Seuna (Yadava) dynasty

The Seuna or Sevuna dynasty, commonly called the Yadavas of Devagiri, ruled the western Deccan from the late twelfth to the early fourteenth century. Its heartland lay between the Narmada and Tungabhadra rivers, covering much of present-day Maharashtra, northern Karnataka and parts of Madhya Pradesh, with its capital at Devagiri, today's Daulatabad. The family began as feudatories of the Western Chalukyas; as Chalukya power faded in the mid-twelfth century, Bhillama V declared independence and founded a new capital. The kingdom reached its height under Simhana II, when it controlled the main trade routes between the Deccan and the ports of the Konkan and Gujarat. The Yadavas were famous patrons of Sanskrit and Marathi literature and built temples at Sinnar and elsewhere. Their power collapsed in the early fourteenth century, when Ala-ud-Din Khalji's generals annexed Devagiri in 1308 and the last ruler was killed in 1317. Their ministers, notably Hemadri, reformed revenue and temple administration, and the dynasty's forts and reservoirs shaped the Deccan landscape.