- Warangal is a city and the district headquarters of Warangal district in Indian state of Andhra Pradesh.
- Warangal also known as Orugallu, Ekasila Nagaram and Andhra Naragram, Andhra refers to Andhra Maha Vishnu.
- The old name is Orugallu. Oru means one and Kallu means stone.
- Warangal is located 148 kilometres (92 mi) northeast of the state capital Hyderabad and is the administrative headquarters of Warangal District.
Warangal is 2nd largest city in Telangana region and fifth largest city in Andhra Pradesh. It is a combination of tri-cities : Warangal, Hanmakonda and Kazipet.
History
- Warangal was the capital of Kakatiya kingdom ruled by the Kakatiya dynasty from the 12th to the 14th centuries.
- The Kakatiyas left many monuments, including an impressive fortress, four massive stone gateways, the Swayambhu temple dedicated to Shiva, and the Ramappa temple situated near Ramappa Lake. The cultural and administrative distinction of the Kakatiyas was mentioned by the famous traveller Marco Polo.
- Famous or well-known rulers included Ganapathi Deva, Prathapa Rudra, and Rani (queen) Rudrama Devi. After the defeat of PratapaRudra, the Musunuri Nayaks united seventy two Nayak chieftains and captured Warangal from Delhi sultanate and ruled for fifty years.
- Jealousy and mutual rivalry between Nayaks ultimately led to the downfall of Hindus in 1370 A.D. and success of Bahmanis. Bahmani Sultanate later broke up into several smaller sultanates, of which the Golconda sultanate ruled Warangal.
- The Mughal emperor Aurangzeb conquered Golconda in 1687, and it remained part of the Mughal empire until the southern provinces of the empire split away to become the state of Hyderabad in 1724 which included the Telangana region and some parts of Maharashtra and Karnataka.
- Hyderabad was annexed to India in 1948, and became an Indian state. In 1956 Hyderabad was partitioned as part of the States Reorganization Act, and Telangana, the Telugu-speaking region of Hyderabad state which includes Warangal, became part of Andhra Pradesh.
How to reach :
- Air :
- The nearest international airport is Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad located 160 km away from Warangal.
- It also has got a local runway at Mamnoor for private jets and cargos, which is a few kilometers away from Warangal.
- Warangal is connected to many major cities of India by rail. It is part of the South Central Railway zone of Indian Railways.
- Kazipet Junction Railway Station in Kazipet, about 13 km from Warangal is a major railway junction on the Hyderabad-New Delhi-Vijayawada-Chennai-Kolkata route.
- Warangal's own railway station is located on the Hyderabad-Vijayawada-Chennai-Kolkata route.
- National Highway 202 under construction from Hyderabad to Bhopalpatnam in Chhattisgarh passes through Warangal.
- There are two major bus stations, in Warangal and in Hanamakonda.