Taxila in the context of "Mahajanapadas"

The Indo-Greek Kingdom, also known as the Yavana Kingdom, was a Hellenistic-era Greek kingdom covering various parts of modern-day Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The term "Indo-Greek Kingdom" loosely describes a number of various Hellenistic states, ruling from regional capitals like Taxila, Sagala, Pushkalavati, and Bagram. Other centers are only hinted at; e.g. Ptolemy's Geographia and the nomenclature of later kings suggest that a certain Theophilus in the south of the Indo-Greek sphere of influence may also have had a royal seat there at one time.

The Maurya Empire was a geographically extensive Iron Age historical power in South Asia with its power base in Magadha. Founded by Chandragupta Maurya around c. 320 BCE, it existed in loose-knit fashion until 185 BCE. The primary sources for the written records of the Mauryan times are partial records of the lost history of Megasthenes in Roman texts of several centuries later; and the Edicts of Ashoka. Archaeologically, the period of Mauryan rule in South Asia falls into the era of Northern Black Polished Ware (NBPW).

Through military conquests and diplomatic treaties, Chandragupta Maurya defeated the Nanda dynasty and extended his suzerainty as far westward as Afghanistan below the Hindu Kush and as far south as the northern Deccan; however, beyond the core Magadha area, the prevailing levels of technology and infrastructure limited how deeply his rule could penetrate society. During the rule of Chandragupta's grandson, Ashoka (ca. 268–232 BCE), the empire briefly controlled the major urban hubs and arteries of the subcontinent excepting the deep south. The Mauryan capital (what is today Patna) was located in Magadha; the other core regions were Taxila in the northwest; Ujjain in the Malwa Plateau; Kalinga on the Bay of Bengal coast; and the precious metal-rich lower Deccan Plateau. Outside the core regions, the empire's geographical extent was dependent on the loyalty of military commanders who controlled the armed cities scattered within it.

Apollodotus I (Greek: Ἀπολλόδοτος Α΄ ὁ Σωτήρ, Apollódotos ho Sōtḗr, "Apollodotus the Saviour"), known in Indian sources as Apaladata, was an Indo-Greek king from 180 BC to 160 BC, or between 174 and 165 BC (first dating by Osmund Bopearachchi and R. C. Senior, second dating by Boperachchi) who ruled the western and southern parts of the Indo-Greek kingdom, from Taxila in the Punjab region to the areas of Sindh and possibly Gujarat.

Rawalpindi, colloquially known as Pindi, is the third-largest city in the Pakistani province of Punjab, serving as the principal commercial and industrial hub of northern Punjab. It is the fourth-most populous city in Pakistan and ranks as the world's third-largest Punjabi-speaking metropolis (after Lahore and Faisalabad). Located along the Soan River in north-western Punjab, Rawalpindi lies adjacent to Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, and the two are jointly known as the "twin cities".

Located on the Pothohar Plateau of northern Punjab — a region known for its ancient heritage, for instance the city of Taxila, a UNESCO World Heritage Site — Rawalpindi was founded in 1493 and remained a small town of little importance, with local Punjabi Muslim tribes indirectly ruling it for larger empires, up until 1765 when it was captured by the Bhangi Misl. During the Sikh era, Rawalpindi transitioned from a small regional town into one of the major Punjabi cities, becoming a hub of trade and military. The city also became a cosmopolitan hub, housing various ethnic minorities as immigrants and refugees alongside the native Punjabi majority.

Vasudeva II (Middle Brahmi script: Bā-zo-de-o Sanskritzied to "Vasudeva") was a Kushan emperor who ruled c. 275–300. He was probably the successor of Kanishka III and may have been succeeded by an emperor named Shaka Kushan.

Vasudeva II probably only was a local ruler in the area of Taxila, in western Punjab, under the suzerainty of the Gupta Empire.

The Adi Parva ("Book of the Beginning") is the first of the eighteen parvas (books) of the Indian epic Mahabharata. "Ādi" (आदि) in Sanskrit means "first". Adi Parva traditionally has 19 parts and 236 adhyayas (chapters). The critical edition of Adi Parva has 19 parts and 225 chapters.

Adi Parva describes how the epic came to be recited by Ugrasrava Sauti to the assembled rishis at the Naimisha Forest after first having been narrated at the sarpasatra of Janamejaya by Vaishampayana at Taxila. It includes an outline of contents from the eighteen books, along with the book's significance. The history of the Bhāratas and the Bhrigus are described. The main part of the work covers the birth and early life of the princes of the Kuru kingdom and the persecution of the Pandavas by Dhritarashtra.

The Indian campaign of Alexander the Great began in 327 BC and lasted until 325 BC. After conquering the Achaemenid Persian Empire, the Macedonian army undertook an expedition into the Indus Valley of Northwestern Indian subcontinent. Within two years, Alexander expanded the Macedonian Empire, a kingdom closely linked to the broader Greek world, to include Gandhara and the Indus Valley of Punjab and Sindh (now in India and Pakistan), surpassing the earlier frontiers established by the Persian Achaemenid conquest.

Following Macedon's absorption of Gandhara (a former Persian satrapy), including the city of Taxila, Alexander and his troops advanced into Punjab, where they were confronted by Porus, the regional Indian king. In 326 BC, Alexander defeated Porus and the Pauravas during the Battle of the Hydaspes, but that engagement was possibly the Macedonians' most costly battle.