history questions

Town traders and craftsman important questions

Q1. What type of towns were in medieval period ?

Ans; It was – a temple town, an administrative centre, a commercial town or a port town.

Q2. Name the king and architect who built and designed Rajrajeshwara temple.

Ans; The Rajarajeshvara temple built by King Rajaraja Chola.  and its architect was Kunjaramallan Rajaraja Perunthachchan.

Q3.  Why do you think towns grew around temples?

Ans;  a) Temple authorities used their wealth to finance trade and banking.

    b) Gradually a large number of priests, workers, artisans, traders, etc. settled near the temple to cater  the  needs  of the pilgrims. Thus grew temple towns.

c)  Towns emerged around temples such as those of Bhillasvamin (Bhilsa or Vidisha in Madhya Pradesh), and Somnath in Gujarat.

Q4. Give two examples of pilgrimage towns?

Ans; Vrindavan (Uttar Pradesh) and Tiruvannamalai (Tamil Nadu) are examples of two such towns.

Q5. Why Ajmer is famous city?

Ans; Ajmer was a city of religious coexistence.

         Khwaja Muinuddin Chishti’s dargah also situated here.

        Famous lake pushkar also in Ajmer.

Q6. Who were ‘samanta’s ?

Ans; samanta  levied taxes on traders, artisans and articles of trade and sometimes “donated” the “right” to collect these taxes to local temples .

Q7. How important were craftspersons for the building and maintenance of temples?

Ans; The Panchalas or Vishwakarma community, consisting of goldsmiths, bronzesmiths, blacksmiths, masons and carpenters, were essential to the building of temples.

They also played an important role in the construction of palaces, big buildings, tanks and reservoirs.

Q8. Who were known as bidri?

Ans; The craftspersons of Bidar were   famous for their inlay work in copper and silver that it came to be called Bidri.

Q9. Give details about Kabul.

Ans; Kabul and Qandahar were linked to the celebrated Silk Route.

a diamond merchant, estimated that the horse trade at Kabul amounted to Rs 30,000 annually

Camels carried dried fruits, dates, carpets, silks and even fresh fruits from Kabul to the subcontinent and elsewhere. Slaves were also brought here for sale.

Q10; Who were moors?

Ans; Moors (a name used collectively for Muslim merchants) in Hampi.

Q11. Which festival was celebrated in Hampi?

Ans; The Mahanavami festival, known today as Navaratri in the south, was one of the most important festivals celebrated at Hampi.

Q12. How Hampi was ruined ?

Ans; Hampi   ruined by  the defeat of Vijayanagara in 1565 by the Deccani Sultans – the rulers of Golconda, Bijapur, Ahmadnagar, Berar and Bidar.

Q13. Define Emporium .

A place where goods from diverse production centres are bought and sold.

 Q14; Define hundi.

   Ans; Hundi is a note recording a deposit made by a person. The amount deposited can be claimed in another place by presenting the record of the deposit.

Q15; Why did people from distant lands visit Surat?

Ans;  Surat was the gateway for trade with West Asia via the Gulf of Ormuz. Surat has also been called the gate to Mecca because many pilgrim ships set sailed from here.

Dutch and English had their factories and warehouses at Surat.

There were also several retail and wholesale shops selling cotton textiles.

Q16; Define factors

Ans;  Official merchant of the East India Company.

Q17 What do you understand by black towns?

Ans; The Black Towns established by the European companies for Indian traders and craftpersons.