Architectural Conservation

Garin shania | Priyadharshini

Location map Introduction

• Tiruchirappalli was commonly referred

to in English as “Trichinopoly. The
shortened forms “Trichy” or “Tiruchi”
are used in common.

• According to Hindu mythology,

Tiruchirappalli derives its name from
the three-headed demon Trishira, who
meditated on the Hindu god Shiva
near the present-day city to obtain
favours from the god. An alternative
derivation, albeit not universally ac-
cepted,is that the source of the city’s
name is the Sanskrit word “Trishirapu-
ram”—Trishira, meaning “three-head-
ed”, and palli or puram meaning “city”.

• The city has also been ruled by the

Map of Trichinopoly Old streets of malaikottai Pallavas, Pandyas, Vijayanagar Em-
pire, Nayak Dynasty, the Carnatic
state and the British. The most prom-
inent historical monuments in Tiruchi-
rappalli include the Rockfort, the
Ranganathaswamy temple at Sriran-
gam, the Erumbeeswarar Temple at
Tiruverumbur and the Jambukeswarar
temple at Thiruvanaikaval.

• Tiruchirappalli played an active role

during the pre-independence era;
there were a number of strikes and
non-violent protests during the Quit
India Movement, notably the South
Indian Railway Strike that took place
in 1928
Early image of Main guard gate
Image of Main guard gate now
Pushpakarni-Teppakulam History of Rockfort
• Initially,trichy was called as “Sirapalli”
since in those days it was mainly a
school in caves.They were preaching.
• It was called as “shala” where jains
had schools in the fort (Madurai,kuli-
thalai).Other etymologies are: Tiruchi-
ramalai,Trishirapuram.
• Woraiyur was the capital of early cho-
las. The medieval history of Tiruchi-
rappalli begins with the reign of the
Pallava king Mahendravarman I, who
ruled over South India in the 6th cen-
tury AD and constructed the rock-cut
cave-temples within the Rockfort.
Following the downfall of the Pallavas
in the 8th century, the city was con-
quered by the Medieval Cholas, who
ruled until the 13th century.
Streets of malaikottai
• After the decline of the Cholas,
Tiruchirappalli was conquered by the
Pandyas, who ruled from 1216 until
their defeat in 1311 by Malik Kafur,
the commander of Allauddin Khilji.
• Gradually, the Vijayanagar Empire es-
tablished supremacy over the north-
ern parts of the kingdom, and Tiruchi-
rappalli was taken by the Vijayanagar
prince Kumara Kampanna Udaiyar in
1371. The Vijayanagar Empire ruled
the region from 1378 until the 1530s,
and played a prominent role in reviv-
ing Hinduism by reconstructing tem-
ples and monuments destroyed by
the previous Muslim rulers.
The remains of fort walls being seen
The place where worship and gardening happens
View of malaikottai from Clive’s Building History of Rockfort
• The main guard gate which is now the
busiest street was called as “Kottai
vaayil”,from where the development of
trichy started.
• The king later started to develop the
fort arch where the teppakulam now
was called as “pushpakarni” where
the festivals happen.
• The Nayaks then established the
kingdom from madurai to trichy and
they were fortifying the place. It is said
that the land for Bishop heber school
over there was given by the nayaks.
• Tiruchirappalli was administered by
the Maratha general Murari Rao from
1741 to 1743, when it was acquired
by the Nizam of Hyderabad, who
bribed Rao to hand over the city.
Bishop school entrance Nizam appointed Khwaja Abdullah
as the ruler and returned to Golkon-
da. When the Nawab of the Carnatic
Muhammed Ali Khan Wallajah was
dethroned by Chanda Sahib after the
Battle of Ambur (1749), the former
fled to Tiruchirappalli, where he set up
his base
• Timeline:
• Sangam age-Early cholas
• 4th century-Dark ages(Kallapirargal)
• Pallava caves in rockfort
• 7th century-Pandyas,Cheras
• 10th century-Later cholas(uyyakon-
dan canal)
• 14th century-Mughal period(-
Mosques)
• 15th century-Viayanagara kingdom
• 16&17th century-Nayakkar(Raniman-
gammal)
• 18th century-Nawabs
 Historical images
Proposed master plan of rockfort Pillars at the entry to the cultural heritage

Redesign of teppakulam Views of entrance gopuram Early usage of Rockfort

 Heritage buildings in malaikottai
Clive’s building

Town hall
Heritage buildings in malaikottai
 Transformation

The map showing the evolution of the city over years.The settlements origin
starts from banks of river cauvery by the cholas and later moving to woraiyur.
The main occupation was agriculture because of presence of alluvial soil.
Current usage