While archaeological evidence indicates that the area was settled by the late Paleolithic, the legendary founding of the city of Bijapur was in the late 900s under Tailapa II, who had been the Rashtrakutan governor of Tardavadi, and after the destruction to the empire caused by the invasion of the Paramara of Malwa, declared his independence and went on to found the empire of the Chalukyas of Kalyani, where the city was referred as "Vijayapura" ("City of Victory"). By the late 13th century, the area had come under the influence of the Khalji Sultanate. In 1347, the area was conquered by the Bahmani Sultanate of Gulbarga. By this time the city was being referred as Vijapur or Bijapur.