The Cambridge History of India, Vol. III: Turks and Afghans v3.c29.190

v3.c29.190

The remainder of Krishna’s reign was undisturbed by foreign wars, but in his declining years his kingdom was harassed by rebellion. He appears to have fallen sick in 1525, when his brother Achyuta, who afterwards succeeded him, acted for a short time as regent. It was about this time that Tirumala Rāya, another of his sons, died, and a rising, connected in some unexplained manner with his death, occurred, but was suppressed. At the end of Krishna’s reign, in 1528 or 1529, one of his most trusted officials, Vīra Narasimha, who is styled Sellappā, ‘the Dear One,’ and was governor of the central districts of the kingdom, rebelled, and, fearful of the consequences, fled to the kingdom of Tiruvadi, or Travancore. At the same time Nāgama, an old officer of the kingdom who was placed in charge of the Madura district, refused to obey the orders which he received from court, and persisted in his contumacy until his own son, Vishvanāth, who was sent against him, defeated him, and was appointed to the government of the district in his father’s place. The central districts of the kingdom were still disturbed when Krishna died in 1530, and almost the first act of his successor, Achyuta, was to lead a punitive expedition against the fugitive governor. Achyuta had marched as far south as Srīrangam when one of his brothers-in-law, Salakam Tirumalarāzu, volunteered to lead the expedition. Achyuta remained in Srīrangam while his brother-in-law reduced to obedience the ruler of Tiruvadi, the rebel governor, and their Pāndya allies. Having concluded a treaty sealed by his own marriage with a Pāndya princess, Achyuta marched across to Srīrangapatam and Ikkēri, and thence towards the frontier of the Bījāpur kingdom, but effected nothing, and returned to his capital. Having begun his reign with so much promise he lapsed immediately into a life of luxury and sloth, and let the administration pass into the hands of his two brothers-in-law, both named Tirumala. This usurpation aroused the opposition of a party led by three brothers, Rāma, Tirumala and Venkata of the Āravīti family, the first of whom is described as the son-in-law of Krishna or of one of his brothers, Narasimha or Ranga. This party seems to have had the countenance even of the widows of Krishna. The party of the brothers Tirumala had the upper hand to begin with, and the three brothers had to flee from court for safety. When they had gathered together sufficient force in their own districts and prepared to march upon the capital, Tirumala, the elder of the two brothers, who is described as the mad Tirumala (Kanarese *Hucchu*, corrupted into Hoj, Tirumala), sought the assistance of Ibrāhīm ‘Ādil Shāh I of Bījāpur. The intervention of Bījāpur served only to embitter the strife. When Ibrāhīm retired the three brothers marched upon the capital and the mad Tirumala destroyed the portable wealth in the treasury, hamstrung the royal horses, blinded the elephants, and committed suicide. In the course of these events, which followed the death of Achyuta, his son Venkata was placed upon the throne. Venkata was killed by the mad Tirumala and the three brothers now placed on the throne a nephew of Achyuta and Krishna, by name Sadāshiva, son of Ranga, one of the four brothers. The date of the commencement of Sadāshiva’s reign is 1542, and with his accession begins the *de facto* rule of the three brothers¹.