The Vijayanagara Empire – NDA History PYQs

NDA 2024-II

Q. 1. Vijayanagara rulers claimed that they were ruling on behalf of

(a) Lord Murugan

(b) Lord Venkateshwara

(c) Shri Virupaksha

(d) Shri Vallabha

Answer: (c) Shri Virupaksha

Explanation: Vijayanagara kings claimed to rule as agents of Shri Virupaksha. This patron deity linked their political authority to divine sanction. Their inscriptions and coins often carried the signature Shri Virupaksha. So option (c) Shri Virupaksha is the correct answer. Concept Tested: Divine authority claimed by Vijayanagara rulers

NDA 2024-II

Q. 2. Domingo Paes describes a king in these words: ‘Of medium height, and of fair complexion and good figure, rather fat than thin; he has on his face signs of smallpox’. Identify the king from the options given below.

(a) Krishnadeva Raya

(b) Ram Raya

(c) Devaraya II

(d) Devaraya I

Answer: (a) Krishnadeva Raya

Explanation: Domingo Paes wrote this vivid description of Krishnadeva Raya. His account captures the king’s appearance in personal detail. Ram Raya, Devaraya II, and Devaraya I are separate, unrelated rulers. So option (a) Krishnadeva Raya is the correct answer. Concept Tested: Identifying a Vijayanagara king from a traveller’s description

NDA 2024-I

Q. 3. Which of the following statements about Vijayanagara king Krishnadevaraya’s expeditions are correct?

1. In the early years of his reign he marched against the ruler of Orissa.

2. In 1520 CE, he captured the fort of Raichur from Ismail Adil Khan.

3. Krishnadevaraya restored Sultan Mahmud Shah to power and assumed the title of Yavana-rajya-sthapan-acharya.

(a) 1 and 3 only

(b) 2 and 3 only

(c) 1, 2 and 3

(d) 1 and 2 only

Answer: (c) 1, 2 and 3

Explanation: Krishnadevaraya did campaign early against the Gajapati ruler of Orissa. He captured the fort of Raichur from Bijapur’s forces in 1520. He also restored Sultan Mahmud Shah, taking a related honorific title. All three statements about his campaigns are accurate together. Concept Tested: Krishnadevaraya’s major military campaigns

NDA 2023-II

Q. 4. Consider the following statements regarding the royal center in Vijayanagara Empire:

1. The royal center was located in the south-western part of the settlement

2. It included over 60 temples

3. About 30 building complexes at the site have been identified as palaces

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) 1, 2 and 3

(d) 1 and 2 only

Answer: (c) 1, 2 and 3

Explanation: The royal centre did sit in the settlement’s south-western part. So statement 1 correctly places its location. Over sixty temples stood within this same royal centre. So statement 2 correctly states this temple count. Around thirty complexes there have been identified as palaces. So statement 3 correctly states this separate figure. All three statements together are accurate here. Concept Tested: Layout and scale of the Vijayanagara royal centre

★ JOVIK Exam Insight: NDA often tests exact figures from the royal centre’s layout. Keep the temple count and palace count separate in memory.

NDA 2023-I

Q. 5. Which one of the following kingdoms was founded by the two brothers Harihar and Bukka?

(a) Bahmani

(b) Vijayanagara

(c) Malwa

(d) Maratha

Answer: (b) Vijayanagara

Explanation: Harihar and Bukka together founded the Vijayanagara kingdom. It grew into one of South India’s most powerful empires. Bahmani, Malwa, and Maratha powers arose through separate founders. So option (b) Vijayanagara is the correct answer. Concept Tested: Kingdom founded by Harihar and Bukka

NDA 2022-II

Q. 6. Who among the following laid the foundation of the Vijayanagara Empire?

(a) Harihara and Bukka

(b) Krishnadeva Raya

(c) Rama Raya

(d) Virupaksha Raya

Answer: (a) Harihara and Bukka

Explanation: Harihara and Bukka, two brothers, founded Vijayanagara. Their new kingdom rose in the fourteenth century. Krishnadeva Raya, Rama Raya, and Virupaksha Raya ruled far later. So option (a) Harihara and Bukka is the correct answer. Concept Tested: Founders of the Vijayanagara Empire

NDA 2021-I

Q. 7. Consider the following statements about the Mahanavami Dibba:

1. It was the name of a giant box of sweets distributed at the Mahanavami festival.

2. It was the name of a massive platform with a base covered with relief carvings.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Answer: (b) 2 only

Explanation: The Mahanavami Dibba was not a box of sweets at all. So statement 1 wrongly describes it as a festival food item. It was actually a massive platform at Vijayanagara’s royal centre. Its base carried detailed relief carvings around the structure. So statement 2 correctly describes this physical platform. Only statement 2 is correct among the two. Concept Tested: True nature of the Mahanavami Dibba structure

NDA 2019-II

Q. 8. The ruins of Vijayanagara (Hampi) were brought to public light in the year 1800 by the following British surveyor and engineer:

(a) James Prinsep

(b) Colin Mackenzie

(c) James Rennell

(d) Charles Metcalfe

Answer: (b) Colin Mackenzie

Explanation: Colin Mackenzie surveyed and documented the Hampi ruins. His work in 1800 first brought the site to public attention. He drew on local priests’ memories alongside his own survey. So option (b) Colin Mackenzie is the correct answer. Concept Tested: Surveyor who rediscovered the Hampi ruins

NDA 2018-II

Q. 9. Who among the following travellers was from Italy and visited Vijayanagar Kingdom in the fifteenth century?

(a) Nikitin

(b) Fa-Hien

(c) Bernier

(d) Nicolo Conti

Answer: (d) Nicolo Conti

Explanation: Nicolo Conti was an Italian traveller who visited Vijayanagara. His journey took place in the early fifteenth century. Nikitin, Fa-Hien, and Bernier belonged to other countries and eras. So option (d) Nicolo Conti is the correct answer. Concept Tested: Italian traveller who visited fifteenth-century Vijayanagara

NDA 2017-I

Q. 10. Which one of the following statements regarding King Krishnadevaraya is NOT correct?

(a) He was a great scholar of Telugu and Sanskrit

(b) Foreign travellers Paes and Nuniz visited his court

(c) Barbosa praised him for the great justice and equity prevailing in his empire

(d) He wrote his magnum opus Amuktamalyada in Sanskrit

Answer: (d) He wrote his magnum opus Amuktamalyada in Sanskrit

Explanation: Krishnadevaraya actually composed the Amuktamalyada in Telugu. The work explores the life of the Vaishnava saint Andal. So statement (d) wrongly names Sanskrit as its language. He was genuinely a scholar of both Telugu and Sanskrit. Paes and Nuniz did visit and describe his court directly. Barbosa did praise the justice and order in his empire. These other statements about Krishnadevaraya are accurate. Concept Tested: Language of Krishnadevaraya’s Amuktamalyada

★ JOVIK Exam Insight: NDA often swaps the true language of a famous work with a more “prestigious-sounding” one. Amuktamalyada is Telugu, not Sanskrit.

NDA 2015-II

Q. 11. The Vijayanagara Empire received its death blow at the battle of:

(a) Talikota in 1565

(b) Panipat in 1661

(c) Talikota in 1665

(d) Raichur in 1510

Answer: (a) Talikota in 1565

Explanation: A coalition of Deccan Sultanates defeated Vijayanagara at Talikota. This battle took place in the year 1565. It broke the empire’s political and military power permanently. So option (a) Talikota in 1565 is the correct answer. Concept Tested: Battle that ended Vijayanagara’s dominance

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