An Imperial Capital: Vijaynagara — NCERT Solutions

Yes, the term “royal centre” is appropriate, but only partly. It is appropriate because this part of the city contained the main structures associated with royal authority: the audience hall, the mahanavami dibba, palaces, elite buildings and important temples. It was the place where the kings staged ceremonies, received tribute and displayed power. The royal centre also had high walls and a special layout, showing that it was set apart from ordinary urban spaces. However, the term is not fully exact because it was not only a residence for kings. The chapter says that many of these buildings do not give clear evidence of being royal residences, and the area also contained over 60 temples. So the royal centre was as much a ritual and ceremonial zone as a political one. It was a space where kingship, religion and state display came together.

The Lotus Mahal and the elephant stables show that the rulers who commissioned them valued grandeur, sophistication and mixed architectural styles. The Lotus Mahal has elegant arches and a planned form, suggesting luxury and refined taste. The elephant stables are large, symmetrical structures, implying organised state power and the importance of elephants in warfare and ceremonial life. Together, these buildings suggest rulers who wanted to project royal splendour, command vast resources, and create impressive spaces for administration, leisure or ritual. They also show the influence of Indo-Islamic architecture, especially in the arches and domes, indicating that the rulers were open to borrowing styles from different traditions. The buildings therefore reflect both political power and artistic experimentation.

The architects of Vijayanagara were inspired by several earlier traditions. These included the long South Indian temple tradition of the Pallavas, Chalukyas, Hoysalas and Cholas, as well as features of Indo-Islamic architecture introduced by the Turkish Sultans. From earlier temple traditions they took gopurams, mandapas, pillared halls, corridors, temple tanks, chariot streets and the habit of building large temple complexes. From Indo-Islamic architecture they borrowed arches and domes. They transformed these traditions by making structures much larger and more imposing: the raya gopurams were often taller than the central shrines, and temple complexes became markers of imperial authority. They also used temples and shrines for political legitimation, linked royal power to divinity, and adapted older forms to create a distinctive imperial culture.

The chapter gives the impression that the ordinary people of Vijayanagara lived in a city that was busy, prosperous and highly organized, though their own houses have mostly disappeared. Barbosa says the common houses were thatched, but well built and arranged according to occupations in long streets with open spaces. The city had markets with many goods, including spices, textiles, gems, horses, fruits, vegetables and meat, showing active trade and plentiful supplies. Ordinary people seem to have had access to wells, rainwater tanks and temple tanks for water. The presence of numerous shrines and small temples suggests a religiously varied urban life. At the same time, the chapter makes clear that the common people were largely absent from the surviving stone monuments, so their lives must be reconstructed indirectly from travellers’ accounts and archaeological traces. Overall, they appear to have lived in a vibrant, commercial city shaped by labour, trade and diverse occupations.