Vikramaditya I (655–680 CE) was the third son and followed his father, Pulakeshi II on to the

Chalukya The Chalukya dynasty () was a Classical Indian dynasty that ruled large parts of southern and central India between the 6th and the 12th centuries. During this period, they ruled as three related yet individual dynasties. The earliest dynasty ...

throne. He restored order in the fractured kingdom and made the

Pallavas The Pallava dynasty existed from 275 CE to 897 CE, ruling a significant portion of the Deccan, also known as Tondaimandalam. The dynasty rose to prominence after the downfall of the Satavahana dynasty, with whom they had formerly served as f ...

retreat from the capital

Vatapi Badami, formerly known as Vatapi, is a town and headquarters of a taluk by the same name, in the Bagalkot district of Karnataka, India. It was the regal capital of the Badami Chalukyas from CE 540 to 757. It is famous for its rock cut monuments ...

. Vikramaditya inherited the traditional titles of the dynasty, including ''Satyashraya'' ("refuge of truth") and '' Shri-prithvi-vallabha'' ("lord of goddess of wealth and earth"; variants include ''Shri-vallabha'' and ''Vallabha''). He also bore the titles ''Maharajadhiraja'' ("king of great kings"), ''Rajadhiraja'' ("king of kings"), ''Parameshvara'' ("Supreme Lord"), and ''Bhattaraka'' ("great lord"). His titles indicative of his military power include ''Rana-rasika'' ("lover of war"), ''Anivarita'' ("unopposed"), and ''Raja-malla'' ("royal wrestler").

Early life and career

Vikramaditya was one of the several sons of the powerful Chalukya king Pulakeshin II, as attested by the contemporary records of the family. The records of the later

Chalukyas of Kalyani 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 ...

, who claimed descent from Vikramaditya's family, describe him as a son of Pulakeshin's son Adityavarman. These records, such as the Kauthem inscription and

Ranna Ranna may refer to: *Ranna, a subdivision of the town Auerbach in der Oberpfalz in Bavaria, Germany * Ranna, Estonia, a village in the former municipality Pala Parish, Estonia * Ranna (Danube), a river of Bavaria, Germany and of Upper Austria, trib ...

's ''Gadaayuddha'', can be dismissed as inaccurate. Pulakeshin II was defeated and probably killed during the Pallava invasion of the Chalukya capital

around c. 642 CE. The Chalukya history over the next decade is unclear: it is possible that after Pulakeshin's death, his son Adityavarman held the throne, followed by Adityavarman's son Abhinavaditya, and then by Pulakeshin's son Chandraditya. After Chandraditya, his wife Vijaya-Bhattarika appears to have acted as a regent for their minor son. During her regency, Vikramaditya appears to have risen to prominence as the supreme commander of the Chalukya army, becoming the de facto ruler in the process. The inscriptions of Vikramaditya state that he obtained the "regal fortune of his father which had been concealed by three kings", and thus "made the entire burden of royalty rest upon one person". Historian K. A. Nilakanta Sastri theorized that beside the Pallava king, the two other kings referred to in this sentence were Adityavarman and Chandraditya. According to this theory, the Chalukya kingdom was divided among the three brothers and the Pallavas after Pulakeshin's death, and Vikramaditya united it by subjugating the others. In his support, Sastri cited the undated Kurnool copper-plate inscription which states that Vikramaditya ascended the throne after "conquering all his kinsmen". However, this inscription is considered spurious, and Sastri himself admitted that its authenticity is doubtful. There is no evidence that the Chalukya kingdom was partitioned among the three brothers. Had Vikramaditya been one of the rival claimants to the throne after Pulakehsin's death, he would have dated the start of his reign from c. 642 CE, not c. 655 CE, in his inscriptions. Moreover, the Kochare and Nerur inscriptions of his sister-in-law Vijaya-Bhattarika mention him positively, but do not accord any royal titles to him. Based on these evidences, scholars such as

D. C. Sircar Dineshchandra Sircar (1907–1985), also known as D. C. Sircar or D. C. Sarkar, was an epigraphist, historian, numismatist and folklorist, known particularly in India and Bangladesh for his work deciphering inscriptions. He was the Chief Ep ...

theorize that Vikramaditya fought against the Pallavas as a subordinate of his brothers, and ascended the throne only after their deaths. The term "

three kings The biblical Magi from Middle Persian ''moɣ''(''mard'') from Old Persian ''magu-'' 'Zoroastrian clergyman' ( or ; singular: ), also referred to as the (Three) Wise Men or (Three) Kings, also the Three Magi were distinguished foreigners in the ...

