User:Chipstopinfotainment/sandbox

ANANTHAPADMANABHAN
Ananthapadmanabhan aka Ananthan Perumal was the commander of the Tranvancore king Marthanda Varma in the 18th century A.D.

Birth
Ananthapadmanabhan was born at his mother’s house in the Charode Palace. in the Kollam year Chingam 24, 873 (1698 A.D.) to Thanumalaya Perumal Asan1 and Lekshmi Devi. Charode is a place – 700 metre away from the present Padmanabhapuram Palace.He was brought up in his father’s house of 64 rooms in Thachan vilai in Kannannoor in the ''Venad nation. Thachan vilai is located in the present day Veyyannoor Village in Kalkulam Taluk in Kanyakumari District in the Tamil Nadu state in India.His father named him Ananthan Perumal,'' after the name of his grandfather. He had two brothers- Ponnam Perumal and Mayakonda Perumal –and two sisters – Thankapazham and Saraswathi Devi.His maternal uncle called him Padmanabhan. It was his pet name. Some of his relatives called him Babu Arasan and some others called him ''Ela Veera Rajan. Later, King Marthanda Varma clubbed Ananthan and Padmanabhan and called him Ananthapadmanabhan. Thanumalaya Perumal, was a descendant of the Thiruppapu Royal Family. This family traces its origin to a kingdom called Ay kingdom and later Chera kingdom.A copper edict that exists today also indicates that he belonged to a royal family and was a blood relation of King Marthanda Varma. Thanumalaya Perumal had over one hundred slaves. Thanumalaya Perumal had been the Principal Commander of King Rama Varma. He had been overseeing weapon making. Moreover, he oversaw the armoury of Venad. Besides, he was the head of 108 martial arts - called kalari - training centres.''

Early Life
The teacher of Ananthan Perumal was his father, Thanumalaya Perumal.  He gave him intense training in Kalari (martial arts) in his Kalari fight practicing centre at ''Thachan Vilai. Ananthan Perumal mastered all the 64 skills of martial arts that included – in Tamil- vaal (sword), vil (bow = a weapon for shooting arrows), adivelai (a type of soad fighting), chilambam, kurunthadi and nedumthadi. Besides, a horseman from an Arab country gave him training in horse riding. Prince Rama Varma made necessary arrangements for this along with his two sons - Pappu Tambi and Raman Tambi. The training was imparted at Kuthiraipantivilai. Courage, speed, ruthlessness and wisdom were the inherited qualities of Ananthan Perumal. The debut of Ananthan Perumal was before Prince Rama Varma at Suchindram temple in the year 1713 during the Margali Thiruvzha (Margali festival). He was 15 at that time. Prince Rama Varma commended him and gave him the title – in Tamil- Paranthakan meaning a brave man.Later Prince Rama Varma ruled Venad  for a short period of time from 1724 to 1728.''

Marital life
At the age of 21, Ananthan Perumal married the daughter of his maternal uncle, Parvathi Ammai from the then famous Nadalwar family. Parvathi Ammai gave birth to a son, Ayyam Perumal. But she died when the child was just two and a half years. Ananthan Perumal decided not to marry again. He considered this as his marriage vow.

A turning Point
One day, Prince Marthanda Varma called on Thanumalaya Perumal –father of Ananthan Perumal - at his house in Thachan vilai and sought asylum.Thanumalaya Perumal had been the Principal Commander of King Rama Varma. He had been making weapons for Venad. Further, he had been imparting martial arts to hundreds of disciples.Above all, he had been the head of 108 martial arts schools (training centres) in Venad.In those situations, it was a bold decision on the part of Prince Marthanda Varma to enter his house. In fact, it was the turning point in the history Venad. Thanumalaya Perumal knew that Marthanda Varma was the legitimate heir to the throne. Therefore, hedecided to support him. Firstly, he asked his son, Ananthan Perumal, to give martial arts training to the Prince as quickly as possible.

Ananthan Perumal taught all the 64 skills of martial arts -day and night - to him within a span of six months. The Prince stayed in the house of Thnumalaya Perumal during this period. His whereabouts were not revealed to anyone. Whatever happened, none dared to attack the house of Thanumalaya Perumal or the Prince during this period. As a disciple of Ananthan Perumal (Refer Chapter 20), the Prince learnt all the skills and became a skilful swordsman and horseman. Even one hundred soldiers would fail to hurt him in a straight fight. Then Ananthan Perumal became his body-guard, trusted friend, companion, adviser, Principal Commander of Venad, celebrity and finally his deity. The circumstances that forced Prince Marthanda Varma to seek asylum must be noted.

