sides in the conflict, frustrating both the Sinhalese kings and the Cholas. Vijayabahu eventually launched a successful two-pronged attack upon Anuradhapura and Polonnaruva, when he could finally establish a firm base in southern Sri Lanka. Anuradhapura quickly fell and Polonnaruva was captured after a prolonged siege of the isolated Chola forces. Virarajendra Chola was forced to dispatch an expedition from the mainland to recapture the settlements in the north and carry the attack back into Rohana, in order to stave off total defeat. With time on the side of the insurgent forces, The Chola's determination began to gradually falter. Vijayabahu possessed strategic advantages, even without a unified "national" force behind him. A prolonged war of attrition was of greater benefit to the Sinhalese than to the Cholas. After the accession of Emperor Virarajendra to the Chola throne in 1063, the Cholas were increasingly on the defensive, not only in Sri Lanka but also in peninsular India, where they were hard-pressed by the attacks of the Chalukyas from the Deccan. First Battle of Polonnaruwa In 1066, he launched the first attack on Polonnaruwa from his base in Rohana. His forces initally captured the city. Gradually the wider conflict developed into a prolonged, back-and-forth struggle of raids and counter-raids, with the forces of Vijayabahu advancing upon Polonnaruva and then falling back to fortresses in Dakkhinadesa and Rohana to withstand retaliatory Chola attacks and sieges. Eventually Choua forces under Emperor Virarajendra arrived, forcing Vijayabahu to flee. Vijayabahu contend with the hostility of local chiefs who regarded him as a greater threat to their independence than the Cholas were. For that reason, the Cholas occasionally succeeded in recruiting nominal support from rebel chiefs in Rohana, as a result, Vijayabahu had difficulty consolidating a firm territorial base from which to launch a decisive campaign against the Cholas. Conflicts in Southern India With time on the side of the insurgent forces, The Chola's determination began to gradually falter. Vijayabahu possessed strategic advantages, even without a unified "national" force behind him. A prolonged war of attrition was of greater benefit to the Sinhalese than to the Cholas. After the accession of Emperor Virarajendra to the Chola throne in 1063, the Cholas were increasingly on the defensive, not only in Sri Lanka but also in peninsular India, where they were hard-pressed by the attacks of the Chalukyas from the Deccan. Second Battle of Polonnaruwa Starting from Mahanagakula on