Indian Antiquary Vol 58

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple, Charles E A W Oldham, S Krishnaswami Aiyangar, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarka
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 34

28
THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
[ FEBRUARY, 1929
THE EMPIRE OF ORISSA.
BY PROF. R. D. BANERJI, M.A. (Continued from vol. LVII, p. 239.)
II. Purushottama (1470-97.) The death of Kapilendra in 1470 was followed by a war of succession. Firishta states that two of the sons of Kapilendra named Mangal Rai and Ambar Rai were rival claimants for the throne and Ambar Rai sought the alliance of the Bahmani Sultan Muhammad III, who had succeeded his elder brother Nizam Shah on the 30th July 1463. At the time of his accession Muhammad was in his tenth year, and therefore at the time of the death of Kapilendra his age could not have been more than eighteen. The Burhan-i-ma'asir assigns, perhaps more correctly than F'irishta, another reason for the interference of Muhammad Shah Bahmani in the affairs of the Orissan empire. According to this authority, “In this year the Queen-Mother, Makhdûmah Jahân, died, and in A.H. 875 (A.D. 1470) the Sultan assumed the reins of government.
“In the midst of these affairs a mossonger arrived from Telingana and informed the Sultân that the Râya of Orissa, who was the principal raya of Telingânâ was dead.
"The Sultan was rejoiced to hear this news, and resolved upon the conquest of these dominions, accordingly he held a council of war with his nobles and ministers. Malik Nizâm-ul-Mulk Bahri, who was ono of the favourites of Humayun Shah, said :-"With Your Majesty's permission I will undertake this duty." The Sultan invested him with a special robe of honour, and despatched him with some of the other nobles in that direction."'1
On many different occasions the Burhan-z-ma'arir has proved itself to be far more reliable than Firishta where Bahmani history is concerned. This is specially the case in Bahmani genealogy. Firishta's version may therefore be regarded as unreliable. Muhammad III could not have taken much interest in the campaign as he was too young, but his nobles found this to be a fitting opportunity to revenge themselves for the numerous defeats they had suffered at the hand of Kapilendra, e.g., the battle of Devårkonda, the invasion of the metropolitan district or Bidar etc. It is quite possible that at this time the Musalmans also interfered in the succession to the throne of Orissa; but the principal cause cf the Musalman invasion was the wcakness of the empire of Orissa at this particular moment.
Before proceeding with the narrative of the campaign, we should pause to consider the condition of the Eastern districts of the Indian Peninsula at the time of Kapilendra's death.
The Bahmani Sultans had grown stronger for the time being, upon the attainment of majo· rity of Muhammad III, but the Yâdava or Vodeyar dynasty of Vijayanagara was fast
approaching extinction. There are reasons to suppose that the emperor Virupaksha was alive in 1478, at least eight years after the death of Kapilendra in 1470.2 The Saļuva chief Narasimha may have obtained the supreme power even in the life time of Virupaksha II, but at the time of Kapilendra's death he was clearly still a subordinate. Narasa Nayaka seems to have been serving under Saluva Narasimha at this time. Like the Musalman generals and nobles of Mubammad III Bahmanî, the commanders of Virupaksha II also considered the death of the strong ruler of Orissa and the dissensions among his sons to be a very fitting opportunity for the reconquest of the districts in the Tamil and the Telugu
country wrested from the Vijayanagara empire by the founder of the Sûryavamsa dynasty. : Prof. S. K. Aiyangar considers that " Saļuva Narasimha's first service to the empire was
the beating back of this enemy right up to Rajahmundry where the Bahmani Sultân, Muhammad, found him strongly entrenched in one of his campaigns." Now we are in a position to judge how it became possible for Saluva Narasimha to be present on the banks of the Godavari in 1474-75 when Muhammad III besieged the strong fort of Rajamahendri
1 Indian Antiquary, vol. XXVIII, p. 285. 3 Epi. Ind., vol. VIII, App. II, p. 15: Quoir Epi. Curn., vol. V, p. I, p. 448, No. 153, 3 Sou!ces of Vijayanagar History, Malus, 1919, pp. 7-8.