Epigraphy and literature give little information about the transformations that crossed this line of kings during this long period. It is certain that when the power of the Cholas fell to its lowest level and that of the Pandyas and Pallavas rose north and south of them,[28][38] this dynasty was forced to seek refuge and patronage among its most prosperous rivals. [39] [e] The Cholas continued to rule over a small area near Uraiyur, but only in a minor capacity. Despite their reduced powers, the Pandyas and Pallavas accepted the Chola princesses in marriage, perhaps out of consideration for their reputation. Many Pallava inscriptions from this period mention that they fought against the rulers of the Chola land. Despite this loss of influence and power, it is unlikely that the Cholas lost full control of the region around Uraiyur, their former capital, since Vijayalaya, as it grew in importance, came from this region. [40] [42] The Western Chalukya Empire under Satyashraya and Someshvara I tried to escape Chola rule from time to time, mainly due to Chola influence in the kingdom of Vengi. [64] The Western Chalukyas made several unsuccessful attempts to engage the Chola emperors in the war, and with the exception of a brief occupation of the Vergi territories between 1118 and 1126, all their other attempts failed as successive Chola emperors routed the armies of the Chalukyas in various places in many wars. Virarajendra Chola defeated Someshvara II of the Western Chalukya Empire and formed an alliance with Prince Vikramaditya VI. [65] Cholas always managed to control the Chalukyas in the Western Deccan by defeating them in war and paying them tribute. [66] Even under Chola emperors such as Kulothunga I and Vikrama Chola, wars against the Chalukyas took place mainly in the Chalukya regions of Karnataka or in Telugu lands such as Vengi, Kakinada, Anantapur or Gutti. Then the old feudal lords such as the Hoysalas, Yadvas and Kakatiyas steadily increased their power and eventually replaced the Chalukyas. [67] With the occupation of Dharwar in north-central Karnataka by the Hoysalas under Vishnuvardhana, where he settled with his son Narasimha I around 1149 in the capital Hoysala Dwarasamudra, and with the Kalachuris, who occupied the Chalukyan capital for over 35 years from about 1150-1151, the kingdom of Chalukya already began to dissolve.
[68] Pararaton says only that the king was a drunkard and loved good food. He sacked his proficient prime minister Raganatha (Kebo Arema) and appointed Aragoni, who could serve him delicious food every day. Aragani is also known as Kebo Tengali, although some scholars say they were two separate men. He drank palm wine and held this eventually led to his death – he was killed by his enemies at one of his wild parties. Part Ten – 104 Kings of Cambodia, Champa, Sri Vjaya Kingdom of Indonesia and Pallava The first Chola kings, for whom there is hard evidence, are mentioned in Sangam literature. Scholars generally agree that this literature belongs to the last centuries BCE and the first centuries of the Common Era. [23] The internal chronology of this literature is far from clear, and a coherent account of the history of this period cannot be drawn at present. It records the names of kings and princes and poets who praised them.
[24] The Cholas system of government was monarchical, as in the Sangam era. [27] However, there was little in common between the local chiefdoms of the earlier period and the imperial states of Rajaraja Chola and his successors. [103] In addition to the first capital Thanjavur and the later capital Gangaikonda Cholapuram, Kanchipuram and Madurai were considered regional capitals where courts were occasionally held. The king was the supreme leader and a benevolent authoritarian. His administrative role was to give verbal orders to the officers in charge when approached. Due to the absence of a legislature or legislative system in the modern sense, the fairness of royal orders depends on one`s morality and belief in the Dharma. The Chola kings built temples and endowed them with great wealth. Temples functioned not only as places of worship, but also as centers of economic activity that benefited the community as a whole. [104] Part of the production of villages across the kingdom was donated to temples, which reinvested some of the accumulated wealth in the form of loans to settlements. [105] The Chola dynasty was divided into several provinces called mandalams, which were then divided into valanadus, which were divided into units called kottams or kutrams. [106] According to Kathleen Gough, the Vellalar were the “dominant secular aristocratic caste” during the Chola period.
the courtiers, most of the army officers, the lower echelons of the kingdom`s bureaucracy and the upper layer of the peasantry.” [107] The strike surprised Srivijaya. Ships carrying elephants and flamethrowers sailed swiftly to Sumatra, taking advantage of the monsoon winds. They first looted the capital Palembang and then moved to other ports. King Sangrama Vijayatunggavarman was imprisoned. According to the Malay version of the story, Rajendra I married Vijayatunggavarman`s daughter, Onang Ki. Srivijaya Empire, a maritime and commercial kingdom that flourished between the 7th and 13th centuries, mainly in present-day Indonesia. The kingdom originated in Palembang on the island of Sumatra and quickly expanded its influence and controlled the Strait of Malacca. Srivijaya`s power was based on its control of international maritime trade. It has established trade relations not only with the states of the Malay archipelago, but also with China and India. Cera Kings update (I didn`t give numbers for Cera Kings as they are already listed in Part 8.
The Cholas under Kulothunga Chola III collaborated in the dissolution of the Chalukyas by assisting Hoysalas under Veera Ballala II, the son-in-law of the Chola monarch, and defeating the Western Chalukyas in a series of wars with Someshvara IV between 1185 and 1190. The territories of the last Chalukya king did not even include the ancient Chalukyan capitals of Badami, Manyakheta or Kalyani. This was the final dissolution of Chalukyan power, although the Chalukyas existed in name only since 1135-1140. But the Cholas remained stable until 1215, were absorbed into the Pandyan Empire and ceased to exist in 1279. [69] There was a lot of domestic trade with several items operated by the organized trading companies in different parts of the country. The metallurgical industry and the art of jewellers had attained a high degree of excellence. Sea salt production has been carried out under the supervision and control of the State. Trade was carried out by merchants organized in guilds.
Guilds, sometimes described as Nanadese, were a powerful autonomous body of merchants who visited different countries in the course of their trade. They had their own army of mercenaries to protect their property. There were also local merchant organizations called “Nagaram” in major shopping malls such as Kanchipuram and Mamallapuram. [146] [144] In the material sense, however, the result of all this was rare. The kingdom of Srivijaya was temporarily weakened, but survived. The Cholas even continued to trade with the empire and China, building a vast empire in the 11th century. Incidentally, all the other details of the expedition – its motivation and all the tangible results – were buried under the of time, away from the prying eyes of memory. Perhaps the only things that came from this expedition of enduring importance were the stories. The Cholas were probably one of the longest ruling dynasties in the world. The first mention of Cholas can be seen in the Great Rock Edict of Ashoka in the 3rd century BC. He mentions them as friends of the Maurya Empire.
The dynasty ruled until the 13th century. There is also evidence of Cholas in Periplus of the Eritrean Sea, the world`s first guide to navigation and trade. Ptolemy also mentions them. The east coast of the Indian peninsula was named Coromandel by the Cholas. It is a corruption of Choramandala or Cholamandala, which means the kingdom of Cholas.
