The Expansion of the Maratha Power

 The Expansion of the Maratha Power

At the beginning of the Maratha war of independence , the Mughals were on the offensive whereas the Marathas were on the defensive . This situation however was reversed at the end of the war of independence . The Mughals were thrown on the defensive against the Marathas . In the latter half of the eighteenth century , the Marathas subdued the Mughals and extended the Maratha power to cover practically the whole of India . We shall study this in the present lesson .

Release of Shahu Maharaj : 

After the death of Emperor Aurangzeb , there ensued a struggle among his sons for the throne of Delhi . Prince Azamshah was in the South . At once , he marched towards Delhi to seize the • imperial throne . Prince Shahu was in his captivity . Azamshah believed that if Shahu Maharaj was released , there would arise a conflict between him and Maharani Tarabai for the gadi of the Maratha Chhatrapati Azamshah felt that this would sap the Maratha strength and therefore , he released Shahu Maharaj .

Coronation of Shahu Maharaj : 

Immediately after his release , Shahu Maharaj marched towards Maharashtra . He was joined by some Maratha Sardars , but Maharani Tarabai did not accept his claim to the throne . The armies of Shahu Maharaj and Maharani Tarabai fought a battle at Khed on the bank of the Bheema . Shahu Maharaj won the battle . He captured Satara . He got himself crowned . Satara became the capital of the Maratha kingdom . 

Tarabai's opposition to Shahu Maharaj continued . She proclaimed her minor son Shivaji II as the Chhatrapati at Panhala in AD 1710. This gave rise to an independent Maratha Kingdom at Kolhapur besides the one at Satara .

Balaji Vishwanath :

 Balaji Vishwanath Bhat was prominent among those who supported Shahu Maharaj after his release from Mughal captivity . Balaji hailed from Shrivardhan , in Konkan . He was capable and experienced . He convinced many Maratha Sardars that Shahu Maharaj was the true heir to the Maratha throne and won them over to the side of Shahu Maharaj .

 Kanhoji Angre was the Chief of the Maratha navy . He sided with Maharani Tarabai . He attacked the territory of Shahu Maharaj . Shahu Maharaj was faced with a difficult situation . In these circumstances he made Balaji his Peshwa . He was sent against Kanhoji . Balaji tactfully avoided war and won Kanhoji over to the side of Shahu Maharaj .

Chauthai and Sardeshmukhi rights : 

After strengthening the position of Shahu Maharaj in Maharashtra , Balaji turned his attention to the politics in the North . The Delhi court , after the death of Emperor Aurangzeb , was marked by bickering and confusion . The Sayyid brothers , Abdulla ( Hasan ) and Hussein Ali had become very influential . With their help , in AD 1719 Balaji obtained from the Mughal Emperor , the grants or sanads to collect chauthai and sardeshmukhi from the Mughal territory in the Deccan . These sanads gave the Marathas the rights to collect one fourth part ( chauthai ) and one tenth part ( sardeshmukhi ) of the revenue from the Mughal territory in the Deccan .

 Bajirao 1 : 

After the death of Balaji Vishwanath , Shahu Maharaj appointed Balaji's son , Bajirao I the Peshwa . During his term , Bajirao defeated the Nizam . He expanded the Maratha power in Malwa and Bundelkhand . He shook the Mughal power by marching on Delhi . He defeated the Portuguese and captured the fort of Vasai from them .

Bajirao 1

Nizam's defeat at Palkhed :

 Nizam - ul - mulk became the Mughal Subhedar of the Deccan in 1713. The Emperor had granted the Marathas the rights to collect chauthai and sardeshmukhi . The Nizam was opposed to this . The Nizam , with the help of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj of Kolhapur captured some parts of the Pune pargana . Bajirao decided to checkmate the Nizam . He defeated the Nizam at Palkhed near Aurangabad . The Nizam accepted the Maratha right to collect chauthai and sardeshmukhi . He agreed not to support the cause Sambhaji Maharaj of Kolhapur .

 Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj of Kolhapur continued to oppose Shahu Maharaj . Shahu Maharaj , therefore , organised a campaign against him and defeated him . They entered into a treaty in AD 1731 on the bank of Warna . The river Warna was fixed as the border between the Satara and Kolhapur States .

 Bajirao had realized that there was ample scope for the Marathas to expand their power in the North since the Mughal power had become weak . Shahu Maharaj supported his policy .

Malwa and Bundelkhand :

 Bajirao dispatched Malharrao Holkar , Ranoji Shinde and Udaji Pawar under the leadership of his brother Chimajiappa to Malwa . There , they strengthened their posts . 

Raja Chhatrasal had established an independent kingdom in Bundelkhand . Mohammad Khan Bangush , the Mughal Subhedar of Allahabad , attacked Bundelkhand . He defeated Chhatrasal and cornered him . Chhatrasal appealed to Bajirao for help . Accompanied by a big army , Bajirao proceeded to Bundelkhand . He defeated Bangush . Chhatrasal greatly honoured Bajirao . Thus , the Marathas established their supremacy in Malwa and Bundelkhand . 

Bajirao demanded from the Emperor the office of the Subhedar of Malwa and a cash payment . As the Emperor declined this demand , Bajirao marched on Delhi in AD 1737. The Mughals were taken by surprise .

The battle of Bhopal : 

The Emperor felt uneasy on account of Bajirao's Delhi expedition . The Nizam decided to go for the defence of the Mughal power . The Nizam went to Delhi . The Emperor offered all kinds of help to the Nizam . The Nizam then came to Bhopal . Bajirao blockaded the Nizam's army in the Fort of Bhopal . The Nizam surrendered to him and agreed to get the Subhedari of Malwa for the Marathas from the Emperor . 

Defeat of the Portuguese : 

The territories of Vasai and Thane on the Konkan coast were in the possession of the Portuguese . The Portuguese rulers oppressed their subjects . Bajirao sent his brother Chimajiappa to subdue the Portuguese . Chimaji conquered Thane and the adjacent areas . In 1739 , he laid siege to the Vasai fort . The fort was very strong . The Portuguese had a powerful artillery . In spite of all this , Chimaji continued the siege with perseverance and forced the Portuguese to surrender . The fort of Vasai and large parts of the Portuguese territory passed into the hands of the Marathas .

Death of Bajirao : 

Nadirshah , the Emperor of Iran , invaded India . Following the order of Shahu Maharaj , Bajirao set out for the North with a big army to defend the Mughal power . By the time he reached Burhanpur , Nadirshah had returned to Iran with an enormous booty looted from Delhi . In April 1740 , Bajirao breathed his last at Raverkhedi on the banks of the Narmada .

 Bajirao was a great General . With his valour , he established the Maratha supremacy in the North . He won status for the Maratha power as a formidable power in the whole of India .