Introduction

The Cholas were the most dominant rulers in South India (present day Tamil Nadu) in
the early medieval period, from the 9th to the 13th century. The major core of the
Chola political authority was in the Kaveri Basin, with secondary ‘central zones’ of
the Chola state in other river valleys of the Southern peninsula:the Ponnaiyar and
Cheyyar in the northern Tamil plain, and the Vaigai and Tambraparni valleys in the
South. There has been various attempts to describe the nature of the Chola state and
like in other major issue, pertaining to the early medieval period, there has been a
huge debate on this particular issue.
The study addresses three models of state formation--Bureaucratic, Segmentary,
Feudal that portrays the state in pre-modern South Asia. These models focus on the
relationship of the state institutions with the local and intermediate arenas of power
and their ultimate relationship with forms of production and control resources in an
agrarian world. Each model takes its position with different approaches to time and
space. The bureaucratic model is the most static as it talks about Mauryas (4th-3rd
centuries) until the Muslim invasion of 11th century and beyond. The Segmentary
State is an anthropological model, Burton in this model describe the state formation
under the Cholas and the Pallavas and contain references of spatial variability, since it
originates and flourishes in nuclear areas of peasant farming communities within the
irrigated zones.Feudalism, on the other hand, offers a clear-cut chronological
progression, from the crisis of an ancient socio-economic and political formation in
the early Christian era through subsequent fragmentation of state rights. The feudal
hypothesis remains weaker in its spatial aspects, since ’feudal’ relations may be
described almost anywhere in early South Asia, poorly articulated with local modes
and relations of production. The Chola dynasty is the choice for this case study
because the numerous records of the Chola period, amounting to over 10,000
inscriptions, provide data that allow statistical analyses impossible in most other areas
of early South Asia for which data are scarcer and more fragmentary. The rich
Chola-period data may produce insights that may then be extrapolated to other areas
of South India or South-Asia as a whole, where historical sources are less plentiful for
early times. The sources for Chola-period history are inscriptions found almost
entirely on the stone walls of temple structures in Tamil Nadu and surrounding states.
These records describe gifts to Brahman communities and to temples in order to
support ritual performances. the inscriptions fall into four sub-periods, each lasting
about a century, and conforming to discernible changes in the political fortunes of the
Chola dynasty and the formats of the records themselves. Sub-period one (849-985)
saw the rise of the Chola dynasty. Most inscriptions during this time were short,
concentrating on gifts of perpetual lamps to temples in memory of deceased
relatives.Sub-period two (985-1070) began with the accession of the greatest of the
Chola kings, Rajaraja I, who extended Chola military power throughout Tamil Nadu
and over much of peninsular India. Sub-period three (1070-1178) began with the
accession of Kulottunga I, who inherited the thrones of the Chola empire and the
kingdom of the Eastern Chalukyas in modern Andhra Pradesh. Despite the . union of
two major royal lineages, Chola military power entered a period of slow decline.
Inscriptions from this time contain increasing information on land transactions.
During sub-period four (1178-1279) the Chola dynasty collapsed.
 Administration

Generally, the Chola kingdom was characterized as a centralized bureaucratic state

