• After the decline of the Sangam Age in the Tamil country, the Kalabhra rule lasted for about 250 years. Thereafter, the Pallavas established their kingdom in Tondaimandalam, with its capital at Kanchipuram. Different sources attest the origin of the Pallavas. They are mentioned in the inscriptions of Asoka as Pulindas.

• The early Pallava rulers, from 250 A.D., to 350 A.D. issued their charters in Prakrit. Important among them were Sivaskandavarman and Vijayaskandavarman. The second line of Pallava rulers, who ruled between 350 A.D. and 550 A.D., issued their charters in Sanskrit. The rulers of the third line, who ruled from 575 A.D. to their ultimate fall in the ninth century, issued their charters both in Sanskrit and Tamil.

• The Pallava king was at the centre of administration in which he was assisted by able ministers. He was the fountain of justice. He maintained a well-trained army. He provided land-grants to the temples, known as Devadhana and also to the Brahmans known as Brahmadeya. The Brahmadeya and Devadhana lands were exempted from tax.