| 词条 | Maratha Empire | |
| 释义 |
|native_name = {{native name|mr|मराठा साम्राज्य}} {{native name|sa|मराठा साम्राज्य}} | conventional_long_name = Maratha Empire | common_name = Maratha | year_start = 1674 | year_end = 1818 | event_start = Mughal–Maratha Wars | event_end = Third Anglo-Maratha War | event1 = Anglo-Mysore Wars | date_event1 = 1767–1799 | event2 = Anglo-Maratha Wars | date_event2 = 1775–1818 | event3 = Maratha-Mysore War | date_event3 = 1785–1787 | p1 = Mughal Empire | flag_p1 = | p2 = Adil Shahi dynasty | flag_p2 = | border_p1 = | s1 = Company rule in India | flag_s1 = Flag of the British East India Company (1801).svg | image_flag = Flag of the Maratha Empire.svg | flag_border = no | flag_caption = Flag | image_map = India1760 1905.jpg | image_map_caption = Territory under Maratha control in 1760 (yellow). | capital = Raigad Fort Jinji{{sfnp|Hatalkar|1958|p=}} Satara Pune | religion = Hinduism Islam, Christianity, Jainism, Sikhism (minorities) | common_languages = Marathi and Sanskrit{{sfnp|Majumdar|1951a|pp= 609, 634}} | government_type = Absolute monarchy | title_leader = Chhatrapati | leader1 = Shivaji (first) | year_leader1 = 1645–1680 | leader3 = Pratap Singh (last) | year_leader3 = 1808–1818 | title_deputy = Peshwa (Prime Minister) | deputy1 = Moropant Pingle (first) | year_deputy1 = 1674–1689 | deputy2 = Baji Rao II (last) | year_deputy2 = 1803–1818 | legislature = Ashta Pradhan | stat_area4 = 2500000{{sfnp|Turchin|Adams|Hall|2006|p=223}} | currency = Rupee, Paisa, Mohur, Shivrai, Hon | today = {{plainlist|
|stat_year4=1760}}{{Part of History of India}}{{HistoryOfSouthAsia}} The Maratha Empire or the Maratha Confederacy was an Indian power that dominated many portions of Indian subcontinent in the 18th century. The empire formally existed from 1674 with the coronation of Chhatrapati Shivaji and ended in 1818 with the defeat of Peshwa Bajirao II. The Marathas are credited to a large extent for ending Mughal rule in India.{{sfnp|Pearson|1976|pp=221-235}}{{sfnp|Capper|1997|p=|ps=:This source establishes the Maratha control of Delhi before the British}}{{sfnp|Sen|2010|pp=1941-|ps=:The victory at Bhopal in 1738 established Maratha dominance at the Mughal court}}{{#tag:ref| Some historians{{sfnp|Schmidt|2015|ppp=54-}} may consider 1645 as the founding of the empire because that was the year when the teenaged Shivaji captured a fort from Adilshahi sultanate.|group=note}} The Maratha were a Maratha (not to be confused as Marathi speaking people of Maharashtra) warrior group from the western Deccan Plateau (present-day Maharashtra) who rose to prominence by establishing a Hindavi Swarajya (meaning "self-rule of Hindu/Indian people").{{sfnp|Pagdi| 1993|p=98|ps=: Shivaji's coronation and setting himself up as a sovereign prince symbolises the rise of the Indian people in all parts of the country. It was a bid for Hindawi Swarajya (Indian rule), a term in use in Marathi sources of history.}}{{sfnp|Jackson|2005|p=38}} The Maratha became prominent in the 17th century under the leadership of Shivaji, who revolted against the Adil Shahi dynasty, and carved out a kingdom with Raigad as his capital. Known for their mobility, the Maratha were able to consolidate their territory during the Mughal–Maratha Wars and later controlled a large part of the Indian subcontinent. After the death of Aurangzeb in 1707, Chhattrapati Shahu, grandson of Shivaji, was released by the Mughals.{{sfnp|Manohar |1959|p=63}} Following a brief struggle with his aunt Tarabai, Shahu became the ruler and appointed Balaji Vishwanath and later, his descendants, as the peshwas or prime ministers of the empire.{{sfnp|Ahmad|Krishnamurti|1962}} Balaji and his descendants played a key role in the expansion of Maratha rule. The empire at its peak stretched from Tamil Nadu{{sfnp|Mehta|2005|p=204|ps=}} in the south, to Peshawar (modern-day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan{{sfnp|Sen|2010|p=16}}{{#tag:ref|Many historians consider Attock to be the final frontier of the Maratha Empire{{sfnp|Majumdar|1951b|p=}}|group=note}}) in the north, and Bengal Subah in the east. The Maratha discussed abolishing the Mughal throne and placing Vishwasrao Peshwa on the Mughal imperial throne in Delhi but were not able to do so.{{sfnp|Ghazi|2002|p=130}} In 1761, the Maratha Army lost the Third Battle of Panipat against Ahmad Shah Abdali of the Afghan Durrani Empire, which halted their imperial expansion into Afghanistan. Ten years after Panipat, the young Peshwa Madhavrao I's Maratha Resurrection reinstated Maratha authority over North India. In a bid to effectively manage the large empire, Madhavrao gave semi-autonomy to the strongest of the knights, and created a confederacy of Maratha states. These leaders became known as the Gaekwads of Baroda, the Holkars of Indore and Malwa, the Scindias of Gwalior and Ujjain, the Bhonsales of Nagpur, the Meheres of Vidharbha and the Puars of Dhar and Dewas. In 1775, the East India Company intervened in a Peshwa family succession struggle in Pune, which led to the First Anglo-Maratha War. The Maratha were victorious.{{sfnp|Naravane|2014|p=63}} The Maratha remained the pre-eminent power in India until their defeat in the Second and Third Anglo-Maratha Wars (1805-1818), which resulted in the East India Company controlling most of India. A large portion of the Maratha empire was coastline, which had been secured by the potent Maratha Navy under commanders such as Kanhoji Angre. He was very successful at keeping foreign naval ships at bay, particularly those of the Portuguese and British nations.