Vijaya Manikya II ( – 1563), also spelt Vijay or Bijoy, was the
Maharaja
Mahārāja (; also spelled Maharajah, Maharaj) is a Sanskrit title for a "great ruler", "great king" or " high king".
A few ruled states informally called empires, including ruler raja Sri Gupta, founder of the ancient Indian Gupta Empire, an ...
of
Tripura
Tripura (, Bengali: ) is a state in Northeast India. The third-smallest state in the country, it covers ; and the seventh-least populous state with a population of 36.71 lakh ( 3.67 million). It is bordered by Assam and Mizoram to the east a ...
from 1532 to 1563. Succeeding to the throne at a young age, Vijaya proved himself to be a formidable military leader, initiating a series of conquests into several surrounding kingdoms, including the powerful
Bengal Sultanate
The Sultanate of Bengal ( Middle Bengali: শাহী বাঙ্গালা ''Shahī Baṅgala'', Classical Persian: ''Saltanat-e-Bangālah'') was an empire based in Bengal for much of the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries. It was the dominan ...
. During Vijaya's reign, the might and influence of Tripura reached its zenith, leading to him being viewed as one of its greatest monarchs.
Early life
Vijaya was born the son of
Deva Manikya, himself the son of the famous
Dhanya Manikya
Dhanya Manikya was the Maharaja of Tripura who reigned from 1490 to 1515 C.E. In this time, Tripura Sundari Temple was established.
Biography
Assisted by his generals Ray Kachag and Ray Kacham, Dhanya Manikya expanded Tripura's territorial do ...
. When he was a child, Vijaya's father was assassinated in a conspiracy orchestrated by the
Brahman
In Hinduism, ''Brahman'' ( sa, ब्रह्मन्) connotes the highest universal principle, the ultimate reality in the universe.P. T. Raju (2006), ''Idealistic Thought of India'', Routledge, , page 426 and Conclusion chapter part X ...
Lakshminarayana and one of Deva's queens, who placed the latter's son,
Indra Manikya I, on the throne. Vijaya himself was imprisoned, though was later freed by the commander of the army, Daityanarayana, who named him king in 1532 after having Lakshminarayana killed.
According to the ''
Rajmala
''Rajmala'' is a chronicle of the Kings of Tripura, written in Bengali verse in the 15th century under Dharma Manikya I.
Overview
The ''Rajmala'' chronicles the history of the Manikya kings of Tripura. While it serves as an invaluable sou ...
'', Vijaya was initially under the protection of the commander, whose daughter he was married to. However, the young king began to chafe under the thumb of his father-in-law, who held the actual control of the kingdom and used Vijaya as a puppet-monarch. The ''Rajmala'' continues that in response, Vijaya had Daityanarayana killed. However, there is some evidence that the text had conflicted details regarding Vijaya with that of an earlier monarch,
Vijaya Manikya I, who was also controlled by a military leader with the name Daityanarayana.
Military expansion
Vijaya's reign is viewed to have heralded a new era in the history of medieval Tripura. The death of Daityanarayana curtailed the tremendous influence of the army chiefs in the kingdom's administration, allowing Vijaya to consolidate executive power in his own person. He was thus freed to focus his full powers in achieving his considerable military ambitions.
Great efforts were implemented in modernising the kingdom's army and strengthening its influence. Archers, elephants, artillery and a navy were organised and incorporated into its ranks, while military camps were established at Tripura's frontiers to better defend its sovereignty. In line with trends occurring throughout the
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...
, cavalries became an intrinsic part of the army during Vijaya's reign, being established with the aid of
Afghan
Afghan may refer to:
*Something of or related to Afghanistan, a country in Southern-Central Asia
*Afghans, people or citizens of Afghanistan, typically of any ethnicity
** Afghan (ethnonym), the historic term applied strictly to people of the Pas ...
soldiers. Chronicles state that these reforms resulted in a formidable military composed of 200,000 infantry, 10,000 cavalry, 1000 elephants and 5000 boats.
