Battle of Donur | |||||||
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Part of Chalukya-Chola Wars | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Western Chalukyas | Chola Empire | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Satyashraya | Raja Raja Chola I Rajendra Chola I | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
Unknown | 900,000 | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
Unknown | Unknown |
Battle of Donur was fought between the Cholas, during the reign of Raja Raja Chola I, and the Western Chalukya king Satyashraya at the town of Donur in Bijapur district, Karnataka, in southern India, in 1007 CE. The Cholas were led by crown-prince Rajendra Chola I.
The Cholas had defeated the Gangas, weakened by the independence war waged against them by the Western Chalukyas, and conquered Gangapadi and Nolambapadi (Southern Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh).
According to an inscription of Satyasraya from Dharwad, Rajaraja Nittavinoda Rajendra Vidyadhara, ornament of the Chola race, Nurmudi-Chola (one-hundred-crown Chola) invaded the Western Chalukya Empire in 1007 AD with an army of 900,000 soldiers, carrying fire and sword throughout the region. [1] The invading troops advanced as far as Donur in Bijapur district on their way to the Chalukya capital Manyakheta, where they were met by the Chalukya army under Satyashraya. The Tanjore big temple inscriptions state that Rajendra Chola I destroyed the Western Chalukya capital.
Rajaraja I, also known as Rajaraja the Great, was a Chola emperor who reigned from 985 CE to 1014 CE. He is known for his conquests of Southern India and parts of Sri Lanka, and increasing Chola influence across the Indian Ocean.
Kulottunga I also spelt Kulothunga, born Rajendra Chalukya, was a Chola Emperor who reigned from 1070 to 1122 succeeding his cousin Athirajendra Chola. He also served as the Eastern Chalukya monarch from 1061 to 1118, succeeding his father Rajaraja Narendra. He is related to the Chola dynasty through his mother's side and the Eastern Chalukyas through his father's side. His mother, Ammangaidevi, was a Chola princess and the daughter of emperor Rajendra I. His father was king Rajaraja Narendra of the Eastern Chalukya dynasty who was the nephew of Rajendra and maternal grandson of Rajaraja I. According to historian Sailendra Nath Sen, his accession marked the beginning of a new era and ushered in a period of internal peace and benevolent administration.
Rajendra I, often referred to as Rajendra the Great, Gangaikonda Cholan, and Kadaram Kondan, was a Chola Emperor who reigned from 1014 and 1044 CE. He was born in Thanjavur to Rajaraja I and his queen Vanathi and assumed royal power as co-regent with his father in 1012 until his father died in 1014, when Rajendra ascended to the Chola throne. During his reign, the Chola Empire reached its zenith in the Indian subcontinent; it extended its reach via trade and conquest across the Indian Ocean, making Rajendra one of only a few Indian monarchs who conquered territory beyond South Asia.
Rajadhiraja I was a Chola emperor, as the successor of his father, Rajendra I. He was the only Chola emperor who was killed while leading his army in war, and although he had a short reign, he helped his father conquer several territories as well as to maintain the Chola authority over most of Sri Lanka, Eastern Chalukya and Kalinga, among others. He also established imperial relations with overseas allies despite a series of revolts in the territory.
The Chola dynasty was a Tamil dynasty originating from southern India. At its height, it ruled over the Chola Empire, an expansive maritime empire. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated to the 3rd century BCE during the reign of Ashoka of the Maurya empire. The Chola empire was at its peak and achieved imperialism under the Medieval Cholas in the mid-9th century CE. As one of the Three Crowned Kings of Tamilakam, along with the Chera and Pandya, the dynasty continued to govern over varying territories until the 13th century CE.
Vengi or Venginadu is an Indian region in modern-day Andhra Pradesh spread over the Godavari and Krishna river deltas. The capital city of Vengi is located at Pedavegi near Eluru. Vengi was the most prominent city in Ancient Andhra for nearly seven centuries. Vengi served as the capital for Andhra dynasty like Salankayanas This region was part of Ashoka's Mauryan Empire in the mid-3rd century BCE. After the Mauryan Empire collapsed in 185 BC, the region was dominated by the Satavahanas, who were succeeded in Vengi by the Andhra Ikshvakus. Around 300 CE, the Andhra Ikshvakus were replaced by the Salankayanas. In the late 5th century, the Salankayanas were annexed by the Vishnukundinas.