{{sfnp|Pagdi|1993|p=21}} Securing the coastal areas and building land-based fortifications were crucial aspects of the Maratha's defensive strategy and regional military history. NomenclatureThe Maratha Empire is also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy. The historian Barbara Ramusack says that the former is a designation preferred by Indian nationalists, while the latter was that used by British historians. She notes, "neither term is fully accurate since one implies a substantial degree of centralisation and the other signifies some surrender of power to a central government and a longstanding core of political administrators.{{sfnp|Ramusack|2004|p=35}} Maratha power was fragmented among several discrete fragments".{{citation needed|date=August 2017}} Although at present, the word Maratha refers to a particular caste of warriors and peasants, in the past the word has been used to describe Marathi people.{{sfnp|Jones|1974|p=25}}{{sfnp|Gokhale |1988 |p=112}} HistoryThe empire had its head in the Chhatrapati as de jure, but the de facto governance was in the hands of the Peshwas.{{citation needed|date=August 2017}} After the death of Chhatrapati Shahu and with the death of Madhavrao – I, various chiefs played the role of the de facto rulers in their own regions. Chatrapati Shivaji and his descendantsChatrapati Shivaji Maharaj{{Main|Shivaji}}Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj (1630–1680) was a Maratha aristocrat of the Bhosale clan who is considered to be the founder of the Maratha empire.{{sfnp|Pearson|1976|pp=221-235}} Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj led a resistance to free the people from the Sultanate of Bijapur in 1645 by winning the fort Torna, followed by many more forts, placing the area under his control and establishing Hindavi Swarajya (self-rule of Hindu people{{sfnp|Jackson|2005|p=38}}). He created an independent Maratha kingdom with Raigad as its capital{{sfnp|Vartak|1999|pp=1126–1134}} and successfully fought against the Mughals to defend his kingdom. He was crowned as Chhatrapati (sovereign) of the new Maratha kingdom in 1674. The Maratha kingdom comprised about 4.1% of the subcontinent, but it was spread over large tracts. At the time of his death,{{sfnp|Pearson|1976|pp=221-235}} it was reinforced with about 300 forts, and defended by about 40,000 cavalry, and 50,000 foot soldiers, as well as naval establishments along the west coast. Over time, the kingdom would increase in size and heterogeneity;{{sfnp|Kantak|1993|p=18}} by the time of his grandson's rule, and later under the Peshwas in the early 18th century, it was a full-fledged empire.{{sfnp|Mehta|2005|p=707|ps=:quote:It explains the rise to power of his Peshwa (prime minister) Balaji Vishwanath (1713–20) and the transformation of the Maratha kingdom into a vast empire, by the collective action of all the Maratha stalwarts.}} Chatrapati Sambhaji (Shambhu Raje){{Main|Sambhaji}}Shivaji had two sons: Sambhaji and Rajaram, who had different mothers and were half-brothers. Sambhaji, the elder son, was very popular among the courtiers.{{Citation needed|reason=Your explanation here|date=August 2017}} In 1681, Sambhaji succeeded to the crown after his father's death and resumed his expansionist policies. Sambhaji had earlier defeated the Portuguese and Chikka Deva Raya of Mysore. To nullify the alliance between his rebel son, Akbar, and the Maratha,{{sfnp|Richards|1995|p=12}} Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb headed south in 1681. With his entire imperial court, administration and an army of about 500,000 troops, he proceeded to expand the Mughal empire, gaining territories such as the sultanates of Bijapur and Golconda. During the eight years that followed, Sambhaji led the Maratha, never losing any of battles and even forts to Aurangzeb. In early 1689, Sambhaji called his commanders for a strategic meeting at Sangameshwar to consider an onslaught on the Mughal forces.{{Citation needed|reason=|date=August 2017}} In a meticulously planned operation, Ganoji and Aurangzeb's commander, Mukarrab Khan, attacked Sangameshwar when Sambhaji was accompanied by just a few men. Sambhaji was ambushed and captured by Mughal troops on February 1, 1689. He and his advisor, Kavi Kalash, were taken to Bahadurgad by the imperial army, where they were executed by the Mughals on 21 March 1689.{{sfnp|Mehta|2005|p=50}} Aurangzeb had charged Sambhaji with attacks by Maratha forces on Burhanpur;.{{sfnp| Richards| 1995|p=223}} Chatrapati Rajaram and Maharani Tarabai{{Main|Rajaram I|l1=Rajaram|Tarabai|l2=Tarabai}}Upon Sambhaji's death, his half-brother Rajaram assumed the throne. The Mughal siege of Raigad continued, and he had to flee to Vishalgad and then to Gingee for safety. From there the Maratha raided Mughal territory, and many forts were recaptured by Maratha commanders such as Santaji Ghorpade, Dhanaji Jadhav, Parshuram Pant Pratinidhi, Shankaraji Narayan Sacheev and Melgiri Pandit. In 1697, Rajaram offered a truce but this was rejected by Aurangzeb. Rajaram died in 1700 at Sinhagad. His widow, Tarabai, assumed control in the name of her son, Ramaraja (Shivaji II). She led the Maratha against the Mughal, and by 1705 they had crossed the Narmada River and entered Malwa, then in Mughal possession.