Telangana was the center of culture, learning, and power in the Deccan and India for centuries. Telangana's long and rich history was shaped by the great empires that have risen and fell in its area. After the decline of the influential Mauryan Empire, the Satavahana dynasty (230 BCE to 220 CE), the first great Telugu empire, came to be the dominant power in the region. It originated from the land
s between the Godavari and Krishna Rivers. Kotilingala in Karimnagar was their first capital, before moving to Dharanikota.[7] Excavations at Kotilingala revealed coinage of Simukha, the first Satavahana emperor. The Satavahana Empire was important in repelling foreign empires from India, such as the Kushans, Sakas and Greeks, thereby preserving Indian culture. After the decline of the Satavahanas, various dynasties ruled the region such as the Vakatakas, Vishnukundinas, Chalukyas, Rashtrakutas and Western Chalukyas. The Warangal fort built by Kakatiyas
Ramappa Temple
Sangameshwar Temple at AlampurThe region experienced its golden age during the reign of the Kakatiya dynasty, a Telugu dynasty from Warangal that ruled most parts of what is now Andhra Pradesh from 1083 to 1323 AD. Ganapatideva, who came to power in 1199, was known as the greatest of the Kakatiyas, and the first after the Satavahanas to bring the entire Telugu area under one rule. He put an end to the rule of the Cholas, who accepted his suzerainty in the year 1210. He established order in his vast dominion that stretched from the Godavari delta in the east to Raichur (in modern day Karnataka) in the west and from Karimnagar and Bastar (in modern day Chhattisgarh) in the north to Srisailam and Tripurantakam, near Ongole, in the south. It was during his reign that the Golkonda fort was constructed. Rudrama Devi and Prataparudra were prominent rulers from the Kakatiya dynasty. Kakatiya dynasty weakened with the attack of Malik Kafur in 1309 and was dissolved with the defeat of Prataparudra in 1323 by the forces of Muhammad bin Tughlaq in 1323. The great Vijayanagara Empire of South India may have had its origins in the Telugu Kakatiyas of Warangal. The Telugu origin of the dynasty proposes that first kings of the empires, brothers Bukka Raya I and Harihara I, were generals in the Kakatiya army. After defeat of the army by Muhammad bin Tughlaq, the brothers were taken prisoner and forced to convert to Islam. However, they managed escape, reconfirm their Hindu faith, and establish the Vijayanagara Empire. The region came under the Muslim rule of the Delhi Sultanate in the 14th century, followed by Bahmanis. Sultan Quli, a governor of Golkonda, revolted against the Bahmani Sultanate and established the Qutb Shahi dynasty in 1518. On 21 September 1687, the Golkonda Sultanate came under the rule of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb after a year-long siege of the Golkonda fort.[8]
In 1712, Asif Jah I was appointed to be Viceroy of the Deccan, with the title Nizam-ul-Mulk (Administrator of the Realm). In 1724, Asif Jah I defeated Mubariz Khan to establish autonomy over the Deccan Suba, starting what came to be known as the Asif Jahi dynasty. Subsequent rulers retained the title Nizam ul-Mulk and were referred to as Asif Jahi Nizams, or Nizams of Hyderabad. When Asif Jah I died in 1748, there was political unrest due to contention for the throne among his sons, who were aided by opportunistic neighbouring states and colonial foreign forces. In 1769, Hyderabad city became the formal capital of the Nizams. Nizam signed Subsidiary alliance in 1799 with British and lost its control over the state's defence and foreign affairs. Hyderabad state became princely state in British India. From the late nineteenth century on, Hyderabad was transformed into a modern city with the establishment of railway, transport services, underground drainage, running water, electricity, Begumpet Airport, telecommunications, universities and industries.
