The Department of History and Archaeology is  one of the foundation departments of the Andhra University, which was originally started as the Department of History, Economics and Politics in 1931. Prof.Mamidipudi Venkataramgaiya, a scholar and teacher, whose academic excellence was recognized with the honor of Padmabhushan by the Union Government, first headed it. Prof. V.S. Krishna, who later became the Vice Chancellor of the Andhra University and Chairman of University Grants Commission, was another eminent scholar who served as a teacher in the department. Prof. Hiren Mukherjee and Mallampalli Somasekhara Sarma, the distinguished historians and scholars served as the faculty members of the department.
The combined department was later bifurcated into the Department of History and Politics and the Department of Economics. Prof. Gurty Venkat Rao, an eminent scholar in Medieval Indian History came over here from Allahabad University and became the Head of the Department during 1944-1956. Prof. N. Srinivasan, an eminent Political Scientist and Padma Vibhushan Prof. Sarvepalli Gopal served the department as the faculty members. Prof. Oruganti Ramachandraiya and Rayaprolu Subrahmaniyam obtained their Ph.D degrees in History from this University. Prof. O Ramachandraiya visited U.K under the Commonwealth Modified Overseas Scholarship and received advanced training in Archaeology for two years in the London School of Archaeology. After his return from Britain, Archaeology courses were started in the Department.
One of the notable events in the Department was the hosting of the 16 th and 40 th Annual Sessions of Indian History Congress in 1953 and 1979 respectively. Dr. Sarvepalli Radha Krishna inaugurated the 16th Session while Prof G.H. Khare presided over the 40 th Session. From 1958 onwards, the Department underwent several changes relating to staff and curriculum. There were also changes in the pattern of the courses, which facilitated the expansion of the Department. The M.A. Course was introduced in 1960 with specialization in Ancient History and Archaeology. In 1964, the department got separated as History and Archaeology and it has been offering two Postgraduate courses –M.A. in History and M.A in Ancient History & Archaeology. It also offers M.Phil and Ph.D programmes in History and Ancient History and Archaeology. The department has conducted archaeological excavations at Jami in Vizianagaram District in 1970 and was rewarded with rich experience in field archaeology. The field studies and exploration surveys conducted by the faculty and researchers resulted in the discovery and collection of a few copper plate grants of the medieval times which were published and reported in the academic and professional journals by the faculty members. Several unnoticed temples and Buddhist monuments and prehistoric sites in and around Visakhapatnam District were brought to light through the regular and systematic studies conducted by the faculty from time to time. Starting the courses in two affiliated colleges - VSM college, Ramachandrapuram and MRVG College, Vizianagaram, further strengthened the History courses in the University.
The department has organized several National Seminars with the financial assistance provided by the UGC and ICHR, Delhi, on important aspects like Vijayanagara History, Migrations, Caste and Professions; Taxation, State and Society; Women as the Makers of History; Religion, State and Society in Medieval South India; and Folklore and Its Bearing on the History and Culture of Andhra. Two workshops were conducted for the teachers of American history of the Affiliated colleges with the expertise of Dr Frank Freidel and Dr Sullivan. The department has conducted Teacher Training programmes for the Junior Lecturers in History and Lecturers in History of the affiliated colleges to upgrade their knowledge in subjects like history, culture and Tourism studies. In 1997, the Department has organized the 17 th Session of South Indian History Congress. In the following year the Lumbini Festival was organized by the department on a large scale in collaboration with the A.P. Tourism Department. The Department has started a new Postgraduate course in Tourism- MTM (Master of Tourism Mnagement) on self-finance basis in 2000-01.
For two successive years, the teachers of the department received the Best Researcher Awards from the Andhra University. The A.P. State Government with the Best Teacher Award honored Prof. M. Krishna Kumari. Further she was also sent as the Visiting Professor to the Armstrong Atlantic State University, Savannah, US under the academic exchange programme. So far the Department has produced more than 60 Doctorates and 110 M.Phil Degrees. The faculty and research scholars working on various aspects of the history and culture of Andhra published about 50 Books. Besides the regular research activity, the teachers of the Department have worked on a number of major and minor research projects funded by UGC and ICHR on socio economic aspects, art and culture studies of Andhra region and completed the same successfully.
The Department has started its Alumni Association in 1999 and is regularly bringing out a quarterly bulletin as the “ Newsletter” incorporating the latest information on the activities of its members and Book Reviews.
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