" apparently refers to the Chola, Chera, and Pandya rulers who had allied with the Pallavas. Besides Adityavarman and Chandraditya, two other brothers of Vikramaditya are known: Ranaragha-varman and Dharashraya Jayasimha-varman. The Honnur copper-plate inscription states that Ranaragha was his elder brother, and donated some land to Brahmanas during his reign. In accordance with the contemporary tradition, Ranaragha would have been ahead of Vikramaditya in the precedence to the throne: it is not clear why Vikramaditya became the king instead of him, and no other surviving source mentions him. Dharashraya Jayasimha was Vikramaditya's younger brother, and governed the north-western part of the Chalukya kingdom as his subordinate. The c. 674 CE (Shaka year 596) Gadval inscription of Vikramaditya is dated to his 12th regnal year, which suggests that he ascended the throne in c. 655 CE (Shaka year 577). This may have happened possibly after the son of Chandraditya and Vijaya died (naturally or otherwise).

Military career

Vikramaditya, with the help of his maternal grandfather Bhuvikarma or Durvineet of

Western Ganga Dynasty Western Ganga was an important ruling dynasty of ancient Karnataka in India which lasted from about 350 to 1000 CE. They are known as "Western Gangas" to distinguish them from the Eastern Gangas who in later centuries ruled over Kalinga (m ...

set himself the task of repelling the Pallava invasion and restoring the unity of his father's kingdom. He was able to end Pallava's occupation, which had lasted for thirteen years and captured Vatapi. He defeated his brothers and other feudatories who wished to divide the empire. Vikramaditya then declared himself king of the Chalukyas (655). He rewarded his younger brother Jayasimhavarma who was loyal to him, with the viceroyalty of

Lata Lata (Hindi: लता) is a Hindu/Sanskrit Indian female given name, which means "creeper" and "vine". Lata may refer to: Notable people named Lata *Lata Bhatt (born 1954), Indian singer. * Lata (born 1975), Musician. *Lata Mangeshkar (1929–2 ...

in the southern

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

. Vikramaditya continued his enmity with Narasimhavarman's son and successor Mahendravarman II, and later with his son

Paramesvaravarman I Parameswaravarman I was a Pallava emperor who ruled in South India in the latter half of the 7th century, 670-695 AD. He ascended to the throne after the death of his father Mahendravarman II in 670 CE. His grandfather Narasimhavarman I had al ...

. Vikramaditya allied himself with the Pallava's other enemy the Pandyan Arikesari Parankusa Maravarman (670 – 700). Early in the reign of Paramesvaravarman, Vikramaditya advanced to the neighbourhood of the Pallava capital Kanchipuram. Vikramaditya advanced to the banks of the

Kaveri The Kaveri (also known as Cauvery, the anglicized name) is one of the major Indian rivers flowing through the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The Kaveri river rises at Talakaveri in the Brahmagiri (hill), Karnataka, Brahmagiri range in th ...

and encamped at

Urayur Uraiyur (also spelt Woraiyur) is a posh locality in Tiruchirapalli city in Tamil Nadu, India. Uraiyur was the ancient name of Tiruchirappalli City. Now, it became the one of the busiest area in Trichy City. It was the capital of the early Chola ...

. The Pallava Paramesvaravarman gathered a large army and went into battle with the Chalukya ally Ganga Bhuvikrama at a place called Vilande. The Pallava king was victorious in this battle (670). Paramesvara then sent an expedition into the Chalukya country. In the ensuing battle of Puruvalanallur in 674 with Vikramaditya's forces, the Pallavas defeated the Chalukyas. The defeated Chalukyan army was led by Vikramaditya's son and grandson Vinayaditya and

Vijayaditya Vijayaditya (696–733 CE) followed his father, Vinayaditya on to the Chalukya throne. His long reign was marked by general peace and prosperity. Vijayaditya also built a number of temples. He fought against the Pallavas and extracted tribu ...

. Pallavas went on to occupy many of the Chalukya territories but later left after the chalukyas agreed to pay yearly tributes. During this time, Jayasimha, brother of Vikramaditya I who ruled as governor of Gujarat province defeated the ruler of Vallabhi, Vajjada the ruler of the Maitraka family. This victory is considered important. The Chalukyan empire however had put the worst behind under Vikramaditya I and recovered most of its territories it controlled under Pulakeshin II. Vikramaditya I was married to the Western Ganga princess Gangamahadevi. Some historians compare him to his illustrious father Pulakeshin II.

Death and succession

Vikramaditya died in 680 and his son Vinayaditya succeeded him on the Chalukya throne.

References

Bibliography

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Early life and career

Military career

Death and succession

References

Bibliography

Further reading