Tiruchchirappalli, << tih roo chih rah pah LEE or TUR uh chuh RAH puh lee >> (pop. 847,387; met. area pop. 1,021,717), is a town in the southeast Indian state of Tamil Nadu, lying on the Kaveri River. It is one of Tamil Nadu’s main industrial centers. Tiruchchirappalli has famous temples and the Rock Fort, which overlooks the town. The temple town of Srirangam lies just north of Tiruchchirappalli on an island in the middle of the Kaveri River. It has magnificent gateways and several shrines, among them the Ranganathaswamy temple.
Tiruchchirappalli is more than 2,000 years old, although the date of its founding is uncertain. It was once a Chola citadel. It was ruled alternately by the Pallavas and the Pandyas until the Cholas took it in the A.D. 900’s. Later, it was ruled by the Vijayanagar Empire, until that empire collapsed. The Muslims, French, and British all fought for control of Tiruchchirappalli in the 1700’s and 1800’s. Tiruchchirappalli was formerly better known as Trichinopoly.
