A Forgotten Empire (Vijayanagar): A Contribution to the History of IndiaSewell, Robert
History
A Forgotten Empire (Vijayanagar): A Contribution to the History of India
Sewell, Robert
Vijayanagar (Empire) -- History
Another great work of his was the construction of an enormous tank or
dammed-up lake at the capital, which he carried out with the aid of
Joao de la Ponte, a Portuguese engineer, whose services were lent to
him by the governor-general of Goa. Both Paes and Nuniz mention this
lake, and as the former actually saw it under construction it may
have been begun in A.D. 1520. I think that this is the large lake,
now dry, to be seen at the north-western mouth of the valley entering
into the Sandur hills south-west of Hospett, the huge bank of which
has been utilised for the conveyance of the highroad from Hospett
to the southern taluqs. If so, the fact of its original failure
is interesting to us, because for many years past this vast work
has been entirely useless. The description given by Nuniz accords
with the position of this tank, which was doubtless intended partly
for irrigation purposes, and partly for the supply of water to the
"new city," Nagalapura, the king's favourite residence, now known
as Hospett. The chronicler mentions the existence of lofty ridges on
each side, strong gates and towers guarding the entrance, and states
that this was the principal approach to the capital from the south;
all which data coincide with the position of the tank and road in
question. It is through these gates that the Portuguese travellers
entered Vijayanagar. This view is supported by the account given by
Paes. Writing of the approach to Vijayanagar from the western coast,
and describing the "first range," I.E. the first that is seen on
passing upwards from the plains, he states that in these hills was the
principal entrance from that side. He alludes to the gates and wall,
and the city, Nagalapur, constructed by King Krishna. Then he writes,
"the king made a tank THERE," I.E. close to Hospett, at the mouth
of two hills, and in order to this end "broke down a hill." He saw
innumerable people at work on the tank. He confirms the story of
Nuniz as to the sixty human beings offered in sacrifice to ensure
the security of the dam. Both writers are therefore describing the
same tank, and, taking the chronicles together, I can have no doubt
as to the soundness of my identification.
Prior to 1520, Krishna Deva built the outlying town of Nagalapur,
to which allusion has just been made. It was constructed in honour
of his favourite wife, the quondam courtesan, Nagala Devi, and the
king made it his favourite residence.
He also appears to have begun the construction of the temple of
Vitthalasvami on the river-bank, the most ornate of an the religious
edifices of the kingdom. "It shows," writes Mr. Rea in the article
already referred to, "the extreme limit in florid magnificence to
which the style advanced." The work was continued during the reign
of Krishna Deva's successors, Achyuta and Sadasiva, and was probably
stopped only by the destruction of the city in 1565. An inscription
records a grant to the temple in 1561.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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