The history of the Cholas falls into four periods: the
Early Cholas of the
Sangam literature, the interregnum between the fall of the Sangam Cholas and the rise of the Imperial medieval Cholas under
Vijayalaya (c. 848), the dynasty of Vijayalaya, and finally the
Later Chola dynasty of Kulothunga Chola I from the third quarter of the 11th century.
Early Cholas The earliest Chola kings for whom there is tangible evidence are mentioned in the Sangam literature. Scholars generally agree that this literature belongs to the late centuries before the common era and the early centuries of the common era. The internal chronology of this literature is still far from settled, and at present a connected account of the history of the period cannot be derived. It records the names of the kings and the princes, and of the poets who extolled them. The Sangam literature also records legends about mythical Chola kings. These myths speak of the Chola king Kantaman, a supposed contemporary of the sage
Agastya, whose devotion brought the river Kaveri into existence. Two names are prominent among those Chola kings who feature in Sangam literature:
Karikala and
Kocengannan. There are no sure means of settling the order of succession, of fixing their relations with one another and with many other princelings of around the same period.
Urayur (now a part of
Thiruchirapalli) was their oldest capital.
Kaveripattinam also served as an early Chola capital. The
Mahavamsa mentions that a Chola prince known as
Ellalan, invaded the Rajarata kingdom of Sri Lanka and conquered it in 235 BCE with the help of a
Mysore army.
Interregnum There is not much information about the transition period of around three centuries from the end of the Sangam age (c. 300) to that in which the Pandyas and
Pallavas dominated the Tamil country. An obscure dynasty, the
Kalabhras invaded Tamil country, displaced the existing kingdoms and ruled during that time. They were displaced by the Pallava dynasty and the Pandyan dynasty in the 6th century. Little is known of the fate of the Cholas in Tamil land during the succeeding three centuries. The Cholas disappeared from the Tamil land almost completely in this debacle, though a branch of them can be traced towards the close of the fifth century CE in Rayalaseema—the
Telugu-Cholas, whose kingdom is mentioned by Yuan Chwang in the seventh-century CE. Due to Kalabhra invasion and the growing power of Pallavas,
Cholas migrated from their native land
Uraiyur to Telugu country and ruled from there as chieftains of Pallavas at least since 540 CE. Several
Telugu Chola families like Renati Cholas, Pottapi Cholas,
Nellore Cholas,
Velanati Cholas, Nannuru Cholas, Kondidela Cholas existed and claimed descent from ancient Tamil king
Karikala Chola. The Cholas had to wait for another three centuries until the accession of
Vijayalaya Chola belonging to Pottapi Chola family in the second quarter of the ninth century to re-establish their dynasty as independent rulers by overthrowing Pallavas and Pandyas.
Epigraphy and literature provide a few glimpses of the transformations that came over this line of kings during this long interval. It is certain that when the power of the Cholas fell to its lowest ebb and that of the Pandyas and Pallavas rose to the north and south of them, this dynasty was compelled to seek refuge and patronage under their more successful rivals. Despite their reduced powers, the Pandyas and Pallavas accepted Chola princesses in marriage, possibly out of regard for their reputation. Numerous Pallava inscriptions of this period mention their having fought rulers of the Chola country. found in Sri Lanka showing the tiger emblem of the Chola and in Nagari script.
Imperial Cholas The
Chola Empire was founded in 848 CE by
Vijayalaya, a descendant of
Early Cholas. at
Brihadisvara Temple at
Thanjavur. The early Chola kings expanded their territory and influence. During the early 10th century, the second Chola King,
Aditya I, defeated the Pallava dynasty and Pandyan dynasty capturing
Tondaimandalam and
Kongu Nadu. Later Aditya's son
Parantaka I defeated the
Rashtrakuta dynasty in the battle of Vallala and also defeated the Pandyas.
