This article is largely based on an article in the out-of-copyright Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, which was produced in 1911. It should be brought up to date to reflect subsequent history or scholarship (including the references, if any). When you have completed the review, replace this notice with a simple note on this article's talk page.(August 2021)
A number of theories exist as to the derivation of the term Carnatic or Karnatic.
According to Bishop Robert Caldwell, in his Comparative Grammar of the Dravidian Languages, the term is derived from Kar, "black", and nadu, "country", i.e. "the black country", which refers to the black soil prevalent on the plateau of the Southern Deccan.[1]
When the English settled on the East Coast, all South India, from the river Krishna to Cape Comorin, was under the rule of a Kanarese dynasty, reigning at Vijayanagar, and was known as the Karnataka Realm. Hence the name "Carnatic" has come to be popularly applied to the coastal plains south of Madras, although these are Tamil-speaking districts and quite outside the Kanarese country proper.[2]
The name is applicable only to the country of the Kanarese extending between the Eastern and Western Ghats, over an irregular area narrowing northwards, from Palghat in the south to Bidar in the north including Mysore. The extension of the name to the country south of the Karnata was probably due to the Mahommedan conquerors who in the 16th century overthrew the kingdom of Vijayanagara and extended the name which they used for the country north of the Ghats to that south of them. After this period the plain country of the south came to be called Karnata Payanghat, or "lowlands", as distinguished from Karnata Balaghat, or "highlands." The misapplication of the name Carnatic was carried by the British a step further. Officially, however, this name is no longer applied, "the Carnatic" having become a mere geographical term. Administratively the name Carnatic (or rather Karnatak) is now applied only to the Bombay portion of the original Karnata, viz. the districts of Belgaum, Dharwar, and Bijapur, part of North Kanara, and the native states of the Southern Mahratta agency and Kolhapur.[1]
Sub-divisions
The region generally known to Europeans as the Carnatic, not a political or administrative division, is of great historical importance. It extended along the eastern coast about 600 kilometers in length, and between 50 and 100 kilometers in breadth. It was bounded on the north by the Guntur circar, and thence it stretched southward to Cape Comorin. It was divided into the Southern, Central, and Northern Carnatic. The region south of the river Coleroon, passing the town of Trichinopoly, was called the Southern Carnatic. The principal towns of this division were Tanjore, Trichinopoly, Madurai, Tranquebar, Negapatam and Tinnevelly. The Central Carnatic extended from the Coleroon river to the river Pennar; its chief towns being Madras, Pondicherry, Arcot, Vellore, Cuddalore, Pulicat, Nellore and a few other towns. The Northern Carnatic extended from the river Pennar to the northern limit of the country, and the chief town was Ongole. The Carnatic, as above defined, comprehended within its limits the maritime provinces of Nellore, Chingleput, South Arcot, Tanjore, Madurai and Tinnevelly, besides the inland districts of North Arcot and Trichinopoly. The population of this region consisted chiefly of Brahmanical Hindus. Muslims were thinly scattered over the country.[1]
History
In the earliest historical period, the area now known as the Carnatic was divided between the Pandya and Chola kingdoms, which with that of Chera dynasty or Kerala formed the three Tamil kingdoms of southern India. The Pandya kingdom practically coincided in extent with the districts of Madurai and Tinnevelly; that of the Cholas extended along the Coromandel coast from Nellore to Pudukottai, being bounded on the north by the Pennar River (Penner River) and on the south by the Southern Vellaru.[1]
The government of the area was shared for centuries with these dynasties by numerous independent or semi-independent chiefs, evidence of whose perennial internecine conflicts is preserved in the multitudes of forts and fortresses, the deserted ruins of which crown almost all the elevated points. Despite this passion of the military classes for war, the Tamil civilization in the country was highly developed. This was sustained largely through the wealth of the country, famous in the earliest times as now for its pearl fisheries. Of this fishery, Korkai (the Greek KhXxot), now a village on the Tambraparni River in Tinnevelly but once the Pandya capital, was the centre long before the Christian era.[1]
In Pliny's day, owing to the silting up of the harbour, its glory had already decayed and the Pandya capital had been removed to Madurai,[3] famous later as a centre of Tamil literature. The Chola kingdom, which four centuries before Christ had been recognized as independent by the Maurya king Ashoka, had for its chief port Kaviripaddinam at the mouth of the Kauvery, every vestige of which is now buried in the sand.[1]
Tamil literature (particularly Iyal, in prose and poetry) contains in itself vast amounts of knowledge on Carnatic music. Starting from the earliest Tamil literature available today (around 200 BC), it is possible to trace the various forms of music (Isai) that had existed in different periods and the way it has transformed into today's Carnatic music, by absorbing techniques from other Indian forms of music.
