Chamaraja Wodeyar

Maharaja Chamaraja Wodeyar
Maharaja of Mysore
Reign 1891 - 1894
Born 1863 (1863)
Birthplace Mysore
Died 1894 (1895)
Place of death Calcutta
Predecessor Mummadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar
Successor Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV
Consort Lakshmivilasa Sannidhana Sri Pratapa Kumari Ammani Avaru
Offspring Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV, Kanteerava Narasimharaja Wadiyar, Jayalakshmi Ammani, Krishnaraja Ammani, Chaluvaja Ammani
Royal House Wodeyar
Father Sardar Chikka Krishnaraj Urs
Mother Rajkumari Sri Puta Ammani Avaru

Chamaraja Wadiyar[1] X[2](Wodeyar) (1863–94) was the ruling Maharaja of Mysore between 1881 and 1894.

Contents

Adoption and accession

Chamaraja was born at the old palace in Mysore on February 22, 1863, as the third son of Sardar Chikka Krishnaraj Urs, of the Bettada-Kote branch of the ruling clan. His father died about a week before Chamaraja's birth. His mother, Rajkumari Sri Puta Ammani Avaru, was the eldest daughter of Krishnaraja Wodeyar III, the then Maharaja of Mysore. Following the failure of heirs male, Krishnaraja Wadiyar decided to adopt as heir his grandson, Chamaraja. This was done on June 18, 1865 and was recognized by the British government of India on 16 April 1867.

Krishnaraja Wadiyar III died on 27 March 1868, and Chamaraja Wadiyar ascended the throne at the royal palace, Mysore, on September 23, 1868. However, since 1831, the kingdom of Mysore had been under the direct administration of the British Raj, who had deposed Krishnaraja Wadiyar on allegations of misrule. Later, the privy council of the United Kingdom ordered the reversal of the British East India Company's decision to annex Mysore. By the "Rendition of 1881," the princely state of Mysore was reconstitited and restored to the Wadiyar dynasty. Chamaraja Wadiyar was groomed by the British to take charge of the administration. He was handed the reins of governance in 1881.

Reign

Chamaraja Wadiyar was the 23rd Maharaja of Mysore. Although his reign proved to be a brief one, he left an indelible mark on the Kingdom of Mysore and thereby on the present day Indian state of Karnataka.

He instituted the Representative Assembly of Mysore state in 1881. This was the first modern, democratic legislative institution of its kind in princely India. He sponsored the famous journey of Swami Vivekananda to Chicago in 1893. He gave primacy to women's education and founded the Kannada Bashojjivini School. He gave a fillip to the industrialisation of the Kingdom of Mysore by instituting several industrial schools and conducting the annual Dasara Industrial Exhibition. He facilitated the founding of Agricultural Banks to help finance farmers and initiated Life Insurance for government employees.

Many of the most famous landmarks of Mysore and Bangalore owe their existence to him. Prominent among these are:

Patronage

Mysore Kings

(1399-1950)
Under Vijayanagara Empire

(1399-1565)
Yaduraya (1399–1423)
Chamaraja Wodeyar I (1423–1459)
Timmaraja Wodeyar I (1459–1478)
Chamaraja Wodeyar II (1478–1513)
Chamaraja Wodeyar III (1513–1553)
Independent Wodeyar Kings

(1565-1761)
Timmaraja II (1553–1572)
Chamaraja Wodeyar IV (1572–1576)
Bettada Wodeyar (1576–1578)
Raja Wodeyar I (1578–1617)
Chamaraja Wodeyar V (1617–1637)
Raja Wodeyar II (1637–1638)
Narasaraja Wodeyar I (1638–1659)
Dodda Devaraja Wodeyar (1659–1673)
Chikka Devaraja Wodeyar (1673–1704)
Narasaraja Wodeyar II (1704–1714)
Krishnaraja Wodeyar I (1714–1732)
Chamaraja Wodeyar VI (1732–1734)
Under Haider Ali and Tipu Sultan

(1761-1799)
Krishnaraja Wodeyar II (1734–1766)
Nanjaraja Wodeyar (1766–1772)
Chamaraja Wodeyar VII (1772–1776)
Chamaraja Wodeyar VIII (1776–1796)
Under British Rule

(1799-1947)
Krishnaraja Wodeyar III (1799–1868)
Chamaraja Wodeyar IX (1881–1894)
Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV (1894–1940)
Jayachamaraja Wodeyar (1940–1950)
C Rajagopalachari (Governor-General - Republic of India)

Chamaraja Wadiyar was a great patron of arts and music, his court boasted of artists like Veena Subbanna, Veena Seshanna, K. Vasudevacharya, Veena Padmanabiah, Mysore Karigiri Rao and Bidaram Krishnappa among others.

The Maharaja was a violin virtoso himself and used to provide accompaniment daily to Veena Subbanna's vocal and Veena Sheshanna's veena performances. His favourite kriti's included "Sujana Jeevana" and "Lavanya Rama." He was also a connaisseur of Javali's (Kritis and Javalis are genres of Carnatic music).

Family

In May 1878, Chamaraja Wadiyar married Vani Vilasa Sannidhana Kempananja Ammani Avaru, daughter of an Arasu of Kalale, a prominent nobleman of Mysore state. They had four sons and three daughters, of whom the following survived to adulthood:

  1. Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV, succeeded his father as Maharaja of Mysore.
  2. Prince Kanteerava Narasimharaja Wadiyar, father of Jayachamaraja Wodeyar
  3. Princess Jayalakshmi Ammani, (1881–1924), married in 1897, her youngest maternal uncle, Sardar Kantaraj Urs, KCIE, CSI, Dewan of Mysore between 1919-1922. Manasa Gangotri - Post graduate centre of University of Mysore with the Bungalow Jayalakshammani Vilas Mansion was built as her Residence.
  4. Princess Krishnaraja Ammani, (1883–1904), married in 1896, Col. Devaraj Urs, CIE, MVO, an army officer and the Arasu of Bagle in Mysore state. She and her three daughters died of Tuberculosis> Royal family built the Princess Krishnajammanni sanitorium in her memory.
  5. Princess Chaluvaja Ammani (1886–1934), married in 1900, Sardar M. Lakshmikanta Raj Urs, a nobleman of Mysore state. Cheluvamba Mansion in Mysore, which presently houses the CFTRI, was built as her residence. There is also a maternity hospital and park named after her.

Chamaraja Wodeyar died of diphtheria, in Calcutta, on December 28, 1894, aged 31. He was succeeded by his 10-year-old son, Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV. His wife, Maharani Kempa Nanjammani Vani Vilasa Sannidhana Avaru, served as regent of Mysore during the minority of their son.

Title

His official full name was also His Highness Maharaja Sri Sir Chamaraja Wadiyar, GCSI, Maharaja of Mysore.

Notes

  1. ^ In this article, the Mysore Royal family surname has been spelt as Wadiyar instead of Wodeyar, as this is the way the family spell it.
  2. ^ Some historians refer to him as Chamaraja Wadiyar X (instead of IX) due some uncertainty in the order of lineage. The historian Hayavadana Rao, who has done extensive research on the subject, has favoured referring to him as Chamaraja Wadiyar IX. But as the Annals of Mysore Royal family a book published by the Royal House itself prefers appendage X, it has been reverted back
  3. ^ "A bit of Baroda in Mysore: Road in Sayajirao's name main market". The Times of India. Dec 28, 2009. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/vadodara/A-bit-of-Baroda-in-Mysore-Road-in-Sayajiraos-name-main-market/articleshow/5389215.cms. 

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