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About Andhra Pradesh > History
Centuries ago, Andhra Pradesh was a major
Buddhist centre and part of Emperor Ashoka's sprawling kingdom.
Not surprisingly, traces of early Buddhist influence are still visible in
several places in and around the state. After the death of Emperor Ashoka,
several dynasties from the Ikshvakus, Pallavas, Chalukyas,
Kakatiyas, Vijayanagaram kings, Qutb Shahis, Mughals
and the Asaf Jahi's, ruled this princely city.
The history of Andhra
Pradesh dates back to the epic era of the Ramayana and the Mahabharatha.
But the documented history points to 236 BC, when Satavahana
established a kingdom and a dynasty around the modern Hyderabad.
During the reign of 450 years, Buddhism flourished in the kingdom. The
rulers were followers of Brahmanism, but the women folk practiced Buddism.
It was during this period that Buddhism spread from these shores to China,
The far East and to Sri Lanka. The Ikshvakus succeeded the
Satavahanas and ruled the kingdom for 57 years. The Pallavas annexed the
area South of River Krishna and ruled till the end of 6th century.
Then came the dynasties of Chalukyas and the Kakatiyas. The
Kakatiyas established themselves as rulers of a Telugu speaking people.
The glorious reign of the Kakatiyas came to end in the 14th century
and for the first time Telugus came under a Muslim regime that brought
with it a totally different set of customs, language and religion.
The Delhi Sultanate came in power in 1347 AD, governed by Allahuddin
Hasan, claiming lineage to Bahman Shah of Persia, revolted against the
Delhi Sultanate and declared himself ruler of the southern part of the
territory, comprising mainly the Deccan and Telangana area.
It was somewhere around this time that the Qutub Shahi dynasty came
into being when Sultan Quli, the Bahmani governor of Telangana,
became independent and extend the new kingdom of Golconda right upto
Machlipatnam on the east coast. Given the title of Quli-ul-Mulk by the
Bahmanis, Qutub Shah, a descendant of a royal family of Hamdan in Persia,
took over the reins and ruled till 1548.
Aurangazeb last Mogul king to rule India, conquered the Deccan
in 1687 and left his governors, the Nizams, to rule Andhra. The
British and French took over from the Nizams. Andhra became a part
of Indian Union in 1947. The present state was formed in 1953, merging a
part of the then Madras State (present Tamil Naidu) and the princely state
of Hyderabad. |