For the first two centuries after Christ, a large sea-borne trade was carried on between the Roman Empire and the Tamil kingdoms; but after Caracalla's massacre at Alexandria in A.D. 215, this ceased, and with it all intercourse with Europe for centuries also. Henceforward, until the 9th century, the history of the country is illustrated only by occasional and broken lights.[1]
The 4th century saw the rise of the Tamil Pallava power, which for some 400 years encroached on, without extinguishing, the other Tamil kingdoms. When in A.D. 640 the Chinese traveller Hsuan Tsang visited Kanchi (Conjevaram), the capital of the Pallava king, he learned that the kingdom of Chola (Chu-li-ya) embraced but a small territory, wild, and inhabited by a scanty and fierce population; in the Pandya kingdom (Malakuta), which was under Pallava suzerainty, literature was dead, Buddhism all but extinct, while Hinduism and the naked Jain saints divided the religious allegiance of the people, and the pearl fisheries continued to flourish.[1]
The power of the Pallava kings was shaken by the victory of Vikramaditya Chalukya in AD 740, and shattered by Aditya Chola at the close of the 9th century. From this time onward, the inscriptional records are abundant. The Chola Dynasty, which in the 9th century had been weak, now revived, its power culminating in the victories of Rajaraja the Great, who defeated the Chalukyas after a four years war, and, about AD 994, forced the Pandya kings to become his tributaries. A magnificent temple at Tanjore, once his capital, preserves the records of his victories engraved upon its walls. His career of conquest was continued by his son Rajendra Choladeva I, self-styled Gangaikonda owing to his victorious advance to the Ganges, who succeeded to the throne in AD 1018. The ruins of the new capital which he built, called Gangaikonda Cholapuram, still stand in a desolate region of the Trichinopoly district. His successors continued the eternal wars with the Chalukyas and other dynasties, and the Chola power continued in the ascendant until the death of Kulottunga Chola III in 1278, when a disputed succession caused its downfall and gave the Pandyas the opportunity of gaining for a few years the upper hand in the south.[1]
In 1310, however, the invasion under Malik Kafur overwhelmed the Hindu states of southern India in a common ruin. Though crushed, however, they were not extinguished; a period of anarchy followed, the struggle between the Chola kings and the Mussulmans issuing in the establishment at Kanchi of a usurping Hindu dynasty which ruled till the end of the 14th century, while in 1365 a branch of the Pandyas succeeded in re-establishing itself in part of the kingdom of Madurai, where it survived till 1623.[1]
At the beginning of the 15th century, the whole country had come under the rule of the kings of Vijayanagar; but in the anarchy that followed the overthrow of the Vijayanagar empire by the Mussulmans in the 16th century, the Hindu viceroys (Nayaks) established in Madurai, Tanjore and Kanchi made themselves independent, only in their turn to become tributary to the kings of Golconda and Bijapur, who divided the Carnatic between them.[1]
Towards the close of the 17th century, the northernmost part of The Carnatic region was reduced by the armies of Aurangzeb, who in 1692 appointed Zulfikar Ali, Nawab of the Carnatic, with his seat at Arcot. Meanwhile, the Marathas power had begun to develop; in 1677 Shivaji had suppressed the last remnants of the Vijayanagar power in Vellore, Gingee and Kurnool, while his brother Venkoji, who in 1674 had overthrown the Nayaks of Tanjavur, established in that city a dynasty which lasted for a century. The collapse of the Delhi power after the death of Aurangzeb produced further changes. The Nawab Saadet-Allah of Arcot (1710–1732) established his independence; his successor Dost Ali (1732–1740) conquered and annexed Madurai in 1736, and his successors were confirmed in their position as Nawabs of Northern Carnatic by the Nizam of Hyderabad after that potentate had established his power in South-Central India. After the death of Nawab Mahommed Anwar-ud-din (1744–1749), the succession was disputed between Mahommed Ali and Husein Dost. In this quarrel, the French and English, then competing for influence in the Carnatic, took opposite sides. The victory of the British established Mahommed Ali in power over northern Carnatic till his death in 1795. Meanwhile, however, the region had been exposed to other troubles. In 1741 Madurai, which the Nawab Dost Ali (1732–1740) had added to his dominions in 1736 after the demise of the Nayaks of Madurai, was conquered by the Marathas; and in 1743 Hyder Ali of Mysore overran and ravaged the central Carnatic. The latter was re-conquered by the British, to whom Madurai had fallen in 1758; and, finally, in 1801 all the possessions of the Nawab of Arcot were transferred to them by a treaty which stipulated that an annual revenue of several lakhs of pagodas should be reserved to the Nawab, and that the British should undertake to support a sufficient civil and military force for the protection of the country and the collection of the revenue. On the death of the Nawab in 1853, it was determined to put an end to the nominal sovereignty, a liberal establishment being provided for the family.[1]
The rest of the Carnatic region, when first entered into by the British, was ruled by military chieftains called Poligars. In 1805, after the decisive defeat of the Poligars, the Poligar forts and military establishments were destroyed.[1]
The Carnatic region was a place of Carnatic Wars between the Mughal Empire, Britain and France which ultimately led to British victory and the domination of the British Empire over India.[citation needed]
The Pandyan dynasty, also referred to as the Pandyas of Madurai, was an ancient Tamil dynasty of South India, and among the four great kingdoms of Tamilakam, the other three being the Pallavas, the Cholas and the Cheras. Existing since at least the 4th to 3rd centuries BCE, the dynasty passed through two periods of imperial dominance, the 6th to 10th centuries CE, and under the 'Later Pandyas'. Under Jatavarman Sundara Pandyan I and Maravarman Kulasekara Pandyan I, the Pandyas ruled extensive territories including regions of present-day South India and northern Sri Lanka through vassal states subject to Madurai. Pandya dynasty is the longest ruling dynasty in the world.
