Chola

The Chola dynasty, also known in Tamil sources as Cholamandalam, was a Tamil-speaking imperial dynasty that ruled parts of southern India. Its history spans from roughly the 3rd century BCE to the late 13th century CE, with its heartland in the fertile Kaveri delta region of present-day Tamil Nadu and with periods of influence extending into parts of southern Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Sri Lanka, and maritime Southeast Asia. The Cholas maintained a hereditary monarchy that grew from local Tamil polities into a centralized imperial state, coexisting with neighboring powers such as the Pandyas and Cheras.

The medieval Chola period, roughly from the 9th to the 13th centuries, produced a highly organized administration and a powerful navy that projected influence across the Indian Ocean. Notable rulers include Rajaraja Chola I (c. 985–1014) and his son Rajendra Chola I (c. 1012–1044), who expanded the empire to northern Sri Lanka, the Malabar coast, and parts of Southeast Asia, and who asserted control over key port cities. Temple construction flourished during this era, with the Brihadeeswarar Temple at Thanjavur standing as a hallmark of imperial power and architectural achievement. The Cholas also fostered Tamil culture, literature, and the distinctive Chola bronzes, celebrated for their technical mastery.

Decline began in the 12th and 13th centuries due to internal strife and external pressure from rival dynasties. The empire gradually fragmented, with the Pandyas and other powers reasserting control, and by the late 13th century the Chola polity had largely ceased to exist as a unified state. The legacy of the Cholas persisted in Tamil religious and cultural life, monumental temple architecture, and in the regional administrative and naval traditions they helped develop.