The Cheras - History – Mocomi.com

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The lands south of the Mauryan Empire which included the
Malabar coast, Karur, Coimbatore and Salem districts in
South India were all part of the Chera Kingdom. The Chera
capital was Tiruvanchikul am.

Utiyan Cheralatan was the first Chera king and is accred-ited
with founding the dynasty. One of his battles was
against the Cholas where he suffered a humiliating defeat
as a result of which he committed suicide.

Utiyan's son, Imayavaramban Nedun Cheralatan, through
his grit and determination was responsible for making the
Cheras one of the most powerful kingdoms in the south. His
rule lasted 58 years and during this time he won multiple
battles and wars, the most famous of which was against his
sworn enemies, the Kadambas of Banasvi.

Imayavaramban not only extended his kingdom, he also
supported the local arts, culture and literature during his
reign.

Yet, the greatest Chera king was to follow - King Kadalpira-kottiya
Vel Kelu Kuttuvan. The great Tamil epic, Silappadi-garam
( which means the jeweled anklet) which tells the
story about a mythical herois supposed to be about him.
There were two other epic works during that time which
were Manimegalai and Sivagami Sindamani.
Kuttavan established the Patni (wife) cult which says that
a wife must be completely devoted to her husband. An ex-ample
of this is the story of the faithful wife Kannagi, who
is remembered even today.

The Chera kings used marriage to strengthen their ties
with other clans as they were constantly warring with
their neighbors and needed to strengthen their positions.
With strong overseas links with places like Rome, the king-dom
prospered immensely. The trade consisted mainly of
spices, ivory and sandalwood. They also reported pearls
and gems to the Middle East.

This period of success was followed by the Kalabhras over-throwing
the Cheras. The Cheras however over threw the
Kalabhras and the second Chera Empire was founded with
Mahodyapuram as their capital.

Mahodayapuram was founded by Kulasekhara Alvar, one
of the twelve Alvars or Saints who sang hymns and com-posed
songs in praise of their beloved Lord Vishnu. The
Bhakti movement of south India was established by the
Alvars.

Kulasekhara Alvar authored five dramas 'Perumal Tiru-mozhi',
'Mukundamala', 'Tapatisavarna', 'Subhadradhamala'
and 'Vichchinnabhiseka'. He was a renowned scholar and
lover of art.

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Kulasekhara was succeeded by Rajasekhara Varman Rul.
He was followed by Sthanu Ravi Varman who was friendly
with the Cholas. During his time, trade flourished with
China and Kerela
amongst other places.
However, with Sthanu's death, the relationship between
the Cheras and Cholas turned sour. The last Chera King
was Rama Varma Kulasekhara who shifted his capital to
Quilon. After his death,
the Chera empire disintegrated and the Cholas took over.

The Cheras - History – Mocomi.com

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