https://en.bharatpedia.org/w/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=Vijayanagara_ArmyVijayanagara Army - Revision history2026-10-28T19:30:26ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.43.6https://en.bharatpedia.org/w/index.php?title=Vijayanagara_Army&diff=544455&oldid=prevSadnasankar138 at 15:50, 26 January 20262026-01-26T15:50:35Z<p></p>
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[[File:Dutchbisnagar1667.jpg|thumb|Clothing of a Vijayanagar soldier]]<br />
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The '''Vijayanagara Army''' supported the [[Vijayanagara Empire]] in particular with regard to the empire's long-lasting rivalry with the [[Bahmani Kingdom|Bahmani Sultanate]] and the [[Deccan sultanates]]. Besides a large standing army, the [[Vijayanagara]] rulers also maintained a powerful navy.{{Citation needed|date=November 2025}} This helped make the Vijayanagara empire the most centralised polity ever to have emerged in [[southern India]].{{Citation needed|date=November 2025}}<br />
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==Numbers==<br />
{{Unreferenced section|date=March 2024}}<br />
The numerical strength of the Vijayanagara army is disputed. [[Niccolò de' Conti]] reported a figure of 245,000 men during the reign of [[Krishnadevaraya]], but [[Fernão Nunes|Fernao Nuniz]] claimed it to be around 200,000, consisting of 170,000 foot soldiers, 30,000 [[cavalry]] and 550 [[war elephant]]s. [[Rayawacha]] countered that the force contained 500,000 foot soldiers, 60,000 cavalry and 1,200 war elephants.<br />
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[[Deva Raya II]], to counter the superior Bahmani cavalry, is believed to have enrolled 2000 Muslim cavalrymen to teach the art of archery to his Hindu soldiers and officers.<ref name=Chandra>{{cite book|last1=Chandra|first1=Satish|title=History of Medieval India|date=2007|publisher=Orient Blackswan Private Limited|location=New Delhi|isbn=9788125032267|pages=143–4|edition=First}}</ref><br />
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==Hoysala influence==<br />
The military leadership of the Hindu confederacy which [[Veera Ballala III|Ballala III]] had so ably wielded devolved apparently on the Vijayanagara kings after his death. The Vijayanagara principality was at this time the most influential, besides it was situated at a strategic point, and therefore, the Vijayanagara kings were likely to accomplish the great mission of Ballala III, viz., that of warding off the Muslim menace and rebuilding a Hindu empire in South India. The Vijayanagara kings were rapidly rising and after A. D. 1346 they gradually absorbed the whole of the Hoysala Empire as a matter of course, without the least sign of opposition. An inscription dated A. D 1346, belonging to Ballala IV, is found in the Begurr Hobli, Bangalore Taluk, and the very next year an inscription belonging to Harihara 1 is found in the same Hobli*. It is therefore evident that the Vijayanagara kings occupied the Hoysala empire within a very short period. Many of the early Vijayanagara inscriptions describe Harihara and Bukka as ruling “the Hoysala kingdom”.{{sfn|Coelho|1949|p=265}}<br />
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==Branches==<br />
The Vijayanagara army contained two main branches, being the Kaijeeta Sainya and the Amaranayaka Sainya. Sainya roughly means army.<br />
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===Kaijeeta Sainya===<br />
The Kaijeeta is Vijayanagar claims that it comprised 50,000 men during the reign of [[Krishna Deva Raya]], including 2,00,000 horsemen who served as palace guards and 2,000 who served as the emperor's personal bodyguards. [[Razak Rayala]] says that the army was on salary, being paid every four months rather than by the award of [[jagir]]s.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}<br />
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===Amaranayaka Sainya===<br />
The Amaranayaka Sainya was maintained using the feudal [[nayankara]] system of the [[Kakatiyas]]. For this purpose, the empire was divided into ''Amaras'' (areas of revenue-producing land), that were granted to leaders called [[Nayak (title)|Nayak]]as. In return, these Nayakas supplied soldiers when required. The number supplied depended on the rank of the Nayaka, who himself divided lands among his subordinates. According to [[Fernão Nunes|Nuniz]], the Amaranayaka army strength stood at 600,000 during the rule of [[Achyuta Deva Raya]]; Rayawacha itemised the forces supplied as being 200,000 foot soldiers, 24,000 cavalry, 1,200 war elephants.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}<br />
