Hi there!! Today I'm continuing yesterday's story about Krishnadeva Raya, the Emperor of the Vijayanagar Empire. Let's go…
The next day, Krishnadeva was in the king's room. Viranarasimha's condition had worsened. Viranarsimha begged Krishnadeva for forgiveness. Krishnadeva only replied, "Let bygones be bygones, Your Majesty."
Krishnadeva was talking to the king, when, "Krishna… Krishna… Eeeh…" Suddenly, the king's hand fell from his grasp. He breathed his last breath.
The next day, Krishnadeva was in the king's room. Viranarasimha's condition had worsened. Viranarsimha begged Krishnadeva for forgiveness. Krishnadeva only replied, "Let bygones be bygones, Your Majesty."
Krishnadeva was talking to the king, when, "Krishna… Krishna… Eeeh…" Suddenly, the king's hand fell from his grasp. He breathed his last breath.
When the ailing king died, the minsters and councillors decided to crown Krishnadeva as the new emperor. But, many people refused. Even Thimmarasu wasn't sure if Krishnadeva should become the emperor. When Krishnadeva asked the public why he shouldn't be king, the collectively proclaimed, "According to tradition, the emperor should be married before the coronation!!" The to-be-king was confused. Why should he be married to be the king? Willingly, Krishnadeva told Thimmarasu, "If custom requires so, then I shall show you the one who has won my heart."
Krishnadeva took Thimmarasu all the way to a temple, where a certain dancer was dancing. It was Chinnadevi!! When Thimmarasu and Krishnadeva entered, all of the spectators bowed to them. "Pranam, Raja!! Pranam, Mahamantri Thimmarasu!!" Chinnadevi looked up and saw Krishnadeva. She waved. Krishnadeva was struck by her beauty. He plopped down onto his chair and closed his eyes, drifting off into a daydream.
A few minutes later, he awoke to Thimmarasu's calls, "Krishna!!! Krishnadeva!!!" Stirring back to life, Krishnadeva saw Chinnadevi still dancing. He whispered to Thimmarasu, "Appaji, isn't she lovely?" Thimmarasu replied, "A temple dancer can't be the queen of the Vijayanagar Empire!!" But, Krishnadeva was firm in his resolve, "I met her while travelling incognito. I had no name, fortune or home but she welcomed me like a friend! I'd rather give up the kingdom than dear Chinna!!" Thimmarasu wasn't so convinced. He didn't like the idea of how a temple dancer should be the queen. So, Thimmarasu grumbled, "We will see what can be done to reconcile the dictates of tradition and the dictates of your love…"
Finally, Krishnadeva gave in and married Tirumala Devi, the Princess of Srirangapatna. The wedding ceremony was sooooo huge!! Many, many, MANY people attended the festival.
Soon after, Krishnadeva became Krishnadeva Raya and was crowned Emperor of The Vijayanagar Empire on August 8, 1509. He was officially honoured with the sword of the Emperor and the throne. A few days later, Krishnadeva Raya married his beloved Chinnadevi, too (I know, right?! Two wives!!! That's MAD!!!!).
Meanwhile, the Bahmani King had completed the preparation for the campaign and reached Diwani, where Krishnadeva Raya gave him battle. The fight ensued one-sided, with Krishnadeva Raya routing the forces of the Bahmani Kingdom. Mahmood Shah was shocked!! He didn't know that his forces would prove to be petty in front of the might of the Vijayanagar Empire. He started trembling at the sight of their power, "No, we cannot fight Krishnadeva Raya." The Bahmani Army had to beat a hasty retreat. The Vijayanagar army chased the Bahmani's back to their kingdom. Mahmood Shah was the most scared of all the soldiers. He rode his horse the fastest. But, he didn't ride into the fight, nooo. He rode his horse all the way back to his kingdom in despair and fear, for the Vijayanagar Kindom had given them a sound thrashing.
Back at Vijayanagar, Krishnadeva Raya gave a hearty speech to his army, "Well done, my men!! You have done a good job!! But, our victory should not make us complacent. Pratapa Rudra of Kalinga and Adil Khan of Bijapur are our sworn enemies. Only when they are defeated, shall we know peace. For the sake of our kingdom, we must subdue them." So, the Vijayanagar army set off to silence their enemies.
