Tailapa II

The records of Tailapa's dynasty trace his patrilineal ancestry to the Chalukyas of Vatapi, and also connect him to the Rashtrakutas of Manyakheta and the Kalachuris of Chedi through matrilineal descent. The Vatapi Chalukya king Vijayaditya was succeeded by his son Vikramaditya II: the records of Tailapa's family claim that Vijayaditya had another (unnamed) son, from whom the family descended.[1]

The Chalukya court poet Ranna provides the following genealogy connecting Tailapa to the earlier Chalukya dynasty:[2]

• Vijayaditya II, Chalukya crown prince of Vatapi[3]
• Unnamed prince who was as strong as Bhima I
• Kirtivarman
• Taila I (Tailapa I)
• Bhima II (or Bhimaraja)
• Vikramaditya III
• Ayyana I, who married daughter of Krishna (identified as the Rashtrakuta king Krishna II)
• Vikramaditya IV, who married Bontha Devi, a daughter of the Kalachuri king Lakshmana-raja
• Taila II (Tailapa II)

The 11th century inscriptions of Tailapa's descendants (such as the Kauthem grant) provide a similar genealogy, but they state that Vikramaditya III was the son of Taila I and that Bhima II was the son of Vikramaditya.[2] However, the Vatapi Chalukya records make no mention of Vijayaditya's unnamed son. The differences between the genealogies provided by Ranna and the later inscriptions also cast doubt on the claim that Tailapa's family was connected to the earlier Chalukya royals.[4]

Tailapa's immediate ancestors appear to have been feudatories of the Rashtrakutas, who had displaced the earlier Chalukyas of Vatapi. The marriage of Tailapa's grandfather Ayyana I to a Rashtrakuta princess probably raised the family's political status. A Devihosur inscription of the Rashtrakuta king Krishna III (r. 939-967) mentions one Vikramaditya, who can be identified with Tailapa's father Vikramaditya IV.[4]

Like his father, Tailapa served as a feudatory to the Rashtrakuta king Krishna III. He finds a mention in the 957 Karjol inscription and the 965 Narasalagi inscriptions issued during the reign of Krishna.[4] The 957 inscription calls him Tailapayya, and states that he ruled a nadu (administrative unit) as Krishna's subordinate. The 965 inscription calls him Maha-samantadhipati Ahavamalla Tailaparasa of Satyashraya family (Satyashraya-kula-tilaka), and states that Krishna had granted him the fief of Tardavadi-1000.[5]

At this time, he also held the title "Chalukya Rama", and had a subordinate from the Khachara family.[4]

Tailapa's Rashtrakuta overlord Krishna III died around 967, and was succeeded by Khottiga. In 972, the Paramara ruler Siyaka, who had earlier served as a feudatory to the Rashtrakutas in Malwa, invaded and sacked their capital Manyakheta.[6] As a result, the political status of the Rashtrakutas declined greatly. Khottiga died without an heir shortly after Siyaka's raid, and was succeeded by his nephew Karka II.[7] Karka had sidelined Krishna's grandson Indra IV to ascend the throne, thus alienating Indra's maternal uncle Marasimha, who was a powerful Rashtrakuta feudatory from the Ganga family.[8] The records of Tailapa's dynasty suggest that Karka was a weak ruler, and that the vicious nature of two of his principal ministers had led to dissatisfaction among his subjects.[8]

Tailapa used this opportunity to usurp the throne. He was supported by his Yadava feudatory Bhillama II and the Chalukya chief Baddega II of Lakshmeshwara.[8] He may also have been supported by the Kalachuris of Tripuri, the family of his mother: an enmity had developed between the Rashtrakutas and the Kalachuris during the reign of Krishna III.[7]

In 973, Tailapa dethroned Karka and established a new dynasty. His records state that he became a sovereign after a fierce battle, in which Karka's two "wicked" ministers were killed.[8] Karka's ally Ranakambha, a member of the Rashtrakuta family, was also killed in the battle. According to one theory, Karka was killed in the battle,[9] but according to another theory, he escaped and ruled a small principality around Soraba until 991.[8]

