Maratha Empire (1646–1818)

Key contributions & exam significance

At age 16, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj captured Torna Fort from the declining Bijapur Sultanate, his first independent conquest. This act is widely regarded as the founding moment of Swarajya ("self-rule") — the beginning of what would become the Maratha Empire.

High-yield revision facts

• Captured in 1646 amid turmoil in the Bijapur court over Sultan Mohammed Adil Shah's illness.
• Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj soon built a new fort nearby, Rajgad, which served as his capital for the next 26 years before Raigad.
• Marks the start of the Hindavi Swarajya movement — an independent Maratha polity free of Bijapuri and Mughal control.

Key contributions & exam significance

Bijapur general Afzal Khan attempted to assassinate Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj during a staged meeting at the foot of Pratapgad fort. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, anticipating treachery, killed him with bagh nakh (tiger claws) and a concealed dagger, then routed the leaderless Bijapuri army — a decisive early victory that established him as a serious power.

High-yield revision facts

• The meeting took place on 10 November 1659 at the foot of Pratapgad fort.
• Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj used bagh nakh (tiger claws), a concealed metal weapon worn on the hand, to kill Afzal Khan.
• Over 3,000 Bijapuri soldiers were killed in the battle that followed; the victory brought Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj weapons, horses, and treasure.

Key contributions & exam significance

Mughal governor Shaista Khan occupied the childhood home of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Lal Mahal in Pune, as his residence. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj led a daring night raid into the heavily guarded mansion, wounding Shaista Khan (who lost fingers escaping) and killing several guards — a bold psychological blow against Mughal authority.

High-yield revision facts

• The raid took place in April 1663 at Lal Mahal, the childhood residence of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in Pune.
• Shaista Khan lost three fingers while escaping through a window; his son was killed in the raid.
• Aurangzeb transferred Shaista Khan to Bengal in disgrace shortly after this humiliation.

Key contributions & exam significance

After Mughal general Jai Singh I besieged Purandar fort, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was forced to negotiate. Under the treaty, he ceded 23 of his 35 forts to the Mughals, retaining only 12, paid compensation, and agreed to assist the Mughals against Bijapur — a temporary setback that set up his later visit to Agra.

High-yield revision facts

• Signed on 11 June 1665 between Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and Mughal general Jai Singh I.
• Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj ceded 23 of his 35 forts to the Mughals, keeping only 12 including Raigad.
• Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj agreed to assist the Mughals militarily against Bijapur, setting the stage for his fateful 1666 visit to Agra.

Key contributions & exam significance

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj travelled to Agra to meet Aurangzeb as part of the Purandar settlement, but was insulted at court and placed under house arrest. He famously escaped by smuggling himself out hidden in large baskets supposedly carrying sweets, returning to Maharashtra to resume his campaign — a legendary act of cunning that cemented his folk-hero status.

High-yield revision facts

• Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was placed under house arrest in Agra in 1666 after being made to stand with lower-ranked nobles at Aurangzeb's court.
• He feigned illness and distributed sweets in large baskets to Brahmins and the poor daily, then escaped hidden inside one such basket.
• He travelled in disguise through Mughal territory back to Maharashtra, reaching Raigad safely by late 1666.

Key contributions & exam significance

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was formally crowned in a grand Vedic ceremony conducted by the scholar Gaga Bhatt, assuming the titles Chhatrapati (sovereign monarch) and Haindava Dharmoddharak (protector of the Hindu faith). This formally established the Maratha kingdom as a sovereign state, no longer a vassal of any Sultanate, with him also instituting the Ashtapradhan council of eight ministers to govern it.

High-yield revision facts

• The coronation took place on 6 June 1674 at Raigad Fort.
• Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj assumed the titles Chhatrapati and Haindava Dharmoddharak; the era is also marked as the start of the Rajyabhishek Shaka calendar.
• Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj instituted the Ashtapradhan, a council of eight ministers (Peshwa, Amatya, Sachiv, Mantri, Senapati, Sumant, Nyayadhish, Panditrao) to administer the kingdom.

Key contributions & exam significance

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj died at Raigad in 1680, six years after his coronation, leaving behind a consolidated, independent Maratha kingdom with a navy, a fort network, and an administrative system. His death triggered a succession dispute between his sons Sambhaji Maharaj and Rajaram Maharaj that briefly weakened the new state just as Aurangzeb intensified pressure on the Deccan.

High-yield revision facts

• Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj died at Raigad Fort in April 1680, after a 32-year reign building the Maratha state.
• At his death the kingdom had a strong navy (to counter Siddis and Portuguese), a network of forts, and the Ashtapradhan administration.
• His elder son, Sambhaji Maharaj, succeeded him after a brief succession struggle with younger son Rajaram Maharaj.

