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Kingdom of Travancore
Kingdom of Travancore (pronounced /ˈtrævəŋkɔər/; Malayalam:
തിരുവിതാംകൂര്*, tiruvitāṁkūr ? [t̪iɾuʋit̪aːɱkuːr]) was a princely state in the Indian subcontinent, with its capital at Trivandrum (now Thiruvananthapuram) ruled by the Travancore Royal Family. It comprised most of modern day southern Kerala, the Kanyakumari district, and the southernmost parts of Tamil Nadu. Its ruler was accorded a 19-gun salute by the British Empire. Maharaja Marthanda Varma is usually credited as the founder of "modern Travancore". The state's flag was red with a silver, dextrally-coiled, sacred conch shell (Turbinella pyrum). After India's independence in 1947, Travancore and the princely state of Cochin merged on 1 July 1949 to form the Indian state of Travancore-Cochin. Later Travancore-Cochin joined with the Malabar district of the Madras State (modern day Tamil Nadu), on 1 November 1956, to form the Indian state of Kerala. The last Maharajah was Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma and the last Dewan was PGN Unnithan.
Travancore was located in present day southern Kerala. The rulers of this state were named Sree Padmanabhadasan - servant of the Deity, Padmanabha Swamy, an aspect of Lord Vishnu. The former Kingdom's geography is defined by three natural terrains - a coastal area to the west, a midland in the centre and mountain peaks as high as 9,000 feet on the east.
Marthanda Varma was a powerful ruler who expanded the Kingdom from Kanyakumari in the South to Idappally in the North. He signed a treaty with the British East India company and with their help destroyed the power of the eight feudal land lords (Ettuveetil Pillamar) and the Ettara Yogam who supported the Thampi sons of the previous King Rajah Rama Varma, Travancore Royal Family followed the Nair "Marumakkathayam" system, so inheritance went to the sister's children, instead of the children of the king. In successive battles, he defeated and absorbed the Kingdoms right up to Cochin including Attingal, Kollam, Kayamkulam, Kottarakara, Kottayam, Changanassery, Meenachil, Poonjar and Ambalapuzha. He succeeded in defeating the Dutch East India Company during the Travancore–Dutch war (1739-1753 A.D.), the most decisive engagement of which was the Battle of Colachel (10 August 1741) in which the Dutch Admiral Eustachius De Lannoy was captured. On January 3, 1750 A.D., (Makaram 5, 725 M.E.), he dedicated his Kingdom to his tutelary deity Sri. Padmanabha (Lord Vishnu) of Trivandrum (the Trippadidaanam) and from then on the rulers of Travancore ruled the Kingdom as the servants of Sri Padmanabha (Padmnabhadasan). In 1753 A.D., the Dutch signed a peace treaty with the Maharajah. With the battle of Ambalapuzha (3 January 1754) in which he defeated the union of the deposed Kings and the Raja of Cochin, Marthanda Varma crushed all opposition to his rule. In 1757 A.D., a treaty was concluded between Travancore and Cochin, ensuring peace and stability on the Northern border. He organised the tax system and constructed many irrigation works. Admiral Eustachius De Lannoy, who was captured as a Prisoner of war in the famous Battle of Colachel was appointed as the Senior Admiral (Valiya kappithan)and he modernised the Travancore army by introducing firearms and artillery. Ayyappan Marthanda Pillai served as the "Sarvadi Karykar" (Head of the Army Nair pattalam). Marthanda Varma introduced titles such as Chempaka Raman and honours such as Ettarayum Koppum to honour the Lords and his relatives who had remained faithful to him during his problems with the Ettuveetil Pillamar. His able minister during his entire military career was Ramayyan Dalawa.
Rajput States
A Rajput (Hindi:
राजपूत) is a member of one of the major groups of the Hindu Kshatriya varna (social order) in the Indian subcontinent, particularly North India. They enjoy a reputation as soldiers; many of them serve in the Indian Armed Forces. During the British Raj, the Government accepted them and recruited many (primarily non-aristocratic) Rajputs into their armies. Current-day Rajasthan is home to most of the Rajputs, although demographically the Rajput population and the former Rajput states are found spread through much the subcontinent, particularly in North India and central India. Populations are found in Himachal Pradesh, Jammu, Punjab, Uttaranchal, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh.
There is no mention of the term Rajput in the historical record as pertaining to a social group prior to the 6th century AD. Rajputs rose to prominence during the 6th to 12th centuries, and until the 20th century Rajputs ruled in the "overwhelming majority" of the princely states of Rajasthan and Saurashtra, where the largest number of princely states were found. Rajputs ruled more than 400 of the estimated 600 princely states and 81 of the 121 Salute states extant at the time of India's independence in 1947.[citation needed]They are divided into three major lineages. The four Agnivanshi clans, namely the Pratiharas (Pariharas), Solankis (Chaulukyas), Paramaras (Parmars) and Chauhans (Chahamanas), rose to prominence first.
Maharaja Sawai Pratapsingh was a Kachwaha ruler of Jaipur from 1778 to 1803. He has no relation to Pratap Singh, Maharana of Mewar. He was born on December 1764 and succeeded his father Madho Singh I. He was grandson of Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, founder of Jaipur. He is known for constructing Hawa Mahal.
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Originally Posted by Marcus Aurelius
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I just can't wait to try this out.
In which year will it start?
. Excellent work. DLing now 
