Book Title: Indian Antiquary Vol 62
Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple, Charles E A W Oldham, S Krishnaswami Aiyangar, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarka
Publisher: Swati Publications
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JANUARY, 1933]
DYNASTIC CONTINUITY IN VIJAYANAGARA HISTORY
which tells us that Dadiya Sômaya Daņņayaka himself was "the minister descended from that king (BallAla ITT) (tasya rájánvaya).20 The conclusion which may be drawn from this is that Vallappa Dannayaka was, therefore, also of Hoysala descent.
But this conclusion of ours needs modification, since there are other records, issued by Vallappa himself and by responsible officers of Ballkla III, which call him the younger brother of Singeya Dannayaka, who is called the son of that Hoysala monarch. The epigraphs which contain this information are mostly in Tamil. They date from 1328 to 1339 A.D. We are told the following in these records ....Vira Vallala Dévar kumarar Dati Singe-dannayakkar tambiyar Vallappa Dannayakar.31
How can we reconcile these apparently conflicting statements that Vallappa was the son of Dadiya Sômaya, and that he was brother of Singeya, who was the son of Balla!a TII ! I confess it is difficult to understand these statements except on the following supposition. We know that, in the course of the Muhammadan invasions, Vira BallAla III's son, Prince Vira Virûpåksha BallA!a, was captured by the enemy, and that his return to the capital was commemorated by a remission of taxes in 1313 A.D. During the absence of Virupaksha Ballaļa, or for some considerations unknown to us, Balla!a III may have adopted Singeya Dannayaka as his son cr crown-prince. This explains why only Singeya, and not Vallappa, is called the son of BallAla III.
However that may be, Vallappa's position in Hoysala history deserves notice. He continued to hold the high office of mahd-pradhana, which his father Dadiya Sômaya had held before him in 1342 A.D.23 He is called the chief minister of BallAla ITT in 1343 A.D.:. But, as narrated above, he is called the aliya of Harihara I in 1346 A.D. Now, when did he become an aliya of Harihara I ! According to the Rev. Fr. Heras, he married a daughter of Harihara "earlier than this date” (i.e., that referring to the death of Ball&ļa III, or, in other words, before 1343 A.D.)95 But I am inclined to place the date of this marriage-if it took place at all-in 1346 A.D. No inscription before 1346 A.D. ever refers to him as aliya, but in that year there are at least three records which call him aliya Vallappa. One of these is the Sringêri record already cited above. The second is in Tamil, and it calls him Ariya (syfw) Vallappa Dannayaka.36 Evidently the word ariya is a Tamil form of the Kannada aliya. A copper-plate grant in the Sringeri matha, also dated in the same year, confirms the evidence of these records.27
From the above considerations we may conclude that Vallappa was the son of Dadiya Səmaya, that, therefore, he was directly connected with the Hoysala dynasty, and that he was the aliya of Harihara 1.2*
30 Ep. Car., IX, Ht. 43, p. 92, Text, p. 206.
31 Ep. Car., IX, P. II, Mr. 10, 18, pp. 94, 97, Ep. Car., IX, Ht. 104, p. 101, n. 1, Text, p. 62 ; Ht. 96, Text, p. 48; My. Arch. Report for 1913-14, pp. 44-5.
33 Ep. Car., VII, Sh. 68, p. 28. 23 Ep. Cor., IX, Ht. 90, p. 98. 34 Ibid., Ht. 75, 96.
36 Heras, Beginnings, p. 92. Fr. Horas also writes :"... and from this marriage we know of a son named Tanan." (Ibid.) While it is true that the record gives us the name of Tanan, it does not say anything about the marriage. Nothing about the marriage can be made out from this disjointed epigraph. See Ep. Car., X, Mr. 18, p. 160.
36 Ep. Car., X, P. II, Mr. 61, p. 104. 27 My. Arch. Report for 1916, p. 57.
18 We cannot dotermine tho oxact relationship in this connection too, since aliya may stand for son-in-law or nephew.