Key contributions & exam significance

Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, who had ruled since 1681 and successfully held off Mughal, Portuguese, and Siddi attacks for nine years, was betrayed by his brother-in-law Ganoji Shirke and captured by the Mughals at Sangameshwar. Tortured and executed on Aurangzeb's orders for refusing to convert to Islam or reveal fort locations, his defiant death — rather than ending Maratha resistance — galvanized it into a sustained guerrilla war under Rajaram Maharaj and Maharani Tarabai.

High-yield revision facts

• Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj was captured at Sangameshwar in 1689 after being betrayed by his brother-in-law Ganoji Shirke, then executed at Tulapur near Pune.
• Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj refused Aurangzeb's demands to convert to Islam and reveal the locations of Maratha forts and treasure.
• His half-brother, Rajaram Maharaj, became Chhatrapati and continued the resistance from Jinji fort in Tamil Nadu.

Key contributions & exam significance

After Rajaram Maharaj died in 1700, his queen Maharani Tarabai became regent for their minor son Shivaji II and took direct charge of the war against the Mughals — organizing raids and diplomacy with remarkable skill. Her leadership kept Maratha resistance alive through the final, most difficult years of Aurangzeb's Deccan campaigns.

High-yield revision facts

• Rajaram Maharaj died in 1700; Maharani Tarabai then ruled as regent for her son Shivaji II from Satara.
• Maharani Tarabai personally organized military campaigns and is remembered as one of the most capable Maratha women rulers.
• Her resistance continued until Aurangzeb's death in 1707, after which Mughal pressure on the Deccan eased considerably.

Key contributions & exam significance

Aurangzeb's death in 1707 ended nearly three decades of relentless Mughal campaigning in the Deccan. His successor released Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj's son, Shahu Maharaj (held captive since childhood), hoping he would split Maratha loyalty with Maharani Tarabai's faction — instead Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj, after defeating her forces, reunified Maratha leadership and went on to appoint the first Peshwa.

High-yield revision facts

• Aurangzeb died in 1707 at Ahmadnagar, ending the longest and most expensive Mughal military campaign of his reign.
• Shahu Maharaj, Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj's son, had been a Mughal captive since age seven; he was released to create division among the Marathas.
• Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj defeated Maharani Tarabai's forces at the Battle of Khed (1707), establishing his own line as the recognized Chhatrapati at Satara.

Key contributions & exam significance

Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj appointed Balaji Vishwanath as Peshwa (Prime Minister) on 16 November 1713, dismissing the previous incumbent. Peshwa Balaji Vishwanath proved so effective at consolidating the Chhatrapati's administration and finances that the Peshwa post became hereditary in his family — beginning the era in which the Peshwas, not the Chhatrapatis, held real power.

High-yield revision facts

• Appointed Peshwa on 16 November 1713, replacing Bahiroji Pingale.
• Founder of the Bhat family's hereditary Peshwa line, which would effectively control the Maratha Confederacy for over a century.
• Reorganized revenue collection and built the alliance with Maratha sardars (chiefs) that later expanded the empire.

Key contributions & exam significance

Peshwa Balaji Vishwanath led a Maratha military force to Delhi to support the Sayyid Brothers in installing a new Mughal emperor, securing in return formal Mughal recognition of Maratha sovereignty in the Deccan plus the right to collect Chauth (25%) and Sardeshmukhi (10%) taxes across six Deccan provinces — a landmark legal and financial foundation for the empire's expansion.

High-yield revision facts

• The 1719 mission also secured the release of Shahu Maharaj's mother Yesubai, held in Mughal custody since Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj's capture.
• Chauth (25%) and Sardeshmukhi (10%) were Maratha tax entitlements over revenue from six Mughal Deccan provinces.
• This formal recognition gave the Marathas a legal claim to revenue across the Deccan, fueling decades of further expansion.

Key contributions & exam significance

Bajirao I succeeded his father, Peshwa Balaji Vishwanath, as Peshwa at just 20, and is regarded as the greatest of all Peshwas. He pursued an aggressive "Hindu Pad Padshahi" vision of Maratha paramountcy across India, defeated the Nizam of Hyderabad at the Battle of Palkhed (1728) — called a masterstroke of strategic mobility — and never lost a battle in his 20-year tenure.

High-yield revision facts

• Became Peshwa in April 1720 at age 20, after Peshwa Balaji Vishwanath's death.
• Defeated the Nizam of Hyderabad at the Battle of Palkhed (1728) through superior strategic mobility, without a major pitched battle.
• Reportedly never lost a single battle in his career, expanding Maratha territory deep into Malwa, Gujarat, and Bundelkhand.

Key contributions & exam significance

Chimaji Appa, Peshwa Bajirao I's brother, led a prolonged campaign that captured the strategic Vasai (Bassein) Fort from the Portuguese after a months-long siege, ending Portuguese dominance over the northern Konkan coast. It remains one of the Marathas' most celebrated military-naval achievements and a major MPSC-syllabus Maharashtra-specific topic.

