Soldier: Created Rajaditya Chola

2023-09-08T14:46:35Z

Created Rajaditya Chola

New page

{{Short description|Chola prince (died c. 949 CE)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2017}}
{{Use Indian English|date=March 2017}}
{{Chola history}}
{{Infobox royalty
| birth_place = [[Pazhayarai]], [[chola empire]]
| death_date = 949 CE
| death_place = [[Takkolam]]
| father = [[Parantaka I]]
| mother = Ko kizhan adigal
| religion = [[Hinduism]]
| dynasty = [[Chola]]
}}
'''Rajaditya Chola''' (''fl.'' mid-10th century AD) was a [[Chola dynasty|Chola]] prince, son of king [[Parantaka I]] (r. 907–955) and a [[Chera dynasty|Chera/Kerala]] princess ([[Ko Kizhan Adikal Ravi Neeli|the Ko Kizhan Adigal]]<ref name=":0">Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013. 96-100.</ref>), known for commanding the Chola troops in the [[battle of Takkolam]] (948–949).<ref name=":18">Ali, Daud. "The Death of a Friend: Companionship, Loyalty and Affiliation in Chola South India." ''Studies in History'', vol. 33, no. 1, Feb. 2017, pp. 36–60.</ref>
[[File:Atakur inscription (cropped).jpg|thumb|Sculptures in [[Atakur inscription]] (showing a hound and a boar fighting each other)|262x262px]]

The death of prince Rajaditya in the battle is unusually commemorated by the Cholas. The Chola version of the events can be found in Larger Leiden Grant<ref>''Epigraphia Indica'' 22 (1933–34), no. 34: vv. 19–21.</ref> (1006 AD) of [[Raja Raja Chola I|Rajaraja I]] and Tiruvalangadu Plates (1018 AD) of [[Rajendra Chola I|Rajendra Chola]].<ref>''South Indian Inscriptions'' 3 (1920), no. 205: v. 54.</ref><ref name=":18"/> An account of the battle, which differs in some details from the Chola version, is found in the Atakur inscription issued by [[Krishna III]] and prince [[Butuga II]] (a young underlord of Krishna III) of the [[Western Ganga dynasty|Western Ganga]] family.<ref name="ReferenceA">''Epigraphia Indica'' 6 (1900–01), no. 6c: 53–56.</ref><ref name=":18"/> The Sravana Belgola record of Ganga king Marasimha (963 - 975 AD) also claims victory of the Chera king for his predecessor Bhutuga II.<ref>Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013. 100-101 and 113-114.</ref> Indirect references to the battle can also be found in the inscriptions of [[Vellan Kumaran]], a Kerala commander in the Chola army.<ref>''Epigraphia Indica'' 27 (1947–48), no. 47: 293–96.</ref>

== Early life ==
Rajaditya was the son of the [[Ko Kizhan Adikal Ravi Neeli|Ko Kizhan Atikal]], the [[Chera Perumal]] princess, and the Chola king [[Parantaka I]] (r. 907–955 AD).<ref name=":3">Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013. 99-100.</ref> King Parantaka I is known to have married two distinct Chera princesses, Ko Kizhan Adigal and Kizhan Adikal Ravi Neeli (the mothers of his two sons, Rajaditya and Arinjaya Chola).<ref>George Spencer, ‘Ties that Bound: Royal Marriage Alliance in the Chola Period’, ''Proceedings of the Fourth International Symposium on Asian Studies'' (Hong Kong: Asian Research Service, 1982), 723.</ref><ref name=":18"/> The marriage between a Chera princess and Parantaka, c. 910 CE, is mentioned in the Udayendiram plates of Ganga king Prthivipati II Hastimalla.<ref name=":03">Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013. 96-101, 437, 442, 445 and 473.</ref><ref>''South Indian Inscriptions'' 2 (1895), no. 76: v. 8.</ref>

It seems that Chola king [[Parantaka I]] anticipated a climactic battle with the [[Rashtrakuta]]s and their allies in Tirumunaippati Nadu. Sometime in the 930s, or perhaps as early as 923 AD,<ref>''South Indian Inscriptions'' 7 (1932), No. 1009.</ref> prince Rajaditya was sent with a substantial military contingent, including elephants and horses, as well as his entire household, to Rajadityapura (Tirunavalur/Tirumanallur) in Tirumunaippati Nadu (to protect the northern edges of a nascent Chola state<ref name=":05">Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013. 100-101.</ref>).<ref name=":18"/> The prince was joined at Rajadityapura by his mother (the Chera princess [[Ko Kizhan Adikal Ravi Neeli|Ko Kizhan Adikal]]) in the mid-930s<ref name=":2">Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013. 100-01.</ref> and his half-brother Arinjaya.<ref name=":18"/> Rajaditya was supported by a number of military personnel from [[Kerala]] (Chera) chiefdoms in Tirumunaippati Nadu.<ref name=":18"/>