At Udaigiri, the inaccessible fort, Pratapa Rudra - the King of Kalinga - was amused to hear about Krishnadeva Raya's plans to attack him. His soldiers roared with laughter along with their king, who was rolling on the floor with laughter (ROTFL!!!)!! Pratapa Rudra exclaimed, "Let him first find his way here!! This fort is in the densest part of all forests in the kingdom!!!" Tirumala Raut, the commander of the Kalinga army, was instructed to take charge of the Udaigiri fort. Prince Virabhadra was to take charge of Fort Kondavidu and his father, Pratapa Rudra, was to direct the operations from Fort Potanur.
The Kalinga army was ready to go. They roared with pride, as they stood to guard their forts.
Krishnadeva Raya personally led his MASSIVE army to Udaigiri. They were marching to the fort when they saw the dense forest that lay in front of them. All of the soldiers were perplexed!! They didn't know what to do!! But, Krishnadeva Raya wasn't perturbed. He pointed to the trees and exclaimed, "Have the trees pulled down and the path cleared. Our army shall move on!!" A mere forest was not going to prevent Krishnadeva Raya from achieving his aim.
The Vijayanagar army set out to clear the forest. Their massive elephants worked day and night to cleanse the dense forest of its huge trees.
A few days later, the Vijayanagar elephants moved all the trees from the once-dense forest and threw them away. Krishnadeva Raya charged with his army, reached Udaigiri, scaled the fort and attacked!! They rained arrows and bashed Tirumala Raut's defences. Tirumala Raut was in awe!! He had never seen such amazing abilities ever!! Many of his soldiers ran away, with fear of being slaughtered by Krishnadeva Raya. Tirumala Raut could not hold out for long.
A few days through the fight, Tirumala Raut sent a messenger to the Vijayanagar camp. He ran like the wind. The Vijayanagar camp was fortified like the real palace!! The messenger managed to slip through and get to Krishnadeva Raya's chambers. He tiptoed inside. There was no light. It was pitch-black.
Suddenly, someone lit a lamp. It was the Emperor. He walked forward with his sword and went to swing it through the messenger's body. But, the messenger pleaded for mercy. He explained, "Our chief, Tirumala Raut, has sent me to tell you that we surrender. We surrender to your army." Krishnadeva Raya hosted a party to celebrate his capture of the Udaigiri Fort. He then proclaimed, "On to Fort Kondavidu!!"
But, The Vijayanagar army, upon reaching the Kondavidu Fort, found it hard to scale the fort. Thimmarasu, who was the commander-in-chief, told Krishnadeva Raya, "The wall is steep and our arrows don't reach far enough to kill Pratapa Rudra's goons. What shall we do?" Krishnadeva Raya replied, "Have bamboo scaffolding erected around the fort."
The Vijayanagar army set to work. Every night, after the days fight was done, they would secretly come and put giant bamboo pillars around the fort and fix them using heavy cement.
As soon as the scaffoldings rose as high as the fort, many soldiers from their camp rushed into the fort. They slaughtered all that stood in their path. Krishnadeva Raya stood on one corner of the scaffolding with Thimmarasu next to him. Krishnadeva was about to shoot an arrow, when he realised, "Appaji, light a match and give it to me," Thimmarasu was confused, but he did as his emperor commanded. Krishnadeva Raya held the match on the end of his arrow, when the point lit into flames!! Krishnadeva Raya whispered, "Appaji, watch me as I pierce the very heart of Kondavidu with this blazing arrow," FLING!!!! Krishnadeva Raya shot the arrow right into the grain storage. Many of the soldiers wanted to save the grain, but some others said that they should fight. Pratapa Rudra's men were in a tizzy!!!
In the confusion that followed, Krishnadeva Raya and his army entered the fort and effortlessly took it. They celebrated their win with a huge feast.
Thanks for reading Krishnadeva Raya - part 2!! Please type your email in the box above the followers and click the blue button to receive emails about my posts!!!
