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The last great Hindu empire in South India, the Vijayanagara empire ruled from 14-17centuries. Vijayanagara, the city of victory, was their capital. Developed by Krishna Devaraya (1510- 1529) it had many temples, palaces and public facilities spread over a wide area. The city walls extended up to 26 km along the Tungabhadra banks and the population was more than 500,000. In 1565 they were overpowered by the Five Muslim Kingdoms\' united front and after the Battle of Talikota they shifted to Penukonda and Vijayanagara was abandoned. The Virupaksha temple, where prayers are still offered, is located here and all the ruins are loosely called Hampi. This includes Kamalapuram village and the Anegondi ruins. Hospet town, which is 13 km in the southwest, is the base from which to visit these ruins. The ruins are divided into Temple Area in the north and Palace Area in the south. There is a 700 m long road called Hampi bazaar leading from the Virupaksha temple. Residents live in buildings on both sides of this street. From here to Vitthala and other temples in the north is an enjoyable 1.5 km long walk on the scenic riverbank route.
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East end of the 32 m wide Hampi Bazaar.
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The view of the palace grounds with the mountains in the background.
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