The Battle of Vatapi was a decisive engagement which took place between the

Pallavas The Pallava dynasty existed from 275 CE to 897 CE, ruling a significant portion of the Deccan, also known as Tondaimandalam. The dynasty rose to prominence after the downfall of the Satavahana dynasty, with whom they had formerly served as ...

and

Chalukyas The Chalukya dynasty () was a Classical Indian dynasty that ruled large parts of southern and central India between the 6th and the 12th centuries. During this period, they ruled as three related yet individual dynasties. The earliest dynast ...

near the Chalukya capital of Vatapi (present day

Badami Badami, formerly known as Vatapi, is a town and headquarters of a taluk by the same name, in the Bagalkot district of Karnataka, India. It was the regal capital of the Badami Chalukyas from CE 540 to 757. It is famous for its rock cut monumen ...

) in 642. The battle resulted in the defeat of the Chalukya king

Pulakeshin II Pulakeshin II ( IAST: Pulakeśin, r. c. 610–642 CE) was the most famous ruler of the Chalukya dynasty of Vatapi (present-day Badami in Karnataka, India). During his reign, the Chalukya kingdom expanded to cover most of the Deccan region in ...

in 642 CE and the commencement of Pallava occupation of Vatapi lasted until 654.

Causes

In about 630, Pulakeshin II invaded the Pallava kingdom defeating the king

Mahendravarman I Mahendravarman I (600–630 CE) was a Pallava emperor who ruled the Southern portion of present-day Andhra region and Northern regions of what forms present-day Tamil Nadu in India in the early 7th century. He was a scholar, painter, archite ...

and proceeded as far south as the

Cauvery River The Kaveri (also known as Cauvery, the anglicized name) is one of the major Indian rivers flowing through the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The Kaveri river rises at Talakaveri in the Brahmagiri range in the Western Ghats, Kodagu dist ...

on the northern frontier of the Chola country. Dikshit, p 94 The Pallavas long wished to avenge the humiliation suffered at the hands of Pulakeshin II and over the next few years, strengthened their forces in preparation for a counter-attack. In 630, Mahendravarman I was succeeded by his son

Narasimhavarman I Narasimhavarman I was a emperor of the Pallava dynasty who ruled South India from 630 CE – 668 CE. He shared his father Mahendravarman I's love of art and completed the work started by Mahendravarman in Mamallapuram. During his reign fa ...

under whom the Pallava kingdom emerged as a powerful state. This prompted Pulakeshin II to lead a second expedition into the Pallava country. Dikshit, p 96 According to K. A. Nilakanta Sastri, Pulakeshin II first defeated the Banas, who were feudatories of the Pallavas, before advancing into the Pallava country. Narasimhavarman I met the Chalukyas and defeated them in three separate encounters in Pariyala, Suramana and Manimangala, all close to the Pallava capital Kanchi, forcing them to retreat. Heras, p 35 The Pallavas, then, took the offensive and pursued the fleeing Chalukya forces deep into their territory. Dikshit, p 98-99

Events

In 642, a formidable Pallava force under Paranjothi was sent by

to capture Vatapi, the capital of the Chalukyas. Heras, p 38 Pulakeshin II met the Pallavas on the outskirts of his capital and is presumed to have lost his life in the ensuing battle. The Pallavas achieved a decisive victory over Pulakeshin II. The victorious Pallavas then took the capital and ruled it for 12 years (642-654). The Kuram plates of Paramesvaravarman I describe the battle thus The Udayachandramangalam plates state According to the

Velurpalaiyam plates The Velurpalaiyam plates of Nandivarman III is a 9th-century copper-plate grant which was found at the village of Velurpalaiyam, around 7 miles from the town of Arakkonam in Tamil Nadu, India. The grant records the gift of a village to a temple of S ...

Aftermath

Narasimhavarman I constructed a Mallikarjuna Temple at Vatapi to commemorate his victory. He also adopted the title "Vatapi-kondan" or "taker of Vatapi". Heras, p 39 He carved an inscription recording his victory on the walls of the Teggina-Irappa temple in Vatapi. Heras, p 38 Paranjothi brought numerous items of war booty to the Pallava kingdom from Vatapai, including a famous icon of the god

Ganesha Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is found throughout India. Hindu ...

(Ganapati) - known as Vatapi Ganapati, which he enshrined in his home-town.

In Popular Culture

The Battle of Vatapi is the final climactic battle in the Tamil

historical fiction Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other ...

novel '' Sivagamiyin Sapatham'' by Kalki Krishnamurthy, where the Chalukyan King

is defeated and killed by the Pallava Army general Pranjothi as a revenge for the defeat of

in the Battle of Pullalur and also to avenge Sivagami's vow.

References

Bibliography

* * {{coord missing, Karnataka Vatapi 7th century in India 642 History of Karnataka Pallava dynasty Chalukya dynasty