Kanchipuram - History

History

See also: Kanchipuram in the pre-Pallava period Kanchipuram Timeline 200 — – 400 — – 600 — – 800 — – 1000 — – 1200 — – 1400 — – 1600 — – 1800 — – 2000 — Pallavas Cholas Vijayanagara Empire Arcot Rulers British Independent India An approximate time-scale of Kanchipuram rulers.

While it is widely accepted that Kanchipuram had served as an Early Chola capital, the claim has been contested by Indian historian P. T. Srinivasa Iyengar who, in his History of the Tamils from the earliest times to 600 A. D., says that the Kanchipuram district was never pervaded by the Tamil culture of the Sangam period and cites the Sanskritic origins of its name in support of his claim. The earliest references to Kanchipuram are found in the books of the Sanskrit grammarian Patanjali, who lived in the 3rd–2nd century BCE. The city is believed to have been part of the mythical Dravida Kingdom of the Mahabharatha. Kanchipuram was described as "the best among cities" (Sanskrit: Nagareshu Kanchi) by the 4th century Sanskrit poet, Kalidasa.

Kanchipuram grew in importance when, in the 6th century CE, the Pallavas based in southern Andhra Pradesh, wary of constant invasions from the north, moved their capital further south to Kanchipuram. The Pallavas fortified the city with ramparts, wide moats, well-laid-out roads and artistic temples. During the reign of the Pallava king Mahendravarman I, the Chalukya king Pulakesin II (610-642 CE) invaded the kingdom proceeding as far as the Kaveri River. The capital Kanchipuram was successfully defended by the Pallavas, who foiled repeated attempts to capture the city. A second invasion of Kanchipuram ended disastrously for Pulakesin II, who was forced to retreat to his capital Vatapi and then besieged and killed in Vatapi by Narasimhavarman I (630-668 CE), son of Mahendravarman I (600-630 CE), at the Battle of Vatapi. Under the Pallavas, Kanchipuram flourished as a centre of Hindu and Buddhist learning. The important Hindu temples in the city like Kanchi Kailasanathar Temple, Varadharaja Perumal Temple and Iravatanesvara Temple were constructed by the Pallava king Narasimhavarman II. Xuanzang, a Chinese traveler, who visited Kanchipuram in 640 CE, recorded that the city was 6 miles in circumference and that its people were renowned for bravery, piety, love of justice and veneration for learning.

The Medieval Chola king Aditya I conquered Kanchipuram along with the rest of the Pallava kingdom after defeating the Pallava ruler Aparajitavarman (880-897 CE) in about 890 CE. Under the Cholas, the city was the headquarters of the northern viceroyalty. The province was renamed "Jayamkonda Cholamandalam" during the reign of the Medieval Chola king Raja Raja Chola I (985-1014 CE). Raja Raja Chola I constructed the Karchapeswarar Temple and renovated the Kamakshi Amman Temple. His son Rajendra Chola I (1012-44 CE) constructed the Yathothkari Perumal Temple. According to the Siddhantasaravali of Trilocana Sivacharya, Rajendra Chola I brought a band of Saivas along with him on his return from the victorious expedition to the Ganges and settled them in Kanchipuram. In about 1218 CE, the Pandya king Maravarman Sundara Pandyan (1216-38 CE) invaded the Chola country making deep inroads into the kingdom which was saved only by the intervention of the Hoysala king Vira Narasimha II (1220-35 CE) who fought on the side of the Chola king Kulothunga Chola III. Inscriptions indicate the presence of a powerful Hoysala garrison in Kanchipuram which remained in the city at least until the year 1230 CE.Shortly afterwards, Kanchipuram was conquered by the Telugu Cholas from whom Jatavarman Sundara Pandyan I took the city in 1258 CE. The city remained with the Pandyas till 1311 CE when the Sambuvarayars declared independence, taking advantage of the anarchy caused by Malik Kafur's invasion After short spells of occupation by Ravivarman Kulasekhara of Venad (in 1313-14 CE) and the Kakatiya ruler Prataparudra, Kanchipuram was conquered by the Vijayanagar general Kumara Kampana after defeating the Sambuvarayars in 1361 CE.

