History of the Khaljis, A.D. 1290–1320 c3.s2.24

c3.s2.24

At that time the kingdom was ruled by a Yadava king named Ram Chandra. The Yadavas claimed for themselves an ancient pedigree. Their bards spoke of them as descendants of no less a personage than Lord Krishna himself. Formerly Yadava rulers were feudatory chiefs of the Chalukyas, but about the end of the twelfth century Bhillama Yadava was successful in throwing off their yoke, and in seizing the whole country north of the river Krishna.²³ But the credit of raising the minor kingdom to one of the greatest powers of the Deccan goes to Singhana, who ruled in the first half of the thirteenth century. He successfully invaded Malwa and Gujarat, conquered lower Konkan, and snatched away the southern Maratha country from the Hoysala chief.²⁴ He died after a long and brilliant reign in 1247, and was succeeded by his grandson Krishna II. When he died, in 1260, the crown devolved on his brother Mahādeva, who ruled until 1271, when Ram Chandra, son of Krishna II, succeeded him. And it was this monarch who, in his old age, and after a long and successful reign had to face the unexpected invasion of 'Alāuddīn and to make an abject surrender to a foreign foe. "His early years were prosperous enough. His armies invaded both Malwa and Mysore and he was unquestionably the greatest king in Peninsular India. A hectic splendour, too illuminated his reign. In it flourished the minister Hemadri or Hemadpant. In it also appeared Dyandev, the first of the great Maratha poets of the Pandharpur school."²⁵