One Hundred Elephant Footprints:A Timeline

Far far away from Europa,lies a land,which we called "India".India is a land,torn beetween religion conflicts,and minor territorial disputes that usually escalated to big bloodbaths.The northern part of India are populated by the Muslims,who formed sultanates-after sultanates,seeking to unite and Islamize India.

And there's the big empire of the south,the Vijayanagar,Hindu's last bastion of hope on India.

The year is 1560,and the Vijayanagars are actively supporting rebels on the neighboring Indian sultanates,not to mention that the internal sectors of the neighboring sultanates are on chaos,after their own-chaos is twisted up by the Vijayanagar spies.But Rama Jaya haven't found the perfect time..until..now.

After a report that the Sultanates are preparing for a clash against Vijayanagar,Rama Jaya pulls what effectively turned the tide of history,FOREVER.Paying large bands of arsonists to burn vital locations/sites on the Deccan Sultanates,triggering chaos,prompting the Vijayanagar invasion of the Deccan sultanates.Mercilessly slaughtering everything they saw,the Vijayanagars gained large gains of territory on the land.

There,as the Battle of Tolkata erupts,and more blood is shed,there's no hope for the Deccan Sultanates,as too many of their generals,commanders-all met their end on their "Jihad",as their fanaticism eventually brought them to their own doom.Finally,on 1565,As Nizam Syah and Rama Raya meets each other on the battlefield,the Deccan Sultanate's fate is sealed,as Rama Raya finally able(despite his age) to defeat the younger-sultan.

Beheading the Sultan,he placed the Sultan's head tied on a pole,scaring off the Sultan's army,finally ending the war.

Despite having inferior equipments than the Deccans,the Vijayanagars are able to win thanks to their arsonists,saboteurs,and large network of spies,who greatly destabilizes the Deccan infrastructure and army,not long before the war began.Rama Raya also saw the Gilani Brothers-and the whole Muslim division as a threat,forcing him to decomissions the Gilanis,and applies some pressure to the Muslims(threats and such),so they won't do anything stupid during the war.

What followed after the war is the Annexations of the Deccan Sultanates,as their leaders and the royal families met their end on Rama Raya's trophy room.Despite now gaining the "Ramaraya the terrible" nickname from the European mercenaries,that brought this tale back home,Ramaraya choose to "Convert,or be exiled" the muslims,which most of them flocks,and leaves the land for the Delhi Sultanates.

Gaining fame,and infamy,Rama Raya doesn't give a single worry about it,as he spends half-of a decade to "rebuild" the formerly-Deccan territory.Securing relations with Siam and Burma,Rama Raya sends envoys to the remaining bastion of Hinduism on Southeast Asia,the Sunda Empire.

This,eventually ends with the marriage of Queen Nilakendra,who is still unmarried,with the much-younger Trumala Deva Raya,the crown prince of the Empire.

History,will never be the same.
One Hundred Elephant Footprints:A Timeline
hampi5.jpg
 
this looks very promising, please continue.
It's interesting to see the convert or leave used on an islamic population.
Will we be seeing criptomoslems in this TL like the CriptoJews in OTL spain?
 
this looks very promising, please continue.
It's interesting to see the convert or leave used on an islamic population.
Will we be seeing criptomoslems in this TL like the CriptoJews in OTL spain?
........................*Writes that on the "Idea" list*
Well..


Maybe.
 
Ah a nice picture of them descending from the Deccan onto the North Indian plain. Are they going to war or just showing off the pachyderms?
 
Chapter One:The Dark Union
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A Runestone marking the union of the two Empires
Rama Raya,despite seeing the Empire's now successful status,refused to do more things with the Northern Sultanates,as he decided to de-mobilize and put the army into a total-defensive position.As the Alliance with the Sunda Kingdom is secured,the Vijayanagars began to use the new technology(better guns,cannons and such) they gained from the Deccans to settle Maldives,and the surrounding islands.Not to mention that the Vijayanagars have been active on pressuring "the undesirables" on Mysore,and Tamil.

