Arikesari III (r. c. 946-968) was the last known ruler of the

Vemulavada Chalukya The Chalukyas of Vemulavada were an Indian dynasty that ruled in and around the present-day Telangana between 7th and 10th centuries. Their capital was located at Vemulawada, Karimnagar district, Vemulavada, and they were vassals of the Ras ...

dynasty of present-day

Telangana Telangana (; , ) is a state in India situated on the south-central stretch of the Indian peninsula on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the eleventh-largest state and the twelfth-most populated state in India with a geographical area of and ...

, India. He was a vassal of the

Rashtrakuta Rashtrakuta ( IAST: ') (r. 753-982 CE) was a royal Indian dynasty ruling large parts of the Indian subcontinent between the sixth and 10th centuries. The earliest known Rashtrakuta inscription is a 7th-century copper plate grant detailing their ...

king

Krishna III Krishna III whose Kannada name was Kannara (r. 939 – 967 C.E.) was the last great warrior and able monarch of the Rashtrakuta dynasty of Manyakheta. He was a shrewd administrator and skillful military campaigner. He waged many wars to bring b ...

Early life

Arikesari III was a grandson of the Chalukya king

Arikesari II Arikesari II ( ) was a ruler of the Vemulavada Chalukya dynasty of present-day Telangana, India. A Rashtrakuta vassal, he played an important role in dethroning the Rashtrakuta emperor Govinda IV and enthroning Amoghavarsha III as the new emper ...

. His father Bhadradeva and his uncle Vagaraja (who succeeded Arikesari II) were half-brothers. Bhadradeva (r. c. 941-946) probably ruled jointly with Vagaraja (r. c. 941-950), and Arikesari III (r. c. 946-968) ascended the throne after them. Bhadradeva probably died before Vagaraja, and Vagaraja probably died without an heir, which may explain why Arikesari III succeeded Vagaraja.

Reign

Like his predecessor, Arikesari III was a feudatory of the

king

. His 946 CE

Karimnagar Karimnagar is also known as Elagandula (Ancient name) is a city and District Headquarters in the Indian state of Telangana. Karimnagar is a major urban agglomeration and fifth largest City in the state. It is governed by Municipal corporation a ...

inscription records a land grant to a

brahmana The Brahmanas (; Sanskrit: , ''Brāhmaṇam'') are Vedic śruti works attached to the Samhitas (hymns and mantras) of the Rig, Sama, Yajur, and Atharva Vedas. They are a secondary layer or classification of Sanskrit texts embedded within ea ...

. His 966 CE

Parbhani Parbhani (, IPA ) is a city in Maharashtra state of India. It is the administrative headquarters of Parbhani District. Parbhani is one of the largest cities in Marathwada region. Parbhani is around away from regional headquarters of Aurang ...

copper-plate inscription records the grant of a village to the Jain leader Somadeva-suri for the maintenance of Shubha-dharma Jinalaya shrine, which had been built by his father Bhadradeva. The granted village was Kuttumvritti-Vanikadupulu, which was located in the Repaka-12 subdivision of the Sabbi-1000 administrative division. His 968 CE Repaka inscription records a land grant to a Jain shrine (''Jinalaya'') by the chief Vujaya; the temple is said to have been built by Arikesari. Arikesari III bore several titles inherited from his grandfather, including ''Pambarankusham'', ''Ammana-gandha-varanam'', ''Gandhebha-Vidyadharam'', ''Arudha-Sarvajnan'', ''Udatta-narayanan'', ''Nodutti-gevlom'', ''Guna-nidhi'', ''Gunarnava'', ''Sharanagata-vajra-panjara'', ''Priyagalla'', ''Tribhuvana-malla'', and ''Samanta-chudamani''. It is not certain how and when the reign of Arikesari III ended. By the year 966-967, the

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

had made inroads into the territory of the Vemulavada kings, as attested by an inscription discovered at Uppili in the Maktal taluka of the Mahboobnagar district. Another 973-974 inscription of Permumadi, an officer (''ankakara'') of the Kalyani Chalukya king

Taila II Tailapa II (r. c. 973-997), also known as Taila II and by his title ''Ahavamalla'', was the founder of the Western Chalukya dynasty in southern India. Tailapa claimed descent from the earlier Chalukyas of Vatapi, and initially ruled as a Rashtra ...

, has been discovered at Koraprolu in the present-day Nalgonda district. This suggests that the Kalyani Chalukyas conquered the Vemulavada territories during 966-973.

References

Bibliography

* * {{Chalukyas of Vemulavada Chalukyas of Vemulavada 10th-century Indian monarchs