This place was previously called Śiyāli. Once, Indra fled to this place out of fear of the asura called Śūrapadma and performed tapas here.
There are no references to Thanjavur in Tamil archives of the Sangam period (3rd century BC to 4th century AD), although some scholars believe that the city has existed since that time. Kovil Venni, located 24 km east of the city, was the site of the Battle of Venni between the Chola king Karikala and a confederation of Cheras and Pandyas. The Cholas appear to have faced an invasion by the Kalabhras in the 3rd century AD, after which the kingdom fell into oblivion. The region surrounding present-day Thanjavur was conquered in the 6th century by the Mutharayars, who ruled there until 849.
The Cholas again rose to prominence with the rise of the medieval Chola monarch Vijayalaya (841-878 AD) in about 850 AD. Vijayalaya captured Thanjavur from the Mutharayar king Elango Mutharayar and built a temple dedicated to the Hindu goddess Nisumbhasudani. His son Aditya I (871–901) consolidated his control over the city. Rashtrakuta king Krishna II (878–914), contemporary of Chola king Parantaka I (907–950), claims to have conquered Thanjavur, but there are no records to support this claim. Gradually, Thanjavur became the most important city of the Chola Empire and remained the capital until the rise of Gangaikonda Cholapuram around 1025. During the first decade of the 11th century, the Chola king Raja Raja Chola I (985-1014) built Brihadeeswarar . Temple in Thanjavur. The temple is considered one of the best examples of Tamil architecture.