Vijayanagaran traders,millitary advisors and engineers began to enter the Sunda Kingdom,boosting it up against possible threats for the region-while also opening more routes for the Vijayanagars.But this whole happiness ended when Rama Raya died on his sleep,eventually brought his son,Deva Raya,to the throne on 1571,effectively putting the Vijayanagaran Empire and the Sunda Kingdom into a union,which is-"unique" and-never happened on Asia.

Deva Raya played the card straight.Fearing that the muslims will pull the same thing on Java,Deva Raya have sent clerics to convert the remaining non-Hindu citizens of the Sunda Kingdom.He also sent troops to Java,and-in the end,on 1578,a swift campaign that eventually destroyed the Banten Sultanates and its compatriots ended with a Sunda victory.
 
The destruction of the Sultanates proved its worth,as the Empire now able to extract resources from their regions,boosting their trades up.And in the end,the Vijayanagar Empire grew into a major force on Asia,ready to unite Hindustan at all costs.

But still,gaining money and riches from java might be the only card Deva Raya could pull.Now,getting money and weapons from the portuguese merchants,Deva Raya know what he gotta do.

And the whole 3 years from now saw Deva Raya preparing for what he saw as a war for Hindustan,where he swore that he will unite Hindustan under ONE Empire,and spread hinduism,everywhere.
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Sorry for the short update.
 
Now,Deva Raya's eyes are set to Sumatra,where there's lots of elephants and possibilities to spread Hinduism to that land.But still,settling the problems on Java are his main concerns now.Within 3 months,as South India are firmly on Vijayanagar control,and "modernization" are getting underway(well,not too modern,but at least they're not that as-savage as the Europeans told to their friends).

In order to keep firm influence on the regions he controlled,Deva Raya mercilessly extended his religious policies-with now,he expelled the remaining muslims that the empire have on the region.Putting settlers from the capital on Java,and replacing Mosques with temples,Java now returns to the way it was,as a Hindu-dominated region.

And also with the resources Deva Raya traded with the europeans,Deva Raya have gained more riches,more than ever.This also forced the portuguese to "stay" on Goa,as they have realized that if they try to hassle with the Vijayanagars,they might got themselves into a deep trouble.

This effectively ends with the Portuguese signs a trade,defensive and support pact with the Vijayanagars,hoping that they would help them on conquering Asia.Deva Raya,seeing this opportunity,agrees on the condition that Nusantara and India will be untouched.

Why Nusantara? Because the resources.The damn,precious resources.
 
Still,a peace with the Indochinese nations must be made.Despite they believed on their "Buddha",it wouldn't be a hard thing.By spending and sharing their technology with them(well,only Burma got the tech.)

Will everything goes smooth?
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I'm sorry for this update.
 
The new weapons found themselves to be extremely useful,on the Vijayanagaran army.New tactics are soon going to be needed.What? Folllowing the western tactics? That's odd,but..it can work.Or maybe,look to china,where Sun-tzu made his own book? Taking those paths will be questionable,due to the Army's arleady established doctrines and tactics.Although now the Vijayanagars now uses Horses too,from the conquered Deccan territories.

With the advent and arrival of the European technologies on Vijayanagar lands,such as the blast furnace,introduces the Vijayanagars into a whole new level on the big game.Rifles,cannon-making,ironmelting,on a full-year,whole programmes that Deva Raya hoped can make the empire catch up-with the standards of the west.

Everything turns great,really great,until the first request from the Portuguese empire have arrived.The Portuguese empire,interrested on taking over the Maharlikan islands up north from the Indonesian regions,"ordered" the Vijayanagars to assist them on the capture.

Deva Raya is split,beetween the Portuguese priorities,or the Vijayanagaran priorities.But still,he haven't replied to the call,as the Empire now slowly integrate the Indonesian territories into the fold,and occupying lands after lands,which on 1577,it could be safely stated that the old king's empire have grown that it will knock the Aceh Sultanate's doors..soon enough.
 
God as an avatar of Vishnu and his son as a new god? I think it would work in India but somehow I have doubts it will fly in Europe.
 
