Tuluva Narasa Nayaka


Tuluva Narasa Nayaka was the founder of the Tuluva dynasty of the Vijayanagara Empire. He was the father of emperor Krishnadevaraya.

Background

Tuluva Narasa Nayaka, like his father Tuluva Ishvara Nayaka, was a commander in the Vijayanagara Empire. After the death of king Saluva Narasimha in 1491, crown prince Thimma Bhupala was murdered by an army commander. The faithful Narasa Nayaka then crowned the other prince, Narasimha Raya II but retained all administrative powers in order to bring stability to the kingdom. He was called the rakshakarta and svami. He held the offices of the senadhipati, the mahapradhana and the karyakarta of the king. He successfully kept the Bahamani Sultans and the Gajapatis away from the kingdom and quelled many rebellions by unfaithful chieftains, trying to exert their independence.
He was succeeded by his son Viranarasimha Raya.