Tirumala Nayaka (reigned 1623–16 February 1659) was the ruler of

Madurai Nayak Dynasty The Madurai Nayakas were a Telugu people, Telugu dynasty * * * * * who ruled most of modern-day Tamil Nadu, India, with Madurai as their capital. The Madurai Nayaks had their origins in the Balija warrior clans of present-day Andhra Pradesh. * ...

in the 17th century. He ruled

Madurai Madurai ( , , ), formerly known as Madura, is a major city in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District, which is ...

between 1623 and 1659. His contributions are found in the many splendid buildings and

temples A temple (from the Latin ) is a place of worship, a building used for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. By convention, the specially built places of worship of some religions are commonly called "temples" in Engli ...

of Madurai. He belongs to

Balija The Balija are a Telugu-speaking mercantile community primarily living in the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and in smaller numbers in Telangana and Kerala. In Tamil Nadu, they are known as Gavarais. Etymology Var ...

caste. His kingdom was under constant threat from the armies of Bijapur Sultanate and the other neighbouring

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

kingdoms, which he managed to repulse successfully. His territories comprised much of the old

Pandya The Pandya dynasty (), also referred to as the Pandyas of Madurai, was an ancient Tamil dynasty of South India, and among the four great kingdoms of Tamilakam, the other three being the Pallavas, the Cholas and the Cheras. Existing sinc ...

territories which included

Coimbatore Coimbatore (Tamil: kōyamputtūr, ), also known as Kovai (), is one of the major Metropolitan cities of India, metropolitan cities in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Noyy ...

Tirunelveli Tirunelveli (), also known as Nellai and historically (during British rule) as Tinnevelly, is a major city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of the Tirunelveli District. It is the fourth-largest munici ...

, Madurai districts, Aragalur in southern

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

and some territories of the

Travancore The kingdom of Travancore (), also known as the kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor () or later as Travancore State, was a kingdom that lasted from until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvanan ...

kingdom. Tirumala Nayaka was a great patron of art and architecture and the Dravidian architecture evolved into the ''Madurai style''. He rebuilt and renovated a number of old temples of the

period. His palace, known as the Tirumala Nayaka Palace, is a notable architectural masterpiece.

Wars with Mysore

In the early years of Tirumala Nayaka's reign, an invasion of Mysore and counter-invasion of Madura. Recorded in a Mackenzie Manuscript, these conflicts predated Tirumala's later war with the Setupati of Ramnad. While precise dates are elusive, historians like Mr. Rangachari speculate that the Mysore aggression around 1625 may have been instigated by the ambitious Chamaraja Udaiyar, perhaps seeking to assert dominance or rectify past failures. Despite the Mysore general Harasura advance towards Dindigul, but beaten back by Madurai General Ramaiyan of local leaders like Ramaiyyan Ranganna Nayaka the polygar of kannividi the victorious army persuaded the Mysore army and even besieging the Mysore capital. The successful defense earned Ramaiyan great honor from Tirumala Nayaka.

Tirumala Nayaka's Madurai

Tirumala Nayaka's capital was Madurai. The royal residence had been moved from there to Thiruchirapalli by his predecessor, but Tirumala Nayaka moved it back to Madurai again. The reason for this move is claimed to be due to a dream Tirumala Nayaka had but also stated by historians that Madurai has a long history and continuously civilized through ages and Thiruchirapalli is at a threat of immediate attack by Mysore. Nayak Palace Auditorium

Personal life

Ardent devotee

Tirumala Nayaka ate his breakfast only after the pujas were performed at Srivilliputhur Aandal Temple. To get the information that the pujas were completed, the king built mandaps about every five kilometres on the route from Madurai to

Srivilliputhur Srivilliputhur is a municipality in Virudhunagar district in the Indian States and territories of India, state of Tamil Nadu. As of 2011, the town had a population of 75,396. The most important landmark of Thiruvilliputhur is 11-tiered tower st ...

and installed loud bells in them. Each mandap also had a small kitchen. When there was a message to be sent a series of bells rang.

Legacy

In 1974 the Mannar Thirumalai Naicker College was founded in

by Tamilnadu Naidu Mahajana Sangam.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tirumala Nayaka Telugu people Telugu monarchs Madurai nayaks People from Madurai 1659 deaths Year of birth unknown