Heritage Hampi: Splendour Of Ruins

Hampi, with its temple complexes, palaces and fortresses, epitomised the rich historical, architectural-cultural and cosmopolitan legacy of the Vijayanagara Empire, which flourished on the banks of the Tungabhadra for more than 200 years from the mid 14th century. It is second on The New York Times list of 52 places to visit in 2019.

- Shashank Shekhar Sinha

Hampi is a village situated on the banks of the Tungabhadra river in Bellari district of Karnataka. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1986, it served as the imperial capital of Vijayanagara, arguably the largest, wealthiest and most powerful kingdom in south India and the greatest Hindu empire in the medieval period. Hampi was known by various names at different points of time: Hosapattana (New City), Vijayanagara (City of Victory), Vidyanagara (City of Learning) or Hampe, Pampa-kshetra and Pampa-pura—after the local goddess Pampa, who was worshipped even before the seventh century C.E.

Before it became part of Vijayanagara, the area around Hampi was ruled by several Hindu dynasties: the Kadambas, the Chalukyas of Badami, the Rashtrakutas, the Chalukyas of Kalyani, the Hoyasalas, the Yadavas and the Kampili chiefs. Most such Hindu kingdoms in the Deccan, constantly fighting amongst themselves, were overrun by the Delhi Sultanate in the early 14th century. The weakening hold of the Sultanate in the region together with the resistance offered by the local chieftains led to the emergence of two kingdoms around the mid 14th century: the Vijayanagara Empire (1336) based around Hampi and the Bahmani Sultanate (1347) centred around Gulbarga and Bidar. Both these kingdoms were continuously at war with one another.