This realisation of Tripura's military might allowed a period of aggressive territorial conquests to be initiated, resulting in the extensive expansion of lands under Vijaya's control. The regions of
Sylhet
Sylhet ( bn, সিলেট) is a metropolitan city in northeastern Bangladesh. It is the administrative seat of the Sylhet Division. Located on the north bank of the Surma River at the eastern tip of Bengal, Sylhet has a subtropical climate an ...
and
Jaintia were conquered and incorporated into the kingdom, the ruler of
Khasiya voluntarily submitted to Tripuri suzerainty and
Chittagong
Chittagong ( /ˈtʃɪt əˌɡɒŋ/ ''chit-uh-gong''; ctg, চিটাং; bn, চিটাগং), officially Chattogram ( bn, চট্টগ্রাম), is the second-largest city in Bangladesh after Dhaka and third largest city in B ...
was recaptured from the Afghan rulers of
Bengal
Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
.
However, as a result of the defeats inflicted by Vijaya on their countrymen, the Afghans in his army revolted, with 1000
Pathan
Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also known as Pakhtuns or Pathans, are an Iranian ethnic group who are native to the geographic region of Pashtunistan in the present-day countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were historically re ...
horsemen marching on Chittagong. The rebels were soon captured and Vijaya had them sacrificed at the altar of the
Fourteen Gods
The Chaturdasa Devata or Fourteen Gods is the Shaivite Hindu pantheon worshipped in the Indian state of Tripura.
Overview
According to traditions, the origin for the worship of these deities was contemporary to the setting of the ''Mahabharata'', ...
. The Sultan of Bengal, who may have been disturbed by the deaths or was perhaps attempting to take advantage of the distraction provided by the rebellion, launched an invasion of Tripura. 10,000 foot soldiers and 3000 cavalry assaulted the kingdom, resulting in a protracted eight-month conflict in Chittagong. However, Tripura emerged victorious, with the Bengali commander also being sacrificed to the gods.
Vijaya launched a counter assault, with his armies raiding deep into
east Bengal
ur,
, common_name = East Bengal
, status = Province of the Dominion of Pakistan
, p1 = Bengal Presidency
, flag_p1 = Flag of British Bengal.svg
, s1 = East ...
. He himself commanded his 5000 riverboats down the
Brahmaputra River
The Brahmaputra is a trans-boundary river which flows through Tibet, northeast India, and Bangladesh. It is also known as the Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibetan, the Siang/Dihang River in Arunachali, Luit in Assamese, and Jamuna River in Bangla. It ...
to the
Padma
The Padma ( bn, পদ্মা ''Pôdma'') is a major river in Bangladesh. It is the main distributary of the Ganges, flowing generally southeast for to its confluence with the Meghna River near the Bay of Bengal. The city of Rajshahi is sit ...
, occupying
Bikrampur
Bikrampur ("City of Courage") was a pargana situated south of Dhaka, the modern capital city of Bangladesh. In the present day, it is known as Munshiganj District of Bangladesh. It is a historic region in Bengal and was a part of the Bhawal Est ...
and having
Sonargaon
Sonargaon ( bn, সোনারগাঁও; pronounced as ''Show-naar-gaa''; lit. ''Golden Hamlet'') is a historic city in central Bangladesh. It corresponds to the Sonargaon Upazila of Narayanganj District in Dhaka Division.
Sonargaon is one ...
plundered and burned. The Sultan, having been distracted by an internecine war with the
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...
, was unable to oppose Vijaya, leaving the latter the unrivalled master of the region.
Interactions with contemporary rulers
Vijaya was a contemporary of the Mughal emperor
Akbar
Abu'l-Fath Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar (25 October 1542 – 27 October 1605), popularly known as Akbar the Great ( fa, ), and also as Akbar I (), was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Hum ...
