Cholas They ruled in the central and northern parts of Tamil Nadu. ( Cholamandalam ) Their capital was Uraiyur (near Tiruchirapalli ) Puhar (Kaviripattinam ) was an alternative royal residence and chief port town. Emblem: Tiger They have an efficient Navy. King Karikala defeated the confederacy of Cheras, Pandyas, and eleven minor chieftains in the Battle of Venni. Trade and commerce flourished. Cheras They controlled the central and northern parts of Kerala and the Kongu region of Tamil Nadu. Vanji was their capital and the ports of the west coast, Musiri, and Tondi was under their control. Emblem : bow and arrow . The Cheras owed its importance to trade with the Romans . The greatest ruler of Cheras was Senguttuvan , the Red Chera, or the Good Chera. Epic Silapathikaram has a mention of his achievements like his expedition to the Himalayas where he defeated many north Indian rulers . Senguttuvan introduced the Pattini cult or the worship of Kannagi as the ideal wife in Tamil Nadu. He was the first to send an embassy to China from South India. Pandyas The Pandyas ruled from Madurai . Korkai was their main port. It was famous for pearl fishery and chank diving . Emblem: Fish. Trade was prosperous. Sati, caste, idol worship was common. They adopted the Vedic religion of sacrifice and patronized Brahmin priests .