinnouge.
Alexander Cunnigham wrote its spelling as Kanoj. ==Perfume and flowers==