The rulers of Venad followed a strange system of inheritance known as "Marumakkathayam" since 1304 A.D. As per the above system, when a king dies, his sister's son will succeed him. His inheritance does not belong to his sons, or his brother, or any of his other relations. The reason attributed was that the king would keep contact with many women outside the royal family and as such his children may not carry the royal blood. If the king has no sister, a girl from a royal family would be adopted. well-guarded and kept in great esteem. She would not be exposed to the common people and no man can approach her. It was the custom and there were many rigid rules of convention to perpetrate it. No one -it is said- reaches the throne by means of the strong hand. It is a unique system not seen in any other place. This system still exists in the Travancore Royal family. The loyal subjects accepted it and worshipped the ruler on the throne.However, a section of the people in every community gradually became very powerful and plotted to change the system of succession. They argued that the matriarchal system of succession that had been followed thereto was fundamentally wrong, as it violated the basic principles of birth right, ignoring the prerogatives of the male. Therefore, they said that the system must be changed forthwith. Some conspired to extirpate the royal family for this. Their aim was to establish a republic. As it had a public interest political overtone, the people were vertically divided. Naturally, a section in every caste and religion opposed the system of succession. Earlier, the opponents of the system had murdered King Aditya Varma.Besides, they had drowned five out of six sons of his niece Umayamma Rani at Kalippan Kulam in the Kalkulam Palace.Prince Rama Varma had been taking a neutral stand in the question of succession till he became the King in 1724. After ascending the throne, King Rama Varma apportioned the southern portion of Venad (Northern portion was under Aattingal) into three parts. The areas surrounding Kalkulam and Nagercoil palaces were given to his two sons - Pappu Tambi and Raman Tambi (Papu Tambi and Raman Tambi were called Tambi brothers)- and Neyyattinkara area was given to Prince Marthanda Varma. At the instance of Prince Marthanda Varma, King Rama Varma in 1726 signed a treaty with Madurai Nayak. As per that treaty Madurai Nayak would supply his force to check the rebels. This strengthened the hands of Prince Marthanda Varma. However, when King Rama Varma became sick, rebels closed ranks with the Tambi brothers. They said that Pappu Tambi -the elder son- would succeed his father on the throne. They took this political stand only to bring a cleavage in the royal house. They openly stated in the streets that the matriarchal dynasty would end in the Venad Kingdom with the death of the King Rama Varma. As soon as King Rama Varma died, Tambi brothers accepted this new revolutionary school of thought and decided to assassinate Prince Marthanda Varma. The Tambi brothers issued orders to prevent the Prince from escaping to any place north of Neyyattinkara or to the Pandian Kingdom in the South. Many chieftains too wanted the destruction of the royal family. To check the rebels, Prince Marthanda Varma requested Aattingal ( or Attungal) Rani to pay tribute to Azakappa Muthaliar. But she refused. The Prince was disappointed. At the same time, the King of Kollam, Jaya Singh, mobilized a force to claim Venad. He said that he was the legitimate ruler of Venad. Despite the above situation, majority of the people in Venad were very loyal to Prince Marthanda Varma.  However, the Prince felt that he was hemmed on all sides by enemies. He had two options: to escape or be killed. He opted for the former. Therefore, he left Neyyantinkara and ran for his life. Thus, he chose not to jump into the hand of the murdering crowd.

The death of Thanumalaya Perumal
As Thanumalaya Perumal, father of Ananthan Perumal, could not be defeated in a straight fight, one Kunchu Neelan poisoned him to death. Ananthan suspected that the enemies of Prince Marthanda Varma had a hand in it. After the passing away of Thanumalaya Perumal, Ananthan Perumal felt that his house was no longer safe for the Prince.Therefore, he secretly took the Prince to Mankode Asan and left him under his care.The Prince acquainted a slave called Mundan at Mankode Asan’s house. Mundan had been a slave of Thanumali of Pottayadi. He was a very intelligent man. The Prince used him as a messenger called –in Tamil- Oottan.  Besides, he was being asked to roam in different places disguised as Prince Marthanda Varma. This was to divert the attention of his enemies.

