Vijayanagara Empire was one of the greatest empires in the history of India. Although there is lack of clarity about the about the origin but the foundation of the empire is generally associated with the Harihara and Bukka, the Sangam Brothers.
Also Read : Sultan of Delhi and The Invasions of Mongols
Vedic Age – Iron and Pattern of Living
Origin and Foundation of Vijayanagara Empire
According to tradition, the Sangam Brothers, Harihara and Bukka belonged to the family of the five brothers. They were feudatories of the Kakatiyas of Warangal. They later joined the services of the state of Kampili (Karnataka). Acc. the historians, Harihara and Bukka belonged to the group of 75 Nayaks (provincial heads) of Karnataka who rebelled against Turkish rule and they belonged to Shaivite family.
During the rebel against the Turkish rule, they came into conflict with Sultan of Delhi. They were arrested and put behind the bars in Delhi but they fled from the prisons of Delhi and later tried to establish their rule in South. During this struggle, they came into conflict with the Sultan of Madurai. Hoysala ruler Ballal was defeated and killed by them in c. 1342. After this the control of Hoysala Kingdom was passed to the hands of Harihara and Bukka.
Harihara established new capital city Vijayanagara on the bank of the river of Tungabhadra and founded the Sangam Dynasty. After the death of Harihara in c. 1356, Bukka succeeded him and built the main city of Vijayanagara empire. The Sultanate of Madurai was wiped out by c. 1377. He ruled till c. 1377 AD.
Nature of State and Conflict with Bahamanid
The Bahamani sultan in north of Vijayanagara with Valema of Warangal and Raya of Telangana were in continuous conflict with the Vijayanagara empire. The Bahamanid and Vijayanagara rulers continuously fought for the Tungabhadra doab which lies in the Krishna-Godavari River delta.
Harihara, the second sent an expedition to conquer Sri Lanka that resulted in huge wealth as Sri Lankan king send part of revenue on regular basis. Harihara was succeeded by Deva Raya 1, rule from c. 1404 to c. 1422 AD. He was defeated by the ruler of Bahmani Kingdom. As a result, he marries his daughter to Sultan and Bankapur in the dowry. He did not neglect the art of peace as he also worked for the welfare of state.
He built dam on the river Tungabhadra and built canal to bring the water to the city of Vijayanagara. He also built dam on the River Haridra. After the death of Deva Raya, there some confusion arises in state but he finally succeeded by Deva Raya, the second, who ruled till c. 1446 and he is considered as the greatest of all Sangam rulers. He did not discriminate among peoples as he enlisted 2000 Muslims and gave them Jagirs and made them commander of Hindu soldiers.
About 10k Muslim soldiers were in the army of Deva Raya. He crossed the river of Tungabhadra and tried to recover Mudkal and Bankapur. According to Nuniz, a Portuguese writer, tells those kings of Quilon (Sri Lanka), Pulicat, Pegu, Tenasserim and Malaya paid tribute to King Deva Raya. After the death of Deva Raya, the Sangam Dynasty started to fall and they were replaced by Saluva dynasty.
Pingback: Vijayanagara Empire – Foreign Accounts and Nature of State
Pingback: Bahmani Kingdom – Its Growth and Age of Mahmud Gawan -