Until 1947, Mysore was the capital of the Kingdom of Mysore was ruled by the Wodeyar dynasty, except for a 40-year period in the 18th century when Haidar Ali and Tipu Sultan were the de facto rulers of the province. The Wodeyars were patrons of art and culture and contributed significantly to the cultural growth of the city, which has led to Mysore earning the sobriquet Cultural capital of Karnataka.
According to Hindu mythology, the area around Mysore was known as Mahishūru (means baffalo ancient name was ERUMAIYUR in tamil it belongs to old kongunadu) and was ruled by a demon, Mahishasura.[3] The demon was killed by the Goddess Chamundeshwari, whose temple is situated atop the Chamundi Hills. Mahishūru later became Mahisūru and finally came to be called Maisūru, its present name in the Kannada language.The anglicised form of the name is Mysore.
In December 2005, the Government of Karnataka announced its intention to change the English name of the city to Mysuru.This has been approved by the Government of India but the necessary formalities to incorporate the name change are yet to be completed.
Statue of the demon Mahishasura atop the Chamundi Hills.
The region where Mysore city stands now was known as Puragere till the 15th century.The Mahishūru Fort was constructed in 1524 by Chamaraja Wodeyar III (1513–1553), who later passed on the dominion of Puragere to his son Chamaraja Wodeyar IV (1572–1576). Since the 16th century, the name of Mahishūru (later Mysore and changed again to Mysuru by the Government of Karnataka on November 1 2007) has been commonly used to denote the city. During the rule of the Vijayanagara Empire, the Mysore Kingdom under Wodeyars, served as a feudatory. Mysore was the center of the Wodeyar administration till 1610 when Raja Wodeyar ousted the Vijayanagara governor at nearby Srirangapatna and made it his capital. With the demise of the Vijayanagara Empire in 1565, the Mysore Kingdom gradually achieved independence and became a sovereign state by the time of King Narasaraja Wodeyar (1637). After Tipu Sultan's death in the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War in 1799, the Kingdom was distributed by the British to their allies of the Fourth Mysore war, the Marhata, Nizam, and State of Travancore, while the rule of Mysore city was retained by the British who built the Government House (completed 1805). The Government house is utilized currently by the Government of Karnataka as a State Guest House. The existing town of Nazarabad was demolished to remove any traces of Tipu's rule. The capital of the kingdom was moved back to Mysore.
The British administration was assisted locally by Diwan Purnaiah, in return for his assistance in the defeat of the Mysore Army. Purnaiah is credited with improvements to Mysore's, public works.[9] In 1831, Mysore lost its status as the administrative centre of the kingdom when Mark Cubbon, the British commissioner, moved the capital to Bangalore.[11] However it regained this status in 1881, when the British handed the power back to the Wodeyars.[12] The city remained the capital of the Wodeyars till 1947 with Mysore Palace as the centre of administration.
Entrance to the Ambavilas Palace, commonly known as Mysore Palace
The Mysore municipality was established in 1888 and the city was divided into eight wards. In 1897, an outbreak of bubonic plague killed nearly half of the population of the city.With the establishment of the City Improvement Trust Board (CITB) in 1903, Mysore became one of the first cities in Asia to undertake a planned development of the city.When the Quit India Movement was launched in the early 1940s, Mysore city also played a part in it. Leaders of the independence movement like H. C. Dasappa and Sahukar Channayya were at the forefront during the agitations.The Maharaja's College hostel was the nerve centre from where the movement was controlled in the Mysore district and the Subbarayana Kere ground was an important location for public demonstrations.
After the Indian independence, Mysore city remained as a part of the Mysore State under India. Jayachamarajendra Wodeyar, the then king of Mysore, was allowed to retain his titles and was nominated as the Rajapramukh of the state. He then died in September 1974 and was cremated in Mysore city
According to Hindu mythology, the area around Mysore was known as Mahishūru (means baffalo ancient name was ERUMAIYUR in tamil it belongs to old kongunadu) and was ruled by a demon, Mahishasura.[3] The demon was killed by the Goddess Chamundeshwari, whose temple is situated atop the Chamundi Hills. Mahishūru later became Mahisūru and finally came to be called Maisūru, its present name in the Kannada language.The anglicised form of the name is Mysore.
In December 2005, the Government of Karnataka announced its intention to change the English name of the city to Mysuru.This has been approved by the Government of India but the necessary formalities to incorporate the name change are yet to be completed.
Statue of the demon Mahishasura atop the Chamundi Hills.
The region where Mysore city stands now was known as Puragere till the 15th century.The Mahishūru Fort was constructed in 1524 by Chamaraja Wodeyar III (1513–1553), who later passed on the dominion of Puragere to his son Chamaraja Wodeyar IV (1572–1576). Since the 16th century, the name of Mahishūru (later Mysore and changed again to Mysuru by the Government of Karnataka on November 1 2007) has been commonly used to denote the city. During the rule of the Vijayanagara Empire, the Mysore Kingdom under Wodeyars, served as a feudatory. Mysore was the center of the Wodeyar administration till 1610 when Raja Wodeyar ousted the Vijayanagara governor at nearby Srirangapatna and made it his capital. With the demise of the Vijayanagara Empire in 1565, the Mysore Kingdom gradually achieved independence and became a sovereign state by the time of King Narasaraja Wodeyar (1637). After Tipu Sultan's death in the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War in 1799, the Kingdom was distributed by the British to their allies of the Fourth Mysore war, the Marhata, Nizam, and State of Travancore, while the rule of Mysore city was retained by the British who built the Government House (completed 1805). The Government house is utilized currently by the Government of Karnataka as a State Guest House. The existing town of Nazarabad was demolished to remove any traces of Tipu's rule. The capital of the kingdom was moved back to Mysore.
The British administration was assisted locally by Diwan Purnaiah, in return for his assistance in the defeat of the Mysore Army. Purnaiah is credited with improvements to Mysore's, public works.[9] In 1831, Mysore lost its status as the administrative centre of the kingdom when Mark Cubbon, the British commissioner, moved the capital to Bangalore.[11] However it regained this status in 1881, when the British handed the power back to the Wodeyars.[12] The city remained the capital of the Wodeyars till 1947 with Mysore Palace as the centre of administration.
Entrance to the Ambavilas Palace, commonly known as Mysore Palace
The Mysore municipality was established in 1888 and the city was divided into eight wards. In 1897, an outbreak of bubonic plague killed nearly half of the population of the city.With the establishment of the City Improvement Trust Board (CITB) in 1903, Mysore became one of the first cities in Asia to undertake a planned development of the city.When the Quit India Movement was launched in the early 1940s, Mysore city also played a part in it. Leaders of the independence movement like H. C. Dasappa and Sahukar Channayya were at the forefront during the agitations.The Maharaja's College hostel was the nerve centre from where the movement was controlled in the Mysore district and the Subbarayana Kere ground was an important location for public demonstrations.
After the Indian independence, Mysore city remained as a part of the Mysore State under India. Jayachamarajendra Wodeyar, the then king of Mysore, was allowed to retain his titles and was nominated as the Rajapramukh of the state. He then died in September 1974 and was cremated in Mysore city