Pandya Nadu or Pandi Nadu is a geographical region comprising the southern part of the present day state of Tamil Nadu. The region is bounded on its West by the Venad/Ay Nadu, Northeast by the Chola Nadu and Northwest by the Kongu Nadu. It comprises the present-day districts of Madurai, Theni, Sivaganga, Ramanathapuram, Virudhunagar, Tirunelveli, Tenkasi, Thoothukudi, Kanniyakumari, parts of Pudukkottai and Dindigul.
Chola Nadu is an ancient region spanning on the current state of Tamil Nadu and union territory of Puducherry in southern India. It encompasses the lower reaches of the Kaveri River and its delta, and formed the cultural homeland and political base of the Chola Dynasty which ruled large parts of India and Sri Lanka between the 9th and 13th centuries CE. Uraiyur served as the early Chola capital, then medieval Cholas shifted to Thanjavur and later cholas king Rajendra Chola I moved the capital to Gangaikonda Cholapuram in Ariyalur district in the 11th century CE. Chola Nadu is therefore larger than the Tanjore region or the Cauvery delta in the strict sense. Although it essentially corresponds to these two overlapping areas.
Vijayalaya Chola founded the Imperial Chola Empire. He ruled over the region to the north of the river Kaveri. He is one of the descendants of the famous Sangam age Chola king, Karikala Chola. Vijayalaya was succeeded by his son Aditya Chola I who laid the foundation of the Imperial Chola Empire.
The region of Tamil Nadu in the southeast of modern India, shows evidence of having had continuous human habitation from 15,000 BCE to 10,000 BCE. Throughout its history, spanning the early Upper Paleolithic age to modern times, this region has coexisted with various external cultures.
Muhammad Yusuf Khan was a commandant of the British East India Company's Madras Army. He was born in a Tamil Vellalar clan family in a village called Keelapanaiyur in British India, what is now in Mudukulathur Taluk, Ramanathapuram District of Tamil Nadu, India. He converted to Islam and was named Muhammad Yusuf Khan. He was popularly known as Khan Sahib when he became the ruler of Madurai. He became a warrior in the Arcot troops, and later a commandant for the British East India Company troops. The British and the Arcot Nawab employed him to suppress the Polygar uprising in South India. Later he was entrusted to administer the Madurai country when the Madurai Nayak rule ended.
The Carnatic Sultanate was a kingdom in South India between about 1690 and 1855, and was under the legal purview of the Nizam of Hyderabad, until their demise. They initially had their capital at Arcot in the present-day Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Their rule is an important period in the history of the Carnatic and Coromandel Coast regions, in which the Mughal Empire gave way to the rising influence of the Maratha Empire, and later the emergence of the British Raj.
Chanda Sahib was a subject of the Carnatic Sultanate between 1749 and 1752. He was the son-in-law of the Nawab of Carnatic Dost Ali Khan, under whom he was a Dewan. An ally of the French, he was initially supported by Joseph François Dupleix during the Carnatic Wars. He annexed the Madurai Nayaks and was declared Nawab, bringing Tanjore and Tinnevelly into the dominions of the Mughal Empire.
