Ganapati Deva, King of Kakatiya in coastal Andhra, had two daughters, Rudramba and Ganapamba. The king recognized Rudramba, the elder daughter as his heir. She was educated and trained in all aspects of state administration. She ascended the throne on the death of her father in A.D. 1262. A few of the nobles in the southern portion of the kingdom rebelled against Rudramba. She supressed the rebels successfully and brought them back to subjection. Thereafter peace and order were restored in the kingdom during the remaining years of her reign.
Rudramba married a kshatriya prince called Virabhadra. Rudramba was a wise ruler. She strove hard to promote the welfare of her subjects. She arranged for tanks, canals and wells to be dug for the benefit of the agriculturists. She promoted trade and industry. She built hospitals, endowed religious foundations with gifts of land and founded scholars’ settlements to encourage learning. The famous Venitian traveller Marco Polo who had passed through her kingdom bears testimony to the flourishing trade and industry in her time.
Rudramba was a staunch Saivite. Her kingdom was then a live centre for the Pashupata sect. She was however tolerant towards the other sects. She made a number of gifts for religious purposes. She gifted an entire village of Mandaram, on the banks of river Krishna. A Shiva temple was built here. In course of time, a township was developed around the temple with hospitals, aducational institutions and feeding houses where all castes and sects were fed.
Rudramba spent the last years of her life in meditation under the guidance of Pashupata priests.
— Courtesy ” Great Women of India ” published by Shri Ramakrishna Math.
