Gauda Kingdom in the context of "Gaur, West Bengal"

The Pāla Empire was the empire ruled by the Pala ("protector" in Prakrit & Sanskrit) dynasty, a medieval Indian dynasty which ruled the kingdom of Gauda. The empire was founded with the election of Gopāla by the chiefs of Gauda in late eighth century CE. The Pala stronghold was located in Bengal and eastern Bihar, which included the major cities of Gauḍa, Vikramapura, Pāṭaliputra, Monghyr, Somapura, Ramavati (Varendra), Tāmralipta and Jagaddala.

The Pālas were astute diplomats and military conquerors. Their army was noted for its vast war elephant corps. Their navy performed both mercantile and defensive roles in the Bay of Bengal. At its zenith under emperors Dharmapala and Devapala in the early ninth century, the Pala empire was the dominant power in the northern Indian subcontinent, with its territory stretching across the Gangetic plain to include some parts of northeastern India, Nepal and Bangladesh. Dharmapala also exerted a strong cultural influence through the Buddhist scholar Atis Dipankar in Tibet, as well as in Southeast Asia. Pala control of North India was ultimately ephemeral, as they struggled with the Gurjara-Pratiharas and the Rashtrakutas for the control of Kannauj and were defeated. After a short-lived decline, Emperor Mahipala I defended imperial bastions in Bengal and Bihar against South Indian Chola invasions. Emperor Ramapala was the last strong Pala ruler, who gained control of Kamarupa and Kalinga. The empire was considerably weakened with many areas engulfed and their heavy dependence on Samantas being exposed through 11th century rebellion. It finally led to the rise of resurgent Hindu Senas as sovereign power in the 12th century and final expulsion of the Palas from Bengal by their hands marking the end of the last major Buddhist imperial power in the subcontinent.

Gauḍa (also known as Gaur, Gour, Lakhnauti, Lakshmanavati and Jannatabad) is a historic city of Bengal in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent, and one of the most prominent capitals of classical and medieval India, being the capital city of Bengal under several kingdoms. The Gauḍa region was also a province of several pan-Indian empires. During the seventh century, the Gauda Kingdom was founded by King Shashanka, whose reign corresponds with the beginning of the Bengali calendar. Gour gradually became synonymous with Bengal and Bengalis. It was conquered by Bakhtiyar Khalji, a lieutenant of the Ghurid ruler Muhammad of Ghori in 1203.

For a period of 112 years, between 1453 and 1565, Gauda was the capital of the Bengal Sultanate. In 1500, Gauda was the fifth-most populous city in the world, with a population of 200,000, as well as one of the most densely populated cities in the Indian subcontinent. The Portuguese left detailed accounts of the city. The Sultans built a citadel, many mosques, a royal palace, canals and bridges. Buildings featured glazed tiles.

Shashanka Dev (IAST: Śaśāṅka) was the first independent king of a unified polity in the Bengal region, called the Gauda Kingdom. He reigned in the 7th century, some historians place his rule between 600 and 636/7 CE, whereas other sources place his reign between 590 and 625 CE.

Shashanka, is credited with creating the Bengali calendar. The term Bangabda (Bangla year) is found too in two Shiva temples many centuries older than Akbar era, suggesting that a Bengali calendar existed long before Akbar's time.

Khasa-Malla kingdom (Nepali: खस मल्ल राज्य, romanized: Khasa Malla Rājya), popularly known as Khasa Kingdom (Nepali: खस राज्य, romanized: Khasa Rājya) and Yatse (Wylie: ya rtse) in Tibetan, was a medieval kingdom established around the 11th century in regions that are presently in far-western Nepal and parts of Uttarakhand state in India. Kingdom of Nepal is believed as the successor of Khas-Malla Kingdom by King of Nepal adopting the regal name Maharajdhiraj in royal courts.

The origins of the ruling family are disputed with some arguing that the kingdom was ruled by kings of Khasa tribe who bore the family name "Malla" (not to be confused with the later Malla dynasty of Kathmandu). However a growing body of evidence indicates that the ruling family were descended from the Tibetan House of Yatse and was gradually Indianised.The Khasa Malla kings ruled western parts of Nepal during 11th–14th century. The 954 AD Khajuraho Inscription of Dhaṇga states that the Khasa Kingdom were equivalent to the Gaudas of Bengal and the Gurjara-Pratihara dynasty.