The Vijayanagara Empire or the Karnata Kingdom was a late medieval Hindu empire that ruled much of southern India. It was established in 1336 by the brothers Harihara I and Bukka Raya I of the Sangama dynasty, members of a pastoralist cowherd community that claimed Yadava lineage.
Krishnadevaraya was an emperor of the Vijayanagara Empire reigning from 1509 to 1529. He was the third monarch of the Tuluva dynasty, and is considered to be one of the greatest rulers in Indian history. He ruled the largest empire in India after the fall of the Islamic Delhi Sultanate. Presiding over the empire at its zenith, he is regarded as an icon by many Indians. Krishnadevaraya earned the titles Andhra Bhoja, Karnatakaratna Simhasanadeeshwara, Yavana Rajya Pratistapanacharya, Kannada Rajya Rama Ramana, Gaubrahmana Pratipalaka and Mooru Rayara Ganda. He became the dominant ruler of the peninsula by defeating the sultans of Bijapur, Golconda, the Bahmani Sultanate and the Gajapatis of Odisha, and was one of the most powerful Hindu rulers in India.
Rama Raya, popularly known as "Aliya" Rama Raya, was a statesman of the Vijayanagara Empire, the son-in-law of Emperor Krishna Deva Raya and the progenitor of the Aravidu dynasty of Vijayanagara Empire, the fourth and last dynasty of the empire. As a regent, he was the de facto ruler of the empire from 1542 to 1565, although legally the emperor during this period was Sadasiva Raya, who was merely a puppet ruler. Rama Raya was killed at the Battle of Talikota, after which the Vijayanagara Empire got fragmented into several semi-independent principalities paying only nominal allegiance to the empire.
Deva Raya I was an Emperor of the Vijayanagara Empire. After Harihara II died, there was a dispute among his sons over succession, in which Deva Raya I eventually emerged victor. He was a very capable ruler noted for his military exploits and his support to irrigation works in his Empire. He modernized the Vijayanagara army by improving the cavalry, employed skilled archers of the Turkic clans and raised the fighting capacity of his bowmen and imported horses from Arabia and Persia.
Deva Raya II was an emperor of the Vijayanagara Empire. The greatest of the Sangama dynasty rulers, he was an able administrator, warrior, and scholar. He authored well-known works in Kannada and Sanskrit. He was patron to some of the most noted Kannada poets of the medieval period, including Chamarasa and Kumara Vyasa, the Sanskrit poet Gunda Dimdima, and the noted Telugu language poet Srinatha, whom the king honored with the title Kavisarvabhauma. He supported development in secular literature as well as the noted South Indian mathematician Parameshvara, from the Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics in his empire.
Saluva Timmarusu was the prime minister (mahapradhana) and military commander of Krishnadevaraya. He is also known as "Appaji". He had also served as the prime minister under Viranarasimha Raya and Tuluva Narasa Nayaka.
Raichur is a city and Municipal Corporation in the district of Raichur in the Indian state of Karnataka. Raichur, located between Krishna and Tungabhadra rivers, is the headquarters of Raichur district. It is located 410 km from the state capital, Bangalore.
Saluva Narasimha Deva Raya was an emperor of the Vijayanagara Empire from the Saluva Dynasty. A patron of the Madhwa saint Sripadaraya, he authored the Sanskrit work Rama Bhyudayam. He also patronised Kannada poet Kavi Linga.
Pemmasani Kamma Nayaks were a ruling clan in the south Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. They came into prominence during Vijayanagara Empire. After the Battle of Talikota in 1565 AD, the collapse of Vijayanagara Empire led to the emergence of Pemmasani Nayakas in the Rayalaseema region. They belonged to the Kamma social group.
Tuluva Narasa Nayaka was an Indian general, Bunt chieftain and later an imperial regent who founded the Tuluva dynasty of the Vijayanagara Empire. He was the father of the emperors Viranarasimha Raya, Krishnadevaraya and Achyuta Deva Raya.
The City of Vijayanagara was the urban core of the imperial city and the surrounding principalities of the capital of the Vijayanagara empire during the 14th century to 16th century CE. Notes by foreign travellers such as Abdur Razzak, the Persian who visited Vijayanagara in 1440, mention seven fortifications before the gates to the royal palace. The large area between the first and third fortifications contained agricultural fields, gardens and residences. The notes of Robert Sewell describe countless shops and bazaars (markets) filled with people from different nationalities between this fortification and the palace.
Sadasiva Raya was an Emperor of Vijayanagara who reigned from 1542 to 1570 CE. When the Vijayanagara Emperor Achyuta Raya died in 1542 CE, his son, Venkata I, succeeded him. However, Venkata I was assassinated six months later. Sadasiva Raya, who was the nephew of Achyuta Raya, became the new Emperor in accordance with the Aliya succession laws prevalent among the Tuluvas. Sadasiva Raya, along with his Prime Minister Rama Raya, restored the Vijayanagara empire's power, which had diminished after the reign of Krishna Deva Raya. The strategy was to play the Turko-Persian Sultanates in the Deccan against each other by first allying with one and then the other.
The Battle of Raichur was fought between the Vijayanagara Empire and the Sultanate of Bijapur in 1520 in the town of Raichur, India. It resulted in a decisive victory for Vijayanagara forces, and the Bijapur ruler was defeated and pushed across the river Krishna.
Pemmasani Ramalinga Nayudu was an army commander of a Vijayanagara military unit. An inscription dated to 1544 CE, which was found in Tallaproddatu, states that Pemmasani Ramalinga enjoyed the nayankara of the village. Phillip B. Wagoner who analysed 17th century Telugu text Rayavachakamu noted that it is not known whether Ramalinga Nayudu served Krishnadeva Raya or some later ruler.
Sevappa Nayak was a Nayaka (governor) of Thanjavur under the Vijayanagara Empire from 1532 to 1560.
Events in India from the year 1542.
The Vijayanagara military supported the Vijayanagara Empire in particular with regard to the empire's long-lasting rivalry with the Bahmani Sultanate. Besides a large standing army, the Vijayanagara rulers also maintained a powerful navy. This helped make the Vijayanagara empire the most centralised polity ever to have emerged in southern India.
Venkata I was an Emperor of Vijayanagara from the Tuluva Dynasty. He was the son of Emperor Achyuta Deva Raya, whom he succeeded in 1542 CE.
Chamaraja Wodeyar III was fifth raja of the Kingdom of Mysore and the last one to rule as feudal king under the Vijayanagara Empire. He reigned after his father's demise in 1513 until his death in 1553.
The Deccani–Vijayanagar wars were a series of wars between 1495 to 1678 that pitted the rival powers of the Deccan Sultanates against the Vijayanagar Empire over the course of approximately 120 years.
