Gangaikonda Cholapuram - History
Rajendra Chola-I (1012-1044 A.D) son of
the Great Rajaraja-I, established this temple after his great victorious
march to river Ganges on Northern India. He was originally
called Madurantakan. He assumed the title of Rajendra during his
coronation and continued to rule along with his father Rajaraja-I for a while.
He achieved the supreme title of Cholas called Parakesari.
Rajendra-I, a great warrior and assisted his father, is
numerous expeditions to elevate the Cholas to supreme power. The various
expeditions, he conducted, were: Gangetic expedition, eastern/western
Chalukyas, war against Cheras/Pandyas, Ceylon expedition, Kadaram (currently
called as Burma) expedition etc.
His empire extended the whole of southern India
to river Thungabhadra in the north India, for administrative and
strategic purpose he built another capital and
named Gangaikondacholapuram. The Gangaikondacholapuram temple, he
constructed consists of 3 stories and surrounded by a huge fort like wall, the
outer wall was greatly destructed during the English rule (1896 A.D) to reuse
the building material (Granite rocks) for constructing the Lower
Anicut (Dam across river Kollidam). He built around 10 temples at various
places.
He assumed the title of Gangaikonda Cholan and
named his new capital as Gangaikondacholapuram and he also constructed a
huge Lake known as Chola Gangam that spreads 22 km mainly used for
drinking and irrigation. A statue of Rajendra-I is found in Kolaram
temple at Kolar of Karnataka state in India.
Rajendra the Builder
Gangaikonda Chola Rajendra I, was the son of Rajaraja I
through his queen, Vanavan madevi, also called Tribhuvana madevi, evidently a
Chera princess. Ardra was the star of Rajendra's nativity.
Rajendra was a boy when Rajaraja ascended the throne in
985 A.D. Under the care and guidance of his father, he grew up as the most
powerful general in Tamil history. Once he reached twenty years old, he led a
Chola army into the heart of the Western Chalukya kingdom. He was then called
Narmadi Chola Rajendra Vidyadhara and the ornament of the Chola race. In this
campaign Rajendra is said to have advanced as far north as Bijapur District
with an army of 900,000 and as a result, territories upto Rattapadi were
annexed to the Chola Empire. He is also identified with Pancavan Maraya, who
served as the Mahadandanayaka of the Vengi and Ganga countries.
Between March 27th and July 7th, 1012 A.D, Rajendra was
chosen heir apparent by Rajaraja. Rajendra jointly ruled with his father for nearly
four years till 1016 A.D., when Rajaraja passed away.
On the state of the empire at the time of Rajendra's
accession, Rajendra inherited from his father an extensive empire comprising
the whole of the modern Madras and Andhra and parts of Mysore and the island of
Ceylon. The administration had been carefully organized and a fairly powerful
bureaucracy brought into existence, which while it scrupulously respected the
'liberties' feudal and corporate, of the various magnates and associations that
studded the land, successfully maintained the king's peace and enforced all
civil rights. The army was a strong and tried body of men, well able to defend
the wide land frontier and to keep down any threatened outbreaks in areas newly
subjected to the empire and ready for aggressive warfare abroad. The hold on
Ceylon and some other islands like the Maldives islands was securely maintained
by a powerful naval force which also served to protect the considerable
overseas trade of the empire with the islands of the East Indies and with
China. During the thirty-three years of his reign, Rajendra turned these
initial advantages to the best possible use and succeeded in raising the Chola Empire
to the position of the most extensive and most respected Hindu state of his time.
Rajendra fought many battles and won every one of them.
For every victory he gained, he assumed a title commemorating his success. He
also conferred titles on his victorious generals. The moment he assumed
independent sovereignty, he embarked on a 'conquest of the quarters', the
digvijaya.
The western Chalukyas were probably the first target of
his attack. Rajendra conquered "Idaiturai-nadu, Banavasi, encircled by a
continuous hedge of forest, Kollipakkai whose ramparts were surrounded by sulli
trees, and Mannaikadakkam whose fortifications were unapproachable, all in a
single campaign, directed against Satyasraya the Chalukya ruler. Idaiturai-nadu
was the country between the rivers Krishna in the north and Tungabhadra in the
south comprising a large part of the present Raichur District.