The Chola–Chalukya Wars were a series of battles that were fought from 992 CE to 1120 CE between the Chola Empire and the Western Chalukya Empire in what is now South India. Most of these conflicts were initiated by the Western Chalukyas who were defeated by the Cholas and forced to return to their capital. These recurring conflicts eventually exhausted as both empire, straining their manpower and material, were left vulnerable to other enemies. More than 1,000,000 people were killed due to direct or indirect consequences of the war. The battles were rages on two fronts: the Western Front in which the capture of Manyakheta and Kalyani were the objectives of the Cholas, and the Eastern Front which centered around Vengi which was strategic for both sides. The west saw the heaviest fighting with Rajendra Chola I leading an army of 900,000 and defeating Jayasimha II at the Battle of Maski. On the Eastern Front, Rajendra Chola led Rajaraja Chola I's army in Vengi and expelled the rulers in battle. Vengi was later the site of the coronation of Rajendra Chola's nephew following his victories in the Chola expedition to North India.
Rajendra II often referred to as Rajendradeva Chola was a Chola emperor who reigned from 1052 CE to 1064 CE. Rajendra II succeeded his brother Rajadhiraja I after his death at the Battle of Koppam. Rajendra had served as a Co-regent under his brother from 1044 CE to 1052 CE. When he acceded the throne, the Chola Empire was at its peak stretching from Southern India to Vengai(Bengal) to parts of Southeast Asia. Rajendra has maintained the territories of his predecessor. During his reign, the Chola Empire was prosperous and had a large influence in trade throughout the Indian Ocean.
Virarajendra was a Chola emperor, who spent a major part of his life as a subordinate to two of his elder brothers Rajadhiraja I and Rajendra II, he is the son of Rajendra I. During his early reign he granted the maintenance of a school to study the Vedas, Sastras and grammar; a hostel was provided for the students. A hospital named Virasolan was also provided by him for the sick people. The famous grammatical work in Tamil, Virasoliyam was written by Buddhamitra during his reign.
Vikrama Chola, known as Kō Parakēsari Varman, was a 12th-century ruler of the Chola Empire in southern India. He succeeded his father Kulothunga I to the throne. Vikrama Chola was crowned as the heir-apparent by his father early in his life. He was appointed as viceroy of the Vengi province in 1089 C.E., succeeding his brother Rajaraja Chodaganga. Vikrama during his tenure successfully managed to check the ambitions of the Western Chalukya Vikramaditya VI on the Vengi kingdom.Vikrama Chola inherited the territories which included Tamil Nadu and some parts of Andhra Pradesh.
The Telugu Chodas or Telugu Cholas ruled parts of present-day Andhra Pradesh and Telangana between the 5th and the 13th centuries as samantas of Pallavas and later the Imperial Cholas. Various dynasties exist among them including Velanati, Pottapi, Konidena, Nannuru, Nellore, Kunduru etc. The earliest Choda dynasty in the Telugu area was that of Renati Chodas who ruled Renadu region from late 5th century to 7th century. Some of the Telugu Chodas including Renati Chodas claimed descent from the early Sangam Tamil king Karikala Chola. Telugu Chodas contributed much to the early development of Telugu language and are the first dynasty to use Telugu as their official language. The first and oldest Telugu inscription founded so far is Kalamalla inscription dating to 575 CE put up by Renati Chola king Erikal Mutturaju Dhanunjaya. Telugu Chodas are believed to have been migrated from Tamilakam to Andhra country due to invasion of Tamilakam by Kalabhras and increasing power of Pallavas in northern most part of Tamilakam.
Tailapa II, also known as Taila II and by his title Ahavamalla, was the founder of the Western Chalukya Empire in peninsular India. Tailapa claimed descent from the earlier imperial Chalukyas of Vatapi (Badami), and initially ruled as a Rashtrakuta vassal from the Tardavadi-1000 province in the present-day Vijayapura district of Karnataka. When the Rashtrakuta power declined following an invasion by the Paramara king Siyaka, Tailapa overthrew the Rashtrakuta emperor Karka II, and established a new dynasty.
Rajaraja Chola III succeeded Kulothunga Chola III on the Chola throne in July 1216 CE. Rajaraja came to the throne of a kingdom much reduced in size as well as influence. With the rise of the Pandya power in the south, the Cholas had lost most of their control of the territories south of the river Kaveri and their hold on the Vengi territories in the north was slipping with the emergence of the Hoysala power.
