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Rajendra Chola I's South-East Asian campaign
Map of the Chola empire after Rajendra I's South-east Asian campaign.
Date 1025–1068 CE Location Southern Thailand, Myanmar, Malaysia, Philippines and Indonesia Result Chola victory Much of Malay Peninsula sacked and conquered by the Cholas Expansion of Indian influence & culture into Southeast Asia Dissolution of Srivijayan mandala Conquest of Pegu (Burma) Later campaigns in the Philippines by other Cholas Establishment of Rajahanate of Cebu
Belligerents
Chola Empire Supported by: Khmer Empire	Srivijaya Kadaram Kingdom of Pegu Pennai Malayiur Mayirudingam Langkasuka Mappapalam Talaittakkolam Nakkavadam
Commanders and leaders
Rajendra the Great	Sangrama Wijaya (POW) Samara Vijayatunggavarman
Strength
Unknown	Unknown
Casualties and losses
Unknown	Unknown

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Inscriptions and historical sources assert that the Medieval Chola Emperor Rajendra I sent a naval expedition to Indochina, the Indonesia and Malay Peninsula in 1025 in order to subdue Srivijaya. The Thiruvalangadu plates, the Leyden grant, and the Tamil stele of Rajendra I are the principal sources of information about the campaign.

Sources

The most detailed source of information on the campaign is the Tamil stele of Rajendra I. The stele states:

(Who) having despatched many ships in the midst of the rolling sea and having caught Sangrāma-vijayōttunga-varman, the king of Kadāram, together with the elephants in his glorious army, (took) the large heap of treasures, which (that king) had rightfully accumulated; (captured) with noise the (arch called) Vidhyādharatorana at the "war gate" of his extensive city, Śrī Vijaya with the "jewelled wicket-gate" adorned with great splendour and the "gate of large jewels"; Paṇṇai with water in its bathing ghats; the ancient Malaiyūr with the strong mountain for its rampart; Māyuriḍingam, surrounded by the deep sea (as) by a moat; Ilangāśōka (i.e. Lankāśōka) undaunted in fierce battles; Māpappālam having abundant (deep) water as defence; Mēviḷimbangam having fine walls as defence; Vaḷaippandūru having Viḷappandūru (?); Talaittakkōlam praised by great men (versed in) the sciences; Mādamālingam, firm in great and fierce battles; Ilāmuridēśam, whose fierce strength rose in war; Mānakkavāram, in whose extensive flower gardens honey was collecting; and Kadāram, of fierce strength, which was protected by the deep sea

The Thiruvalangadu plates, from the fourteenth year of Rajendra Chola I, mentions his conquest of Kadaram but does not go into the details. The first attempt by someone from outside India to identify the places associated with the campaign was made by epigraphist E. Hultzsch, who had published the stele in 1891. Hultzsch identified the principalities mentioned in the inscription with places ruled by the Pandyan Dynasty. In 1903, he rescinded his theory and stated that the stele described Rajendra Chola I's conquest of Bago in Burma. George Coedès' Le Royaume de Sri Vijaya published in 1918 after several years of research, rejected both the theories and provided the first convincing description of Rajendra Chola I's conquest of Southeast Asia.

Causes

The relation between Srivijaya and the Chola dynasty of Tamilakam was initially friendly during the reign of Rajaraja I. In 1006 CE a Srivijayan Maharaja from Sailendra dynasty, king Maravijayattungavarman, constructed the Chudamani Vihara in the port town of Nagapattinam. However, during the reign of Rajendra I the relations deteriorate as the Chola Dynasty started to attack Srivijayan cities.

The causes of the hostility are obscure. While some scholars opine that the campaign was undertaken to establish Chola dominance over the seas of South-East Asia, other suggest that it might have been a war of plunder. It seems that the Khmer king Suryavarman I of the Khmer Empire requested aid from the powerful Chola Emperor Rajendra against the Tambralinga kingdom. After learning of Suryavarman's alliance with Rajendra Chola, the Tambralinga kingdom requested aid from the Srivijaya king Sangrama Vijayatungavarman. This eventually led to the Chola Empire coming into conflict with the Srivijiya Empire. The war ended with a victory for the Chola dynasty and Angkor Wat of the Khmer Empire, and major losses for the Srivijaya Empire and the Tambralinga kingdom.

Conquests

Sri Vijaya

The stele of Rajendra Chola I mentions Sri Vijaya as the first of the countries conquered. The Tamil inscription lists Sri Vijaya with "its jewelled wicket-gate" and "a gate of large jewels" as the first of the treasures captured by the fleet. The Sri Vijaya, mentioned in the inscriptions, has been identified by Coedès with the Sri Vijaya kingdom which rule from its base at Palembang in South Sumatra.

Pannai

Pannai, with its bathing ghats, is second of the lands to be conquered by the naval fleet. Pannai has been identified as Panai or Pane, a city on the eastern coast of North Sumatra, located on the estuary of Panai River and Barumun River.