"Kollippakkai lies about 45 miles north-east of Hyderabad and is now
called Kulpak. Mannaikadakkam is identified with Manyakheda (modern Malkhed).
In this campaign, the Chola emperor, crossed the Tungabhadra and attacked the
capital of the Chalukyas. After completing his successful expedition in the
north Rajendra started on a southern campaign in which he defeated the Pandyas,
the Kerala ruler and finally the king of Ceylon. Of Rajendra's southern
campaign the Thiruvalangadu copper charter gives the following account.
This famous and heroic king, possessed of a powerful
army, and bent upon the performance of meritorious deeds with heaps of money
acquired by his own arm, then set his heart upon a digvijaya.
Accordingly, after arranging for the protection of his
own capital, the unrivalled king Uttama-Chola, first started in the direction
marked by Trisanku (the south) desirous of conquering the Pandya king.
The commander dandanatha of the ornament of the solar
race thereupon struck the Pandya king who had a great force; and the Pandya
abandoned his home in fright and fled for refuge to the Malaya Mountain, the
abode of Agastya.
Rajaraja's son the master of policy took possession of
the bright spotless pearls, the seeds of the spotless fame of the Pandya kings.
After establishing there his own son Sri Chola Pandya
for the protection of the Pandya country, the light of the solar race then
proceeded to the conquest of the West.
Having heard of the ignominy sustained by kings at the
hands of Bhargava in battle, this proud king, finding him on the face of the
earth, developed a desire to conquer the lands created by him.
Who else other than this supreme lord (Paramesvara) can
entertain the thought in his mind of subjugating the ancient land protected by
the glory of the ornament of the Bhrgukula and free from the inroads of
enemies?
The fearless Madhurantaka crossed the Sahya Mountain and
forthwith set upon the Kerala in great force and there ensued a fierce battle
which brought ruins upon kings.
After having conquered the Kerala kings and harrowed the
land guarded by the austerities of the lord of the Bhrigus, the prince returned
to his capital, the abode of prosperity.
Both the Pandya and Kerala countries were placed under
the viceroyalty of his son who was crowned at Madurai, with the title Jatavarman
Sundara-Chola Pandya. Rajendra is said to have built a palace at Madurai. The
Chera king, Rajasimha, built a temple to Lord Vishnu at Mannarkoil, naming it
Rajendra Chola Vinnagaram after Rajendra.
Rajendra then invaded Ceylon. His father had defeated
earlier Mahinda V and annexed a major part of Ceylon to the Chola empire and
named it Mummudi-Chola Mandalam with many sub divisions called Rajaraja
Valanadu, Vikrama chola Valanadu etc. Rajendra’s expedition was thorough and
complete. His Karandai plates record that "Rajendra conquered the king of
Ceylon with a fierce army and seized his territory, his queen, and her crown,
his daughter, all his wealth, his transport, and the spotless garland of India,
and crown of the Pandya left in his charge; after having lost the battle and
being shorn of his queen, son and other belongings, the king of Ceylon, out of
fear, came and sought the two feet of Rajendra as shelter".
The Ceylonese chronicle, Mahavamsa confirms this account
and states that with Pulattinagara as base the Cholas held sway over Raja ratta
as far as the locality known as Rakkhapasanakanta ... king Mahinda dwelt twelve
years in the Chola land and entered into heaven in the forty-eight years (from
his ascent of the throne)".
Probably Rajendra personally headed his army and brought
the entire island of Ceylon under Chola rule. Towards the end of his reign
however, there was an uprising in south Ceylon which was dealt with by his able
son, Rajadhiraja I.
Rajendra next sent his celebrated expedition to the
Gangetic plain to bring holy waters to purify his own land, after inflicting
crushing defeats on all enemy forces upto Bengal. His Thiruvalangadu copper
charter states that "the light of the solar race (Rajendra), mocking
Bhagiratha who by the force of his austerities caused the descent of the Ganga,
set out to sanctify his own land with the waters of that stream brought by the
strength of his arm.
