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.
The Madukkarai wall [note 1] is a stone and earthen fortification with a parallel embankment in central Tamil Nadu. The wall was built during the pre-Sangam period to demarcate the trijunction of the Chera, Chola and Pandya kingdoms. People of this region believe that the Goddess Sellandiyamman [note 2] miraculously erected the wall overnight to prevent border disputes. The Goddess is said to be a representation of Ujjain Mahakali. Statues of border deities along the wall symbolically guard the frontier.[ citation needed ]
The border between the Chera i.e. Kongu Nadu and Chola Nadu is demarcated by the Karaipottanar river. [1]
The Karaipottanar river is a tributary of the Kaveri river to the north. The temple of Madukkarai Sellandiyamman at Mayanur (Tamil Nadu) [2] is the culminating point of the wall. The wall ends at Madurai Meenakshi Amman Temple. [3]
The wall is described as of historic importance in the 1907 (British era) gazetteer of Madras: [4]
The wall is of unknown age, but could be as old as the 1st century AD:
The wall still demarcates the boundary between the Karur and Kulithalai taluks (districts) [note 3] and after that, between the Dindigul and Tiruchirappalli districts.
The Pandya dynasty, also known as the Pandyas of Madurai, was a dynasty of south India, one of the three ethnically Tamil lineages, the other two being the Chola and the Chera. The rulers of the three dynasties were referred to as "the three crowned rulers of the Tamil country". The Pandyas ruled extensive territories, at times including the large portions of present-day south India and Sri Lanka.
Rajaraja I, born Arulmoli Varman, often described as Rajaraja the Great, was a Chola emperor chiefly remembered for reinstating the Chola power and ensuring its supremacy in south India and Indian Ocean.
Chakravarti Kulottunga Choladeva was an 11th-century monarch of the Chola Empire of South India. He was one of the sovereigns who bore the title "Kulottunga", literally meaning "the exalter of his race" in Tamil. He did not belong to the main line of Cholas but was rather a prince of the Eastern Chalukya dynasty. His mother, Ammangaidevi, was a Chola princess and the daughter of emperor Rajendra Chola I. His father was king Rajaraja Narendra of the Eastern Chalukya dynasty who was the nephew of Rajendra Chola I and maternal grandson of Rajaraja Chola 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.
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Rajendra Chola I or Rajendra I was a Tamil Chola emperor of South India who succeeded his father Rajaraja Chola I to the throne in 1014 CE. During his reign, he extended the influence of the Chola empire to the banks of the river Ganga in North India and across the Indian ocean to the West and South East Asia, making the Chola Empire one of the most powerful maritime empires of India. Rajendra's conquests included Sri Lanka, Maldives, and he successfully invaded the territories of Srivijaya in Malay Peninsula, Southern Thailand, Sumatra and Java in South East Asia. The Cholas exacted tribute from Thailand and the Khmer kingdom of Cambodia. He defeated Mahipala, the Pala king of Gauda in present-day Bengal and Bihar, and to commemorate his victory he assumed the title of 'Gangaikondachola', literally the Chola who conquered the Ganga and also built a new capital city called Gangaikonda Cholapuram.
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Parantaka Chola I (907–955) ruled the Chola kingdom in Tamil Nadu southern India for forty-eight years, annexing Pandya. The best part of his reign was marked by increasing success and prosperity.
Parantaka Chola II was a Chola king who ruled for about twelve years. Also known by the name Parantaka Sundara Chola, he was the son of Arinjaya Chola and Kalyani, a princess from the clan of Vaidumbas. Parantaka II ascended the Chola throne despite the fact that his cousin Uttama Chola, the son of Gandaraditya was alive and he had equal if not more claim to the Chola throne.
Vikrama Chola, known as Kō Parakēsari Varman, was a 12th-century king of the Chola Empire in southern India. He succeeded his father Kulothunga I to the throne.
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Needamangalam (Nidamangalam) formerly Yamunambalpuram, is a town panchayat in Thiruvarur district(Composite Tanjore Dist) in the Cauvery Delta of Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Needamangalam was originally part of composite Tanjore District during British Raj until 1997 AD. In the 18th and 19th century, it was also called Yamunambalpuram. Needamangalam is the headquarters of the Needamangalam Taluk. The town is located 20 km east of Thanjavur, 80 km east of Tiruchirappalli and 318 km south of Chennai. Needamangalam is a junction for two busy highways, (i) National Highway 67 is a National Highway in Southern Indian states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka that runs from Nagapattinam, a sea-side town in Tamil Nadu to Gundlupet, Karnataka (ii) State Highway SH-66 connecting Kumbakonam with Adirampattinam via Mannargudi in Cauvery Delta.
Uraiyur is a neighbourhood in Tiruchirapalli in Tamil Nadu, India. It was the capital of the early Cholas, who were one of the three main kingdoms of the ancient Tamil country. Sometimes spelt as Urayur, this location is also known as Thirukkozhi, Nikalaapuri, Uranthai, and Kozhiyur or Koliyur. It has a history dating back to before 200 BCE There is definite mention of the Cholas, and their capital in Ashokan inscriptions in Orissa pushing back the antiquity of the Cholas as well as Uraiyur to 272–232 BCE, which was the period of Ashoka who was ruler of the Maurya Dynasty of Pataliputra. Inscriptions and rock edicts of Ashoka and the Satavahanas describe Urayur as "the citadel and centre of the Cholas". Uraiyur was ruled by Karikala Cholan.
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Mayanur is one of the famous tourist attractions in Karur District, and kind heart man and women in the town Mayanur which is situated bank of the River Cauveri and its comes under Krishnarayapuram Taluk's administration of Tamil Nadu State.
Athiyamān Nedumān Añji was one of the most powerful Velir kings of the Sangam era who ruled the region called Mazhanadu, a part of ancient Kongu Nadu and the great dynasty called Chera Dynasty. A famous royal Athiyamān family dynasty was the contemporary and the patron of poet Avvaiyar of the Sangam period. Athiyamān who ruled over the Dharmapuri, Salem and surrounding areas with their capital at Tagadur. The most famous of their line were the father-son duo: Nedumān Añci and Elini. They were one of the Kadai ezhu vallal of arts and literature in ancient Tamilakam.
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.
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