reached the tent where Mara Naika camped and killed him. He then directed his brother Krishnaraya to lay siege to Karagahalli and capture it. Thus, Hadinaadu's rulers and subjects heaved a sigh of relief. The queen, grateful to Yaduraya, gave her daughter's hand in marriage to him. He was crowned as the ruler of Hadinaadu on May 11, 1399, after which a new empire was established in the region. Yaduraya became the founder of the Mysore Wadiyar dynasty. He ruled the province till 1423. Noted historian Prof. P. V. Nanjaraj Urs however argues that Yaduraya and Krishnaraya were not from Dwaraka, as is the belief among some, but had come from Vijayanagar or some other region around the then Mysore province. Having heard of their valour, Chikkadevarasammanni invited them to the Palace to slay Mara Naika, he says. Historians like Shyam Prasad, Nobuhiro Ota, David Leeming, Aya Ikegame suggest that the Wodiyars were local feudal lords who adopted puranic legend to claim themselves as direct descendants of legendary Lunar Dynasty. Origins Yaduraya was succeeded by senior Bettada Chamaraja Wadiyar (1423–1459), Thimmaraja Wadiyar (1459–1478) and senior Chamaraja Urs Wadiyar (1478–1513). Fifth Bettada Chamaraja Wadiyar entrusted to his three sons parts of his empire namely Hemmanahalli, Haravu and Puragere (present Mysore region). He also passed an order that marriages of their lineage must be held among the relatives of the three families only and in case there were no issues in a family, they must adopt a child from the other two families. The three sons', their wives' and their relatives' families led to the growth of Ursu community. The Hadinaadu Empire, restricted to 33 villages during the Yaduraya era, over the years was expanded. The headquarters of Hadinaadu was then Puragere. Its ruler Bettada Chamaraja Wadiyar's son changed the name of Puragere to Mahishasurana Ooru, which later became shortened to Mysooru. The successive rulers, having political ambitions, had more than one wife. During their military campaigns when the enemy ruler was certain of a defeat, married off the daughter to the Maharaja as a token of friendship. As such, they had more than one wife, who went on joining the Ursu community. Ranadheera Kanteerava Wadiyar had 10 wives. Except the queen, rest of the wives and their relatives became members of the Ursu community. From Yaduraya to Jaya Chamaraja Wadiyar, the dynasty had 25 rulers. Recent History About a century ago,