"He seized Sakkarakottam, whose warriors were
brave; Maduramandalam destroyed in a trice, the prosperous city of
Namanaikkonam with its dense groves, Pancapalli whose warriors bore cruel bows,
Masunidesa with its green fields, a large heap of family treasures together
with many other treasures which he carried away after capturing the Indraratha
of the ancient race of the moon together with his family in a fight which took
place at Adinagar; a city whose great fame knew no decline, Oddavisaya which
was difficult of approach on account of its dense forest defence; the good
Kosalainadu, where Brahmins assembled; Tandabhutti, in whose gardens bees
abounded, after having destroyed Dhammapala in a hot battle; Takkanaladam whose
fame reached all directions and which be occupied after forcefully attacking
Ranasura; Vangaladesa where the rain water never stopped and from which
Govindachandra fled, having descended from his male elephant; elephants of rare
strength, women and treasure which he seized after having been pleased to put
to flight in a hot battlefield the strong Mahipala by the sound of a conch from
the deep sea; Uttaraladam on the horses of the expansive ocean producing pearls
and the Ganga whose waters bearing fragrant flowers dashed against the bathing
places".
Rajendra's father had integrated the Eastern Chalukya
kingdom of Vengi politically and dynastically with the Chola line. As a result
of Rajendra's expedition all the countries north of Vengi, which included
Kalinga, Odda, Southern Kosala, the lower and upper Lada and finally the Vangaladesa
(Bengal) were made to bow before the might of this Chola emperor. Rajendra
himself went upto the banks of the Godavari, where he awaited the return of his
triumphant army, which brought Ganges water in golden vessels, carried on the
heads of the vanquished rulers.
Almost a thousand years before Rajendra, a Chera king of
the Sangam age, Senguttuvan had marched upto the Himalayas with an army to
bring a stone to carve an image of Goddess Pattini, which he enshrined in a
temple erected for the purpose. Two northern kings are said to have opposed
Senguttuvan's march, but they were vanquished in a trice and made to carry the
stone on their head. This account is recorded in the Silappadikaram. Some
critics doubt its authenticity. But Rajendra's expedition was an important
landmark. According to R.D. Banerjee, "the invasion of the great southern
conqueror, Rajendra Chola I, seems to have left a permanent mark in Bengal.
Some obscure Karnataka chief seems to have followed Rajendra and settled in
West Bengal. From him was descended Samantasena, who is generally taken to be
the founder of the Sena dynasty". To commemorate this celebrated victory,
Rajendra assumed the title of Gangaikonda Chola, a name given not only to his
new capital (Gangaikonda Cholapuram) but also to his temple.
The conquest of the overseas island of Sumatra and the
Malay Peninsula forms the most important even in the life of Rajendra and
perhaps in the annals of South Indian history. This triumphant naval expedition
was directed against the ruler of Srivijaya who also held sway over Kadaram.
Rajaraja had cordial relations with Srimara
Vijayottunga-varmen, the ruler of Srivijaya who visited the Chola country and
erected a Buddhist Vihara in the name of his father for which Rajaraja gifted
lands and money. After his father's death Rajendra confirmed the grant to this
Vihara. But the relationship became strained subsequently. Either the
flourishing overseas trade of Cholas was obstructed or Rajendra having
conquered the countries in the north, west, and south wished to conquer the
east, to complete his digvijaya. The Nicobar Islands, the upper and lower
Sumatran islands known as Ilamuridesa, Srivijaya, Singapore, the Malay peninsula
and the lower part of Burma were subjugated. A number of places where he fought
are detailed in Rajendra's Tamil inscriptions.
'Rajendra having dispatched many ships in the midst of
the rolling sea and having caught Sangrama Vijayottunga Varman, the king of
Kadaram, together with the elephants in his glorious army, took the large heap
of treasuries which that king had rightfully accumulated, captured with noise,
the arch called Vidyadhara torana at the war-gate of his extensive city.
