Located on the Bay of Bengal and covering 106272 sq mi, Andhra Pradesh was formed in 1953 from the part of Madras state, its capital being Hyderabad. The kingdom of Andhra Pradesh finds mention in the Sanskrit epics. Andhra Pradesh is said to have been the home of the Pre- Dravidian dark colored inhabitants. Andhra Pradesh witnessed the rule of Chandragupta Maurya during which it established as an independent kingdom. After the fall of the Mauryan Empire, the Satavahanas ruled for about five centuries. After the decline of the Satavahanas in 220 CE, the Ikshvakus, Pallavas, Vishnukundinas, Anandagotrikas and Cholas ruled the land.
Origin of Andhra Pradesh In the 12th and the 13th centuries, there was the emergence of the Kakatiya dynasty. The Kakatiyas were the feudatories of the Western Chalukyas. In 1323 CE, Delhi Sultan Ghiaz-ud-din Tughlaq conquered the Telugu country and laid siege to Warangal. Later the Musunuri Nayaks recaptured Warangal from the Delhi Sultanate and ruled for fifty years. Ancient History of Andhra Pradesh The ancient reference of Andhra was found in the name of a tribe which was made in the Aitareya Brahamana datable to 800 BC. The Andhras abandoned the northern part of the Indian subcontinent near the Yamuna River crossing Vindhayas and arrived to the present day Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. The Andhras were also socially parallel against few other tribes like Sabarsand Pulindas and Pundras. The reference of Andhra kingdom is also found in Indian poetries of the Ramayana and Mahabharata. However, as per the indication of ancient literature, the history of Andhra Pradesh dates back to several centuries BCE. The archaeological evidence exists only from previous two millennia. Pratipalapura, the fifth century BCE kingdom is identified with Bhattiprolu in Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh which was perhaps the earliest South Indian Kingdom. The inscriptions suggest that around 230 BCE King Kubera had ruled Bhattiprolu. The inscriptions became the progenitor of the Brahmi Lipi that later got diversified into the modern day Telugu scripts. Medieval History of Andhra Pradesh The medieval history of Andhra Pradesh covers various dynasties that ruled between the 3rd century and 12th century. Satavahana Dynasty: Andhra was a political state in southeast Deccan and part of the Mauryan Empire during the 4th century BCE. As per the Megasthenes who has visited Chandragupta Maurya’s court, the Andhras had thirty towns along the Godavari River and an army of about 1,00,000 infantry, 1,000 elephants and 2,000 cavalry. It was second to the strength of the Mauryan army. Uninterrupted of the cultural and political accounts, Andhra Pradesh began to rise during the Satavahana Dynasty. Although, it was then after the fall of the Satavahana Dynasty, Andhra fell prey into the political chaos. The local rulers had carved out the small kingdoms for themselves. Later to that, between 180 and 624 CE, the control of Andhra was passed into the hands of Ikshvaku, Salankayana, Vakataka, Brihatpalayana, Pallava, and other small kingdoms. The Ikshvaku was the most important and Sanskrit was soon replaced by Prakrit as their inscriptional language. Ikshvaku Dynasty: The Andhras of Ikshvaku had established a kingdom along the Krishna River in second half of the second century CE. Vijayapuri was the capital of this dynasty. The archaeological evidence states that Ikshvaku had succeeded the Satavahanas in the valley of River Krishna itself and might have entered Andhra from the North. 
As per historians, it is believed that the Andhra Ikshvakus were related with the mythological Ikshvakus while other people believed that the Andhra Iksvakus seem to be some local tribe who had adopted the title.
