The Tuluva Dynasty was the third dynasty to rule the Vijayanagar Empire. They were chiefs from coastal Karnataka. The Tuluva Dynasty was one of the decision-making lines of the Vijayanagara Empire of Southern India. During this time, the Vijayanagar empire reached its pinnacle of splendour, with Krishna Deva Raya as its most celebrated king. From 1491 to 1570, they had five emperors. They ruled over much of South India, with Vijaynagar as their capital. In this article, we will discuss the Tuluva Dynasty which will be helpful for UPSC exam preparation.

Tuluva Dynasty - History

• The kingdom's original home was the western Tulu-speaking region. A Sanskrit epigraph on the eastern wall of Tirumala temple describes Krishnadevaraya's ancestors.
• Timmabhupati and his wife Devaki are the first Tuluva ancestors to be mentioned. Timmabhupati is followed by his son Ishvara and consort Bukkamma, and then by a certain Narasa Bhupala, who is none other than Emperor Krishnadevaraya's father, Tuluva Narasa Nayaka.
• Tuluva Narasa Nayaka, a powerful warlord, is credited with the conquest of the Gajapatis as well as certain Muslim rulers.
• Krishnadevaraya, a Tulu speaker, was noted for being linguistically neutral while ruling a multilingual empire. He is known to have patronised poets and issued inscriptions in languages as diverse as Sanskrit, Tamil, Kannada, and Telugu.
• However, he elevated Telugu as a royal language, possibly due to the dominance of Telugu-speaking chiefs, and wrote the epic poem Amuktamalyada in it.
• Tuluva rulers were devout Vaishnavas who supported Vaishnavism. Krishnadevaraya's Kulaguru was Dvaita saint Vyasatirtha.
• The fall of the Tuluva dynasty marked the beginning of the Vijayanagar empire's demise.

Important Rulers of Tuluva Dynasty

Vira Narasimha Raya (1505 - 1509 CE)

• The Saluva dynasty was also short-lived, and Vira Narasimha established a new dynasty known as the Tulva dynasty. From 1505 to 1509, he ruled. He was a religious king who bestowed gifts at sacred sites.
• Legend has it that, while dying in 1509, Vira Narasimha Raya asked his minister Saluva Thimma (Thimmarasa) to blind his younger brother Krishna Deva Raya so that his own eight-year-old son could become king of Vijayanagar.
• Thimmarasa, on the other hand, brought the king a pair of goat eyes and informed him that he had killed Krishna Deva Raya.
• However, there is no evidence to support anything other than a friendly relationship between the two half-brothers and a smooth coronation of Krishna Deva Raya.

*For detailed notes of this topic, check this link Vira Narasimha Raya (1505 – 1509 CE)

Krishna Deva Raya (1509 - 1529 CE)

• Krishnadevaraya (1509-1529 CE) was the most powerful emperor of the Vijayanagara Empire.
• At the apex of the empire, he presided over it. He is regarded as a hero by people of Kannada and Telugu descent in South India and is regarded as one of India's most illustrious kings.
• Emperor Krishnadevaraya was also given the titles Andhra Bhoja and Kannada Rajya Rama Ramana. He was assisted in administration by the capable Prime Minister Timmarusu.
• Timmarusu was responsible for Krishnadevaraya's coronation. Krishnadevaraya looked up to Timmarusu as a father figure.
• He was the son of Nagala Devi and Tuluva Narasa Nayaka, an army commander under Saluva Narasimha Deva Raya, who soon took over the empire's sovereignty to keep it from disintegrating.

*For detailed notes of this topic, check this link Krishna Deva Raya (1509 – 1529 CE)

Achyuta Deva Raya (1529 - 1542 CE)

• Achyuta Deva Raya was the ruler of the South India Vijayanagara Empire. He was Krishna Deva Raya's younger brother, whom he succeeded in 1529.
• Fernao Nuniz was a Portuguese traveller, chronicler, and horse trader who spent three years in Vijayanagara during the reign of Achyutaraya.
• Achyuta Deva Raya became king during a difficult period. The days of peace and prosperity under Krishnadevaraya were drawing to a close.
• Feudators and enemies were waiting for a chance to bring the empire down. In addition, Achyuta Deva Raya had to compete for the throne with the powerful Aliya Rama Raya.
• While Nuniz's works portray Achyuta Deva Raya as a king given to vices and cruelty, there is sufficient evidence to show that the king was notable in his own right and fought hard to keep the kingdom's prosperity alive.
• Krishna Deva Raya had personally chosen him as his successor.

*For detailed notes of this topic, check this link Achyuta Deva Raya (1529 – 1542 CE)

Sada Siva Raya (1542 - 1570 CE)

• Sadasiva Raya (1542–1570) ruled the Vijayanagara Empire in 16th century India, a powerful Southern Indian empire based in the Deccan region.
• He ascended to power following the death of his uncle Achyuta Deva Raya in 1543.
• Aliya Rama Raya, Krishnadevaraya's son-in-law, helped make his coronation possible.
• Sadasiva escaped the clutches of the ambitious regent Salakam Timmu Raju and was later elevated to the throne by the minister Rama Raya, who initially acted as regent but gradually became the de facto ruler of the kingdom.

*For detailed notes of this topic, check this link Sada Siva Raya (1542 – 1570 CE)

Conclusion

The Tuluva dynasty ruled from 1491 to 1570. Sadasiva Raya was the Tuluva dynasty's last king. Krishna Deva Raya was the most popular king of the Tuluva dynasty. The Tuluva Dynasty was the third of four dynasties to rule the Vijayanagara Empire. It was preceded by the Saluva Dynasty and succeeded by the Aravidu Dynasty.