Satyashraya, also known as Sattiga or Irivabedanga, was a king of the Western Chalukya Empire. During a time of consolidation of the empire in the early 11th century, Satyashraya was involved in several battles with the Chola dynasty of Thanjavur, the Paramara dynasty and Chedi Kingdom of central India, and the Chaulukyas of Gujarat. The results of these wars were mixed, with victories and defeats. Even as a prince, during the rule of his father Tailapa II, Satyashraya had established himself as an ambitious warrior. Satyashraya patronised the great Kannada poet Ranna who compared his patron favourably to the Pandava prince Bhima for his strength and valor in his epic poem Sahasabhimavijaya. Satyashraya held such titles as Akalavarsha, Akalankacharita and Sahasabhima.
Someshvara I was a king of the Western Chalukyas. Also known as "Ahavamalla" or "Trilokamalla", Someshvara succeeded his father Jayasimha II to the throne.
The Western Chalukya Empire ruled most of the western Deccan, South India, between the 10th and 12th centuries. This Kannada dynasty is sometimes called the Kalyani Chalukya after its regal capital at Kalyani, today's Basavakalyan in the modern Bidar District of Karnataka state, and alternatively the Later Chalukya from its theoretical relationship to the 6th-century Chalukya dynasty of Badami. The dynasty is called Western Chalukyas to differentiate from the contemporaneous Eastern Chalukyas of Vengi, a separate dynasty. Prior to the rise of these Chalukyas, the Rashtrakuta empire of Manyakheta controlled most of Deccan and Central India for over two centuries. In 973, seeing confusion in the Rashtrakuta empire after a successful invasion of their capital by the ruler of the Paramara dynasty of Malwa, Tailapa II, a feudatory of the Rashtrakuta dynasty ruling from Bijapur region defeated his overlords and made Manyakheta his capital. The dynasty quickly rose to power and grew into an empire under Someshvara I who moved the capital to Kalyani.
The political history of medieval Karnataka spans the 4th to the 16th centuries, when the empires that evolved in the Karnataka region of India made a lasting impact on the subcontinent. Before this, alien empires held sway over the region, and the nucleus of power was outside modern Karnataka. The medieval era can be broadly divided into several periods: The earliest native kingdoms and imperialism; the successful domination of the Gangetic plains in northern India and rivalry with the empires of Tamilakam over the Vengi region; and the domination of the southern Deccan and consolidation against Muslim invasion. The origins of the rise of the Karnataka region as an independent power date back to the fourth-century birth of the Kadamba Dynasty of Banavasi, the earliest of the native rulers to conduct administration in the native language of Kannada in addition to the official Sanskrit. This is the historical starting point in studying the development of the region as an enduring geopolitical entity and of Kannada as an important regional language.
Sudi, is a panchayat town in the Gadag District of Karnataka, India. It is about 30 km from Badami, 12 km from Gajendragad and 3 km from Itagi Bhimambika temple. In the past it was an important town of the Kalyani Chalukyas during 1000 AD. It is notable for rare stone carved monuments like Twin towered temple, Mallikarjuna temple and nagakunda , and few other structural temples. For long time these structures were abandoned, but recently they caught the eye of the Indian Archaeological Department.
The Battle of Koppam was fought between the Medieval Chola kings Rajadhiraja Chola and Rajendra Chola II with the Chalukya king Someshvara I in 1054, or in 1052 according to Sen. The site of the battle has been identified as Koppal by C.R. Krishnamacharlu and this has been accepted by Sastri and Dr. B.R Gopal. Though the Cholas were successful in the battle, the king and supreme commander, Rajadhiraja I lost his life in the battlefield and was succeeded to the throne by his younger brother, Rajendra Chola II.
Bidar is a historic place located in the north-eastern part of the South Indian state of Karnataka. Bidar enjoys a picturesque situation, having been situated and built on the brink of a plateau, and thus commanding lovely views of the lowlands (talghat) towards the north and the east. Its latitude is 17°55'N., its longitude 77°32' E., and the height above the sea-level 2,330 feet (710 m). The climate is bracing and the temperature in the hottest season does not usually rise above 105 °F (41 °C). The Bidar plateau is an irregular oblong, 22 miles (35 km) in length and 12 miles (19 km) in extreme breadth.