MARATHA EMPIRE AT IT’S PEAK

MARATHA EMPIRE AT IT’S PEAK is an important aspect of Modern Indian History . What happened after the death of AURANGZEB ? When was Maratha Empire at it’s peak ? How Shivaji laid down the foundation of Maratha Empire .

These specific areas are covered under this article with every minute detail and that too in a lucid manner .

FOUNDATION OF MARATHA EMPIRE

SHIVAJI laid down the foundation of Maratha Empire between 1656 to 1680s . Shivaji subdued various Maratha clan rulers and laid down the foundation of Maratha Empire . During this phase ( 1656 – 1680 ) , a powerful Mughal ruler AURANGZEB was also keen to expand into the Deccan region . Aurangzeb has also rose to the throne in 1757 only .

But , Shivaji’s presence in the region posed a strong resistance to Aurangzeb’s ambition in the Deccan region till 1680s . Shivaji died a natural death in 1680 . After Shivaji , SAMBHAJI became next Maratha ruler in 1680 . Sambhaji was the son of Shivaji .

Sambhaji also posed serious challenge to the Mughal ambition of expanding into Deccan region . However , slowly but steadily the Mughals under Aurangzeb managed to capture large parts of Maratha territories . Sambhaji died in 1689 .

After Sambhaji , RAJA RAM , another son of Shivaji became the next ruler . Raja ram also died in 1699 ( natural death ).

To sum up , between the period of 1680 to 1699 , firstly Sambhaji and the Raja Ram led the Marathas . Both posed serious challenge to Aurangzeb’s ambition . But , Aurangzeb somehow managed to capture large parts of Maratha territories .

WHAT AFTER RAJA RAM ?

Following the death of Raja Ram , his infant son SHIVAJI 2 was placed to the throne . But , Shivaji 2 was too small to handle the vast empire . So in the name of shivaji 2 , TARABAI ( Mother of Shivaji 2 and wife of Raja Ram ) became the defacto ruler . This situation lasted till 1707 .

In 1707 , Aurangzeb died . After Aurangzeb , Mughals never got any strong ruler and the Mughal Empire constantly faced succession disputes which later led to the decline of Mughal Empire .

After the death of Aurangzeb , Mughals released SHAHU from their captivity .

WHO WAS SHAHU ?

Shivaji had two sons , Sambhaji and Raja Ram . Shahu was the son of Sambhaji . Shahu had been earlier captured by Mughals during the rule of Aurangzeb itself . So , after the death of Aurangzeb , Mughals decided to release Shahu from their captivity .

Why ??

As discussed earlier , after Aurangzeb , Mughals were becoming weaker day by day . Reason was succession dispute and factionalism within the nobilty . So , Mughals saw an opportunity to engage the Marathas among themselves by releasing Shahu .

How ?

Marathas knew that if Shahu would be released , a succession dispute would also start among Marathas . This would provide Mughals more time to settle down their dispute and then they could deal effectively with Marathas . Mughals also knew that after Aurangzeb , Marathas would again start re-gaining their lost territories in the absence of strong central Mughal ruler . Thus , due to these reasons Shahu was released .

WHAT HAPPENED WHEN SHAHU RETURNED ?

As expected by Mughals , a succession dispute started between Shahu and Tara Bai . This dispute between Shahu and Tara Bai lasted between 1707 to 1715 . Ultimately , Shahu emerged victorious and became the next Maratha ruler in 1715. Shahu was able to rise to the throne because he was strongly supported by BALAJI VISHWANATH (deputy of Shahu ) .

So , by 1715 Shahu emerged victorious and the succession dispute was settled .

After 1715 , Shahu appointed Balaji Vishwanath as the PESHWA of Maratha Empire . PESHWA meant deputy of king i.e. 2nd in command after king .

BETWEEN 1715 – 1719

Among Mughals , in 1715 , Farrukh Siyar rose to the throne . Farrukh siyar formally recognised Marathas as RULERS .

Here one may wonder that what is the big deal in recognizing Marathas as rulers ??

The answer to this lies in the fact that Aurangzeb never recognized Marathas as rulers. He used to refer Marathas as PLUNDERERS , who used to plunder the Mughal territories during night . As Marathas used to loot the Mughal ruled territories and then run away , Aurangzeb never recognized them as able military warriors also .

However , it would be incorrect for us to conclude here, whether Marathas were able military warriors or not ? History has a lot to tell from here .

So , Farrukh Siyar recognized Marathas as rulers which Aurangzeb has historically refused to acknowledge this .

What does it signifies ??

It simply signifies to the rising influence of Marathas in the region and the weakening status of Mughal Empire .

It is also important to note here , by 1719 Mughals agreed to grant CHAUTH for the Malwa and Khandesh region to Marathas . In return , Marathas would abstain from plundering these regions as they were the part of Mughal territory . It is also a clear sign of the rising influence of Marathas in the region and Marathas dictating terms to the Mughals . An important point to note down here is , BALAJI VISHWANATH was the chief architect of this negotiation between Marathas and Mughals .

Thus , by 1719 the revival of Maratha fortunes was visible under the leadership of Shahu and Balaji Vishwanath .

In 1719 an important event took place . This year Balaji Vishwanath managed to made the position of Peshwa hereditary and eventually died in 1719 itself .

WHAT AFTER BALAJI ?

From 1720 onwards , Balaji vishwanath’s son BAJI RAO became the next peshwa . In 1721 , Shahu also died .

Eventually , after Shahu the real locus of power passed into the hands of Peshwas and the position of king remained ceremonial .

BAJI RAO ( 1720s – 1760s ) – MARATHA EMPIRE AT IT’S PEAK

Under the Peshwaship of Baji Rao , who was an able military commander , Maratha Empire reached it’s territorial peak  i.e  during his period Marathas managed to capture huge lot of territories . Under Baji Rao’s Peshwaship Marathas steadily expanded into north and central India .

There were two types of territories under Marathas . The first category was those territories from where Marathas demanded Chauth and Sardeshmukhi . If the ruler refused to pay a portion of revenue to the Marathas then they had to deal with PINDARIs or Maratha Plunderers .

Second category of territories were those , where Marathas ruled directly and collected revenue .

Baji Rao died in 1740

After Baji Rao , Balaji Baji Rao ( son of Baji Rao ) became next Peshwa in 1740 . Balaji Baji Rao’s period ( 1740 – 1760 ) saw a consolidation of Maratha influence in North and Central India . The period of Balaji Baji Rao in Modern History is often referred as the GOLDEN AGE of Marathas . As during this phase the influence of Marathas was at its peak over large parts of north and Central India .