of the Kakatiyas. Thereafter the fort was under dispute for nearly two centuries. It was captured by the Bahmanis in 1323 CE. Saluva Narasimha Deva Raya expressed a wish in his testament that the city of Raichur be recaptured. This had been in the mind of Krishnadevaraya since his coronation in 1509. In the year 1520 Krishnadevaraya sent Saeed Maraikar, a Muslim in his service, to Goa with a large sum of money to buy horses. Maraikar instead went to Adil Khan with the money and offered his services. Krishnadevaraya made a demand that Maraikar be returned along with the money which was duly refused. During the period of peace, Krishnadevaraya made extensive preparations for a grand attack on Raichur doab. After the court decided that Raichur should be attacked the king invited all commanders (Nayakas) in his service to take part in the battle. Raichur is very rich from the epigraphical point of view. It has already yielded hundreds of inscriptions, ranging from the Mauryan period up to the end of the Muslim period. The inscriptions are in a variety of languages such as Sanskrit, Prakrit, Kannada, Telugu, Arabic, and Persian and belonging to almost all the dynasties that ruled over the Deccan. The most important places from this point of view are Maski, Koppal, Kuknur, Hatti Gold Mines, Mudgal, Lingsugur and Raichur. The District of Raichur was a part of the Hyderabad State until the re-organisation of State on 1 November 1956. Geography Raichur is located at on Deccan plateau. It has an average elevation of 407 metres (1335 ft) The summers get really hot in this region with temperatures going beyond 40 °C. It receives rainfall during the months between May to August. Overall, the region is warm and humid during most part of the year. Demographics As of the 2001 India census, Hinduism is majority religion in Raichur with 57.61% followers. Islam is second most popular religion in Raichur with approximately 39.87% following it. In Raichur, Christianity is followed by 1.18%, Jainism by 0.94%, Sikhism by 0.08% and Buddhism by 0.08%. Around 0.00% stated 'Other Religion', approximately 0.29% stated 'No Particular Religion'. The official language is Kannada, but Urdu and Telugu are also spoken in small numbers. Climate See also Raichur Airport References External links Raichur City Official Website Weather in Raichur Zilla Panchayat of Raichur Cities and towns in Raichur district Cities in Karnataka Taluks