Bangalore ( /ˈbæŋɡəlɔr/; Kannada: ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು, IPA: [beŋɡaɭuːru]) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka.

Bengaluru as it is known today was founded by Kempe Gowda, who built a mud fort in the city. It has developed over the years into an industrial and technological hub in India.

In the year 1120 AD, the Hoysala King, Veera Ballala ruled the Deccan plateau or the South of India. On a hunting trip in the forest he lost his way. After a long search he met an old lady in the forest who offered him shelter for the night and served him some boiled beans for dinner. To show his gratitude to this lady for having saved his life, the King constructed a town and named it as Benda Kalooru which means town of boiled beans. Later in 1537, a local chieftain, Kempe Gowda helped design this town and give it its modern shape.

The Gangas ruled Gangavadi from Kolar starting c. 350 and later shifted their capital to Talakadu.Their rule often extended over large parts of Tamilnadu. An article, published in The Hindu, states:

Bangalore /ˈbæŋɡəlɔər/, also rendered Bengaluru,^{[needs IPA]} is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City for its gardens and parks and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and fifth-most populous urban agglomeration. Bangalore is well known as a hub for India's information technology sector. It is among the top 10 preferred entrepreneurial locations in the world.

A succession of South Indian dynasties ruled the region of Bangalore until in 1537 AD Kempe Gowda—a feudatory ruler under the Vijayanagara Empire—established a mud fort considered to be the foundation of modern Bangalore. Following transitory occupation by Maratha and Mughal, the city remained under the Mysore kingdom. Bangalore continued to be a cantonment of the British and a major city of the Princely State of Mysore which existed as a nominally sovereign entity of the British Raj. Following the independence of India in 1947, Bangalore became the capital of Mysore state, and later Karnataka.