Late Medieval and Early Modern History of Andhra Pradesh The late medieval and early modern history of Andhra Pradesh had several other dynasties ruling from the 12th century to the 18th century. Kakatiya Dynasty: The Kakatiya Dynasty had to power between the 12th and 13th century. Earlier vassals of western chalukyas of Kalyani had a small territory near Warangal. The second Prola of the Kakatiyas had declared his independence towards southwards. Rudra succeeded him and increased holdings of the eastward to the Godavari delta. He built Warangal Forest as the second capital and countered Devagiri invasions. Munsuri Nayaks: The Munsuri Nayaks had reclaimed the lands of Telugu from the Delhi Sultanate and established their rule for fifty years. The Bukka and Hakka treasury officers at Prataparudra court were inspired by the Munsuri Nayaks in order to organize a Hindu opposition towards the Muslim invaders. Later to that, Prataparudra was captured by the Musilms. Kolani Rudradeva and Annaya Mantri, two Telugus united the Nayaks against invaders. The Munsuri Nayaks chose Munsuri Prolaya Nayaka as their leader. Bukka and Harihara were later captured at Warangal by Ulugh Khan. He converted it to Islam and they were sent by the sultan to suppress Hoysala ruler’s rebellion. However, the brothers established the Vijaynagara Empire. The sultan already led a large army towards south but was halted by an epidemic resistance of Nayak. Kaapaneedu along with the assistance of the Hoysala liberated Andhra Pradesh. Reddy Kingdom: After the demise of Pratapa Rudra second and subsequent fall of Kakatiya Empire, Prolaya Vema Reddi had joined a confederacy of the nobles headed by the Musunuri Prolaya Nayaka in order to expel the Delhi Sultanate from Telugu territory. The Reddi kingdom was established by Prolaya Verma Reddi. The reddis ruled present day Srikakuolam and most of the present day Andhra and Rayalaseema regions. Vijayanagara Kingdom: The Vijayanagara Kingdom was founded by Bukka and Harihara who were the treasury officers in the administration of Kakatiya Dynasty or commanders of the Hoysala’s forces. Harihara established the new capital Vijayanagara and defended position of the Tungabhadra River towards South. The empire had reached its zenith under Krishnadevaraya in the early 16th century and Telugu literature was developed. The monuments of Vijaynagara were established across South India and in Lepakshi, Sri Kalahasti and Tirupati. Present day Hampi is the best known collection of such monuments. Bahamani and Golconda Sultanates: During the year of 1323, Delhi Sultan Ghiaz-ud-din Tuglaq had sent a large army under Ulugh Khan to conquer the Telugu county and siege Warangal. After a revolt in 1347 against the Delhi Sultanate, an independent Muslim state was established in the South India by Ala-ud-din-Bahman Shah. By the end of 15th century, the sultanate got plagued with fictional strife. Five of the Shahi Sultanates were founded and the Qutb Shahi Dynasty played a major role in the history of Telugu country. The Dynasty had ruled Andhra from early 16th to the end of 17tyh century. Sultan Quli Qutb Shah, founded of the dynasty had served the Bahmanis faithfully. In 1518, after the demise of Mahmud Shah, Qyli Qutb Shah one of his patron had declared independence. Mughal Conquest of Andhra Pradesh In 1687, Aurangazeb had invaded Golconda, annexed and appointed a governor known as Nizam. The Mughal Nizams had controlled Andhra for near about 35 years. After the demise of Aurangazed, Mughal Empire weakened and lost control over the provinces. This enabled the British East India Company and French Campagnie des Indes Orientales to consolidate their power in India. Colonial era of Andhra Pradesh In the year of 1753 decree, Deccan subedar Asif ad-Dawlah Mir Ali Salabat Jang had ceded Chicacole, Rajahmundry and Ellore to the Marquis de Bussy-Castelnau. An annual stipend of about 200,000 rupees was paid in order to maintain the French troops in the Subah, a revenue in the Northern Circars amounted to one million rupees per year. In the year of 1758, the English and French fought at the Chandurti. The French were defeated by the armies of Maharaja Ananda Gajapathi Raju second and British of Vizianagram. Salabat Jang had made a treaty with British, giving them Northern Circars in firman. Madras Presidency: The Northern Circars had become part of the British Madras Presidency. Later on, the Nizam ceded five territories to the British that become Rayalaseema region. The Nizams had control over the interior provinces of Hyderabad, acknowledging British rule in return of the local autonomy. The provinces were governed in feudal manner along with the zamindars in areas like Kulla and elsewhere in the Godavari acting as lords under the rule of the Nizam. The zaimdari system got dismantled post- independence. Post-Independence or Modern History of Andhra Pradesh In 1947, India had gained independence. The Muslim Nizam of Hyderabad resisted and was forced to cede the state in 1948. When India became independent, the people speaking Telugu were distributed into twenty two districts. In 1953, the state of Andhra Pradesh was created. |
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History of Andhra Pradesh
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