THE VIJAYNAGAR EMPIRE

Founded in 1336 by the brothers Harihar and Bukka who were feudatories of
Kakathiyas of Warrangal. They were probably kinsmen and revenue officials of
Pratapa Rudra Deva II, the ruler of Warrangal. When kingdom of Warrangal was
over run (1323) by the Tughlaq, two brothers were taken captive to Delhi. They
were subsequently released by Muhammed bin Tughlaq. In 1336 with the
assistance and blessing of Vidyaranya of Sringeri they established Vijayanagara
Empire. Harihara became the first ruler and on his death in 1356, was succeeded
by Bukka. Harihara conquered the Hoyasala and Kadamba kingdom and Madura.
His wife Ganga devi wrote ‘Madura Vijayam ‘.Harihara II was a repute scholar
and earned the title of ‘Vidyavilasa Karnataka’

The empire of Vijayanagara lasted for 230 years and produced four
dynasties

 Sangama dynasty -1336-1486 by Harihara and Bukka

 Saluva dynasty-1486-1503 by Saluva Narasimha
 Tuluva-1503-1569 by Veera Narasimha
 Aravidu dunasty-1569-17 th Century

Krishnadeva Raya 1509-29

He belonged to Tuluva dynasty. Albuquerque the Portuguese governor asked for

permission to build a fort at Bhatkal and the same was granted. He assumed the
title yavanarajyasathapancharya and was also known as Abhinav Bhoja, Andhra
Pitamaha, Andhra Bhoja etc. He wrote a work in Telugu on political Theory and
administration known as Amukthamalyada and Jambavati kalyanam in Sanskrit.
There was group of 8 poets known as ashtadiggajas in his court
.
RELIGION AND POLITICS

Ritual Kingship

It is generally emphasized that the principle of strict adherence ta dham was the
chief constituent and distinguishing feature of the Vijayanagar state. But very
often it were the Hindu rulers against whom the Vijaynagar rulers had to fight, e.g.
the 'Gajapatis of Orissa. The most strategically placed contingents of the
Vijaynagar army were under the /charge of Muslim commanders. The Muslim
archers were employed by King Deva Raya .These Muslim contingents played an
important role in the victory of Vijaynagar against its Hindu rivals.
The successful military deeds of the Vijaynagar rulers led them to assume
the title of digvijayans. Vijaynagar kingship was symbolic in the sense that the
Vijaynagar rulers exercised their control through their overlords over a region
beyond the prime centre of their authority. This symbolism was manifested
through the instrument of religion which was used to ensure loyalty from the
people. For example, ritual kingship is best exemplified in the mahanavami
festival. This was an annual royal ceremony lasting for nine days between 15
September and 15 October. It culminated in the dusserah festival on the tenth day.
Important personages (e.g., military commanders) from the peripheral parts
participated in the festival. Through this festival, recognition of the sovereignty of
Vijaynagar rulers by peripheral parts of the empire was strengthened. Though the
Brahmans participated in the festival, their role was not predominant. The ritual
rites of the festival were largely performed by the king himself.

Political Role of the Brahmans

A distinct feature of the Vijaynagar state was the importance of the Brahmans as
political and secular personnel rather than ritual leaders. Most of the durga
dannaiks (in charge of forts) were Brahmans. Literary sources substantiate the
theory that fortresses were significant during this period and were placed under the
control of the Brahmans, especially of Telugu origins.
During this period, the majority of educated Brahmans desired to become
Government servants as administrators and accountants which offered them good
career prospects. The Imperial Secretariat was totally manned by the Brahmans.
These Brahmans were different from the other Brahmans: they belonged to a
sub caste called the Telugu niyogis. They were not very orthodox in performing
religious rites. They also worked as potential legitimizers. The Brahman
Vidyaranya and his kinsmen were the ministers of the Sangama brothers: they
provided legitimacy to their rule by accepting them back into the Hindu fold.
The Brahmans also played an important role as military commanders in the
Vijaynagar army. For example, under Krishnadeva Raya Brahman received
economic support as he was an integral part of the political system. The brahmans
constructed and commanded fortresses in different parts of the empire for which
they were assigned revenue of some crown villages, bhandaravada. Differentiation
was made between crown villages and villages whose income was under the
'charge of the local military chiefs.