{{citation needed|date=June 2015}} Chatrapati Shahu MaharajAfter Aurangzeb's death in 1707, Shahu, son of Sambhaji (and grandson of Shivaji), was released by Bahadur Shah I, the new Mughal emperor. His mother was kept as a hostage of the Mughal, however, in order to ensure that Shahu adhered to the release conditions. Upon release, Shahu immediately claimed the Maratha throne and challenged his aunt Tarabai and her son. The spluttering Mughal-Maratha war became a three-cornered affair. The states of Satara and Kolhapur were organized in 1707 because of the succession dispute over the Maratha kingship. Shahu appointed Balaji Vishwanath as Peshwa.{{sfnp|Sen|2010|p=11}} The Peshwa was instrumental in securing Mughal recognition of Shahu as the rightful heir of Shivaji and the Chatrapati of the Maratha.{{sfnp|Sen|2010|p=11}} Balaji also gained the release of Shahu's mother, Yesubai, from Mughal captivity in 1719.{{sfnp|Mehta|2005|p=81}} During Shahu's reign, Raghoji Bhosale expanded the empire in the East, reaching present-day Bengal. Khanderao Dabhade and later his son, Trimbakrao, expanded it in the West in Gujarat.{{sfnp|Mehta|2005|p=101-103}} Peshwa Bajirao and his three chiefs, Pawar (Dhar), Holkar (Indore), and Scindia (Gwalior), expanded in the North. Peshwa era{{multiple image| align = right | image1 = Shaniwarwada gate.JPG | width1 = 150 | image2 = The entrance of Shaniwar Wada..JPG | width2 = 150 | footer = Shaniwarwada palace fort in Pune, it was the seat of the Peshwa rulers of the Maratha Empire until 1818. }} During this era, Peshwas belonging to the Bhat family controlled the Maratha Army and later became de facto rulers of the Maratha Empire. During their reign, the Maratha Empire dominated most of the Indian subcontinent. Balaji VishwanathShahu appointed Peshwa Balaji Vishwanath in 1713. From his time, the office of Peshwa became supreme while Shahuji became a figurehead.{{sfnp|Sen|2010|p=11}}
Baji Rao IAfter Balaji Vishwanath's death in April 1720, his son, Baji Rao I, was appointed Peshwa by Shahu. Bajirao is credited with expanding the Maratha Empire tenfold from 3% to 30% of the modern Indian landscape during 1720–1740. He fought over 41 battles before his death in April 1740 and is reputed to have never lost one.{{sfnp|Montgomery|1972|p=132}}
Balaji Baji RaoBaji Rao's son, Balaji Bajirao (Nanasaheb), was appointed as the next Peshwa by Shahuji despite the opposition of other chiefs.
Invasions in Bengal{{Main|Maratha expeditions in Bengal}}After the successful campaign of Karnataka and the Trichinopolly, Raghuji returned from Karnataka. He undertook six expeditions into Bengal from 1741 to 1748.{{sfnp|Sarkar|1991|p=}} Raghuji was able to annex Odisha to his kingdom permanently as he successfully exploited the chaotic conditions prevailing in Bengal after the death of its governor Murshid Quli Khan in 1727. Constantly harassed by the Bhonsles, Odisha, Bengal and parts of Bihar were economically ruined. Alivardi Khan, the Nawab of Bengal made peace with Raghuji in 1751 ceding Cuttack (Odisha) up to the river Subarnarekha, and agreeing to pay Rs.1.2 million annually as the Chauth for Bengal and Bihar.{{sfnp|Sen|2010|p=15}} During their occupation of western Bengal, the Marathas perpetrated atrocities against the local population.{{sfnp|Marshall|2006|p=72}} The Maratha atrocities were recorded by both Bengali and European sources, which reported that the Marathas demanded payments, and tortured and killed anyone who couldn't pay. Dutch sources estimate a total of 400,000 people in Bengal were killed by the Marathas. According to Bengali sources, the atrocities led to much of the local population opposing the Marathas and developing support for the Nawabs.{{sfnp|Marshall|2006|p=72}} Maratha's Afghan conquests
Maratha invasion of Delhi and RohilkhandJust prior to the battle of Panipat in 1761, Marathas looted "Diwan-i-Khas" or Hall of Private Audiences in the Red Fort of Delhi, which was the place where the Mughal emperors used to receive courtiers and state guests, in one of their expeditions of Delhi.{{quote|"The Marathas who were hard pressed for money stripped the ceiling of Diwan-i-Khas of its silver and looted the shrines dedicated to Muslim saints".{{sfnp|Agrawal|1983|p=26}} }} During the Maratha invasion of Rohilkhand in the 1750s {{quote|"The Marathas defeated the Rohillas, forced them to seek shelter in hills and ransacked their country in such a manner that the Rohillas dreaded the Marathas and hated them ever afterwards".{{sfnp|Agrawal|1983|p=26}} }} Third battle of PanipatIn 1759, the Marathas under Sadashivrao Bhau (referred to as the Bhau or Bhao in sources) responded to the news of the Afghans' return to North India by sending a large army north. Bhau's force was bolstered by some Maratha forces under Holkar, Scindia, Gaikwad and Govind Pant Bundele. The combined army of over 100,000 regular troops re-captured the former Mughal capital, Delhi, from an Afghan garrison in August 1760.{{sfnp|Mehta|2005|p=140}} Delhi had been reduced to ashes many times due to previous invasions, and there was an acute shortage of supplies in the Maratha camp. Bhau ordered the sacking of the already depopulated city.{{sfnp|Agrawal|1983|p=26}}{{sfnp|Mehta|2005|p=274|ps=}} He is said to have planned to place his nephew and the Peshwa's son, Vishwasrao, on the Mughal throne. By 1760, with defeat of the Nizam in the Deccan, Maratha power had reached its zenith with a territory of over {{convert|2500000|sqmi}}.{{sfnp|Turchin|Adams|Hall|2006|p=223}} {{multiple image| footer = Maratha armour from Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia | align = right | image1 = Maratha_Armor.jpg | width1 = {{#expr: (100 * 750 / 536) round 0}} | alt1 = Maratha Helmet | caption1 = Signature Maratha helmet with curved back, front view | image2 = Maratha Armour.jpg | width2 = {{#expr: (100 * 750 / 536) round 0}} | alt2 = Maratha Armor | caption2 = Signature Maratha helmet with curved back, side view }} Ahmad Shah Durrani called on the Rohillas and the Nawab of Oudh to assist him in driving out the Marathas from Delhi.