The Aravidu Dynasty of Vijayanagara, Vol. I v1.c6.s1.t2.1

v1.c6.s1.t2.1

Much use has been made of the Jesuit documents to illustrate the history of the Mughal Empire, specially during the reign of Akbar. But they have been studied very little by South Indian scholars. Mr. G. H. Nelson, in *The Madura Manual*, and Prof. R. Sathyanatha Aiyar in his *History of the Nayaks of Madura*, are the only authors who have used the Southern Jesuit's letters in their works. But unfortunately they knew these letters only through the work of Fr. Bertrand, *La Mission de Madure*, in which these documents appear in a French translation, which is far from accurate. Fortunately through the kindness both of Very Rev. Fr. J. Planchard, Superior of the Madura Mission, and of Fr. J. Castets, in charge of the Archives of the Mission, I was allowed to see and copy a number of photographs of Jesuit letters from Southern India, the originals of which are preserved in Europe. These documents are of three different kinds:—