Administration and Social Life under Vijayanagar c6.57

c6.57

Regency. An important problem connected with the central government relates to regency. When the occupant of the throne happened to be a minor, a regent was nominated and entrusted with the administration of the empire in the name of the young ruler until the latter should come of age and take up the reins of government into his own hands. Regents there were, but history provides examples of many who used their regency as a lever for self-aggrandisement and as an opportunity for strengthening themselves against the legitimate ruler, eventually usurping all royal power and even dethroning and imprisoning the rightful sovereign. The history of Vijayanagar abounds in instances of such misuse of regency, as by Vīra Narasiṁha and Rāma Rāja. From Nuniz we learn that Sāḷuva Narasiṁha at the time of his death entrusted the administration of his vast empire to his trusted general Narasā Nāyaka until the princes (his sons) should come of sufficient age to rule.³³ This statement of the chronicler is confirmed by the independent testimony of a large number of inscriptions which specifically state that Narasā Nāyaka was the administrator when Immaḍi Narasiṁha was ruling the kingdom.³⁴ An inscription dated A.D. 1498-99³⁵ states that Narasā Nāyiningāru was a *pampu*³⁶ with Sāḷuva Immaḍi Narasiṁha Rāya in the sovereignty of Vijayanagar. After the death of Narasā his son Vīra Narasiṁha acted as the regent for some time. But later he usurped the throne and founded the Tuḷuva line of kings of which the greatest was Kṛṣṇadēva Rāya.