At an altitude of 579 m (1900 ft), where the cool placid waters of the Alaknanda flow on unhindered Srinagar, 34 km from Deoprayag, was founded by King Ajayapal of Tehri Garhwal in the 14th century and was its capital till 1803, when a section of Garhwal was given to the British for their help in fighting the Gorkhas at Dehradun. The town derived its name from a "Sri Yantra" drawn on a huge slab of stones. Centuries ago, human lives were sacrificed in front of the Sri Yantra to propitiate the divine powers. The Adiguru Shankaracharya put the inhuman practice to an end by having the slab thrown into Alaknanda in which waters, it lies inverted to this day.
The known history is shrouded in total obscurity. If we make an assessment of the region from the standard of Indian historical perspective, we would find that there is nothing concrete about is during the time of the sixteen Mahajanapadas (C. 6th century BC), excepting for a wild conjecture that the region was under the kingdom of kossala. Similarly, it is believed that Ashoka excluded the Himalayan region of Garhwal from the purview of this rule. This gains ground because of the fact that nothing substantial relating to his history has been found in this area. However, small evidence discovered recently from a site near Srinagar in the form of a Mauryan- like pottery leads one to conjecture with a ray of future hope that the Mauryan culture did penetrate the interior of Garhwal. But this only is not sufficient.
The history after the Mauryas is also in the similar state of confusion. The shungas, the Indo- Greeks, the sake- pahalavas and what was their impact on the Uttrakhand region, we do not definitely know. There are a few stray points here and there. They need to be properly analyzed. For example, a few and motifs found in some temples at Rishikesh and the style of sculptures in the far interior at Pandukeshwar, near Badrinath, Suggest that the Kushanas had some influence over the area.
Garhwal witnessed a great political resurgence at the rise of the political dynasties like the kunindas and the Yadheyas in the 2nd - 3rd century AD their coin-heads are ample testimony to their suzerainty over the area. The region is also associated with the great Khasa tribe, about whom there are several views, but their proper evaluation would only be possible with the examination of a few ancient tombs beyond Joshimath and in the Baijnath valley in Kumaon, alleged to have association with them.
The Gupta dynasty under Samudragupta (c. 340-380 AD) gained a strong power by subjugating the rulers in the north and the south. A mention of Kartripura bespeak his conquest of the region, but where was the exact location of this Kartipura Kingdom Joshimath or Baijnath - is a problem which needs proper identification after due investigations.
In the second phase of its history, the region saw the rise of a consolidated political power - the Katyuris - after the 7th century AD.D. The earlier kings of this dynasty are believed to have ruled first from the valley of Baijnath in Kumaon. The remarkable aspect of the history of this dynasty is that it has left its record in the shape of a few copper plate grants and stone inscriptions. A through reappraisal of their vestiges therefore, may open up new vistas in the study of regional history of Garhwal. It may also reveal out the real antecedents of this dynasty and its relationship with the contemporary powers in the country.
The history of a Garhwal in the mediaeval period of Indian history takes a stride at the emergence of the Rajas of Garhwal at in about the 8 th century; they gained prominence only after the 15th - 16th century AD. But they ruled for a pretty long time till the early fifties of the present century.
There are many other smaller problems in the local history of the region. Since it was being frequently visited all the times by outsiders, we get several, inscribed slab iron, tridents and many of such remains which bring before us new names of rulers like Guesha Asokachalla or anekamalla etc. at places like Gopeshwar and Uttarkashi. These individual rulers, therefore, will have to be placed in a proper historical niche. Similarly, in the late medieval period another notable aspect of the rise of petty chieftains to the growth of about fifty tow forts (Garh) which gave the region its name as Garhwal.
