5/5 Prabhu M. 11 months ago on Google
Gaṅgaikoṇḍa
Chōḻapuram
is
a
village
located
near
to
Jayankondam,
Ariyalur
district,
Tamil
Nadu,
India.
It
became
the
capital
of
the
Chola
dynasty
in
c.
1025
by
Chola
emperor
Rajendra
I,
and
served
as
the
capital
for
around
250
years.
The
town
is
about
approximately
125
kilometres
(78
mi)
northeast
of
Tiruchirapalli
international
airport.
As
of
2014,
the
ancient
city
exists
as
a
heritage
town
in
the
Ariyalur
district
of
Tamil
Nadu,
India.
The
great
Arulmigu
Peruvudaiyar
Temple
at
this
place
is
next
only
to
the
Arulmigu
Peruvudaiyar
Kovil
at
Thanjavur
in
its
monumental
nature
and
surpasses
it
in
sculptural
quality.
It
has
been
recognised
as
a
World
Heritage
site
by
UNESCO.
The
city
was
founded
by
Rajendra
I
to
commemorate
his
victory
over
the
Pala
Dynasty.
The
translation
of
the
city's
name
may
be
split
into
Gangai
(Ganga)/
Konda
(Obtained)/
Chola
(Chola)/
Puram
(City).
Hence,
it
refers
to
the
city
of
the
Cholas
built
on
a
locale
to
commemorate
the
occasion
when
the
water
of
the
Ganga
was
obtained.
It
is
now
a
small
village,
its
past
eminence
only
remembered
by
the
existence
of
the
Mahashiva
Temple.
The
Chola
Empire
included
the
whole
of
southern
India
to
the
river
Tungabhadra
in
the
north.
For
administrative
and
strategic
purposes,
they
built
a
new
capital
and
named
it
Gangaikonda
Cholapuram.
The
city
seems
to
have
had
two
fortifications,
one
inner
and
the
other
outer.
The
outer
was
probably
wider.
The
remains
of
the
outer
fortification
can
be
seen
as
a
mound
running
all
around
the
palace.
Excavations
suggest
that
the
outer
fortification
was
built
of
burnt
bricks,
was
about
six
to
eight
feet
wide.
It
consisted
of
two
walls,
the
intervening
space
(the
core)
being
filled
with
sand.
The
bricks
are
fairly
large
in
size
and
are
made
of
well-burnt
clay.
The
Tamil
Nadu
State
Archaeological
Department
has
taken
up
fresh
excavations
to
probe
a
nearby
village
named
Ayudhkalam
which
is
believed
to
have
weapon
manufacturing
workshops,
as
the
name
suggests.
The
surviving
temple
in
Gangaikonda
Cholapuram
was
completed
in
1035
CE.
Rajendra
emulated
the
temple
built
by
his
father
after
his
victory
in
a
campaign
across
India
that
Chola
era
texts
state
covered
Karnataka,
Andhra
Pradesh,
Odisha,
and
Bengal.
After
his
victory,
he
demanded
that
the
defeated
kingdoms
send
pots
of
Ganges
River
water
and
pour
it
into
the
well
of
this
temple.
Rajendra
I,
according
to
Tamil
tradition,
thereafter
assumed
the
name
of
Gangaikonda
Cholan,
meaning
the
one
who
conquered
the
Ganges.
He
established
Gangaikonda
Cholapuram
as
his
capital
from
the
medieval
Chola
capital
of
Thanjavur,
which
would
go
on
to
become
the
capital
for
the
next
250
years.
Rajendra
I
built
the
entire
capital
with
several
temples
using
plans
and
infrastructure
recommended
in
Tamil
Vastu
and
Agama
sastra
texts.
These
included
a
Dharma
Sasta,
Vishnu
and
other
temples.
However,
all
of
these
were
destroyed
in
the
late
13th
and
14th
centuries
except
the
Brihadishvara
temple.
The
other
Chola
landmarks
are
evidenced
by
soil
covered
mounds
and
excavated
broken
pillar
stumps
and
brick
walls
found
over
an
area
of
several
kilometres
from
the
surviving
temple.
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