History of Telangana

The history of Telangana, located in the Deccan region, includes its governance by many rulers. It was ruled by the Satavahana dynasty (230 BCE to 220 CE), the Telinga Kakatiya Dynasty (1083–1323), the Musunuri Nayaks(1326–1356) the Delhi Sultanate, the Bahmani Sultanate (1347–1509) and Vijayanagara Empire (1509–1529). Later, the Telangana region became part of the Golconda Sultanate (1529–1687).

On 2 June 2014, Telangana became the 29th state of India, consisting of the ten districts, with Hyderabad as its capital.The city of Hyderabad will continue to serve as the joint capital for Andhra Pradesh and the successor state of Telengana for a period of ten years.

Telangana history and the history of Andhra Pradesh are very similar as both states share the same language and culture.

Early History

Satavahana Dynasty:

The Satavahanas rose to a political power, after the fall of the Mauryan Empire.Koti Lingala seems to be one of the 33 towns of Early Satavahana dynasty.^[3] Excavations revealed vestiges of an ancient city, monastic and non-monastic buildings, structures, a large quantity of ceramic ware, coins belonging to pre-Satavahana period, Gobhada and Samagopa. It is believed that the place is the site of hermitage of sage Bhavari.^[4] Several coins of Simukha, the founder of the Satavahana dynasty, and those of other early rulers like Kanha and Satakarni I were found.^[5]

The Deccan, during this period was an emporium of inland and maritime trade. The region between the rivers of Godavari and Krishna was full of ports and throbbing with activity. There was plentiful of currency to facilitate trade and the Telugus entered upon a period of great industrial, commercial and maritime activity.Buddhism flourished throughout the period and the rulers were also devoted to Vedic ritualism. They constructed several Buddhist Stupas, Viharas and Chaityas. Satavahanas were able rulers and loved literacy and architecture. The 17th ruler of this dynasty, Hāla was a great poet and his “Gathasaptasati” in Prakrit was well received by all. Gunadhya, the minister of Hala was the author of “Brihatkadha”.er. According to Matsya Purana, there were 29 rulers of this dynasty. They ruled over for about 456 years, from the 2nd century BC to the 2nd century AD.the kingdom included most of the southern peninsula and some southern parts of the present Indian states of Maharashtra, Orissa and Madhya Pradesh. The court language used by the Satavahanas was Prakrit. Satavahana kings followed the Vedic religion

The decline and fall of the Satavahana Empire left the kingdom in a political chaos. Local rulers as well as invaders tried to carve out small kingdoms for themselves and to establish many dynasties. During the period from AD 180 to AD 624 Vakataka, Pallava, Ananda Gotrikas, Kalinga and others ruled over the area with their small kingdoms. Such instability continued to prevail until the rise of the Eastern Chalukyas.