Govinda III

Govinda III
Govinda III
Prabhutavarsha; Jagattunga, Anupama, Kirthinarayana, Prithvivallabha, Shrivallabha, Vimaladitya, Atishayadhavala, Tribhuvanadhavala
	Old Kannada inscription (800 CE) of Rashtrakuta Emperor Govinda III at Veerabhadra temple at Mavali.
Rashtrakuta Emperor
Reign	c. 793 – c. 814 CE (21 years)
Predecessor	Dhruva Dharavarsha
Successor	Amoghavarsha I
Born	Unknown; Manyakheta, Rashtrakuta Empire (modern day Karnataka, India)
Died	814 CE; Manyakheta, Rashtrakuta Empire (modern day Karnataka, India)
Consort	Gamundabbe
Issue	Amoghavarsha I
Father	Dhruva Dharavarsha
Religion	Hinduism

Govinda III (reign 793 – 814 CE) was greatest Rashtrakuta monarch who succeeded his illustrious father Dhruva Dharavarsha. He was militarily the most successful emperor of the dynasty with successful conquests from Kanyakumari in the south to Kanyakubja in the north, from Banaras in the east to Bharuch in the west. From the Someshvara inscription of 804, it is known that 'Gamundabbe' was his chief queen.

Govinda III held such titles as Prabhutavarsha, Jagattunga, Anupama, Kirthinarayana, Prithvivallabha, Shrivallabha, Vimaladitya, Atishayadhavala and Tribhuvanadhavala. He was undoubtebly the ablest of the Rashtrakuta emperors, unrivalled in courage, generalship, statesmanship, and martial exploits.The Rashtrakutas would reach their absolute peak under his rule.

Early life

War of Succession

Though Govinda III became the emperor it was not before having to face some internal family feuds. Govinda III ascended the throne in 793 CE and as was expected, his accession did not go unchallenged. For a time his elder brother Stambha kept quiet, but when he was assured of the support of a number of feudatories and neighbours, he broke out in open revolt against his brother. Govinda, however, quelled the rebellion of “twelve kings headed by Stambha” and took his brother prisoner. Govinda, however, treated him leniently and, being convinced of his loyalty in future, Govinda took the magnanimous step of reinstating him to the Ganga viceroyalty. Throughout the rest of his life, Stambha remained loyal to his plighted word, ending the war of succession.^[1]

Military career

According to the Nesarika inscription, some kingdoms came under the influence of Govinda III without any conflict or war with them. The lines read as follows:

Nesarika inscription of Govinda III
Transliteration	English Translation by D. C. Sircar
Pandya-dēś-ādhipān matsyam vrishabham Pallavēśvarā[t] []* (Chô)lād vyāghram gajam Gangach chapa-yashțim cha Kerala[t] []* Amdhra-Chalukya-Mauryēbhyo vārāham Gürya(rja)rēśvarā[t] []* t(pha)lakam (prā)tipa[d]-dhāryam vrishabham Pallavēśvarā[t] [] (Kō)sal-Avanti-nāthā(bhyām) Simhalad api nama[kam] []* Tārā(m) bhagava(tim) khyātām Dharmād Vangala-bhūmipat []* — The Nesarika inscription of Govinda III, Verses 21-23^[2]	The fish from the Pandya king; the bull from the Pallava king; the tiger from the Chola king; the elephant from the [Western] Ganga king; the bow from the Kerala king; the boar from the Andhra (Eastern Chalukya), Chalukya and Maurya kings; phalaka or board bearing [the figures of] the pratipad or kettle-drum and the harya or snake from the Gürjara king; the bull from the Pallava king the namaka (i.e. the names of the individual rulers) from the Kösala, Avanti and Simhala kings; and the celebrated goddes Tără from Dharma, the king of Vangala. — The Nesarika inscription of Govinda III, Verses 21-23^[3]

Conquest of Northern and Eastern India

Capture of Kannauj

From his capital Mayurakhandi in present-day Bidar district, Govinda III conducted his northern campaign in 800 CE. He successfully obtained the submission of Gurjara-Pratihara emperor Nagabhata II, Pala emperor Dharmapala and the incumbent puppet ruler of Kanyakubja, Chakrayudha.