Malaiyur

Malaiyur, with "its strong mountain", has been identified with Malayu in today Jambi province in Batanghari river valley, where a strong principality flourished at that time. Other suggestion is the southern part of the Malay Peninsula

Mayirudingam

Mayirudingam is believed to be the same as Ji-lo-ting listed by the Chinese writer Chau Ju-Kua among the dependencies of Sri Vijaya and is identified with the city of Chaiya in the centre of the Malay Peninsula.

Ilangasoka

The land of Ilangasoka (Langkasuka) mentioned in the inscriptions has been located on the east coast of the Malay Peninsula and is believed to be the same as the province of Ling-ya-sseu-kia mentioned in Chau Ju-Kua's list.

Mapappalam

The epigraphist V. Venkayya identifies Mapappalam of the inscription with the city of Papphalama mentioned in the Mahavamsa. The place is believed to be located in the Talaing region of Lower Burma.

Talaittakkolam

Talaittakkolam is believed to be the same as Takkola mentioned by Ptolemy as a trading emporion on the Golden Chersonese, and identified with Trang or the modern-day city of Takuapa in the Isthmus of Kra.

Nakkavaram

Nakkavaram, mentioned in the records, has been identified by V. Venkayya with the Nicobar Islands.

Kadaram

The place Kadaram (modern Kedah) mentioned in the stele is identified with the Kataha of Sanskrit literature and Kadaram of the Kalingattuparani and the Kiet-cha of the Chinese chronicles.

Results

The Southeast Asia campaign intensified interactions between India and Southeast Asia. The campaign also led to the establishment of diplomatic ties with China. The first Tamil embassy to the court of the Song Emperor was sent by Rajaraja I in 1015. This was followed by a second embassy by his son, Rajendra I, in 1033 and a third by Kulottunga I in 1077. The Chola Empire did not establish its direct rule over South-East Asia though they might have levied a periodic tribute.

Traders from the Tamil country firmly established themselves over various parts of South-East Asia. A merchant guild was set up in Burma and another in Sumatra in 1088. Indian historian V. R. Ramachandra Dikshitar suggests that Tamil traders of the Chola period might have had a knowledge of Australia and Polynesia.

Notes

1. Cotterell, Arthur (16 May 2011). Asia: A Concise History. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-0-470-82957-8.
2. Pearson, Michael (December 2010). "Book Review: Nagapattinam to Suvarnadwipa: Reflections on the Chola Naval Expeditions to Southeast Asia". International Journal of Maritime History. 22 (2): 352–354. doi:10.1177/084387141002200220. ISSN 0843-8714. S2CID 127026949.
3. "Nagapattinam to Suvarnadwipa: Reflections on the Chola Naval Expeditions to Southeast Asia | ISEAS Publishing". bookshop.iseas.edu.sg. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
4. Spencer, George W. (May 1976). "The Politics of Plunder: The Cholas in Eleventh-Century Ceylon". The Journal of Asian Studies. 35 (3): 405–419. doi:10.2307/2053272. ISSN 1752-0401. JSTOR 2053272. S2CID 154741845.
5. ^ Kulke, p 212
6. ^ Sastri, p 211
7. Majumdar, R. C. (1937). Ancient Indian colonies in the Far East. Vol. 2: Suvarnadvipa. Dacca: Ashok Kumar Majumdar. pp. 167–190.
8. ^ Sastri, p 212
9. ^ Sastri, p 213
10. ^ Sastri, pp 219–220
11. Power and Plenty: Trade, War, and the World Economy in the Second Millennium by Ronald Findlay,Kevin H. O'Rourke p.67
12. ^ Kenneth R. Hall (October 1975), "Khmer Commercial Development and Foreign Contacts under Sūryavarman I", Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient 18 (3), pp. 318-336, Brill Publishers
13. ^ R. C. Majumdar (1961), "The Overseas Expeditions of King Rājendra Cola", Artibus Asiae 24 (3/4), pp. 338-342, Artibus Asiae Publishers
14. ^ Sastri, p 215
15. ^ Sastri, p 216
16. W. Linehan (1951). "The Identifications of Some of Ptolemy's Place Names in the Golden Khersonese" (PDF). Journal of the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society. xxiv (III): 86–98. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 February 2017.
17. Arokiaswamy, Celine W.M. (2000). Tamil Influences in Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines. Manila s.n. p. 46.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
18. Sastri, p 217
19. Sastri, p 218
20. Gupta, S. M. (1995). The Indian origin of New Zealand's Maori. Hindu World Publications. p. 61.

Bibliography

• Kulke, Hermann; Kesavapany, K.; Sakhuja, Vijay (2009). Nagapattinam to Suvarnadwipa: Reflections on Chola naval expeditions to Southeast Asia. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. ISBN 978-9812309365.
• Sastri, K. A. Nilakanta (2000) . The Cōlas. Madras: University of Madras.

• Military history of Southeast Asia
• 1025 in Asia
• Military campaigns involving the Chola Empire
• Conflicts in 1025
• History of the foreign relations of India
• Naval battles involving Cholas