The resolution
The rebels started searching for Prince Marthanda Varma. They tortured the people suspected of harbouring him. They cut off the fingers, nose and the ears of some people. Some others were put in prison. The atrocities disturbed Ananthan. He convened a meeting of the Asans. Separate letters - written on palmyra leaf - called ola - were sent to 108 Asans asking them to assemble at the Kalari centre in Purakkattur in the Thiruvattar path. The meeting resolved to stand by Prince Marthanda Varma and put him on the throne. Besides, they resolved to sacrifice their lives - if necessary- for this. As it was a political problem, a few joined the rank of the rebels.

The Battle of Mankode
While Prince Marthanda Varma was hiding in the house of Mankode Asan, the Tambis got wind of it and sent a large number of lancers to eliminate him. Suspecting that the Prince was hiding in one corner or other of the house of 64 rooms, they surrounded it and torched it. The Prince was not in the house but watched everything from a long distance. When Ananthan Perumal reached Mankode, the house of Mankode Asan was still on fire. He slaughtered the lancers with lightning speed. A few lancers escaped the sword of Ananthan, returned to the Kalkulam Palace and reported the matter to Pappu Tambi.

Refusal Of The Prince
The lancers had no evidence to show that Prince Marthanda Varma was killed in the Battle of Mankode. They narrated what happened at Mankode to Pappu Tambi. The infuriated Pappu Tambi asked the guards in the Kalkulam Fort to arrest the person who saved the Prince after killing the lancers. The guards trampled over the feelings of the people and dragged many suspects to the Kalkulam Fort.  Their kith and kin followed them. One of the suspects had no connection with the Mankode incident. Hence, he could not furnish the required information to Pappu Tambi. In a minute his innocent head, according to C.V. Rama Pillai, rolled in the dust. Soon more guards returned bringing in more and more suspects. All suspects belonged to the community of Ananthan Perumal. None of them were able to enlighten the enraged Tambi. They too paid their penalty with their lives. “Soon the palace courtyard became filled with corpses, and the air reeked with the sickening stench of clotted human blood and the plaintive cries of the innocent victims”. After some time, the guards brought another suspect. A mini revolt occurred in the fort as some guards resented the action of Pappu Tambi and turned against him.

Ananthan Perumal requested Prince Marthanda Varma to enter the fort with the support of the assembled crowd to seize power. But the latter refused to do so. The Prince considered the suggestion as a suicidal one, for he suspected the presence of guns in the fort.

Instead, Prince Marthanda Varma requested Ananthan Perumal to take him to the Madura King.

The Great Escape
Prince Marthanda Varma, Ananthan Perumal, Mundan, Mekkode Asan and others discussed various options. The Prince wanted to confront the Tambi brothers with the help of Madura forces. But Mundan said that there was heavy security at Aralvaimozhi pass and the act of crossing that pass would be very risky. He suggested that Thanumalai of Pottayadi would welcome the Prince. He added that he knew many hiding places near Pottayadi.

The Prince, Ananthan and Mekkode Asan obliged. They set out for Pottayadi – a border place about 40 km away from Mankode - and reached the house of Thanumalai in the morning. They avoided Kottar, Suchindram and Parakai because Tambi brothers had many supporters in those places. It was a great escape.

Later, it was this Thanumalai who supplied rice to the armed forces of King Marthanda Varma during his annexation of many small kingdoms.

A folk song in Tamil narrates the great escape. An approximate translation of that Tamil folk song (Pages 17 to 20) is given below.

“On hearing the lord, Ananthan became silent

The messenger (The Oottan) began to talk

There are many wicked people in Thovalai

If you want to go to foreign country

I know many tricks near Pottayadi

My master Thanumalai will render all helps

He has hundreds of slaves

Thousands of relatives

His kith and kin are on either side of the thorn fort

Azhagappar also would send his force

There were many suggestions

Came to a conclusion without wasting time

They made a bamboo ladder

Requested the lord to sit over it

Four men carried and forty followed

Ananthan and Oottan with open eyes

All single minded

Shunning broad path and big villages

They ran in the moonlit night

They passed Manthankad and Kuzhimaikad

Went through Valliyaru and Veeppanad

Avoiding Veeranarayanachery

Entered Ayiramkanam Kuttikad

Keeping away Kaliyankad, reached Peruvilai

Cock crew when they went near Panchavankad

Without going near Kottar they went towards Parakai

Then they passed through Vaiyanivilai and pond

Walking through the out-skirts of Suchindram

They passed Mulaikad and Kalkad

There were signs of daybreak when they crossed Pazhayaru

Chose to go through Punnaikkavu and Ethankad

After that they saw Adukku Pottai

Crossing the broad pass, they went beyond Pottai

And stood near the door of Thanumalai”.

