The Cambridge History of India, Vol. III: Turks and Afghans v3.c29.162

v3.c29.162

Vīra Ballāla continued to reign till 1220, and, according to the usual practice, he had his son Narasimha II anointed to the succession about the year 1217-18. With the accession of this ruler begins Hoysala intervention in the Chola country. From inscriptions in the Madura district and other sources we learn that he intervened to protect the dominions of the Cholas from the attacks of Māravarman Sundara Pāndya I, but his help profited his ally little, for by 1225 the Pāndya had destroyed the Chola cities of Tanjore and Uraiyūr and soon afterwards occupied the capital Mudikonda-Solapuram (Gangaīkonda-Solapuram) and was anointed in the hall of the great temple at Chidambaram, and it was only by submitting to the conqueror that Rājarāja III regained his kingdom. This must have happened before the year 1236-37, very probably before 1230. The weakening of the Chola power by this successful Pāndya invasion made it possible for the Chola feudatory Kō-Perum Singa (*Sans.* Mahārāja Simha) of Sēndamangalam in South Arcot, the son and successor of the Pallava chieftain who was responsible for turning the Ceylonese out of the Pāndya territory in the war of the Pāndya succession to declare his independence of his Chola overlord. He either invaded the Chola country or otherwise involved it in a war, and made Rājarāja III prisoner in his own capital of Sēndamangalam. This insolence called for the intervention of Hoysala Narasimha II, who took the Magara or Magadai kingdom, the eastern part of the Salem district, and sent forward two of his generals to attack Sēndamangalam itself and release the Chola ruler, who was imprisoned there. They succeeded in this and restored Rājarāja III to his position of authority. It was probably in this war that Narasimha himself marched towards Srīrangam with a view to preventing the Pāndyas from invading the Chola country, carried the war into the Pāndya country, and is said to have set up a pillar of victory at Rāmēsvaram. In this southern campaign he seems to have associated with himself his young son Sōmēsvara who came to the throne in 1233 and ruled till 1264. In the course of these southern campaigns of Narasimha, the Yādavas had been active on the northern frontier and had gained some success as far south as Balagāmi in 1213, but they were easily beaten back during the reign of Narasimha.