Srivijaya which the jeweled wicked gated adorned with great splendour and the
gate of large jewels; Pannai with water in its bathing ghats; the ancient
Malaiyur with the strong mountain for its rampart; Mayirudingam surrounded by
the deep sea as by a moat; Ilangasoka (Lankasoka) undaunted in fierce battles;
Mappalam having fine walls as defence; Valaippanduru having Valaippanduru;
Talaittakkolam praised by great men and (versed in) the sciences; Madamalingam,
firm in great and fierce battles; Ilamuridesam whose fierce strength rose in
war, Manakkhavaram in whose extensive flower gardens honey was collecting; and
Kadaram of fierce strength which was protected by the deep sea'.
To commemorate his victories Rajendra assumed the title
of Kadaramkonda chola. Rajendra thus completed a brilliant digvijaya
"conquest of quarters', which made him a Chakravarti.
"The closing years of Rajendra's reign formed the
most splendid period of the history of the Cholas of the Vijayalaya line. The
extent of the empire was at its widest and its military and naval prestige
stood at its highest. There remained the necessity ever present in military
empires of carrying out punitive expeditions to suppress out breaks and keep
the conquest territories under control. The emperor was ably assisted by his
talented sons and other members of his family and the tasks of imperial administration
were thus put in commission".
Rajendra had many titles like Madhurantaka, Uttama
chola, Vira chola, Mudikonda chola, Pandita chola, Gangaikonda chola, Gangaiyum
Purvadesamum Kadaramum Konda Ayyan. He had many queens of whom Vanavanmadevi,
Mukkolilan, Pancavan madevi and Vira madevi deserve mention. The last mentioned
entered the funeral pyre with her husband at his death.
Later history
The first Chola king to be crowned at Gangaikonda Cholapuram
was Rajakesari Rajadhiraja I, the eldest son of Rajendra I. He had been
installed as crown prince very early in Rajendra's reign (1018 A.D.) and till
his death in 1054; he had a life of warfare. He is probably identical with
Sundara Chola Pandya, who was installed as the viceroy of the Pandya country in
his father's reign. He quelled a rebellion in Ceylon, conquered a Pandya who
fomented trouble, and dealt severely with the ruler of Venad. In the north he
led three expeditions against the Chalukyas, ransacked Kalyanapura, their
capital, and captured Kollapura. To commemorate this victory he assumed the
title, Kalyanapuramum, Kollapuramum Konda Vijayarajendra. A few sculptures of
exceptional beauty were brought by him as war trophies from Kalyanapura. One of
the sculptures bears an inscription recording the fact that it was brought by
Vijayarajendra from Kalyanapura after its conquest. Evidently, the sculptures
of Durga, Ganesa, and the solar pitha now in Gangaikonda cholapuram, were also
brought home. Rajadhiraja performed the asvamedha, to celebrate his victories.
In 1054, at an advanced age, he led his army against the Chalukyas and fought a
battle at Koppam, on the banks of the Tungabhadra. Rajadhiraja was mortally
wounded while seated on his elephant. The Chola army fell into disarray and
began to retreat in great confusion. The Chalukya army pressed forward with
great force. Rajadhiraja's younger brother, Rajendra II, who was stationed
behind, marched forward at great risk. The Chola army regrouped itself and
followed its master. Rajendra was wounded in the thigh and lost some of his
close associates. Nothing daunted, Rajendra moved forward, killing many able
Chalukya generals. The Chalukya army was shattered. Somesvara, the Chalukya
king, fled. Many able Chalukya warriors lost their life or were taken
prisoners. Thus Rajendra converted an almost imminent defeat into a brilliant
success. As if to commemorate this brilliant success, Rajendra crowned himself
king on the battlefield, while his wounds were still fresh on his body. Thus
the second son of Rajendra I was crowned not at Gangaikondacholapuram, his
capital, but on the battlefield. Rajadhiraja came to be called 'the elder
brother who lost his life on an elephant'.
Rajendra II was succeeded by his younger brother
Virarajendra, who also won victories over the Chalukya after winning a decisive
battle against the Kalyani Chalukya, Vikramaditya. Virarajendra gave his
daughter in marriage to him. The earliest epigraph found on the temple belongs
to the reign of Virarajendra. The epigraph records the issue of orders by
Virarajendra confirming the gifts made by his father Rajendra I, and elder
brother Rajadhiraja I.
