ARAVIDU DYNASTY

fourth and last dynasty of the Hindu empire of Vijayanagar in South India. Its founder was Tirumala, whose brother Rama Raya had been the masterful regent of the last ruler of the previous dynasty. Rama Raya's death at the Battle of Rakasa-Tangadi (also known as Talikota) in 1565 and the subsequent destruction of Vijayanagar by the combined forces of the Muslim states of Bijapur, Ahmadnagar, and Golconda was a deadly blow to the empire. Tirumala, who became emperor in 1570, fixed his capital at Penugonda. But, beset by the Muslim powers, family disputes, and revolts of Hindu chiefs in the south, the Vijayanagar empire gradually dissolved by the first half of the 17th century.