A History of Agriculture in India v2.c65.s1: Harihara I (A.D. 1336-1355)

v2.c65.s1.1

Harihara I, the founder of Vijayanagar kingdom, was crowned in A.D. 1336. On the same day he laid the foundation of Vijayanagar on the southern bank of the Tungabhadra. His reign marks the beginning of an era of conquest and territorial expansion. The small kingdom which at the beginning comprised a few Telugu and Kannada districts had grown considerably in size and was fast developing into an empire during the last years of his reign. The ports of Goa, Chaul and Dabul were taken from the Muslims. Harihara successfully resisted the attacks of Ala-ud-din Bahman Shah, the first Bahmani Sultan. He organized the kingdom into new subdivisions of villages and sthala, each under a karnam. He promoted agriculture by giving rewards to those who reclaimed land by clearing jungles.