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File:Chola coin with legend "Uttama".png|An early silver coin of [[Uththama Chola|Uttama Chola]] found in Sri Lanka showing the Tiger emblem of the Cholas<ref name="SastriHOSI"/>{{rp|18}}<ref>Chopra ''et al.'', p 31</ref>
File:Chola coin with legend "Uttama".png|An early silver coin of [[Uththama Chola|Uttama Chola]] found in Sri Lanka showing the Tiger emblem of the Cholas<ref name="SastriHOSI"/>{{rp|18}}<ref>Chopra ''et al.'', p 31</ref>
File:Hinduism_Expansion_in_Asia.svg|Map showing the expansion of Hinduism in Southeast Asia, with significant influence due to the Chola Navy in [[Thailand]], [[Malaysia]], [[Indonesia]], [[Vietnam]], [[Laos]], and [[Cambodia]].
File:Rajendra territories cl.png|The Chola empire and region of influence at the height of its power (c. 1050) during the reign of [[Rajendra Chola I]].
File:Rajendra territories cl.png|The Chola empire and region of influence at the height of its power (c. 1050) during the reign of [[Rajendra Chola I]].
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Revision as of 13:11, 29 June 2022

Chola Navy
File:Battle of kedah.jpg
Depiction of the siege of Kedah, the battle between Beemasenan's Chola naval infantry and the defenders of Kedah fort.
CountryChola Empire
AllegianceChola Dynasty
BranchNaval
TypeNaval Force
Part ofChola military
Engagements
  • War of Pandya Succession (1172)
  • War of Pandya succession (1167)
  • Kalinga Campaighn (1081–83)
  • The second expedition of Sri Vijaya (1025–1028)
  • The first expedition of Sri Vijaya (1022–1025)
  • Annexation of Kamboja (?–996)
  • The invasion of Ceylon/Sri Lanka (977–?)
  • Skirmishes with Pallava Navy (903–908)
Commanders
Ceremonial chiefChola Emperor (Chakravarthy) – notably, Rajaraja I and Rajendra I
Notable
commanders
  • Vallavaraiyan Vandiyadevan (10th century)
  • Amarabujangan (12th century)
  • Beemaseenan – The famous admiral of the Siege of the Kedah (late 11th century)
  • Karunaakaran – Admiral/general (late 12th century)
  • Pallavaraiyan – Title used by several commanders

The Cholas did not have a standing navy in modern sense. The maritime force of Cholas was formed from using ships used for trade, as they did not have a dedicated ship for naval combat. The ships were used for transporting the land army overseas.[1]: 251 [2]: 77 

The Cholas were at the height of their power from the latter half of the 9th century CE through the early 13th century CE.[3]: 5  Between 1010 and 1153 CE, Rajaraja's successors continued the expansion, making the Chola Empire a military, economic and cultural power in South and South-East Asia.[4]: 215  During this period, the Chola Navy helped expand the empire with Naval expeditions to the Pala of Pataliputra, along the Ganges and the Chola invasion of Srivijaya (present-day Indonesia) in 1025 CE,[5] as well as repeated embassies to China.[3]: 158  The Chola Navy declined in the 13th century when the Cholas fought land battles with the Chalukyas of Andhra-Kannada area in South India, and with the rise of the Pandyan dynasty.[3]: 175 

History

Main article: Chola Dynasty

Under Rajaraja Chola I and his son Rajendra Chola I, the dynasty became a military, economic and cultural power in Asia.[6]: 115 [4]: 215  Rajaraja Chola conquered peninsular South India, annexed parts of Sri Lanka and occupied the islands of the northernmost atolls of the Maldives.[4]: 215  Rajendra Chola sent a victorious expedition to North India that touched the river Ganges and defeated the Pala ruler of Pataliputra, Mahipala. He also successfully raided kingdoms of Maritime Southeast Asia.[a][7]: 211–220 [5]

Early Chola period (c. 4th century BCE–200 CE)

The Cholas were mentioned in Ashokan Edicts of 3rd Century BCE (located in modern Delhi) as one of the neighboring kingdoms in the South.[8] The earliest mention of specific Chola rulers is found in Sangam literature (c. 100 BCE–250 CE).[9] The Mahavamsa mentions a Chola prince known as Ellalan invading and conquering Sri Lanka around 235 BCE with the help of a Mysore army.[10][11]

