Kempananjammanni Devi (1866–1934) was the Maharani of Mysore and later queen mother and regent of the

Kingdom of Mysore The Kingdom of Mysore was a geopolitical realm in southern India founded in around 1399 in the vicinity of the modern-day city of Mysore and prevailed until 1950. The territorial boundaries and the form of government transmuted substantially ...

. She was the wife of Maharaja

Chamarajendra Wadiyar X Chamarajendra Wadiyar X (22 February 1863 – 28 December 1894) was the twenty-third Maharaja of Mysore between 1868 and 1894. Adoption and accession Chamarajendra Wadiyar X was born in the old palace in Mysore on 22 February 1863, as the thir ...

and the mother of Maharaja

Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV (4 June 1884 – 3 August 1940) was the twenty-fourth Maharaja of Mysore, reigning from 1902 until his death in 1940. Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV is popularly deemed a '' rajarshi'', or 'saintly king', a moniker with which Mah ...

. She was queen regent between 1895 and 1902–during the minority of Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV. She occupies as significant place in the annals of Mysore's history. Her contributions to the citizenry and her roles as maharani, regent, and queen mother to the young prince Yuvaraja Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV, have been commended.

Life

Kempananjammanni was born in the village of Kalale near

Mysore Mysore ( ), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of Mysore district and Mysore division. As the traditional seat of the Wadiyar dynasty, the city functioned as the capital of the ...

in 1866. She was married to the Maharaja

on 26 May 1878 and assumed the suffix Vani Vilasa Sannidhana as was the practice in Mysore Royal family . In 1881, the Rendition of Mysore Act 1881 was passed carried, restoring the government of the kingdom from

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

back to the natural prince, who was now 18. The kingdom had been restored nearly after 50 years to the Wadiyars since the fall of Tipu in 1799 and the Commissioner's Rule in 1831 by

. In 1884, Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV was born to the royal couple. In quick succession, they also had another son,

Kanteerava Narasimharaja Wadiyar Kanteerava Narasimharaja Wadiyar (5 June 1888 – 11 March 1940) was the heir apparent of the Kingdom of Mysore from 1895 until his death in 1940, during the reign of his brother, Maharaja Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV. Krishnaraja Wadiyar died less ...

, and three daughters. two more sons raja wadiyar and Devaraja Wadiyar died in their infancy.

Vani Vilas Regency

Maharaja Chamarajendra Wadiyar, while on a visit to

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

in 1894, developed

diphtheria Diphtheria is an infection caused by the bacteria, bacterium ''Corynebacterium diphtheriae''. Most infections are asymptomatic or have a mild Course (medicine), clinical course, but in some outbreaks, the mortality rate approaches 10%. Signs a ...

and succumbed to sudden death there, thus abruptly cutting short a promising reign that lasted only 13 years. He was just 32 and had already left his mark as an excellent leader. His death suddenly created a government crisis in the kingdom as Prince Krishnarajendra Wadiyar IV was still in minority. The unexpected tragedy was regarded as a great national misfortune throughout

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and was deplored by the

British Government His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

as an imperial loss. The royal family plunged into great sorrow and the citizens were said to have felt orphaned. The burden of governing the kingdom fell on Maharani Kempananjammanni. History posed a new challenge to her: a severe bubonic plague struck the capital Mysore city, reducing the population in half. Under such circumstances, she was nominated as queen-regent, a post she held for about eight tough years, from 1895 to 1902, and served the people with great aplomb, dignity, devotion, discipline, and distinction. She earned the respect of one and all for the fabulous way she held forth. She was advised by

Sir K. Seshadri Iyer Sir Kumarapuram Seshadri Iyer (also spelled Aiyar) (1 June 1845 – 13 September 1901), was an Indian advocate who served as the 15th Dewan of Mysore from 1883 to 1901. He was the second longest serving dewan of Mysore after Purnaiah. He is reg ...

at that time. Sir T. R. A. Thumboo Chetty, a former Chief Justice of Mysore and a senior member of the Regency Privy Council, was also an acting dewan for Iyer. She was also assisted by her brother Sir M. Kantaraj Urs, later dewan, as her private secretary. She helped Mysore recover from slump. Progress in all fields resulted from their efficient administration and blessed the entire citizenry. Generation of electricity from the river

Kaveri The Kaveri (also known as Cauvery) is a Rivers of India, major river flowing across Southern India. It is the third largest river in the region after Godavari River, Godavari and Krishna River, Krishna. The catchment area of the Kaveri basin i ...

, promoting the

Indian Institute of Science The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) is a Public university, public, Deemed university, deemed, research university for higher education and research in science, engineering, design, and management. It is located in Bengaluru, Karnataka. The ...

, construction of the Vani Vilas Sagara dam (also known as the Māri-Kanave Valley aqueduct), construction of the new palace, extension of new localities in

, water supply through pipes (Vani Vilas Waterworks), and laying of foundation stone of Victoria Hospital in

Bangalore Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...

were enough testimony. The

British Crown The Crown is a political concept used in Commonwealth realms. Depending on the context used, it generally refers to the entirety of the State (polity), state (or in federal realms, the relevant level of government in that state), the executive ...

decorated her with a CI for her distinguished leadership. Maharani Kempananjamanni was a great believer in women's education; under her patronage, Maharani's College got all due attention. She was a staunch follower of

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...

, but respected all faiths equally.

Retirement and last days

She retired when Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV came of age when, on 8 August 1902; the yuvaraja ascended the throne that marked the end of memorable regency and the beginning of what was to become Mysore's ''golden era'', an era that came to be known by the encomium ''Ramarajya''. After a brief illness, she died on the midnight of 7 July 1934, in

Legacy

There are many edifices in the city of Mysore with the prefix 'Vani Vilasa': Waterworks (Vani Vilasa Sagara dam), Maternity Hospital, Girls High School and College, Bridge, Ladies Club, and Road, which, to this day, commemorate her memory.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sannidhana, Maharani Kempa Nanjammani Vani Vilasa Indian queens consort Women from the Kingdom of Mysore Wadiyar dynasty Regents of India Companions of the Order of the Crown of India 19th-century women regents 1866 births 1934 deaths People from the Kingdom of Mysore People from Mysore district 19th-century Indian women 19th-century Indian royalty 20th-century Indian women 20th-century Indian people Women from Karnataka Queen mothers 19th-century regents 20th-century regents 20th-century women regents