Mysore State
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Mysore Palace

The Kingdom of Mysore was one of the three largest princely states within the erstwhile British Empire of India. Upon India gaining its independence in 1947, the Maharaja of Mysore merged his realm with the Union of India. The territories of the erstwhile princely state of Mysore were then reconstituted into a state within the Union of India.

In 1956, the government of India effected a comprehensive re-organisation of provincial boundaries, based upon the principle of shared language. Those areas that spoke the Kannada language were thus unified into one state. As a large portion of this new state comprised the territory of Mysore, the name "Mysore" was, at that point of time, retained as the name of the newly created Kannada-speaking province. This state was then renamed Karnataka in 1973.

Thus, the term "Mysore State" or "Old Mysore State" may refer to:

1. The Kingdom of Mysore, a princely state in the British Empire of India.
2. The same territory which functioned as a state within the union of India between 1947 and 1956;
3. The name of the unified (considerably enlarged) and linguistically homogeneous Kannada-speaking state that was created in 1956, within the union of India. This was renamed Karnataka in 1973.