Demands Of King Marthanda Varma
After talking to Ananthan Perumal, Thanumalai, Mundan and others at pottayadi,Prince Marthanda Varma said that:

·       Ananthan must meet Nava Kodi Narayanan of Kottar to fetch gold and silver.

·       Vadakkan Sahib must bring Peerukkannu Sahib of Midalam. This was to talk in Hindustani to the rulers of Nabab at Madurai and

·       Mundan must roam at Thovalai disguised as Prince Marthanda Varma to spread the rumour that the Prince was in that area.

Accordingly, they left Pottayadi to carry out the work detailed to them. The Prince remained in the house of Thanumalai.

Battle Of Panchavankad
When Ananthan Perumal and his disciples were secretly returning to Pottayadi to report to Prince Marthanda Varma, Tambi brothers came in a cavalry and surrounded them at Panchavankad- a place near Nagercoil. Ananthan and his men had no hiding place. It became a life and death problem to them. Ananthan had two options - to kill or be killed. He opted for the former. Instantly, he unsheathed his sword from its scabbard and took a few deliberate steps to engage them. Then, walking back and forth he stretched his sword. In the ensuing battle, he slaughtered his enemies with lightning speed. Some managed to escape his sword and ran for life. Along with the dead bodies were the fatally wounded Tambi brothers. The wounded Tambi brothers requested Ananthan to kill them. But the latter refused to do so. He said that he could not do anything without the specific orders from Prince Marthanda Varma. The news spread like wild fire. The people converged in large numbers. They saw the mortally wounded Tambi brothers. The supporters of Tambi brothers deserted the palace at Nagercoil and the people seized the palace. Prince Marthanda Varma heard the news and heaved a sigh of relief. Accompanied by Thanumalai, he reached Nagercoil. The wounded Tambi brothers were shown to him. He noticed that they would not survive. He then issued orders to kill them and bury them after putting some rice into their mouth. Their tombs are at a place near the palace in Nagercoil.

End of Mundan
Mundan stayed at a ruined hut in Thovalai. He wandered around that area disguised as Prince Marthanda Varma in the morning. The soldiers of Tambi brothers mistook him as Prince Marthanda Varma and caught him at Rajavoor. At that time, he was eating balls composed of jaggery and sesame. Then they tied him in a ladder and carried him towards Nagercoil just to produce him before Tambi brothers. Now they stumbled upon the news that Tambi brothers had been fatally cut in a battle. They, therefore, took him towards Pottayadi. When they reached Pottayadi, Mundan smiled at them. Infuriated by this, Madhava Madambi immediately cut him into two pieces with his sword. This incident occurred at the base of a Marutha tree in Pottayadi. The news about the death of Mundan deeply moved Prince Marthanda Varma. He sent Ananthan, Thanumalai and Vadakkan Pattani (an assistant of Ananthan) for performing the last rites. Mundan was buried below the marutha tree.

Destruction of the enemies
After the death of Thambi brothers, the rebels and the petty chieftains became very refractory. As a result, anarchy and confusion in their worst forms stalked the land. Further, Prince Marthanda Varma came to know – through spies and well-wishers – that they were waiting for a chance to eliminate him. Above all, he considered the death of Mundan as his own death. Therefore, he declared war against his enemies. He issued orders to Anandan to destroy, kill or capture all those who wanted to kill him. Accordingly, Anandan destroyed the houses of the hardcore rebels in every community in many places-Melankode, Neyyattinkara, Vanchiyoor (later Thiruvananthapuram) included. All those who resisted his attack were killed. In some places women were captured and auctioned. In the present-day standards (2018) those acts could be construed as human rights violations. The only consolation is that an act of murder is not a murder if it is committed by a soldier. In this way, Ananthan suppressed the internal revolt and put the throne on the head of Prince Marthanda Varma.

