Kulothunga II (died 1150 CE) was a

Chola The Chola Empire, which is often referred to as the Imperial Cholas, was a medieval thalassocratic empire based in southern India that was ruled by the Chola dynasty, and comprised overseas dominions, protectorates and spheres of influence ...

Emperor from 1133 CE to 1150 CE. He succeeded Vikrama Chola to the throne in 1135 CE. Vikrama Chola made Kulothunga his

heir apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...

and

coregent A coregency is the situation where a monarchical position (such as prince, princess, king, queen, emperor or empress), normally held by only a single person, is held by two or more. It is to be distinguished from diarchies or duumvirates (su ...

in 1133 CE, so the inscriptions of Kulothunga II count his reign from 1133 CE. According to historians

Nilakanta Sastri Kallidaikurichi Aiyah Nilakanta Sastri (12 August 1892 – 15 June 1975) was an Indian historian who wrote on South Indian history. Many of his books form the standard reference works on the subject. Sastri was acclaimed for his scholarship and ...

and T.N Subramanian, Kulottunga Chola II was not the son of Vikrama Chola and they have suggested that there was a break in the line of succession.

Personal life and family

Kulothunga II preferred to live in

Chidambaram Chidambaram is a major town and municipality in Cuddalore district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, on the banks of the Vellar River where it meets the Bay of Bengal. It is the headquarters of the Chidambaram taluk. The town is believed to b ...

rather than the royal capital at

Gangaikonda Cholapuram Gaṅgaikoṇḍa Chōḻapuram is a village located near to Jayankondam, Ariyalur district, Tamil Nadu, India. It became the capital of the Chola dynasty in c. 1025 by Chola emperor Rajendra Chola I, Rajendra I, and served as the capital for a ...

. Of the various titles he had, Anapaaya was perhaps his favourite. It is found in his inscriptions as well in the poetic tribute ''Kulothunga Cholan Ula''. He was also called ''Tirunirruchola''. Kulothunga II was succeeded by Rajaraja Chola II in 1150 CE.

Extent of Empire

The extent of empire as inherited from his predecessor Vikrama Chola was well maintained. The

Western Chalukya The Western Chalukya Empire ( ) ruled most of the western Deccan, South India, between the 10th and 12th centuries. This Kannada dynasty is sometimes called the ''Kalyani Chalukya'' after its regal capital at Kalyani, today's Basavakalyan i ...

kingdom was overthrown by the Yadava chiefs of Devagiri and

Hoysalas The Hoysala Kingdom was a kingdom originating from the Indian subcontinent that ruled most of what is now Karnataka, parts of Tamilnadu and South-Western Telangana between the 11th and the 14th centuries CE. The capital of the Hoysalas was i ...

of Dwarasamudra during this period. Kulottunga II took advantage of the internal skirmishes and rebellions in the Kannada and Chalukya country to establish his hold over Vengi and Eastern Chalukya territories. Gonka II of the Velanadu Choda family who ruled over northern part of Vengi acknowledged his supremacy. Similarly the Kadapa-Nellore chief, Madurantaka Pottapi Choda, son of Betta I and Buddhavarman III of the Kondavidu branch and his son Mandaya II also acknowledged the king's authority in the Andhra country.

Patron of Chidambaram

is one of those five places where Chola princes were invested with the crown. Kulothunga was a great devotee of the Chidambaram Temple to Lord

Shiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the God in Hinduism, Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions w ...

in that city, and he celebrated his coronation there. An inscription of the emperor from Tirumanikuli hails this event and states that the emperor celebrated his coronation so as to add lustre to the city of ''Tillai'' (

). He also financed an elaborate renovation of the temple as described in the poem ''Kulothunga Cholan Ula''. It is possible that this renovation work was a continuation of work started by Vikrama Chola. Kulottunga II is credited with gilding the ''Perambalam'' of the Nataraja Temple, Chidambaram with gold. He is also said to have constructed its gopurams and the Thousand Pillared Hall.

Literature

Kulottunga Chola II's reign was marked by literary activity as evidenced by the works of

Sekkizhar Sēkkilān Mādēvadigal Rāmadēva (12th century CE), known popularly by his family name as Sekkizhar, was a saint and a contemporary of Kulottunga Chola II. He compiled and wrote the ''Periya Puranam'' (Great Story or Narrative) in 4253 vers ...

and

Ottakoothar Ottakoothar (c. 12th century CE) was a Tamil people, Tamil court poet and minister to three Later Cholas, Later Chola kings, namely Vikrama Chola, Kulothunga Chola II, Kulotunga II and Rajaraja Chola II, Rajaraja II. He wrote poems in praise of t ...

. Sekkizhar composed the Periyapuranam, a religious treatise on

Shaivism Shaivism (, , ) is one of the major Hindu denominations, Hindu traditions, which worships Shiva as the Para Brahman, supreme being. It is the Hinduism#Demographics, second-largest Hindu sect after Vaishnavism, constituting about 385 million H ...

during his reign. The ''Kulottunga Cholan Ula'' and the ''Kulottunga Cholan Pillai Tamil'', a work dealing with the emperor's childhood were authored by Ottakoothar in honor of the emperor.

Persecution of Vaishnavas

Some scholars identify Kulothunga II with Krimikanta Chola or worm-necked Chola so called as he is said to have suffered from cancer of the throat or neck. The latter finds mention in the

Vaishnava Vaishnavism () ), also called Vishnuism, is one of the major Hindu traditions, that considers Vishnu as the sole supreme being leading all other Hindu deities, that is, '' Mahavishnu''. It is one of the major Hindu denominations along wit ...

Guruparampara and is said to have been a strong opponent of the Vaishnavas. The work ''Parpannamritam'' (17th century) refers to the Chola king called Krimikanta who is said to have removed the Govindaraja idol from the Chidambaram Nataraja temple. The ''Kulothunga Cholan Ula'' states that during the reign of Kulottunga II, God Vishnu was sent back to his original abode, that is the sea. However, according to "Koil Olugu" (temple records) of the

Srirangam Srirangam is a neighbourhood in the city of Tiruchirappalli in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. A river island, Srirangam is bounded by the Kaveri River on one side and its distributary Kollidam on the other side. Considered as the first among ...

temple, Kulottunga Chola was the son of Krimikanta Chola. The former, unlike his father, is said to have been a repentant son who supported Vaishnavism. Ramanuja is said to have made Kulottunga II as a disciple of his nephew, Dasarathi. The king then granted the management of the Ranganathaswamy temple to Dasarathi and his descendants as per the wish of Ramanuja.

Inscriptions

The Tyagarajaswami temple in Tiruvarur contains an inscription of the emperor in which he styles himself as Anapaaya and a bee at the lotus feet of Natesa at

. As per the ''Muchukundasahasranamam'', ''Anapaaya Mahipaala'' is another name of the deity Thyagaraja of

Thiruvarur Thiruvarur () also spelt as Tiruvarur is a municipality in the Indian States and territories of India, state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of Thiruvarur district and Thiruvarur taluk. The temple chariot of the Thyagaraja t ...

In popular culture

In the film Dasavathaaram (2008), actor

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

plays the role of Kulothunga Chola II.

Notes

References

* Nilakanta Sastri, K.A. (1935). The CōĻas, University of Madras, Madras (Reprinted 1984). * Nilakanta Sastri, K.A. (1955). A History of South India, OUP, New Delhi (Reprinted 2002). {{s-end 12th-century Indian monarchs Chola emperors