High-yield revision facts

• Vasai (Bassein) Fort fell to the Marathas in May 1739 after a siege lasting several months.
• Chimaji Appa was Peshwa Bajirao I's younger brother and a capable general in his own right.
• The victory ended over two centuries of Portuguese control over the northern Konkan, confining them largely to Goa thereafter.

Key contributions & exam significance

Peshwa Bajirao I died of fever in 1740; his son Balaji Baji Rao (popularly Nanasaheb) became Peshwa and presided over the empire's greatest territorial extent, pushing Maratha influence as far north as Attock on the Indus and Punjab — the zenith before the catastrophic reversal at Panipat two decades later.

High-yield revision facts

• Peshwa Bajirao I died at Raverkhedi in April 1740; his son Balaji Baji Rao succeeded him as Peshwa the same year.
• Under Peshwa Nanasaheb, Maratha territory and influence reached its peak extent, including expeditions to Punjab and Attock.
• His cousin Sadashivrao Bhau would lead the Maratha army at the disastrous Third Battle of Panipat in 1761.

Key contributions & exam significance

The Maratha army under Sadashivrao Bhau clashed with Ahmad Shah Abdali's Afghan forces (allied with the Rohillas and Awadh) at Panipat. The catastrophic Maratha defeat — with tens of thousands killed, including Bhau and the young Vishwasrao — shattered Maratha ambitions of replacing the Mughals as paramount power in North India and is the single most significant military event of the Peshwa era.

High-yield revision facts

• Fought on 14 January 1761; the Maratha army was led by Sadashivrao Bhau, cousin of Peshwa Balaji Baji Rao.
• Between 60,000–70,000 Maratha soldiers were killed in the battle and its brutal aftermath.
• The defeat ended Maratha ambitions of Delhi-centric paramountcy for a decade, though Mahadji Scindia later helped rebuild northern influence by 1772.

Key contributions & exam significance

After Panipat weakened central Peshwa authority, Maratha power decentralized into a confederacy of four major chiefs operating semi-independently while nominally under the Peshwa at Poona: the Scindias of Gwalior, the Holkars of Indore, the Gaikwads of Baroda, and the Bhonsles of Nagpur. This structural shift shaped how the British would later fight (and divide) Maratha power.

High-yield revision facts

• The four houses — Scindia, Holkar, Gaikwad, Bhonsle — each controlled their own territory and army while owing nominal allegiance to the Peshwa.
• Mahadji Scindia rebuilt Maratha influence in North India by 1772, restoring Mughal emperor Shah Alam II to the Delhi throne under Maratha protection.
• This decentralized structure later let the British defeat each Maratha house separately rather than facing a unified empire.

Key contributions & exam significance

Triggered by a British-backed succession dispute in Pune, the First Anglo-Maratha War (1775–1782) was the first direct military conflict between the British East India Company and the Marathas. It ended inconclusively with the Treaty of Salbai (1782), which restored most pre-war territory but signaled that the British were now a serious power player in Maratha politics.

High-yield revision facts

• Triggered when Raghunathrao sought British help to claim the Peshwaship, leading to the Treaty of Surat (1775) and war.
• The Treaty of Salbai was signed in May 1782 between Mahadji Scindia (representing the Marathas) and the British.
• The treaty restored most territories to pre-war status and gave the British 20 years of peace with the Marathas.

Key contributions & exam significance

Fleeing a rival Maratha chief after the Battle of Poona, Peshwa Bajirao II signed the Treaty of Bassein, accepting a British subsidiary alliance — stationing British troops in Maratha territory at the Peshwa's expense in exchange for British support. Widely seen by historians as the moment the Marathas effectively lost their independence, even though the empire formally survived another 16 years.

High-yield revision facts

• Signed on 31 December 1802 at Bassein (Vasai), between Peshwa Bajirao II and the British East India Company.
• Peshwa Bajirao II accepted a subsidiary alliance, agreeing to maintain British troops within his territory at his own cost.
• The treaty followed Peshwa Bajirao II's defeat at the Battle of Poona by Holkar forces and his flight to British protection.

Key contributions & exam significance

The combined forces of the Peshwa, Holkar, and Bhonsle made a final, uncoordinated bid to throw off British subsidiary control, but were defeated in a series of battles including Khadki and Koregaon. Peshwa Bajirao II surrendered in June 1818 and was exiled to Bithoor with a pension; the Peshwaship was abolished and its territories annexed — formally ending the Maratha Empire after 172 years.

High-yield revision facts

• Fought between 1817 and 1818; key engagements included the Battle of Khadki (1817) and Battle of Koregaon (1818).
• Peshwa Bajirao II surrendered to the British in June 1818 and was exiled to Bithoor (near Kanpur) on a pension.
• The Peshwaship was formally abolished; most Peshwa territory was annexed into the Bombay Presidency, ending the 172-year-old empire founded by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in 1646.