{{citation needed|date=August 2017}} Huge armies of Muslim forces and Marathas collided with each other on January 14, 1761 in the Third Battle of Panipat. The Maratha Army lost the battle, which halted their imperial expansion. The Jats and Rajputs did not support the Marathas. Their withdrawal from the ensuing battle played a crucial role in its result.{{citation needed|date=August 2017}} Historians have criticised the Maratha treatment of fellow Hindu groups. Kaushik Roy says "The treatment of Marathas with their co-religionist fellows – Jats and Rajputs was definitely unfair and ultimately they had to pay its price in Panipat where Muslim forces had united in the name of religion."{{sfn|Roy|2004|pp=80-81}} The Marathas had antagonised the Jats and Rajputs by taxing them heavily, punishing them after defeating the Mughals and interfering in their internal affairs{{Citation needed|date=August 2018}}. The Marathas were abandoned by Raja Suraj Mal of Bharatpur and the Rajputs, who quit the Maratha alliance at Agra before the start of the great battle and withdrew their troops as Maratha general Sadashivrao Bhau did not heed the advice to leave soldier's families (women and children) and pilgrims at Agra and not take them to the battle field with the soldiers, rejected their co-operation. Their supply chains (earlier assured by Raja Suraj Mal and Rajputs) did not exist.{{citation needed|date=August 2017}} Peshwa Madhav Rao IPeshwa Madhavrao I was the fourth Peshwa of the Maratha Empire. It was during his tenure that the Maratha Resurrection took place. He worked as a unifying force in the Maratha Empire and moved to the south to subdue Nizam and Mysore to assert Maratha power. He sent generals such as Bhonsle, Scindia and Holkar to the north, where they re-established Maratha authority by the early 1770s.{{citation needed|date=July 2016}} Prof G. S. Chhabra wrote: {{quote|Young though he was, Madhav Rao had a cool and calculating head of a seasoned and experienced man. The diplomacy by which he could win over his uncle Raghoba when he had no strength to fight and the way he could crush his power when he had the means to do so later on proved in him a genius who knows when and how to act. The formidable power of the Nizam was crushed, Hyder Ali, who was a terror even to the British, was effectually humbled and before he died in 1772, the Marathas were almost there in the north where they had been before Panipat. What could not have the Marathas achieved if Madhav had continued living just for a few years more? Destiny was not in favour of the Marathas, the death of Madhav was a greater blow than their defeat of Panipat and from this blow they could never again recover.{{sfnp|Chhabra|2005|p=56}} }} Madhav Rao died in 1772, at the age of 27. His death is considered to be a fatal blow to the Maratha Empire and from that time Maratha power started to move on a downward trajectory, less an empire than a confederacy.{{citation needed|date=July 2016}} Confederacy eraIn a bid to effectively manage the large empire, Madhavrao Peshwa gave semi-autonomy to the strongest of the knights. After the death of Peshwa Madhavrao I, various chiefs and statesman became de facto rulers and regents for the infant Peshwa Madhavrao II.{{citation needed|date=August 2017}} Thus, the semi-autonomous Maratha states came into being in far-flung regions of the empire:{{citation needed|date=August 2017}}
Major events
Mysore war, Sringeri sacking, British alliance{{See|Maratha–Mysore War|Sringeri Sharada Peetham|Anglo-Mysore Wars}}The Marathas came into conflict with Tipu Sultan and his Kingdom of Mysore, leading to the Maratha–Mysore War in 1785. The war ended in 1787 with the Marathas being defeated by Tipu Sultan.{{sfnp|Hasan|2005|pp=105-107}} In 1791–92, large areas of the Maratha Confederacy suffered massive population loss due to the Doji bara famine.[1] In 1791, irregulars like lamaans and pindari of Maratha army raided and looted the temple of Sringeri Shankaracharya, killing and wounding many people including Brahmins, plundering the monastery of all its valuable possessions, and desecrating the temple by displacing the image of goddess Sarada.[2] The incumbent Shankaracharya petitioned Tipu Sultan for help. A bunch of about 30 letters written in Kannada, which were exchanged between Tipu Sultan's court and the Sringeri Shankaracharya were discovered in 1916 by the Director of Archaeology in Mysore. Tipu Sultan expressed his indignation and grief at the news of the raid:{{sfnp|Hasan|2005|p=358}} "People who have sinned against such a holy place are sure to suffer the consequences of their misdeeds at no distant date in this Kali age in accordance with the verse: "Hasadbhih kriyate karma rudadbhir-anubhuyate" (People do [evil] deeds smilingly but suffer the consequences crying)."[2] Tipu Sultan immediately ordered the Asaf of Bednur to supply the Swami with 200 rahatis (fanams) in cash and other gifts and articles. Tipu Sultan's interest in the Sringeri temple continued for many years, and he was still writing to the Swami in the 1790s.