Relationship between Kings, Sects and Temples

To establish effective control over the distant Tamil region, the Vijaynagar rulers
sought the help of the Vaishnava sectarian leaders who hailed from the Tamil
country. For legitimising their power in this region, it was necessary for the rulers,
who were aliens in the Tamil region, to establish contacts with the basic Tamil
religious organisation-the temples. The relationship between kings, sects and
temples can be explained in terms of four assertions:

1) Temples were basic for sustaining kingship.

2) Sectarian leaders were the connecting links between kings and temples.
3) Though the routine supervision of the temples was done by local sectarian
groups, the task of solving disputes concerning temples was in the hands of the
king.
4) The intervention of the king in the above matter was administrative, not
legislative.

During 1350-1650, numerous temples sprang up in south India. Through grants or

gifts to the temples in the .form of material resources (a part of the agricultural
produce of specified villages), a particular type of agrarian economy evolved under
the Vijaynagar rule.

The rulers of the early Sangama dynasty were Saivas who made additions to the
Sri Virupaksha temple of Vijaynagar. The Saluvas were basically Vaishnavas who
gave patronage to both the Siva and Vishnu temples. Krishnadeva Raya (the
Tuluva 'ruler) constructed the Krishnaswami temple (Vaishnava shrine)
and also gave grants to Siva temples.

LOCAL ADMINISTRATION

Local institutions of the earlier period (e.g., sabha, nadu and ur). The powers of the
territorial assembly (nadu) as well as the village assemblies $abha and ur) were
weakened during the time of the later Cholas. During the Vijaynagar period, these
institutions did not completely disappear when the nagaka and ayagar systems
came into prominence.
The Nayankara System

The nayankara system was an important characteristic of the Vijaynagar political

organisation. The military chiefs or warriors held the title of nayaka or
amaranayaka. It is difficult to classify these warriors on the basis of definite office,
ethnic identity, set of duties or rights and privileges

The institution of nayaka was studied in detail by two Portuguese-Fernao Nuniz

and Domingo Paes, who visited India during the reigns of Krishnadeva Raya and
Achyut Raya of Tuluva dynasty during the sixteenth century. They regard the
nayakas simply as agents of Rayas (central government). The evidence of Nuniz
for the payments made by the nayakas to the Rayas brings up the question of
feudal obligations. The Vijaydagar inscriptions and the later Mackenzie
manuscripts refer to the nayakas as territorial magnates with political aspirations
which at times conflicted with the aim of the rulers. N.K. Sastri (in 1946) drew a
distinction between the nayakas before 1565 and those after 1565. The former were
totally dependent upon the rulers while the latter were semi-independent. However,
later he modified his views by pointing out that the nayakas before 1565 were
military leader holding military fiefs.
In a more recent work (Sources of Indian History), he views the Vijaynagar
empire as a military confederacy of many chieftains cooperating under the
leadership of the biggest among them. He emphasized that the growing threat from
Islam led the Vijaynagar rulers to adopt a military and religious stance.
Krishnaswami considers the nayaka system as feudal. But Venkataramanayya feels
that important features of European feudalism such as fealty homage and sub- ,
infeudation were absent in the nayaka system. D.C. Sircar similar refutes the feudal
theory; instead he explains it as a kind of landlordism, a variant of feudalism in
which land was allotted to the amaranayakas for military services rendered by
them to the king.

