HISTORY

History

Helapuri (Eluru) was part of the Buddhist kingdom of Vengi. The Eastern Chalukyas ruled coastal Andhra from 700 to 1200, with Vengi, near the village of Pedavegi, as their capital. Historical evidence can be found at the villages of Pedavegi and Guntupalli (Jilakarragudem).Eluru then became a part of the Kalinga Empire until 1471. Later it fell into the hands of the Gajapathis. In 1515 Srikrishnadevaraya captured it. After the fall of the Vijayanagara Kingdom, it was taken by the Sultan of Golkonda, Kutub Shah.After the British established control over South India, Eluru and surrounding areas were merged into the Madras Presidency.During the division of Northern Cirkars into districts, Eluru was made a part of Machilipatnam district. Later, it was included in the Godavari District in 1859. Subsequently, Eluru was made part of the Krishna District. Finally, in 1925, West Godavari District was formed with Eluru as its headquarters. All district offices and regional offices were set up in Eluru city.Eluru was upgraded from a municipality to a corporation in April 2005 and eventually grew into a well developed town. In the process, some of the surrounding villages were merged in the city, raising the city's population to 285,900.