Question

The Kalinga war was fought in

• A. 221 BC
• B. 265 BC
• C. 261 BC
• D. 316 BC

Hint:

For historical dates, direct factual recall is necessary. Focus on key battles and events associated with major historical figures like Ashoka.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is C

Step 1: Understanding the Question:
The question asks for the historical date of the Kalinga War.

Step 3: Detailed Explanation:
The Kalinga War was a pivotal event in ancient Indian history. It was fought between the Mauryan Empire under Emperor Ashoka and the state of Kalinga (modern-day Odisha). The war is famously known for its brutal scale and for profoundly impacting Emperor Ashoka, leading to his conversion to Buddhism and his subsequent embrace of non-violence (Dhamma-vijaya).
Historical records, particularly Ashokan edicts, confirm that the Kalinga War took place in 261 BC.

Step 4: Final Answer:
The Kalinga War was fought in 261 BC.

Answer 2

This question asks for the year the Kalinga War was fought, based on the reign and edicts of Emperor Ashoka. We can work through each option against the accepted Mauryan chronology to settle the answer.

1. 221 BC: By this year Ashoka had already been ruling for close to five decades, and the empire's major military campaigns, including Kalinga, were long over. This date falls too late to align with the edicts describing the war as a formative, early event of his reign.
2. 265 BC: This year comes very close to Ashoka's coronation, which most chronologies place around 269-268 BC. A war of the scale described in the edicts, followed by years of remorse and the gradual adoption of Dhamma, needs more time to have unfolded than this date allows.
3. 261 BC: Ashoka's own Rock Edict XIII explicitly ties the Kalinga War to the eighth year after his coronation. Counting eight years forward from his accession places the war at 261 BC, exactly the date accepted by historians who have studied the edicts, and consistent with his subsequent transformation and adoption of Buddhism.
4. 316 BC: This date is far too early, it falls before Ashoka's grandfather Chandragupta Maurya had even founded the Mauryan Empire around 322 BC, so Ashoka could not have fought any war at this time.

Only 261 BC fits both the internal evidence of Ashoka's own inscriptions and the broader Mauryan timeline, ruling out the other three dates on chronological grounds.

Therefore, the correct answer is 261 BC.