Ascent
In the year, 1404, the kingdom of Mysore was a small tributary state of the Vijayanagara Empire, consisting of only a handful of villages around Mysore. To the south east of the city, the Chamundi Hill was already a budding pilgrimage center; the Hoysalas had built the temple to Chamundi atop the hill in the twelfth century. By then, the place had already been identified as one of the Shakti Peethas, the exact locations according to Puranic myth, where the parts of Sati's body fell to the earth as Shiva danced the Tandava with her corpse in his arms.
Yaduraya, the founder of the Wodeyar Dynasty, ruled through a period of tumult at the court of his overlords in Vijayanagara. Both at the beginning and at the end of Yaduraya's reign, Vijayanagara was struck by court intrigues, plots and assassinations. Yaduraya however, quietly consolidated his position taking control of surrounding villages. Yaduraya's son, Chamaraja I, who ruled for thirty-six years, was the vassal of Deva Raya II of Vijayanagara, probably the greatest king, that the empire would see. Under Deva Raya II, Vijayanagara stretched from the eastern coast to the western coast. He exacted tributes from Cochin, Calicut and Ceylon. In this period of prosperity, Mysore under Chamaraja I, prospered as well.
Chamaraja's son, Thimmaraja I, succeeded him in 1459. After Deva Raya II, the Vijayaraja kings had descended into corruption and decadence. During the reign of Thimmaraja, Vijayanagara was attacked by the Gajaptis of Odisha and the Bahmani Sultanate. Ceding territories to both of them, the footprint of Vijayanagara reduced in size, even as Thimmaraja tried to expand his lands slowly. Thimmaraja's son, Chamaraja II ruled under eight different Vijayanagara kings from three dynasties, in a period of twenty-five years between 1478 and 1513. Lacking a stable ruler, Mysore's overlord had fallen on harder times. To the north and south their territories had contracted leaving them with a band of land that still stretched from sea to sea. The Bahmanis had splintered into five smaller, but powerful Sultanatea ruling from Bidar, Bijapur, Berar, Ahmednagar and Golconda. The Portuguese had found a route around Africa; Vasca da Gama landed in India in 1498, and soon the Portuguese started to capture ports along the western coast. Mysore too, sensing the weakening of their master's control began to strain at the bit, decreasing their tributes and acquiring more land under their control. Chamaraja III, the son of Chamaraja II, initially ruled under Krishna Deva Raya, the other great Vijayanagara Emperor, who ruled for twenty years, checking the Sultanatea in the north, the Gajapatis in the East and the Portuguese in the west until his death in 1529.
The death of Krishna Deva Raya heralded the beginning of the end for the Vijayanagara Empire. Far to the north, Babur's Moghul forces had invaded India and sought to oust the remnants of the Turko-Afghan Sultans in the north. To the south, the five Sultanates of the Deccan finally started to band together to end the Vijayanagara Empire for once and for all. In an important event in the history of Mysore, Chamaraja III had constructed a fort at Puragiri, the land on which the famous Mysore Palace stands today. This was one more indication that the young kingdom was now outgrowing it's adolescence and was ready to become a formidable political power. Chamaraja's son, Thimmaraja II, formally declared Mysore's independence, though it would take another generation to take effect.
In 1565, at the Battle of Talikota, the final assault on Vijayanagara would be held. The Sultanates of the Deccan in a joint force attacked and defeated the Vijayanagara Emperor, Aliya Rama Raya, who was captured and beheaded. The beautiful city of Vijayanagara, was one of the largest and richest cities of the world was sacked and left in ruins. Vijayanagara would continue to exist as an independent kingdom for another eighty years, but it would be a shadow of its former self, no longer a great political power. The Battle of Talikota is often seen as a major milestone of Indian history, considered by some as the fall of the last Hindu power. But, this view does not consider that Talikota would be the final impetus to push Mysore towards the peak of its own existence. Mysore would be a major political power for four centuries, after which it would shape the Indian state of Karnataka.
Chamaraja III, the fifth ruler of the Wodeyar Dynasty, had three sons and one daughter that we know of. His eldest son succeeded him as Thimmaraja II, ruling for twenty years between 1553 and 1572. When he died, his younger brother succeeded him. Chamaraja IV, also called Bola Chamaraja, for his baldness, was already sixty-five when he ascended the throne, and he died four years later. His nephew, another Chamaraja, succeeded him to rule only for two years. It looked like Mysore was suddenly going the way of its old predecessor.
