Tamil monarchs

Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 47. Chapters: Madurai Nayak Dynasty, Raja Raja Chola I, Puli Thevar, Rajendra Chola I, Thanjavur Nayak kingdom, Veerapandiya Kattabomman, Pallava, Kundavai Pirattiyar, Nayaks of Gingee, Elara, Malaiyaman Thirumudi Kari, Maruthu Pandiyar, Athiyaman Neduman Añci, List of Tamil kings, Irunkovel, Vaiyavik Kopperum Pekan, Vel Pari, Rajaditya Chola, Dheeran Chinnamalai, Velu Nachiyar, Pandara Vannian, Thondaman Dynasty, Yanaikat-sey Mantaran Cheral, Magadai, Arikesari Maravarman, Ilandiraiyan, Tagadur Erinda Perumcheral, Parameswaran II. Excerpt: The Madurai Nayaks or Nayak Dynasty of Madurai were rulers of a region comprising most of modern-day Tamil Nadu, India, with Madurai as their capital. The Nayak reign was an era noted for its achievement in arts, cultural and administrative reforms, revitalization of temples previously ransacked by the Delhi Sultans, and inauguration of a unique architectural style. The dynasty consisted of 13 rulers, of whom 9 were kings, 2 were queens, and 2 were joint-kings. The most notable of these were the king, Tirumalai Nayak, and the queen, Rani Mangammal. Foreign trade was conducted mainly with the Dutch and the Portuguese, as the British and the French had not yet made inroads in the region. Madurai Nayaks belonged to Telugu speaking Early in the fourteenth century AD a dispute arose over the succession to the Pandya throne. One claimant appealed for help to emperor Ala-ud-din of Delhi, who dispatched his general, Malik Kafur, in 1310 AD. Malik Kafur marched south, ransacking kingdoms on the way and causing enormous changes to the political configuration of central and Southern India. He marched into Madurai, sacking the town, paralysing trade, suppressing public worship, and making civilian life miserable. The great Meenakshi temple with its fourteen towers was pulled down, destroying the nearby streets and buildings, and leaving only the two shrines of Sundaresvara and Meenakshi intact. The events are controversial: as another account describes them, Malik Kafur returned to Delhi following these events. The Pandyas protested the invasion, which continued for a few years in spasmodic fashion. The weakness of the Pandya regime caused the neighboring Chera ruler to invade and defeat the Pandya ruler, and he crowned himself in 1313. This Chera occupation was transitory; a Muslim dynasty was soon re-established at Madurai, ruling Madurai, Trichinopoly and even South Arcot, for the next 48 years, first as feudatories of the Delhi Sultanate and later as independent monarchies.