Sir
''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as ...
Sri Rama Varma XV (1852–1932), known as the Rajarshi of
Cochin
Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of K ...
and as
Abdicated
Abdication is the act of formally relinquishing monarchical authority. Abdications have played various roles in the succession procedures of monarchies. While some cultures have viewed abdication as an extreme abandonment of duty, in other societ ...
Highness, was the ruler of the
Kingdom of Cochin
The Kingdom of Cochin, named after its capital in the city of Kochi (Cochin), was a kingdom in the central part of present-day Kerala state. It commenced at the early part of the 12th century and continued to rule until 1949, when monarchy wa ...
from 1895 to 1914.
![Statue of Rama Varma XV at Subhash Park Ernakulam](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/37/Statue_of_Rama_Varma_XV_at_Subhash_Park_Ernakulam.jpg)
Rama Varma abdicated the throne in 1914. He died in January 1932 at his summer residence in
Thrissur
Thrissur (), formerly Trichur, also known by its historical name Thrissivaperur, is a city and the headquarters of the Thrissur district in Kerala, India. It is the third largest urban agglomeration in Kerala after Kochi and Kozhikode, and t ...
. He was cremated with full state honours in the premises of his home. Both his palace and resting place are now situated in the premises of
Sree Kerala Varma College, made by and named after Kerala Varma VII. His name was given to several educational institutions in the
Cochin state like the one in
Vadavucode named
Rajarshi Memorial Higher Secondary school Vadavucode and
Rajarshi Memorial Higher Secondary school, Alloor.
Personal life
Rama Varma XV had married twice, his first marriage did not last for long due to the death of his wife. His second wife was Ittyanath Madathil Parukutty a member of the Ittyanath Family from Villadam, Thrissur. Parukutty was his Nethyaramma there after. He also happens to be the step father of Ittyanath Madathil Madhavi (wife of
Rama Varma Parikshith Thampuran
Darsanakalanidhi Parikshith Thampuran (died 1964) was the last official ruler of the Cochin princely state. He was also known as Ramavarman or Kunjunni Tampuran. He was born in 1876 as the son of Raman Nambutiri of Ottur House and Manku Tampur ...
).
Parukutty was a widow herself before her marriage to Rama Varma XV and had a girl child from that marriage. As it's a custom then to leave children from earlier marriage at one's ancestral home Parukutty did the same after her marriage to Rama Varma XV. Upon her arrival at the Palace in Tripunithura, Rama Varma XV enquired about the child. When he heard about the child from Parukutty, he ordered that the child should be brought to the Palace at once. Later this child was destined to become a Nethyaramma herself after her marriage to
Rama Varma Parikshith Thampuran
Darsanakalanidhi Parikshith Thampuran (died 1964) was the last official ruler of the Cochin princely state. He was also known as Ramavarman or Kunjunni Tampuran. He was born in 1876 as the son of Raman Nambutiri of Ottur House and Manku Tampur ...
.
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Varma, Sir Sri Rama
1932 deaths
1852 births
Indian knights
19th-century Indian monarchs
Knights Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India
Knights Grand Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire
Rulers of Cochin
Monarchs who abdicated
20th-century Indian monarchs
Indian Sanskrit scholars
19th-century Indian educational theorists
20th-century Indian educational theorists
Scholars from Kerala