==Battle of Takkolam==
[[Battle of Takkolam]], Takkolam is a town in [[Arakkonam]] taluk of the [[Vellore]] district, northern [[Tamil Nadu]].<ref name=":18"/>

The Rashtrakuta contingent at Takkolam included a collection of feudal militias and royal soldiers (from [[Western Gangas]], [[Bana Kingdom|Banas]] and Vaidumbas among others).<ref name=":18"/> Prince Rajaditya, in addition to the Chola warriors, was supported by a number of military personnel from [[Kerala]] (Chera) chiefdoms.<ref name=":18"/>

The [[Battle of Takkolam]] fought in 948-49 CE resulted in the death of Rajaditya on the battlefield and the defeat of the Chola garrison at Takkolam.<ref name=":18"/> According to the Atakur inscription, during the battle, Rajaditya was struck while seated atop his war elephant by an arrow from prince [[Butuga II]].<ref name="ReferenceA">''Epigraphia Indica'' 6 (1900–01), no. 6c: 53–56.</ref> The Chola prince died instantly. The Chola army was subsequently defeated and retreated in disorder.<ref name=":18"/> The collapse of the Chola resistance after the battle of Takkolam lead to the virtual destruction of the Chola empire.<ref name=":05"/>

Here is an excerpt from Atakur inscription :

{{Cquote|{{center|
''Hail! While the samvatsara named Saumya, the eight hundred and seventy second [in] the centuries of years that have gone by from the time of the Saka king, was current:-''

''Hail! When Krishnaraja [III]... having attacked the Muvadi Chola Rajaditya, and having fought and killed him in Takkola...''

''At the place where,-having followed and come up with Four-fold Forces of the Chola, which stood to confront us without wavering,-we were to come close quarters and pierce them, we certainly saw not any [others among our] valiant men who strode forward saying "We will meet the heros that oppose us; "but we did see how,-the Chola himself being the witness, -he [Manalera] came to close quarters and pierced...he [Manalera], the sole Sudraka in war...struck, like a lion, the forehead of the [Rajaditya's] elephant...''

<ref name="ReferenceA">''Epigraphia Indica'' 6 (1900–01), no. 6c: 53–56.</ref>

}}}}

The subsidiary record engraved on the upper part of slab throws some more light on the incident:

{{Cquote|{{center|

''Hail! While Butuga [II], having fought and killed Rachamalla, the son of the illustrious Ereyapa, was governing the [pronvince of] ninety six thousand:-''

''At the time when Kannaradeva was fighting against the Chola, Butuga [II] while embracing Rajaditya, treacherously stabbed him with a dagger, and thus fought and killed him...''.<ref name="Epigraphiav6p57">''Epigraphia Indica'' 6 (1900–01), no. 6c: 57.</ref>
}}
}}

== Chola-Chera Perumal relations (c. 9th-10th centuries AD) ==
[[File:Cola-Cera_Perumal_relations_(c._9th-10th_centuries_AD).png|700px|Cola-Cera Perumal relations (c. 9th-10th centuries AD)]]

==References ==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
* George Spencer, 'Ties that Bound', ''P. F. I. S. A. S.'' (Hong Kong: Asian Research Service, 1982), 723.
*Daud Ali. 'The Death of a Friend'. ''Studies in History'', vol. 33, no. 1, 2017, pp. 36–60.
*M. G. S. Narayanan, ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013.
*''Epigraphia Indica''
**''Epigraphia Indica'' 6 (1900–01), no. 6c: 53–56
**''Epigraphia Indica'' 22 (1933–34), no. 34: vv. 19–21.
**''Epigraphia Indica'' 27 (1947–48), no. 47: 293–96.
*''South Indian Inscriptions''
**''South Indian Inscriptions'' 2 (1895), no. 76: v. 8.
**''South Indian Inscriptions'' 7 (1932), No. 1009.
**''South Indian Inscriptions'' 3 (1920), no. 205: v. 54.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chola, Rajaditya}}
[[Category:Chola dynasty]]
[[Category:Tamil monarchs]]
[[Category:949 deaths]]
[[Category:Year of birth unknown]]

Rajaditya Chola - Revision history

Soldier: Created Rajaditya Chola