, with him finding mention in the ''
Ain-i-Akbari
The ''Ain-i-Akbari'' ( fa, ) or the "Administration of Akbar", is a 16th-century detailed document recording the administration of the Mughal Empire under Emperor Akbar, written by his court historian, Abu'l Fazl in the Persian language. It for ...
''. He maintained relations with
Mukunda Deva
Mukunda Deva or Mukunda Harichandana (1559-1568 A.D) was the founder of "Chalukya dynasty" in ancient Orissa (now Odisha). He traced his descent from the Eastern Chalukyas of Vengi. He was the sole monarch of his dynasty and the last independent ...
, the ruler of
Odisha
Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...
, to whom he entrusted the care of his elder son Dungar Fa. It is possible that an alliance had existed between these two kings in opposition to the Sultans of Bengal. He also interacted with the ruler of the
Kachari Kingdom
The Dimasa Kingdom (also Kachari kingdom) was a late medieval/early modern kingdom in Assam, Northeast India ruled by Dimasa kings. The Dimasa kingdom and others (Kamata, Chutiya) that developed in the wake of the Kamarupa kingdom were examp ...
, through whose intercession Vijaya spared the king of Jaintia when the latter initially refused to submit to his authority.
In the ''Darrang Raj Vamsavali'', a
Koch royal chronicle, the Koch king
Nara Narayan
Naranarayan (reign 1554–1587) was the last ruler of the undivided Koch dynasty of Kamata Kingdom. He succeeded his father, Biswa Singha. Under him the Koch kingdom reached its cultural and political zenith. Under his rule, and under the mi ...
and his brother
Chilarai
Shukladhwaja (Pron:ʃʊkləˈdwɑːdʒ) (1510-1577AD), or more popularly known as Bir Chilarai(Pron:/ʧɪləˌraɪ/), was the 3rd son of Biswa Singha, founder of the Koch Dynasty in Kamata Kingdom and younger brother of Nara Narayan, the 2nd kin ...
are claimed to have invaded Tripura around the time of Vijaya's reign, inflicting a devastating defeat on its ruler. However, it is unlikely that this ruler can be identified with Vijaya himself, given that it is implausible that such a powerful monarch would have suffered so great a loss. Given that it finds no mention in Tripuri sources, it is instead believed that the defeat had been exaggerated or that it had occurred under Vijaya's successor.
Death
In 1563, Vijaya died of
smallpox
Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) c ...
at the age of forty-seven, having reigned for more than thirty years. As was custom, his wives performed ''
Sati
Sati or SATI may refer to:
Entertainment
* ''Sati'' (film), a 1989 Bengali film by Aparna Sen and starring Shabana Azmi
* ''Sati'' (novel), a 1990 novel by Christopher Pike
*Sati (singer) (born 1976), Lithuanian singer
*Sati, a character in ''Th ...
'', following his body into the funeral pyre. At the time of his death, Tripura had reached its greatest extent, controlling the entirety of eastern Bengal as well as the southern portion of the present-day
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
n state of
Assam
Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...
. Vijaya's successes are acknowledged in the ''
Rajmala
''Rajmala'' is a chronicle of the Kings of Tripura, written in Bengali verse in the 15th century under Dharma Manikya I.
Overview
The ''Rajmala'' chronicles the history of the Manikya kings of Tripura. While it serves as an invaluable sou ...
'', which describes him in the following manner:
He was succeeded by his son
Ananta Manikya, who proved to be less able than his father. Tripura subsequently experienced a period of gradual decay.
Notes
References
Bibliography
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*{{cite book, last=Sircar, first=Dineshchandra, authorlink=Dineshchandra Sircar, title=Some Epigraphical Records of the Medieval Period from Eastern India, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-O18xhA_BXUC&pg=PA90, year=1979, publisher=Abhinav Publications, location=New Delhi, isbn=978-81-7017-096-9
Kings of Tripura
History of Tripura
Bengal Sultanate
Deaths from smallpox
1563 deaths