where the sovereigns lived in magnificent palaces. They were assisted by a graded
bureaucracy. In recent years vigorous research by scholars with a thorough
examination of the available epigraphs and structural constructions suggests a new
perspective to the study of the Chola state and society.
The Chola dynasty, began in 950, was one of the most popular
dynasties of South India which ruled over Tamil Nadu and parts of Karnataka with
Tanjore as its capital. Chola history can be reconstructed in considerable detail
because of the vast number of inscriptions issued not only by the royal family
but also by temple authorities, village councils and guilds. In the chola administration,
the emperor was the main character on which the states machinery revolved. He
governed the state with the advice and help of his council of ministers and other
important officers and state dignitaries. The chola inscription prove that the system of
administration was highly organized and the orders of the emperor were drafted by
the royal or private secretary. The system of hereditary succession to the throne was
occasionally modified by the ruling king’s choice in the matter,as a
younger prince, or a Yuvraj could well be preferred over his seniors. The princes were
associated with the ruling sovereigns and were actively involved in the state affairs.
The absolutism of monarchy was supported both by a ministerial council and by staff.
The head of each department was in close contact with the king and often consulted
him. Administrative activities, as well as military and trade movements, were
facilitated by the construction of trunk roads. The village was the primary
unit of society and polity in the Chola kingdom. Burton Stein has pointed out that the
idea of a village being a self-sufficient unit was a myth. Groups of villages formed
larger unites called Nandus. Each nadu was headed by a Nattar while the council of
nadu was named nattavai. The responsibility of the village administration was
entrusted to the village assembly called Grama Sabha, the lowest unit of the Chola
administration. It was involved in the maintenance of roads, tanks, temples and public
ponds. The village assembly was also in charge of payment of taxes due from the
villages to the King’s treasure.The village administration gradually grew from
comprising a simple group of people to the more elaborate and complicated
machinery of committees and officials that have been describes in the Chola
inscriptions of the 10th and 11th centuries. Public revenue was derived mainly from the
land and collected in kind, cash or both by village assemblies. Land was possessed by
individuals and communities. Agriculture prosperity was ensured by the special
attention given to the field of irrigation by the governments well as by the local
authorities. Village assemblies supervised the maintenance of tanks and were also
entrusted with the task of reclaiming forests and wastelands. The states demand of
land revenue was fixed at 1/3rd of the production after an elaborate land survey made
in the time of Rajaraja I. there were periodical revisions of the irrigation taxes. In
order to ensure agricultural prosperity special attention was given to providing people
with better irrigation facilities by the state as well as by the local authorities. The
Cholas spent huge amounts on building canals, tanks, dams and wells. Rajendra I dug
an artificial lake near his new capital Gangainkondacholapuram. The Chola army was
a very strong navy. According to Satri, the central government concerned itself with
matters like: external defence, maintaining of peace and order and ensuring the
general prosperity and cultural progress of the empire. Other matters were left to
smaller village assemblies, with the central government intervening only in the
matters of conflict or exceptionally difficult or trying situations.
Chola epigraphs refer to seventeen regiments of army, consisting of infantry, cavalry
and elephants. The kings actively lead the army assembly, met in a temple and
sometimes, it met on the bank of a tank or under the shade of a tree. These assemblies
managed all the activities of the entire village. They were not only the sole proprietors
of the village lands but also collected total amount of the tax revenue due to the state.
They were empowered to act as a court of justice. Thus, the village assemblies were
entrusted with the general welfare of the local activities of the village.

