HAMPI

History Of The City

Hampi, a village and a temple town in Karnataka is one of the most historically rich places. Listed under the UNESCO World Heritage Site as the Group of monuments at Hampi, this city was also at one point one of the richest cities in the world when it was at its peak. Located inside the Vijayanagara city, Hampi has been one of the most significant tourist places of attraction. People from all over the country visit Hampi for its beautiful monuments and history. As per statistics of the year 2014, Hampi is said to be the most searched places of Karnataka online. People who visit Hampi are mostly people who love history and architecture. It is no surprise that Hampi is such a famous place for tourists that visit from all over the globe. Visit Hampi at any time of the year and you will see the place swarming with people. We will take you through the fascinating history of the city of Hampi and also the Vijayanagara Empire. First, let us tell you a little about Hampi.

History

Hampi is also known as Pampa Kshetra, Kishkindha kshetra and even Bhaskara kshetra. These names were derived from the famous Tungabhadra River Pampa. According to mythology, it is said that Pampa was Brahma’s daughter who was later married off to Shiva. It was here where the city was built. Hampi word in is another version of Hampe, a Kannada name. Today, Hampi is also known as Vijayanagara who used to rule the city. As you walk through the remains of Hampi’s magnificent forts, palaces and gateways, you will get a glimpse of the excellent architecture of those times. The monuments speak volumes about the history of Hampi that used to be a prosperous and rich kingdom in the 14th century which was eventually ruined owing to the attacks made by the Moghuls.

The history of Hampi dates back to the 2nd and also the 3rd century that is the Neolithic and Chalcolithic era. This fact has been established from the ceramic potteries that have been found here from those centuries. The popular folklore is that two local chiefs called Hakka and Bukka one on a hunting expedition report of an unusual sighting to their guru Vidyaranya. And the fascinating sight was that of a hare who was being chased by their hound. The hare suddenly becomes all brave and powerful and turns around to chase the hound. This made the Guru believe that the place where they found this unusually beautiful sight is very special and hence decided to shift their local capital to this very place. This was the start of an empire that went on to become one of the richest. In a span of over 200 years, a total of four dynasties ruled Vijayanagar that is also called the City of Victory.

At one point Hampi was also one of the biggest trading centers of the world. Vijayanagar brought a lot of wealth, fame and splendor to Hampi. In those times, most markets in Hampi were always crowded and swarming with buyers and also merchants. These merchants were not just Indians, but also people from various parts of the world. In no time, the markets grew tremendously and goods were exchanged for spices and cotton. In ancient times, the currencies were all silver and gold.

Hampi was also rich in art and architecture. The rulers who ruled the region were great lovers of religion and art and hence most Kings put in a lot of effort to set up magnificent empires using one of the best architectural designs, which is for you to see now. Hampi had reached its prime during the rule of Krishna Deva Raya who ruled this city between 1509 and 1529. This was the same period when international trading had flourished and reached great heights under the progressive trading practices and also several international trade agreements that were carried out. During this era, Vijayanagara Empire had almost taken up most of South India and also beyond. However, Hampi succumbed to the attacks carried out by five Deccan Sultans called Bidar, Bijapur, Ahmednagar, Golconda and also Berar. They attacked Hampi in 1565 and looted them for a long period, approximately six months. An attack of six months long definitely had to bring such massive destruction that it would have taken them forever to rise again. The temples of Hampi were damaged and most of the markets were robbed. This was one of the biggest attacks that Hampi witnessed and their golden era with this came to an end. After the attacks, the empire was ruled by different Kings; however, nobody really could bring back the lost glory.

The city did function, but it had lost its strategic importance and thus got lost in time. Even today, the loss and destruction of the 1565 attacks can be seen in many parts of the city. During the colonial period, Hampi had stirred up some curiosity in the mind of archaeologists from abroad. For those who love watching ancient historical stories, you must definitely watch Robert Sewell’s ‘A forgotten Empire Vijayanagar’ that was made as an attempt to narrate the incidents that occurred during their ruling. Also, there is a travel guide that was also the first-ever, named Hampi’s Ruins Described and Illustrated by Longhurst. In today’s time, the monuments, which are almost hundreds of them, are very popular among tourists as well as pilgrims.

The Vijayanagara Empire is said to have been established and founded by Bukka and Harihara who were also known as Sangama brothers. The brothers initially lived in Warangal where they were working as treasurer and minister. In 1323, the brothers fled Warangal when the city was attacked by the Muslims and went to Kampili. They fled from there too again owing to the attacks by Muslims and crossed River Tungabhadra to form a new city which is now known as Vijayanagara. This city was ruled by four different dynasties from 1336 to 1565. Sangam dynasty, Saluva Dynasty, Tuluva Dynasty and Aravidu Dynasty were the four dynasties in ruling during that period. The kings and princes of each of these dynasties made sure that while in their ruling, they do whatever it takes to brings richness and wealth to the city and ended up building over 500 monuments. And because Hampi was the capital, it flourished in trade. We have listed down the four different dynasties with small information about each one of them.

Sangama Dynasty was founded by Bukka Raya 1 and Harihara 1. The ruling passed on from them to Harihara II and Devaraya II and several others.

The Saluva dynasty was ruled only by two rulers in the name of Saluva Narasimha Deva and Immadi Narasimha. The Tuluva Dynasty was the third in a row to rule the Vijayanagara Empire. Immadi Marasimha who initially ruled the dynasty was killed by Vira Narasimha who then took over the throne and made the Tuluva dynasty in 1505.

The Aravidu Dynasty is the last dynasty of the Vijayanagara Empire and Tirumala was the founder. This dynasty was defeated and taken over Bijapuri Muslims.

Before the Vijayanagar Kings rose in this area, the city was ruled by Kampili and his chiefs. Kampili is now a quaint town that is situated 19 km on the east of Hampi. It was Colin Mackenzie who discovered the ruins of Hampi in 1800. The Archeological Survey of India still does many excavations to discover the many beautiful temples and also other artifacts.

Mythological significance of Hampi:

Hampi also has a strong mythological story associated with it. And if these beliefs are anything to go by, it is said that the Kishkinda Vanara Kingdom is where Ram and Lakshman had stayed when they had set out in search of Sita who was abducted by Ravana. You will also find several spectacular mountains that are said to be spots where Ram, Hanuman, Sugreeva and Vali stayed. And because we are talking of Ramayana and its association with Hampi, the first thing that comes to mind is the Hazara Ram temple at Hampi that is one of the thousands of temples here. The word Hazara was derived from a Telugu word Hazarumu that also means an Entrance hall. If you have ever visited Hampi or if you are planning to make a trip son, you will find many intricately done carvings that depict a lot about Ramayana and the many stories surrounding the same. The Hazara Temple used to be a private temple to the royal family of those times.