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==Medieval History== ==Medieval History==


After the fall of the ], a lot of independent feudal small kingdoms rose up. The kingdoms of ], ], ] and ] dominated them politically, financially and also in terms of miitary strength. The other kingdoms and their kings were subordinates to these main kingdoms and were usually under their control.<ref>Menon, Indudharan. Hereditary Physicians of Kerala: Traditional Medicine and Ayurveda in Modern India. United Kingdom, Taylor & Francis, 2018.</ref> Later, the kingdoms of Kochi and Kolathunadu came under the Kingdom of Calicut due to political pressures over time. <ref name=sreedharamenon>Sreedhara Menon, A.. A Survey of Kerala History. India, Sahitya Pravarthaka Co-operative Society ; National Book Stall, 1967.</ref> By the time the British came to India, a lot of these kingdoms had been subsumed into one or the other main kingdoms. After the fall of the ], a lot of independent feudal small kingdoms rose up. The kingdoms of ], ], ] and ] dominated them politically, financially and also in terms of miitary strength. The other kingdoms and their kings were subordinates to these main kingdoms and were usually under their control.<ref>Menon, Indudharan. Hereditary Physicians of Kerala: Traditional Medicine and Ayurveda in Modern India. United Kingdom, Taylor & Francis, 2018.</ref> The kingdoms of Kochi and Kolathunadu became dependent on the Kingdom of Calicut due to political pressures over time <ref name=sreedharamenon>Sreedhara Menon, A.. A Survey of Kerala History. India, Sahitya Pravarthaka Co-operative Society ; National Book Stall, 1967.</ref>


The emergence of a lot of feudal kingdoms started happening when the ] and ] lords started breaking up the kingdoms into more smaller kingdoms under their own rule. The ] is one of the Brahmin royal families of Kerala. Namboodiris who had some roles in governing but stayed out of the ruing family started governing the provinces directly. Some lords who were not in the control of the kings even used to murder the common people. During this era of Nambuthiri and Nair leadership, the culture and political condition of Kerala went on a rapid change. This period witnessed an unstable, chaotic political condition and also saw the rise of rigid social systems. <ref name=sreedharamenon/> Although this period is viewed by many as a ‘dark age’ in Kerala history, literature, art forms, temples, mathematics, astronomy, external trade etc flourished during this period. These small kingdoms due to their rivalry and political plays, had stagnated by 1498, when the Portuguese landed in Kerala. The kingdom of Calicut had been the main kingdom in Kerala during that time, however it's predominance decreased in the next century when the Portuguese and the Dutch started fighting the Arabs for control of the Indian Ocean.<ref name=manuspillai>Pillai, Manu S. The Ivory Throne : Chronicles of the House of Travancore. HarperCollins Publishers, India, 2015.</ref> The emergence of a lot of feudal kingdoms started happening when the ] and ] lords started breaking up the kingdoms into more smaller kingdoms under their own rule. The ] is one of the Brahmin royal families of Kerala. Namboodiris who had some roles in governing but stayed out of the ruing family started governing the provinces directly. Some lords who were not in the control of the kings even used to murder the common people. During this era of Nambudiri and Nair leadership, the culture and political condition of Kerala went on a rapid change. This period witnessed an unstable, chaotic political condition and also saw the rise of rigid social systems. <ref name=sreedharamenon/> However, literature, art forms, temples, mathematics, astronomy, external trade etc flourished during this period.


==Modern History== ==Modern History==


These small kingdoms due to their rivalry and political plays, had stagnated by 1498, when the Portuguese landed in Kerala. The kingdoms of Calicut and Cochin had been the two major kingdoms in Kerala during this time, however their predominance decreased in the next century with the Portuguese control and later, the Dutch control.<ref name=manuspillai>Pillai, Manu S. The Ivory Throne : Chronicles of the House of Travancore. HarperCollins Publishers, India, 2015.</ref> The Dutch succeeded in expelling the Portuguese and brought about the fall of the kingdom of Cochin in 1663.<ref>Koshy, M. O.. The Dutch Power in Kerala, 1729-1758. India, Mittal Publications, 1989.</ref>
⚫ After the English East India company came into the picture, the Portuguese, Dutch and the French slowly started losing the control they had and by 1750s, almost all the control of the Indian Ocean trade pertaining to Kerala had come to their hands.<ref name=manuspillai/> By this time, the Kingdoms of Calicut and Kolathunadu had declined and during Tipu Sultan's invasion of Malabar, their royal families escaped, with some families coming to the Kingdom of Travancore. By 1790s, the British had taken control of the entirety of Northern Malabar and only the Kingdoms of Cochin and Travancore remained, with the small feudal kingdoms in the rest of Kerala merged or annexed into either of these two. The kingdoms of Cochin and Travancore retained semi-independence status by accepting British suzerainty.<ref name=manuspillai/>

⚫ After the English East India company came into the picture in 1600s, the Portuguese and the Dutch slowly started losing the control they had and by 1750s, almost all the control of the Indian Ocean trade from Kerala had come to British hands.<ref name=manuspillai/> By this time, the Kingdoms of Calicut and Kolathunadu had declined and during Tipu Sultan's invasion of Malabar, their royal families escaped, with some families coming to the Kingdom of Travancore. By 1790s, the British had taken control of the entirety of Northern Malabar and only the Kingdoms of Cochin and Travancore remained, with the small feudal kingdoms in the rest of Kerala merged or annexed into either of these two. The kingdoms of Cochin and Travancore retained semi-independence status by accepting British suzerainty which they retained until the ].<ref name=manuspillai/>

==Religion==

Most of the kingdoms had been Hindu kingdoms, with the ] even being headed by Brahmin kings. However, the ] was Muslim and the kingdom of Villarvattom had been Christian. The Arakkal kingdom had been under the domain of the Kingdom of Calicut and Villarvattom under the Kingdom of Cochin.