Rajaraja I and
Rajendra I would expand the dynasty to its imperial state in the 11th century, creating an influential empire in the
Bay of Bengal. The
Brihadeeswarar Temple was also built in this era. The Chola dynasty was at the peak of its influence and power during the 11th century. Rajendra I conquered
Odisha and
Pala dynasty of
Bengal and reached the Ganges river in north India. Rajendra Chola I built a new capital called
Gangaikonda Cholapuram to celebrate his victories in northern India. Rajendra Chola I successfully invaded the
Srivijaya kingdom in Southeast Asia which led to the decline of the empire there. He also completed the conquest of a kingdom in
Rajarata within Sri Lanka and sent three diplomatic missions to China in 1016, 1033, and 1077. . of
Brihadisvara Temple, a cupolic dome (25 tons), is octagonal and rests on a single block of granite, weighing 80 tons. ,
Darasuram in
Thanjavur District. The
Western Chalukya empire under
Satyashraya and
Someshvara I tried regularly to loose itself from Chola domination, primarily due to the Chola influence in the
Vengi kingdom. The Western Chalukyas mounted several unsuccessful attempts to engage the Chola emperors in war, and except for a brief occupation of the Vengi territories between 1118 and 1126, allied with Prince
Vikramaditya VI. Cholas usually managed to dominate over the Chalukyas in the western
Deccan by defeating them in war and levying tribute on them. With the occupation of Dharwar in North Central Karnataka by the
Hoysalas under
Vishnuvardhana, where he based himself with his son Narasimha I in charge of the Hoysala capital Dwarasamudra around 1149, and with the
Kalachuris occupying the Chalukyan capital for over 35 years from around 1150–1151, the Chalukya kingdom had already started to dissolve. The Cholas under
Kulothunga Chola III collaborated to herald the dissolution of the Chalukyas by aiding the Hoysalas under
Veera Ballala II, the son-in-law of the Chola monarch, and defeated the Western Chalukyas in a series of wars with
Someshvara IV between 1185 and 1190. The last Chalukya king's territories did not even include the erstwhile Chalukyan capitals Badami, Manyakheta or Kalyani. That was the final dissolution of Chalukyan power though the Chalukyas existed only in name for the period 1135–1140. But the Cholas remained stable until 1215, and were then absorbed by the Pandyan empire and ceased to exist by 1279. On the other hand, from 1150 CE to 1280 CE, the Pandya dynasty became the staunchest opponents of the Cholas and tried to win independence for their traditional territories. Thus, this period saw constant warfare between the Cholas and the Pandyas. Besides, the Cholas regularly fought with the
Eastern Gangas of
Kalinga. Moreover, under Chola's protection, Vengi remained largely independent. Cholas also dominated the entire eastern coast with their feudatories, the Telugu Cholas of Velanati and Nellore among others. These feudatories always aided the Cholas in their successful campaigns against the Chalukyas and levied tribute on the Kannada kingdoms. Furthermore, the Cholas fought constantly with the Sinhala kings from the Rohana kingdom of Sri Lanka, who repeatedly attempted to overthrow the Chola occupation of Rajarata and unify the island. But until the later Chola king Kulottunga I, the Cholas had firm control over the area. In one such instance, the Chola king,
Rajadhiraja Chola II, was able to defeat the Sinhalese, aided by their traditional ally, a confederation of five Pandya princes, and kept the control of Rajarata under Chola rule. His successor, the last great Chola monarch
Kulottunga Chola III reinforced the hold of the Chola territories by quelling further rebellions and disturbances in the Rajarata area of Sri Lanka and Madurai. He also defeated Hoysala generals who fought under Veera Ballala II at Karuvur. Furthermore, he also continued holding on to traditional territories in Tamil country, Eastern Gangavadi, Draksharama, Vengi, and Kalinga. However, after defeating Veera Ballala II, Kulottunga Chola III entered into a marital alliance with him through Ballala's marriage to a Chola princess, which improved Kulottunga Chola III's relationship with the Hoysalas.
Overseas conquests at its greatest extent under Emperor
Rajendra I. During the reign of Rajaraja Chola I and his successors Rajendra Chola I, Virarajendra Chola and Kulothunga Chola I the Chola armies invaded Sri Lanka, the Maldives and parts of Southeast Asia like Malaysia, Indonesia and Southern Thailand of the Srivijaya Empire in the 11th century. Rajaraja Chola I launched several naval campaigns that resulted in the capture of Sri Lanka, Maldives and the Malabar Coast. In 1025, Rajendra Chola launched naval raids on the ports of Srivijaya and against the Burmese kingdom of Pegu. A Chola inscription states that he captured or plundered 14 places, which have been identified with Palembang,
Tambralinga and Kedah among others. A second invasion was led by Virarajendra Chola, who conquered
Kedah in Malaysia of Srivijaya in the late 11th century. Chola invasion ultimately failed to install direct administration over Srivijaya, since the invasion was short and only meant to plunder the wealth of Srivijaya. However, this invasion gravely weakened the Srivijayan hegemony and enabled the formation of regional kingdoms. Although the invasion was not followed by direct Cholan occupation and the region was unchanged geographically, there were huge consequences in trade. Tamil traders encroached on the Srivijayan realm traditionally controlled by Malay traders and the Tamil guilds' influence increased on the Malay Peninsula and the north coast of Sumatra.
