Nalvadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar

Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV GBE GCSI GCStJ KGSJM KGCM DD
Maharaja of Mysore
Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV Portrait by K. Keshavayya (1906)
Reign	28 December 1894 – 3 August 1940
Coronation	1 February 1895, Mysore Palace
Predecessor	Chamarajendra Wadiyar X
Successor	Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar
Born	4 June 1884 Mysore Palace, Mysore, Kingdom of Mysore
Died	3 August 1940 Bangalore Palace, Bangalore, Kingdom of Mysore
Spouse	Lakshmivilasa Sannidhana Sri Pratapa Kumari Ammani Avaru
House	Wadiyar dynasty
Father	Chamarajendra Wadiyar X
Mother	Maharani Vani Vilas Sannidhana
Religion	Hinduism

Maharaja Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV (Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar), GCSI, GBE was the 24th ruling Maharaja of the princely state of Mysore from 1894 until his death in 1940. At the time of his death, he was also one of the world's wealthiest men, with a personal fortune estimated in 1940 to be worth US$400 million, equivalent to $56 billion at 2010 prices.

He was a philosopher-king, who was seen by Paul Brunton as living the ideal expressed in Plato's Republic. He has been compared to the Emperor Ashoka by the English statesman Lord Samuel. Mahatma Gandhi called him Rajarshi, or "saintly king", and his kingdom was described by his followers as Rama Rajya, an ideal kingdom akin to the rule of Lord Rama.

Krishna was born on 4 June 1884 at the Royal Palace, Mysore. He was the eldest son of Maharaja Chamaraja Wadiyar X and Maharani Vani Vilas Sannidhana. After the death of his father in Calcutta in 1894, Krishna's mother ruled the state as Regent until Krishna reached the age of majority, 8 August 1902.

The Maharaja had his early education and training at the Lokaranjan Palace under the direction of P. Raghavendra Rao. In addition to Western studies, the Yuvaraja was instructed in the languages of Kannada and Sanskrit, was taught horse riding, and Indian and western Classical music. He was also sent to Mayo College, Ajmer to study but returned to Mysore due to ill health. His early administrative training was imparted by Sir Stuart Fraser of the Bombay Civil Service. The study of the principles of jurisprudence and methods of revenue administration were supplemented by extensive tours of the state during which he gained extensive knowledge of the nature of the country which he was later to govern.