Mandya Travel Guide
The district of Mandya, one of the 20 administrative units of the State of Karnataka, is situated roughly in the southeastern part of the State. It is flanked by the districts of Tumkur and Barigalore on the north and east, by Mysore district to the south and by the district of Hassan in the west, northwest. Like most other districts in the State, this one too derives its name from its administrative headquarters town - an important commercial centre. The name Mandya itself may have originated from the popular belief that Mandavya - a holy man, much revered lived in the area in ancient times.

Mandya's history is the history of the old Mysore State, which included the present district of Mandya and areas around the Cauvery Basin. Ruled successively by the kings of the Ganga dynasty and then the Cholas and the Hoysalas, the area was annexed by the rulers of Vijayanagara in 1346. After the cruel battle of 1565 When the Vijayanagara king was defeated by the combined power of the Sultans of the Deccan, the Vijayanagara Empire began to lose its power and extent. The Wodeyars of Mysore gradually grew in importance. Before long, they had established their own rule over a large part of South India which included all of old Mysore, parts of the present Tamil Nadu and the districts of Dakshina Kannada and Dharwar, with Srirangapatna as their capital.

The power of the Wodeyars was more or less unchallenged till 1761 when Hyder Ali, one of their generals rose to great strength and overcame them. Between then and 1799 when Hyder's son Tipu was defeated by the British, the area was under constant crossfire