The region of Himachal Pradesh came under the imperial rule of the chivalrous king Harsha or Harsha Vardhan in the 7th century A.D. The region had already gained prominence under the rule of the Gupta dynasty. The king Harsha ascended the throne in 606 A.D.
The region of north India which included the territory of Himachal Pradesh was a famous seat of administration of the Gupta dynasty. The great warrior king Ashoka established the region as a seat of Buddhism renowned even outside the country. The Gupta dynasty came to a slow end in the 6th century. After the death of the long and illustrious rule of the Gupta rulers, the region of Himachal Pradesh returned into the powers of the feudal lords. The break of the feudal lords from the ruling regime started with the arrival of the Huns in the country during the rule of Skandgupta. The Huns had settled in the region of Punjab and occupied some parts of Himachal Pradesh too. After the end of the Gupta regime, the Huns fueled the break of the local chieftains known as the Ranas and the Thakurs who established their independent status and regions of control. In the 7th century, Prabhakara Vardhan, father of Harsha defeated the Huns and occupied Himachal Pradesh and established his rule. The region prospered under the rule of Harsha Vardhan who was a young and vivacious ruler. The many conquests of the Harsha added new territory to the Himachal region. A patron of Buddhism and literature, Harsha promoted the growth of art and culture which flourished in the region.
The feudal lords gained prominence again after the death of Harsha who ruled the region of Himachal Pradesh for more than 40 years. The kingdom disintegrated for sometime until the arrival of the Rajputs who consolidated the region under their regime.
