The Great Indian Empires III

 Blog#19

The Chola Kingdom

 

Abstracts

During the medieval period, three powerful kingdoms- the Chera Kingdom, the Chola Kingdom and the Pandya kingdom, all had a dominating power in the political sphere of the South India. The Cholas of the Chola Kingdom were the most powerful among these kingdoms. They were the earliest ruling dynasty of the South. Some of the references about them have been found in one of the sacred books of the Hindus- The Mahabharata as well as in the inscriptions of Ashoka.

 

Introduction

The Medieval Period in India

The term ‘medieval’ in history is referred to indicate a stage in the development of a civilization. Historians find it more convenient to divide history mainly into three broad periods- ancient history, medieval history and modern history. The medieval period in India is said to have begun about eighth century CE.

The Chera Kingdom was one of the earliest dynasties of the South occupying the western coast of the present day Kerela. The Cheras were defeated by the Pallavas in the fourth century. During the sixth century, the Pandyas came into prominence threatening the neighboring kingdoms of the Pallavas and the Cheras. The Pandya Kingdom was attacked by the Cholas and the area ruled by them was occupied by the Cholas in the early tenth century ending the Pandya Kingdom.

 

Age of the Imperial Cholas

The Sources

The Inscriptions: The Inscriptions found at various places in the Tamil Kingdom and the monuments of the time form the chief archaeological sources. These inscriptions were engraved on stones and metals.

The Tamil copper plate inscription contains records of grants of villages, plots of cultivable lands or other privileges. It was given to individuals or public institutions by the ministers of the various South Indian Kings. The study of these inscriptions has been especially important in reconstructing the history of Tamil Nadu.

 

The Brihadeshwara Temple: The Chola emperors had built grand temples and palaces. The temples became the center of major political, economic and cultural activities. The Cholas represent the finest tradition of sculpture, dance, music, literature and art of Tamil culture. Some of the important monuments of the Cholas are the Gangaikonda Cholapuram Temple and Brihadeshwara Temple at Thanjavur, the Koranganatha Temple at Tiruchirappali and Airavateshwara Temple at Darasuram.

The Brihadeshwara Temple testifies to the Chola’s radiant achievements in Architecture, painting, bronze casting, the art as well as sculpture. The Brihadeshwara Temple, also known as the Big Temple, is believed to be the first granite temple in the world. It was constructed in Thanjavur by Rajaraja I in the year 1010.

The temple’s architecture had many unique features. Its tower is one of the finest examples of the Dravidian art. Known as the Vimana, the tower of the temple is about seventy meters high and is among the tallest of its kind in the world. The Shikhara or the crown is large and heavy as about eighty metric tons and has been carved out of a single stone. The temple has a massive Shiva Lingam which is about nine meters high. At the entrance of the temple, sits a huge stone bull, the Nandi, which is considered as one of the largest in the world.  The walls of the temple are adorned with beautiful sculptures of Gods and Goddesses.

UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) designated the Brihadeshwara Temple as a world Heritage Site in 1987, and also, the Brihadeshwara Temple completed its millennium in the year 2010.

 

The Chola Kingdom: It’s History

The First Phase of the Chola Kingdom: The first phase of the Chola Kingdom was established by Karikala during the year about 280 BCE. It continued till about 200 CE. However, this kingdom lost its glory and power and they were over shadowed by the Cheras and the Pandyas.

The Second phase of the Chola Kingdom: the seond phase of the Chola Kingdom arose after the decline of the Pallavas in about 848 CE. These are some informational facts about the Chola Kingdom.

Some informational facts about the Chola Empire:

Founder: Vijalaya Chola

Reign of the Empire: 848 CE to 1279 CE

First Ruler:  Vijayalaya Chola (848 CE to 891 CE)

Last Ruler:                         Rajendra Chola (1226 CE to 1279 CE)

Total number of Rulers: 21

Prominent Rulers:           Rajaraja I (985 CE to 1014 CE),

Rajendra Chola I (1014 CE to 1044 CE)

 

The founder of the second phase of the Chola Kingdom was Vijayalaya (848 CE to 891 CE). Vijayalaya defeated the Pallavas and captured Thanjavur, which later became the capital of the dynasty. Vijayalaya was succeeded by his son Aditya Chola (891 CE to 907 CE), who defeated the last ruler of the Pallava Kingdom, Aparajita and annexed the kingdom.

Aditya Chola’s successor Parantaka Chola, who ruled for forty three years, from 907 CE to 950 CE, had further enhanced the Chola Empire. Before he conquered the Pandya Kingdom, the Pandyan Ruler, Maravarmana Rajasimha II, sought out help from the king of Sri Lanka. The king of Sri Lanka sent a troop of army as a military aid for the Pandyan ruler, but Parantaka Chola defeated the combined army of the Pandya Kingdom as well as of the Sri Lanka. The Pandyan Ruler fled for an exile to Sri Lanka and Parantaka Chola annexed the entire territory of Pandyas.

The Chola Power was at its height during the tenth and eleventh Centuries CE. The imperial greatness of the Cholas was achieved during the rule of Rajaraja I and his successor Rajendra Chola I.

Rajaraja I

Rajaraja I the third child of Parantaka Chola, laid the foundation for the growth of the Chola Kingdom into the Empire by conquering the kingdoms of South India.

The Chola Empire expanded as far as possible; from Sri lanka in the South to Kalinga (in the present day state of Odisha, India) in the east under the rule of Rajaraja I. he fought many battles with the Chalukyas in the North and the Pandyas in the South.

