Discover Bengal · Unfolded
❦Search by year, title, and summary
Use this explorer to see all chapters together and understand their importance, period, and broader continuity.
Use keyword, year, theme, and importance to narrow events
Total results: 168
8th century
Major
Ancient and Pre-Sultanate Bengal
Somapura Mahavihara at Paharpur emerged in the 8th century as one of the largest monasteries south of the Himalayas and an important intellectual center in pre-Islamic Bengal.
c. 800-1100
High
Ancient and Pre-Sultanate Bengal
Between roughly the eighth and eleventh centuries, the Chandra and Deva dynasties shaped southeastern Bengal around Samatata, Harikela, and the Mainamati-Lalmai zone. Their inscriptions, monasteries, and regional political networks show that Bengal’s pre-sultanate history was not only centred on the Pala-Sena heartland.
Language, autonomy, and liberation
c. 1095-1205
High
Colonial Rule and Resistance
The Sena period marked dynastic expansion, consolidation of elite Hindu court culture, and notable patronage of Sanskrit and Bengali literary-intellectual activity, especially under Lakshman Sen.
c. 1178-1204
Major
Ancient and Pre-Sultanate Bengal
The late Sena phase under Lakshmanasena (c. 1178-c. 1205) represents the final major pre-1204 court-centered order in Bengal, ending with his expulsion from Nadia by Bakhtiyar Khalji.
1204-1205
Major
Transition to Sultanate Formation
Ikhtiyar al-Din Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khalji's capture of Nadia, associated with 1204-1205, marked a major turning point in Bengal's political history. The fall of the Sena capital center and subsequent movement toward Lakhnauti/Gaur shifted the region's ruling structure and opened a new phase of Turkic-led state formation in Bengal.
State, society, and political change
1230s
High
Historical Transitions
Bengal under Delhi Governorates and Fragmentation was a significant turning point in the political and social trajectory of Bengal/Bangladesh.