1. Ancient Near East & Mesopotamia

• Sargon of Akkad (c. 2334–2279 BCE):
  • Founder of the Akkadian Empire (first multi-ethnic empire in Mesopotamia).
• Hammurabi (1792–1750 BCE):
  • Babylonian king; creator of the Code of Hammurabi (early legal system).
• Nebuchadnezzar II (605–562 BCE):
  • Neo-Babylonian ruler; built the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.

2. South Asia (India, Sri Lanka, Nepal)

• Ashoka the Great (268–232 BCE):
  • Mauryan emperor; spread Buddhism after the Kalinga War; erected edicts across India.
• Chandragupta II (Vikramaditya, c. 375–415 CE):
  • Gupta Empire’s golden age ruler; patron of arts and science (Kalidasa’s era).
• Raja Raja Chola I (985–1014 CE):
  • Expanded the Chola Empire; built the Brihadeeswara Temple in Thanjavur.
• Kanishka (127–150 CE):
  • Kushan emperor; patron of Buddhism (convened the 4th Buddhist Council).
• Prithviraj Chauhan (1178–1192 CE):
  • Rajput king who resisted Muhammad Ghori in the Battles of Tarain.

3. East Asia (China, Japan, Korea)

• Qin Shi Huang (221–210 BCE):
  • First emperor of unified China; built the Terracotta Army and Great Wall.
• Emperor Taizong of Tang (626–649 CE):
  • Golden Age ruler of the Tang Dynasty; promoted Confucianism and Buddhism.
• Genghis Khan (1206–1227 CE):
  • Founder of the Mongol Empire; conquered much of Asia and Europe.
• Kublai Khan (1260–1294 CE):
  • Mongol ruler; established the Yuan Dynasty in China.
• Emperor Jimmu (mythical, c. 660 BCE):
  • Legendary first emperor of Japan.
• King Sejong the Great (1418–1450 CE):
  • Korean Joseon ruler; creator of Hangul (Korean alphabet).

4. Southeast Asia (Khmer, Srivijaya, Vietnam)

• Jayavarman VII (1181–1218 CE):
  • Khmer king; built Angkor Thom and Bayon Temple (Cambodia).
• Suryavarman II (1113–1145 CE):
  • Built Angkor Wat, the world’s largest religious monument.
• Tran Hung Dao (1228–1300 CE):
  • Vietnamese general-king who repelled Mongol invasions.
• Hayam Wuruk (1350–1389 CE):
  • Javanese king of Majapahit; empire’s peak under Prime Minister Gajah Mada.

5. Central Asia & the Steppe

• Tamerlane (Timur) (1370–1405 CE):
  • Turco-Mongol conqueror; founded the Timurid Empire (Samarkand as capital).
• Mahmud of Ghazni (998–1030 CE):
  • Afghan ruler; launched 17 raids into India, looting temples like Somnath.

6. Middle East (Persia, Arabia, Anatolia)

• Cyrus the Great (559–530 BCE):
  • Founder of the Achaemenid Persian Empire; known for tolerance (Cyrus Cylinder).
• Darius I (522–486 BCE):
  • Expanded Persia; built Persepolis; organized administrative provinces (satrapies).
• Saladin (1174–1193 CE):
  • Kurdish sultan; recaptured Jerusalem from Crusaders.
• Suleiman the Magnificent (1520–1566 CE):
  • Ottoman Sultan; expanded the empire to its zenith (Golden Age of Islam).

7. Himalayan Kingdoms (Tibet, Nepal)

• Songtsen Gampo (618–650 CE):
  • Tibetan king; introduced Buddhism; married Chinese and Nepali princesses.
• Prithvi Narayan Shah (1743–1775 CE):
  • Unified modern Nepal; founder of the Shah dynasty.

Key Observations

1. Religious Patrons:
   • Ashoka (Buddhism), Kanishka (Buddhism), Suryavarman II (Hinduism).
2. Architectural Legacy:
   • Taj Mahal (Shah Jahan), Angkor Wat (Suryavarman II), Persepolis (Darius).
3. Conquerors & Unifiers:
   • Genghis Khan (Mongols), Qin Shi Huang (China), Prithvi Narayan Shah (Nepal).
4. Legal Innovators:
   • Hammurabi (code of laws), Ashoka (Dhamma edicts).

Legacy of Asian Monarchs

• Cultural Synthesis: Blending of Hindu-Buddhist, Islamic, and Confucian traditions.
• Trade Networks: Silk Road (Chinese emperors), Indian Ocean trade (Chola kings).
• Resistance: Prithviraj Chauhan (against Turks), Tran Hung Dao (against Mongols).