After the disintegration of the Mauryan Empire the Satvahanas and the Kushanas emerged as two large political powers. The Satvahanas acted as stabilizing factor in the Deccan and South to which they gave political unity and economic prosperity. Kushanas did the same in the north India. In the middle of the third century AD both these empires came to an end. On the ruins of the Kushana Empire arose the empire of the Guptas in A D 319. Although the Gupta Empire was not as large as the Mauryan Empire, it kept north India politically united for more than a century from AD 335 to AD 455. The Guptas were initially a family of landowners who acquired political control in the region of Magadha and parts of eastern Uttar Pradesh. They enjoyed certain material advantages. The centre of their operations lay in fertile land of Madhyadesa covering Bihar and UttarPradesh.
They could exploit the iron ores of Central India and South
Bihar. They took advantage of their proximity to the areas in north India which
carried on silk trade with the Byzantine Empire. Due to these favourable factors
the Guptas set up their rule over Anuganga (middle Gangetic basin), Prayag
(modern Allahabad), Saket and Magadha. In course of this time this kingdom
became an all India empire.
Sources of Gupta Rule
Political history of Guptas