There are a lot of instances of religious tolerance shown by the the kings. During the Chera empire, the ] record the gift of a plot of land to the Terisapalli (Teresa church) at Kurakkeni Kollam along with several rights and privileges.<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/27192872 |jstor=27192872 |title=The Syrian Christian Copper Plate of Tarisāppaḷḷy, and the Jewish and Muslim Merchants of Early Malabar |last1=Tintu |first1=K. J. |journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress |date=16 April 2024 |volume=80 |pages=184–191}}</ref> Several records of Bhutala Vira Udaya Marthanda Varma (1516-1535 A.D.) discovered from Kanyakumari and Tirunelveli districts show his solicitude for other religionists like the Jains and the Christians. <ref name=sreedharamenon/> The ] describe the concession made by the King Viraraghava of Perumbadappu Swaroopam to Syrian Christian merchant Iravikorttan, the chief of Manikkiramam (Manigiramam) in Makotaiyar Pattinam (modern Kodungallur)<ref>''Epigraphica Indica'', Volume IV. pp. 290-7.</ref>


==List of Kingdoms== ==List of Kingdoms==
Line 55: Line 63:
* Nedunganad * Nedunganad
* Kodasseri Swaroopam * Kodasseri Swaroopam
* Villarvattom
* Vilwarvattom


==References== ==References==

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Medieval History

After the fall of the second Chera dynasty, a lot of independent feudal small kingdoms rose up. The kingdoms of Venad, Kolathunadu, Calicut and Cochin dominated them politically, financially and also in terms of miitary strength. The other kingdoms and their kings were subordinates to these main kingdoms and were usually under their control. The kingdoms of Kochi and Kolathunadu became dependent on the Kingdom of Calicut due to political pressures over time

The emergence of a lot of feudal kingdoms started happening when the Nair and Nambudiri lords started breaking up the kingdoms into more smaller kingdoms under their own rule. The Edapally royal family is one of the Brahmin royal families of Kerala. Namboodiris who had some roles in governing but stayed out of the ruing family started governing the provinces directly. Some lords who were not in the control of the kings even used to murder the common people. During this era of Nambudiri and Nair leadership, the culture and political condition of Kerala went on a rapid change. This period witnessed an unstable, chaotic political condition and also saw the rise of rigid social systems. However, literature, art forms, temples, mathematics, astronomy, external trade etc flourished during this period.

Modern History

These small kingdoms due to their rivalry and political plays, had stagnated by 1498, when the Portuguese landed in Kerala. The kingdoms of Calicut and Cochin had been the two major kingdoms in Kerala during this time, however their predominance decreased in the next century with the Portuguese control and later, the Dutch control. The Dutch succeeded in expelling the Portuguese and brought about the fall of the kingdom of Cochin in 1663.

After the English East India company came into the picture in 1600s, the Portuguese and the Dutch slowly started losing the control they had and by 1750s, almost all the control of the Indian Ocean trade from Kerala had come to British hands. By this time, the Kingdoms of Calicut and Kolathunadu had declined and during Tipu Sultan's invasion of Malabar, their royal families escaped, with some families coming to the Kingdom of Travancore. By 1790s, the British had taken control of the entirety of Northern Malabar and only the Kingdoms of Cochin and Travancore remained, with the small feudal kingdoms in the rest of Kerala merged or annexed into either of these two. The kingdoms of Cochin and Travancore retained semi-independence status by accepting British suzerainty which they retained until the independence of India.

Religion

Most of the kingdoms had been Hindu kingdoms, with the [[Kingdom of Edapally even being headed by Brahmin kings. However, the Arakkal kingdom was Muslim and the kingdom of Villarvattom had been Christian. The Arakkal kingdom had been under the domain of the Kingdom of Calicut and Villarvattom under the Kingdom of Cochin.

There are a lot of instances of religious tolerance shown by the the kings. During the Chera empire, the Quilon Syrian copper plates record the gift of a plot of land to the Terisapalli (Teresa church) at Kurakkeni Kollam along with several rights and privileges. Several records of Bhutala Vira Udaya Marthanda Varma (1516-1535 A.D.) discovered from Kanyakumari and Tirunelveli districts show his solicitude for other religionists like the Jains and the Christians. The Viraraghava copper plates describe the concession made by the King Viraraghava of Perumbadappu Swaroopam to Syrian Christian merchant Iravikorttan, the chief of Manikkiramam (Manigiramam) in Makotaiyar Pattinam (modern Kodungallur)

List of Kingdoms

The list of these kingdoms are given below.

References

  1. Menon, Indudharan. Hereditary Physicians of Kerala: Traditional Medicine and Ayurveda in Modern India. United Kingdom, Taylor & Francis, 2018.
  2. ^ Sreedhara Menon, A.. A Survey of Kerala History. India, Sahitya Pravarthaka Co-operative Society ; National Book Stall, 1967.
  3. ^ Pillai, Manu S. The Ivory Throne : Chronicles of the House of Travancore. HarperCollins Publishers, India, 2015.
  4. Koshy, M. O.. The Dutch Power in Kerala, 1729-1758. India, Mittal Publications, 1989.
  5. Tintu, K. J. (16 April 2024). "The Syrian Christian Copper Plate of Tarisāppaḷḷy, and the Jewish and Muslim Merchants of Early Malabar". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 80: 184–191. JSTOR 27192872.
  6. Epigraphica Indica, Volume IV. pp. 290-7.
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