Thus, D.C. Sircar, and T.V. Mahalingam consider the nayakas of Vijaynagar
as warriors holding an office (kara) bestowed on them by the central government
on condition of rendering military service. Amarenayankan was a designation.
Conferred on a military officer or chief (nayakal who had under his control a
specified number of troops. These nayakas possessed revenue rights over land or
territory called amaram (amaramakara or amaramahali). In the Tamil country and
also in the Vijaynagar empire, the area of land thus alienated under this tenure was
about 3/4th. The obligations 8nd activities of the nayakas were among others,
giving gifts to temples, repair and building of tanks, reclamation of wasteland and
collection of dues from temples The Tamil inscription, however, do not refer to
dues given to the king or his officials by the nayakas.
Krishnaswami, on the basis of Mackenzie manuscripts, opines that the
commanders of Vijaynagar army (formerly under Krishnadeva Raya). Later
established independent nayaka kingdoms. To guard against such dangers, the
Vijaynagar kings tried to establish greater control over coastal markets dealing in
horse trade. They attempted to monopolies the purchase of horses of good quality
by paying a high price for them. They also built strong garrisons fortified with
trustworthy soldiers. Thus, on the one hand, the Telugu nayaks were a source of
strength for the Vijaynagar empire and, on the other, they became its rivals

The Ayagar System

During the Vijaynagar period, autonomous local institutions, especially in

the Tamil country, suffered a set-back. In pre-Vijaynagar days in Karnataka and
Andhra local institutions possessed lesser autonomy as compared to Tamil country.
During Vijaynagar period in Karnataka too local territorial divisions underwent a
change but the ayagar system continued and became widely prevalent throughout
the macro-region. It spread in the Tamil country during 15-16th century as a result
of the declining power of nadu and nattar.
The ayagars were village servants or functionaries and constituted of groups
of families. These were headmen (reddi or gauda, maniyam), accountant (karnam
senabhova) and watchmen (talaiyari). They were given a portion of or plot in a
village. Sometimes they had to pay a fixed rent, but generally these plots were
manya or tax-free as no regular customary tax was imposed on their agricultural
income. In exceptional cases, direct payments in kind were made for services
performed by village functionaries. Other village servants who performed essential
services and skills for the village community were also paid by assigning plots of
land (like washerman and priest). The village servants who provided ordinary
goods and services were leather workers whose products included leather bag used
in lift-irrigation devices (kiapila or mohte), potter, blacksmith, carpenter,.
waterman (niranikkar: who looked after the maintenance of irrigation channels and
supervised bankers and money-lenders). The distinguishing feature of the ayagar
system is that special allocation of income from land and specific cash payments
were for the first time provided to village servants holding a particular office
ECONOMY

Land and Income Rights

Rice was the staple mop. Both black and white variety of rice was produced from
Coromandel to Pulicat. Besides, cereals like gram and .pulses were also cultivated.
Spices (especially black pepper) coconut and betel-nuts were other important items
of production. Land-revenue was the major source of state's income. Rate of
revenue demand varied in different parts of the empire and in the same locality
itself according to the fertility and regional location of the land. It was generally
116th of the produce, but in some cases it was even more ranging up to 114th. But
on Brahmans and temples it was 1 / 20th to 1/ 30th respectively. It was payable
both in cash and kind. We find references to three major categories of land tenure:
amara, bhandaravada and nianya. These indicate the way in which the village
income was distributed. The bhandarvada was a crown village comprising the
smallest category. Some part of its income was utilized to maintain the Vijaynagar
forts. Income from the manya (tax-free) villages was used to maintain the
Brahmans, temples, and mathas. The largest category was of the amara villages
given by the Vijaynagar rulers to the amaranayakas. Their holders did not possess
proprietary rights in land but enjoyed privileges. The amara tenure was primarily
residual in the sense that its income was distributed after deductions had been
made for support of the Brahmans and forts. Three quarters of all the villages came
under this category. The term amaramakni is considered by most historians as
referring to an 'estate' or a fief, but it literally means one-sixteenth share (makani).
Thus, it points to the fact that the amaranayakas could claim only a limited share
of village income. The manya rights underwent a transformation during this
period. Land tenures continued to be given by the state to individual (ekabhogan)
Brahmans and group of Brahmans as well as to maths including the non-
Brahman Saiva andVaishnava gurus. But there was a great increase in devadana
grants (conferred on temples) made by the state as compared to other grants.
Besides land-tax, many professional taxes were imposed. These were on
shopkeepers, shepherds, washer men, potters, shoemakers, musicians
etc. There was also tax on property. Grazing and house taxes were also imposed.
villages were also supposed to pay for the maintenance of the village officers.
Besides, sthala dayaln, marpdayam and manula dayam were three major transit
dues.

