Andhra Pradesh: History

The Andhras trace their history to the vedic age.
Andhra was mentioned in the Sanskrit epics such as Aitareya Brahmana (800 BCE).
According to Aitareya Brahmana of the Rig veda, Andhras left north India and settled in south India.
The roots of the Telugu language have been seen on inscriptions found near the Guntur district and from others dating to the rule of Renati Cholas in the fifth century CE.

Satavahnas
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The Early Satavahanas ruled Andhra.
The puranas refer to Satavahanas as Andhra Bhrityas.
The Purāṇas list 30 Andhra rulers.
Many are known from their coins and inscriptions as well.
Satavahanas made Amaravati as their capital.

Simuka (c. 230–207 BCE)

After becoming independent around 230 BCE, Simuka, the founder of the dynasty, conquered the present-day Maharashtra and parts of Madhya Pradesh (including Malwa).
He was succeeded by his brother Kanha (or Krishna) (r. 207–189 BCE), who further extended his state to the present day Andhra Pradesh.
Later, Simuka made Srikakulam his capital.

Satakarni (c. 180–124 BCE)

His successor Sātakarnī I was the sixth ruler of the Satavahana.
He is said to have ruled for 56 years.
The Mauryans extended their rule over Andhra in the fourth century BCE.
With the fall of the Maurya Empire in the third century BCE, the Satavahanas became independent.
After the decline of the Satavahanas in 220 CE, the Ikshvaku dynasty, Pallavas, Ananda Gotrikas, Rashtrakutas, Vishnukundinas, Eastern Chalukyas, and Cholas ruled the land.

Ikshvakus
Andhra Ikshvakus were one of the earliest recorded ruling dynasties of the Guntur-Krishna regions of Andhra Pradesh.
They ruled the eastern Andhra country along the Krishna river during the later half of the second century CE.
Puranas called Andhra Ikshvakus Shri Parvatiya Andhras.
Their capital was Vijayapuri (Nagarjunakonda).

Pallavas:
Simha Varma of the Manchikallu stone inscription establishes the independent rule of the Pallavas in parts of the Krishna valley of Andhra Pradesh.

Sivaskanda Varma was the first great ruler of the early Pallavas.
He extended his dominions from the Krishna in the north to the south Pennar in the south and to the Bellary district in the West.

Most of the Pallava Prakrit and Sanskrit charters from the southern Andhra country intimately connects them with the history of southern Andhra.
The influence of the Pallavas was still felt by Andhra till it was swept by the Western Chalukyan invasion led by Pulakesin II in the first quarter of the seventh century AD.
The Pallavas were not a recognized political power before the 2nd century AD.

Pallavas were originally executive officers under the Satavahana kings.

Vishnukundins:

Since the fall of the Ikshvakus, the Vishnukundins were the first great dynasty, which held sway way over the entire Andhra country including Kalinga and parts of Telangana and played an important and imperial role in the history of Deccan during the fifth and sixth century AD.

Salankayanas:

The Salankayanas were an ancient dynasty that ruled the Andhra region between Godavari and Krishna with their capital as Vengi, modern Pedavegi 12 km from Eluru in West Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh, India's from 300 to 440 AD.
They were Brahmins and their name is derived from their symbol and gotra name, which stood for Nandi (the bull of Shiva).

Chola Dynasty:

The Chola dynasty ruled Andhra during the period of 1010–1200.
The Chola territories stretched from the islands of the Maldives in the south to as far north as the banks of the Godavari River in Andhra Pradesh.