After Virarajendra passed away, his son Adhirajendra
ascended the throne. He was quite friendly with his brother-in-law.
Adhirajendra was a weak ruler, while Vikramaditya was shrewd and able. The
trained and seasoned Chola generals saw a danger to the Chola Empire in this
alliance. They refused to accept Adhirajendra. The Cholas always chose not the
eldest son, but the ablest as their successors. The Chola generals were guided
by this principle. But Vikramaditya came to the rescue Adhirajendra. Marching
on Kanchi, he punished those who rebelled there and reaching Gangaikonda Cholapuram,
crowned his brother-in-law as Chola king. He stayed there for two months to
make the position of Adhirajendra secure and then returned to his capital. As
soon as Vikramaditya left Gangaikonda Cholapuram, the Chola generals rebelled
and in the uprising Adhirajendra lost his life.
Ammanga Devi, a daughter of Rajendra I was married to
the Eastern Chalukya ruler, Rajaraja Narendra. Their son was named Rajendra,
the future Kulottunga. From Kalingattup parani, a heroic poem composed on him
by Jayamkondar, it is learnt that Kulottunga was born and brought up in
Gangaikonda Cholapuram. He had his education, military and other training and
was crowned Yuvaraja by Virarajendra at Gangaikonda Cholapuram. At the time of
the uprising, at Gangaikonda Cholapuram Kulottunga was waging a war in the
north. He at once rushed to Gangaikonda Cholapuram. The Chola generals found in
him a capable ruler crowned him Chola emperor in the name of Kulottunga. He
immediately restored peace in the kingdom. A fragmentary inscription mentioning
his mother Ammangadevi is preserved in the Gangaikonda Cholapuram temple. One
of his inscriptions is also found in the temple. It refers to a gift of land to
some other temple. An inscription dated in his 41st regnal year, in the temple
gives the prasasti of a Gahadavala king of Kanauj. The inscription does not
give the name of the ruler or the nature of gift, as it is left unfinished. But
according to K. A. N. Sastri it should be assigned to either Madanapala or his
son, Govindachandra of Kanauj. It points to some dynastic connection between
the Gahadavalas and the imperial Cholas. The Kalingattuparani a contemporary
poem on Kulottunga refers to Gangaikonda Cholapuram as Gangapuri. Gangaikonda Cholapuram
continued to be the capital of the successors of Kulottunga. Thus Vikrama
Chola, Kulottunga II, Rajaraja II, Rajadhiraja II and Kulottunga III retained
it as their capital. There are a few fragmentary records of Kulottunga III in
the temple.
Kulottunga III was the last of the great Chola emperors.
He won victories against Ceylon, Madurai, and Karuvur (the Cheras) and assumed
the title of Conqueror of Madurai, Karuvur and Ilam. However, towards the close
of his reign, the dynamic Maravarman Sundara Pandya humiliated him. He invaded
the Chola country and razed Tanjore and Urandai to the ground and performed the
Virabhisheka at Ayirattali and reached as far as Chidambaram. It is not known
whether Sundara Pandya captured Gangaikonda Cholapuram. At any rate, it is not
mentioned in his inscriptions. The humiliation marked the beginning of the
decline and fall of the Chola Empire and with it of the Chola capital.
Kulottunga III did not live long after this defeat and
was succeeded by an inefficient son Rajaraja III. The later was driven out of
his capital by the Pandya and tried to escape to the north to join the Kuntalas
(the Hoysalas of Mysore) but was intercepted by the Pallava chieftain, Kopperunjingan
probably at Telklaru where Rajaraja was made a captive. Hoysala Narasimha
successfully intervened and defeated the Pandya in the south. Hoysala generals
captured Kopperunjinga's territory and released the Chola. Rajaraja III was
recrowned at Gangaikonda Cholapuram as the Chola capital. Probably Rajaraja III
had a preference for that place though Gangaikonda Cholapuram continued to be
of importance.
Jatavarman Sundara, who ascended the Pandya throne in
1251, conquered territories upto Nellore and kept the Cholas under subjection.