{{sfnp|Hasan|2005|p=359}} The Maratha Empire soon allied with the British East India Company (based in the Bengal Presidency) against Mysore in the Anglo-Mysore Wars. After the British had suffered defeat against Mysore in the first two Anglo-Mysore War, the Maratha cavalry assisted the British in the last two Anglo-Mysore Wars from 1790 onwards, eventually helping the British conquer Mysore in the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War in 1799.{{sfnp|Cooper|2003|p=}} After the British conquest, however, the Marathas launched frequent raids in Mysore to plunder the region, which they justified as compensation for past losses to Tipu Sultan.{{sfnp|Cooper|2003|p=69}} British intervention{{Main|Anglo-Maratha Wars}}{{See|Anglo-Mysore Wars}}In 1775, the British East India Company, from its base in Bombay, intervened in a succession struggle in Pune, on behalf of Raghunathrao (also called Raghobadada), who wanted to become Peshwa of the empire. Marathas forces under Tukojirao Holkar and Mahadaji Shinde defeated a British expeditionary force at the Battle of Wadgaon, but the heavy surrender terms, which included the return of annexed territory and a share of revenues, were disavowed by the British authorities at Bengal and fighting continued. What became known as the First Anglo-Maratha War ended in 1782 with a restoration of the pre-war status quo and the East India Company's abandonment of Raghunathrao's cause.[3] In 1799, Yashwantrao Holkar was crowned King of Holkars, he captured Ujjain. He started campaigning towards the north to expand his empire in that region. Yashwant Rao rebelled against the policies of the Peshwa Baji Rao II. In May 1802, he marched towards Pune the seat of the Peshwa. This gave rise to the Battle of Poona in which the Peshwa was defeated. After the Battle of Poona, the flight of Peshwa left the government of Maratha state in the hands of Yashwantrao Holkar.{{harv|Kincaid|Pārasanīsa|1925|p=194}} He appointed Amrutrao as the Peshwa and went to Indore on March 13, 1803. All except Gaikwad chief of Baroda, who had already accepted British protection by a separate treaty on July 26, 1802, supported the new regime. He made a treaty with the British. Also, Yashwant-Rao successfully resolved the disputes with Scindia and the Peshwa. He tried to unite the Maratha Confederacy but to no avail. In 1802, the British intervened in Baroda to support the heir to the throne against rival claimants and they signed a treaty with the new Maharaja recognising his independence from the Maratha Empire in return for his acknowledgment of British paramountcy. Before the Second Anglo-Maratha War (1803–1805), the Peshwa Baji Rao II signed a similar treaty. The defeat in Battle of Delhi, 1803 during Second Anglo-Maratha War resulted in the loss of the city of Delhi for the Marathas.{{sfnp|Capper|1997|p=28}} The Second Anglo-Maratha War represents the military high-water mark of the Marathas who posed the last serious opposition to the formation of the British Raj. The real contest for India was never a single decisive battle for the subcontinent. Rather it turned on a complex social and political struggle for control of the South Asian military economy. The victory in 1803 hinged as much on finance, diplomacy, politics and intelligence as it did on battlefield maneuver and war itself.{{sfnp|Cooper|2003|p=69}} Ultimately, the Third Anglo-Maratha War (1817–1818) resulted in the loss of Maratha independence. It left the British in control of most of India. The Peshwa was exiled to Bithoor (Marat, near Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh) as a pensioner of the British. The Maratha heartland of Desh, including Pune, came under direct British rule, with the exception of the states of Kolhapur and Satara, which retained local Maratha rulers (descendants of Shivaji and Sambhaji II ruled over Kolhapur). The Maratha-ruled states of Gwalior, Indore, and Nagpur all lost territory and came under subordinate alliance with the British Raj as princely states that retained internal sovereignty under British paramountcy. Other small princely states of Maratha knights were retained under the British Raj as well.{{citation needed|date=August 2017}} The Third Anglo-Maratha War was fought by Maratha war lords separately instead of forming a common front and they surrendered one by one. Shinde and the Pashtun Amir Khan were subdued by the use of diplomacy and pressure, which resulted in the Treaty of Gwalior{{sfnp|Prakash|2002|p=300}} on November 5, 1817.{{citation needed|date=August 2017}} All other Maratha chiefs like Holkars, Bhonsles and Peshwa gave up arms by 1818. British historian Percival Spear describes 1818 as a watershed year in the history of India, saying that by the year "the British dominion in India became the British dominion of India".{{sfn|Nayar|2008|p=64}}{{sfnp|Trivedi|Allen|2000|p=30}} The war left the British, under the auspices of the British East India Company, in control of virtually all of present-day India south of the Sutlej River. The famed Nassak Diamond was acquired by the Company as part of the spoils of the war.{{sfnp|United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals|1930|p=121}} The British acquired large chunks of territory from the Maratha Empire and in effect put an end to their most dynamic opposition.{{sfnp|Black|2006|p=77}} The terms of surrender Major-general John Malcolm offered to the Peshwa were controversial amongst the British for being too liberal: The Peshwa was offered a luxurious life near Kanpur and given a pension of about 80,000 pounds.{{citation needed|date=August 2017}} Administration{{See also|Ashtapradhan}}The Ashtapradhan (The Council of Eight) was a council of eight ministers that administered the Maratha empire. This system was formed by Shivaji.{{sfnp|Sardesai|2002|p=}} Ministerial designations were drawn from the Sanskrit language and comprised:{{citation needed|date=August 2017}}