Slowly enough,the sultanates up north began to ask the Ottomans,everyone-they could ask to to spruce them up,and it all ends with various results.

On the other hand,Deva Raya is ailing,with age tears him down slowly..slowly,until a regency council,which will decide-on who will rule the empire is finally established on 1579,as Deva Raya,struck by the loss of his wife,turns out-that he can't get up from his bed,but still alive.The task for being a king of this Empire is quite hard,as now,the empire faces the sight that the Javanese,Sumatran lands are fully intregrated to empire,giving the new king a challenge.

Deva Raya's marriage gave the empire three sons,and two daughters,which the three sons will be described below.

The eldest of them,Tumenggu Rama,is a tough,strong man,greatly resembling his grandfather-but..he's not keen on expanding the western influence that the Vijayanagars are slowly adopting to.

And there's Devama Gama,the one who's more interrested on diplomacy,diplomacy,and diplomacy,art,and things like that.

Finally,Jayagama,the one with the stronger indonesian blood.Jayagama,a westernophile,seeks to continue,and finish the westernization attempt.

Slowly enough,the Vijayanagars began to accept a religion on the fold,after Hinduism.

Christianity.

Few scholars are experimenting with synch-ing the two distinctly different religion.
 
But the scramble for the throne ultimately ended when Tumenggu ordered a Assassination attempt to Devama Gama,which succeeded,but ultimately discovered by the Regency council,and Jayagama.Immidiately crowned as the king,Jayagama exiled Tumenggu and his Cohorts to Persia,where the muslims probably will take them out.

The first thing Jayagama do on his first days of his reign is none-other than giving the Portuguese more freedom than ever,triggering the "cultural" revolution.As the results of this,accompanied with the strong friendship beetween the two empires,things are.."Exchanged".

You can see Temples in Porto,Churches in Vijayanagar.Some Portuguese settlers converted to hinduism,and some brought it back to Portugal.Some Vijayanagarans who made it to Portugal brought Christianity back home.Many Vijayanagarans began to wear,act,work like the Europeans do,after seeing them act.The same also happened on Goa,as you-now,can see (as the smallest example) Snake charmers,Hindu monks walking around on Porto.

Millitary-wise,as those who follow Tumenggu's path-follows him,literally,Jayagama is able to let the western influences in,and-he mixed it with the pre-existing tactics,resulting on new tactics,such as the elephants,now used as a "Walking Fortress",not as cavalry,as the cavalry itself is now filled with the horses.

Finally,government-wise.As the western Influences seeps in,Jayagama saw the concept of "Colonialism" interresting.Purchasing more schematics and equipments from the Portuguese,Jayagama now sets his eyes on what may lies down south.
 
Jayagama's eyes are set to the lands possibly called "Africa",judging from the maps. This might be ambitious,since the Indonesian "settling" program haven't finished yet..
But Jayagama knew what he could exploit with it.

By sending Brahmans and Vaisyas to Nusantara,Jayagama assures that those lands will be able to catch up with its brethren on India.While explorers,with the aids from the Portuguese Empire,by 1582,as the Portuguese empire began to establish villages on Maharlika,the Vijayanagar Empire "founds" a island,which still-unnamed till now.

Jayagama plans to send Dalits to "Colonize" those islands.

Meanwhile,the situation on the world are rather questionable.With the Vijayanagara empire blocking their way,and there's the "new world","Asia" is quickly forgotten,or even abandoned as a interresting prospect by the Europeans.

But not,for the Dutch,Russians,or even the Ottoman Empire.

The Russians,prepping themselves up,rapidly expanding and funding will-be puppets on few lands,the Dutch,with their dirty tactics,and finally the Ottomans,who actively funds the Indian sultanates,and waging wars against other Islamic nations,in order to establish the "new caliphate",things are rather..different,at least.

The Portuguese Empire,now firmly controlling the trade on Iberia,and to-the extent,Alexandria,with their spices.With this,the colonization of Brazil is faster,but..

It makes them greedy,and to the extent where they possibly wanted to rule Iberia,and this..might be their most fatal mistake.
 
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