Marthanda Varma Marthanda Varma, also known as Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma, ascended to the throne of
Venad in 1729 and expanded the kingdom to form the state of
Travancore. At age one, he lost his parents; his father (Kilimanoor Koithampuran) died of an illness, and his mother was adopted by the Venad royal family during the period of
Umayamma Rani from
Kolathunadu. The novel does not refer to Marthanda Varma's actual background; he calls King Rama Varma his maternal uncle, and refers to Kilimanoor Koithampuran (who sacrificed his life to save prince Karthika Thirunal Rama Varma from the plans of Ramanamadathil Pillai) as his elder brother.
Thambi duo The Thambi duo (or Thambimar, or the Thambi brothers) refers to the two sons of king Rama Varma. In the royal edicts,
Mathilakam Records, the sons of king Rama Varma are Kunchu Thambi and Ilaya Thambi are the elder and younger brothers, respectively; the
paterfamilias was Kumara Pillai. P. Shangoony Menon called them Papu Thambi and Raman Thambi in the
History of Travancore from the Earliest Times; in
The Sketch of Progress of Travancore,
Nanoo Pillai wrote that they were commonly known as Coonju Thambimar and their names were Pulpu Thumbi and Raman Thambi. In folk songs and ballads, the elder brother is Valiya Thambi and the younger is Kunju Thambi; their mother's name is Abhirami or Kittanathalamma, and they have a younger sister named Kochumani Thanka or Kochu Madamma. In the novel, the elder brother is Pappu Thambi (also known as Padmanabhan Thambi) and the younger brother is Raman Thambi. According to C. V. Raman Pillai's biography, Kesavan Thambi Karyakkar (his childhood caretaker) had two sons (Padmanabhan Thambi and Raman Thambi) with whom the author had grown up.
Ananthan (Ananthapadmanabhan) Ananthapadmanabhan was a warrior and expert in martial arts who defended the plans of conspirators against Marthanda Varma. According to
N. Krishna Pillai and Anandakkuttan Nair, Ananthapadmanabhan served in the Travancore forces some time after
Kollavarsham 904 (Gregorian calendar 1729) and received royal properties in Kollavarsham 920 (1745); according to A. P. Ibrahim Kunju, the properties were awarded in 1748. He was born Ananthan Perumal to Thanumalaya Perumal and Lakshmi Devi of the
Sanror clan, and was affectionately called Padmanabhan by his maternal uncle. In the novel, the author did not affirm the caste of Ananthapadmanabhan by providing details about his mother; he is not referred to as a
Pillai or
Nair, although he is described as the son of Thirumukhathu Pillai. The character's love interest in the novelParukkutty (Parvathi Amma)evokes Ananthan's spouse, Parvathi Ammal. The character is known as Ananthapadmanabha Pillai in ballads about the Thambi brothers and Ananthan in other ballads, such as "Aṉantan Pāṭṭŭ" and "Ōṭṭan Katai". In the novel, the alter ego of Shamsudeen lives with the Pathans at
Manacaud. C. V. Raman Pillai went to
Hyderabad to recover from heartbreak, and it was suggested that he convert to
Islam and marry a Muslim woman. Shamsudeen resembles the author's experiences.
Rama Varma Rama Varma was the ruler of Venad in Kollavarsham 899–903. He is a descendant of Kolathunadu kingdom, from where he was adopted by the Travancore royal family during the period of Umayamma Rani. He was adopted with Unni Kerala Varma and two other women, one of whom one became the mother of Marthanda Varma. P. Shangoony Menon and
V. Nagam Aiya say that the four people were provided from Kolathunadu to Travancore family at the request of Umayamma Rani. T. K. Velu Pillai says that they were adopted by Ravi Varma in Kollavarsham 863. Rama Varma is the father of Thambimar, succeededing his brother and ascending the throne of Venad in Kollavarsham 899. According to T. K. Velu Pillai, Rama Varma was a weak ruler and his reign led to the disorganization of political life in Travancore. He died after a brief illness in 1729.
