Jagannatha Gajapati Narayana Deo II
[1] He had ascended to the throne at the age of eighteen and at a time when Odisha was torn apart due conflicts between external powers like the Mughals, Marathas, French and British for control of the territory.
[2] He made the last great attempts on his own to revive the lost glory of Odisha and its unique Hindu culture that revolved around the tradition of Jagannath worship.
He was also effort bound till the end of his life in framing strategic diplomatic plans to free the ancient land of Odisha from external aggressors and revival of its lost Eastern Ganga Dynasty-Gajapati glory from the past.
[4] Jagannatha Narayana Deo II envisioned to pull the ancient land of Odisha and its great Hindu culture out of the greedy clutches of external powers.
However, he failed in his effort to persuade his fellow ruling kings to unite for this cause as most of them were either the vassals of Marathas or powerless to challenge the presence of great military powers contesting with each other for complete authority.
The Marathas agreed to support their vassal Bhoi king at the condition of more revenue from the Khurda territory that included Puri and Nayagarh districts of today.
The Khurda king, Virkishore Deva however was unable to pay the promised additional revenues for this support provided by the Marathas and had to surrender his authority over Limbai, Rehang and Puri to them.
[7] Based on the report presented by Mr. Cotsford, the British dispatched a force under the leadership of Colonel Peach to suppress the defiant king of Paralakhemundi.
Unable to contain the superior British forces, Narayana Deo II lost the battle and hid himself in the Malliah hilly terrains of his estate.
The Bisoyis, Doras, Savara tribals and other common people continued to stay loyal and only paid the taxes declaring Narayana Deo II as the legal ruler.
Paralakhemundi royal court found itself as a place where many renounced scholars of the time like Kabisurjya Baladeba Ratha were encouraged, rewarded and affiliated by the rulers for their contribution to music, art, culture and literature.
Although the efforts put together by Jagannatha Gajapati Narayana Deo II for the revival of Odisha into its past glory despite multiple external aggressors failed, his activities inspired the next series of revolts against the British by his son and step brother in 1799 A.D also known as the second phase of Pralakhemundi Affairs.
