Palaeolithic era The Ketavaram
rock paintings from the Palaeolithic era and are 18 kilometres from Kurnool. Also the Jurreru Valley, Katavani Kunta and
Yaganti in
Kurnool District have some important
rock art and paintings in the vicinity that may be dated from 35,000 to 40,000 years ago. Ashoka's rock edicts were inscribed in the 3rd century BCE. The inscription is in
Prakrit language and
Brahmi script. Both the major and minor edits are found at Erragudi (also called the Yerragudi or Jonnagiri site). These are among the oldest discovered inscriptions in India. The site is close to the Andhra-Karnataka border, in Kurnool district. It is an ASI protected site under Indian law.
Belum Caves are geologically and historically important caves in the district. There are indications that Jain and Buddhist monks were occupying these caves centuries ago. Many Buddhists relics were found inside the caves. These relics are now housed in the Museum at
Ananthapur. The
Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) found remnants of vessels and other artifacts of the pre-Buddhist era and has dated the remnants of vessels found in the caves to 4500 BC.
Vijayanagara era Kurnool town was Ruled by Chalukyas of Badami and Rashtrakutas before the 11th century. The earliest knowledge of this settlement dates from the 11th century. It has developed as a transit place on the southern banks of the river
Tungabhadra. Ruled by the
Chalukya in the 12th century and later taken over by the
Kakatiya dynasty in the 13th century, Kurnool developed into a transit point on the southern banks of the
Tungabhadra River. It eventually fell under the rule of a
jaghirdar before becoming a part of the
Vijayanagar dynasty.
King Achyuta Raya, successor of Sri Krishnadeva Raya constructed the
Kurnool Fort during the 16th century.
Nawabs The Abyssinian, Abdul Wahab Khan, defeated King Gopal Raja of the
Vijayanagar Kingdom in the 17th century and went on to rule the land for 16 years until his death. In 1686, Kurnool fell under the influence of the Mughals who were ruled by Emperor Aurangzeb. Later on in Kurnool's history, it was
ruled by the Nawabs until the British Government took over in 1839.
British Rule Ghulam Rasul Khan Bahadur (died on 12 July 1840) was the last
Nawab of Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh. He ruled from 1823 to 1839 until the kingdom was defeated by the
East India Company. On 12 October 1839, a war broke out between the
British Indian Army and the kingdom and continued for six days until the king was detained on 18 October. He was subsequently sent to
Tiruchirappalli Central Prison where he died on 12 July 1840.
After independence Kurnool was the capital of erstwhile
Andhra State between 1 October 1953 and 31 October 1956. The state was later merged with the
Telugu-speaking districts of Hyderabad State to form
Andhra Pradesh with
Hyderabad as the state's capital on 1 November 1956. Currently Kurnool is in the divided Andhra Pradesh state. == Geography ==