Local tradition says that Vinayak Dev, a Rajput prince from Jammu whose family claimed descent from the mythical Suryavanshis, took over the Jeypore area of the Eastern Ghats in 1453.
The region was hilly jungle, relatively unfertile and populated mostly by aboriginal tribal people.
Assimilation of tribal cult deities, such as Madhighariani, by Hindu incomers who sought to legitimise their rule and gain local support was a characteristic of the region.
Throughout most of the history of the dynasty, the family has principally worshipped Durga as their deity but simultaneously adopted this practice of melding their own devotions with those of the populace.

Vishwanath Dev (d. 1571), known as Maharajah Vishwanath Dev Gajapati became the king of Nandapur in 1527.
His realm grew such that it stretched as far as Bengal in the north and Ellore in south, thus encompassing most of the territory once held by the Kalingas.
He claimed the title of "Gajapati" which had been symbolically used by the powerful Gajapati dynasty before its end in 1541.
It was during this reign that the capital city was briefly moved from Nandapur to  Rayagada.

In 1565, the dynasty that had previously succeeded in forcing several "little kings" to be tributaries was itself forced into tributary status by the Shah of Golkunda.

In the mid-17th century, Maharajah Veer Vikram Dev, the eighth king, founded the city of Jeypore and moved his capital there.
This move is recorded as taking place because astrologers determined that the reason each of the preceding six rulers had each fathered only one son was because Nandapur was cursed; however, Schnepel notes that the gradual movement of Muslim invaders from Coastal Andhra into Orissa  probably influenced the decision.
He died in 1669 and was succeeded by his only son, Krishna Dev.

Narayanapatna was the capital for several rulers, including Vishwambhara Dev II (r 1713-1752), whom the later panegyrist of the family (himself a member by marriage) said was an ardent follower of the Vaishnavite teachings of Chaitanya.
That bhakti sect remains popular in Orissa to this day and formed a significant bond between the royal family and their Khond tribal subjects.
The bond, however, could be tenuous and the dynasty ruled by consent of their notional subjects.
Although the dynasty could rely on support from tribal warriors at times, Schnepel notes as an example of shaky authority the unrest in the "quasi-royal estate ... or 'little little kingdom'" of Kalyansingpur.
There the Khond people at one point sought to take advantage of a dispute over succession to that zamindari to appoint a king more local and approachable than the rulers at Jeypore.
Schnepel notes of Bissam Cuttack, which was another area within the dynastic realm, that "powrful local rulers ... held a position which was nominally subordinate to the Jeypore kings but in fact was held independently of them".
Local tradition says that Vinayak Dev, a Rajput prince from Jammu whose family claimed descent from the mythical Suryavanshis, took over the Jeypore area of the Eastern Ghats in 1453. The region was hilly jungle, relatively unfertile and populated mostly by aboriginal tribal people. Assimilation of tribal cult deities, such as Madhighariani, by Hindu incomers who sought to legitimise their rule and gain local support was a characteristic of the region.Throughout most of the history of the dynasty, the family has principally worshipped Durga as their deity but simultaneously adopted this practice of melding their own devotions with those of the populace.
Vishwanath Dev (d. 1571), known as Maharajah Vishwanath Dev Gajapati became the king of Nandapur in 1527. His realm grew such that it stretched as far as Bengal in the north and Ellore in south, thus encompassing most of the territory once held by the Kalingas. He claimed the title of "Gajapati" which had been symbolically used by the powerful Gajapati dynasty before its end in 1541. It was during this reign that the capital city was briefly moved from Nandapur to  Rayagada.
In 1565, the dynasty that had previously succeeded in forcing several "little kings" to be tributaries was itself forced into tributary status by the Shah of Golkunda.
In the mid-17th century, Maharajah Veer Vikram Dev, the eighth king, founded the city of Jeypore and moved his capital there. This move is recorded as taking place because astrologers determined that the reason each of the preceding six rulers had each fathered only one son was because Nandapur was cursed; however, Schnepel notes that the gradual movement of Muslim invaders from Coastal Andhra into Orissa  probably influenced the decision. He died in 1669 and was succeeded by his only son, Krishna Dev.
Narayanapatna was the capital for several rulers, including Vishwambhara Dev II (r 1713-1752), whom the later panegyrist of the family (himself a member by marriage) said was an ardent follower of the Vaishnavite teachings of Chaitanya. That bhakti sect remains popular in Orissa to this day and formed a significant bond between the royal family and their Khond tribal subjects. The bond, however, could be tenuous and the dynasty ruled by consent of their notional subjects. Although the dynasty could rely on support from tribal warriors at times, Schnepel notes as an example of shaky authority the unrest in the "quasi-royal estate ... or 'little little kingdom'" of Kalyansingpur. There the Khond people at one point sought to take advantage of a dispute over succession to that zamindari to appoint a king more local and approachable than the rulers at Jeypore. Schnepel notes of Bissam Cuttack, which was another area within the dynastic realm, that "powrful local rulers ... held a position which was nominally subordinate to the Jeypore kings but in fact was held independently of them".
Kingdom of Jeypore