Battle of Colachel
While the King, Marthanda Varma, and the Dalawa (Chief Secretary), Rama Iyen, were undertaking negotiations with the Raja of Kayamkulam, the Dutch East India Company landed at Colachel to invade Venad. As the Venad force was concentrated at Kayamkulam, Ananthan Perumal immediately requested Mankode Asan, Orappanavilai Asan, Chellamkonam Asan, Mekkode Asan, Athankode Asan, Nadutheri Asan and his disciples to send their men with whatever weapons like chopper to Colachel. Ananthan gathered information and intelligence from the local fishermen. He equipped his infantry with spears and swords and organized into an offensive formation. The preparation took about three weeks. Ananthan had little experience with guns. But his father had taught him deception and guile to deflect the energies of his opponents and strengthen his own position. After waiting for some days, he decided to take a calculated risk.

In August 1741, de Lannoy arrived at the port of Colachel, near the southern tip of India, as commander of a naval fleet, sent by the Dutch East India Company, or Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie (VOC), with the objective of capturing Travancore from Marthanda Varma, the King who was not on friendly terms. It was the world's first Joint stock company and the largest multinational company at the time. It was a very rich corporation and had its own naval-fleet to protect its trade and maritime establishments.

The company was interested in acquiring and monopolizing the trade of pepper and other spices from the Malabar kingdoms, which was sold by it in the European markets at exorbitant prices. Earlier negotiations with the Travancore Government under the king Maharaja Marthanda Varma had proved futile, and it was thus decided to use military pressure to subdue the king since Marthanda Varma was bent on annexing the Kingdoms to the north of his country. The Dutch Governor of Ceylon had installed a Princess in a small northern kingdom called Elayidathu Swaroopam Kottarakkara against the wishes of Marthanda Varma, in spite of a severe warning issued by him to Gustaaf Willem van Imhoff, the Dutch Governor of Ceylon to look after their own affairs and not interfere in the affairs of that kingdom. An enraged Marthanda Varma attacked and annexed the kingdom, whereas the Princess escaped to Cochin and lived there under the protection of the Dutch. Van Imhoff wanted to teach Marthanda Varma a lesson. The Dutch were uneasy about the growing business and political clout of the English company who had a trading post and fort at Anjengo in Travancore. They assessed the situation and acted. It was with these intentions that a powerful Dutch naval force was dispatched from the nearest Dutch settlement of Galle in Ceylon.

Once the Dutch army landed at Colachel they initially conquered the lands from Colachel to Kottar near Nagercoil including the rich village of Eraniel, where the original palace of the Travancore Dynasty was situated. Their next aim was to proceed to capture Kalkulam, the capital. But soon the Travancore forces arrived from the North under the direct command of Marthanda Varma and his Minister and chief secretary Ramayyan Dalawa. The king’s Chief commander was Ananthan Perumal. The two forces met at Colachel on 10 August 1741.

Captain de Lannoy’s military contingent was superior in that, it had firearms and artillery and was better equipped and trained, but was no match to the tactics and aggressiveness used by the Travancore forces at the Battle of Colachel. Further the Dutch were helpless against the cavalry of Travancore. The local legends state that, in accordance to the orders of the Maharajah, the local Christian fisherfolk who remained loyal to the Maharajah, had made cannon replicas, diverting the attention of the Dutch. Folks tell that the idea of deceiving enemies by placing ripped palm stem to display them as a cannon was given by the chief commander Ananthan Perumal. Slaughter followed and the Dutch infantrymen fell to the ground. The other Asans also made a lightning strike and started decimating them. His attack was the most ruthless. The Dutch were not sure where an attack from Ananthan forces might come. They simply could not manoeuvre against the Ananthan forces. In fact, they could not neutralize his attack in any way. They did not want to put up a fight as the strategic advantage of guns and cannons were of no use to them and surrendered on 31 July 1741.

Inclement weather, a fire in the depot and lack of reinforcement contributed to the surrender.The Dutch saw the resolve of a horse man fighting for his country on his own soil although they said that they had lost to base people.The battle was over within a day.

