Pulakesi II (Chalukya King)

Immadi Pulakeshi was the Chalukya Dynasty's Emperor. Badami in Karnataka, was his capital. Between the 6th and 12th centuries, the Chalukyas governed sections of southern and central India.

ABOUT CHALUKYAS OF BADAMI

Between the 6th and 8th centuries A.D., the Chalukyas were a powerful force in southern India. Pulakesin I, the first great monarch of this dynasty, ascended to the throne in 540 A.D. and founded a magnificent empire after many glorious conquests.

Kirtivarman and Mangalesa, his sons, expanded the kingdom by fighting several victorious wars against their neighbours, especially the Konkan Mauryans.

Pulakesin II, Kirtivarman's son, was one of the Chalukya dynasty's most powerful monarchs. He was in power for over 34 years.

He established his power in Maharashtra and conquered significant swaths of the Deccan throughout his long reign.

His biggest triumph was defeating Harshavardhana in a defensive battle.

FACTS ABOUT PULKESIN II

Pulkesin II (610–642 CE) is the most famous of the Badami Chalukya rulers. Ereya was his given name, and he was born to Kirtivarman-I.

His paternal uncle Mangaldesa was made king because he was too young when his father died.

According to some historians, his uncle denied him the right to the kingdom when he grew up, and he revolted against him.

Mangaldesa was defeated and murdered by Ereya's army at modern-day Kolar in Karnataka (Peddavadagur inscription).

He conquered the Banavasi Kadamabas, the Alupas of modern-day Southern Karnataka, the Mauryas of Konkan, and took the Island of Elephanta from the Mauryas of Konkan following a naval battle.

In the east, he defeated the Kosala, Kalinga, and other tribes. He conquered Mahendravarman-I in the south.

Harsha was a powerful force in Northern India at the time. A conflict erupted between Pulkesin II and Harsha on the Narmada's banks.

Harsha lost a large portion of his elephant army in this battle, and he was forced to retire. The Aihole Inscription makes reference to this. Huen Tsang has also described the same conflict.

The fight ended with a treaty that required Harsha to acknowledge the Narmada River as his southern frontier.

Pulkesin II acquired the titles of Parmeshwara, Prithivivallabha, Satyashraya, and other titles after his triumph, and became the supreme ruler of modern Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat.

Around the same time, he took the title of Dakshinpatheshwara, similar to Harsha's Uttarpatheshwara. Pulkesin II was also one of South India's first kings to produce gold coins.

In 642 A.D., however, he was defeated and slain by Pallav king Narasimhavarman.

ABOUT BATTLE BETWEEN PULKESIN II AND HARSHA

Harsha's conquests were contested by Pulakeshin, who reigned from the Chalukyan stronghold of Badami.

The former, like Harsha, had established himself as 'lord supreme' of the south.

Harsha had marched from Kanauj with a large force, unable to accept the existence of a great adversary in the south, but was beaten.

Harsha was forced to accept the river as the demarcation and withdraw from the battlefield after losing the majority of his elephant army due to Pulakeshin's efficiency in holding the Narmada passes.

By decoding a copper plate, researchers from the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute (BORI) claim to have pinpointed the date of Emperor Harshavardhan's fall to Chalukya King Pulakeshin II.

The fight is thought to have taken place between 612 and 634 AD. However, thanks to this new copper plate, it can now be firmly determined that it occurred in 619 AD.

The plate can also be used to restore the specifics of Pulakeshi II's coronation in 610-611 AD.

The plate also commemorates Pulakeshin's grant of 50 'nivarthanas' (land units) to a Vedic scholar, Nagasharma, from the village Brahmana-Vataviya (in modern-day Paithan Taluka of Aurangabad).