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Tadapa (Tala I)

Tadapa, also called Tala or Talapa and counted as Tala I, was an Eastern Chalukya prince of the junior branch, the son of Yuddhamalla I. In 925, in J. F. Fleet's dating, he drove out the child king Beta-Vijayaditya V and held the throne of Vengi for one month. Vikramaditya II then defeated and killed him. His son Yuddhamalla II later held the throne for seven years, and his grandsons Badapa and Tala II fought Amma II for it.

Tadapa was a prince of the junior branch of the Eastern Chalukya family of Vengi.1 In 925, by J. F. Fleet’s dating, he seized the throne from a child king and held it for one month.12 His seizure of the throne opened years of fighting between two branches of the family.34 He is counted as Tala I, because his grandson Tala II bore the same name.5

Family

Tadapa was a son of Yuddhamalla I.1 Yuddhamalla I was a younger brother of the crown prince Vikramaditya I, the father of Chalukya-Bhima I.6 So Tadapa was a cousin of Chalukya-Bhima I.71 The Maliyapundi grant calls his father “the paternal uncle of Chalukya-Bhima (I.)”.8

His name appears in the grants as Taha, Tala, Talapa and Tadapa.1 The Sripundi plates of his grandson make him a younger brother of a “Bhima”.71 The 1908–09 epigraphy report took this Bhima to be Chalukya-Bhima I.7 K. V. Lakshmana Rao thought the plates changed the story on purpose, to make the junior line’s claim look unbroken.5

One month on the throne

Amma I died in 925, and his young son Beta-Vijayaditya V was anointed.9 Tadapa drove the child out.1 Most grants place Tadapa directly after Amma I, and only two place him after Beta.1 The Pithapuram pillar inscription says: “Having expelled his son, the young Vijayaditya, whose other name was Kanthika-Beta,— Tadapa (ruled) for one month”.10 All the grants that name him agree on one month.2

K. A. Nilakanta Sastri and N. Venkataramanayya (1960) thought he probably seized the kingdom with Rashtrakuta help.3

His defeat and death

Vikramaditya II, a son of Chalukya-Bhima I, defeated Tadapa and took the throne.211 One grant adds that Vikramaditya killed him.2 The Maliyapundi grant gives more detail.8 Vikramaditya, it says, slew “this Tala-raja together with crowds of different vassals” at the head of a rough battle.8 These vassals had a large army and troops of furious elephants.8 Robert Sewell wrote that Tadapa was assassinated after a month.12 See Vikramaditya II.

His descendants

His son Yuddhamalla II killed Bhima, Amma I’s younger son, and held the throne for seven years.2 The Pithapuram pillar names “Yuddhamalla, the son of king Tadapa” among the kings of Vengi.10 Yuddhamalla’s sons Badapa and Tala II later fought Amma II for the throne.13

Where the sources disagree

  • When. Fleet’s reckoning gives 925.1 The Early History of the Deccan (1960) gives 927.14
  • How he died. The Maliyapundi grant says that Vikramaditya II killed him in battle.8 Sewell calls it an assassination.12 Most grants say only that Vikramaditya defeated him.2
  • Whose brother he was. Most grants make him a son of Yuddhamalla I and a cousin of Chalukya-Bhima I.71 The Sripundi plates make him the younger brother of a Bhima.7

Footnotes

  1. Fleet, “Chronology of the Eastern Chalukya Kings” (1891), p. 268 (archive.org (opens in a new tab)). ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10

  2. Fleet, “Chronology of the Eastern Chalukya Kings” (1891), p. 269 (archive.org (opens in a new tab)). ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  3. K. A. Nilakanta Sastri and N. Venkataramanayya, “The Eastern Chalukyas”, in G. Yazdani (ed.), The Early History of the Deccan, Parts VII–XI (1960), p. 482 (archive.org (opens in a new tab)). Cite-only; paraphrased. ↩ ↩2

  4. Nilakanta Sastri and Venkataramanayya, in The Early History of the Deccan (1960), p. 483 (archive.org (opens in a new tab)). Cite-only; paraphrased. ↩

  5. K. V. Lakshmana Rao, “Two Copper-plate Inscriptions of Eastern Chalukya Princes”, Epigraphia Indica XIX (1927–28), p. 149 and note 1 (archive.org (opens in a new tab)). ↩ ↩2

  6. J. F. Fleet, “The Chronology of the Eastern Chalukya Kings”, Indian Antiquary XX (1891), p. 103 (archive.org (opens in a new tab)). ↩