Karthika Thirunal Rama Varma Karthika Thirunal Rama Varma (also known as Dharma Raja) ascended the throne of Travancore in Kollavarsham 933, succeeding Marthanda Varma. He was born in Kollavarsham 899, the son of a
Kilimanoor Thampuran and
Attingal queen who was adopted as a princess by the Travancore royal family from Kolathunadu during the Ravi Varma era.
Queen of Attingal The Queen of Attingal was the mother of Karthika Thirunal Rama Varma. She was adopted by the Travancore royal family from the Kolathunadu kingdom in Kollavarsham 893 during the reign of King Ravi Varma. She gave birth to Karthika Thirunal Rama Varma from an alliance with a lord of Kilmanoor in Kollavarsham 899.
Kilimanoor Thampurans Kilimanoor Thampurans are the lords of Kilimanoor house, north of Thriruvananthapuram. According to V. Nagam Aiya, the house of Kilimanoor has been connected with the Travancore royal family; male family members are chosen for alliances with the queens of Travancore. In the novel, two lords of Kilimanoor are mentioned: Kilimanoor Kerala Varma and Kilimanoor
Koithampuran. The former sacrifices his life defending against plans to endanger the young prince Karthika Thirunal Rama Varma and his mother, and the latter guards the prince and his mother during an attempted
coup d'état by the Thambi brothers and Ettuveettil Pillais at
Thiruvananthapuram.
Royal relationships style="border-spacing: 4px; border: 0px solid darkgray;" - +
Legend - - - style="border-spacing: 4px; border: 0px solid darkgray; text-align: left; line-height: 90%; stroke: red;" - Matrilineal family - Patrilineal family - Family of lineage unknown - Family of Collateral descent - Only mentioned in legends and ballads - Ascended to the throne - {{tree chart | | | | | | | | | | | |VN|VN=
Venadu-
Travancore royal family|boxstyle_VN=text-align: center; background: #eee; border: 2px solid #456;border-radius: 0.5em;font-size:80%; {{tree chart | | | | | | | |UKIN| | | | |UR| | | |MKT|UKIN=UW|UR=
Umayamma Rani|MKT=
Kingdom of Kottayam {{tree chart | | | | | | | |RV| | | |Q| |KN| | |KVK|RV=
Ravi Varma (1678-1718)|KVK=Kottayam Kerala Varma|KN=
Kolathunadu royal house {{tree chart | | | |!| | | |UKV|Q|!|Q|SIS1| |Q|!| | | |KL| | |!|Q|UKV=
Unni Kerala Varma (1718-1724)|SIS1=PW|KL=
Kilimanoor royal house {{tree chart | |KUPL| |ABM|y|RMV |Q|MKR| |SIS2|y|MF1|!| | |!|Q|SIS2=PW|MF1=UL|MKR=Madathumkur royal house {{tree chart | |PT| |RT| |THA| |UNP| | | |MV| |KKV|y|UNF1|UNP=PM|PT=Rāman| RT=Aathichan|MV=
Marthanda Varma|THA=Thanka|KKV=Kilimanoor Kerala Varma|UNF1=PW {{tree chart | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |MKR| | |RVD|RVD=
Rama Varma||MKR=Ravi Varma
Ettuveetil Pillamar The Ettuveetil Pillamar were the chiefs of eight noble
Nair families in Venad (Travancore). They were one of the main groups who conspired against the accession of Marthanda Varma. In royal edicts, Kudamon Pillai (one of the Ettuveetil Pillamar mentioned in the novel) is referred to in a group of conspirators against Marthanda Varma. According to P. Venugopalan, the Ettuveetil Pillamar mentioned in the novel are based on verses from the
Sree Veera Marthandavarmacharitham aattakatha, published in 1883–1884 by
P. Govinda Pillai. Except for Thirumadathil Pillai, all other Ettuveetil Pillamar titles in the novel refer to the verses (an extract of which is an
epigraph in its eleventh chapter). P. Shangoony Menon identified the eight Ettuveetil Pillamar. V. Nagam Aiya says that their titles are the names of the villages they headed, not their family names. According to P. Shangunny Menon, Madambies (or Madampimar) were petty chiefs who were confederates of the Ettuveetil Pillamar. In the Malayalam translation of