Later Cholas (1070–1279) Marital and political alliances between the
Eastern Chalukyas began during the reign of Rajaraja following his invasion of Vengi. Rajaraja Chola's daughter married Chalukya prince Vimaladitya and Rajendra Chola's daughter Ammanga Devi was married to the Eastern Chalukya prince
Rajaraja Narendra. Virarajendra Chola's son,
Athirajendra Chola, was assassinated in a civil disturbance in 1070, and Kulothunga Chola I, the son of Ammanga Devi and Rajaraja Narendra, ascended the Chola throne. Thus began the Later Chola dynasty. The Later Chola dynasty was led by capable rulers such as Kulothunga Chola I, his son
Vikrama Chola, other successors like Rajaraja Chola II, Rajadhiraja Chola II, and Kulothunga Chola III, who conquered Kalinga,
Ilam, and
Kataha. However, the rule of the later Cholas between 1218, starting with
Rajaraja Chola II, to the last emperor
Rajendra Chola III was not as strong as those of the emperors between 850 and 1215. Around 1118, they lost control of Vengi to the Western Chalukya and Gangavadi (southern
Mysore districts) to the
Hoysala Empire. However, these were only temporary setbacks, because immediately following the accession of King Vikrama Chola, the son and successor of Kulothunga Chola I, the Cholas lost no time in recovering the province of Vengi by defeating Chalukya Someshvara III and also recovering Gangavadi from the Hoysalas. The Chola empire, though not as strong as between 850 and 1150, was still largely territorially intact under Rajaraja Chola II (1146–1175) a fact attested by the construction and completion of the third grand Chola architectural marvel, the chariot-shaped
Airavatesvara Temple at Dharasuram on the outskirts of modern Kumbakonam. Chola administration and territorial integrity until the rule of Kulothunga Chola III was stable and very prosperous up to 1215, but during his rule itself, the decline of the Chola power started following his defeat by Maravarman Sundara Pandiyan II in 1215–16. Subsequently, the Cholas also lost control of the island of Lanka and were driven out by the revival of Sinhala power. In continuation of the decline, also marked by the resurgence of the Pandyan dynasty as the most powerful rulers in South India, a lack of a controlling central administration in its erstwhile Pandyan territories prompted several claimants to the Pandya throne to cause a civil war in which the Sinhalas and the Cholas were involved by proxy. Details of the Pandyan civil war and the role played by the Cholas and Sinhalas, are present in the
Mahavamsa as well as the Pallavarayanpettai Inscriptions.
Decline The setbacks suffered during the final years of Kulothunga I left a somewhat diminished empire. Kulothunga's successors
Vikrama Chola (1118–1135 CE) and
Kulothunga Chola II (1133–1150 CE) were capable and compassionate leaders who took care not to involve their subjects in unnecessary and unwinnable wars. Rajaraja II (1146–1173 CE), Rajadhiraja II (1166–1178 CE) and
Kulothunga Chola III (1178–1218 CE) took active roles in the politics of the emerging revival of the
Pandyas. Meanwhile, the Chola succession was getting murkier and murkier with disputes and intrigues during the periods of Rajadhiraja II and Kulothunga III. The Cholas under
Kulothunga Chola III collaborated to herald the dissolution of the Chalukyas by aiding Hoysalas under
Veera Ballala II, the son-in-law of the Chola monarch and defeated the Western Chalukyas in a series of wars with
Someshvara IV between 1185 and 1190. The last Chalukya king's territories did not even include the erstwhile Chalukyan capitals Badami, Manyakheta or Kalyani. That was the final dissolution of Chalukyan power though the Chalukyas existed only in name since 1135–1140. But the Cholas remained stable until 1215, were absorbed by the Pandyan empire and ceased to exist by 1279. His successor, the last great Chola monarch
Kulottunga Chola III reinforced the hold of the Chola territories by quelling further rebellions and disturbances in the Rajarata area of Sri Lanka and Madurai. He also defeated Hoysala generals who fought under Veera Ballala II at Karuvur. Eastern Gangavadi, Draksharama, Vengi, and Kalinga. However, after defeating Veera Ballala II, Kulottunga Chola III entered into a marital alliance with him through Ballala's marriage to a Chola princess, which improved the Kulottunga Chola III's relationship with Hoysalas. ==Administration and society==