Question

who were the parties involved in the "tripartite struggle"?

Answer 1

Hint: In order to become the Chakravarti ruler of North India, it was deemed necessary to take control of the city of " Kannauj". Apart from being of political significance, the economic importance of Kannauj city also expanded to a great extent and it was also proved to be an important ground for its attraction.

Complete answer: In the ninth century the Tripartite struggle for control of northern India took place. The struggle was between the Pratihara Empire, the Pala Empire and the Rashtrakuta Empire. After Harsh, Kannauj became the centre of attraction of various powers. It achieved the same place as that of Magadh until the Gupta era. In fact, Harsh and Yashovarman made it an emblem of imperial power.

By taking dominance of Kannauj, control could be entrenched over the Ganga Ghati and the rich commercial and agricultural resources accessible in it. The region of Kannauj was the most fertile region of the country, being situated between the Ganges and the Yamuna. This city was also very prime from the point of view of trade and commerce because from here the trade routes went to divergent directions. The Succeeding route went to the mouth of Varanasi and the Ganges. Then another route was for Kamrup in the east and Nepal and Tibet from the north. The third route went to the south from Kannauj and to the Vanvasi town on the south coast and the fourth route was from Kannauj to Bajaj and then to the capital of Gujarat. Thus it was advantageous to establish the suzerainty from both political and economic point of view.
Tripartite Struggle started between the three big powers of – Paal, Gurjar-Pratihara, Rashtrakuta from eighth to the tenth century, it was one of the important events in the history of North India. In the 8th century at the end of the year, the Gurjar Pratihar king, Vatsaraj ruled over the vast tracts of Rajputana and Central Asia (780–805 AD). A strapping kingdom of Paals was established in Bengal at this time. (770-810 AD). The Rashtrakutas established their kingdom in the south. The contemporary Rashtrakuta king of Vatsaraj and Dharmapaal was Dhruv (780–793 AD). He also wanted to take over the capital Kannauj after consolidating his kingdom in South India. Hence, the first struggle for supremacy over Kannauj was between Vatsaraj, Dharmapala and Dhruv.

Note: The Tripartite struggle lasted for two centuries and this resulted in the weakening of all dynasties in the long run. The struggle benefited the Islamic invaders from the Middle-East and resulted in the political disintegration of the Indian subcontinent.