Reddy Dynasty:

The Reddy Kingdom (1325–1448 CE) was established in present day coastal Andhra Pradesh by Prolaya Vema Reddi in the early fourteenth century.
The region that was ruled by this dynasty spanned present day coastal andhra from Vishakapatnam in the north to Kanchipuram in the south.
Prolaya Vema Reddi was part of the confederation of states that started a movement against the invading Turkic Muslim armies of the Delhi Sultanate in 1323 CE and succeeded in repulsing them from Warangal.
Today Reddys is a social group or caste of India, predominantly inhabiting the states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

Vijayanagara Empire:

The Vijayanagara Empire was an empire originated South India, in the Deccan Plateau region in the early fourteenth century.
It was established in 1336 by Harihara Raya I and his brother Bukka Raya I of Sangama Dynasty.
The empire rose to prominence as a culmination of attempts by the southern powers to ward off Islamic invasions by the end of the thirteenth century.
It lasted until 1646 although its power declined after a major military defeat in 1565 to the Deccan sultanates.
The empire is named after its capital city of Vijayanagara, whose ruins surround present day Hampi, now a World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India.
The writings of medieval European travelers such as Domingo Paes, Fernão Nunes and Niccolò Da Conti, and the literature in local languages provide crucial information about its history.
Archaeological excavations at Vijayanagara have revealed the empire's power and wealth.
The region of Rayalaseema in the present day Andhra Pradesh got its name from the rulers of this dynasty whose name generally ended with raya, meaning raya ruled region (seema).

The empire's legacy includes many monuments spread over South India, the best known of which is the group at Hampi.
The Vijayanagara emipre's time is considered as the golden era of South India in many aspects by historian be it prosperity, welfare, wealth, military might and nurturing of arts.
The previous temple building traditions in South India came together in the Vijayanagara Architecture style.
  The Vijayanagara Empire created an epoch in South Indian history that transcended regionalism by promoting Hinduism as a unifying factor.

Modern history:

Inspired by their success, the Vijayanagara Empire, one of the greatest empires in the history of Andhra Pradesh and India, was founded by Harihara and Bukka, who served as treasury officers of the Kakatiyas of Warangal.
In 1347 CE, an independent Muslim state, the Bahmani Sultanate, was established in south India by Ala-ud-Din Bahman Shah in a revolt against the Delhi Sultanate.
The Qutb Shahi dynasty held sway over the Andhra country for about two hundred years from the early part of the sixteenth century to the end of the seventeenth century.

In Colonial India, Northern Circars became part of the British Madras Presidency.

Eventually this region emerged as the Coastal Andhra region.
Later the Nizam rulers of Hyderabad ceded five territories to the British which eventually emerged as Rayalaseema region.
The Nizams retained control of the interior provinces as the princely state of Hyderabad, acknowledging British rule in return for local autonomy.
However, Komaram Bheem, a tribal leader, started his fight against the erstwhile Asaf Jahi Dynasty for the liberation of Hyderabad State.
Meanwhile, the French occupied Yanam, in the Godavari delta, and (save for periods of British control) would hold it until 1954.
In 1947 Vizianagaram was the largest Hindu Princely state in Andhra Pradesh.

1947 Independence:
The Nizam wanted to retain the independence of the Princely Hyderabad State from India, but the people of the region launched a movement to join the Indian Union.
The state of Hyderabad was forcibly joined to the Republic of India with Operation Polo in 1948.

In an effort to gain an independent state based on linguistic differences and to protect the interests of the Telugu-speaking people of Madras State, Potti Sreeramulu fasted until death in 1952.
As Madras became a bone of contention, in 1949 a JVP committee report stated "Andhra Province could be formed provided the Andhras give up their claim on the city of Madras (now Chennai)".
After Potti Sreeramulu's death, the Telugu-speaking areas, i.e. Andhra State, was carved out of Madras State on 1 October 1953, with Kurnool as its capital city.

On the basis of a gentlemen's agreement of 1 November 1956, the States Reorganisation Act formed Andhra Pradesh by merging Andhra State with the Telugu-speaking areas of the already existing Hyderabad State.
Hyderabad was made the capital of the new state.
The Marathi-speaking areas of Hyderabad State merged with Bombay State and the Kannada-speaking areas were merged with Mysore State.

Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014

In February 2014, the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014 bill was passed by the Parliament of India for the formation of Telangana state comprising ten districts.

Hyderabad will remain as a joint capital for 10 years for both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
The new state of Telangana came into existence on 2 June 2014 after approval from the President of India.
The formation of a new state named Telangana from Andhra Pradesh is not considered an amendment to the Constitution of India per article 3 and 4 of that document.