<P> The Maurya Empire under Ashoka the Great . </P> <Li> <P> Ashokan pillar at Vaishali, 3rd century BCE . </P> </Li> <P> Ashokan pillar at Vaishali, 3rd century BCE . </P> <P> The Maurya Empire (322--185 BCE) was the first empire to unify India into one state, and was the largest on the Indian subcontinent . At its greatest extent, the Mauryan Empire stretched to the north up to the natural boundaries of the Himalayas and to the east into what is now Assam . To the west, it reached beyond modern Pakistan, to the Hindu Kush mountains in what is now Afghanistan . The empire was established by Chandragupta Maurya assisted by Chanakya (Kautilya) in Magadha (in modern Bihar) when he overthrew the Nanda Dynasty . Chandragupta's son Bindusara succeeded to the throne around 297 BCE . By the time he died in c. 272 BCE, a large part of the subcontinent was under Mauryan suzerainty . However, the region of Kalinga (around modern day Odisha) remained outside Mauryan control, perhaps interfering with their trade with the south . </P>

Who has played an important role in the history of india