Page:The Aristocracy of Southern India.djvu/107

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The Rajah of Palavancha & Bhadrachalam.
79d

Rajah Venkatarama Narasimha Aswa Rao, the twenty-first in succession from Annappa Aswarao, who originally obtained a sunnud from Tamerlane, was granted a fresh one by Meer Nizam Ali Khan Bahadur in the year 1798, 1240, Hezree with the titles of Rajah, Bahadur, Savai, and Munsubdar. He was further permitted to maintain an army of two thousand horse, and three thousand foot and carry an Alam, and Nagara, and sunnuds were issued by His Highness the Nizam accordingly. After him, Rajah Narasimha Aswarao, who was commonly known as Savanna Aswarao, ascended the musnud of Palavancha, and died leaving three minor sons and two daughters; one of the latter died unmarried, while the other was the mother of the subject of this biography. During the minority of these children, the Settipalli family disputed with them for the estate, and the Government having referred the matter to arbitration decided the dispute in favour of the minor princes. The eldest 6f these princes having died a bachelor, the second one succeeded to the estate and held it for sometime, and was again succeeded by his brother Seeta Ramachendra Savai Aswarao Bahadur, who again obtained a permanent sunnud from the Nizam's Government. But during the reign of this Rajah the estate ran into debt and was mortgaged to a greedy sowcar. About this time, the Nizam made over to the British Government the territory lying along the left bank of the Godavari, which included a portion of the estate of the Aswaraos called Sri Bhadrachalam. Seetha Ramachendra Savai Aswarao soon after died a bachelor, leaving after him an aged mother, and a married sister. The estate was therefore registered in the name of his mother Kanee Lakshmi Narasamma Rao.