Rajaraja Chola III succeeded Kulothunga Chola III

Kulothunga Chola III

Kulothunga Chola III was the ruler of the Chola empire from 1178 to 1218 AD, after succeeding Rajadhiraja Chola II. Kulothunga Chola III gained success in war against his traditional foes. He gained victories in war against the Pandyas of Madurai, Cheras of Venad, Hoysalas of Mysore, the Sinhala...

 on the Chola throne in July 1216 CE. Rajaraja came to the throne of a kingdom much reduced in size as well as influence. With the rise of the Pandya power in the south, the Cholas had lost most of their control of the territories south of the river Kaveri and their hold on the Vengi territories in the north was slipping with the emergence of the Hoysala power.

Period of political changes

The reign of Rajaraja III was a period of continuous trouble. It coincided with a period of great political changes in South India

South India

South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...

. Rajaraja was neither a great warrior nor a statesman to deal with the prevailing situation. The Pandyas in the south and the Hoysalas in the west had by now risen to the ranks of great powers led by rulers of exceptional merit. The only chance of surivial for the Cholas was the rivelry between these new powers, neither of whom wanted the Cholas to come under the other's influence. The Chalukyas of Kalyani had given way for the rising power of the Seunas and the Andhra country around the Vengi

Vengi

The Vengi kingdom extended from the Godavari River in the north to Mount Mahendragiri in the southeast and to just south of the banks of River Krishna in the south of India. This area was part of Kalinga until that kingdom was conquered by Emperor Ashoka of the Mauryan Empire in the mid 3rd century...

 territories were controlled by the Telugu Cholas

Telugu Cholas

Many Telugu Choda kingdoms ruled over many regions including the cities on the banks of Krishna River in the period between the seventh and the thirteenth century. It is not known much about these family origins. Some of them claimed descent from the legendary Tamil Karikala Chola . Telugu Cholas...

.

Internal revolts

This was the signal the Chola feudatories and the overgrown vassals were waiting for in order to declare their independence. At the earliest opportunity that arose, they transferred their allegiance to either of the growing powers. Rajaraja Chola III came to power at this stage and he was the most incompetent king. His reign was characterised by growing revolt and conflicts even in nominally Chola territories. The Kadava

Kadava

Kadava was the name of a Tamil ruling dynasty who ruled parts of the Tamil country during the thirteenth and the fourteenth century CE. Kadavas were related to the Pallava dynasty and ruled from Kudalur near Cuddalore in Tamil Nadu.The Kadava kingdom was at the height of their power briefly...

 chieftains of Kudalur

Kudalur

Kudalur is a village in the Thanjavur taluk of Thanjavur district, Tamil Nadu, India.- Demographics :As per the 2001 census, Kudalur had a total population of 1303 with 644 males and 649 females. The sex ratio was 1023. The literacy rate was 68.40....

 were quick to take advantage of the growing weakness of their suzerain.

Pandya invasion

Rajaraja was evidently not only weak, but incompetent. Pandyan inscriptions of the period state that he deliberately broke the terms of the treaty with his Pandyan overlord and refused to pay his tribute. This led to apunitive invasion by the Pandya forces. The Pandya aramy entered the Chola capital and Rajaraja took flight.

The Kadava Kopperunchinga I

Kopperunchinga I

Kopperunchinga I was a Kadava chieftain who played a major role in the political affairs of the Tamil country. At one time an official in the service of the Chola king Kulothunga Chola III , Kopperunchinga utilised the opportunity arising out of the Pandyan invasion of the Chola country to become...

 who had once been a Chola feudatory had begun to exercise their independence. Kopperunchinga wanted to gain some ground in the confused state of affairs. He caught and imprisoned the fleeing Chola king at Sendamangalam

Sendamangalam

Sendamangalam is a panchayat town in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the headquarters of Sendamangalam Block in Namakkal District.-Geography:...

.

Hoysala aid

When the Hoysala king Narasimha heard of the abduction of Rajaraja, and the subsequent devastation of the Chola country by Kopperunchinga's men, he immediately sent his army into the Chola country. The Hoysala army engaged Kopperunchinga's troops and sacked two of his towns. When the Hoysala army was preparing to lay siege to the Kadava capital of Sendamangalam, Kopperunchinga sued for peace and released the Chola king.

While his generals were attacking the Kadava chieftain Kopperunchinga, the Hoysala king Narasimha himself led his troops against the Pandya. A decisive battle took place between the Pandya and the Hoysala troops near Mahendramangalam on the banks of the river Kaveri and the Pandya army was defeated.

State of the Chola kingdom

For the rest of his reign Rajaraja had to depend heavily on Hoysala help. There was a continuous decrease in order within the kingdom and the disregard for the central control on the part of the feudatories increased. The extent of the kingdom over which Rajaraja had nominal control remained as during the times of Kulothunga III. Rajaraja recognised his son Rajendra Chola III

Rajendra Chola III

Rajendra Chola III was the son of Rajaraja Chola III who came to the Chola throne in 1246 CE. Although his father Rajaraja III was still alive, Rajendra began to take effective control over the administration...

 as heir apparent in 1246 CE. Rajaraja however continued to live until 1260 CE.