Back at Vijayanagar, Krishnadeva Raya gave a hearty speech to his army, "Well done, my men!! You have done a good job!! But, our victory should not make us complacent. Pratapa Rudra of Kalinga and Adil Khan of Bijapur are our sworn enemies. Only when they are defeated, shall we know peace. For the sake of our kingdom, we must subdue them." So, the Vijayanagar army set off to silence their enemies.
At Udaigiri, the inaccessible fort, Pratapa Rudra - the King of Kalinga - was amused to hear about Krishnadeva Raya's plans to attack him. His soldiers roared with laughter along with their king, who was rolling on the floor with laughter (ROTFL!!!)!! Pratapa Rudra exclaimed, "Let him first find his way here!! This fort is in the densest part of all forests in the kingdom!!!" Tirumala Raut, the commander of the Kalinga army, was instructed to take charge of the Udaigiri fort. Prince Virabhadra was to take charge of Fort Kondavidu and his father, Pratapa Rudra, was to direct the operations from Fort Potanur.
The Kalinga army was ready to go. They roared with pride, as they stood to guard their forts.
Krishnadeva Raya personally led his MASSIVE army to Udaigiri. They were marching to the fort when they saw the dense forest that lay in front of them. All of the soldiers were perplexed!! They didn't know what to do!! But, Krishnadeva Raya wasn't perturbed. He pointed to the trees and exclaimed, "Have the trees pulled down and the path cleared. Our army shall move on!!" A mere forest was not going to prevent Krishnadeva Raya from achieving his aim.
The Vijayanagar army set out to clear the forest. Their massive elephants worked day and night to cleanse the dense forest of its huge trees.
A few days later, the Vijayanagar elephants moved all the trees from the once-dense forest and threw them away. Krishnadeva Raya charged with his army, reached Udaigiri, scaled the fort and attacked!! They rained arrows and bashed Tirumala Raut's defences. Tirumala Raut was in awe!! He had never seen such amazing abilities ever!! Many of his soldiers ran away, with fear of being slaughtered by Krishnadeva Raya. Tirumala Raut could not hold out for long.
A few days through the fight, Tirumala Raut sent a messenger to the Vijayanagar camp. He ran like the wind. The Vijayanagar camp was fortified like the real palace!! The messenger managed to slip through and get to Krishnadeva Raya's chambers. He tiptoed inside. There was no light. It was pitch-black.
Suddenly, someone lit a lamp. It was the Emperor. He walked forward with his sword and went to swing it through the messenger's body. But, the messenger pleaded for mercy. He explained, "Our chief, Tirumala Raut, has sent me to tell you that we surrender. We surrender to your army." Krishnadeva Raya hosted a party to celebrate his capture of the Udaigiri Fort. He then proclaimed, "On to Fort Kondavidu!!"
But, The Vijayanagar army, upon reaching the Kondavidu Fort, found it hard to scale the fort. Thimmarasu, who was the commander-in-chief, told Krishnadeva Raya, "The wall is steep and our arrows don't reach far enough to kill Pratapa Rudra's goons. What shall we do?" Krishnadeva Raya replied, "Have bamboo scaffolding erected around the fort."
The Vijayanagar army set to work. Every night, after the days fight was done, they would secretly come and put giant bamboo pillars around the fort and fix them using heavy cement.
As soon as the scaffoldings rose as high as the fort, many soldiers from their camp rushed into the fort. They slaughtered all that stood in their path. Krishnadeva Raya stood on one corner of the scaffolding with Thimmarasu next to him. Krishnadeva was about to shoot an arrow, when he realised, "Appaji, light a match and give it to me," Thimmarasu was confused, but he did as his emperor commanded. Krishnadeva Raya held the match on the end of his arrow, when the point lit into flames!! Krishnadeva Raya whispered, "Appaji, watch me as I pierce the very heart of Kondavidu with this blazing arrow," FLING!!!! Krishnadeva Raya shot the arrow right into the grain storage. Many of the soldiers wanted to save the grain, but some others said that they should fight. Pratapa Rudra's men were in a tizzy!!!
In the confusion that followed, Krishnadeva Raya and his army entered the fort and effortlessly took it. They celebrated their win with a huge feast.
Thanks for reading Krishnadeva Raya - part 2!! Please type your email in the box above the followers and click the blue button to receive emails about my posts!!!
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