Bangaru Thirumala Nayaka, also known as Bangaru Tirumala and Vangaru Thirumala, was a member of Madurai Nayak royal family and Governor/Commander of the Madurai Nayak King Vijaya Ranga Chokkanatha (1704–1731). His son, a young boy was adopted and crowned to the Madurai Throne, with the queen Meenakshi as queen regent, when the Madurai king died without heir. Strife between Bangaru Thirumala and queen Meenakshi would later erupt into many battles leading to the downfall of the dynasty. Later, through marriage alliances with the Sinhalese royalty, relatives of Bangaru Thirumala came to rule the Kandy kingdom in Sri Lanka. They ruled till 1815 when the last king, Sri Vikrama Rajasinha was deposed and taken captive by the British. He was exiled to Vellore Fort from Kandy.
The Madurai Nayaks were a Telugu dynasty who ruled most of modern-day Tamil Nadu, India, with Madurai as their capital. The Madurai Nayaks had their origins in the Balija warrior clans of present-day Andhra Pradesh. The Nayak reign which lasted for over two centuries from around 1529 to 1736 was noted for its achievements in arts, cultural and administrative reforms, revitalization of temples previously ransacked by the Delhi Sultans, and the inauguration of a unique architectural style.
The Thanjavur Maratha kingdom ruled by the Bhonsle dynasty was a principality of Tamil Nadu between the 17th and 19th centuries. Their native language was Thanjavur Marathi. Vyankoji Bhosale was the founder of the dynasty.
Tiruchirappalli Rock Fort, locally known as Malaikottai, is a historic fortification and temple complex built on an ancient rock. It is located in the city of Tiruchirappalli, on the banks of river Kaveri, Tamil Nadu, India. It is constructed on an 83 metres (272 ft) high rock. There are two Hindu temples inside, the Ucchi Pillayar Temple, Rockfort and the Thayumanaswami Temple, Rockfort. Other local tourist attractions include the famous Pallava-era Ganesha temple and the Madurai Nayak-era fort. The fort complex has witnessed fierce battles between the Madurai Nayakas and Adil Shahi dynasty of Bijapur, Carnatic region and Maratha Imperial forces. The fort played an important part during the Carnatic Wars, helping lay the foundations of the British Empire in India. The Rockfort is the most prominent landmark of the city.
The Trichinopoly district was a district of the erstwhile Madras Presidency of British India. It covered the present-day districts of Tiruchirappalli, Karur, Ariyalur and Perambalur in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The administrative headquarters was the town of Trichinopoly, Trichy or Tiruchi, now known as Tiruchirappalli. The district covered an area of 2,632 square miles (6,820 km2) in 1907. It was bound by the districts of South Arcot to the north, Salem to the west, Coimbatore to the west and north-west, Tanjore to the east and Madurai to the south. The princely state of Pudukkottai remained within the jurisdiction of Trichinopoly district from 1865 to 1947.
Tiruchirappalli is believed to be of great antiquity and has been ruled by the Early Cholas, Mutharaiyars Early Pandyas, Pallavas, Medieval Cholas, Later Cholas, Later Pandyas, Delhi Sultanate, Ma'bar Sultanate, Vijayanagar Empire, Nayak Dynasty, the Carnatic state and the British at different times. The archaeologically important town of Uraiyur which served as the capital of the Early Cholas is a Neighborhood of Tiruchirapalli.
Tiruchirappalli Fort is a dilapidated fort in India which once protected the Old City of Trichy encompassing Big Bazaar Street, Singarathope, Bishop Heber School, Teppakulam and Tiruchirapalli Rock Fort. All that remains now is a railway station with that name and Main Guard Gate along West Boulevard Road in the city of Tiruchirappalli in Tamil Nadu. The fort can be traced along West Boulevard Road in West, East Boulevard Road in East, Butter-worth Road in North and Gandhi Market to the South.
The Madukkarai Wall is a historic border fortification demarcating the boundaries of the three ancient kingdoms of Chera, Chola, and Pandya. The wall was supposedly erected by the goddess Sellandiyamman and may have been built as early as the 1st century AD.
Srimara Srivallabha (Tamil:சீமாறன் சீவல்லபன்) was a Pandya king of early medieval south India.
Tondaimandalam, also known as Tondai Nadu, is a historical region located in the northernmost part of Tamil Nadu and southernmost part of Andhra Pradesh. The region comprises the districts which formed a part of the legendary kingdom of Athondai Chakravarti. The boundaries of Tondaimandalam are ambiguous – between the river basins of Penna River and Ponnaiyar River. During the reign of Rajaraja I, this region was called as Jayankonda Cholamandalam.
A mandalam was the largest territorial division during the Chola dynasty. At its height, the state was divided into nine mandalams which included areas in Sri Lanka and other conquered areas. The two core mandalams were Chola-mandalam and Jayangondachola-mandalam.
Tamil dynasties are the kingdoms who ruled over present day Tamil Nadu, Sri Lanka, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Odisha. These include the Pallavas, the Pandyas, the Cholas and the Cheras.
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