With the notable exception of the priestly Panditrao and the judicial Nyayadisha, the other pradhans held full-time military commands and their deputies performed their civil duties in their stead. In the later era of the Maratha Empire, these deputies and their staff constituted the core of the Peshwa's bureaucracy.{{citation needed|date=June 2015}} The Peshwa was the titular equivalent of a modern Prime Minister. Shivaji created the Peshwa designation in order to more effectively delegate administrative duties during the growth of the Maratha Empire. Prior to 1749, Peshwas held office for 8–9 years and controlled the Maratha Army. They later became the de facto hereditary administrators of the Maratha Empire from 1749 till its end in 1818.{{citation needed|date=June 2015}} Under Peshwa administration and with the support of several key generals and diplomats (listed below), the Maratha Empire reached its zenith, ruling most of the Indian subcontinent. It was also under the Peshwas that the Maratha Empire came to its end through its formal annexation into the British Empire by the British East India Company in 1818. The Marathas used a secular policy of administration and allowed complete freedom of religion.{{sfnp|Edwardes|Garrett|1995|p=116}} There were many notable Muslims in the military and administration of Marathas like Ibrahim Khan Gardi, Haider Ali Kohari, Daulat Khan, Siddi Ibrahim, and Jiva Mahal.{{citation needed|date=June 2015}} Shivaji was an able administrator who established a government that included modern concepts such as cabinet, foreign policy and internal intelligence.{{sfnp|Singh|1998|p=93}} He established an effective civil and military administration. He believed that there was a close bond between the state and the citizens. He is remembered as a just and welfare-minded king. Cosme da Guarda says of him that:{{sfnp|Majumdar|1951b|p=}} {{quote|Such was the good treatment Shivaji accorded to people and such was the honesty with which he observed the capitulations that none looked upon him without a feeling of love and confidence. By his people he was exceedingly loved. Both in matters of reward and punishment he was so impartial that while he lived he made no exception for any person; no merit was left unrewarded, no offence went unpunished; and this he did with so much care and attention that he specially charged his governors to inform him in writing of the conduct of his soldiers, mentioning in particular those who had distinguished themselves, and he would at once order their promotion, either in rank or in pay, according to their merit. He was naturally loved by all men of valor and good conduct.}}English traveller John Fryer found Shivaji's tax-collecting regime oppressive, describing it as poor people having land "imposed upon them at double the former Rates," and if they refused it, being "carried to Prison, there they are famished almost to death. While French physician Dellon reports that Shivaji was "looked upon as one of the most politic princes in those parts." Maratha empire carried out a number of sea raids, such as plunders targeting Mughal pilgrim ships and European trading vessels. European traders described these attacks as piracy, but the Marathas viewed them as legitimate targets because they were trading with, and thus financially supporting, their Mughal and Bijapur enemies. After the representatives of various European powers signed agreements with Shivaji or his successors that the threat of plundering or raids against Europeans began to reduce. GeographyThe Maratha Empire, at its peak, ruled over a large area in the Indian sub-continent. Apart from capturing various regions, the Marathas maintained a large number of tributaries who were bounded by agreement to pay a certain amount of regular tax, known as Chauth. The empire defeated the Sultanate of Mysore under Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan, Nawab of Oudh, Nawab of Bengal, Nizam of Hyderabad and Nawab of Arcot as well as the Polygar kingdoms of South India. They extracted chauth from the rulers in Delhi, Oudh, Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Punjab, Hyderabad, Mysore, Uttar Pradesh and Rajputana.{{sfnp|Lindsay|1967|p=556}}{{sfnp|Saini|Chand|n.d.|p=97}} The Marathas were requested by Safdarjung, the Nawab of Oudh, in 1752 to help him defeat Afghani Rohilla. The Maratha force left Pune and defeated Afghan Rohilla in 1752, capturing the whole of Rohilkhand (present-day northwestern Uttar Pradesh).{{sfnp|Agrawal|1983|p=26}} In 1752, Marathas entered into an agreement with the Mughal emperor, through his wazir, Safdarjung, Mughals gave Marathas the chauth of Punjab, Sindh and Doab in addition to the subedari of Ajmer and Agra.{{sfnp|Sen|2006|p=13}} In 1758, Marathas started their north-west conquest and expanded their boundary till Afghanistan. They defeated Afghan forces of Ahmed Shah Abdali, in what is now Pakistan, including Pakistani Punjab Province and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The Afghans were numbered around 25,000–30,000 and were led by Timur Shah, the son of Ahmad Shah Durrani. The Marathas massacred and looted thousands of Afghan soldiers and captured Lahore, Multan, Dera Ghazi Khan, Attock, Peshawar in the Punjab region and Kashmir.