Everyone knows about Rani Rudramadevi, and rightfully so. But let me present to you the history of another Telugufemale warrior whose story has largely been wiped out of the pages of history. It took a painstaking amount of research to uncover the story of this woman whose heroism was a saving grace during the Battle of Gandikota. Her exceptional work as the ruler of a fiefdom is surpassed by her warriorship. She is not famous, but she deserves to be.
Govindamamba was born into the illustrious Pemmasani Nayak clan. Among the Vijayanagara Nayaka clans. the Pemmasanis were one of the most important. An account by the Portuguese traveler Nunez describes how it was the Pemmasani Nayaks, specifically Pemmasani Ramalinga, who led the Vijayanagara charge to defeat Adil Shah of Bijapur at the Battle of Raichur. The Pemmasanis, as recounted by Burton Stein, were the “Vanguard” of the Vijayanagara Empire.
Govindamamba was the younger sister of Pemmasani Timmanayaka, who was the feudatory ruler of Gandikota sima (region). According to a French Jeweller-traveler named Jean Baptiste Tavernier, Timmanayaka was considered to be one of the best and bravest commanders of the Aravidu Dynasty, the last one of Vijayanagara. Though she was married into the Sayapaneni Nayaka family, who themselves were the rulers in Coastal Andhra between the Krishna and Pennar Rivers, she retained close links to her family. Govindamamba was granted her own jagir (feudal estate) by her brother. Amongst the towns in this jagir, which is located in present-day Anantapur District, was a town that held a matha established by Sri Vijaya Bharatulu. This town and matha had gone into disrepair and disregard. When Govindamamba began her control over this area, the Mackenize Manuscripts recorded that she revitalized the town, and it was renamed Govindammapeta in her honor. Her contributions to the jagir she controlled were surpassed by the warriorhood that she achieved at the Battle of Gandikota.
The Battle of Gandikota (1649–1650 AD)
During the reign of Sri Ranga III of Vijayanagara, the last Vijayanagara Emperor, a Qutb Shahi general by the name of Mir Jumla laid and captured a number of forts in the Rayalaseema region, including a notable one named Gooty. Moreover, Mir Jumla was in secret connivance with Aurangzeb of the Mughal Empire.
Mir Jumla finally turned his eyes to Gandikota Fort. He set up camp outside the fort walls and besieged it for six months. The Gandikota Kaifiyat depicts graphic proceedings in this battle and siege. The explosions of the guns (likely cannons) that were used by Mir Jumla and his forces were so severe that pregnant women inside Gandikota had abortions and men in Pemmasani’s Army perished when they were in the vicinity of the shock.
It was during this tough time that Govindamamba showed her skill. She was a leading figure in the fight against Mir Jumla. She actively wielded her sword against the Qutb Shahi forces and routed many of them. During this conflict, her husband, Sayapaneni Narasimha Nayaka, who was also an active commander of the Pemmasani forces, perished at the hands of a certain General Abdul Nabi. When news reached Govindamamba, she hunted down ferociously Abdul Nabi to avenge the death of her husband. The efforts of generals and warriors, like Govindamamba, kept Gandikota free of Mir Jumla for a while and made him resort to treachery to get his way.
It is not known if Govindamaba died during this conflict, but her exploits during this battle are ones that Telugus and Indians should be aware of.
The Fall of Gandikota
Realizing how difficult it was break the Gandikota rulers, Mir Jumla resorted to treachery. He sent a message to Timmanayaka saying that if he surrendered Gandikota, he would be given the illustrious Gooty Fort. Perhaps the months of siege and bloodshed waned on Timma, because he agreed to the arrangement and trusted Mir Jumla’s word. Once Mir Jumla got Gandikota Fort, he sent a qual (a grant of control) to Timmanayaka. But lo and behold, Mir Jumla gave him a fort called Hanumma Gutti, which was a smaller and a random fort that was not the Gooty Fort that Mir Jumla had originally specified.
Once in control of Gandikota, Mir Jumla and his forces ransacked the entire fort that once was a crown jewel of Vijayanagara. The fort was looted and the images of the gods in the temples of Gandikota were melted. To this day, visitors to Gandikota will find the murthis of the gods missing from the garbhagriha. The temples that were constructed by the Pemmasanis in their area of control, including the Ranganatha Swamy Temple and Bugga Ramalingeshwara Swamy Temple, would fall into great neglect. Gandikota and Gandikota sima would never experience the glory it had under the Pemmasanis and the Vijayanagara Empire.
Author: Satyanarayana Sastry
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