In the previous post, we have read about Chola, Chera, and Pandya Empire of ancient ages. Now, in this post, we will see the re-emergence of the Chola Empire. The Cholas of 9th Century CE were the feudatories of Pallavas. As soon as the power of Pallavas decentralized, Cholas overthrew their power. So, re-established the Chola Empire.
Chola Empire
The Cholas of the 9th Century ruled over a large part of the Southern Peninsula. The founder of the Chola Kingdom was Vijayala. Vijayala was the feudatory of Pallavas. But, he conquered Tanjore in 850 CE and defeated Pallavas at the end of 9th Century CE. The age of these Chola rulers was famous for the magnificent and splendid temple architecture.
They gave patron to trade and commerce. They also conquered the region up to Ceylon or Sri Lanka. The Chola Empire was also famous for its Village Administration and advanced Navy.
Chola Empire: Rajaraja Chola
The most important ruler of the Chola Empire was Rajaraja (985-1014). He was the greatest ever ruler of the Chola Kingdom. Rajaraja had a very good administration as he was the administer of a certain region during the reign of his father.
He defeated almost all Southern Indian Kingdoms. So, the conquered area was consolidated properly by him. Rajaraja also conquered the Northern Ceylon or Sri Lanka. He also conquered and annexed the north-western parts of the Ganga Empire.
Rajendra Chola
Rajendra Chola (1014-1044 CE) was the son of Rajaraja Chola. He was also his successor. He also extended the policy of aggression to his father. So, as he conquered the remaining Chera and the Pandya Kingdom. He also conquered all the Ceylon or Sri Lanka. But after 50 years of the conquest of Sri Lanka. His successors did a Matrimonial Alliance with Sri Lanka and Ceylon then became an independent state.
One of the most important exploits (sometimes, I do not understand how the exploits become important? 🙁 But, sometimes it is also necessary to learn from our past. So, studying about them is also important.) of Rajendra Chola was his march over the Kalinga to Bengal region. He reached north by completely eliminating the Ganga Kingdom. So, he adopted the title of Gangaikondachola meaning Chola Conqueror of Ganga.
He also built a new capital and named it Gangaikondacholapuram. During his reign, the Chola Navy was the strongest one. So, sometimes the Bay of Bengal also named Chola Lake. And he had good relations with the south-east Asian Kingdoms.
The most important sculpture of the Chola Empire was the Nataraj, the dancing Shiva. It was/is/will be the most significant and important sculpture for the world. In the upcoming post, we will understand the sculpture of Nataraj.
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