Polity and nature of Polity

Chola kings are known in early historical south india, but their post-sangam history is
unclear, as their connection with the Cholas of early medival times. The founder of
early medieval chola dynasty of Tanjore was Vijayalaya. He established his power in
the area around Uraiyur, captured Tajore from the Muttaraiyar chieftains and
extended his kingdom along the lower Kaveri. Vijayalaya accepted the overlordship
of Pallavas. Aditiya I (871-907), the sucessor of Vijayalaya, achieved significant
military successes and expanded the Chola kingdom. hola Aditya joined hands with
Aparajita. Both Aparijata and Aditya won a decisive victory over Pallava Nriptunga at
Sripurambiyam near Kumbakonam in AD 885. Later Aparajita rewarded Aditya by
granting additional territory. However a dissatisfied Aditya waged war against
Aparajita, killed him in AD 903, and annexed the whole of Tondaimandalam. Later,
Aditya annexed the Kongu country and thereby made the Pandyas accept his
sovereignty. The crown prince Parantaka in all these conquests helped Aditya.
Parantaka’s rule followed that of Aditya from AD 907 to 955 for a period of 48 years.
His reign was marked by success and prosperity except towards the end of his career.
His death was followed that of by anarchy and confusion that was ended by Rajaraja I,
who ascended the Chola throne in AD 985 and ushered in the imperial phase of the
Chola rule of the Vijayalaya line. Parantaka I (907-953), who succeded Aditiya I, won
several victories with the help of allies such as the Western Ganga, the Kodumbalur
chiefs, and the ruler of Kerela. He succeeded in conquering maurai, after which he
took the title of Madurantaka (destroyer of Madura) and Maduraikonda (capturer of
Madurai). he defeated armies of Pandayas and the king of Sri Lanka at the battle of
vellur and Pandaya territories fell into Chola hands. His reign was marked by success
and prosperity except towards the end of his career. His death was followed that of by
anarchy and confusion that was ended by Rajaraja I, who ascended the Chola throne
in AD 985 and ushered in the imperial phase of the Chola rule of the Vijayalaya line.
Rajaraja I successfully united the entire Tamil country into single powerful state by
his succesful conquests. He first attempted to weaken the confederacy of the rulers of
Pandaya, Kerala and Simhala. First he crushed the power of the Pandayas and then
brought Kerala under his control. He also dispatched a naval force against Simhala
and occupied the northern half of the island, destroying Anuradhapura and making
Polonnaruwa the capital of the Chola province in Simhala.
Rajaraja extended the frontiers of his kingdom by conquering certain areas of
Kamataka and knocking at the gates of Tailapa II the Chalukyan ruler of Kalyani.
Further, Rajaraja made the eastern Chalukyan kingdom of Vengi, a Chola protectorate
by offering the hand of his daughter Kundavai to Vimaladitya and installed
Saktivarman, (Vimaladitya’s brother) as the ruler of Vengi. After successfully
extending his control over Vengi, Rajaraja turned his attention towards Satyasraya,
the western Chalukya ruler. Rajaraja claims that Satyasraya prayed for peace and the
Chola army returned with immense booty, which was used for the construction of the
magnificent Rajarajeswara or Brihadiswara temple at Tanjavur. Rajaraja is said to
have conquered Maldives towards the end of his reign. He also maintained friendly
relations with Srivijaya, the maritime kingdom of Sumatra. Rajaraja I built many
temples in the early years of his rule and one of such unique structures was the
Tiruvalisvaraswami temple at Brahmadesam in the Tirunevelli district. Its wealth of
sculpture is unique. The Uttara Kailasa shrine at Tiruvadi in Tanjore district, the
Vaidyanatha temple at Tirunelavadi in Trichinopoly district, the twin temples of Siva
and Vishnu at Dadapuram in South Arcot district, and Sivadevala 2 at Polonnaruva in
Ceylon are the other notable examples of Rajaraja’s encouragement of temple
construction the maturity of Chola temple architecture finds expression in the two
magnificent temples of Tanjore and Gangaikonda Cholapuram
In AD 1041, after a long and successful reign, Rajaraja passed away and was
succeeded by his son Rajendra, a worthy successor and son to Rajaraja. Later rulers
included Kulottunga II, Rajaraja II, and Kulottunga III. The power of the imperial
Cholas declined thereafter, and the dynasty came to an end in the 13th century.
South Indian kings also legitimized their power through the performance of
sacrifices such as the Ashvamedhaand Rajasuya.The inscriptions also mention rituals
such as the Hiranyagarbha and Tulapurusha. The gifting of land to Brahmanas and
making gifts of various kinds to temples were other important activities linked to
the legitimization of royal power. Chola kingdoms included several local chieftains.
(Such chiefs do not seem to have been particularly important in the Pandya
kingdom, where the only ones mentioned are the Ays.) One view is that these
chieftains were governors appointed by kings to rule over divisions
of their kingdom. However, theyactually seem to have been subordinates or
feudatories, similar to (and in some cases perhaps descendants of) chieftains who are
known from theearly historical period. The chiefs provided military back-up when
required. It is also likely that they paid tribute to their over lord and attended his
court. They were connected to the kings and to each other through matrimonial
alliances.

The Chola Empire continued in a flourishing condition during the twelfth century
but declined by the end of the thirteenth century. The Pandyan king Sundara rendered
the final blow by seizing Kanchi in 1297 A.D. The place of the Cholas was taken over
by the Pandyas and the Hoysalas. This marked the end of the Chola power.