Probably the Chola was paying tribute to him. One of Sundara's inscriptions is
found in the Gangaikonda Cholapuram temple dated in his second regnal year. Evidently,
he captured the city in his very first regnal year. Sundara established a
special worship named after him in the temple. Vikrama, who shared the Pandya
throne with him, has left an inscription in the temple.
Sundara was succeeded by Maravarman Kulasekhara, another
able ruler in 1268 A.D. He defeated and probably killed the last Chola Rajendra
III, in Kannanur in 1279. Gangaikonda Cholapuram was included in his dominion
and two inscriptions of him are found in the temple. After the death of Kulasekhara,
in 1310 the Tamil country was invaded by Malik Kafur, a Muslim general and
there was anarchy and confusion for a year. The Pandya hold on Gangaikonda Cholapuram
seems to have been weakened though they continued to hold sway in a nominal way
over this part of the country.
In 1365, Kumara Kampana, the Vijayanagara viceroy
marched as far as Rameswaram and brought the southern country under his
control. There are no records of any of the Vijayanagara rulers till 1463,
nearly a hundred years after Kampana's conquest. There is a record of
Thiruvengadamudaiyan Ekamranatha Gangeyan dated 1463, who probably was a
subordinate of the Vijayanagara ruler Mallikarjuna. An inscription of Prauda
Virupaksha, the son of Mallikarjuna dated in 1483, is in the temple. This
proves that Gangaikonda Cholapuram was in the Vijayanagara empire. An
inscription of Krishnadevaraya, in Tirthanagari (South Arcot) dated in 1517,
records that the king gifted tax-free lands to many Siva and Vishnu temples in
the Cholamandalam. Gangaikonda Cholapuram temple is amongst them.
In the early part of 16th century Gangaikonda Cholapuram
was brought under the Udaiyarpalaiyam subdivision which became the seat of
Arasukavalar, also called Poligar. They were local chieftains who acted as the
subordinates of the Vijayanagar emperors. They were to keep in perpetual
readiness certain number of elephants, cavalry and foot soldiers to march
against any army when called upon. For this purpose they were allotted certain
revenue from a number of villages, assigned to them. Gangaikonda Cholapuram
thus became a part of Udaiyarpalaiyam subdivision.
After the fall of the Vijayanagar Empire, the poligar of
Udaiyar palaiyam continued to hold an important position in the area. In 1756
the French invaded Udaiyarpalaiyam and forced the Poligar to pay a tribute of
40,000 Rupees. In 1765, the Nawab assisted by a party of English attacked the
forts of Udaiyarpalaiyam. During these battles, Gangaikonda Cholapuram temple
was probably used as a fort and considerably suffered damage. The bastions now
found outside the enclosure walls in the west were probably erected during
these wars. The district of Tiruchirappalli was handed over to the British East
India Company in 1801 when the Poligar of Udaiyarpalaiyam was paid an allowance
of Rs.1000. The estate was brought under the management of an agent of the
Nawab. In 1817 the British Government restored a portion of the Palayam to the
Poligar However Gangaikonda Cholapuram was excluded from it.
The greatest damage to the temple was done in 1836, when
a dam was erected across the Kollidam about seven miles from the temple. For
the supply of stones of the construction, some vandal members of the public
works department pulled down the enclosure walls, the dilapidated gopuram, the
front and great mandapa and carried away the stones.
An interesting account published in a local publications
of 1855 and reproduced in the Indian Antiquary IV, page 274, states that
'speaking of the noble temple of Gangaikonda Cholapuram it must not be omitted
that when the lower Coleroon anicut was built, the structure was dismantled of
a large part of the splendid granite sculptures which adorned it and the
enclosing wall was almost wholly destroyed in order to obtain materials for the
work. The poor people did their utmost to prevent this destruction and
spoilation of a venerated edifice by the servants of a government that could
show no title to it; but of course without success; they were only punished for
contempt. A promise was made indeed that a wall of brick should be built in
place of the stone wall that was pulled down; but unhappily it must be recorded
that this promise has never been redeemed.'