Part 28 - Manumasiddhi II (A.D. 1189-1210)

Manumasiddhi, the eldest son of Errasiddha succeeded his father on the throne. He was a greather ruler than his predecessors, and Tikkana in his genealogy of Telugu cholas, after Telugu Bijja begins with Manmasiddha, Ketana, similarly begins the genealogy with Manmasiddha and his queen Sridevi. The Nandalur record dated A.D. 1257 and the 13th year of Virarajendra Chola deva in the geneological portion refers to Manmasiddha as Rajendra Manumasiddha. The Kavali inscription says that Nallasiddha, the eldest son of Errasiddha was anointed. Another record also mentions Nallasiddharasa, as the son of Eramasiddhisvara. The identify of Manumasiddha with Nallasiddha has been proved by the epigraphist and accepted by Professor Sastri, who says that

Errasiddhi’s eldest son was Nallasiddha alias Manmasiddha. Sewell’s identification of Nallassiddha with Betta II is unacceptable on more grounds than one. To quote professor Sastri

“The number of Nallasiddhi’s inscriptions and their provenance together with the claim of laying tribute from Kanchi imply such an active life for Nallasiddhi as to falsify completely the statement in the Tammusiddhi inscriptions regarding Betta’s exclusive devotion to religious ansterties. On the other hand, if we identify Manmasiddha with Nallasiddha, the other statement in Tammusiddhi records that Manma was dead in A.D. 1205 must be declared to be wrong”.

Again,

“if Beta was Nallsiddha who was anointed after Manma’s demise, who was the author of the Nallasiddha inscriptions of which there are several, dating from A.D. 1192 if not earlier, some of which doubtless procede the death of Manma C A.D. 1205? There seems to be no means of reconciling all the statements in the Tammusiddhi records with the date furnished by the Nallasiddha records.”

And the Reddipalem epigraph dated A.D. 1214: mentions Bachaladevi the queen of Manmasiddha in a manner that implies that Manma was still alive.

Manmasiddhi is spoken of as the ruler of the earth bounded by the ocean. His earliest record is from Chaganam (Rapur taluq) dated in the 23rd year of Kulottunga III mentioning him as Nallasiddarasan. His next record is from Nandalur dated in the 24th year of Kulottunga III recording a gift by Nukkamadevi, the queen of M.P.C. Nallasiddarasan. The record at Gumupadu dated in the 27th year ofTribhuvana Chakravarti (Kulottunga III) records M.P C. Nallasiddharasa’s grant of Vellur in Melaipattaiyanadu to the deity. The Nandalur epigraph of the 26th year of Kulottunga IIT, records Nallsiddhi’s exemption of three villages from taxes. In the 27th year of Kulottunga III, Mayilamadevi Pattarasa, son of M.P.C. Nallasiddharasa made a grant at Mallam. The identity of this Bettarasa with M.P. Peddarasa of Tokapaligudur record (A.D 1204) mistaking the date to be A D. 1214 has been suggested. Nallassiddha’s record from Nellore dated in the 31st year of Kulottgnga III records gifts to Pallikondaperumal at Triupparkodal by his follower Periyasittappanayakan. His last record is from Battepadu (Nellore District) dated in the 35 year of Kuloltunga III. His record from Tirualangadu also of Kulottunga’s reign mentions him as Manumasittiaraiyan and another undated record from Nellore recording grant of some land as kimvidaiyattam to the temple by Periyanattuvishayar, who met in Chittiramelinaantapa. This attests Choi a suzerainty over the Telugu chola kingdom. Besides the names—Srikulottungachaturvedimangalam, applied to Nirendanur. Andappur, and Man tram—in the record of the 26th year of Kulottunga III and the specification of Nellore to have been located in Padanadu in Chadikulamanikkavalanadu in Jayamgondacholamandalam and Nellurnadu in Jayangonda cholamandalam speak for Manmasiddha’s loyalty to the cholas.

But in two of his latter records, Manmasiddha does not mention Kulottunga III. And on the other claims to have levied tribute from Kanchi and assumed all the titles of Nallasiddha I mentioned in his Chanduru inscription. Manmasiddha’s record from Dubagunta dated A.D. 1214 gives his prasasti mentioning the epithet Kanchimgappa Gonnatti. His Nanepedu inscription of A.D. 1217 gives Manmasiddhi’s prasasti and mentions him as Viranallasiddharadeva C.M. So to wards, the close of the reign of Kulottunga III, from A.D. 1214 onwards, Manmasiddha seems to have acted as an independent ruler, as his uncle Nallasiddha I did from A.D. 1183 to 1192 and was subdued like him by Rajaraja III.

In the words of Professor Sastri.

“The Bhujabalavira records are few and extend over practically the whole of Kulottunga’s reign. I think that Nallasiddha, the son of Errasiddha is himself the author of these records the titles in which are indicative of his claim to independence. Such pretensions records could not be issued every day and were published whenever in the estimate of Nallasiddha, Kulottunga was too preoccupied to notice his action. Some such assumption would explain the factors of the Tummusiddhi records on the death of the eldest son of Errasiddha. If these assumptions are correct, we may distinquish two periods when Nallasiddha found it possible to act like an independent chief (2) From A.D.1214 towards the close of Kulottunga’s reign when that monarch was once more drawn into an encounter with the Pandyas”.

Thus

“in the last few years when the Chola monarch had to meet a powerful enemy in Marvarman Sundara Pandya, they (the Telugu chodas) seem to have made another and a more successful effort to assert their independence.”

Manmasiddha must have associated in governing the kingdom his brothers Betta I and Tammusiddhi, and sons. Tikka or Tirukalatti and Betarasa—the latter figuring in two records of Kulottunga’s 27th and 29th years. The records of Nallasiddha I, Errasiddha and Tammusiddha are found in this period. The Arulala perumal inscription calls Manma a great ruler. His kakatiya contemporary was Ganapati with whom he did not come into conflict.

Manmasiddha contracted alliances of marriage with the Rajaraja pattai chief the Naga rulers of Nellore, his contemporaries being Peddarasa (A.D. 1203-4) and Siddharasa (A.D. 1213-14). Queen Bachaladevi, wife of Manmasiddhi was the elder sister of Rajaraja pattai Sittarasan, figuring in a record of the 36th year of Tribhuvanavira, and daughter of Mattidenadesan, Rajarajupattai Bettarasan. Besides Irumadi Sriyadevi, wife of Rajarajapattai Siddharasa, obviously the brother-in-law of Mamumasiddha, was the daughter of Uraiyur Cholan alias Suralvar Kittadevar, probably a prince of the Telugu chola family of Nellore.

Prithvisvara of the Velanandu chodas, Allmtikka of the Telugu Pal lavas, Madhavadeva of the Yadava, were contemporary with Manmasiddha’s reign ended by A.D. 1205—the earliest date for Tammasiddhi. For the record says that when he died the middle brother king Betta being given to the practice of ansterities conferred by the government on his younger brother Tammusiddhi. But as Manmasiddha’s records dated A.D. 1210 are available, his death must have occurred after that year. So once again the evidence of Tammusiddha’s records cannot be taken as correct wholly we may not have that Nallasiddha of the Telugu Pallavas in the Tiruppukkali record does not bear any relationship to our Nallasiddha alias Manmasiddha as has been mentioned, though the Telugu Pallavas, tha Yadavarayas and the Telugu cholas ruling contemporaneously bore similar names e.g. Tirukalatti, Gandagopala, Manmasiddha, Nallasiddha and so forth.