History of South Asia |
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The history of southern India covers a span of over four thousand years during which the region saw the rise and fall of a number of dynasties and empires.
The period of known history of southern India begins with the Iron Age (c. 1200 BCE–200 BCE), Sangam period (c. 600 BCE–300 CE) and Medieval southern India until the 15th century CE. Dynasties of Chera, Chola, Pandyan, Travancore, Cochin, Zamorin, Kolathunadu, Chalukya, Pallava, Satavahana, Rashtrakuta, Western Ganga, Kakatiya, Hoysala, Reddy dynasty, Seunas, Vijayanagara Empire and the Bahmani Sultanate were at their peak during various periods of history.
The Vijayanagara Empire rose in response to the Islamic intervention and covered most of southern India. It acted as a bulwark against Deccan Sultanate and Mughal expansion into the south. When the European powers arrived during the 16th and 18th century CE, the southern kingdoms, most notably Tipu Sultan's Kingdom of Mysore, resisted the new threats, and many parts eventually succumbed to British conquest. The British created the Madras Presidency which acted as an administrative centre for the rest of southern India, with them being princely states. After Indian independence, southern India was linguistically divided into the states of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana and Kerala.