After the fall of the Mauryan Empire, the district was under the Satavahanas until the 3rd century under the famous poet king Haala.
The Pulakesi II of Badami Chalukyas and his brother Kubja Vishnu Vardhana acquired Pishtapura in the 7th century.
The Eastern Chalukya dynasty, founded by Kubja Vishnu Vardhana, ruled at first form Pishtapura, then from Vengi, and later from Rajamahendravaram.
Velanati chiefs also suppressed rebellions from Haihayas of Kona, Gonka II and Rudra of the Kakatiya dynasty.
Ganapati defeated Kalinga armies on the north, Pandyas of Madura and Cholas with the help of Nellooru Chodas.
The Kakatiya power remained undisturbed in the Godavari region throughout the reign of Ganapati and her daughter Rudrama devi.
Delhi sultans faced rebellions from the confederacy of local chiefs under the authority of Prolaya of the Musunuri Nayaks clan.
Subsequently, Narasimha Deva IV of Kalinga succeeded in conquering this region, but was repulsed by Anavota Reddi of Rajamahendravaram.
He died a premature death around 1395 and Kataya Vema, the general and brother-in-law of Kumara Giri, was given Raja Mahendra Rajya in appreciation of the services rendered by him to the State.
Kataya Vema was also involved in a conflict with Eruva chief Annadeva Choda, who managed to occupy a large portion of the Raja Mahendra Rajya.
After his death, Allada Reddi placed Kataya Vemas' son Komaragiri on the throne of Rajamahendravaram and ruled the kingdom as his regent.
About 1423, the Vijayanagara ruler Deva Raya II defeated Veera Bhadra, who was then ruling this kingdom and reduced it to subjection.
After the death of Muhammad Shah III, Purushottama Gajapati overran the whole of the Godavari-Krishna do-ab and drove the Bahmani forces as far south as Kondaveedu.
Pusapati Ananda Gajapati Raju, the new Raja of Vizianagaram, invited the French to occupy the Northern Circars.
Lord Robert Clive, entered into negotiations with the Mughal Emperor Shah Alam and obtained a firmana ceding the Northern Circars to the British East India Company in August 1765, but it was kept a secret until March 1766.
The fort of Kondapalli was seized by the British, and General Cillaud was sent to Machilipatnam to undertake military operations, if necessary.
War was prevented by the signing of a treaty on 12 November 1766 by which the company, in return for occupying the Circars, undertook to maintain troops for the Nizam's assistance.
By a second treaty, signed on 1 March 1768 the Nizam acknowledged the validity of Shah Alam's grant and resigned the Circars to the company, receiving as a mark of friendship an annuity of 50,000.
Yanam was relinquished by the French in 1954, but one condition of the cession treaty was the retention of the district's separate and distinct identity, which also applied to the other South Indian enclaves constituting today's Puducherry state.
[13] East Godavari occupies an area of 12,805 square kilometres (4,944 sq mi),[14] comparatively equivalent to Indonesia's Sumba Island.
[21] They found that 92.5% had access to electricity, 96.7% had drinking water, 50.4% toilet facilities, and 30.9% lived in a pucca (permanent) home.
The government of Andhra Pradesh is constructing film studios in Kakinada and Rajamahendravaram cities on PPP mode.
[citation needed] East Godavari has produced several stalwarts in an area of culture, music, art, and cinema.
[16] The major products contributing to the GVA of the district from agriculture and allied services are, paddy, sugarcane, betel leaves, coconut, milk, meat and fisheries.
The GVA to the industrial and service sector is contributed from construction, electricity, manufacturing, unorganised trade and transport.
[citation needed] Rajamahendravaram, Dwarapudi, Anaparti, Samalkot Junction, Pithapuram, Annavaram, Tuni, and Kakinada Town are the Major Railway stations in the district.
The government of Andhra Pradesh is keen in exporting flowers through this airport from nurseries in Kadiam mandal in Rajamahendravaram and agricultural products from the district.
[28] National Waterway 4 was declared on 24 November 2008, which connects the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and the union territory of Puducherry.
GMR is constructing new commercial port at Kona area in Thondangi mandal of Kakinada which consists of 1200acre land.
They include, 29 government, 3,452 mandal and zilla parishads, 1 residential, 1688 private, 2 model, 12 Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV), 285 municipal and 517 other types of schools.