Imperial Chola period (848–1070 CE)

See also: Medieval Cholas

Rajaraja I and Rajendra I

This period also marked the departure in thinking from the age-old traditions. Rajaraja commissioned various foreigners (prominently, the Arabs and Chinese) in the naval building program.[12]

An inscription from Sirkazhi, dated to 1187 AD, mentions a naval officer called Araiyan Kadalkolamitantaan alias Amarakon Pallavaraiyan. He is mentioned as the Tandalnayagam of the Karaippadaiyilaar. The term Karaippadaiyilaar means forces or army of the seashore and the title Tandalnayagam is similar to Dandanayaka and means commander of the forces. The title Kadalkolamitantaan means "one who floated while the sea was engulfed".[13]

Trade, commerce, and diplomacy

Chola Territorial Extent
c.1030 CE (under Rajendra I)
c.1055 CE (under Rajendra II)
c.1065 CE (under Virarajendra Chola)

The Cholas excelled in foreign trade and maritime activity, extending their influence overseas to China and Southeast Asia.[6]: 116–117  A fragmentary Tamil inscription found in Sumatra cites the name of a merchant guild Nanadesa Tisaiyayirattu Ainnutruvar (literally, "the five hundred from the four countries and the thousand directions"), a famous merchant guild in the Chola country.[6]: 118  The inscription is dated 1088, indicating that there was an active overseas trade during the Chola period.[6]: 117 

Towards the end of the 9th century, southern India had developed extensive maritime and commercial activity, especially with the Chinese and Arabs.[6]: 12, 118  The Cholas, being in possession of parts of both the west and the east coasts of peninsular India, were at the forefront of these ventures.[6]: 124 [14][15] The Tang dynasty of China, the Srivijaya empire in the Malayan archipelago under the Sailendras, and the Abbasid caliphate at Baghdad were the main trading partners.[7]: 604 

The trade with the Chinese was a very lucrative enterprise, and Trade guilds needed the king's approval and the license from the customs force/department to embark on overseas voyages for trade.[16]

Cooperation with the Chinese

Chinese Song Dynasty reports record that an embassy from Chulian (Chola) reached the Chinese court in the year 1077,[6]: 117 [4]: 223 [17] and that the king of the Chulien at the time was called Ti-hua-kia-lo.[7]: 316  It is possible that these syllables denote "Deva Kulo[tunga]" (Kulothunga Chola I). This embassy was a trading venture and was highly profitable to the visitors, who returned with "81,800 strings of copper coins in exchange for articles of tributes, including glass articles, and spices".[b][3]: 173 

Vessels and weapons

Ships of classical India, left to right:
  • Kurumbar or Pallava coin of the Coromandel coast; showing a two-masted ship like the modern coasting vessel or d'honi
  • Andhra coin from Eastern Indian coast, showing a two-masted ship, ca. 1st–3rd century AD.
  • Sketch of a ship based on a mural in Ajanta Caves, ca. 6th century.

Information regarding Chola vessels is lacking. Because of this, the technique used for naval battles and how the battles were fought is unknown. R.C. Majumdar argues that the naval battles fought by Chola are basically land battles fought on ships, and the ships used were transports used for transporting the army.[1]: 251 

Campaigns

In the tenure spanning the 700 years of its documented existence, the Chola Navy was involved in confrontations for probably 500 years.[18] The notable campaigns are below:[19][20][21]

  • War of Pandya Succession (1172)
  • War of Pandya succession (1167)
  • The destruction of the Bali fleet (1148)
  • Sea battle of the Kalinga Campaign (1081–1083)
  • The second expedition of Sri Vijaya (1031–1034)
  • The first expedition of Sri Vijaya (1027–1029)
  • The Annexation of Kedah (1024–1025)
  • Annexation of the Kamboja (?–996)
  • The invasion of Ceylon/Sri Lanka (977–?)
  • Skirmishes with Pallava Navy (903–8)