The Sanjan plates of Govinda III mention that the horse of Govinda III drank the icy liquid bubbling in the Himalayan stream and his war elephants tasted the holy waters of the Ganges.^[4] The rulers of Magadha and Bengal also submitted to him. An inscription of 813 CE states the Govinda III conquered Lata (southern and central Gujarat) and made his brother Indra the ruler of the territory. This in effect became a branch of the Rashtrakuta Empire.^[5] After the conquest of Malwa, Govinda III ensured the Paramara dynasty would rule as vassals of the Rashtrakutas in 800 CE.^[6]

However, Govinda III had control over the regions between Vindhyas and Malwa in the north to Kanchi in the south, while the heart of his empire extended from the Narmada to Tungabhadra rivers.^[5]

Conquest of Tamilakam and Sri Lanka

He obtained the submission of the King of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) without even going to battle. The King of Ceylon is said to have sent him two statues, one of himself and another of his minister as an act of submission.^[7] The Nasari record states that now all the kingdoms of the Tamil country, the Cholas, Pandyas and the Keralas paid their tribute to Govinda III.^[7]

Never had the Rashtrakuta Empire reach such levels of military success and zenith of glory.^[8] Govinda III died in 814.^[9] His brother Indra during this time founded the Gujarat (Lata) branch. Govinda III was succeeded by his son Amoghavarsha I.^[10]

Inscriptions

Nesarika grant of Govinda III
Plate I Plate II Plate III

Notes

^ Kannauj, Age of Imperial. "The Age Of Imperial Kanauj". archive.org. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
^ Epigraphia Indica, Vol-34, pg.137 Nesarika inscription of Govinda III
^ Epigraphia Indica, Vol-34, pg.125 Nesarika inscription of Govinda III
^ Kamath (2001), p76
^ ^a ^b Reu (1933), p66
^ A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th century by Upinder Singh p.569
^ ^a ^b Kamath (2001), p77
^ A.S. Altekar in (Kamath 2001, p77)
^ Sen, Sailendra Nath (2013). Textbook of medieval Indian history. Primus Books. p. 20. ISBN 9789380607344.
^ Narasimhacharya 1988, p. 1.

References

Sastri, Nilakanta K.A. (2002) [1955]. A history of South India from prehistoric times to the fall of Vijayanagar. New Delhi: Indian Branch, Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-560686-8.
Kamath, Suryanath U. (2001) [1980]. A concise history of Karnataka : from pre-historic times to the present. Bangalore: Jupiter books. LCCN 80905179. OCLC 7796041.
Reu, Pandit Bisheshwar Nath (1997) [1933]. History of The Rashtrakutas (Rathodas). Jaipur: Publication scheme. ISBN 81-86782-12-5.
Narasimhacharya, Ramanujapuram (1988), History of Kannada Literature (Readership Lectures), Asian Educational Services, ISBN 81-206-0303-6

External links

History of Karnataka, Mr. Arthikaje

Preceded by Dhruva Dharavarsha	Rashtrakuta Emperor 793–814	Succeeded by Amoghavarsha

[1] Kannauj, Age of Imperial. "The Age Of Imperial Kanauj". archive.org. Retrieved 1 October 2015.

[2] Epigraphia Indica, Vol-34, pg.137 Nesarika inscription of Govinda III

[3] Epigraphia Indica, Vol-34, pg.125 Nesarika inscription of Govinda III

[vic-4] Kamath (2001), p76

[branch-5] Reu (1933), p66

[6] A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th century by Upinder Singh p.569

[tribute-7] Kamath (2001), p77

[zenith-8] A.S. Altekar in (Kamath 2001, p77)

[sen-9] Sen, Sailendra Nath (2013). Textbook of medieval Indian history. Primus Books. p. 20. ISBN 9789380607344.

[FOOTNOTENarasimhacharya19881-10] Narasimhacharya 1988, p. 1.

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