History

Guntur was ruled by famous dynasties such as the Satavahanas, Andhra Ikshvakus, Pallavas, Ananda Gotrikas, Vishnukundina, Kota Vamsa, Chalukyas, Cholas, Kakatiyas, Vijayanagara and QutbShahis during ancient and medieval times. The famous battle of Palnadu which is enshrined in legend and literature as PalnatiYuddham was fought in Guntur district in 1180.

Guntur became part of the Mughal empire in 1687 when the emperor Aurangzeb conquered the Qutb Shahi sultanate of Golconda, of which Guntur was then a part. In 1724, Asaf Jah, viceroy of the empire’s southern provinces, declared his independence as the Nizam of Hyderabad. The coastal districts of Hyderabad, known as the Northern Circars, were occupied by the French in 1750. Raja Vasireddy Venkatadri Nayudu (1783-1816) shifted his capital from Chintapalli in Krishna district to Amaravati across the river Krishna. He ruled with munificence and built many temples in Guntur region. Guntur was brought under the control of the British East India Company by 1788, and became a district of Madras Presidency.

The Guntur region played a significant role in the struggle for independence and the formation of Andhra Pradesh. The northern, Telugu- speaking districts of Madras state, including Guntur, advocated for a separate state after independence and the new state of Andhra Pradesh was created in 1953 from the eleven northern districts of Madras.