Another category of eland right through which income was derived was a
result of investment in irrigation was called dasavanda in Tamil, country; and
Kathr-Kodage in Andhra and Karnataka. This kind of agrarian activity concerning
irrigation was undertaken in semi-dry areas where hydrographic and topographic
features were conducive for carrying out developmental projects. The dasrvanda
or Kattu-Kodage was a share in the increased productivity of the land earned by
the person who undertook such developmental work (e.g. construction of a tank or
channel). This right to income was personal and transferable accruing from the
increased productivity also went to the cultivators of the villages where the
developmental work was undertaken.

Economic Role of Temples

During the Vijaynagar period, temples emerged as important landholders

of villages were granted to the deities which were worshipped in the large temple-.
The temple officers managed the devadana villages to ensure that the grant was
utilized properly. The income from devadana villages provided sustenance to the
ritual functionaries, It was also utilized to provide food offerings or to purchase
goods (mostly aromatic substances 'and cloth) essential for carrying out the ritual
rites. Cash, endowments were also made by the state to the temples for providing
ritual service.

Temples took up irrigational work also. Large temples holding devadana lands
had under them irrigation department for properly channelising money grants made
to the temples. Those who gave cash grants to temples also received a share of the
food offering (prasadam) derived from (the increased productivity
In fact, temples in South India were important centres of economic activity. They
were not only great landholders' but they also carried on banking activities. They
employed a number of persons. Mahalingam refers to an inscription which
mentions a temple which employed 37servants. Temples purchased local goods for
performance of ritual services. They gave loans to individuals and village
assemblies for economic purposes. The loam were given against lands whose
income went to the temples. Cash endowments made by the state to the Tirupati
temple were ploughed back in irrigation. The income thus attained was used to
carry out and maintain ritual services. At Srirangam Temple, cash grants were used
to advance commercial loans to business firms in Trichnopoly. Temples had their
trusts which utilised its funds for various purposes. Thus, the temples functioned
almost as an independent economic system encompassing persons and institutions
that were bound together by economic links.
Foreign Trade

We get information about foreign trade from the Amuktamalyada of Krishnadeva

Raya, Domingo Paes and Nuniz. They give vivid description of hone trade. The
role of the Indians in the overseas. carrying trade was minimal. Barbarosa
mentions that Indian overseas trade was completely controlled by Muslim
merchants. They used to get special treatment from the rulers. He says that on
returning from the Red Sea the king assigned them a bodyguard, a chief accountant
and a broker for help in local transactions. Such was their status that, at Kayal,
even royal monopoly of pearl-fisheries was given to a Muslim merchant. The
Arabs and later the Portuguese controlled horse trade. Horses were brought from
Arabia, Syria and Turkey to the west-coast ports. Goa supplied horses to
Vijaynagar as well as the Deccani Sultanates. Importation of horses was of great
military importance' for the southern states as good horses were not bred in India.
Besides, Vijaynagar's conflict with the northern Deccan Muslim states restricted
the supply of horses from north India that were imported from .Central Asia.
Besides horses, ivory, pearls, spices, precious stones, coconuts, palm-sugar, salt,
etc. we see also imported. Pearls were brought from the Persian Gulf and Ceylon
and precious stones from Pegu. Velvet was imported from Mecca and satin, silk,
damask and brocade from China. White rice, Sugarcane (other than palm-
sugarcane) and iron were the major exports. Diamonds were exported from
Vijaynagar. Nuniz states that the diamond mines were the richest in the world. The
principal mines near Krishna river and in Kurnool and Anantapur. This led to the
development of a great industry for cutting and polishing precious stones like
diamonds, sapphires and rubies in Vijayanagar and Malabar.