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==Composition==<br />
The Vijayanagara army consisted primarily of [[infantry]], cavalry and war elephants, armed with bows and arrows, swords and lances as its principal weapons. According to [[Ferishta]], the foot soldiers applied oil to their bodies but did not wear armour or helmets, whereas Portuguese travellers, such as [[Pace (surname)|Pace]] and [[Barros]], described protective clothing made of animal skin and that they carried shields.{{sfn|Rao|1994|p=131}}<br />
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Although the Vijayanagran kings had little interest in guns, the infantry did have a regiment of men armed with [[matchlock]]. They also built a navy, sited on the west coast, which was headed by the governor of [[Hanover Timmoju]] in the time of [[Krishna Deva Raya]] and which, according to [[Heeras Rayala]], assisted the Portuguese in their occupation of [[Goa]].{{sfn|Rao|1994|p=118}} The powerful navy enabled the Vijayanagara rulers to invade [[Sri Lanka]] repeatedly.<ref name=Chandra /><br />
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==Forts==<br />
{{Unreferenced section|date=March 2024}}<br />
Forts played an important role in medieval warfare. According to tradition, there were eight types of forts. However, Rayawachaka mentions four types of forts. They are giri (hill), stala, jala (water)and vana (forest) forts. Krishnaraya suggests that forts were mainly constructed in Gadi and border areas. Pace wrote that many forts were present in border areas. Deep forests were grown around forts. Catapults and damboli were used for fort defense. Damboli is a cannon which throws stones on enemies. To occupy forts they used lagga systems. Krishnadevaraya used them to occupy Kondaveedu fort.<br />
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==Recruitment==<br />
Emperor [[Krishna Deva Raya]] recruited soldiers from [[Kannada people|Kannada]] and [[Telugu people|Telugus]] of the frontier, Mysoreans and Malabarese from the west and centre, mixed with the Tamils from the remoter districts to the south.{{sfn|Sewell|p=256}} Empire training facilities improved bravery, interest in war, and body strength. According to books written in that time, the samu garidi (dance performance of knives and fire) and training gyms were both present throughout the country. Hontakaras trained the fighters. Since Vijayanagara was a multi-faith country, Muslims also joined the army. Their strength increased from the era of [[Deva Raya II]] and peaked in the time of [[Aliya Rama Raya]], diminishing after his surprise defeat in the [[Battle of Talikota]].{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}<br />
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==See also==<br />
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* [[Krishnadevaraya's Bahamani Expedition|Krishnadevaraya's Bahmani Expedition]]<br />
* [[Military history of India]]<br />
* [[Vijayanagara Empire]]<br />
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==References==<br />
{{Reflist}}<br />
'''Books'''<br />
* {{cite book |last1=Coelho |first1=William |title=The Hoysala Vamsa |date=1949 |publisher=Public Resource |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.126668/mode/2up}}<br />
* {{cite book |last1=Sewell |first1=Robert |title=Forgotten Empire Vijayanagar |url=https://archive.org/details/forgotten_empire_vijayanagar_-_robert_sewell/mode/2up}}<br />
* {{Citation |last=Rao|year=1994|title=History And Culture Of Andhra Pradesh: From The Earliest Times To The Present Day |publisher=Sterling Publishers|isbn=81-207-1719-8}}<br />
* Military system and war policies during Vijayanagara Period (In Kannada)- Dr. S.Y. Somashekhar, 2009, Sanchike Prakashana, Kannada University, Hampi, Vidyaranya-583 276, Ballary dist<br />
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[[Category:Military of the Vijayanagara Empire| ]]<br />
[[Category:Military history of India]]</div>Sadnasankar138