After this victory, Tailapa marched to the Rashtrakuta capital Manyakheta, and occupied the throne.[8] Krishna's grandson Indra, supported by the Ganga chief Marasimha, disputed Tailapa's ascension. Tailapa defeated them decisively: both men ultimately retired as Jain monks, and died by sallekhana (death by starvation) - Marasimha in 975, and Indra in 982.[8]

Marasimha's successor Panchaladeva also fought against Tailapa, and described himself as Chalukya Panchanana ("Lion to the Chalukyas") in his 975 Mulgund inscription. The inscription claims that he ruled the entire peninsular territory to the south of the Krishna River, which is an obvious exaggeration.[9] Tailapa ultimately defeated and killed Panchaladeva: several Chalukya inscriptions boast that Tailapa cut off his head on the battlefield.[10] These inscriptions also give Tailapa the title Panchalamardana Panchanana ("Lion who killed Panchala").[11] Tailapa must have defeated Panchaladeva around 975-976, because Tailapa's inscriptions dated to around 976 have been found in the neighbouring region.[10]

Tailapa married a Rashtrakuta princess Jakavve, the daughter of Bhammaha Ratta, possibly to strengthen his political position.[8][12] Gradually, many former Rashtrakuta feudatories accepted his suzerainty:

• Shantivarma, who ruled in the present-day Soraba area, and belonged to the Brahma-Kshatriya Mātūr-vaṃśa family.[9]
• Kannapa, who ruled the Banavasi area: he was one of the first chiefs to recognize Tailapa's suzerainty. His younger brother and successor Sobhanarasa served Tailapa as a loyal general, and received the titles giri-durga-malla (wrestler with hill forts) and samanta-chudamani" (the crest-jewel among the feudatories).[10]
• Rattas of Saundatti: The 980 Sogal inscription of Karttavirya and the Saundatti inscription of Mahasamanta Shantivarma acknowledge Tailapa as the overlord of the Rattas.[10]
• The Sinda ruler Pulikala, who ruled the Bijapur area, as well as his successors of the Bagadage branch.[10]
• The Nolambas, as attested by a 981 grant of the Nolamba queen Revaladevi, which was confirmed by Tailapa.[4]

Extent of Western Chalukya Empire in 1121, over a century after Tailapa's death

Tailapa died around 997.[18] He and his queen Jakavve had two sons: Satyashraya and Dashavarman (alias Yashovarman). Tailapa was succeeded by his elder son Satyashraya, and then by Dashavarman's son Vikramaditya V.[16]

Tailapa maintained his headquarters at the former Rashtrakuta capital Manyakheta. His son and successor Satyashraya ruled Rattapadi, and the contemporary Chola inscriptions often use the term Rattapadi to describe the Chalukya kingdom. The later Chalukya rulers ruled from Kalyani.[13]

The Chalukya court poet Ranna composed his Gadayuddha during the reign of Ahavamalla, who is identified as Tailapa II by some scholars. However, the text refers to his son Satyashraya as an emperor, and the title Ahavamalla was also held by Satyashraya. Because of this, other scholars believe that the Gadayuddha was composed during Satyashraya's reign.[19] Govinda Pai, a 20th-century Kannada poet, theorized that Ranna composed the first version of Gadayuddha in 982 (during Tailapa's reign). To explain the text's mention of a mid-990s battle and its comparison to a 993 solar eclipse, Pai theorized that Ranna must have revised the text at a later date.[20]

The Kalleshvara temple complex at Bagali, originally consecrated during the late Rashtrakuta rule, was completed during Tailapa's reign. In 987, an individual named Duggimayya consecrated the shrine, and a feudatory named Mahasamanta Adityavarma commissioned a garden in the temple complex.[21]