Venad was one of the thirteen kingdoms of the ancient Cheran empire. It included most of modern day Kollam and Thiruvananthapuram districts of Kerala State, India. The Cheras were one of the three ancient Tamil dynasties who ruled the southern tip of the peninsula of India for most of its early history. ... Kollam district in Kerala Kollam, formerly known as Quilon, is a city in Kerala which is also the headquarters of a district by the same name. ... Thiruvananthapuram district in Kerala Indian Coffee House Thiruvananthapuram or Thiruvanathapuram (formerly known as Trivandrum) is the capital (population - 889,191 (2001)) of the state of Kerala, India. ... Kerala is bounded by the Arabian Sea on the west and the Western Ghats on the east. ...

The Chera power was re-established in Kerala by Kulasekhara Varman about 800 A.D. the founder of the royal dynasty of the Kulasekhara Empire, the revived or second Cheran empire. After the fall of Mahodayapuram in 1102, the capital of the the emperor was relocated to Kollam to regroup. In the ensuing battles Cheran armies defeated the Chola using chaver (suicide squad) tactics, eclipsing the Cholan power in South India for good. Unfortunately for Cherans -and Keralam- a hundred years of war and loss of the imperial capital took its toll. The imperial power broke down soon after the war and all thirteen kingdoms became independent. Venad beacame one of the more powerful of these successor kingdoms. The Cheran imperial family most likely merged with Venad royal family and their heirs ruled Venad. At the height of its glory, the kings of Venad conquered most of South India. In the 18th century the newly crowned young price Marthanda Varma, who was in in his twenties, defeated the Eight Families and their chiefs (Ettuveettil Pillamar) with the help of the British East India Company. He not only united the kingdom, but expanded it to the north to include half of modern-day Kerala. He named it Thiruvithamcode (Travancore) after the branch of Venad royal family from which he hailed. Events Valencia is captured by the Almoravids. ... Kollam district in Kerala Kollam, formerly known as Quilon, is a city in Kerala which is also the headquarters of a district by the same name. ... Travancore (originally called Thiruvithaamcoore, in Malayalam) was a princely state in India. ... The British East India Company, sometimes referred to as John Company, was a joint-stock company of investors, which was granted a Royal Charter by Elizabeth I on December 31, 1600, with the intent to favour trade privileges in India. ... Travancore (originally called Thiruvithaamcoore, in Malayalam) was a princely state in India. ...

Thiruvithamcore or Travancore lost its soveregnity to the British at the end of 18th Century, and remained a princely state with its own goverment. After the independence of India, Travencore joined Indian Union and became a part of the State of Kerala when it was formed in 1956.

Further reading

• P.J.Cherian (editor, Perspectives on Kerala History : The Second Millennium
• Zacharias Thundy, (Northern Michigan University), "The Kerala Story: Chera times of the Kulasekharas"