Timeline of events

Literary references and recordings

  • 356–321 BCE: The Periplus of Niarchus, an officer of Alexander the Great, describes the Persian coast. Niarchus commissioned thirty oared galleys to transport the troops of Alexander the Great from northwest India back to Mesopotamia, via the Persian Gulf and the Tigris, an established commercial route.[22]
  • 334–323 BCE: Eratosthenes, the librarian at Alexandria, drew a map which includes Sri Lanka and the mouth of the Ganges. Which states the exchange of traffic and commodity in the regions.[23]

Gallery

  • An early silver coin of Uttama Chola found in Sri Lanka showing the Tiger emblem of the Cholas[3]: 18 [24]
    An early silver coin of Uttama Chola found in Sri Lanka showing the Tiger emblem of the Cholas[3]: 18 [24]
  • The Chola empire and region of influence at the height of its power (c. 1050) during the reign of Rajendra Chola I.
    The Chola empire and region of influence at the height of its power (c. 1050) during the reign of Rajendra Chola I.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Majumdar, Romesh Chandra (2001). The History and Culture of the Indian People, Volume V: The Struggle for Empire. Mumbai: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan.
  2. ^ Sakhuja, Vijay; Sakhuja, Sangeeta (2009). "Rajendra Chola I's Naval Expedition to Southeast Asia: A Nautical Perspective". Nagapattinam to suvarnadwipa: Reflections on the chola naval expeditions to Southeast Asia. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. pp. 76–90.
  3. ^ a b c d e Sastri, K. A. Nilakanta (1955). A History of South India: From Prehistoric Times to the Fall of Vijayanagar. Oxford University Press.
  4. ^ a b c d Keay, John (12 April 2011), India - A History, Open Road + Grove/Atlantic, ISBN 978-0-8021-9550-0.
  5. ^ a b Meyer, p. 73
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Kulke, Hermann; Rothermund, Dietmar (2004). A History of India. Berlin: Psychology Press. ISBN 978-1138961159.
  7. ^ a b c Sastri, K. A. Nilakanta (1935). The CōĻas. University of Madras.
  8. ^ "KING ASHOKA: His Edicts and His Times". www.cs.colostate.edu. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
  9. ^ "History of India by Literary Sources", Prof. E.S. Narayana Pillai, Cochin University
  10. ^ Tripathi (1967), p. 457
  11. ^ R, Narasimhacharya (1942). History of the Kannada Language. Asian Educational Services. p. 48. ISBN 9788120605596.
  12. ^ "India and China- Oceanic, Educational and technological cooperation", Journal of Indian Ocean Studies 10:2 (August 2002), Pages 165–171
  13. ^ Hermann Kulke, K Kesavapany, Vijay Sakhuja (2009). Nagapattinam to Suvarnadwipa: Reflections on the Chola Naval Expeditions to Southeast Asia. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 2009. pp. 92–93. ISBN 9789812309372.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  14. ^ Tripathi, p 465
  15. ^ Tripathi, p 477
  16. ^ "Antiquities of India: An Account of the History and Culture of Ancient Hindustan", Lionel D. Barnett, Page 216.
  17. ^ See Thapar, p xv
  18. ^ The Politics of Plunder: The Cholas in Eleventh-Century Ceylon,George W. Spencer,The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 35, No. 3 (May, 1976), pp. 405–419, Summary at JSTOR 2053272
  19. ^ "An atlas and survey of south Asian History" , By M E Sharpe, 1995, Published by Lynne Rienner, Pages 22–28
  20. ^ The geo-Politics of Asia, By Michael D. Swaine & Ashley J. Tellis, Published by Konark publishers for the center for policy research, New Delhi, Page 217-219
  21. ^ D The Chola Maritime Activities in Early Historical Setting, By: Dr. K.V. Hariharan
  22. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 4 June 2003. Retrieved 25 December 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  23. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 14 August 2007. Retrieved 25 December 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  24. ^ Chopra et al., p 31

Footnotes

  1. ^ The kadaram campaign is first mentioned in Rajendra's inscriptions dating from his 14th year. The name of the Srivijaya king was Sangrama Vijayatungavarman. – K.A. Nilakanta Sastri, The CōĻas, pp 211–220
  2. ^ "The Tamil merchants took glassware, camphor, sandalwood, rhinoceros horns, ivory, rose water, asafoetida, spices such as pepper, cloves, etc." – K.A. Nilakanta Sastri, A History of South India, p 173

External links

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