The Vijayanagar Empire's rule over Kanchipuram lasted from 1361 to 1645 CE. The earliest inscriptions attesting Vijayanagar's rule are those of Kumara Kampanna from the years 1364 and 1367 CE found within the precincts of the Kailasanathar Temple and Varadaraja Perumal Temple respectively. His inscriptions record the reinstation of Hindu rituals in the Kailasanathar Temple that had been abandoned during the Muslim invasions. Inscriptions of the Vijayanagar kings Harihara II, Deva Raya II, Krishna Deva Raya, Achyuta Deva Raya, Sriranga I and Venkata II are found within the municipal limits of Kanchipuram. Harihara II endowed grants in favour of the Varadaraja Perumal Temple.In the 15th century, Kanchipuram faced four major invasions, all of which were unsuccessful - those of the Velama Nayaks in 1437 CE, the Gajapati kingdom in 1463-65 CE and 1474-75 CE and the Bahmani Sultanate in about 1480 CE. A 1467 CE inscription of Virupaksha Raya II mentions the existence of a cantonment in the vicinity of Kanchipuram. In 1486 CE, Saluva Narasimha Deva Raya, the then governor of the Kanchipuram region overthrew the Sangama Dynasty of Vijayanagar and founded the Saluva Dynasty. Like most of his predecessors, Narasimha donated generously to the Varadaraja Perumal Temple. Kanchipuram was visited twice by the Vijayanagar king Krishna Deva Raya, considered to be the greatest of the Vijayanagar rulers and 16 inscriptions of his time are found in the Varadaraja Perumal Temple. The inscriptions, made in four languages - Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Sanskrit, record the genealogy of the Tuluva kings and their contributions along with those of their nobles towards the upkeep of the shrine. His successor, Achyuta Deva Raya, reportedly, had himself weighed against pearls in Kanchipuram and subsequently distributed the same amongst the poor. Throughout the second half of the 16th and first half of the 17th centuries, the Aravidu Dynasty tried to maintained a semblance of authority in the southern parts after the northern territories have been lost in the Battle of Talikota. Venkata II (1586-1614 CE) even tried to revive the Vijayanagar Empire but the kingdom relapsed into confusion after his death and rapidly fell apart after the Vijayanagar king Sriranga III's defeat by the Golconda and Bijapur sultanates in 1646 CE.

The end of the Vijayanagar Empire was accompanied by over two decades of confusion and turmoil. The Golconda Sultanate established its hold over Kanchipuram in 1672 CE only to lose it to Bijapur three years later. In 1676 CE, Shivaji arrived in Kanchipuram at the invitation of the Golconda Sultanate in order to drive out and dislodge the Bijapur forces. His campaign successful, Kanchipuram was held by the Golconda Sultanate until its conquest by the forces of the Mughal Empire led by Aurangazeb in October 1687.In the course of their southern campaign, the Mughals defeated the Marathas under Sambhaji, the elder son of Shivaji, in a battle fought near Kanchipuram in 1688 CE. While causing considerable damage to the city, the battle cemented Mughal rule over Kanchipuram. Soon after the Mughal conquest, the priests at the Varadaraja Perumal, Ekambareshwarar and Kamakshi Amman temples, mindful of Aurangazeb's reputation for iconoclasm, transported the idols to the southern part of Tamil Nadu and did not restore them until after Aurangazeb's death in 1707 CE. Under the Mughals, Kanchipuram was a part of the viceroyalty of the Carnatic which, in the early 1700s, began to function independently retaining only a nominal acknowledgement of Mughal overlordship. The Marathas invaded Kanchipuram twice during the Carnatic period (in 1724 and 1740 CE) and the Nizam of Hyderabad, once (in 1742). Kanchipuram served as a battlefront for the British East India Company in the Carnatic Wars against the French East India Company and in the Anglo-Mysore Wars with the Sultanate of Mysore.The popular 1780 Battle of Pollilur of the Second Anglo-Mysore War, known for the usage of rockets by Hyder Ali of Mysore, was fought in the village of Pullalur near Kanchipuram.

The British East India Company assumed indirect control over the erstwhile Chingleput District (comprising the present-day Kanchipuram and Tiruvallur districts), then known as the "Jaghir" or "Jaghire", from the Nawab of the Carnatic in 1763 in order to defray the expenses of the Carnatic wars. The Company brought the territory under their direct control during the Second Anglo-Mysore War and the Collectorate of Chingleput was created in 1794 CE. The district was split into two in 1997 and Kanchipuram made the headquarters of the newly-created Kanchipuram district.