Vedaraniyam, India

History

The recorded history of Vedaranyam is found from the inscriptions in Vedaranyeswarar Temple. The inscriptions date from the reign of Aditya Chola (871–907), Rajaraja Chola I (985–1014), Rajendra Chola I (1012–1044) and Kulothunga Chola I (1070–1120) indicating various grants to the temple. Paranjothi Munivar, a 13th-century saint, who wrote the book Thiruvilaiyadal Puranam, was born at Vedaranyam.

Vedaranyam continued to be a part of the Chola Empire and the Chola region emerged as a centre of Saivism during the reign of Kulothunga Chola I (1070–1120). After the fall of Cholas during the reign of Rajendra Chola III in the 13th century, the erstwhile Chola region was caught under a power struggle between Pandyas and Hoysalas. The royal patronage continued to the temple during the rule of the Nayaks. The Negapatam region (modern day Nagapattinam district) was briefly captured by French troops led by Lally (1702–66) in 1759. The Tanjore district was annexed by British after the French failed to subdue the king of Tanjore.

During the British period, Vedaranyam was part of Thiruthuraipoondi Taluk under Tanjore district. Salt from Vedaranyam was transported to Nagapttinam port through a 32 mi (51 km) long canal. The channel was constructed in 1869 because road transportation facilities between these two towns were limited.

From the History section of Vedaranyam on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.