This battle is important as it marked the decline of Dutch influence in India. From then onwards, the Dutch Company was confined to the role of a trading company. Prior to this defeat, the Dutch had been interfering in all the domestic disputes of the local Royal houses and trying to amass power. They had their representatives in almost all the kingdoms of Malabar as advisors to the rulers.

Captain de Lannoy and twenty-four other Dutch officers were taken prisoner, while the rest of the Dutchmen either retreated to their ships or were killed. Only 24 lived.  Besides, Ananthan got 389 muskets, a few pieces of cannon and many swords. Ananthan was very magnanimous in victory. He promised that no retribution would accrue to them.

Celebrity of Venad
When the King, Marthanda Varma, and the Dalawa, Rama Iyen, reached Kalkulam Palace, Eustachius De Lannoy had already been captured. Ananthan produced the Dutch prisoners before the King in the Kalkulam Palace. The latter pardoned De Lonnoy and requested him to modernize his army after European style. He obliged. He was thus made the captain of the Venad Army.

De Lonnoy modernized the Venad Army by introducing better firearms, uniform and discipline.

De Lonnoy then led the Venad Army for the subsequent expansion of territory up to Kayamkulam because martial arts were no longer an answer to guns.

At the same time, Ananthan Perumal was raised to the status of a celebrity.

Venad celebrated the victory over the Dutch in an unprecedented scale. In fact, Ananthan became the celebrity of the nation.

King Marthanda Varma decided to perpetuate the name of Ananthan even during his life time. He gave greater importance to the name of Ananthan over his own name. Thus, he renamed the Kalkulam Kottaram (Palace) as Padmanabhapuram Kottaram and the name of the capital of Venad as Padmanabhapuram. This happened in 1744. Having stayed in the house of Ananthan Perumal, he knew that the pet name of Ananthan Perumal was Padmanabhan.

Immediately, the people followed suit. Thus, he is the namesake of:

1.  Ananthan Palam

2.   Ananthan Theppakulam

3.   Ananthan Kulam

4.   Ananthan Konam

5.  Anantha Nadar Kudiyiruppu

6.  Anantha Padmanabhapuram

7.  Sree Padmanabha Nalloor

8.  Anantha Mangalam

9.  Padmanabhan Thittai

10. Ananthan Kaadu

11. Ananthan Paarai are some of the places named after Ananthan Perumal by the people.

The people wanted to construct a beautiful (In Tamil – Azakia) hall (In Tamil- mandapam) in the name of Ananthan Perumal through public subscription. The hall was not constructed but the proposed site got the name Azakiamandapam.

Then, King Marthanda Varma -to the discomfiture of many- started giving large areas of land to Ananthan Perumal. He granted land to Mankode Asan, Nadutheri Asan, Chellamkonam Asan, Mekkode Asan, Palavilai Asan and Athankottu Asan also for lending their support to Ananthan Perumal.

He granted Ananthan Perumal about 1,40,000 acre of land in different parts of Venad through 24 copper edicts.

A copper edict given to Ananthan Perumal still exists in the hand of the 10th descendant of Ananthan Perumal. The present writer saw it on 1 April 2013. In that copper plate, the King clubbed his name and his pet name into one. Thus his name became Ananthapadmanabhan.

The salient features of the copper edict are:

1. King Marthanda Varma acknowledged Ananthapadmanabhan as his relation.

2. He called him Brammakula Shathriyan.

3. He extolled him as his right hand.

4. He praised publicly that he protected his life on many occasions.

5. He disclosed that he dedicated his life for him.

6.He said that he had extirpated his enemies.

7. He proclaimed that he was giving the properties because of his unlimited happiness.

Death of Ananthapadmanabhan
When Venad was celebrating the heroic deeds of Ananthapadmanabhan, Dalawa Rama Iyen wanted to go a step ahead of others. He announced that a State Dinner would be held once a month at his official residence in Aruvikkarai to felicitate Ananthapadmanabhan. This had the blessing of the Queen of Venad also. This Dinner went on smoothly for two and a half years.

However, on the Kollam Year 28 Chingam 925, during the State Dinner at Aruvikkarai, Velan and Kuttan – two servants of Dalawa – cut Ananthapadmanabhan at his stomach with their sword. Ananthapadmanabhan was not bearing any shield at that time. As they cut him while he dined, he could not defend his life.

