Rudra of Recherla (

IAST The International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration (IAST) is a transliteration scheme that allows the lossless romanisation of Brahmic family, Indic scripts as employed by Sanskrit and related Indic languages. It is based on a scheme that ...

: Recerla) family, also known as Rudra-''senani'', was a 12th-13th century military commander, administrator and vassal of the

Kakatiya The Kakatiya dynasty (IAST: Kākatīya) was a Telugu dynasty that ruled most of eastern Deccan region in present-day India between 12th and 14th centuries. Their territory comprised much of the present day Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, and p ...

kingdom of present-day India. Around 1198 CE, the Kakatiya king

Mahadeva Mahadeva may refer to: Religion *Mahadeva, a title of the Hindu god Shiva **Parashiva, a form of Shiva ** Parameshwara (god), a form of Shiva * Para Brahman, a Hindu deity *Adi-Buddha, in Buddhism, the "First Buddha" or the "Primordial Buddha" * ...

was killed in a campaign against the Seunas (Yadavas), and his son

Ganapati Ganesha or Ganesh (, , ), 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 the Ganapatya sect. His depictions are found throughout India. Hi ...

was captured by the enemy. Rudra administered the kingdom in Ganapati's name, and reinstated him on the throne after his release. Rudra established the Palampet town, and commissioned the Ramappa Temple there.

Military career

Rudra served as the commander-in-chief of the Kakatiya army during the reign of the Kakatiya king

. In 1198-1199 CE, Mahadeva was killed in a battle against the Seuna (Yadava) kingdom, and his son

was captured by the enemy. During Ganapati's captivity, Rudra appears to have handled the administration in Ganapati's name, as suggested by his titles ''Kakatiya-rajya-bhara-dhaureya'' and ''Kakati-rajya-samartha''. Epigraphic evidence suggests that he suppressed rebellions from feudatories and repulsed invasions. The 1218 CE Nattaramesvaram inscription states that Rudra defeated an obscure king named Nagati, forcing him to flee to Kolavenu region. This event happened during the reign of Mahadeva, or shortly after his death. Rudra's Palampet inscription describes how he rescued the Kakatiya kingdom from grave misfortune: Ganapati was released from Yadava captivity sometime in 1199 CE. The Ramakrishnapuram inscription states that Rudra reinstated Ganapati on the throne. According to some scholars, such as M. Somasekhara Sarma, Rudra also repulsed an invasion by the Chola ruler

Kulottunga III Kulothunga III was a Chola emperor who ruled from to 1218. He ascended the throne after succeeding his elder brother Rajadhiraja II. Kulothunga Chola III gained success in war against his traditional foes. He gained victories in war agains ...

. Others, such as P. V. P. Sastry dispute this in absence of concrete evidence.

Palampet

Rudra established the town of Palampet and commissioned the construction of the Ramappa Temple there, as attested by a 1213 CE inscription. Although Palampet is now a small village, it was an important town during the Kakatiya period. The temple is also called Rudresvara ("Lord of Rudra"), a word play on the name of the builder (Recherla Rudra) and the deity (Rudra being another name for

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 ...

References

{{reflist 12th-century Indian people 13th-century Indian people Indian generals Indian military leaders Indian military personnel Year of birth unknown Kakatiya dynasty