Political History of Rashtrakuta Dynasty
After Amoghavarsha III, his eldest son and crown prince Krishna III ascended the throne of Rashtrakuta dynasty in 939 AD. At the time of his accession, he assumed the title of Akalvarsha. Apart from this, he Vallabhnarendra , Prithvivallabh, Samastbhuvanasraya, Kandaharpuradhishvara, Parammaheshwar, Parambhattaraka He also held other titles. After the conquest of Kanchi and Tanjore, he won 'conqueror of Kanchi and Tanjore ' was also assumed.
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Achievements of Krishna III
Krishna III (939-967 AD) was a skilled soldier and imperial ruler. Although Krishna III received the throne after the death of his father without any opposition, the Suddi inscription It is said that Gangaraj Butug secured the throne of Krishna II from a rebel named Lalleya and he snatched Lalley's state elephant, horse, white umbrella and the throne and gave it to Krishna. From this it seems that Krishna had to face some rebellion after the death of his father, whereas no such incident is known regarding Krishna's ascension. Since there is no information about Lalley, the authenticity of the Suddi inscription is questionable.
Lellaya was probably a local feudal ruler who refused to recognize Krishna as the legitimate heir to the Rashtrakuta kingdom and Krishna III, with the help of his relative and feudatory Gangraj Butuga II was defeated.
Krishna III strengthened his internal governance and military power for two years after his ascension and in the third year made a comprehensive plan of Digvijaya for the expansion of the empire. In this campaign, he not only defeated his contemporaries, the Cholas, the Keralas, the Pandyas and the Chalukyas of Vengi and intimidated the kings up to the Sinhala, but also demonstrated the military might of the Rashtrakutas by capturing the region of Bundelkhand and Malwa in the north.
Victory to Kanchi and Tanjore: In the course of his conquest, Krishna III first implemented his imperialist policy in the south. During the time of Krishna II, the Rashtrakutas and their feudatories, the arrows and the Vaidumbas, had to be defeated by the Chola Parantaka, due to which many of their territories went under the control of the Cholas.
Inscriptions from Arcot district show that Krishna III conquered Kanchi and Tanjore. Krishna III, with the help of his relative Butuga, attacked the Chola ruler Parantaka around 943 AD and captured Kanchi and Tanjore. Many inscriptions from the fifth and seventh years of Krishna's reign Tondamandalam , which are indicative of its dominance in the region.
But after some time Chola Parantaka organized his army and power and challenged the authority of Rashtrakutas seriously. This time the Chola army was led by Yuvraj Rajaditya. Rashtrakuta inscriptions show that in 949-50 AD there was a tussle between the Chola and Rashtrakuta armies in Takkolam A fierce battle took place at a place called (North Arcot). It is known from the Rashtrakuta inscriptions that in the beginning the Cholas had a heavy upper hand and they uprooted the feet of the Rashtrakutas. But later Rashtrakuta commander Manler and Gangraj Butug The Rashtrakutas got success due to the strategic ability of and the Chola prince Rajaditya was killed. Leiden letters say that Rajaditya, riding an elephant, was killed while fighting with Krishna III. Pleased with the cooperation of his brother-in-law, Gangaraja ruler Butug, Krishna III made him the ruler of Belvola, Purigere and Kisukad. The villages of Arkur and Kadiyur were gifted in return for the valuable services of Manler.
Karhad Articles of 958 AD It is also claimed that the entire Tondamandalam was included in the Rashtrakuta kingdom during the reign of Krishna III. On the contrary Kanyakumari inscription of Parantaka Chola. According to Parantaka defeated Krishnaraja 'Virchola ' had taken the title. Perhaps this inscription refers to the initial successes achieved by the Chola ruler against Krishna II. Thus it is clear that Krishna III was actually the conqueror of Kanchi and Tanjore.
Kerala , Pandya and Sinhala: After defeating the Cholas, the Rashtrakuta army marched south and defeated Kerala and the Pandyas. The Saka Samvat 880 shows that he defeated Kerala and the Pandyas, briefly captured Rameswaram and established his own stature there. He played in Rameshwaram Priyagandamartand and Krishnaeshwar He got the temple built and donated some villages to him.
It is said that the ruler of Sri Lanka, frightened by the Chola, Kerala and Pandya conquests of Krishna III, also accepted its submission.
These victories of Krishna III were confirmed by Somdev's 'Yashtilak ’, Devli article and Sholapur article Happens from. According to Yashastilaka, he had conquered the Cheras, the Pandyas, the Cholas and the Sinhalese. The Devali inscription states that Krishna III killed Dantiga and Bappuga, the rulers of Kanchi, defeated the Pallava Antiga, protected the Kaluchuris from the invasions of the Gurjaras and all the feudatories from the Himalayas to Sri Lanka and from the eastern seas to the western seas. Made him obey his orders. In the Sholapur article it is called 'Chakravartin ruler ' It has been told. Although the Sinhala, Chera, Pandya kingdoms could not remain under the Rashtrakuta frontiers for a long time, but their direct rule over Tondamandalam remained.
