Hindu temples and maths · The Chola empire of Kulottunga III · as at first light, 1 January 1200

Tiruvarur

A great Saiva temple of the south delta with a huge tank (Kamalalayam) and the Tyagaraja shrine; one of the oldest Chola royal temples.

Kulottunga III enlarged it (English Wikipedia). It holds many villages.

Who holds it

Name
not named in any source we reached
Title
Managers of the Tyagaraja temple
Since
not known
Born
not known
Confidence
low

Overlord

Kulottunga III Chola

What it holds

  • Temple villages
  • The temple tank and staff

Allies and rivals

Kulottunga III Chola

How things stand that morning

A flourishing royal temple town.

Wealth

Temple villages, offerings.

Military

No armed force is recorded for the house.

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: The house is well known and its patrons and fabric are described in the pages we read; no page we read names its managers or any act of it in 1200, so the 1200 position is inferred.

On the map: Drawn as a small disc round the shrine; the real estates were scattered villages.

Primary sources for Chola empire

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

4 more in the sources library for Southern India and Sri Lanka.

Sources and studies

  1. Thiruvarur, English Wikipedia

Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.