Ananthanpadmanabhan tied his intestine with a long cloth and rode to Thachanvilai on his horse. After reaching Thachanvilai he died. His horse also died as it had been also wounded.

Local folks say that the enemies couldn’t bear the praise given to Ananthapadmanabhan and they envied him. This led to the intention of murdering him.

The melancholy news of passing away of Ananthapadmanabhan deeply moved King Marthanda Varma. Flanked by a retinue of bodyguards, he rushed to Thachanvilai, attended the funeral and returned to Padmanabhapuram Palace. The body of Ananthapadmanabhan now lies interred at Thachanvilai.

Transforming Ananthapadmanabhan into a diety
Perhaps because of the feeling that Lord Perumal Swamy appeared in the shape of Ananthapadmanabhan, protected him -and his nation - like a guardian angel and disappeared for good, King Marthanda Varma renamed Perumal Swamy Kovil at Vanchiyoor into Sree Anatha Padmanabha Swamy Kovil. This is the present Sree Padmanabha Swamy Temple in Thiruvananthapuram.

Accompanied by the entire Royal family, officials and priests, His Highness proceeded to the newly named Sree Anantha Padmanabha Swamy Koil. His Highness then laid his State Sword before the deity on the Ottakkal Mandapam and dedicated his whole territory to the above deity. After that, His Highness assumed the management of the country as the disciple (Dasan) of that deity. Here, His Highness did   not distinguish between Lord Perumal Swamy and his Kalari master, Ananthapadmanabhan. His Highness simply transformed him into the tutelary deity of the Royal family.

Alternatively, His Highness transformed Lord Perumal Swamy into Lord Anantha Padmanabha Swamy. His Highness then changed his own name into Sree Padmanabhadasan Vanchi Bala Marthanda Varma Kulasekara Perumal.

This happened six months after the death of Ananthapadmanabhan in the Kollam Year, 5 Makaram 925. Here, His Highness went a jump ahead of what he did to Mundan. No other King had ever done like this. Further, His Highness converted Vanchiyoor into Thiruvananthapuram (Thiru + Anantha + Puram = Thiruvananthapuram) after Ananthapadmanabhan. Furthermore, as his ancestors ruled from Thiruvithamkode, he changed the name of Venad into Travancore. Thus, the amalgamated country got a new name for the first time and the History of Travancore started from this day.

Ananthapadmanabhan After the times of Marthandavarma
The successors of His Highness Marthanda Varma named many places and institutions after the name of Ananthapadmanabhan for many years. When a court was established at the heart of Thuckalay, it was named Padmanabhapuram Court. Similarly, the Government Hospital at Thuckalay was named ''Padmanabhapurm Hospital. He is the namesake of many other places and institutions. Ananthan Kal, Ananthan Victoria Marthandan Kayal and Padmanabhapuram Muncipality originated from his name.The most outstanding one was Anantha Victoria Marthandan (AVM) Canal sanctioned in 1860. Uttram Thirunal Maharaja'' came to the South to commence the excavation work of the canal in the same year. A canal of this magnitude cannot be dug even by spending Re.10,000 crore today (2013). Recently, the Government of India named the Train plying between Thiruvananthapuram and Chennai via Nagercoil as Ananthapuri Express although the Government did not say that it wanted to honour Ananthapadmanabhan. Besides, many people name their children after Ananthapadmanabhan. The name of the son of the present King of Travancore, Utharadam Thirunal Maharaja, is Anantha Padmanabhan.

Now (2018) there exists a demand to construct a memorial for Ananthapadmanabhan in Thachan vilai without causing any damage to the virginity of the place. For this, the government will have to acquire about five acre of land in and around Thachan vilai after giving compensation. However, some people in the old Venad area latently oppose it saying that such a memorial would affect their security and diminish the relative importance of their communities.

Thus, some people in all communities think that the heroic deeds of any man must be recognized wherever he is born. They say that the people are born equally, and the heroic deeds of any man should not be confined to a community and suppressed. Another section think that such a recognition would affect them because their communities did not produce such people. The latter class of people claim that a memorial would disrupt peace in this region. Some even claim that the word Anantha stands for an obscure king of Venad. However, seldom the people know that the nomenclature is based on the name Ananthapadmanabhan mentioned in this book. Only enlightened people can solve this problem.

However, the stiff opposition indicates that the story of Ananthapadmanabhan as narrated is true.