Kapilendra Deva (Odia: କପିଳେନ୍ଦ୍ର ଦେବ; r. 1434–1467 CE) was the founder of the Suryavamsa Gajapati Empire that ruled parts of eastern and southern India with the present-day Odisha as the center of the empire. He ascended to the throne after staging a military coup against the preceding and the last ruler from the Eastern Ganga dynasty, Bhanu Deva IV. He is also referred to as Kapilendra Routray or Sri Sri Kapilendra Deva. Kapilendra claimed descent from the Surya Vamsha of the Mahābhārata and was conferred the regnal title Shri Shri ...(108 times) Gajapati Gaudeshwara NabaKoti Karnata Kalabargeswara i.e. the Lord of Bengal (Gauda), the Lord of the Karnataka region or Vijayanagara, the Lord of Kalaburagi and of nine crore subjects.
Early life
There are multiple popular theories about the origin of Kapilendra Deva's family and his initial life. Records from the Madala Panji of the Jagannath Temple in Puri state that he was known as Kapila Rauta and belonged to the Surya Vamsa line. He used to graze cattle along with a Brahmin named Kasia. Due to a divine symbol of cobra (naga) seated by his head covering him from the sunlight while he was resting, Kasia predicted that Kapila would become a king one day. Later Kapila went to Puri where he used to beg near the Vimala Temple of the Puri Jagannath temple complex and was later adopted by the last Eastern Ganga dynasty ruler Bhanudeva following a divine dream. He was later appointed in his younger days as a military general of the Ganga forces and was assigned the task to fight the Muslim forces of Bengal. Another version of the Madala Panji maintains the same account with regards to the origin of Kapilendra Deva but changes his name to Kapila Raut who was at the service of the Ganga king Bhanudeva IV and stayed inside the palace. When the kingdom of Bhanudeva was threatened by an invasion, Kapila Raut gave a good account of himself as a brave soldier and after the death of Bhanudeva, Kapila became the ruler of Odisha assuming the name Kapilendra Deva.
Inscriptions
Raghudevapuram copper plate grant of Raghudeva Narendra who was the governor of Rajamahendravaram Rajya and also a nephew of Kapilendra Deva gives valuable details about the family's history. Their lineage can be traced back to Kapilendra Deva's grandfather Kapileswara who was holding the position of a Nayaka. Kapileswara Nayaka was thus in the military service of the Gangas and occupied the position of a lieutenant in the army. He had a son named Jageswara who was also in the service and possessed a great number of elephants. Jageswara was married to Belama and they had three sons named Balarama, Kapilendra and Parashurama Harichandana. Raghudeva Narendra was the son of Parashurama.
Consolidation of Authority by Suppressing Internal Rebellions
Due to the weakening administration of the Eastern Ganga dynasty, Kapilendra Deva ascended the throne with internal support while the last ruler of the dynasty, Bhanu Deva IV was on a military expedition in the southern territories. He was declared as the new Monarch with a Rajyabhisheka ceremony at Bhubaneswar. Since the ascension was through a coup or rebellion, some vassal kings from Odisha such as Matsarvamshi of Oddadi, Shilavamshis of Nandapur, and Bishnukundina of Panchadhara declined his authority and declared themselves independent. Around this same time, the Sultanate of Jaunpur also posed an external threat to his realm. He appointed his able minister Gopinath Mahapatra to deal with the Jaunpur threat, which he successfully executed, and Kapilendra Deva himself suppressed the internal rebels with force. The rebels were suppressed by the year 1440 CE. The rebellious troubles that he dealt with by force are proven by his Lingaraj Temple declaration in which he ordered the rebels to accept his rule or be toppled from power.
Coronation as Gajapati
The chronicle Madala Panji detailed the event of Kapilendra Deva's coronation as Gajapati of the realm succeeding Bhanu Deva IV, the last ruler of the Eastern Gangas. It mentioned that the coronation took place at Bhubaneswar on 2 kākara śukḷa 4 aṅka 2. The date with respect to the Odia calendar corresponds to the Gregorian calendar on 29 June 1435. Thus with the coronation of Kapilendra Deva as the Gajapati of the Odradesa realm, he started his era known as Kapilabda and laid the foundation of the Suryavamsa dynasty.