Taxila

Taxila (Punjabi, Ṭeksilā, Urdu, Takshilacode: urd promoted to code: ur, Late Middle, tat tsrhea syiX la), historically known as Takshashila, is a city and UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Rawalpindi District of Punjab, Pakistan. Founded around c. 1000 BC, it is one of the oldest cities in South Asia, and had a population of over 136,900 in 2023. Taxila is located within the Taxila Tehsil, on the Pothohar Plateau of northern Punjab, and lies approximately 25 kilometres (16 mi) northwest of the Islamabad–Rawalpindi metropolitan area and is just south of the Haripur district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Established during the Vedic period, Old Taxila was for a time the capital city of kingdom of Gandhāra. Situated on the eastern shore of the Indus River—the pivotal junction of the Indian subcontinent and Central Asia—it was possibly founded around 1000 BCE. Takshashila and Pushkalavati remained prominent cities in Gandhāra during the Mahajanapadas of Ancient India. The city is believed to have become part of the Achaemenid Empire during 550 – 326 BCE. In 326 BCE, it was claimed by Alexander, after overthrowing the Achaemenids. Alexander gained control of the city without a battle since it immediately surrendered to his Macedonian Empire until Mauryans led by Chandragupta Maurya reclaimed it within a decade and Takshashila beca

Archaeological site data from Wikidata (CC0). Summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).