Internal Trade and Urban Life

The contemporary foreign accounts show that local and long distance trade
increased under the Vijaynagar rulers. Roads and roadside-facilities for travelers
between towns were excellent. Carts were used for the transport of grains over
short distance. Riverine shipping especially the backwater-system on the west-
coast has also been referred to. Pack-animals were used for long distance transport.
In some places armed guards for long distance transport were employed. Local
magnates 13th 15th Century realized the importance of trade and gave
encouragement to town based trade and auxiliary trade in regular and periodic
fairs. Regular and periodic fairs took place along the main roads leading to big
temples during festival times. These fairs were conducted by trade associations of a
nearby town and under the-supervision of the leader of trade association called
pattamswami. Fairs which gave impetus to urban trade were also held at the orders
of the local magnates, e.g. gaud. or chief of a nadu. The literary and inscriptional
evidences of the 14th to 16ttrcenturies reveal the existence of 80 major trade
centres. Some towns were religious; others were commercial and administrative
centres. Inside these towns were many bazars where business was carried on by
merchants. They paid rents to the towns. There were separate markets for
particular commodities. Markets for agricultural and nonagricultural products were
separate in accordance with the left and right hand caste affiliations. Trade in
consecrated food for pilgrims and the sale of the right of ritual functions and
offices were important aspects of temple-related urban commerce. The merchants
and artisan organisations in Andhra got identities with certain cities,e,g. the
Te1.ugu oil-pressers and merchants were associated with the city of Berwada
(in Krishna district). In these towns, the transit duties, shop and house-rents
provided income to the towns. The temple-records refer to the prosperity and
prestige of merchants and artisans. The Vijaynagar state possessed an urban quality
which is not witnessed in any other South Indian state of the time. The capital city
integrated within its precincts markets, palaces, temples, mosques, etc. This urban
quality was, however, completely destroyed by the middle-16th century.

SOCIETY

The social structure of the South Indian macro-region (Vijaynagar empire) is a

unique variant of the Indian society. The uniqueness of the social structure was
three-fold :
 Secular functions of the South Indian Brahmans
 Dual division of lower social groups
 Territorial segmentation of the society.
The Brahmans lived in localities where they controlled land, and their prestige and
power was also derived from their control over those dependent on land. They also
,enjoyed prestige due to their sacral functions as a priestly class. The emergence of
a large number of Vedic temples endowed with villages (devadanas) gave the
Brahmans as temple functionaries the power to exercise ritual control over all other
castes and enjoyed religious institutions. As managers of these religious centres,
the Brahmans great secular authority.
Territorial segmentation of society applies that social groups in the Tamil
country were divided on the basis of natural sub-region and occupational patterns
associated with them. Social groups in South India had less interaction with groups
at some distance from their locality. They gave preference to cross-cousin and
maternal uncle-niece marriages.
 Another characteristic of the social structure was the dual division of lower
castes referred to by the right and left-hand designations (Vaishnavas
corresponding to the right hand division and the Saivites corresponding to the left
hand castes). In most cases, the right-hand ‘castes were involved primarily in
Agricultural production and local trade in agricultural commodities whereas left-
hand castes were engaged in mobile artisan production and extensive trade in non-
agricultural products.
During the Vijayanagara period, the peasant was the basis of the social
order, on whom all other sections of the society depended. The satkams, the Tamil
poetic genre, regard the leading peasantry as pure sudras. They claimed ritual
purity and respectable secular rank for them.
Temples played an important role in delineati.ng or determining special
space of groupings who were the participants in the worship of a particular deity.
An important characteristic of lineage in the South Indian kingship is marked by
the common devotion to the lineage tutelary. The non-Brahman priests of the
peasants' tutelary shrines (e.g. amman) also participated in the management of
great shrines'of Siva and Vishnu where the Brahman priests predominated. The
matha the seat of sectarian organisation located at great shrines, consisted of
persons of both the Brahman and non-Brahman orders. Thus, the social
organisation of this period comprised of the Brahmans, the left and right-hand
castes which included respectable agricultural castes, namely vellals and lower
castes like the weavers.