Joy Manikya II

Joy Manikya II
Maharaja of Tripura
1st reign	c. 1739–1744
Predecessor	Mukunda Manikya
Successor	Indra Manikya II
2nd reign	1746
Predecessor	Indra Manikya II
Successor	Vijaya Manikya III
Born	Rudramani Thakur
Died	1746
Wives	Jayavati Yosavati
Issue	Jayamangal
House	Manikya dynasty
Father	Haradhan Thakur
Religion	Hinduism

Kingdom of Tripura
Part of History of Tripura
Kings of Tripura Maha Manikya c. 1400–1431 Dharma Manikya I 1431–1462 Ratna Manikya I 1462–1487 Pratap Manikya 1487 Vijaya Manikya I 1488 Mukut Manikya 1489 Dhanya Manikya 1490–1515 Dhwaja Manikya 1515–1520 Deva Manikya 1520–1530 Indra Manikya I 1530–1532 Vijaya Manikya II 1532–1563 Ananta Manikya 1563–1567 Udai Manikya I 1567–1573 Joy Manikya I 1573–1577 Amar Manikya 1577–1585 Rajdhar Manikya I 1586–1600 Ishwar Manikya 1600 Yashodhar Manikya 1600–1623 Interregnum 1623–1626 Kalyan Manikya 1626–1660 Govinda Manikya 1660–1661 Chhatra Manikya 1661–1667 Govinda Manikya 1661–1673 Rama Manikya 1673–1685 Ratna Manikya II 1685–1693 Narendra Manikya 1693–1695 Ratna Manikya II 1695–1712 Mahendra Manikya 1712–1714 Dharma Manikya II 1714–1725 Jagat Manikya 1725–1729 Dharma Manikya II 1729 Mukunda Manikya 1729–1739 Joy Manikya II c. 1739–1744 Indra Manikya II c. 1744–1746 Udai Manikya II c. 1744 Joy Manikya II 1746 Vijaya Manikya III 1746–1748 Lakshman Manikya 1740s/1750s Interregnum 1750s–1760 Krishna Manikya 1760–1783 Rajdhar Manikya II 1785–1806 Rama Ganga Manikya 1806–1809 Durga Manikya 1809–1813 Rama Ganga Manikya 1813–1826 Kashi Chandra Manikya 1826–1829 Krishna Kishore Manikya 1829–1849 Ishan Chandra Manikya 1849–1862 Bir Chandra Manikya 1862–1896 Birendra Kishore Manikya 1909–1923 Bir Bikram Kishore Manikya 1923–1947 Kirit Bikram Kishore Manikya 1947–1949 1949–1978 (titular) Kirit Pradyot Manikya 1978–present (titular)
Tripura monarchy data
Manikya dynasty (Royal family)
Agartala (Capital of the kingdom)
Ujjayanta Palace (Royal residence)
Neermahal (Royal residence)
Rajmala (Royal chronicle)
Tripura Buranji (Chronicle)
Chaturdasa Devata (Family deities)

Joy Manikya II (died 1746) was the Maharaja of Tripura during the mid-18th-century. He originally gained the throne through popular approval for his military hostility to the Mughal Empire. However, Joy spent much of his reign warring against various relations to maintain his grip on it, in particular with his cousin Indra Manikya II.

Background

Originally named Rudramani Thakur, he belonged to a cadet branch of the royal family; his father Haradhan Thakur had been a grandson of Jagannath Thakur, the younger brother of Maharaja Govinda Manikya.

As a young man, Rudramani had been a prominent general and had opposed the suzerainty of the Mughal Empire over Tripura. To this end, he aimed to form a national militia against the occupying force. From his base in the Matia Hills (where he had been sent to capture elephants), Rudramani organised a strong force with the aid of tribal chiefs. He wrote to the then-monarch, Mukunda Manikya, stating that the people of Tripura were opposed to the Mughals and that if the latter gave his approval, Rudramani could arrange to have the Faujdar at Udaipur, Haji Munsam, and his men killed. Mukunda disavowed the proposal, instead opting to inform Munsam of the conspiracy.

Reign

In 1739, Mukunda Manikya committed suicide, having been arrested by the Mughals on the grounds of neglecting to pay his tribute of elephants. In response, Rudramani launched a surprise assault on Udaipur and occupied it, with the Mughals, having been caught off guard, coming to terms and surrendering the city. His actions were popular among the Tripuri people, who selected him to be the new monarch as opposed to Mukunda's sons. Rudramani subsequently ascended the throne with the regnal name Joy Manikya.

In 1744, Panch Cowrie Thakur, a son of Mukunda living in the Mughal viceregal capital Murshidabad, approached the Nawab of Bengal, Alivardi Khan, for aid in wresting Tripura from Joy. The Mughals, still sore from their previous defeat, provided military support to Panch Cowrie, who was able to take the throne and assumed the name Indra Manikya. Joy withdrew from the capital and ran a parallel government from the Matia Hills. With the support of influential Zamindars, he made repeated attempts to reclaim full power, though was always held back by Mughal forces. The country remained divided between the partisans of the rival monarchs for a time before Joy was able to gain the support of the Mughals and retake the throne.

It was during this time that another relative, a son of Dharma Manikya II, taking advantage of the internal divisions, made his own claim for power. He bribed the Naib Nazim of Dhaka and arrived in Comilla with a strong Muslim army, assuming the name Udai Manikya. Joy was able to resist this enemy, forcing Udai into submission and driving him out. However, he now fell into arrears with his tribute to the Mughals. A military expedition was dispatched against Joy, which defeated him in an ensuing battle. He was taken to the Court of Murshidabad and arrested alongside his dignitaries, with Indra Manikya once more taking his place as ruler of Tripura.

By 1746, Joy had received control of the kingdom for a third time after Indra had fallen into disfavour with the Nawab. However, his remaining time on the throne was very brief, with much of it being troubled by Indra's younger brother Krishnamani. Following Joy's death that same year, he was succeeded by his younger brother Vijaya Manikya III.