In the first eight years of his reign, he organized and increased the strength of his army. His first attack was on the Chera ruler, Bhaskara Ravi Varman, and also conquered the Kandalur Salai, which belonged to the Chera king. The western and the eastern Chalukyas of the deccan were also conquered by Rajaraja I. A few years later, the Eastern Chalukya prince, Vimaladitya, married the eldest daughter of Rajaraja I. Vimaladitya became the king of Vengi, but the area was still under the Chola Empire. The army of Rajaraja I crossed the ocean by ships, and burnt Ceylon (now known as Sri Lanka) and also destroyed Anuradhapura, the capital of Ceylon. They also captured the northern half part of the island and the rest was captured by the successor of Rajaraja I, Rajendra Chola I.  

One of the greatest achievements of Rajaraja I was the building of a powerful army as well as navy, which had played a great role in the creation and maintenance of the vast Chola Empire. The kingdom under Rajaraja I included the part of Karnataka, Kalinga (Odisha), Northern part of Ceylon (Sri Lanka), the whole Tamil Nadu and some minor Islands.

Rajaraja I was not only a great military leader, but also an efficient administrator, a great builder and a patron of arts and literature. He made excellent arrangements for the administration of his vast empire. The famous Brihadeshwara Temple built by him was a living representation of his construction activities. He was a Shaiva Bhakta but was tolerant towards other religions and sects as well.

 

Rajendra Chola I 

Rajaraja I was succeeded by his son Rajendra Chola I in 1014 CE. The powerful army and navy, which were organized under Rajendra Chola I, achieved even greater heights under him. His army is believed to have at least 1.7 million (seventeen lakh) soldiers. Rajendra Chola I continued the ambitious conquests of his father and added more territories to the Chola Empire.  The title of ‘Gangaikonda Cholam’ (the Chola who brought the Ganges to his heel) was given to Rajendra Chola I, as he defeated the Pala king to bring the water of holy River Ganga to his home town.

A few years after he became the king, about 1017 CE, he started a campaign against Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and his huge army took over the capital of Ceylon, Anuradhapura. The Sinhala King, Mahindra V was taken as a prisioner, and thus Rajendra Chola I finished the task of capturing the island of Ceylon (Sri Lanka), which was started by his father, Rajaraja I. after that, he turned his attention towards the Western Chalukyas about 1021 CE. He defeated the king of Western Chalukya, Jayasimha II. After that, the River Tungabhadra was considered as the boundary between the Chola Empire and the Chalukya Empire.

His most famous expedition was to North India. The Chola army crossed the Ganges by defeating a number of rulers on his way. The Empires such as Kalinga and Vengi gave up in front of the Chola army. The Pala kingdom challenged the capacity of the Chola army. It became one of the bloodiest wars of that time in which Rajendra Chola I’s army defeated the Pala kingdom. He took the title of ‘Gangaikonda Cholam’ Rajendra chola I also found a new capital for his Empire, known as Gangaikonda Cholapuram.

His next aim was to conquer the east. He sent a naval expedition to the Indo-Chinese peninsula Indonesian Archipelago as well as to the Malay Archipelago in the year 1025 to hold back Srivijaya. The causes of this hostility are not clear. Some scholars suggests that the campaign was enforced to capture and establish Chola dominance over those lands, while others claim that it might be a war of Plunder (to steal the wealth and goods  of the people forcibly). Rajendra Chola I had heard from the marchants of Kaveripattinam about the rich people of those kingdoms. As a result, he strengthens his army and navy and sent it on an expedition to conquer those lands. Watching its massive army, the kings of the Southeast Asia, such as Burma, Malay Archipelago and Indo-Chinese Peninsula submitted their kingdom to Rajendra Chola I, rather than the idea to fight with his army. All the lands around the Bay of Bengal was conquered by the Cholas, hence it was also known as the ‘Chola Lake’.

 

In addition of being a capable hostile administrator, Rajendra Chola I was a great builder. The Shiva temple at Gangaikonda Cholapuram, which is considered as a near replica of the Brihadeshwara Temple of Thanjavur, is his greatest achievement. He also built a Shiva Temple on the banks of River Ganga. He brought river Ganga’s water to his homeland in the South and sprinkled it on all the major temples in his town. He even sent artisans to build a temple at Angkor Wat, the world’s largest temple complex in Cambodia.

As an efficient administrator, he made changes in the village administration that his father had introduced. He formalized it as the panchayat system which allowed local people to decide issues which were affecting their life.

The Chola Empire lost its former glory after Rajendra Chola I. Its last ruler was defeated by the Pandyas in 1279. Thereafter, the Pandyas, Gangas as well as the Hoysalas established their independent kingdoms on the ruins of the powerful Cholas.

 

Conclusion

The Chola Empire, considered as one of the vastest empires of India, had started to decline a century after the rule of the great ruler, Rajendra Chola I. The last ruler, Rajendra Chola III was defeated by a Pandya ruler during the late thirteenth century. The Great Chola Empire, with its centuries of rule in the South India, declined apart after having dominance in its region for about a millennium.

 

 

 

 

 

Some Common & Important Abbreviations:

CE: Common Era or the period since the birth of Christ.

 

Number of words: 2000

 

 

Sources of Data:

WIKIPEDIA

GOOGLE and Other Websites

ICSE AGES AND EVENTS IX- PEARSON

OTHER COARSE MATERIALS

ICSE Understanding HISTORY AND CIVICS PART VI (by AVICHAL PUBLISHING COMPANY)