The next king of Mysore was only twenty-six when he ascended the throne. Younger than his cousin who preceded him, and his father, Bola Chamaraja. Raja Wodeyar, now called Raja I Wodeyar would finally break the cord that held Mysore and Vijayanagara together and his reign would be a new beginning for the city and the kingdom, establishing traditions that would carry to the present day. He would also be the cause and target of Alamelamma's sinister curse.
Click here for Part 4.
Yaduraya, the founder of the Wodeyar Dynasty, ruled through a period of tumult at the court of his overlords in Vijayanagara. Both at the beginning and at the end of Yaduraya's reign, Vijayanagara was struck by court intrigues, plots and assassinations. Yaduraya however, quietly consolidated his position taking control of surrounding villages. Yaduraya's son, Chamaraja I, who ruled for thirty-six years, was the vassal of Deva Raya II of Vijayanagara, probably the greatest king, that the empire would see. Under Deva Raya II, Vijayanagara stretched from the eastern coast to the western coast. He exacted tributes from Cochin, Calicut and Ceylon. In this period of prosperity, Mysore under Chamaraja I, prospered as well.
Chamaraja's son, Thimmaraja I, succeeded him in 1459. After Deva Raya II, the Vijayaraja kings had descended into corruption and decadence. During the reign of Thimmaraja, Vijayanagara was attacked by the Gajaptis of Odisha and the Bahmani Sultanate. Ceding territories to both of them, the footprint of Vijayanagara reduced in size, even as Thimmaraja tried to expand his lands slowly. Thimmaraja's son, Chamaraja II ruled under eight different Vijayanagara kings from three dynasties, in a period of twenty-five years between 1478 and 1513. Lacking a stable ruler, Mysore's overlord had fallen on harder times. To the north and south their territories had contracted leaving them with a band of land that still stretched from sea to sea. The Bahmanis had splintered into five smaller, but powerful Sultanatea ruling from Bidar, Bijapur, Berar, Ahmednagar and Golconda. The Portuguese had found a route around Africa; Vasca da Gama landed in India in 1498, and soon the Portuguese started to capture ports along the western coast. Mysore too, sensing the weakening of their master's control began to strain at the bit, decreasing their tributes and acquiring more land under their control. Chamaraja III, the son of Chamaraja II, initially ruled under Krishna Deva Raya, the other great Vijayanagara Emperor, who ruled for twenty years, checking the Sultanatea in the north, the Gajapatis in the East and the Portuguese in the west until his death in 1529.
The death of Krishna Deva Raya heralded the beginning of the end for the Vijayanagara Empire. Far to the north, Babur's Moghul forces had invaded India and sought to oust the remnants of the Turko-Afghan Sultans in the north. To the south, the five Sultanates of the Deccan finally started to band together to end the Vijayanagara Empire for once and for all. In an important event in the history of Mysore, Chamaraja III had constructed a fort at Puragiri, the land on which the famous Mysore Palace stands today. This was one more indication that the young kingdom was now outgrowing it's adolescence and was ready to become a formidable political power. Chamaraja's son, Thimmaraja II, formally declared Mysore's independence, though it would take another generation to take effect.
In 1565, at the Battle of Talikota, the final assault on Vijayanagara would be held. The Sultanates of the Deccan in a joint force attacked and defeated the Vijayanagara Emperor, Aliya Rama Raya, who was captured and beheaded. The beautiful city of Vijayanagara, was one of the largest and richest cities of the world was sacked and left in ruins. Vijayanagara would continue to exist as an independent kingdom for another eighty years, but it would be a shadow of its former self, no longer a great political power. The Battle of Talikota is often seen as a major milestone of Indian history, considered by some as the fall of the last Hindu power. But, this view does not consider that Talikota would be the final impetus to push Mysore towards the peak of its own existence. Mysore would be a major political power for four centuries, after which it would shape the Indian state of Karnataka.
Chamaraja III, the fifth ruler of the Wodeyar Dynasty, had three sons and one daughter that we know of. His eldest son succeeded him as Thimmaraja II, ruling for twenty years between 1553 and 1572. When he died, his younger brother succeeded him. Chamaraja IV, also called Bola Chamaraja, for his baldness, was already sixty-five when he ascended the throne, and he died four years later. His nephew, another Chamaraja, succeeded him to rule only for two years. It looked like Mysore was suddenly going the way of its old predecessor.
The next king of Mysore was only twenty-six when he ascended the throne. Younger than his cousin who preceded him, and his father, Bola Chamaraja. Raja Wodeyar, now called Raja I Wodeyar would finally break the cord that held Mysore and Vijayanagara together and his reign would be a new beginning for the city and the kingdom, establishing traditions that would carry to the present day. He would also be the cause and target of Alamelamma's sinister curse.
Click here for Part 4.
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