  7. H. Krishna Sastri, Annual Report on Epigraphy, Southern Circle, for 1908–09 (1909), Part II, para. 61, p. 108 (archive.org (opens in a new tab)). ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  8. E. Hultzsch, “Maliyapundi Grant of Ammaraja II”, Epigraphia Indica IX (1907–08), p. 55, abridged translation (archive.org (opens in a new tab)). ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  9. Fleet, “Chronology of the Eastern Chalukya Kings” (1891), p. 267 (archive.org (opens in a new tab)). ↩

  10. E. Hultzsch, “Pithapuram Pillar Inscription of Mallapadeva”, Epigraphia Indica IV (1896–97), p. 240, translation (archive.org (opens in a new tab)). ↩ ↩2

  11. Annual Report on Epigraphy, for 1917–18 (G.O. No. 1172, Home (Education), 6 September 1918), p. 132, paragraph 5 (archive.org (opens in a new tab)). ↩

  12. Robert Sewell and S. Krishnaswami Aiyangar, The Historical Inscriptions of Southern India (1932), p. 43 (archive.org (opens in a new tab)). ↩ ↩2

  13. Nilakanta Sastri and Venkataramanayya, in The Early History of the Deccan (1960), p. 484 (archive.org (opens in a new tab)). Cite-only; paraphrased. ↩

  14. Nilakanta Sastri and Venkataramanayya, in The Early History of the Deccan (1960), p. 502, Appendix A, “The Eastern Chalukya Genealogy” (archive.org (opens in a new tab)). Cite-only; paraphrased. ↩

Dynasties

Eastern Chalukyas of Vengi

c. 615–1077 CE

The Eastern Chalukyas were a branch of the Chalukyas of Badami. They ruled Vengi, the coastal country between the lower Godavari and Krishna, from the early 7th century. Their founder, Kubja Vishnuvardhana, was a younger brother of Pulakesin II. The kings fought the Rashtrakutas for two centuries. After about 1000 they were linked to the Cholas by marriage, and in 1070 their heir became the Chola emperor Kulottunga I. Their copper-plate grants record the length of every reign. The first Telugu literary work, Nannaya's Mahabharata, was written at their court in Rajahmundry.

References

Sources (9)
  1. R. C. Temple (ed.); article by J. F. Fleet, Indian Antiquary, Vol. XX (1891), incl. J. F. Fleet, 'The Chronology of the Eastern Chalukya Kings' (opens in a new tab), Education Society's Press, Bombay, 1891, pp. 103, 267–269. J. F. Fleet, 'The Chronology of the Eastern Chalukya Kings'. [Public domain]
  2. F. Kielhorn (articles); E. Hultzsch (ed.), Epigraphia Indica, Vol. IV (1896–97) (opens in a new tab), Archaeological Survey of India, 1897, pp. 240. E. Hultzsch, Pithapuram pillar inscription of Mallapadeva, translation. [Public domain]
  3. E. Hultzsch and Sten Konow (eds.), Epigraphia Indica, Vol. IX (1907–08) (opens in a new tab), Government of India, Calcutta, 1908, pp. 55. E. Hultzsch, Maliyapundi grant of Ammaraja II, abridged translation. [Public domain]
  4. E. Hultzsch, South-Indian Inscriptions, Vol. I: Tamil and Sanskrit Inscriptions (opens in a new tab), Government Press, Madras, 1890, pp. 46. E. Hultzsch, South-Indian Inscriptions I, No. 37, translation. [Public domain]
  5. Madras Government (Assistant Archaeological Superintendent for Epigraphy), Annual Reports on Epigraphy, Southern Circle, for 1915-16 to 1919-20 (opens in a new tab), Government Press, Madras, 1920, pp. 132 (report for 1917–18). [Public domain]
  6. Madras Government (Assistant Archaeological Superintendent for Epigraphy), Annual Reports on Epigraphy, Southern Circle, for 1906-07 to 1909-10 (opens in a new tab), Government Press, Madras, 1910, pp. 108 (report for 1908–09). Annual Report on Epigraphy for 1908–09, Part II, para. 61. [Public domain]
  7. Hirananda Sastri (ed.), Epigraphia Indica, Vol. XIX (1927–28) (opens in a new tab), Archaeological Survey of India, 1928, pp. 149. K. V. Lakshmana Rao, Two Copper-plate Inscriptions of Eastern Chalukya Princes. [Public domain]
  8. Robert Sewell (ed. S. Krishnaswami Aiyangar), The Historical Inscriptions of Southern India (Collected till 1923) and Outlines of Political History (opens in a new tab), University of Madras, 1932, pp. 43. Paraphrased. [Public domain in India]
  9. G. Yazdani (ed.); Part VII by K. A. Nilakanta Sastri and N. Venkataramanayya, The Early History of the Deccan, Parts VII-XI, Oxford University Press, London, published under the authority of the Government of Andhra Pradesh, 1960, pp. 482–483, 502. Cite-only; paraphrased. [All rights reserved (cited, not reproduced)]

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