Pazhayarai
Pazhayarai or Pazhaiyarai was an ancient capital of the medieval Chola dynasty in Tamil Nadu. Today there are a number of villages within the area of historic Pazhaiyarai.There are lot of small villages inside the historical town of Pazhayarai - Thirunandipura Vinnagaram, Sathi mutram, Patteeswaram with all their temples. There were four legendary temples, Vadathali, Kelthali, Metrali and Thenthali across four sides of the city. The houses of the warriors namely Aru padai veedu, Pudhu padai veedu, Manapadai veedu and Pambai padai veedu. There was only one palace for Vijayalaya Chola, but later individual palaces were built for all the princes. The great Chola king Rajaraja I, who built the Big Temple of Thanjavur is said to have spent his last days in the town, the capital of his predecessors. Rajaraja Chola's final resting place is in the present-day village of Udayalur, within a few kilometers of Pazhayarai.
