Vijayanagara and the Telugu country
This path covers the Vijayanagara empire in the Telugu lands: its kings, its poets, its temples and its forts in Rayalaseema. It has 14 pages and takes about 2 hours to read.
- ErasVijayanagara & the Qutb Shahis
The big picture: Vijayanagara in Rayalaseema and its fight for the coast.
- DynastiesVijayanagara Empire
The empire on the Tungabhadra, its four ruling families and how its court made Telugu a language of high poetry.
- PeopleHarihara I (Vijayanagara)
The first ruler of Vijayanagara, and the debate over where he and his brothers came from.
- PeopleKrishnadeva Raya
The most famous Vijayanagara king, his wars on the coast and his Telugu poem Amuktamalyada.
- PeopleAllasani Peddana
The chief poet of Krishnadeva Raya's court, whose Manucharitramu became the model of the prabandha.
- MonumentsVenkatesvara temple, Tirumala
The Tirumala temple, with Krishnadeva Raya's inscriptions and copper statues of the king and his queens.
- PeopleTallapaka Annamacharya
The composer of devotional songs to Venkatesvara of Tirupati.
- MonumentsVirabhadra temple, Lepakshi
The Lepakshi temple, its great hall of carved pillars and its painted ceiling.
- PeopleAliya Rama Raya
Krishnadeva Raya's son-in-law, who ruled the empire until the battle of 1565.
- PlacesPenukonda
The hill town that became the refuge of the court after the defeat of 1565.
- MonumentsPenukonda fort and Gagan Mahal
The fort of Penukonda, the Gagan Mahal palace and the temples inside it.
- MonumentsChandragiri fort and Raja Mahal
The hill fort near Tirupati and its two palaces.
- MonumentsGooty fort
The hill fortress of Gooty and the rulers who held it in turn.
- DynastiesAdil Shahis of Bijapur
The sultans of Bijapur, who fought Vijayanagara and then advanced into the western Telugu uplands.