Administration and Social Life under Vijayanagar c7.s3.20

c7.s3.20

The harem of the kings consumed a considerable portion of the revenues of the state. Almost all the foreign travellers who visited Vijayanagar did not fail to be struck by the number and riches of the harem. We have got exaggerated accounts about the number of women in the palace of the king. But there is no denying the fact that the cost of maintaining such a harem must have been enormous. Further the age was one of pageantry and show. Much money was wasted in dress, in drinks, and on women and on much other unproductive expenditure to please the tastes of the kings, which resulted in a drain on the public exchequer.