Bengal's Buddhist Queen: The Lost Kingdom of Khargadatta

In this episode of The Hidden History of Bengal, Lucas and Luna explore the forgotten reign of Queen Khargadatta, a Buddhist ruler who defied the Brahminical revival of the Sena dynasty in 12th-century Bengal. They discuss her rise to power after the death of her husband, her patronage of monasteries at Vikramashila and Somapura, and her military stand against Lakshmanasena. Lucas explains how her kingdom, centered in the Varendra region (modern Rajshahi), became a refuge for Buddhist monks fleeing persecution, and how her defeat marked the end of Buddhist political power in Bengal before the Muslim conquest. The conversation touches on the archaeological evidence of her reign — including a rare inscribed copper plate discovered in 1912 — and the debate among historians about whether she was a sovereign queen or a regent. The episode also covers the cultural legacy of her patronage, including the spread of the 'Vajrayana' Buddhist art style that influenced Tibetan thangka painting. A thread on female sovereignty in pre-modern South Asia runs through the episode, linking to earlier discussions of the Sena dynasty and the decline of Buddhism in India. #Khargadatta #BuddhistQueen #BengalHistory #SenaDynasty #Lakshmanasena #Varendra #Vikramashila #SomapuraMahavihara #Vajrayana #BuddhismInBengal #CopperPlateInscription #WomenInHistory #12thCentury #FexingoHistory #SouthAsia #HiddenHistory #Patronage #Regency Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo