Satavahanas

In the greater part of the Deccan , the Mauryas were followed by the Satavahanas who are said to have been Kannadigas and wrongly described in the Puranas as Andhras25. The place of origin of this family has given rise to much controversy. Bellary and Maharashtra25-a, have alternatively been suggested as the possible place of origin of this family. Those who hold the latter view argue that the Bellary region did not even form part of the Satavahana kingdom, even during the later powerful Satavahana king, Gautamiputra Satakarni (c. A. D. 100-130)26. They base their argument on two facts, namely, that the records of the early members of the Satavahana family have been found at Nasik and Nanaghat (a pass connecting the Konkan with Junnar in the Poona district) and that the Hathigumpha inscrip­tion of Kharavela places the Satavahana kingdom to the west rather than the south of Kalinga (the coastal country comprising mainly the Puri and Ganjam districts). But these arguments also are not enough to justify the placing of their origin in Maharashtra . It is quite possible that they had their humble origin in the Bellary region which later came to be called ' Satavahani hara ' or Satavahana province, and later spread north-wards. Moreover, in the excavations at Chandravalli and Brahmagiri in the Chitradurga district, south of the Bellary region, coins belonging to all the periods (early, middle and late) of the Satavahana rule have been founds27.

There is also difference of opinion regarding the Satavahana chronology. But without entering into the controversy, it may be accepted that the Satavahana rule began in about 230 B.C., i.e., immediately following the decay of Ashoka's empire and continued upto 220 A.D. or a few years later. There ruled in all 31 kings in the Satavahana dynasty. While many of these were insignifi­cant, the remaining few were really powerful kings. The kings of this family may be conveniently divided into three groups- early, middle and later. In the first group Simuka, Satakarni I and Satakarni II, in the second Kuntala, Pulomavi I and Hala and in the third Gautamiputra and Yajnasri were the important kings. Yajnasri was perhaps the last powerful ruler to control effectively the whole of the Satavahana Empire including the Maharashtra , the Kuntala and the Andhra regions.

The close connection between this family, particularly the later kings, and the Chitradurga district is beyond doubt. It is well proved by the Satavahana coins discovered at Chandravalli and the Satavahana inscriptions found at places like Malavalli28 and Bangavasi29.

Courtesy : Gazetteer of India, Chitradurga District, 1967.