Hoysala Dynasty

(11th–14th c.) Southern Indian dynasty
that ranged over the southern part of
the southern Indian state of Karnataka.
The capital city was Dorasamudra,
which is now called Halebid.
The Hoysalas were originally hill
chiefs who were vassals to the
Chalukyas (a central Indian dynasty
that ruled from the seventh to eighth
century C.E.), but who became independent in 1093. At their peak they ruled
much of the states of Karnataka and
northern Tamil Nadu, but by the beginning of the fourteenth century had seen
their power decline. By the middle of the
century, their kingdom had been
annexed by the Sangamas, whose capital was at Vijayanagar.
The Hoysalas are most famous for
the magnificent temples they constructed
at the cities of Belur and Halebid, which
are treasure-houses of medieval southern Indian sculpture.