History of Travancore from the Earliest Times, C. K. Kareem says that Ettuveetil Pillamar were gradually expanded with Madambies despite a conflict with the source material. According to Nanoo Pillai, the Madampimars and Ettuveetil Pillamar were hereditary enemies of Marthanda Varma. T. K. Velu Pillai says that the Ettuveetil Pillais were mistaken for the Madathil Pillais, who managed the properties of six areas; the chiefs were Ettuveettil Madambimar, not Ettuveettil Pillamar. The Kulathur Pillai and Kazhakkoottathu Pillai were mentioned as the Pillais of six houses (including a Tamil) in the royal edicts, although no such information is in the royal edicts
Mathilakam Records – M. Doc. CXXX. Ibrahim Kunju cites references to a conspiracy by Pillais in
Letters to Tellicherry, the
British records.
Arukkoottathil Pillais Arukkoottathil Pillais, or Arukoottathil Pillamar, refer to members of wealthy, noble Nair families prevailed in Travancore. The royal edicts mention that a group of six members are among the conspirators during the reign of Marthanda Varma. In the novel, they appear as a
Thambi clan (Aruveettukar) allied with Thirumukhathu Pillai.
Ramayyan Ramayyan Dalawa was the prime minister of Travancore from Kollavarsham 912 to 931, the period of the most-successful conquests under Marthanda Varma. He joined the Travancore ministerial service as a Kuṭṭi Paṭṭar (a minor
Brahmin assistant) and was promoted as under-secretary (Rayasom) and state secretary after the accession of Marthanda Varma, who made him a
dalawa after the death of Thanu Pillai.
Narayanayyan Narayanayyan, or Naraayana Iyen, was Ramayyan's assistant when he was state secretary.
Arumukham Pillai Arumukham Pillai was the acting dewan of Venad in Kollavarsham 901–903, and became dewan after the accession of Marthanda Varma until 909. He was detained by mercenary forces from Madurai due to incomplete payment for their service as additional forces for Travancore.
Mangottu Assan Mangottu Assan was head of a Mancode family and a master of the 108 kalaries (martial-arts schools) in Venad. In the ballad
Ōṭṭan Katai, his house was burned down by Kunchukkoottam (men of Kunchu Thambi).
Valiya Sarwadhi Karyakkar and Sarwadhi Karyakkar Valiya Sarwadhi Karyakkar is the title for the administrative head of Travancore, and Sarwadhi Karyakkar is the title for a district officer under Valiya Sarwadhi Karyakkar. During the reign of Rama Varma, Valiya Sarwadhi Karyakkar was under the king.
Chadachi Marthandan According to P. Venugopalan, Chadachi Marthandan is mentioned in the legends as a former conspirator who becomes the supporter of Marthanda Varma. N. Ajithkumar notes that in the legends, his house was at Chulliyur.
Madurai forces Madurai forces were the mercenaries sent to Travancore in accordance with the agreement by Rama Varma and
Madurai Nayaks of
Thiruchirapalli in Kollavarsham 901. T. K. Velu Pillai says that such an agreement was impossible, but agrees with the detention of Arumukham Pillai by the mercenaries.
Other characters Subardra is based on the author's wife, Bhageerithi Amma. Thirumukhathu Pillai is based on Nangoikkal Kesavan Thambi, the author's caretaker and patron, who was a karyakkar (administrative head of a Taluk) in Travancore. In the novel, there is a reference to a
namboothiripad of Akavoor family. == Complex character relationships ==