The Early History of the Deccan (Parts I–XI) v2.c13.s2.t6.1

Language: English

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On the death of Virarājendra early in A.D. 1070, and the assassination of his son and successor Adhirājendra a few months later, Rājendra, who was descended through his mother from Rājendra Chōḷa I, left Vengi and went to the south where he established himself on the Chōḷa throne; what happened in Vengi and the northern part of the Chōḷa empire during this period is not quite clear. The following facts, however, may be noted at this point: (1) A study of Vijayāditya’s inscriptions reveals the existence of a break in his rule over Vengi between A.D. 1068 and 1072. His inscriptions run in a series from A.D. 1063 to 1068; then there is a break; and no record of his reign is found again until A.D. 1072.

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(2) In some of the Eastern Ganga inscriptions of the time of Anantavarman Chōḍa Gaṅgadeva, it is said that Rājarāja-Dēvendravarman ‘first became the husband of the Goddess of Victory in a battle with the Dramilas and then wedded Rājasundarī, the daughter of the Chōḷa king, and when Vijayāditya, beginning to grow old, left (the country of) Vengi, as if he were a sun leaving the sky, and was about to sink in the great ocean of the Chōḷas, he, Rājarāja, the refuge of the distressed, caused him to enjoy prosperity for a long time in the Western horizon.¹ The name of the Chōḷa king whose daughter, Rājasundarī, Rājarāja thus married was, according to another record, Rājendra Chōḷa.² (3) Some of the copper-plate charters of Kulōttunga I, a name which Rājendra assumed after he ascended the Chōḷa throne, state that he first became king of Vengi after his father had ruled for a period of forty-one years, and that being desirous of the Chōḷa kingdom, he bestowed his ancestral kingdom on his paternal uncle Vijayāditya and departed to the south.³ It may be deduced from a comparison of these records that after Virarājendra had bestowed Vengi on Vijayāditya, his nephew Rājendra made an attempt to capture the country for himself, and that Vijayāditya thereupon fled from Vengi and took refuge in the Eastern Ganga court, where he appears to have remained during Rājendra’s rule.

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As soon, however, as the usurper left Vengi with the bulk of his army for the Chōḷa country, Rājarāja Dēvēndravarman, the King of Kalinga, invaded that province with the object of restoring Vijayāditya VII to the throne and attacked the small army which Rājendra had left there for the defence of the country. The reason for Rājarāja’s solicitude for the restoration of Vijayāditya is not far to seek. It was not so much due to his sympathy with the distressed monarch as to his desire to further his own interests under the pretext of offering him help. Rājarāja was a Chōḷa feudatory who was anxious to shake off his allegiance and assert his independence. He studied the political situation carefully, and finding that the time was suitable for the prosecution of his designs, he sent an army to invade Vengi. Rājendra (Kulōttunga I) was then fully engaged in counteracting Vikramāditya’s designs against him, and was in no position to send any strong force to Vengi. Banapati, the Brāhman general of Kalinga, marched to the west, and engaged the Chōḷa forces which had been left by Rājendra for the defence of the country. The Chōḷa army, owing probably to its reduced strength, suffered a defeat. The disaster was not perhaps serious, but Rajendra was unable to spare reinforcements.

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He must have realized that in the circumstances in which he was placed it was not wise to entangle himself in a war with Kalinga, and that peace, though it involved some sacrifice of prestige, had at the moment its advantages. The recognition to some extent at least of the rights of an inconvenient enemy like Rājarāja Dēvēndravarman would convert him into a valuable ally, and the restoration of his old uncle, who was not likely to live long and had no surviving male issue to succeed him, would not involve any permanent loss. Rājendra therefore concluded a treaty of peace with Rājarāja Dēvēndravarman according to the terms of which he agreed to allow Vijayāditya to rule Vengi during the remaining years of his life; he also recognized Rājarāja as an independent ally, and cemented the alliance by bestowing on him the hand of his own daughter Rājasundari in marriage.