Pithapuram Zamindari was a

Zamindari A zamindar in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semi-autonomous Indian feudalism, feudal lord of a ''zamindari'' (feudal estate). The term itself came into use during the Mughal Empire, when Persian language, Persian was the offi ...

in the

East Godavari East Godavari is a district in the Coastal Andhra region of Andhra Pradesh, India. Its district headquarters is at Rajamahendravaram. Geography This district is surrounded by: * North East: Alluri Sitharama Raju district * North West: Eluru d ...

district of

Madras Presidency The Madras Presidency or Madras Province, officially called the Presidency of Fort St. George until 1937, was an administrative subdivision (province) of British India and later the Dominion of India. At its greatest extent, the presidency i ...

. In 1802,

Pithapuram Pithapuram (also spelled as Pitapuram) is a Town and municipality in the Kakinada district of Andhra Pradesh, India. With a history spanning over 1,500 years, it is one of the oldest towns in the state. Pitapuram served as the capital for vario ...

was overshadowed by the renowned

Peddapuram Peddapuram is a town in the Kakinada district of Andhra Pradesh in South India. The town also forms a part of Godavari Urban Development Authority. Peddapuram is known for its milk based sweet called PalaKova. The town is also popular in manufa ...

estate. But, in 1843, all other villages of Peddapuram were lost except Kottam and they were left with only 36 villages. In this period, Pithapuram gained prominence purchased some estates of Peddapuram like

Thotapalle Estate Thotapalle is a village in the erstwhile East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh. It was also a mansabdari estate with the same name. It had a revenue of 46,462 by 187475 and peskash of 6,310. It was an impartible estate which was resumed by ...

. By 1874-1875 this estate had a revenue of Rs 5 lakhs and paid a tribute of Rs 2.5 lakhs. The Pitapuram Raja sponsored the monumental classical

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of South India ** Telugu literature, is the body of works written in the Telugu language. * Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Tel ...

dictionary ''Sri Suryarayandhra Nighantuvu'' and commissioned the first typewriter in Telugu.

History

The Zamindars of this estate belonged to the Padma Nayaka

Velama Velama are a Hindu caste found mainly in Telangana and AP. The term "Velama" was first recorded for the community in a 17th century inscription. The text "Velugoti Vari Vamsavali" documents the medieval military history of Velama rulers. Orig ...

Stock. This family traces its origin to the

Venkatagiri Venkatagiri is a town in Tirupati district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is a municipality and mandals headquarters of Venkatagiri mandal. Venkatagiri's old name is "Kali Mili". It is notable for its Handloom Cotton Sarees. It was p ...

royal family. One of the members of Venkatagiri family came to Godvari districts as a Sardar, whose descendants later settled there. This family came to Godavari District in 1571 and was given the

Jagir A jagir (), ( Hindustani: जागीर/جاگیر, ''Jāgīr''), ( Marathi: जहागीर, ''Jahāgīrá'') also spelled as jageer, was a type of feudal land grant in the Indian subcontinent at the foundation of its Jagirdar ( Zamindar ...

Anaparthi Anaparthi (formerly Anapothavaram) is a Town located in Anaparthy mandal, in East Godavari district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. The town was named after Anapotha Reddy(1353 AD–1364 AD). Almost all the residents of this Town are Red ...

. They were made the Sardars of

Rajahmundry Rajahmundry ( ), officially Rajamahendravaram, is a city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and district headquarters of East Godavari district. It is the fifth most populated city in the state. During British rule, the district of Rajahmu ...

who led 4000 troops. They got the Zamindari sanad in 1749 from

Rustum Khan Rustum may refer to: *Rostam, hero of the Persian epic ''Shahnameh'' * ''Rustum'' (1984 film), an Indian Telugu-language action film * ''Rustum'' (2019 film), an Indian Kannada-language crime thriller film * Rustum Ghazaleh (1953-2015), Syrian m ...

, a general of

Nizam Nizam of Hyderabad was the title of the ruler of Hyderabad State ( part of the Indian state of Telangana, and the Kalyana-Karnataka region of Karnataka). ''Nizam'' is a shortened form of (; ), and was the title bestowed upon Asaf Jah I ...

. Later they made a permanent settlement with the British in 1802. The total area of the estate in 1903 was 393 square miles with a revenue of INR 9,14,000/- paying a peskash of 2,44,000/-. Later they were also given the titles of

Maharaja Maharaja (also spelled Maharajah or Maharaj; ; feminine: Maharani) is a royal title in Indian subcontinent, Indian subcontinent of Sanskrit origin. In modern India and Medieval India, medieval northern India, the title was equivalent to a pri ...

as a personal distinction.

Relations

The Zamindars of Pithapuram are closely related to the

Nuzvid Estate Nuzvid Zamindari is one of the ancient Zamindari of the Madras Presidency. It comprises nearly about 288 villages or 18 paraganas. It pays a peskash of 95,443/-. It is further divided into Vuyyuru, Mirzapuram, Kapileswarapuram and other estate ...

Rajas through marital alliances.

Bobbili Bobbili is a town in Vizianagaram district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Geography Bobbili is located at . It has an average elevation of 103 metres (337 feet). History The town of Bobbili was founded during the 17th c ...

, Venkatagiri, and Jetprole royal families are very closely related to Pithapuram royal family as they all claim their descent from the same ancestor.

References

{{Reflist Zamindari estates History of Andhra Pradesh Madras Presidency

History

Relations

Further reading

References