{{sfnp|Roy|2011|p=103}} During the confederacy era, Mahadji Shinde resurrected the Maratha domination on much of North India, which was lost after the Third battle of Panipat including the cis-Sutlej states (south of Sutlej) like Kaithal, Patiala, Jind, Thanesar, Maler Kotla and Faridkot, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh were under the suzerainty of the Scindhias of the Maratha Empire, following the Second Anglo-Maratha War of 1803–1805, Marathas lost these territories to the British East India Company.{{sfnp|Farooqui|2011|p=334}}{{sfnp|Chaurasia|2004|p=13}} LegacyDuring the 17th century through late 18th century, the Maratha emperors, prime ministers, and dominion/fiefdom chiefs contributed on military as well as non-military fronts such as building forts, naval facilities, development of towns, constructing and patronizing temples, among others. During the 19th and 20th centuries, when Maratha principalities ruled as a feudatory of the British, Maratha rulers built palaces, contributed towards fine arts, introduced social reforms, and developed civic amenities in their territories. Military contributions
Development of towns and civic amenities
Patronizing religion
Fine arts and palaces
Military{{Main|Maratha Navy|Maratha Army}}The Maratha army was not homogenous, but employed soldiers of different backgrounds, both locals and foreign mercenaries, including large numbers of Arabs, Sikhs, Rajputs, Sindhis, Rohillas, Abyssinians, Pathans, Topiwalas and Europeans. The army of Nana Fadnavis, for example, included 5,000 Arabs.{{sfnp|Majumdar|1951b|p=512}} Afghan accountsThe Maratha army, especially its infantry, was praised by almost all the enemies of Maratha Empire, ranging from Duke of Wellington to Ahmad Shah Abdali{{citation needed|date=December 2017}}. After the Third Battle of Panipat, Abdali was relieved as Maratha army in the initial stages were almost in the position of destroying the Afghan armies and their Indian Allies Nawab of Oudh and Rohillas. The grand wazir of Durrani Empire, Sardar Shah Wali Khan was shocked when Maratha commander-in-chief Sadashivrao Bhau launched a fierce assault on the centre of Afghan Army, over 3,000 Durrani soldiers were killed alongside Haji Atai Khan, one of the chief commander of Afghan army and nephew of wazir Shah Wali Khan. Such was the fierce assault of Maratha infantry in hand-to-hand combat that Afghan armies started to flee and the wazir in desperation and rage shouted, "Comrades Whither do you fly, our country is far off".{{sfnp|Sarkar|1950|p=245}} Post battle, Ahmad Shah Abdali in a letter to one Indian ruler claimed that Afghans were able to defeat the Marathas only because of the blessings of almighty and any other army would have been destroyed by the Maratha army on that particular day even though Maratha army was numerically inferior to Afghan army and its Indian allies.{{sfnp|Singh|2011|p=213}} Though Abdali won the battle, he also had heavy casualties on his side. So, he sought immediate peace with the Marathas. Abdali wrote in his letter to Peshwa on February 10, 1761: {{Quote|There is no reason to have animosity amongst us. Your son Vishwasrao and your brother Sadashivrao died in battle, was unfortunate. Bhau started the battle, so I had to fight back unwillingly. Yet I feel sorry for his death. Please continue your guardianship of Delhi as before, to that I have no opposition. Only let Punjab until Sutlaj remain with us. Reinstate Shah Alam on Delhi's throne as you did before and let there be peace and friendship between us, this is my ardent desire. Grant me that desire.{{sfnp|Sardesai|1935|p=|ps=:The reference for this letter – Peshwe Daftar letters 2.103, 146; 21.206; 1.202, 207, 210, 213; 29, 42, 54, and 39.161. Satara Daftar – document number 2.301, Shejwalkar's Panipat, page no. 99. Moropanta's account – 1.1, 6, 7}} }}European accountsSimilarly, the Duke of Wellington, after defeating the Marathas, noted that the Marathas, though poorly led by their Generals, had regular infantry and artillery that matched the level of that of the Europeans and warned other British officers from underestimating the Marathas on the battlefield. He cautioned one British general that: "You must never allow Maratha infantry to attack head on or in close hand to hand combat as in that your army will cover itself with utter disgrace".{{sfnp|Lee|2011|p=85}} Even when Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, became the Prime Minister of Britain, he held the Maratha infantry in utmost respect, claiming it to be one of the best in the world. However, at the same time he noted the poor leadership of Maratha Generals, who were often responsible for their defeats.{{sfnp|Lee|2011|p=85}} Charles Metcalfe, one of the ablest of the British Officials in India and later acting Governor-General, wrote in 1806: {{quote|India contains no more than two great powers, British and Mahratta, and every other state acknowledges the influence of one or the other. Every inch that we recede will be occupied by them.{{sfn|Metcalfe |1855|p=}}{{sfnp|Nehru|1946|p=}} }} Norman Gash says that the Maratha infantry was equal to that of British infantry. After the Third Anglo-Maratha war in 1818, Britain listed the Marathas as one of the Martial Races to serve in the British Indian Army.