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the Cholas
The most prominent dynasty of the South
Indian plains was the Chola dynasty. They

were contemporaries of the Chalukyas,
the Pallavas, the Pandyas and the
Rashtrakutas.

The Cholas were earlier subordinate
to the Pallava kings of Kanchipuram.
Vijayalaya Chola, was related to the
ancient ruling family of Cholas. He
belonged to Uraiyur and had captured
Kaveri delta region from Muttaraiyar in
the middle of the ninth century. The new

dynasty was founded by him who ruled
from 846 A.D. to 871 A.D. Vijayalaya had
built the town of Thanjavur and made it The Chola Kingdom and its neighbours
the capital of the kingdom. He also built a temple for goddess Nishumbhasudini there.

The most prominent rulers of the Chola dynasty were Rajaraja I. (985 A.D-1016 A.D) and Rajendra
Chola (1016 A.D-1044 A.D). They had conquered the neighbouring kingdoms and annexed the
Pandayan and Pallava Terriotires to the south and north of the Chola Empire. Rajaraja I is
considered the most powerful ruler. He had also reorganised the adminsitration of the empire.
Rajendra I continued his policies and raided Ganga valley, Sri Lanka and the countries of South-
east Asia. He was able to do all this by developing a powerful navy for the expeditions.

administRative divisions

The Chola Empire was divided into Mandalams or provinces and they in turn were divided
into Valanadu or Nadus or districts. The Nadus were subdivided into Kurrams or Group of
villages. The smallest unit was Gramam or village.
TyPes Of land

There are several categories of land in Chola period. Some are :
Brahmadeya : Land gifted to Brahamana.
Shalabhoga : Land for the school’s maintenance.
Vellanvagai : This land was peasant proporty of Non-Brahmana.
Pallichchhandam : Land donated to Jaina institutions.

Devadana : Land gifted to temples.
arT and archiTecTure

The Cholas specially made great contribution to art and architecture. They built temples

according to some basic plan and draw some distinction from the North Indian style. They
placed the temples in an enclosed courtyard. The temples also had huge gateways called

54 Social Studies-7