Govindapala

{{Short description|Indian royalty}} {{Use dmy dates|date=July 2018}} {{Use Indian English|date=July 2018}} {{Pala Empire}} '''Govindapala''' or '''Govinda Pal''' ({{langx|bn|গোবিন্দ পাল}}) is believed to be the successor of Madanapala the last ruler of the Pala dynasty in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent. However, the relationship between them is unknown.

Govindapala became ruler of the Gaya district after the death of Madanapala in 1161 AD.<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=N2tlKzxwhY8C&pg=PA60 | title=Ancient India, History and Archaeology | isbn=9788170173045 | last1=Ganguly | first1=Dilip Kumar | year=1994 }}</ref> However, those after his 4th year use words like ''Vinastarajye'' and ''Gatarajye'', which probably means his kingdom was destroyed sometime around 1165. If Govindapala indeed ruled after 1165, his reign probably coincided with Palapala. His -pala suffix, along with his usage of the title ''Gaudeshwara'' which means ''Lord of Gauda,'' may suggest he recaptured Gauda for a short time, and that he was the last member of the imperial Pala dynasty.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.69821/page/n225/mode/2up | title=History of Bengal Vol.1 }}</ref>

He was succeeded by Palapala, after whom the dynasty vanished into history, although some later kings are known from tradition, like Indradumnyapala and Bhimapala.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.69821/page/n225/mode/2up | title=History of Bengal Vol.1 }}</ref>

==References== {{Reflist}}

Category:Pala emperors