{{sfnp|Gash|1990|p=17}} The 19th century diplomat Sir Justin Sheil commented about the British East India Company copying the French Indian army in raising an army of Indians: {{quote|It is to the military genius of the French that we are indebted for the formation of the Indian army. Our warlike neighbours were the first to introduce into India the system of drilling native troops and converting them into a regularly disciplined force. Their example was copied by us, and the result is what we now behold.The French carried to Persia the same military and administrative faculties, and established the origin of the present Persian regular army, as it is styled. When Napoleon the Great resolved to take Iran under his auspices, he dispatched several officers of superior intelligence to that country with the mission of General Gardanne in 1808. Those gentlemen commenced their operations in the provinces of Azerbaijan and Kermanshah, and it is said with considerable success.|Sir Justin Sheil (1803–1871).{{sfnp|Sheil|Sheil|1856|p=}} }} Notable generals and administratorsRamchandra Pant Amatya BawdekarRamchandra Pant Amatya Bawdekar was a court administrator who rose from the ranks of a local Kulkarni to the ranks of Ashtapradhan under guidance and support of Shivaji. He was one of the prominent Peshwas from the time of Shivaji, prior to the rise of the later Peshwas who controlled the empire after Shahuji.{{sfnp|Sardesai|2002|p=}} When Rajaram fled to Jinji in 1689 leaving Maratha Empire, he gave a Hukumat Panha (King Status) to Pant before leaving. Ramchandra Pant managed the entire state under many challenges like influx of Mughals, betrayal from Vatandars (local satraps under the Maratha state) and social challenges like scarcity of food. With the help of Pantpratinidhi, Sachiv, he kept the economic condition of Maratha Empire in an appropriate state. He received military help from the Maratha commanders – Santaji Ghorpade and Dhanaji Jadhav. On many occasions he himself participated in battles against Mughals.{{citation needed|date=June 2015}} In 1698, he stepped down from the post of Hukumat Panha when Rajaram offered this post to his wife, Tarabai. Tarabai gave an important position to Pant among senior administrators of Maratha State. He wrote Adnyapatra (मराठी: आज्ञापत्र) in which he has explained different techniques of war, maintenance of forts and administration etc. But owing to his loyalty to Tarabai against Shahuji (who was supported by more local satraps), he was sidelined after the arrival of Shahuji in 1707.{{citation needed|date=June 2015}} Nana PhadnavisNana Phadnavis was an influential minister and statesman of the Maratha Empire during the Peshwa administration. After the assassination of Peshwa Narayanrao in 1773, Nana Phadnavis managed the affairs of the state with the help of a twelve-member regency council known as the Barbhai council and he remained the chief strategist of Maratha state till his death in 1800 AD.{{sfnp|Chaturvedi|2010|p=197}} Nana Phadnavis played a pivotal role in holding the Maratha Confederacy together in the midst of internal dissension and the growing power of British. Nana's administrative, diplomatic and financial skills brought prosperity to the Maratha Empire and his management of external affairs kept the Maratha Empire away from the thrust of the British East India Company. Rulers, administrators and generalsRoyal houses
Satara:
Kolhapur:
Peshwas
Peshwas from Bhat familyFrom Balaji Vishwanath onwards, actual power gradually shifted to the Bhat family Peshwas based in Pune.
Houses of Maratha Confederacy
Maps showing the Maratha Empire at different stages of historyThanjavur Maratha Kingdom (Tamil Nadu){{Main|Thanjavur Marathas}}The Thanjavur Marathas were the rulers of Thanjavur principality of Tamil Nadu between the 17th and 19th centuries. Their native language was Thanjavur Marathi. Venkoji, Shahaji's son and Shivaji's half brother, was the founder of the dynasty.{{sfnp| Serfoji|1979|p=}} List of rulers of Thanjavur Maratha dynasty :
See also
Footnotes1. ^{{Harvnb|Imperial Gazetteer of India vol. III|1907|p=502}} {{notelist}}2. ^Annual Report of the Mysore Archaeological Department 1916 pp 10–11, 73–6 3. ^Battle of Wadgaon, Encyclopædia Britannica 4. ^{{cite web|title=History|url=https://ahmedabadcity.gov.in/portal/jsp/Static_pages/history.jsp|website=Amdavad Municipal Corporation}} 5. ^1 {{Cite web |title=Introduction to Rise of the Maratha |author= |work=Krishna Kanta Handiqui State Open University |date= |access-date=5 September 2018 |url= http://www.kkhsou.in/main/history/marathas.html |quote=}} 6. ^1 {{Cite web |title=Peshwa-era Katraj water plan needs to be revived |last=Jadhav |first=Ashish |publisher=Daily News and Analysis |date=18 July 2012 |access-date=5 September 2018 |url= https://www.dnaindia.com/pune/report-peshwa-era-katraj-water-plan-needs-to-be-revived-1716458 |quote=}} 7. ^1 {{Cite web |title=Royal tribute to Thanjavur rulers |last=Madhavan |first=Anushree |work=The New Indian Express |date=27 December 2017 |access-date=5 September 2018 |url= http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/2017/dec/27/royal-tribute-to-thanjavur-rulers-1738354.html |language= |quote=}} 8. ^1 {{Cite web |title=What Exactly Happened At Sringeri Math In April 1791? |last=Kulkarni |first=Uday S. |work=Swarajya |date=3 December 2015 |access-date=5 September 2018 |url= https://swarajyamag.com/culture/what-exactly-happened-at-sringeri-math-in-april-1791 |language= |quote=}} Citations{{reflist|3|refs=[5][6][7][8]}} Bibliography{{refbegin|2|indent=yes}}
Further reading{{refbegin|2|indent=yes}}
10 : Maratha Empire|1674 establishments in India|1818 disestablishments in India|Dynasties of India|Empires and kingdoms of India|Former confederations|Former countries in South Asia|Historical Hindu empires|Maharashtra|States and territories established in 1674 |
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