Victory to North India
After dealing with the wars of the South, Krishna III left for the conquest of North India around AD 963. In fact, in the middle of the tenth century when Krishna III was busy in the southern campaigns, the Chandelas of Bundelkhand consolidated their power and captured the forts of Kalanjar and Chitrakoot, which were under the Rashtrakutas during the time of Amoghavarsha.
Invasion of Bundelkhand: Krishna III conducted a military campaign in North India to recapture the forts of Kalanjar and Chitrakoot and punish the Chandelas. This time in Krishna's North Indian campaign Chedi Naresh Marasingh II assisted him, who was the successor of Butug.
Krishna III first invaded Bundelkhand in the Central Provinces around 963 AD and probably tried to capture the forts of Chitrakoot and Kalanjar for some time. But in the Kannada article received from Jura of Bundelkhand region, Krishna III was named 'conqueror of Kanchi and Tanjore ' Having said. From this it seems that Krishna III did not get much success in recapturing the forts of Chitrakoot and Kalanjar and had to be satisfied only with the victories of the south. In an article of Vikram Samvat 1055 (996-97 AD), Chandel Dhang was referred to as ' Kalanjaradhipati' Said.
Invasion of Malwa: After the conquest of Bundelkhand, Krishna III invaded Malwa and the Parmar ruler Siyak After defeating it, he captured Ujjayini. Harsola inscription shows that till 949 AD, Siyak was loyal to the Rashtrakutas, but later due to some reasons he became rebellious. In the articles, two generals of Marasingh were named 'Ujjaini Bhujang The title has been given and it is known that Mar Singh II had campaigned in southern and northern Gujarat. Lakshmeshwar inscription (967-68 AD) also shows that Mar Singh II defeated the Gurjar ruler on the orders of Krishna. Now the Siyak started ruling as a feudatory subordinate to the Rashtrakutas.
Vengi's relation to the Chalukyas: Krishna also got an opportunity to intervene in Vengi's politics. After the death of Bhima II, Amm II became the ruler of Vengi. Krishna III attacked Amm II to get the throne of Vengi to Vadap, the son of Yuddhamalla II, his supporter. The defeated Amma II had to flee and take refuge in Kalinga and ascended the throne of the Chalukya kingdom by the name of Vadap Vijayaditya. Vadappa ruled in Vengi Mandal till the end of his life as Rashtrakuta feudal (970 AD).
After Vadap, Tal II became the king of Vengi, but Amma II killed him and recaptured the throne of Vengi. Krishna III killed Amma's half-brother Danarnav supported and sent an army to help him. Rashtrakuta army defeated Amma again Danarnav was placed on the throne of Vengi. Amma fled and took refuge in the king of Kalinga.
But as soon as the Rashtrakuta army withdrew, Amma put Danarnava to death and regained the throne of Vengi. Thus in the last years of Krishna III's life, Vengi was freed from the suzerainty of the Rashtrakutas.
Evaluation of Krishna III
Krishna III was the last great ruler of the Rashtrakuta dynasty. Although he did not achieve spectacular strategic successes in North India like Dhruva, Govind III and Indra III, but through his important strategic achievements, he once again raised the pride and prestige of the Rashtrakutas to the pinnacle of progress. Not only this, the king of Sinhala was also influenced by him. Thus Krishna III is the first and last ruler of the Rashtrakuta dynasty, which is in the true sense Emperor of the entire Dakshinapatha Can be called. He was successful in keeping his control over the Pallavas and the Cholas.
Krishna III is credited with the conquests from the Himalayas in the north to Rameswaram and Sri Lanka in the south. The details of his conquest of the Himalayas in the north are exaggerated, but in the south he was certainly the ruler of the regions up to Rameshwaram. Apart from Krishna III, no other Rashtrakuta ruler could establish such effective dominance in the far south. Krishneshwar and Gandamartandaditya There is clear evidence of his hoisting of the flag of victory in the far south.
Krishna III was not only a conqueror and empire-builder, but he was also a liberal patron of literature and scholars. Under his patronage, Kannada language poet Ponn wrote 'Shantipuran ' was composed. Impressed by his talent, Krishna III called him 'Ubhabhashachakravarti ' (proficient in both languages). During his reign, scholars Pushpadanta 'Jwalamalinikalp ' was composed.
Krishna III had all his sons died in his lifetime. A son's son is named Indra, but being too young, he failed to secure a vast empire. Jagattunga, a brother of Krishna, died before 967 AD. Two other brothers Khottig and Nirupam were alive. Kollagullu Records According to it, the reign of Krishna III ended in 967 AD (Saka Samvat 889), because this inscription was engraved soon after his death. Khottig after the death of Krishna III in 967 AD He was succeeded.
Fall of Rashtrakuta Dynasty:Khotig, Karka II and Indra IV
Rashtrakuta ruler Indra III
Rashtrakuta ruler Sharva 'Amoghvarsha' the first